Chapter 38
The woman sat down in the dining room chair, escorted by the young man.
“It’s been a while, Grand Duke.”
“I apologize for not visiting sooner.”
“No. Everyone knows how busy the Grand Duke is.”
The woman waved her hand dismissively.
Just then, the butler brought in tea. The woman lifted her teacup with a languid gesture.
“Which makes me wonder. What made such a busy Grand Duke invite me?”
“Nothing special. I just felt I should tell you something.”
The Exarch paused briefly.
“We are protecting the physician who treated His Majesty.”
The woman was momentarily surprised but didn’t show it.
For him to bring it up first.
It was surprising but welcome.
“What do you mean? I heard that person vanished without a trace.”
“I orchestrated that appearance.”
“Oh? Why?”
“Wouldn’t it be pitiful to let them get caught up in political battles?”
“…”
The woman had known Grand Duke Zahig since he was young.
She knew how cold-hearted he could be.
The Exarch was kind, but he was also a man who could sacrifice the small for the greater good if necessary.
He was also a man who simply wanted a quiet life.
‘But to bring in someone who treated the Emperor?’
Did he realize how nonsensical his words were?
Rather, that person would be drawn into the political whirlpool because of the Grand Duke.
“Grand Duke. This is strange. By that logic, the world is full of pitiful people. Yet you brought only that woman, and moreover, a woman who treated the Emperor, to stay at your residence. Doesn’t that sound amusing?”
The woman’s fingers leisurely gripped the teacup handle. Her eyes watched for minute changes in the Exarch’s expression.
“It’s almost as if the Grand Duke considers her special.”
“That’s not at all…”
The Exarch stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening. He seemed slightly surprised at his own pause.
“…”
His lips moved several times, but no words came out. Instead, his usually gentle brow furrowed slightly.
He didn’t even deny the pronoun “her.” He seemed unaware he was being led by her questioning.
To the woman who had lived longer than the Exarch, his reaction was all too clear.
‘…Tsk.’
The woman clicked her tongue.
“I’m disappointed, Grand Duke.”
“…”
“I’ll excuse myself briefly. I’ll return soon.”
“Yes.”
The woman rose from her seat and glanced at the Exarch.
He sat like a wooden statue, seemingly deeply absorbed in his own thoughts.
“…”
The woman walked out into the hallway in silence with steady steps.
There was no one around. Thanks to that, she could exit without any interference.
Her destination was the glass greenhouse. It was a place the servants had been frequenting lately. Though she hadn’t sent night visitors, she knew this from observation.
‘I suppose she tried to curry favor with the Grand Duke in a place like this.’
Before coming to the Grand Duke’s residence, the woman had considered many possibilities.
First, the possibility that the physician was a parasite trying to cling to the Emperor.
However, if that were the case, the Exarch wouldn’t have bothered to protect them.
Then perhaps they were simply a physician who couldn’t ignore a dying person?
Or could they be brought in to use against the Emperor again?
There were various possibilities.
But after seeing the Exarch’s reaction, the woman dismissed all these possibilities.
‘Whether that woman is good or evil doesn’t matter. She must die.’
The reason was both grand and simple.
The Exarch’s judgment had been clouded.
It was impossible, and yet it had actually happened. Some might call it a mere tremor of emotion, but for someone of the Exarch’s caliber, it was different.
Though the Exarch didn’t heavily interfere in politics, he had always existed as a check against the Emperor’s faction.
This was because he had inherited the Northern Giroti Duchy that handled Orquenina’s military power.
The Exarch needed to remain such a figure. Not to be swayed by a woman who had treated both the Emperor and Princess.
‘I didn’t want to resort to such methods, but…’
The woman went deep into the glass greenhouse. There was a small brass table for two.
She took out a small pouch from her breast. It was an item specially imported from Lutie.
‘Since the Grand Duke has the Goddess’s blessing, it will only affect that woman.’
If only she had let the Emperor die then, she reproached herself.
Just as she was about to kneel and dig under the table—
“That’s far enough.”
A young voice rang out along with the rustling of leaves.
“Marquis Lille.”
* * *
Baeksan stepped forward toward the table, pushing aside palm leaves.
As expected, Marquis Lille was kneeling before the table.
The middle-aged woman with curly silver hair and blue eyes was beautiful. But the pouch in her hand was not.
[Vengeful Wolf’s Nose]
A cursed item obtained by brutally slaughtering a wolf pack and cutting off the nose of the last survivor.
It cannot affect you.
The sinister energy was palpable.
Just then, the Exarch crossed the greenhouse silently and approached. He politely took the pouch from the kneeling Marquis Lille.
“This is a cursed object. I shall destroy it.”
The Exarch spoke calmly and applied pressure with his hand.
The object inside the pouch was easily crushed.
A dark energy dispersed, and the ominous presence that had surrounded the pouch vanished.
After a moment of silence, the Exarch spoke.
“So you really did curse His Majesty, Marquis.”
Marquis Lille looked up.
“Oh? I don’t know what you mean.”
Baeksan crossed her arms and snorted.
“It’s rather amusing that you’re still denying it after coming this far.”
“The amusing one is you.”
Marquis Lille’s beautiful face frowned. A strange emotion leaked from her eyes.
“Why are you here?”
“…”
Baeksan hesitated.
‘Does she know me… no, Minervina Rethor?’
If so, she needed to be careful. Baeksan’s demeanor became more cautious.
“Do you know me?”
“Of course I do.”
Marquis Lille looked Baeksan up and down and chuckled.
“You’ve become quite the con artist while I haven’t seen you. Your face is scarred?”
“It was necessary to hide my identity.”
“Necessary, you say…”
The Marquis’s blue eyes narrowed as if measuring something.
This was troublesome. The other side seemed to hold more cards.
“But that’s not what’s important right now.”
Baeksan sat in the chair beside the table to turn the situation around.
Looking down at the kneeling Marquis Lille, the Marquis’s eyebrow twitched.
But it was better than appearing vulnerable.
“There’s no need for such hostility, is there? I just wanted to talk with the person who cursed His Majesty and tried to kidnap me.”
“Talk? With a little girl trying to brand me a traitor?”
“Let me be direct since this is tiring. I am not your enemy.”
For a moment, Marquis Lille’s breath stopped. Baeksan noticed this.
“Because I’m not the Emperor’s person. The same goes for Grand Duke Zahig.”
“…”
“In the dining room, I asked Grand Duke to pretend to like me. I needed a reason for you to look at me unfavorably.”
“…You say that was an act?”
“Please, have a seat.”
The Exarch interjected.
Marquis Lille sat across from them with his escort. She lifted her chin haughtily.
“But I don’t understand what you’re saying at all. It sounds as if you’re suggesting I tried to kill you because you treated His Majesty. Is that right?”
“Isn’t it?”
“How insulting. That’s completely groundless.”
“Then does Marquis Lille have no thoughts at all?”
“What do you mean?”
“Just looking around the streets, you can see people struggling under high tax rates. Public safety is deteriorating day by day, and policies for public welfare are diminishing. Does none of this concern you?”
“…”
“Of course it does.”
At Baeksan’s assertion, Marquis Lille’s silver eyebrow twitched.
