How Lilies turn Black Chapter 25 - Silvano Giacone (10)

Did the Benedetti family hire a hitman from Corella? And all for the revenge of a woman named De Lucia?

 

And Silvano actually helped the Benedetti family after receiving that request?

 

‘Was it because of that reason that Silvano narrowly escaped death thanks to Vittorio and was only exiled… and that Luciano later brought him back under his wing?’

 

Facts that even Wayne didn’t know are being revealed one after another. Yet, the tangled thread of questions remains unresolved.

 

‘Who is Mrs. De Lucia?;

 

The name of the bar she used to go to every day must have been named after her, but Lilia never heard a single story about her from Wayne.

 

He probably didn’t know either, since he wouldn’t have deliberately hidden it.

 

What on earth happened involving her that made the Benedetti family go as far as borrowing Corella’s power for revenge? Who was the target of that revenge…?

 

Unfortunately, the remaining questions vanished in an instant, leaving no room for resolution.

 

Theodoro snatched the fountain pen from the side table in front of the sofa and hurled it straight at Silvano.

 

Whoosh!

 

A sharp whistling sound brushed past Lilia’s ear, and Silvano, leaning on his cane, deftly twisted his body to evade the attack.

 

“Ouch!”

 

The fountain pen, having missed its target, clattered to the floor.

 

Lilia, who had been startled by the fierce trajectory of the pen’s nib, took a belated breath.

 

‘What on earth is he doing, suddenly throwing things like that?’

 

Theodoro, glaring with sharp eyes, didn’t seem bothered by the failure of his attack. He probably knew well that Silvano wasn’t the type to be hurt by such a level of attack… 

 

The violently thrown object was likely just meant to shut him up.

 

“If you don’t want to be sent back to the countryside, you’d better keep your mouth shut.”

 

“Still as hot-tempered as ever. You haven’t changed a bit.”

 

“If you know, then get out.”

 

“Is this how you treat your guests? How does your business even survive?”

 

Theodoro ignored Silvano’s smirk and gestured to Paul.

 

“Take him out and let him vent or whatever.”

 

“Ah, yes.”

 

Paul, who had been anxiously watching, unsure when to intervene, quickly stood up.

 

Lilia was certain she had never seen Paul move so hastily before. He must have sensed that leaving Silvano alone any longer would lead to trouble.

 

‘Should I… leave too?’

 

Just as Lilia hesitated, glancing at Silvano being ushered out of the office, a cold voice called her back.

 

“We still have things to discuss, don’t we? Lilia Moretti.”

 

Her neck stiffened involuntarily. She turned around stiffly to see Theodoro sitting arrogantly with his legs crossed, tapping his chin.

 

✨

 

‘What kind of daily life is this, really?’

 

This damn heart of mine never gets a moment of peace. 

 

Just as I finished dealing with the problem named Silvano, now a new challenge named Theodoro is right in front of me.

 

If the former kept me on edge every moment because I never knew where he’d go next… the latter felt so overwhelmingly massive just by existing that it left me breathless.

 

Lilia sat uncomfortably on the sofa, staring at Theodoro’s broad back.

 

‘What is he trying to do?’ 

 

Ever since he called her over, he hadn’t said much, just rummaging through a cabinet.

 

Thud!

 

The sound of the cabinet closing made Lilia hurriedly lower her gaze. Heavy footsteps echoed against the wooden floor.

 

Before she knew it, his polished shoes came into view, stopping right in front of her.

 

“Take it off.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Lilia jerked her head up to look at him. His cold, indifferent gaze bore into her as he repeated, “Take it off. Or do I have to do it for you?”

 

“W-what… why…”

 

Her face instantly turned pale. Unconsciously, she tightened her collar and leaned back, but she couldn’t avoid his approaching hands.

 

“Why all of a sudden—ugh!”

 

Under his forceful grip, her thin coat was stripped off. Theodoro easily subdued her flailing and rolled up her blouse sleeve in an instant.

 

“…Ugh!”

 

The fabric brushed against her skin, causing a sting, and Lilia let out a groan.

 

What was revealed was a scar from a knife wound.

 

It seemed Theodoro’s goal was to confirm it, as his movements stopped abruptly the moment his eyes landed on the angry red mark.

 

Lilia swallowed hard and looked up at him.

 

“…H-how did you know?”

 

Theodoro didn’t answer. Instead, he uncorked a bottle of alcohol and poured it directly onto the wound.

