Revenge Costs Interest [EN]: Chapter 74

Revenge Has Interest. 74. (74/200)

74.

2023.10.13.

The person who emerged from the darkness was undoubtedly Terrence.

Leah quickly assessed his condition. His pupils were unfocused, his expression dazed, and his body exhausted—he was a wreck.

It was clear he had fought desperately.

“It’s me, Grace.”

“Did you come to kill me?”

He didn’t recognize his own fiancée. She shouted at the organization members.

“We need to put out the poison ivy smoke!”

If she was right, Terrence and the soldiers were poisoned by the smoke. But things didn’t go as planned.

“It won’t go out! Seriously! It’s strange. Water doesn’t work, and neither does dirt!”

So, Terrence was helpless against it too.

“I killed all the thieves.”

Terrence kept muttering to himself, as if he couldn’t hear Grace properly. Still, it was fortunate that he was awake, unlike the other soldiers who had lost consciousness.

Leah was shocked to see that Terrence’s clothes, face, and even his hands and sword were covered in blood.

“Terrence, snap out of it! Don’t you remember me?”

Leah shouted at Terrence in a desperate voice. But all that came back was pain.

“Ah!”

His sword tip pierced Leah’s neck.

Terrence simply stared without emotion as drops of red blood trickled down her white neck.

‘I need to say something that will help him remember.’

The only thought that came to her in that precarious moment was that she had to keep talking to him so he could break free from the hallucination, and help him remember.

“I am Grace Bizac. I’m your fiancée, and we’re supposed to get married in May.”

“Who sent you? Who ordered you to kill me?”

“You love me very much. And I love you too.”

“Aha! You brought those guys again!”

Terrence muttered, looking at the Torch Brigade coming towards them.

‘Lafa is bringing people.’

Leah was relieved.

“Terrence, you promised you’d wipe out the thieves and come back to me. You said you’d only be gone for a week…”

“I’ll kill them all!”

The two were having different conversations. Leah couldn’t hold back her emotions and burst into tears.

“Please! Snap out of it! Don’t give in to that smoke!”

When Leah shouted, Terrence’s eyes flickered for a moment. But it was only temporary, and he rebuked Leah even more fiercely.

“My lady! Please step back. The Duke has been inhaling the smoke for days, so it won’t be easy for him to regain his senses!”

Lafa shouted at Leah, but she shouted even louder in return.

“Grandpa! Put out that poison ivy smoke!”

The biggest problem now was that the poison ivy smoke covering the cabin village wouldn’t disappear. Soon, Lafa and Sarubi broke off tree branches.

“This won’t go out with just anything. It’s a Gypsy method; looks like there was a Gypsy among the thieves.”

“Seems so.”

The two covered the smoking poison ivy piles with tree branches. Miraculously, the smoke gradually began to subside.

Not only that, but the soldiers who had lost consciousness gradually began to wake up one by one.

“Terrence, did you see? You and the soldiers are like that because you’re intoxicated by that smoke.”

As Leah tried to get closer to Terrence, he stabbed her neck again with his sword.

“Ugh…!”

More red blood flowed than before. Leah stopped in her tracks and thought.

‘I have to get close to Terrence somehow.’

Even if she got stabbed by his sword, it couldn’t be put off. It would have been better if he had lost consciousness, but he was still conscious and kept inhaling the poisonous smoke, so he couldn’t be in his right mind.

“My lady! It’s dangerous! We’ll try to do something, so please step back!”

Lafa wrung his hands and tried to stop Leah. Soon, the organization members, armed with weapons, gathered around Leah and Terrence.

“Come at me if you want to die!”

Terrence, recognizing them as thieves, couldn’t calm his excitement and wildly swung his sword.

* * *

Chener searched all the cabins to find Luke. But he was nowhere to be found.

“Really, is he dangling from a tree?”

Leah’s words came to mind, so Chener looked at the tall trees.

Then, she saw something hanging from a large tree behind the cabin village.

She ran towards the tree without hesitation.

“Uwaaang! I’ll kill you if you die! I haven’t even had a baby yet.”

Chener cried and ran alone, then turned back, grabbed Lafa’s hand, and went to the tree together.

“Looks like he’s dead?”

“No, no! He ain’t gonna die!”

Chener cried and hit Lafa. At that moment, she heard a small voice in her ear.

“Che…ner.”

At first, she thought she had misheard. No, she thought it wasn’t an actual sound. But she kept hearing her name being called.

“Luke oppa [term of endearment for an older brother or male friend], you’re not gonna die?”

