Chapter 3

‘The white-haired youngest Young Master of the Penden Duchy is a real oddball, a crazy guy with a nasty personality, they say.’

‘Most of the Penden children have dark hair, but he alone has silver-white hair. He does resemble the Duke, but suddenly appeared as the youngest at age nine. They say he was hidden due to illness until then…’

‘Ah, so that’s why there were rumors he was a homunculus?’

‘Shh. Never say things like that. If the Penden family hears, you will pay dearly.’

No one had ever succeeded in creating a homunculus and never would, but seeing Aicel’s unreal beauty, Lucy understood why such rumors started.

She was zoning out when a soft snicker snapped her back.

“That bastard never admits he has a younger sister, no matter what. …But here you are?”

Lucy wasn’t rattled by Aicel’s crude speech. She knew not everyone with a good education behaved politely.

“Leave us, Ulysses.”

So his name was Ulysses. Lucy hoped, without reason, that Ulysses wouldn’t leave her alone. She didn’t want to be left with this ticking time bomb of a Young Master. Who knew what could happen!

“Young Master.”

“What you’re worried about isn’t going to happen. Go. Are your ears blocked?”

Ulysses looked at Lucy regretfully, then gave a short bow and left the room.

“Lucy Noctus.”

Lucy, who had been gazing at the closed door as if it were a lifeline, was startled by the suddenly close voice and straightened up.

“Yes?”

“…You look alike.”

Annoyed, Lucy almost scowled at the Duke’s Young Master. Being told she resembled her male relative wasn’t exactly pleasant, even if it was obvious.

“Sybil Noctus, that’s your brother’s name, right?”

A chilly voice struck Lucy’s ear, rough and harsh.

Lucy stared straight at Aicel.

Mid to late twenties. A dazzling, pretty face with masculine elements scattered throughout. Eyes that told a story even when he was thinking of nothing. Broad shoulders, a lean waist, a flat stomach, and long, well-proportioned legs that seemed unreal.

‘Did he succeed in homunculus (an artificial human made by magical engineering) transmutation? Isn’t that illegal?’

He was a man with moonlit, silvery-white hair, different from the usual silver. His rare amber eyes were especially striking, shining with a wild light.

Aicel’s eyebrows twitched.

“I just. Asked. You.”

“Ah, yes! That’s right.”

Lucy replied timidly, gauging his mood. The weaker you are, the more pitiful you must act to survive in front of a mad thug.

Was her hometown some kind of dog-fighting arena? His gaze was rough and wild like a fierce dog. It wouldn’t be strange to see a muzzle on him. Despite his refined appearance, there was always a hint of back-alley ruffian about his face.

Aicel Penden had an air that made it hard to believe he was a noble son of the Empire’s prestigious houses. He seemed more like the boss of a shadow guild than a noble Young Master.

“Sybil Noctus committed a crime against me, then ran away.”

One corner of his mouth twisted in a sneer.

‘Oh, heavens. ‘

Lucy’s eyelashes trembled.

She didn’t know what crime her brother had committed, but judging by the savage energy radiating from Aicel, it must have been something serious.

‘So my brother’s talent wasn’t magic, but swindling people out of grudges.’

Not something she wanted to know.

No, there was something else she needed to focus on.

Aicel’s large hand still held a pistol with a long barrel.

Even a noble couldn’t just drag someone off and kill them so easily, but times change, and bears and madmen always tear people apart.

She resolved not to be distracted by his stunning face. Lucy kept her eyes on the double barrels of the pistol in his hand.

Gulp. She swallowed hard.

“If it’s not rude, may I say just one thing?”

“Just one.”

Aicel raised a single finger, as if counting. He really meant to allow only one word. Lucy squeezed her eyes shut at his inflexible attitude.

‘Should’ve said ten things!’

All because of her useless brother. That good-for-nothing who left her behind and ran away…

“Please show me mercy, my lord—?! F*ck!”

In the middle of venting her anger toward Sybil Noctus in her head, Lucy let a curse slip into her plea to Aicel.

Flustered, she thought, ‘Now I’m really going to die’, and tried to accept her fate humbly, but no bullet came.

Puzzled, Lucy carefully observed Aicel. He furrowed his brow and held up two fingers.

“That was too many words, not one.”

“Ah…”

The handsome Young Master didn’t seem to realize he’d just been insulted in a way that could be considered a crime against nobility.

Relieved, Lucy let out a breath and thought to herself.

“And… let it slide?”

This Young Master, a walking time bomb of temper—

“Yes, Sybil Noctus smacked me on the back of the head, just like that!”

(T/N: Aicel’s mishearing (the pun)

“통촉” (tongchok = “show mercy”)

sounds close to “퉁 쳤다” (tong-cheot-da = “smacked / tapped / hit”)

So when Lucy mutters to herself “그리고… 퉁쳐?” meaning “And… let it slide?”,

Aicel misunderstands her earlier words as “Sybil smacked me on the head” instead of “Please show mercy.”)

