Revenge Costs Interest [EN]: Chapter 25

Revenge Comes with Interest 25

Only What I Like (25/200)

August 25, 2023

Terrence didn’t say a word, even after bringing Grace back to the Duke’s mansion. Naturally, she remained silent as well.

This wasn’t the time to press him for details.

She could clearly feel his ragged breathing and the frantic pounding of his heart as they rode together.

Terrence took Grace’s hand and led her to her room.

The moment the door slammed shut, Terrence pulled her into his arms. His body trembled anxiously, as if he’d narrowly avoided disaster.

“I’m sorry for causing you so much worry.”

Leah felt an inexplicable need to apologize. It wasn’t her intention to startle him, but she knew she had.

“Shhh!”

Terrence wordlessly buried his face in her abundant golden hair.

This small woman had put him through heaven and hell countless times today. How had she become so important to him?

When Pauline returned alone after losing Grace, he was overcome with the fear that he might never see her again. It was the first time he had felt such fear since the war.

“I’ve been unhappy since I was young.”

He began to tell her his story, holding Grace tightly.

It was a story he had never wanted to tell anyone. But he felt like he could tell her, that Grace would understand.

“I had two older brothers, but both of them died before they were a hundred days old. My mother barely survived giving birth to me, and when I passed a hundred days, she thought the misfortune was over. But then, my mother passed away.”

Leah had never heard his voice sound so vulnerable before.

“My father died in battle when I was ten years old.”

Leah burst into tears without realizing it. Sadness overwhelmed her just from hearing his story.

How did that young boy endure so much? How lonely he must have been?

“Everyone left me. They abandoned me in the world.”

What could be more unfortunate than not having anyone who loved you?

“I had never been loved, so I didn’t know how to love others, or you.”

Watching Grace act like a child, whining and demanding affection, Terrence saw a reflection of himself.

He saw his own vulnerable inner self reflected in Grace, and he instinctively wanted to avoid it. It was hard for him to fully accept her.

But one day, Grace changed and became a woman who could embrace anything, comforting his childlike soul.

He felt warmth, comfort, and meticulous care from her for the first time—things he had never experienced before.

“I’m sorry for making you anxious.”

Leah didn’t know what else to say.

“It’s okay, because I got you back.”

No one would ever know how terrified he was that he might lose her for good.

“Even if you disappear a hundred times, or even if you run away because you hate me, I will chase you anywhere and bring you back.”

*Thank you for not letting go of my hand.*

Terrence probably didn’t realize that a woman whose life had been shattered in an instant had found solace in his arms, receiving an overwhelming amount of care and comfort.

With him standing firmly behind her, Leah could dare to dream of the future.

Leah decided not to push him with words today.

Leah smoothed his disheveled hair. Just as his lips were about to descend for a kiss, Leah quickly turned her head.

“How heartless, Grace.”

This was definitely a warning sign. If she kissed Terrence, she would fall into that swamp of poisonous emotions and be unable to escape.

*I mustn’t love Terrence.*

She desperately resolved. She wouldn’t love any man from now on. But Terrence was relentlessly trying to break down her walls.

*Only what I like……*

Don’t give him any more than that. Didn’t she already know too well? If she fell in love, she would either lose her way again or become complacent, forgetting what she had to do.

*Just up to here, don’t cross the line, Leah.*

* * *

Terrence sat with his legs crossed on an iron chair, with about a hundred members of the Rapa organization standing before him. They were all wearing prison uniforms and were about to face the consequences of their actions.

“My kind fiancée asked me not to kill you gangster bastards.”

Terrence, wearing black leather gloves, held a gun in his hand.

All day long, he had heard Grace talk about Rapa and Chainer until his ears were ringing.

She said that the seductive dress she wore to the imperial banquet was made by Rapa’s granddaughter, and that everything was a misunderstanding.

But that was just the perspective of kind Grace. How could he trust such heinous gangsters?

“From now on, you’ll have to impress me. That’s the only way you can live.”

Soldiers with guns stood in a row next to Terrence.

It was a precarious moment where the Rapa members could be shot on the spot with just a wave of Terrence’s hand.

“P, please save us. Duke.”

Even the cruel gangsters became infinitely weak in the face of death. They begged and clung to him, asking to be spared.

“You have no reason to live. How dare you kidnap the fiancée of Duke Courtois?”

“We didn’t want to do it either.”

“Stop with the cowardly excuses.”

Then Maddox glared at Terrence and said.

“Even if we die, let’s at least ask how he knew it was our doing.”

Maddox felt wronged. The kidnapping was carried out flawlessly. They had decorated the carriage exactly like the Duke’s, following his subordinate’s plan.

But he was curious how Terrence had discovered their plot and raided the organization.

