Chapter 10
After hearing Ann’s story, Elisha sent the maid away and sat down again by the bedside. Elisha looked at Richard with anxious eyes.
(t/n: […] means the dialogue happened in the past)
[The one who hurt the Young Master is the Duke.]
[…What?]
[I was leaving the kitchen just, and I saw that there was a guest who came to see the Duke.]
[At this late hour?]
[The guest was…that man. The man with a scar on his eyebrow that we saw on the hunting ground today.]
[……!]
[So, I followed him secretly and eavesdropped their conversation in the Duke’s office]
Upon hearing Ann’s story, Elisha finally figured out the most doubtful parts of today’s incident. The reason why the incident happened at the royal hunting ground, why can’t anyone guess who was behind this, why did Albert ask the Emperor to investigate the case, and why did he order the attack. And lastly, why didn’t Albert check Richard’s condition properly.
‘He did this to show off Rubelin’s power.’ Using Richard, he wanted to show that Rubelin was still powerful.
‘Crazy. How could he do that to his own grandson…’ Elisha bit her lower lip. She shuddered at the thought that Albert knew Richard was going to get hurt but not to the point causing his grandson’s death. It was clearly an abuse.
‘Should I tell Richard about this?’ Elisha hesitated. ‘If Richard finds out, he might leave the Duke. If that happens, I’ll…’ If Richard abandoned the Dukedom, Albert would no longer have a reason to keep her here. If she was kicked out of the Dukedom, she would be sent to the orphanage. Otherwise, she would wander around the streets. Her cozy life would end.
‘Still… I have to let him know.’ Even if her cozy life would end like this. Even if Richard’s heart would be hurt when he knew about this. She couldn’t let Richard live with his only family without knowing what kind of danger he was in. Such a life would be too harsh for him.
Then, Richard’s fingertips flinched and he opened his eyes. Even in the dim light, his red eyes could be seen clearly. Richard, who was staring at Elisha, looked around and turned his gaze toward her again as if he understood the situation.
Elisha asked, “How are you feeling now?”
“…Why aren’t you sleeping?”
Elisha, who was about to say, “I heard something so shocking that I can’t even fall asleep,” quickly changed her words and replied, “Because I am busy nursing my injured husband. You’re thankful, aren’t you?”
I should earn brownie points at times like this. Elisha decided to take credit for her efforts in taking care of Richard all day. In fact, all she did was only sit beside him.
‘Well, this is the only room that I could stay in… I don’t want to think about that.’ At Elisha’s words, Richard quickly avoided making eye contact. His ears turned red, but Elisha couldn’t see them because of the dim light. Avoiding Elisha’s gaze, he laid down, turning his back toward Elisha, and said curtly, “…No need to do that, just go to sleep.” ‘No matter how much you care about me.’
Elisha clicked her tongue inwardly at Richard’s brusqueness. Then suddenly, she remembered that she had something to tell Richard. “Richard, you know. There’s something you need to know.”
“Tell me.” Without looking back, Richard answered half-heartedly.
Elisha hesitated for a moment and opened her mouth. “The person who hurt you… is your grandfather.”
Richard didn’t show any reaction. As he was turning his back toward Elisha, she couldn’t guess how he felt or see what expression he made.
Elisha, who was waiting for Richard’s reaction, continued after a while. “I went to the valley and saw some suspicious men. It turned out that they were the ones who attacked you. Ann told me that she saw one of them just came to the mansion and met with the Duke.”
“……”
“So… I thought you should know.”
“…I know.”
“Huh?”
“I know. I know how he thinks and what kind of person he is.” Richard’s voice was as calm as if he was talking about others.
Elisha’s eyes shook at Richard’s firm words. She thought Richard would be shocked when he heard about this. On the contrary, Elisha was the one who felt shocked at his calm reply. Staring blankly at Richard, Elisha asked carefully. “You live in this house knowing that?”
“I came to this house knowing that.”
“What does that mean?”
Richard, who had been answering Elisha’s questions a moment ago, stopped talking. Elisha silently waited for Richard’s answer.
“…I’m an illegitimate child.”
“….”
“Half of my blood is commoner’s.”
Richard was an illegitimate child born between the Duke’s son and a commoner woman. After his birth, Richard was raised by his maternal uncle outside the Dukedom. His uncle took him in to extort money from his father, but Albert ignored him, saying that Richard was not his own flesh and blood.
“When my father was alive, the Duke couldn’t kill me.”
