TSMMT Ch 33

I Can't Take My Eyes Off You

[Dianna] "Guiscard, are you alright?"

She sprinted to him the moment Emil walked away. He gasped for air, his frame shaking from intense agony as saliva pooled at the corners of his mouth.

How much pain must he endure? I never realized this restraint collar could be such a terrifying object.

Dianna squeezed her eyes shut. She had refrained from attacking Emil previously because he was her brother. Although he was never a good brother, a shred of affection still existed between them. Until now, he had never inflicted direct harm on her.

A similar event occurred in the past, though the exact details slipped from her memory. Emil had lost his temper at her without reason, and Dianna, feeling wronged, had defended her position. In response, Emil knocked over and shattered a flower vase resting beside her.

Emil claimed that knocking over the vase counted as a mere mistake, later approaching Dianna as she wept alone in her bedchamber.

[Emil] "See? This only makes things uncomfortable for both of us."

[Dianna] "……."

[Emil] "I detest it when we fight like this."

Did we even fight?

He unleashed a one-sided outburst.

Dianna had merely explained her perspective, yet he used those words to pacify her.

[Emil] "My heart ached as well, Ann."

[Dianna] "……."

[Emil] "When you spoke so suddenly, I lost my reason."

[Dianna] "……."

[Emil] "Let us show some consideration for each other from now on."

In this manner, every disagreement always became her fault. Yet Dianna believed the outcome counted as a good conclusion, because Emil treated her as a warm brother for a while afterward. She also considered it natural to accommodate the brother destined to lead the family.

Emil was terrifying when angry, yet he occasionally displayed such warmth. After all, he never struck Dianna, nor did he personify an absolute terror to her back then. However, having experienced adulthood, she recognized that he was far from a good brother.

A protective brother would never flee the estate and abandon her entirely in her past life. Regardless of whether Mirva was his biological mother, Emil held no right to direct his fury at Dianna over Mirva's banishment, nor did he possess a reason to torture Guiscard. Therefore, Dianna actively targeted her own sibling. This strike served as a warning.

She held many of Emil's secrets. She knew about his forged grades because he had explicitly begged her to hide the letters from the academy during his childhood. She also knew that he embezzled a portion of the family fortune to torment commoners. If Emil escalated his hostility, Dianna would expose his other misdeeds to their father.

She adopted an innocent expression as she spoke.

[Dianna] "Is this an official academic warning? For your grades to drop to this point, numerous letters must have arrived previously. Who exactly intercepted them? An outsider might think Father completely neglects our education."

Emil's face flushed crimson with humiliation. Dianna's eyes turned cold. He glared at her with a murderous expression, yet his rage failed to invoke any terror within her.

[Duke] "Indeed, Ann. Your brother has brought absolute disgrace…… sheer disgrace upon our family name."

The Duke's voice carried a chilling edge.

[Dianna] "But surely Brother had his reasons. Furthermore, losing to a commoner suggests some underlying conspiracy. He is far too strong for that, isn't he?"

[Duke] "No. Looking at these marks, your brother is utter trash, not only in his studies but also in swordsmanship. He fails to even reach the average baseline."

Blazing fury saturated the Duke's voice.

[Duke] "I…… I completely misjudged my own son. This proves why a mother's bloodline is vital."

An outsider might assume the Duke blamed the late Duchess. However, both Dianna and Emil recognized that his words targeted Mirva. Searing heat flushed Emil's face. Dianna never desired a mere comparison.

[Duke] "You will study at the western dormitory for the foreseeable future."

[Emil] "F-Father!"

This sufficed for Dianna's purposes. The western dormitory served as a severe confinement space where parents banished reckless children for strict discipline.

Facing sudden imprisonment, Emil boiled with helpless rage.

---

Dianna knocked on Guiscard's door, but no response came from within. Deliberating for a moment, she opened the door.

The estate had reassigned Guiscard to a servant's quarters—a tiny room reserved for direct maids or attendants. Inspecting the space, she found it incredibly cramped. Guiscard lay curled up asleep on a small cot.

His rapidly maturing frame made the cramped room look even smaller. On the day Emil activated the restraint collar to inflict torment, he had coughed violently, enduring prolonged suffering.

Guiscard had always maintained a proud dignity, even throughout her past life, never displaying a shred of submission. Yet today, his face had flushed crimson as saliva pooled from his lips. Indeed, breaking such a noble soul into a slave required that exact level of cruelty. Dianna wondered what emotions consumed him during that absolute torment.

Memories of the Lodbrog citizens mocking Dianna's pain resurfaced. A queen who lived as a royal slave—the masses laughed at her agony.

Our present family acts no differently from those monsters.

She reached her hand toward the resting Guiscard.

Because your future self tormented me, I now recognize the depth of your present suffering.

The awareness prevented her from remaining idle.

She brushed her fingers across his forehead. Beads of sweat covered his warm skin, though a closer touch revealed it was not a fever. She continued to soothe his brow for a long time.

[Dianna] "I am sorry."

Guiscard must have endured such abuse countless times, both in her past life and this current timeline. In fact, his treatment during her previous life surely involved far more grueling hardships.

[Dianna] "I……"

Right then, he opened his eyes. Sunlit purple eyes met her gaze as he frowned.

