No, It was My Fault for Loving You

Chapter 36 : Knowing that You are Immature (Leopold’s POV)

Leon was dragging his right leg trying to get back to the room he was given.

After turning into the corner, it was almost the room where he will be sleeping, but he tripped over something and his body hit the wall.

“…”

“Oh, my bad.”

It seemed that his leg was caught by something, and because of his narrow field of vision caused by the eye patch, he didn’t see it.

The fact that he could not speak up as quickly as he wanted to was not the result of effort or intention, but simply because of the medication he was taking.

Thanks to this, the setup of being a mute has not been exposed until now.

This setup was purposely designed for the clumsy Leopold, who can only wield a sword and was not even good at making an argument.

Before I came here, I honestly thought that I didn’t need to reach that point. But I was wrong.

Perhaps if they had not followed Rembrandt’s instructions, they would have been exposed sooner or later.

That was how strict Alejandro’s inspection was, and Leopoldo’s performance was too poor.

“…”

Bowing his head, while slowly raising his body, he walked past the grinning person in front of him.

“Tsk…”

He heard someone clicking his tongue behind him.

Perhaps he thought it was not enough, but he seemed to stop here.

Leopold breathed a sigh of relief secreelty,

Although he had already become accustomed to these contemptuous stares, ridicule, and unjustified violence, he still liked to be away from such treatment.

The servant who smile and bow before Alejandro and Zacharias act stout and arrogant before Leopoldo, who took the position of a slave. Sometimes with violence as well.

This change of behavior was almost refreshing.

…

People can be so dirty.

It was this kind of somewhat otherworldly impression that came to his mind many times when he came here.

As the next head of the Marquise of Reinalpha, he was cherished by his parents, his subjects, and his servants. He was loved and respected.

He was aware that his appearance was better than others. However, he was unaware that this alone was unconditionally elevating his reputation among those around him.

People smile at Leopold because he was born with status, power, and good looks, all of which he possessed. They gave him respect, consideration, and what he wanted.

Leopold is not a deep-thinker by nature.

So honestly, I thought the world was just like that. That every part of the world is always warm to me.

Every favor, every smile, every kindness that is directed toward him, all of them are the truth without any pretense, but he had no idea that they could turn into the exact opposite when he was not around.

— “Leopoldo. You’re no match for that man right now.”

When Rembrandt told him about the person who was attacking the Marquis of Reinalpha behind his back, the first thing he told him was…

He said that Alejandro, who was good at playing complicated games, was the worst match for him, as he only receives the visible side of the game and doesn’t check it out.

At the mock competition in the first grade, Leopold fell in love at first sight with a pretty girl who had come to watch the competition.

Beautiful hair like a clear blue sky.

Round, large, slightly droopy, and lovely green eyes.

The way she stood there, absentmindedly in the midst of so many people, made him want to take care of her.

Upon hearing that a classmate had feelings for her, he gave up his plan then. However, when that classmate left the academy, he gathered up his courage and confessed his feelings for her.

And he learned that she was an innocent girl as he thought she was.

She was unsuspecting, kind to others, and never failed to smile.

She was not confident of herself, and always looked at Leopold with anxious and clinging eyes.

I miss Leo, I’m anxious without Leo, such words gave him confidence.

Don’t worry, we are a marquis family. I will help you no matter how poor your family is.　

Natalia laughed happily when he told her this, which made Leopold happy.

To Natalia, Leopold is a prince.

I do not have the sharp wits of Rembrandt, nor the gentle wisdom of Edgar, and I can only wield my sword in a foolish manner.

But if Natalia says so.

If you want me to stay as your prince, I will do so as much as you want.

— “If we could accomplish what we thought we could, everyone would love it.”

No, it’s not. It’s not like that.

If Natalia wants, or because Natalia wants, I can be anything she wants me to be. Yes, even Prince Charming on a white horse.

— “That man, in a way, knows more about reality than I do.”

It can’t be.

A man would use such dirty tricks.

With that in mind, I accepted Rembrandt’s proposal and lurked here.

The man who knows the real world better than himself, and Alejandro, who clings to Natalia like a winged insect, wanted to remind him of the reality of the situation.

…

He entered the room and sat down on the bed in front of him.

The room given to the slaves was only large enough for one person to barely lie down.

Such reality was shocking at first, but now he was completely used to it.

Leopold takes out one of the contents of a medicine bottle placed under his pillow and throws it into his mouth. He has to take this at night so that he will not be able to speak the next day.

He then rolled up his pants and unwrapped the bandage around his right knee. Inside was a weight resembling a supporter, there was a hidden pocket underneath it. Leopold then took out a few pieces hidden in it.

Looking at it sullenly, a self-mocking smile appears on his face.

…I can’t believe that after such a big statement, I’m still being helped by the shadow guards just to take a few documents.

And that’s not all.

Hair dyes, drugs that make them unable to speak, creams that make their eyes look like they are burning, tools to produce foot injuries, and shoes with slightly raised soles.

It wasn’t me who arranged them. I just picked them up and used them, which were already lined up in front of me.

Here, of course, it was not Leopold who thought of proceeding actions.

No, it’s not like that.

Natalia, it’s not me.

At the time, I felt terribly ridiculous for arguing with Rembrandt that way.

I believed I could do anything with just the words, “I love you.”

That was why he wrote his love in his letter to Natalia, which he entrusted to Rembrandt.

I knew nothing. I didn’t know anything.

How much of a man he is, and even that fact that he was now gathering evidence for the Marquise’s family, which began to fall as a result of his own love affair. It may not be possible to do this satisfactorily alone.

Indeed, it was.

That man, Alejandro, knows much more about the real world than he does.

He may be the same age as Leopold, but he had already driven Leopold to this point with only his own strength and brain.

ーーー”I don’t know if this is the right way to do it or not.”