Chapter 1: The Crack (5)

Windmere’s only young duke has lost his memory!

At this shocking and terrible news, the duchess let out a scream.

“M-My son…! My son has become an idiot?!”

The doctors who had come to deliver the news hurriedly rushed forward to support the staggering duchess.

“Ahem… I wouldn’t say he’s become an idiot, Your Grace. He still remembers his name and possesses basic knowledge related to daily life. This appears to be temporary memory loss caused by the injury…”

“His memory isn’t intact…! Oh, merciful heavens!”

The duchess soaked her third handkerchief with tears.

Watching from a short distance away, Celia turned toward the doctor.

“Then when will his memory come back?”

The previous dawn, Lucius had briefly awakened, said something completely insane, and then promptly fallen back asleep.

Hoping he would be sane the next time he woke up, she asked the question.

The doctor subtly avoided her gaze.

A sense of dread immediately crept up her spine.

“Only God can answer that question, Young Madam.”

“…Why?”

“He could regain his memories the next time he wakes up. Or perhaps one day while living normally. Or maybe…”

The doctor hesitated before finally saying the thing no one wanted to hear.

“For the rest of his life.”

The duchess, who had been on the verge of collapsing again, suddenly sprang up like a startled frog.

“What did you say?!”

The doctor’s shoulders immediately shrank under her furious shout.

Of course, Celia was equally shocked.

It felt as though someone had struck her head three times with a hammer.

Her lips tightened.

What is he talking about?

He might never recover his memory?

As everyone stood frozen in shock, a maid approached.

“My lady, the young duke has awakened.”

It seemed that Lucius, who had delivered this thunderbolt of misery into her life before peacefully falling asleep again, had finally woken up.

The duchess, who had looked ready to die from worry moments earlier, immediately grabbed her cane.

“Lucius is awake? Of course, of course I’m going!”

The maid hesitated.

“Your Grace… well…”

“What is it? Has something else happened to Lucius?”

Until that moment, Celia had been entirely focused on Lucius’s damaged brain.

What happens if he wakes up and still doesn’t remember anything?

She couldn’t stop thinking about it.

But her train of thought ended abruptly.

“The young duke is asking for the Young Madam.”

Celia’s head snapped upward.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

“What?”

*

The first person Lucius asked to see after fully waking up was Celia.

Neither Celia nor anyone else could believe it.

No sane person would ever make that choice!

Of all people, he wanted to see her?

The woman least likely to help his recovery?

Entering the room still filled with the scent of herbs, Celia wore the expression of someone who had bitten into something rotten.

She repeated the doctor’s warning to herself.

“The young duke is a patient! Absolutely, absolutely do not do anything that might upset or stimulate him!”

If Lucius’s condition worsened, it would be troublesome for her as well.

So she intended to cooperate as much as possible.

“Ah.”

Lucius, who had been sitting alone on the bed staring at a meal that was still steaming, noticed her standing at the doorway.

“Come here.”

He pointed to the chair beside the bed.

His overly polite attitude made her flinch for a moment.

Only for a moment.

The memory of what he had said when he first woke up made her steps gradually slow.

Am I actually nervous because of Lucius?

The instant she realized it, she lengthened her stride and marched forward.

She deliberately dragged the chair slightly farther back before sitting down.

A quiet breath escaped her.

“I heard you asked for me first.”

Immediately she crossed her legs and folded her arms, taking a defensive posture.

Her tone was openly hostile.

But Lucius, having lost his memory, merely nodded.

He didn’t react at all.

Only his gaze followed her movements.

For some reason, it felt strangely persistent.

As he quietly stared at her, Celia narrowed her eyes as well.

For someone who had spent over two weeks lying in bed, he looked surprisingly healthy.

His skin was pale like porcelain that had never seen sunlight.

The bandages were gone now, revealing glimpses of the firm body beneath his loose clothes.

That crazy bastard…

How does someone lie in bed for fifteen days and still look like that?

If he had lost all his muscle and looked like a skeleton, maybe she would have treated him a little more gently.

“Why did you call me?”

She waited for an answer while looking at his slightly dry lips.

The silence dragged on.

Oddly enough, it made Celia more nervous.

Why call me if you’re not going to say anything?

Celia had never once experienced silence with Lucius.

Just as she was about to lose patience, he finally spoke.

“I heard you’re my wife.”

Celia immediately raised her head.

The way he addressed her made the hairs on her body stand up.

You’re?

Did he really just say that so politely?

The two of them barely used each other’s names unless other people were present.

A respectful form of address like that felt completely wrong coming from him.

“You… call me ‘you.'”

The words slipped out before she could stop herself.

Seeing her reaction, Lucius tilted his head.

His eyes never left her.

There was an emotion inside them that she couldn’t understand.

His gaze slowly traced her face.

After a brief hesitation, he spoke.

“So that’s how we addressed each other.”

It was such an innocent answer that Celia nearly lost her mind.

Her grip tightened on the chair.

A Lucius making that kind of face?

Her throat felt strange.

No matter how much she tried to convince herself he was pretending, his attitude didn’t seem fake.

He’s seriously treating me like his wife?

Legally, she was his wife.

But still!

This wasn’t right!

Lucius pushed away the bowl of porridge and picked up a medicine bottle instead.

