(Curse 1)
Chapter 41
“Hey, you don’t have a mom, do you?”
“Huh? What do you mean by that, Mom? Haha, I definitely have one. She’s right here in front of me.”
“Then why do you wander around like an orphan with no home? Huh?”
“What? When did I ever…”
Ray was sweating bullets and immediately shook his head.
Because of the numerous troubles he’d caused so far, if they caught him once, he would have to endure at least an hour or two of lecturing.
Bella, Ray’s adoptive mother, continued her barrage with a furrowed brow.
“Isn’t this your home? We prepared a room for you, bought you a bed, a desk, and let you decorate it however you wanted, yet you never show your face around here. Instead, you’re living at the orphanage like it’s your home.”
“Mom, I always sleep at home!”
“Do you think I don’t know what my son is up to every night when he’s not home?”
“Uh, um, I’m sorry…”
There was nothing to defend since he had indeed been spending most of his time at the orphanage despite having a perfectly good home.
Bella sighed deeply.
“I’ve heard you’ve been picking fights lately.”
“It’s just that some delinquents keep lurking around the orphanage…”
“Is this what happens when you hang out with Jimy? Have you turned into a gangster now?”
“That’s not true…”
“Do you need to be locked up at home to come to your senses? You keep promising to behave but then go off somewhere again. Where were you this time?”
“I went to Dinor for a bit on some business.”
“A bit? Did you say ‘a bit’? You were missing for over a day and came back unconscious!”
“Fainted? I just couldn’t sleep well and nodded off for a moment.”
“You’re not getting the situation, are you? You woke up after three days.”
“Huh? Really?”
Ray was shocked upon hearing this.
‘Was I unconscious for nearly three days? I admit, I did push myself a bit…’
It took almost two days from infiltrating Dinor until reaching Locust. During that time, there was no proper rest; he kept swinging his knife while under extreme tension.
Looking back, it was surprising how he managed to stay awake until the end.
Bella muttered about how for three whole days, not only priests and knights but even the count himself visited Ray’s bedside.
“Can’t you act more like a normal nine-year-old, Ray?”
Ray silently turned away.
Arguing further wouldn’t help at all.
By the time Bella’s lecture had stretched past thirty minutes, a knock came, and a new visitor arrived to see Ray.
“Aunt?”
Ray tried to sit up but fell back onto the bed due to pain.
Saria, wearing casual clothes instead of armor, approached and asked,
“Are you awake?”
“I just woke up.”
“Are you feeling okay?”
“Well enough to move around. But…”
Ray glanced between Saria and Bella, biting his lip.
Fear quickly welled up inside him, accelerating his heartbeat.
‘Is it alright to leave these two together?’
Both could potentially harbor resentment towards him.
After observing them, Ray let out a groan.
There was no way to avoid it now.
Not knowing if they had already introduced themselves, Ray decided to make brief introductions.
“Mom, this is my aunt. She’s… my father Evan’s younger sister.”
Bella’s expression didn’t change much, and Ray internally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Her name is Saria. I owe her a great deal of gratitude this time. And Aunt, this is my mother, Bella.”
Introducing Bella simply as “mom” might lead to unnecessary misunderstandings.
Though slightly embarrassed, Ray clarified their relationship.
“She’s not my biological mother. She’s the older sister of my biological mother, who raised me after taking me in as an infant.”
Bella snorted.
“Raised? More like he grew up on his own.”
“Mom, why are you saying that?”
“Did I say anything wrong?”
“How could I have grown up properly without the grace of a mother like you?”
“Tsk, stop playing word games and rest. I’m going out.”
“Shouldn’t you talk to Aunt first?”
“I’ve already spoken enough with her while you were unconscious. Saria, please take care of Ray.”
“I will.”
Unlike Ray’s concerns, the atmosphere between the two didn’t seem overly hostile.
With his worries somewhat eased, Ray nodded lightly with a relaxed expression.
“I’ll rest well.”
“Don’t move. Lie still as the healer said you need to rest for a while.”
“Alright.”
As Bella stood up, looking exhausted, she kissed Ray’s forehead.
“I was really worried about you.”
“I’m sorry, Mom.”
“If you don’t listen next time and keep wandering around, I’ll kick you out of the house.”
“Understood.”
“Let me know if you need anything.”
“No, thank you.”
“I’m going to sleep. Thanks to our very dutiful son, I haven’t slept for two nights.”
