The Male Lead I Raised Is Obsessed With Me - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

When I first heard the name Frug, I was confused, but the description of the novel came to mind when I saw his face.

Frug Lempel.

A villain who appeared in the beginning of the original novel, he secretly stole property from an unknown family and even touched the legacy left by the male lead’s father.

The male lead, who belatedly learned of the fact, tried to kill him, but he quickly ran away.

“So if I had money, I could call a doctor, right?”

“Of course. I meant what I thought of you, so if I had money, I’d like to call you right away.”

“Really? Okay.”

I took Bella out of the office.

“Ma’am. Now, uh, now what should I do?”

“What do you mean, I’ll go get the money.”

“What?”

Bella looked at me with a puzzled face.

“For now, you go check on the Duke.”

“Ma’am? Ma’am!”

I walked away without hesitation, recalling what I saw in the novel.

Frug’s room was at the end of the second floor.

Others won’t care, but I knew why Frug locked his room.

He’s been saving all the money he’s been sneaking away in his room!

As I saw in the book, there was a shiny key when I lifted up a nearby pot.

It was the key to his room.

The inattentive Frug would keep the key in a place he only knew after losing it several times.

“It’s common to keep a key under a pot in the other world too.”

When I opened the door with that key and went inside, I saw a bed full of all sorts of things and books piled up on the floor.

“Ugh. What an odd smell.”

I covered my nose with my hands and frowned.

Then, I took a step while being careful not to mess things up in the room.

“How can I find it here?”

In the original story, the male lead came into the room and found the hidden space at once, but he did not explain how he found it.

I raised my toes and tapped the floor with my heel for no reason.

The heel of the shoe hit the wooden floor, making a crack.

I tried knocking on the wall, but it didn’t move.

“What the hell?”

If I had found it as soon as I came in, it wouldn’t have been such a complicated trick, but I couldn’t figure it out.

“This isn’t supposed to be the case…”

My mind became nervous.

If I don’t find the money he has been hiding here, then no money could be used right now.

I don’t know what’s going to happen if I don’t get a doctor by tomorrow.

“Argh!”

As I scratched my head, I noticed dust on the floor.

Strangely, only certain areas were less dusty.

Just like there was something there.

My eyes turned to the carpet on the floor.

If I moved the carpet, I thought the dust would disappear just as much as it did.

It seemed like a light bulb went off in my head.

As I moved the carpet and lifted the wooden board to match the shape of the dust, I saw a small wooden box hidden in an empty space under the floor.

When I opened the box, I saw a pile of jewels.

“Wow…”

The price of firewood, medicine, clothes for employees, and male lead’s legacy.

You’ve been frugal enough to steal it.

At the same time, I felt both happy and bitter.

I looked around at the jewels, but they didn’t seem to have astronomical value.

Now, the duke was so poor that it felt like this was a large amount of money, but this amount of jewelry was not worth a single dress that the male lead gave to the female lead.

The other nobles could use it for a night’s entertainment for what the Duke of Valruga had left for his succession.

Then there was a ring bearing the seal of Duke Valruga.

It was a ring handed down by the Duke from generation to generation.

According to the original book, Frug, who obtained the belongings of the Duke who had been in an accident, seemed to be sullen.

The male lead knew that he lost his ring when his father died in the accident, but he found it while investigating after noticing that Frug was embezzling.

His anger was really huge then.

“I owe it to him.”

I thought for a moment, took one of the smallest and most unnoticeable emeralds, and snapped the box shut.

‘Let’s just get the money to call the doctor and pick up the rest later. There’s nowhere to hide, and right now I’m at a disadvantage.’

My current status was a newly married orphan and a common girl.

In this situation, it’ll only sound like slander to say that Frug, who has been in charge, was secretly stealing property.

If the male lead said it, no one would have doubted it, but I’m in a different situation.

‘I’ll take care of this when I get closer to the male lead later.’

After that decision, I left the box in the empty space under the wooden board, and returned the carpet to its original state.

Finally, I checked if anything had changed before I came in, put the key back in place, and headed back to his room.

Bella, who was nursing him by the male lead’s bed, welcomed me.

“Madam, where have you been?”

“Just a quick walk. How’s the Duke?”

“His fever hasn’t gone away at all. What should I do…”

The child still couldn’t open his eyes and breathed out heavyily.

Bella seemed genuinely worried about him.

At least Bella could be trusted a little.