Startled, Dianna attempted to pull her hand away, but he seized her wrist. Her fingertips remained resting lightly against his forehead.

[Guiscard] "What are you saying, My Lady?"

[Dianna] "Were you awake?"

[Guiscard] "Your touch woke me."

Dianna tried to withdraw her hand, but Guiscard maintained his solid grip. He remained lying down while she knelt beside the cot, soothing his brow.

He stared directly into her eyes.

[Guiscard] "You have no reason to apologize."

[Dianna] "……."

[Guiscard] "It was my own oversight as a mere slave to challenge my master's family."

Dianna bit her lip, hearing his submissive words. She knew Guiscard harbored no such thoughts internally. Why did he behave with such obedience, in stark contrast to his past life? She lowered her gaze, melancholy painting her features.

[Dianna] "I made my brother pay the price."

[Guiscard] "……."

[Dianna] "Though it can't compare to the humiliation you endured, I punished him."

Guiscard widened his eyes at her words, completely stunned. His grip on her wrist dissolved completely. He bolted upright on the cot.

[Guiscard] "What do you mean by that? Did you confront your own brother because of me?"

[Dianna] "……."

[Guiscard] "Because of a wretched slave like me?"

Dianna recognized that he sought confirmation, yet bloodshot lines filled his eyes. His gaze carried a deep desperation and a profound hunger, treating her response as an issue of absolute importance.

Dianna nodded at his intense gaze.

Why is he acting this way? Is my reaction so bizarre?

Even if she viewed him as a mere slave, Emil's cruelty would provoke fury from anyone.

Guiscard stared at Dianna with a stunned expression. He reached out and gently lifted her limp hand. Her hand looked remarkably small and delicate compared to his broad, calloused fingers.

He lifted her hand and pressed it against his cheek, behaving exactly like a loyal cat or dog. Shock gripped Dianna, yet he desperately nuzzled her palm, deeply yearning for his master's affection. Beholding his desperate display, Dianna couldn't bring herself to withdraw her hand.

Guiscard lingered to absorb the warmth of her hand for a long time, muttering under his breath.

[Guiscard] "This is exactly why I can't take my eyes off you."

Because his words sounded like a faint murmur, Dianna failed to catch the meaning.

A shadow cast over his features, his upturned purple eyes gleaming with dark intensity. For some reason, her heart hammered violently.

---

The moment her leg healed, Dianna began visiting various merchant guilds under the pretext of inspecting new dresses. However, a hidden motive drove her excursions: I must secure a new swordsmanship instructor for Guiscard.

Sir Liam had already declared his inability to teach Guiscard further, admitting the boy's prowess surpassed his own capabilities. Because a royal knight would never instruct a mere slave, Dianna focused her attention on mercenaries. After all, gold could buy a mercenary's loyalty effortlessly.

While browsing wardrobes, an intriguing rumor reached her ears regarding Barot, the future Mercenary King. Word placed Barot right here in the capital. Whispers claimed he could wield aura at a divine level. Dianna resolved to secure his services before his reputation skyrocketed, ensuring he would train Guiscard. This quest brought her to the doors of the Gryphine Merchant Guild.

The Gryphine Merchant Guild stood in stark contrast to the realm's premier institutions like the Esilac or Harpy guilds, lacking even a signature trade item. However, rumors specified that Barot exclusively accepted commissions brokered through this specific establishment. This meant the Gryphine guild specialized in selling services rather than physical wares.

[Dianna] "I wish to inspect the most valuable asset you offer here."

She stopped directly in front of the guild headquarters. A mustachioed guard studied Dianna before adopting a thoroughly bored expression.

[Guard] "My apologies, young lady, but this establishment holds nothing that would interest someone like you."

Her personal ducal guards had already attempted to dissuade her from entering. Beholding the low-ranking guard who casually misjudged Dianna, their expressions twisted with rage.

[Dianna] "Do you presume to know my preferences?"

[Guard] "Naturally, things like dolls or jewelry……"

She let out a chuckle at his response, prompting a confused look from the gatekeeper.

[Dianna] "Prejudging and mistreating a potential patron proves this establishment is entirely unworthy of business."

Her excitement dissolved. A noble lady had traveled all the way to this obscure location; a competent guard should assess whether she had a valid reason rather than dismissing her. The gatekeeper's sheer incompetence felt pathetic. Her knights erupted in fury.

[Knight 1] "Let us depart, My Lady."

[Knight 2] "This wretched venue ill-suits the grand House of Brienne."

[Guard] "Wait, Brienne?! My Lady, please wait a moment!"

[Dianna] "Let us leave."

Such a drastic shift in attitude upon hearing a family title felt utterly repulsive. The guard sprinted over and fell to his knees before her.

[Guard] "Mercy, My Lady! I should gouge out my own useless eyes! Please, enter our establishment. I will deliver whatever you desire."

[Dianna] "Even if I only seek dolls and jewelry?"

[Guard] "Of course! Whatever you demand, I will provide. I beg of you, if the guild master uncovers my blunder, I am a dead man!"

The guard pleaded desperately. Dianna looked down at the trembling man with absolute disbelief. His deep desperation suggested he would never repeat the same mistake.

---

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