It wasn’t just the carriage. The height and tone of the coachman, and even the clothes, were all perfectly matched. He suspected that there might be a spy within their ranks.

“A mongrel doesn’t realize his own stench.”

“!?”

“Isn’t that stupid?”

“Stench?”

“I’m talking about that disgusting underworld smell that you guys reek of.”

Only then did Maddox put his nose to his clothes and sniff, realizing it with an ‘ah’.

They were so accustomed to the scent of musk [a strong fragrance often used in the underworld] that they hadn’t noticed their body odor had been saturated with it.

Moreover, they were amazed by Terrence’s ability to remember and deduce a scent once he smelled it.

“Don’t you want to live?”

After Maddox, no one spoke.

“All troops, ready your guns!”

At Terrence’s command, the soldiers simultaneously loaded their guns and aimed them at the prisoners. Only then did they begin to stir.

Some screamed and begged to be saved, while others struggled to break free from their bonds.

Then Terrence made eye contact with Rapa.

He thought that the head of the organization, at least, would have something to say.

“Hey! Old man, leave a last will. I’m not such a heartless person, so even when I chop off your head, I don’t forget to show consideration……”

“It was because of Hamilton’s General Store.”

“What?”

Terrence’s brow furrowed at the unexpected remark. He had a feeling that he was about to uncover a significant revelation from Rapa.

“Bring Rapa to the reception room.”

“Yes.”

Terrence left the prison as it was.

* * *

Terrence and Rapa sat facing each other in the reception room, in the positions of a prisoner and an interrogator.

“I didn’t know that Miss Grace was the Duke’s fiancée. You don’t have to believe me, but it’s the truth.”

“So.”

“Thanks to the young lady, even a lowly life like mine has a dream. She recognized my inadequate granddaughter’s hand skills and became her friend. So I wanted to buy Hamilton’s General Store when it came up for sale. I wanted to trade fairly, not smuggle anymore.”

“That doesn’t make sense. That can’t be the reason you kidnapped Grace? Maybe……?”

The current owner of Hamilton’s General Store was the only one who benefited.

“Yes, Allen McDowell initially said that if I killed the Duke, he would sell me the entire general store at a low price. So I said I couldn’t do it.”

“Ha!”

Terrence let out a hollow laugh. This was a truly unexpected development.

“So, the alternative he suggested was Grace?”

“Yes, he just said to put her on the carriage and send her to Galdenia. If I had known that Miss Grace was the Duke’s fiancée, I would never have accepted it.”

Terrence clenched his fist.

*Allen McDowell.*

He was more vicious than he had expected. He wondered if he was mistaken in thinking that he could accomplish anything with money, or if he was so consumed by ambition that he couldn’t think straight.

If he knew he wasn’t his opponent, the best course of action would be to avoid him, but his tenacious persistence to fight to the end and try to win… was truly disgusting. He would only deal with an opponent if they were worthy.

*Now that he has Hamilton’s Merchant, he doesn’t see anything else.*

Terrence could only laugh.

If anything could be solved with money, Richard Hamilton would not have been imprisoned on Reef Island in the first place.

That was the limitation of the merchants of this era. No matter how much money they possessed, they were ultimately powerless in the face of absolute authority.

“Rapa, do you still feel the same way?”

“Yes?”

“About giving up smuggling and wanting to live by trading fairly.”

“At my age, I have a lot of regrets in my life. Even if I lived like this, I can’t let my granddaughter live in the gutter like me.”

“Is that so? I think I might be able to find a compromise at a reasonable level.”

Terrence tapped the table as if playing the keys of a piano. He was humming and enjoying himself.

“Will you accept any offer I make?”

“If you just save me, I’ll be the Duke’s dog.”

“I don’t raise dogs.”

“But someone other than me might need one. A very loyal puppy.”

* * *

Allen was in the middle of signing off on documents. He frowned and looked up when his secretary rushed in.

“It’s here, a carriage has arrived from Lubek, sir.”

“Really?”

His frowning face brightened.

It seemed that the plan was proceeding faster than expected. Finally, he was taking Grace away from Terrence’s grasp.

His whole body tingled with anticipation. He hurried to where the carriage was.

*Those Rapa guys will do anything if you give them money, it’s true.*

If so, it seemed that saying he couldn’t kill Terrence was just an exaggeration. He might as well give him the job again next time.

Allen looked at the carriage covered with a black curtain and smiled contentedly. He approached the door, eager to welcome her.

Allen stroked his hair and straightened his tie. Soon, he opened the door of the carriage.

“Huh?”

When he opened the door, no one was there. There was only a large wooden box on the floor.

Seeing that it was lined with ice on top, it seemed to be a box of meat or vegetables. But the company name on the box caught his eye.

He had decided not to use that name.