“Bella, go get a doctor.”

“But ma’am, the money…”

I handed over the jewelry I just found.

Bella’s eyes opened wide when she saw the jewel.

“I found it while walking to the castle. I don’t know how much it’ll cost, but it’ll be enough to call a doctor because it’s jewelry.”

“Eeh? Found this from a walk?!”

Bella came out in surprise and looked at the jewel alternately.

I couldn’t believe you’re reacting to this kind of jewelry.

I think she’ll faint if she saw Frug sneaking it away.

“Yes, exchange it for money, call a doctor, and if you have any left, bring it to me, not to anyone else. If someone asks where the money came from, tell them it’s my dowry.”

“Yes, yes.”

To be honest, it would be a lie if I wasn’t worried.

Like a maid who ran away at night, Bella should not run away.

But I need someone to help me in the future.

There’s another gem, so I can test Bella at this time.

I handed the jewel to Bella’s trembling hand.

“Well, well, well…”

I urged Bella who was still dazed.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and go! How long are you going to keep the Duke sick?”

Bella squeezed the jewelry and ran outside.

There was a loud sound of a fall in the middle, but soon I could hear her getting up and running.

I sat on the chair next to the bed, held my hands like I was going to pray, and looked down at the male lead’s face.

“Just hang in there a little longer. The doctor will be here in a minute.”

Shortly after, Bella returned with a doctor in a white gown.

The doctor gasped for a long time even when Bella arrived.

“Doctor! Come on! Come on! Look at the duke!”

Bella still urged the half-deaf doctor.

The doctor hurriedly opened the examination bag and examined his condition.

Seeing the doctor’s expression, my face grew more serious.

What’s wrong?

Don’t tell me he’s in bad shape.

The doctor opened his eyes to check his condition, listened to his heartbeat with a stethoscope, and checked his body all over.

The more he did, the more anxious I became.

What the hell is going on?

Hurry up and tell me.

The doctor finally checked his ear and said,

“Fortunately, it’s not that bad. It’s like a fever that kids of this age get.”

“Phew…”

As soon as I heard the doctor, a sigh of relief came out.

“There won’t be any aftereffects, right?”

“It’s not like that. I think it’s a disease caused by a lack of nutrition these days. I’ll give you some medicine, so if he eats well, his fever will go away quickly.”

Bella saw the doctor off, and I was completely exhausted and sat next to the child.

The country’s duke is malnourished.

Does this make any sense?

Listening to the doctor, I was heartbroken by his slimmer cheeks.

I ordered Bella to call a doctor and bought meat with the rest of the money.

Like the doctor said, the fever quickly dropped when he took the medicine.

I fell asleep watching the child’s side all night.

Then I opened my eyes to the rustling sound.

“Uh…”

The child’s eyes slowly opened as he was tossing and turning.

My eyes met with the red eyes that looked at me, twinkled like a star in the sky and fluttered like a flame.

It was a beautiful and mysterious color that I had never seen before.

“See, I knew it would be pretty.”

I said hello with a smile.

He looked at me with a wary eye at my greeting.

“I’m your wife who got married to you. My name is Felia Foldvich.”

The child tilted his head slightly.

Oh, how cute.

I asked, holding back what I wanted to do right away.

“What’s your name?”

“…Lucius Valruga.”

“Okay, can I call you Ruth?”

The child nodded slowly as he hesitated.

A wary face just like a wounded young animal.

“Ruth, how are you feeling? Does it hurt?”

“…I’m fine now.”

“You can talk comfortably. You’re a duke now.”

Ruth shrank as if he had been scolded by what I said.

You don’t like being a duke?

I added urgently.

“Before that, you were my husband. We’re like, uh, friends. A very close friend. Friends are supposed to talk comfortably! But if you want to use honorifics, you can do whatever you want…”

I added timidly.

“Yes…”

“I’ll ask Bella to take care of your meal since you’re up. The doctor said you need to eat well to get better quickly.”

“You called a doctor? Doctors cost a lot of money…”

Ruth’s face turned pale.

I felt sorry for the child who was sick and worried about money rather than his safety.

I made eye contact with Ruth and spoke softly.

“That’s fine. And your health is more important than money.”

“But…”

“It’s okay. I’ll take care of everything.”

I saw something in the original novel, and I’ll fill your meal with meat side dishes for three meals a day.

“So you just have to eat well and grow up healthy.”

And save me.

I don’t want to die.