 

It felt like her skin was being seared by fire, and her vision flashed white.

 

“Ahhh!”

 

Lilia twisted her body, clutching the arm he held onto.

 

The more she struggled, the tighter his grip became. Theodoro didn’t even blink as he poured every last drop from the bottle.

 

“Hah… agh…”

 

Tears welled up in Lilia’s eyes as she trembled pitifully.

 

Above her, a dry, emotionless voice cut through the air. It was devoid of remorse or sympathy—a voice that didn’t sound human at all.

 

“I hate the smell of blood.”

 

That was the only explanation for this horrifying, cruel act.

 

The faint scent of blood that had lingered since she entered the office disgusted him. That simple reason was all there was to it.

 

Who knows? Maybe he’s just throwing a fit because she looked pitiful, having ignored his warning and gone ahead with her reckless actions.

 

Lilia clenched her teeth and glared at him fiercely.

 

But even that display of emotion felt ridiculous when Theodoro casually tossed a rolled-up bundle of cloth at her.

 

Through her tear-blurred vision, she could tell it was a bandage.

 

For the first few seconds, she just gaped, wondering what on earth he was trying to do.

 

Then, unable to figure out where his kindness ended, and his self-centeredness began, her face flushed with a mix of emotions.

 

‘…Is he messing with me right now?’

 

But Theodoro wasn’t the type to care about her every reaction. He lounged on the opposite sofa and casually started talking.

 

“Whose handiwork was that? Silvano? No, let me ask this first. How did you convince him?”

 

Lilia flexed her arm, still throbbing with pain, and swallowed her anger.

 

Whether it was because of the excruciating pain in her arm or the twisted motives of someone who’d hurt her and then tried to help, her words came out sharper than intended.

 

“Does that matter? What’s important is that he agreed to work with me.”

 

His dark eyes stared at her intently for a moment, but then Theodoro lost interest without a second thought.

 

“Sure, whatever.”

 

…Huh?

 

For that moment, even the terrible pain faded from her awareness.

 

The control of the conversation, which had seemed to be in Lilia’s hands, instantly shifted to him. His indifferent face, now devoid of curiosity or interest, burned into her eyes.

 

“…What? Aren’t you curious?”

 

“Why should I be? Like you said, it’s not important.”

 

Her own words, spat out in a moment of frustration, came back to bite her. What little pride she had left crumbled to dust.

 

Still, she couldn’t let it go so easily. She doubted Theodoro would think that way, but… she didn’t want him to assume she’d resorted to unsavory means to get her way.

 

“I thought about what Silvano’s weakness might be. Everyone has some kind of small void in them, right?”

 

“…”

 

“And it turned out I was right.”

 

He didn’t seem to expect her to answer so readily, raising an eyebrow as he turned to look at her.

 

There was a glimmer of interest in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.

 

“A weakness, huh? What was it?”

 

“The desire… to be acknowledged.”

 

He let out a short laugh, as if her answer was too trivial to take seriously.

 

But it wasn’t something to be dismissed so easily. In the end, Lilia dug into that soft, vulnerable part of him and pulled Silvano to her side.

 

It was when she had just casually thrown out the suggestion to go to Demercy together. At that moment, Silvano scoffed with a look that said he had never heard anything more absurd.  

 

“Do you know why I’m here at this young and promising age? Do you have some great connections or something? What on earth makes you say something like that?”  

 

His tone was sarcastic and full of mockery.  But in his eyes, there seemed to be an undeniable sense of desperation and earnestness that he couldn’t hide.  

 

I felt a pang of guilt. It was partly because I hadn’t fully accepted Theodoro’s assurance that he would cover it up as an accidental death.  

 

Not that Theodoro had explicitly refused, though.  

 

Lilia, trying not to reveal her nervousness, instead confidently revealed her backing.  

 

“De Lucia. That’s the place where I said I would sing. Someone as well-connected and resourceful as you in Demercy must know it, right?”  

 

It was worth a shot. As long as I didn’t lie, it would be fine.  

 

And up until now, there hadn’t been a single lie in what I said. What he imagined based on those words was up to Silvano.  

 

He seemed to be rummaging through his thoughts for a moment.  

 

“…Theodoro Benedetti?”  

 

She muttered in a voice so soft it was almost inaudible as if she had convinced him. 

 

Then, he stood up from where he had been looming over Lilia and slumped to his knees, looking utterly defeated.