The Creditor Is My Husband? - Chapter 30

“No, really, you do. Well, your mother is much more beautiful than you, though.”

Giselle added a joke and looked back at the portrait.

A woman with platinum blonde hair and a pale face. Based on that alone, one could argue that she didn’t resemble Lucas at all.

But there was no doubt that she and he looked alike.

“Your mother’s eyes resemble yours, and so does the straight nose, and the slightly higher left corner of the mouth compared to the right.”

“……”

“And that’s not all. Guess what else you resemble…”

Giselle, enjoying herself as if she was on a treasure hunt, pointed out the resemblances between the mother in the portrait and Lucas one by one.

‘…I resemble her?’

He narrowed his eyes and stared at the portrait. The woman, looking somewhat anxious, gazed back at him.

He vaguely remembered hearing that she had briefly worked as a painter before marriage. Though she became an orphan early on, she had inherited a considerable fortune and lived comfortably.

Therefore, even as a young lady, she could live freely. With no controlling parents and no financial difficulties.

‘Then, why…’

Why did the anxiety on your face linger even in this painting?

Lucas quietly looked at his mother’s pale face and shook his head.

“Well, I don’t resemble her at all. Most importantly, my mother and I have completely different personalities.”

“……”

“My mother was emotional and capricious. She was overly sensitive about everything.”

His memories from childhood weren’t clear. But the mother Lucas remembered was someone with a completely different temperament from his father, to the point where they often clashed.

As a result, they frequently argued, and his mother would often be left alone in tears.

But young Lucas couldn’t understand his mother. It wasn’t because he was too young. Rather…

“Compared to that, I take after my father. I rely more on reason than emotion.”

All he cared about was money. Cold and ruthless.

He had inherited his father’s personality completely, despite his disdain and hatred for him.

So there was no way he could understand his mother’s feelings. Lucas smirked, mocking himself.

He didn’t feel any belated guilt for someone who had long since passed away. Nor did he pity or sympathize with someone who couldn’t confide in her husband or child.

Just…

Lost in his thoughts, he suddenly turned his gaze to Giselle. Her clear green eyes were looking at him intently.

Her gaze was so clear that it seemed almost transparent, making him feel like he should say something more.

Something he had never told anyone else.

Even something he hadn’t thought about much himself.

“…She was also a kind person. I don’t remember clearly because I was too young.”

He vaguely remembered the gentle touch that stroked his cheek.

Even amidst her frequent tears, she tried to smile in front of her young child.

“See, I told you. You do resemble her.”

At that moment, Giselle, who had been quietly listening to him, spoke up. Lucas, slightly lost in sentiment unlike himself, furrowed his brows.

“Giselle, did you even listen to what I said? Who resembles whom?”

“You said she was a kind person.”

“……!”

Her words made his eyes waver greatly.

So, that means…

Oh my god.

“You’re saying I’m kind now…”

Lucas spoke with a dumbfounded laugh, but he couldn’t finish his sentence.

Giselle, her ears turning bright red, quickly turned her body and tried to go back the way they came.

“Let’s just go, Senior. Wandering around made me hungry. Hmm, aren’t you hungry too, Senior?”

She scurried towards the entrance like a squirrel escaping, and Lucas, watching her back, couldn’t help but chuckle.

His steps felt light as he left behind the portraits of his parents.

Unlike the reluctant steps he usually took.

* * *

“Oh! I completely forgot, what should we do?”

Giselle, who was about to enter the mansion after passing through the courtyard, suddenly stopped as if she remembered something, looking troubled.

“What did you forget?”

“I forgot to pay my respects.”

“…Respects? To whom?”

Lucas furrowed his brows in confusion at her words.

“To your parents, Senior. I should have paid my respects…”

“What’s the point of paying respects to the dead? Let’s go inside.”

Understanding her words, he chuckled and shook his head.

“But they’re your parents, Senior.”

“It’s fine.”

“Still…”

Giselle looked back at the direction they came from, seemingly reluctant. But with Lucas pushing her shoulder, she had no choice but to head inside the mansion.

“By the way, Senior.”

Giselle stopped after a few steps and looked back at him.

“What?”

“Um… do you think they know?”

“……?”

“If souls exist, I mean. Your parents would be watching from the sky, so…”

She looked around unnecessarily before tiptoeing and whispering in his ear.

“That our marriage is fake. Well, not completely fake, but it’s not like we’re madly in love as people think.”

“What would the dead know? Besides, souls are just baseless superstitions.”

Lucas responded with a chuckle to Giselle’s odd words, his lips curling slightly.

If, as she said, souls existed.

What if his deceased parents knew the truth about his marriage?

‘That would be interesting.’

His father, who only cared about money, would be furious if he knew about the deal between him and Giselle.

He’d probably curse him for spending money on something that wasn’t profitable, calling him a madman.

Maybe he’d even try to beat him with a stick or a whip.

Though it’s impossible since he’s already dead.

When Lucas was young, there were times his father hit him.

When he failed to prove his worth or did something foolish out of trivial emotions, his father would beat his hands and feet until they were swollen.

Even after many years, the scars faintly remained.

Lucas’s lips twisted again as he thought of his father.

Maybe that’s why.

As soon as he inherited the family head position after his father’s death, he immediately shut down his father’s main source of income, the moneylending business.

‘It was a form of revenge, perhaps.’

“Well… it doesn’t matter even if they know. Actually, I’d prefer if they did.”

He was a bit curious about what expression his father would make.

Lucas’s expression cooled down. But he quickly covered it by running his hand over his face.

“Senior, are you tired? Ah… I must have dragged you around for too long.”

Seeing him rub his face, Giselle felt guilty, thinking it was her fault. Just as Lucas was about to wave it off, a maid peeked out from inside the mansion and approached them with a bright face.

“Master, dinner is ready.”

“Ah, we’ll be there soon.”

He nodded at the maid’s words and then extended his hand to Giselle. Escorting her, he headed into the mansion but glanced back unconsciously.

His gaze lingered momentarily on the place where his parents’ portraits were kept.

Then he turned away as if nothing had happened.

…That was enough.

* * *

Dinner was perfect.

Giselle, feeling full to the point of thinking such perfect meals couldn’t exist even in heaven, sighed softly and put down her spoon.

“Phew, I can’t eat another bite. It was such a wonderful meal, Butler. Could you convey my thanks to the kitchen?”

Giselle turned to the butler after speaking to Lucas. Bushin, who had been attending to Lucas’s meal, smiled and replied.

“Thank you. It’s been a long time since Lucas has had a proper meal. I believe it’s thanks to the young lady’s presence.”

“Oh… well, it’s true that eating alone can ruin one’s appetite.”

She responded to Bushin and looked around the dining table. The table was large enough for a big family to dine together.

So different from her cramped room and old bed.

But in terms of eating alone, they were quite similar.

‘What’s the difference between eating luxurious food alone and eating cold soup alone?’

Being alone was the same. Not having someone to sit across from and share a meal with.

Giselle felt a strange sense of kinship with Lucas and spoke to him jokingly.

“Should I come over every evening to eat with you? I’ll make sure you eat well and gain some weight, Senior.”

“What? Hah… Just be honest. Don’t use me as an excuse.”

Lucas laughed at her words, as if seeing through her intentions.

“What do you mean, be honest?”

“You just want to eat the chef’s delicious food. Most of the food here went into your stomach, didn’t it?”

“Oh my, Lucas. How could you say that to a lady…”

Bushin muttered in a troubled tone, touching his forehead at Lucas’s words. The head maid on the opposite side also gaped in shock.