Chapter 120
“…Shall I contact him?”
This time, the butler asked first, seeing the Duke lost in thought.
The Duke shook his head firmly.
“No, there’s no need. He already knows. Yes, so what we need now is…”
The Duke’s gaze turned toward the window. Stars that seemed about to pour down caught his eye.
“To prepare thoroughly for that day. Check that everything will proceed without a hitch, and also tell that fellow in the underground laboratory… to prepare for mass production.”
For a moment, the butler’s eyes wavered. Mass production of the underground experiment’s product.
That truly meant the Duke was willing to stake everything on a final battle.
Straining his neck to prevent trembling, the butler replied.
“…Understood, my lord.”
The Duke closed his eyes, sensing the butler quietly withdrawing.
Although his mind was troubled, his heart was calm, as if having been doused with cold water.
“That Lu tribesman… Rahu. It’s a shame I let him and the southern Lu tribe slip through my fingers.”
The Duke muttered, clicking his tongue. But they had already escaped his grasp.
Silver Lily, that bewitching woman—however she had persuaded them—traitors should simply be thoroughly eliminated, that’s all.
The Duke, with his eyes closed, began to draw up detailed plans in his mind for the future.
For the day when he would become Emperor and place the empire beneath his feet.
* * *
In the blink of an eye, day broke.
“…Hmm?”
I remembered extracting all the information I needed from Helin, and while I was at it, meeting other maids to gather various pieces of information.
I also recalled being carried on Hadel’s back afterward.
And then the next thing I remember is “Oh, it’s morning…” now.
I must have been so tired that I fell asleep without realizing it.
“Asha, are you awake?”
Following the voice, I turned my head to find Hadel lying beside me, looking down at me.
His gently curved upturned lips automatically drew a smile from me as well.
“The children?”
As I asked about the children first, faint wrinkles seemed to appear on Hadel’s fair brow, but he quickly pointed his finger toward a cot.
“Over there. They’re still sleeping. But Asha, there’s someone you need to meet before the children right now.”
“Hmm? …Dobae?”
“No, not that woman.”
If not Dobae, then who?
As I looked at Hadel with a questioning expression, he showed slight displeasure as he rose.
“I’d prefer if you rested more, but… he says it’s urgent, so there’s no choice.”
After saying this, Hadel went to the window and tapped it lightly.
After a brief pause, the window opened with a clatter.
“Oh?”
The black shadow that seemed to be sucked in was a face I hadn’t seen in quite some time.
“I hope you’ve been well, Lady Silver Lily.”
The owner of the deep, powerful voice seemed to have darker skin than when I last saw him.
“I’m glad you’ve returned safely. When did you arrive?”
“At dawn.”
As he bowed his head slightly in response, his platinum blonde hair swayed and shimmered beautifully.
When he raised his head, bright yellow eyes contrasted with his tanned skin.
Unlike before, they were vibrant, sparkling eyes full of life.
“You look unburdened, Rahu.”
At my words, his yellow eyes widened slightly before returning to their usual look.
“…All thanks to you, Lady Silver Lily.”
“Did you find and bring the things I mentioned?”
“Yes. But…”
Rahu hesitated, unable to continue. Judging by his increasingly dark expression, there must be some issue.
I waited silently.
Eventually, he spoke again.
“It seems to be a bigger… matter than expected.”
“Bigger how…?”
“When you sent me south, Lady Silver Lily, you said there would be traces of illegal activities overflowing there.”
“That’s right. And I asked you to collect all of them.”
“At that time… what scale were you anticipating, Lady Silver Lily?”
Rahu’s question was unexpected. Rather than issues like incomplete documents or insufficient evidence, he was asking about “scale.”
I answered honestly.
“Well, from minor corruption and illegal slavery issues… to treason, and perhaps even—”
I paused to observe Rahu’s expression. True to his typically expressionless nature, the change was minimal.
I continued.
“I thought they might have engaged in inhumane activities.”
It was just for a moment, but Rahu’s bright yellow eyes showed a flicker of something unusual. That light seemed to be quickly contained within him.
“I was part of the Balkyrino ducal family for many years. Even I didn’t know what you…”
At Rahu’s tone of surprise, I smiled almost imperceptibly.
I was reminded of Lady Schunet, whom the Balkyrino ducal family had assigned to monitor me when I first entered the Lily Palace.
She was expressionless throughout. Sometimes she would show emotions, but most of the time, she maintained a doll-like face.