After swallowing the medicine, he grimaced slightly at the bitterness.

Then he continued.

“Before you arrived, I spoke with the doctor.”

His tongue brushed the inside of his cheek.

“I understand that my memory loss is causing trouble for you.”

Trouble?

This couldn’t be described with such a mild word.

This was a catastrophe.

Anger began boiling inside her.

The duchess had called him an idiot.

And honestly, right now, Celia was furious at this idiot.

How could he spend his entire life being completely useless to her?

“Why would it trouble me? You’re still Lucius Windmere.”

The sarcasm in her voice was unmistakable.

Normally, Lucius would have smirked in response.

He would have raised an eyebrow and given her a look that said, Really?

But this version of him only widened his eyes slightly before lowering his gaze.

He sat quietly, as if savoring the uncomfortable silence.

Then he spoke.

“I heard we were childhood friends.”

“…”

What kind of nonsense was this now?

Someone clearly had a very strange definition of childhood friends.

The only thing they had in common was that they had known each other since childhood.

He continued calmly.

“Because I’ve lost my memory, I asked people to tell me about my wife. The doctor gave me some newspapers.”

Newspapers?

Only then did Celia notice several newspapers on a nearby table.

Even a quick glance made her dizzy.

Every article exaggerated how wonderfully the two of them got along.

Of course, those newspapers existed to promote the supposed reconciliation between Windmere and Brickwell.

No one wanted stories about a married couple who still wanted to strangle each other.

The newspapers created by her father and his father together were filled with lies.

Yet Lucius seemed genuinely interested in them.

Leaning forward slightly, he spoke.

“I’m sorry for losing my memory.”

His voice was sincere.

“It must have been difficult for you.”

Without realizing it, he had moved much closer.

Too close.

The reduced distance made his large frame feel overwhelmingly oppressive.

“Is that why you called me? Because you were worried I’d have a hard time?”

She spoke quickly.

She didn’t even notice her breathing had sped up.

“Of course.”

Lucius answered immediately.

“And because I thought it was only right that I see you first. You’re my wife.”

Lucius Windmere.

When your memory comes back, you’re going to die from embarrassment over these words.

Celia covered her mouth with one hand.

Seeing her reaction, he pulled back slightly.

Then tilted his head again.

The gaze itself felt familiar.

The emotion inside it did not.

“Just because of that? Just because of that?!”

She shot to her feet so quickly that she nearly stumbled.

A large hand immediately caught her waist and steadied her.

The warmth of his hand could be felt even through her clothes.

She flailed like a startled bird.

“I don’t accept that!”

Lucius looked at her with complete sincerity.

His eyes were unbelievably clear.

Celia suddenly found herself speechless.

The man in front of her was definitely Lucius.

Lucius Windmere.

The owner of nearly every scar in her life.

Yet at this moment, he looked at her with eyes cleaner than those of an innocent boy.

As though he were the same person and a completely different person at the same time.

The contradiction left her confused.

“Would it help if I explained my reasons?”

He gently sat her back down.

The soft chair welcomed her.

Then his rough hand settled over hers.

His hand was so large it easily covered both of hers.

The warmth instantly made every muscle in her back tense.

Cra… crazy…

She barely managed to stop the words from escaping.

“Want me to be honest?”

“…Would I tell you to lie?”

His thumb slowly rubbed the back of her hand.

His gaze lowered briefly to their joined hands before returning to her face.

“As I told the doctors, my memory isn’t complete.”

A smile slowly spread across his face.

His tongue brushed over his dry lips.

Then he spoke in a low, sleepy voice.

“But there is one thing I remember.”

The corners of his eyes curved.

“I remember you crying.”

“Cough!“

“With red eyes, crying in my arms.”

As she tried to pull her hand away, he tightened his grip.

His fingers slid between hers.

Intertwining completely.

“My mind is empty.”

His voice softened.

“And the only thing inside it is you.”

Before she realized it, her hand had been lifted beneath his chin.

Then his lips pressed against it.

“That’s why I looked for you, Celia.”

*

Unable to endure another second, Celia kicked the door open and stormed out.

She braced herself against the wall.

“Crazy… He’s crazy!”

Her clenched fist slammed into the stone.

Bang!

Lucius Windmere had lost his memory.

Lucius Windmere had gone insane!

“What? What did he say I was doing beneath him?!”

Dear heavens.

It was a horrifying collection of memories.

What kind of memory had remained inside that damned head of his?

Why was that the only thing he remembered?!

She couldn’t understand it.

Not at all.

Her stomach churned.

Wanting cold water, she straightened herself and staggered forward.

That was when she heard footsteps.

Celia looked up.

Her tired eyes immediately sharpened.

“What are you doing here alone?”

The closer the person came, the clearer he became.

A dark crimson velvet coat tightly wrapped around his waist.

Several buttons near the collar had been left open, revealing a pale neck and collarbone.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Soft white hair fell over his forehead.

A faint scent of perfume drifted toward her.

“Sister.”

A young man with the same snow-white hair as hers smiled broadly, deep dimples appearing in his cheeks.

The future heir of House Brickwell.

Evandor Brickwell.

The youthful boy she remembered was gone.

At some point, he had grown into a young man.

Stepping forward until the tips of their shoes touched, he grinned.

“Didn’t you miss me?”