And on the day his uncle went to meet his father, an unidentified man broke into the house. The motive was clear. Albert intended to eliminate the disgrace of his son from the world.
Richard was dramatically saved, but his uncle, who realized Albert’s intention, abandoned his nephew in fear and fled. Richard, who was left alone, infiltrated several guilds to survive by avoiding the Rubelin’s eyes. One day when he was 14, his grandfather, who wanted to kill him so much, came.
“However, after my father died, he came to see me. He wanted me to be his successor.”
Albert needed a grandson to continue his family’s legacy instead of his dead son. Although Richard’s blood was half commoner, he was eligible enough to become the successor of the Dukedom since half of his blood was inherited from Albert.
Albert didn’t want to leave the legacy of Rubelin Dukedom, which he devoted his whole life to, without a successor. Furthermore, in the future, the blood of Richard’s son and the power of his family would become extremely strong, enough to threaten the Royal Family.
Richard laughed when he realized Albert’s intention. The man, who tried to kill him so much, was now scared of losing his life. Isn’t it funny? He wondered what would happen if he killed himself before Albert’s eyes, but he changed his mind.
“I come here to ruin this family with my own hands.”
Elisha stared blankly at Richard, who said such words casually. ‘I thought it was just one of the difficult times.’ I felt sorry for misunderstanding him without knowing anything.
At the same time, I was grateful to Richard for telling me about this though it was difficult for him. If he told me this, it meant that he trusted me. ‘I can’t believe they forced a kid like this to have a child…’ That’s why he hated Elisha and Hess so much in the original story. Elisha pulled Richard’s arm toward her.
Surprised, Richard turned to her. “What are you doing?”
Elisha held Richard’s hand like a handshake. “I’ll be on your side.” Elisha smiled and shook her hand. She wanted to help her young husband, who was holding out for revenge in this Duke’s mansion where no one was on his side. “I’ll be in your care.”
Richard looked at Elisha and his hand held by her with a puzzled look. He couldn’t bear to push away her firm little hand and her face smiling brightly at him.
*****
“I come upon your call, Your Majesty.”
Early in the morning, Marquis Felice, the Emperor’s prospective in-law, entered the Emperor’s bedroom.
Emperor Roam had not dressed properly yet. He was still wearing a comfortable gown while talking casually to the chess as he waited. “Sit down.”
The Marquis sat across from the Emperor with courtesy. A few chess pieces were already rolling on the floor. Among them, the pawn stood out right in front of the nearest compartment of the enemy camp. Roam stared at the pawn and remembered what Christian had said to him last night.
‘You have to kill that monstrous bastard in advance, Father! If we keep him alive, he’ll become a threat to us.’
Roam recalled the image of Richard he had seen on the hunting ground a few days ago. Using the violent whirlwind, Richard easily dealt with several assassins. It was certainly an overwhelming strength.
‘Storm of Rubelin. That title fits the monster perfectly.’
Roam felt a sense of crisis in his power. And the sense of crisis grew since he heard that the number of aristocrats who visited the Duke of Rubelin had increased since the incident.
‘Those foxlike bastards.’
The aristocrats were like cunning foxes, so when they saw someone with more power, they would stick themselves to that person to get more benefits. The fact that they flocked to the Duke of Rubelin meant that he was stronger than the Imperial Family.
Roam’s fingers tapped the pawn. The eyes of Marquis Felice naturally turned toward it.
“Laymore, what will you do with a pawn that might become a queen in the future?”
The eyes of the Marquis, who realized whom Roam means by ‘pawn’, shone in a flash. He replied with a smile as if he had been waiting, waited, “Of course, Your Majesty should get rid of it. If Your Majesty leaves him alone, he’ll definitely get in Your Majesty’s way.”
“But what if there’s no justification, and I can’t forcibly get rid of it?”
“Your Majesty could just make one.”
“Make it?”
“Using the Brothers’ Pledge, Your Majesty.”
The Brothers’ Pledge was a pledge between four great families who contributed to the founding of the Arencia Empire. The contents of the pledge were as follows.
Cairot, Rubelin, Serriott, and Esther shared brotherhood. If the three families rebelled for justified reasons, the Royal Family could not execute them, and if the Royal Family asked for help, the three families had to defend the Royal Family no matter what.
According to the pledge, they can’t kill the Duke directly, but they can kill the Duke’s successor. Marquis Felice smirked like a sly snake. “That’s a good way to use the pledge.”