I thought she might be someone completely devoid of emotions, but that wasn’t quite right. She clearly knew how to be angry and afraid.
The incident in prison just before her death kept circling in my mind.
When I questioned her about who had ordered her to embezzle the Lily Palace budget, she repeated the same answer.
[No one ordered me. I did it out of greed.]
No matter how many times I asked or what questions I posed, Lady Schunet gave the same answer.
And at the end…
[Lady Schunet, do you admit to the crime of attempting to kill me?]
[…I… ad…mit… hnngh, GAAAAAAAH!]
She trembled violently and went wild, making sounds that were hardly human.
Though alarmed, I tried to calm her by calling her name again, and she begged for her life.
[S…ave… me… nngh, urgh, Lady… Silver… Lily…! Ple…ase… AAAAARGH!]
Her pitifully trembling body moved no more.
After she collapsed, Hadel and I tried to investigate her condition, as we found it suspicious.
But beyond her death, there was nothing to discover.
Her expressions and actions seemed inhuman. Yet the plea for her life just before she lost consciousness was full of emotion.
What did all this mean?
As I thought about it, I realized that the servants working at the Balkyrino ducal residence also resembled Lady Schunet in some way.
The servants who worked robotically seemed like people whose emotions had died.
‘There were a few who seemed normal among them. But they were all temporary staff who came and went.’
If there was a commonality among the expressionless servants, it was that they were all permanent staff who had dedicated their lives to the Duke’s residence.
By this point, suspicion was inevitable. That’s why I ordered Rahu to search thoroughly.
Whatever it was, it would surely come to light.
And if the Duke had truly been involved in such shocking activities, this would go beyond mere revenge.
“Asha, your expression is frightening.”
It was Hadel who brought me back to reality from my momentary contemplation.
Holding my hand tightly, Hadel was looking at me with concerned eyes.
“Are you alright?”
Hadel asked.
I nodded and answered with a gentle smile.
Then I shifted my gaze back to Rahu.
“So, what did you see there, Rahu?”
Nothing is certain yet. Not yet.
But it will be soon.
Hadel and I focused on Rahu’s quiet voice.
“The Lu tribe… my family, they were subjected to forced labor there. But what was more shocking was—”
Rahu swallowed hard. Then he continued.
“The experiments.”
“Experiments?”
“Human… biological experiments.”
Hadel’s hand gripping mine tightened. I squeezed back just as firmly.
“They captured the Lu tribe for biological experiments, but I couldn’t determine exactly what kind of experiments they were. There was hardly any evidence.”
“Then how did you find out?”
“There were witnesses. More than half of the Lu tribe had already been subjected to it.”
As he spoke, a flash of killing intent briefly crossed Rahu’s eyes.
“What happened to them now?”
“Fortunately, they are safe. I don’t know exactly what the experiments were. Perhaps the experiments didn’t work well on the Lu tribe, or they were discontinued recently due to lack of results.”
“I… see.”
“They said they injected some kind of drug… but the Lu tribe, due to our physical characteristics, aren’t easily affected by any drug. That’s probably why it failed. But as for the regular imperial citizens…”
“There would certainly be problems.”
My mouth tasted bitter as I answered.
Enough time had passed for them to thoroughly experiment on the Lu tribe and determine that it didn’t work.
This meant that the Balkyrino ducal family had been engaging in terrible activities for quite some time.
Perhaps sharing my thoughts, Hadel furrowed his brow and sighed.
“They’ve been busy. I should have dealt with them earlier.”
I agreed with Hadel’s words and nodded.
“We need to hurry. I’d like to hold an emergency trial today, if possible.”
At my words filled with impatience, Hadel’s pink eyes sparkled as they took in my face.
“Of course, Asha. Whatever you want, I can make it all happen for you.”
Even if it were impossible, I’d make it possible.
Hadel’s devoted gaze seemed to add those words.
That gaze was overwhelming yet joyful. The fact that he would give everything to me.
Because I felt the same way toward Hadel.
“Yes, let’s end this now.”
I would hold a trial and bring down both Nella and Duke Balkyrino.
Other nobles would likely be dragged down with them as well. Like fish skewered on a stick, bound by the same charges.
Just as Hadel was about to leave the palace to arrange the trial, Rahu urgently stopped him.
“Ah, wait a moment, please. There’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
“There’s more?”
“Yes. This might be nothing, but… my instincts are signaling that something is wrong, so I feel I should mention it.”
And so Rahu told us another story. It was truly something even I hadn’t anticipated.