…seemed a bit dumb.

She meant ‘show mercy’, not ‘smacked’, but he seemed a little too dense.

Lucy moistened her dry lips and spoke cautiously.

“If I may, could you tell me what crime my brother committed?”

If Sybil Noctus had committed a crime, the Duke’s family would have dealt with it. They wouldn’t drag in his estranged sister for personal revenge.

“Ha.”

Aicel looked down at her with arrogant eyes.

“Do I have to explain everything to you, step by step, like spoon-feeding?”

“Then can I leave without hearing it…?”

“I was suffering from mysterious insomnia…”

“…?”

Suddenly, he began explaining.

“Then I happened to meet Sybil Noctus, and hung out with him a few times. He said he could cure my insomnia with a magic formula he developed. He put a weird machine on my head that injected a magic stone engraved with a magic formula—”

“Wait. Did it have the Empire’s certified safety mark?”

With the discovery of magic stones that could hold formulas, machines previously monopolized by a few became widely available. Most were for beauty, like skincare or hair loss treatment, but to get a certified safety mark, side effects had to be under 3%.

Aicel tilted his head, expressionless.

“Certified mark…? What’s that?”

“It looks like this.”

Lucy took out a pen from her small bag and drew a rather complex symbol.

“It should’ve been stamped on it, probably really big.”

The mark, hard to counterfeit, boosted product sales by its mere presence. Naturally, it would be prominently displayed. Aicel frowned.

“There wasn’t one.”

“…”

Nobles were supposed to take care of themselves, but they drank, smoked, and took medicines recklessly.

It was odd there was still no machine to cure insomnia, but for a well-educated adult nobleman to use a newly discovered mage’s formula and device without question was stranger still. And no one stopped him?

“How did you end up getting tricked by a fraud like my brother…?”

“He seemed trustworthy.”

“What?”

Lucy couldn’t believe it. Her memory of her brother was of a sly, annoying loafer who smiled on the outside but was impossible to read inside.

“My brother?”

“Yeah. He has reddish-brown hair, right?”

“…?”

‘What was that supposed to mean?’

Lucy sent a doubtful look to Aicel. She wondered what kind of relationship Aicel Penden and Sybil Noctus had.

‘Don’t tell me my brother gave up his… no, never mind.’

Aicel’s instincts were sharp. Even without hearing a direct insult, he became offended whenever someone imagined something improper.

He pressured Lucy with a fierce expression.

“You just imagined something unpleasant, didn’t you?”

“Of course not! How could I?”

Lucy made a sly yet servile face, quickly changing the subject.

“Anyway, Young Master, so you’re experiencing those… side effects?”

Lucy hurriedly said she would help if she could. Aicel, instead of feeling grateful, nodded as if it was only natural.

“Of course. You’re responsible.”

“Um… Responsibility might be a bit much.”

If the side effects were serious and couldn’t be cured, Lucy felt she couldn’t just get involved, so she defensively added. Aicel, however, narrowed his eyes sharply with a hiss.

His amber eyes weren’t that dark, but they were piercing and intimidating. His decadent gaze, now empowered, made Lucy feel as if she was being buried alive.

Lucy glanced away and asked what the side effects were. In fact, that was the most important part.

Aicel sulked for a long moment, then answered bluntly.

“It won’t get up.”  

“…Excuse me?”  

“It won’t get up. My c*ck. I can’t even ej*culate.”

‘Ah? Ah…?’

“Why…?”

At Lucy’s foolish question, Aicel frowned in annoyance.

“How would I know?”

“Have you… been to a hospital?”

‘Was this really a side effect of my brother’s magic? Wasn’t it psychological, hereditary, or something else?’

“No. It’s that bastard’s doing, his fault.”

But Aicel was adamant that Sybil Noctus was to blame. Then, baring his teeth like a mad dog, he snarled.

“I told you to take responsibility. You, the sister of Sybil Noctus, who struck me down and ran away. You’ll bear it in his place.”

Lucy was flustered. Who could have expected such a side effect!

‘What on earth did he do!’

Aicel laughed cruelly, like a child tormenting an ant.

“Until I catch Sybil, I could just keep you as a hostage. Ha ha.”

“But, Young Master!”

Lucy mustered her courage and shouted.

“How am I supposed to take responsibility for your erectile dysfunction, Young Master!”  

“Then will you take responsibility with your life?”

Aicel, expressionless, placed his finger on the trigger. The golden double-barreled muzzle gleamed. Lucy quickly switched tactics with a serious face.

“Solving your erectile dysfunction has always been my dream, Young Master.”

Suddenly, a sense of mission surged within her. Even though they’d just met.

“I’ll do it. And I’ll succeed.”

“You should’ve said so from the start.”

Aicel laughed, his voice rumbling with satisfaction. Lucy smiled, matching the warm mood.

In an instant, Lucy became someone whose dream was to cure men’s suffering from erectile dysfunction. It was a bit ridiculous.