I Became the Only Cure for My Dying Husband - Chapter 8

Chapter 4.2

“All I know about her is that she’s the count’s illegitimate daughter and that she’s fourteen, the same age as me.”

The way she looked up at him with those clear, innocent eyes made him uncomfortable, like something was stuck in his throat.

“The servants of House Clark all said how much the count cherished his daughter.”

“Cherished?”

Lucion, sprawled on the sofa, let out a bitter laugh.

“Oscar, people who are loved don’t make that kind of expression.”

People who are loved don’t grow up looking like that.

The hunched shoulders, the constant glances to gauge others’ reactions, the fragile mindset that convinced her she was worth nothing.

“Loved? By the looks of her, she’s probably spent her whole life walking on eggshells.”

It was easy to see how an unwanted, illegitimate child would be treated.

She wasn’t kept hidden for protection, but rather to cover up a shameful secret.

“Keep digging. See if Count Clark has any ties to the Elder Council or my aunt, and check if he’s been bribed. And if none of that pans out…”

Lucion trailed off, hesitating for a moment before continuing.

“Then find out if she was sold here.”

“Understood.”

If she had been raised with love, he wouldn’t have been so suspicious.

But Edith clearly wasn’t someone who had ever known love, and people like that were easy to manipulate.

That’s why Lucion couldn’t trust her.

But if, by some slime chance, she truly had no connection to the family…

If she was just a poor girl sold into this situation…

Lucion’s eyes darkened.

✦ ✦ ✦

The full moon hung high over the trees as the residence lay in silence, everyone fast asleep.

BANG—!

Lucion stormed into the head of the household’s room, swinging the door open with force.

“So you really gave that mutt the room next to mine, Father.”

Seeing the fury on his son’s face, Khalid’s eyes gleamed with amusement.

“I put her there because you’re still too young to share a room. Or would you prefer I put you two together?”

“You really think that’s funny?”

“Don’t you?”

Lucion grimaced in disgust, and Khalid chuckled before his tone grew gentle.

“Lucion, that girl will help you break free from your winter.”

“That pathetic thing? What could she possibly do?”

“You may not realize it yet, but that adorable little girl is something extraordinary.”

Lucion couldn’t understand why his father was so taken with that tiny, insignificant girl.

They’d only just met yesterday, so there was no way they could have any real connection. Was there some other reason behind it…?

“Don’t tell me you actually believe she’s the one from the prophecy?”

When Khalid simply smiled, Lucion’s expression turned blank.

That cursed prophecy.

“You still believe that old man’s nonsense? Hah! You should get yourself checked out. You must’ve finally lost your mind.”

Lucion fired off his sharp retort before turning away coldly.

“So hot-tempered.”

Even though he was his son, Khalid sometimes wondered where that attitude came from.

Leaning back on the sofa, Khalid’s mind drifted to the prophecy Lucion had just mentioned.

Lucion Frost. As punishment for touching the divine artifact, you will be trapped in eternal winter.
In the year you turn twenty, the shadow of death will consume you.
There is only one way to escape this fate.
Find the child born with the power of fire.
If you are chosen by the one blessed with fire, this eternal winter will melt away.

On the day Lucion was cursed, the high priest had rushed to them, urging that if Khalid wanted to save his son, he had to find the child with the power of fire.

At first, Lucion believed the prophecy. He wanted to live.

But the child from the prophecy never appeared. No one could find them.

Eventually, Lucion dismissed the whole thing as nonsense and gave up. But Khalid hadn’t. He kept waiting, more anxiously than anyone, for a very long time.

Khalid glanced down at his hand, now restored with color, and clenched his fist.

“This time, it’s real. I wonder how long it’ll take for him to realize it.”

It would likely take quite some time.

Lucion had grown into a child who rejected warmth, a result of the emotional scars others had left on him.

But Khalid wasn’t worried.

In the end, his son would come to accept it.

And more than that…

Khalid thought of those bright, lake-blue eyes that sparkled with intelligence.

“She’ll manage just fine.”

After all, she was a little one bold enough to propose a deal directly to him.

“It takes that kind of strength to truly be considered a Frost.”

A satisfied smile spread across Khalid’s face.