Chener tilted her head back as far as she could and shouted at him.

“I woke up to your voice.”

Chener fiercely grabbed the nape of the disappearing soul. It wasn’t time to die yet.

“But why were you hanging there?”

“Can you untie me first?”

“Ung [cute way of saying ‘yes’]. Grandpa! Hurry up and untie my oppa!”

“Aigoo [expression of exasperation]! What a mess! One is stabbed with a sword, and the other is hanging from a tree. Hey you guys! Come over here!”

At Lafa’s call, three or four men ran over and untied Luke from the tree.

Thud. Luke, who fell from the tree, was in no better condition. His whole body was covered in blood and full of wounds.

“My oppa!”

Chener hugged his neck and cried.

Although it was clumsy and immature, her feelings for Luke had never changed.

She knew very well that he didn’t like a lacking woman like her, but what could she do? She liked Luke like crazy.

“You’re alive, so I’ll forgive you. And I won’t bother you to marry me anymore.”

“Chener…”

“I prayed every day for oppa to come back quickly. So it’s okay now.”

A hot lump surged in Luke’s chest, and soon he felt fluffy [warm and comforted].

He thought he was dead, but he was so surprised to see Chener standing in front of him. And he was incredibly happy.

“I’m glad you came, Chener.”

Luke gently hugged Chener with one hand. Then Chener hugged him tightly and sobbed, her shoulders shaking.

“I liked oppa from the first time I saw you.”

Chener revealed the feelings she had kept deep in her heart.

‘From the first time?’

Luke was quite surprised. He thought it was just a silly girl saying she liked anyone.

Of course, he didn’t think so now.

He knew after experiencing Chener. There was no one as firm in their preferences as she was.

He was also surprised that she had a better sense than others and never approached people who didn’t feel good.

“Why did you like me?”

Suddenly, he was curious about the reason.

“Oppa is a person with one heart. You don’t change easily.”

She recognized his stubborn personality from the beginning? What’s so good about that personality that she liked him as soon as she saw him?

“And…”

Chener blushed and hesitated to speak. But her shy face was so lovely.

Why hadn’t he recognized it before?

“And, what?”

“Oppa had a light shining on him.”

“Huh? That’s a bit…”

He couldn’t believe it. He could understand if it was Terrence, but it was an unbelievable statement that he had a halo.

“Really.”

“Okay. I believe you.”

He didn’t believe it, but he wanted to believe it. Would there be another woman in the world who liked him as much as Chener?

He could say with certainty that there wouldn’t be in his life.

“Thank you, Chener.”

He felt like he would regret it for the rest of his life if he didn’t say this to her.

Luke raised his hand and stroked Chener’s hair. Then Chener lowered her head and couldn’t look Luke in the face properly.

“Chener, what happened to the Duke?”

“He didn’t die, but his condition ain’t good.”

He already knew that his condition wasn’t good. How could he be in his right mind with the poison ivy smoke?

Even he, who hadn’t inhaled much smoke, had a headache like this.

“But oppa! I think that mister is crazy.”

“Why?”

“He can’t recognize unni [term of endearment for an older sister or female friend]. He’s completely forgotten her.”

“What?”

Luke was startled and tried to get up, but he collapsed.

“His leg is broken.”

Lafa had already examined Luke’s leg. Then he asked why he was hanging from the tree.

“I injured my leg at the beginning of the battle, and the Duke deliberately hung me up. He told me to pretend to be dead.”

“Hehe, I see.”

“Is it true that the Duke can’t recognize the young lady?”

“It would be a relief if he just couldn’t recognize her. He’s swinging his sword around.”

Lafa shook his head. He said that one of the Gypsies he brought with him was skilled in medicine and was examining him, but the results were not yet known.

* * *

Allen was reading the newspaper in bed when he suddenly sat up. He stared intently at the newspaper, doubting his eyes.

“What’s wrong, Allen? Is there any bad news?”

Emily, who was touching his body, also got up from her seat.

“Duke Terrence Courtois went out to suppress the thieves and has gone missing.”

“Oh my! Is he dead then?”

“He hasn’t been found for days, so it’s likely.”

“Oh my! What about his fiancée?”

Emily said with pity. But Allen’s lips trembled.

‘What do you mean, what about her? Grace will be my woman.’

And if Terrence, who was a thorn in his side, died, nothing could be better. Meanwhile, Emily was relieved inside.

‘If the Duke dies, the fact that I sent a love letter will be buried.’