“Goodnight, Mom.”
Creak!
Bella left, closing the door behind her.
Once alone with Saria, she asked,
“Are you really okay? Physically?”
Ray shook his head.
“Not at all. Ow…”
Since waking up, he’d been experiencing a throbbing pain throughout his limbs.
Saria gently stroked his forehead.
Because he had pushed his body too hard, he was bound to suffer for a while ahead.
Even potions or divine power couldn’t instantly fix the problem.
*
It had been a week since the defeat of Locust.
During Ray’s convalescence, Adele and other healers frequently visited to assist with his recovery.
Ray wanted to venture outside.
He felt his mood sinking because he had spent too long confined to bed.
After pleading for quite some time, Ray finally managed to get permission from Bella to go out.
Saria decided to accompany him, just in case.
Though Ray initially intended to walk on his own, before stepping out the door, Saria lifted him up by grabbing under his armpits.
With his view suddenly elevated, Ray asked hesitantly,
“Aunt? Why are you doing this all of a sudden?”
“You can’t walk. You absolutely need to rest.”
“So you’re planning to carry me around like this?”
“Yeah. This way is easier.”
“But isn’t it embarrassing to be seen like this by others?”
“Nope. Not embarrassing for me.”
“But it’s embarrassing for me!”
Despite Ray kicking his legs in protest, he was easily subdued by Saria’s strength.
Saria held Ray forward and backward like a proud animal showing off its offspring, then stepped out of the house with satisfaction.
Buried in Saria’s embrace, Ray groaned in discomfort.
“Aunt, my face feels hot. Could you please put me down?”
“Cute nephew. So it’s fine.”
“Aunt, I’m not cute at all.”
Saria shook Ray affectionately while shaking her head.
“Nephew is cute.”
Ray’s neck tightened.
Though only nine years old physically, Ray’s mental age surpassed that of an adult, making such childish treatment unbearable.
‘Still, it’s nice of her to show affection…’
During her time trapped in the dungeon, Saria lost her only blood relative.
It made sense that she would feel attached to Ray, the last remnant of her brother.
However, Ray wanted to set clear boundaries.
“Aunt, as I mentioned when we met at Father’s tombstone…”
Hesitating briefly, Ray continued.
“I’m not Father’s biological child.”
“Hmm…”
Saria spun Ray half a turn sideways.
Facing Ray directly, Saria clearly stated her opinion.
“That’s unknown.”
“Huh?”
“There’s a possibility. A chance that you could be Brother’s son. It’s not entirely impossible.”
“Um…”
Remembering everything his biological parents had whispered to each other, Ray found it difficult to agree with this claim.
“Isn’t it far more likely that I belong to someone else?”
“Still, it doesn’t matter. You stayed by Brother’s side until the end.”
Saria pulled Ray close.
The tips of Saria’s fingers trembling slightly as they touched Ray’s waist.
“So, you’re my nephew. Brother couldn’t protect you. But I will.”
“…”
Saria’s embrace was warm.
Ray couldn’t bring himself to say anything cruel.
After pondering for a while, Ray smiled brightly and hugged Saria back.
“Don’t worry. Didn’t you see me wield a sword? In a few years, I’ll probably be stronger than you. So you don’t need to worry about me.”
“…”
“Would you give me an artifact? Can I handle it well, Nephew?”
“You should return it afterward. Don’t cause trouble because of me.”
Since Saria seemed reluctant, distant children’s voices reached them just then.
“Ray!”
“Ray’s here!”
“He’s clinging to some strange woman!”
Thanks to Saria’s brisk walking, they had already arrived in front of the orphanage.
Karen, leading the group with Luna and Johanna, ran toward Ray, stretching out her hand.
“Ray! I missed you!”
Whoosh!
Saria lifted Ray higher, keeping Karen’s hand out of reach.
To the startled Karen, Saria warned,
“You shouldn’t touch him.”
“What?! Give Ray back!”
“Nephew is sick. No touching.”
“But how could you do that!”
Karen jumped up, trying to reach Ray with both hands extended.
But it was impossible to match Saria’s height, whose arms were stretched high above.
When Karen failed to grab Ray, she subtly pushed Saria to the side.
Of course, Saria, who had reached the graduate level, didn’t budge an inch.
Seeing Karen’s increasingly frustrated face, Ray tapped Saria’s hand.
“Please put me down.”
