Marcus listened to the story with complete attention. He never imagined old Caleb would have such a past.
But there were still things he wanted to know about.
"If your son's name is Lui, then who is Cavan?"
"Ah, I was coming to that part. You see, my son also inherited the trait of neglecting his own family.
Mai had it rough; just after Coby was born, he left his family. This was quite a psychological blow to Mai. Even though I wanted to help, it was certain she felt lonely.
It was hard for her to raise a child alone. And ... My son had also taken all the money with him; you could hardly understand what she went through.
This was also the time she met Cavan. He was a bard who stopped by in this village. Women would die over his charms. It was of no surprise that Mai also fell for him.
She would start to meet with him and got closer and closer every day.
I didn't like it at all; not like she was going to take my advice anyways. We would also end up having arguments souring our relationship.
But Mai is a smart woman; she knows where to draw the line. I didn't know what was going on with Cavan; he was not the typical type of bard who would sleep around with any woman who met their eyes.
This was also the reason why I was reluctant with Mai. So, as long as she was a faithful wife, I was going to let it pass.
What surprised me more was that Cavan seemed to have taken a liking to Mai. He would give her money from time to time and could help to take care of Coby.
I didn't know if he did this out of pity or love, but it didn't matter. My opinion of him had become neutral.
He even started visiting my house frequently. This made it easier for me to make things clear with him. As long as he did not cross the line with Mai, he was allowed to come here.
He readily agreed, which was unexpected but a relief nonetheless. Of course, I didn't allow him to stay; who would allow a married woman to stay under the same roof with another man?
So even though Coby saw him frequently, he didn't consider him family. For him, he was just a kind uncle who would come routinely to play with him.
I too would take care of Coby's education since, you know, I used to take care of Sir Cornwell's papers at times so I had decent education.
I also taught Coby that his father was away and Cavan was just a kind uncle who would come to our home. Coby too understood that unlike his mother and grandpa who lived in the house from day to night, Cavan was ultimately an outsider who would go back to his home.
So he neither considered him family nor did his attachment to him increase more than necessary. Well... I also warned Cavan not to get too close to Coby.
*Sigh*
So as you can guess, as Coby grew up, the distance between them only increased."
Caleb took a small pause after saying this much. He took some time to ponder something and then continued.
"If you ask me if I regret it and want another chance to correct these past actions, then my answer is no."
Rather than saying it to Marcus, it seemed he was telling it to himself.
"Many things I have done in my life can be considered hateful, but I don't regret it. It was my own way of coping, loving, and protecting my family.
After my son went missing, it took a long time for him to be declared dead. So till then, my son and Mai were legally married.
It was less than a year ago since he was declared dead. That was also the time when Mai and Cavan decided to marry each other.
This might sound strange coming from me, but I had also changed a lot in the past years. I too wanted the gap in my heart left by my son to be filled up by someone else.
So I readily agreed to their marriage and even gave them my blessings. I too had gotten a very favorable impression of him. Not only did he increase the money he sent us, as time passed, but he also helped me in my farm work.
To be honest, he had helped and supported us more than anyone else. It would be wrong to say he was not already a part of the family and also its pillar.
The only regret I have is not being able to provide Coby a father figure."
Marcus was silent after listening to Caleb. He knew that it was Caleb's family matters and he had no right to give his own opinions on it.
But still, there was something more he wanted to know.
"Can you tell me about the cursed woman and why Cavan died?"
Marcus knew he was being insensitive by being straightforward. But it was also the best way to convey specific questions.
"I already told you the cursed woman is one of Count Elfied's daughters
. As for why we call her 'cursed,' it's because of her condition.
Her entire body is rotting, and some of her fingers and nose have also fallen off. The priests of the holy church had already given up on her treatment.
This made the count go in search of alternatives like shamans and witch doctors. Some of them seemed to have given him ridiculous advice, and he seemed to follow their crazy instructions."
Why did it sound so similar to Leprosy (a disease) from his world?
"So what are these terrible methods you speak of?"
"You will laugh after hearing them. They said only true love can cure curses. They now have poets playing doctors nowadays. "
"And the count, too, being the dimwit he is, followed their suggestion. He would get good-looking men from anywhere he wanted, from buying them from the black market to blackmailing villagers to even kidnapping.
Just to get them to sleep and stay with his beloved daughter. Truly, the count's insanity knows no bounds."
Marcus now had a picture of what happened to Cavan. Him being an eye candy for ladies must have played a big role in getting taken away by the count.
"But why do you say it's a curse? It can also be a disease, can't it?"
"I know what you are thinking, but there is a deeper reason for it to be called a curse, though.
You see, I don't know its validity, but there is a rumor that Count Elfied once had dealings with a cult. "
"A cult?"
"Yes, some madmen who worship the Night Spider. They call it a god which weaves fate and can give one good fortune.
I don't know the details, but I have heard that the count had a falling out with them, which made them place a curse on him."
"And what is that curse? Is it similar to his daughter's?"
"No, it's a bit special. It doesn't harm him in the way that normal people would think."