If Aria’s speculation was correct, Oliver had hidden his true intentions throughout his life.

Surely, he wouldn’t directly poison the gift. Doing so would lead to him being suspected as the culprit. He wouldn’t have done something like that without a single escape route.

“All right. I’ll make sure to pass this on to Bonita.”

He took the candy box for now.

When he shook it, he could feel something rolling inside.

Listening carefully, it seemed like there were glass bottles wrapped inside the box.
“If it were an ordinary day, I would have treated you to dinner and told you to rest, but unfortunately, I don’t have the capacity to care for you right now.”

“…Is Bonita very sick? Can’t I even send my regards?”

He pondered for a moment on how to respond.

However, that time was not long.

“Yeah, she’s quite sick. She still has a high fever, so I can’t let anyone into her room.”

“A fever…?”

Oliver momentarily wore a puzzled expression, then soon expressed sympathy.

“If that’s the case, nothing can be done. Well then, since I came down south, I’ll stay elsewhere for a while and return.”

“You came all this way, and I’m sorry for that.”

“No, the child comes first. Besides, it hasn’t been long since you found Bonita again.”

After saying that, Oliver brushed off his seat and stood up.

“Can I come back around next week? By then, Bonita’s health should have improved a lot, and we might be able to meet Bentley as well.”

“…Let’s see how things progress, and I’ll send an invitation.”

“Sure, and I’ll be thankful for that.”

Afterward, Luke chatted with Oliver and escorted him to the front gate.

Watching Oliver and Bentley get on the carriage at the gate, he pressed his lips together as soon as his brother left.

“A fever…?”

When a child is sick and in pain, it’s common to assume they have a fever. However, Oliver momentarily expressed puzzlement at the statement “Bonita has a fever.”

‘…There are no symptoms of a fever in the curse.’

Indeed, Bonita didn’t have a fever. Except for the initial tonic-clonic seizure, she didn’t show any physical abnormalities according to Rebecca’s description, having been unconscious for just one day.

“I guess so.”

Of course, this was just a speculation.

Luke wanted to open Oliver’s head and see what he was thinking. Of course, looking at the brain doesn’t reveal a person’s thoughts.

“Marquis.”

A voice came from behind Luke, who was lost in thought at the front gate. Turning his head at the clearly depressed tone, he asked, “Is there something you want to say?”

“I have a lot to say.”

“Then say it. I’ll listen.”

“Not here.”

Aria looked around.

There are many ears within a marquis’s estate.

Even now, servants were wandering around the estate like a backdrop. It was their daily work to manage the mansion.

Soon, Luke understood what topic Aria wanted to bring up. It was a continuation of the conversation they had earlier.

Until now, she hadn’t opened up easily, even when pressed with questions. But now, it seemed she was cooperating with him, as if something had changed after Bonita collapsed.

Luke’s gaze lingered on Aria’s blue eyes, which seemed to suggest the extension of the conversation they had earlier.
“Do you really love Bonita?”

Even if he were to receive a punishment equivalent to death for that matter, to the extent of wanting to eliminate those who threaten Bonita by digging up the past?

Thinking so, his heart wavered once again. Luke nodded heavily.

“Come to my room.”

As Aria stepped into Luke’s room, she inadvertently took a breath at the sight, a landscape she hadn’t seen in a very long time.

Even when she had her own room during her time as the Duchess, she practically lived here. It was because Luke rarely let her go.

Fond memories.

But what mattered now was not getting lost in memories but living in the present.

“So, what do you want to say?”

As the door closed, the Duke’s room became a perfect soundproof space. There was no place within the Duke’s residence as soundproof as this, making it a perfect place for a confidential conversation.

After confirming the locked door, Aria took out the recording device.

“…Listen to this.”