Perhaps it was just a joke, but Saria readily placed Ray down.
After regaining his footing awkwardly, Ray gently patted Karen’s cheek.
“Karen, did anything happen while I was gone?”
“Nope!”
“Use honorifics.”
“Nope! Is Ray feeling better?”
“Much better. If I rest a few more days, I’ll be able to move normally again. Did you reconcile with Luna?”
“Of course!”
Ray turned his gaze to Luna.
“Luna, are you feeling okay? Anywhere hurt?”
“…I’m fine.”
“If anything feels odd, tell the teachers immediately. I’ll teach you a little more about studying after you rest a bit.”
While patting Luna’s hair, Ray noticed an elf child with a different appearance standing in the corner of the orphanage playground.
It was Titi.
‘That kid, why are they still at the orphanage?’
This was the person of interest who had caused the baron to send knights rushing.
Even though they had stayed at the orphanage temporarily, they should have been taken away by the baron long ago.
Just as Ray was about to approach Titi, a deep voice called out from behind.
“Ray.”
Turning around, Ray saw Didier standing beyond the orphanage fence.
Didier pointed to a carriage approaching from afar.
“The Count requests your presence.”
*
Guided by Didier, Ray arrived at the manor and waited in the reception room for the count.
It seemed that a comprehensive investigation had been conducted across the Baron’s Territory and Viscount’s Territory during the past week.
Although the period was short, it appeared that the general flow of events had been understood, as the count summoned Ray to discuss matters.
Ray was also curious about how things were progressing.
While calmly sitting and organizing questions to ask the count, the door to the reception room swung open, and Alesya, with her long blonde hair flowing, burst in.
“Ray! Ray! I heard something big happened!”
After taking a sip of tea, Ray nodded.
“It wasn’t exactly quiet.”
“Father mentioned that Ray played a significant role in this incident!”
“That’s fortunate.”
Internally, Ray sighed in relief.
If the count had said such things to Alesya, it seemed unlikely that he would end up imprisoned.
Alesya grinned widely and ruffled Ray’s hair.
“Indeed, my proud knight! Truly commendable! Right?”
Upon closely examining Ray’s face, Alesya raised her voice in surprise.
“Ray! Why hasn’t the scar on your face healed?”
“Oh, this.”
Since the treatment was interrupted midway, scarring was inevitable.
According to Adele, to remove the scar now, a deeper wound would need to be reopened and treated again.
Currently, Ray was focused on treating the joints he had damaged while fighting Locust’s subordinates, leaving no spare time.
Ray casually replied,
“Adele, it costs more money than expected to treat these kinds of injuries.”
“Money? Is money an issue?”
“Money is always the issue. I’m not a noble, after all.”
“My fault. As the master, I should have paid closer attention to these details. Wait a moment! I’ll fetch the pocket money I’ve secretly saved from Father!”
Before Ray could protest,
Alesya had already rushed out of the reception room to fetch her piggy bank.
Deciding it was futile to chase after Alesya, Ray subtly shifted his gaze to the table.
On the table lay a book Alesya had left behind.
[The Lustful Knight and the Villainess Lady]
“Is this really a children’s book…?”
Judging by the title, it seemed scandalous, yet Alesya openly carried it around.
If it truly contained inappropriate content, it would have been confiscated long ago.
Examining the cover more closely, Ray noticed the words “All-Ages Edition” written at the bottom.
“With an all-ages label, it should be fine.”
Ray flipped open a random page and began reading the content.
[Smack!
No one had ever dared to touch Anastasia’s bottom, but now a thick male hand wrapped around it.
Anastasia, forced into a humiliating position exposing her bottom, curled her toes and convulsed as a tingling sensation traveled up her spine.
“Leonhardt! Are you insane?! How dare you…!!”
Anastasia’s milky-white bottom swelled bright red.
Amidst the humiliation and pain, Leonhardt savored Anastasia’s involuntary moans and lazily whispered into her ear,
“If only Lady’s personality was as soft as half of Lady’s bottom.”]
“What the hell?”
Startled, Ray flipped to the next page.
It described Leonhardt approaching Anastasia with a whip and candle wax.
“?”
Ray returned to the first page and inspected the space between the covers.
The fallen cover was crudely reattached with sticky glue.
Clearly, the cover had been swapped out, and the contents replaced.
“This girl is already corrupt.”
At the very least, he needed to inform the count about this.
