As My Husband Said, I Brought in a Lover Chapter 96
Tremble. The bead seemed to feel fear again. Luize got up from her place, holding the bead tightly.
“Anyway, since we’ve found what we needed to find, it’s time to go back. I’ll ask if there’s a way not to destroy you. It just seems too cruel to kill something that appears to have emotions.”
It was when she stepped towards the nearest window. Creak.
“…?”
The floor gave way, and she plummeted down in an instant. It was where the pile of beads was supposed to be. Somehow trying to land safely, she saw Edward extending his arms towards her. It was a distance that could be dangerous enough to crush someone if mishandled, but somehow, she felt like Edward could catch her without any trouble.
She relaxed her body, trusting him. As Luize expected, Edward’s arms firmly caught her. Within his embrace, Luize proudly showed the black bead in her hand.
“Ta-da! I found it!”
“Well done. I knew Miss Luize could do it.”
Edward smiled warmly at her. Their gazes met closely. A strange tension flowed between them as if time had stopped.
She slowly inhaled while looking into his elegantly curved eyes. His face was dazzlingly handsome, as always.
“Isn’t it a bit too much, performing such a scene in front of someone who’s struggling with the pain of breaking up?” Carlo suddenly popped his head between them.
Cold, red eyes fiercely targeted Carlo. Carlo flinched and stepped back. A dark aura flickered around Edward like a phantom.
“Do you have a complaint?”
“N-No. It’s not like what you think. Um, I’m sorry.”
Only then did Luize look around. Maxion and Aiven seemed to be deliberately not looking their way, feigning indifference.
“Please, put me down.”
“I could hold you a bit longer.” Edward, turning his gaze back to Luize, replied with a gentle voice.
“I’m embarrassed.”
“… That’s a pity.” Edward obediently put her down.
Luize stepped out of Edward’s embrace with her face flushed red.
“Ah, and since we’ve found the bead, I’ll give you your promised share. I’ll bring the contract and make the final payment this evening.”
Edward, with an indifferent face as if to dismiss him, took out a money bag from his arms and threw it to Carlo. Carlo caught the heavy money and roughly checked inside. It seemed to contain about 80 gold.
“Fwit, how did you manage to hide such a large amount in your clothes without it showing?” He whistled with joy.
Luize extended the black bead towards Edward. “Ah, what should we do with this?”
“Please pass the bead to Aiven.”
“Not to Elliot?”
“I’m not in a trustworthy state right now.”
“Ah, right. Because you’re connected to the bead.”
Aiven approached Luize and extended his hand. Luize was about to pass the bead to Aiven but hesitated.
“Is there no way to undo the magic without destroying the bead?”
“Why do you ask?”
“It seemed alive to me. After it hit my sword, it rolled on the floor and trembled in the corner as if it were in pain.”
“…”
“And it tapped my hand, then willingly came into my palm as if it felt safe. It even responded when I asked if it was in pain. If it’s alive… it’d be regrettable to just kill it.”
“If we don’t get rid of that, everyone in the village will eventually lose their lives.”
Luize looked dejected at Aiven’s response. “But… If it feels emotions and can communicate, maybe we could persuade it?”
“That’s impossible.”
Maxion approached Luize. “Luize. Pass it to Aiven quickly.”
His firm tone made Luize look downcast as she looked at the bead. The bead was still trembling in her hand.
“What if it’s alive?”
“…That’s the horrible thing about black magic.”
The voice filled with suppressed emotions was Aiven’s. His face, usually expressionless, flickered with anger. Luize opened her eyes wide at this new side of him she had never seen.
“It absorbs human memories to act like a human. It realized that Luize couldn’t overpower it through strength, so it’s trying to exploit your weakness. In reality, black magic doesn’t have any emotions or will other than a desire to survive.”
“This bead too?”
“Yes. If you’re curious, try asking it to undo the magic.”
She looked at the bead quietly and then spoke. “If you want to live, undo all the magic on the villagers.”
Tremble.
“Quickly. Return everyone’s memories.”
Tremble.
“…Please remove all these beads here.”
Tremble.
“Even if it’s just half, or less, a little bit at a time, okay?”
But the bead only trembled without the dark-stained part fading or the beads below disappearing.
“I thought it could understand me.”
“It’s pretending. Especially since that bead is currently connected to everyone’s minds in the village. It can easily mimic human actions.”
“I see.” Luize handed the bead to Aiven with a disappointed face. “I was foolish.”
Aiven took the bead and headed down, and the rest of the group descended from the pile of beads.
“Vice Captain, I’ll hold it. Please draw your sword and destroy the bead.”
“Let’s do that.”
Luize watched the bead with a complex gaze. The bead was still trembling in Aiven’s hand.
Edward approached her side. “You still seem uneasy.”
“It’s strange.”
“What is?”
“How did the bead know that acting that way would weaken my heart if it doesn’t have any will?”
Luize’s gaze turned towards Edward. When her eyes met Edward, who had been looking at her, a clear answer came to her mind. “Ah, I see.” Luize narrowed her eyes and then sighed.
“May I ask why you looked at me that way all of a sudden?”
“I realized who it was mimicking… and suddenly, any pity I had for the bead vanished.”
“It’s not me, is it?”
“…”
“Really, it’s me?”
Luize nodded instead of answering.
Edward smirked and pointed at the bead. “I don’t know why you came to that conclusion, but if it’s because it’s similar to me, I think it’s okay to feel a bit more pity for it. After all, the bead is about to die.”
“The real one is here, so it’s okay. The bead is just a fake. I thought it was kind of cute.” Luize spoke nonchalantly, then realized what she had said and covered her mouth in surprise.
Edward teased with a sly smile. “What did you just say?”
“I don’t know. I don’t remember.”
Clang! Just as Luize shook her head, a sharp sound of cutting air rang out. Both turned their heads towards the source of the sound. Maxion had drawn his sword with a stern face.
“It’s tough.”
“It seems to have used protective magic. As if it learned magic by reading a wizard’s memories…”
Aiven spoke, then turned naturally to Carlo, who was standing there with an indifferent face, watching their actions.
“Does this mean it can’t be destroyed by mere physical force?”
“Yes.”
“Then, we just need something that magic doesn’t work on, right?”
Luize pointed at the dagger hanging on Edward’s waist. “Edward, you have this dagger.”
“…Right. Since it’s a weapon that magic doesn’t affect, it should be able to destroy the bead.”
Edward hesitated as he drew the dagger from its sheath. It was a gift from Luize to him. He didn’t want its first use to be by someone else. And he disliked the cunning black magic that peered into his mind and exploited Luize. Especially if it had imitated him. Only he should be allowed to tease Luize in such a way.
“I’ll take care of it myself.”
“…The bead might try to control you again.”
“Then I can’t leave this to you.” Edward looked straight at Maxion with an unwavering voice.
“Are you being controlled right now?”
“No, I’m perfectly fine.”
“Then why… Now that I think about it, where did that sword come from?” Maxion eyed Edward suspiciously. It seemed he suspected Edward was being controlled.
Luize cautiously raised her hand. “I gave it to him.”
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