Chapter 163: Decision
“Marquis Erez.”
Marquis Erez pretended not to hear the voice behind him. What bad luck to encounter that person in a palace like this. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
“Are you going to pretend you don’t know me?”
In the end, Marquis Erez slowly turned his head. “It’s been a while, Duke Heilon.”
Abel Heilon, that wretched guy from the North, grinned.
The Marquis flinched as if he had been stabbed in the back. “What’s the matter?”
“I feel like I owe you a little lately, so I came to say hello.”
No matter how easygoing it sounded, it was nothing but a threat. “What are you saying?”
“I had a bit of a hard time with two rats.”
“Then how about having a cat?”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”
The Marquis recalled that the songstress he had sent to the Imperial Palace was missing. It was a pity, but he didn’t really want to know what had happened. The nobleman associated with Lady Fiona was also imprisoned. ‘But there’s no physical evidence.’
Without such evidence, it would be impossible to drive out high-ranking nobles and the empress. So, Marquis Erez tried to maintain a shameless demeanor; he couldn’t allow himself to be looked down upon by the duke in front of him. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
“Well, then, if you have nothing more to say, I’ll be going.”
A cold voice echoed from behind. “If there’s one more rat, I won’t let it go.” There was a murderous threat in those words.
Marquis Erez felt that if he looked back, he would surely die. Therefore, he hurriedly walked away without saying anything.
Abel watched the figure of Marquis Erez disappear as if he were running away. He had warned him, but he knew that those nobles would do something again.
‘I want to kill them all.’ Although he had expected that Heilon would no longer be calm when he decided to support the prince, the thought of what they did to his stepdaughter made his blood boil.
[‘Are you going to tell me to break up with Sigren?’]
That girl, of course, wasn’t the type to simply listen. Fiona had never followed unfounded or unjust judgments. This was why he considered her his successor. However, because of that trait, he also had to sadly accept that she was an adopted daughter who was too headstrong. It would be nice if she could still rely on those around her.
Abel returned home, thinking about her. When he arrived at the mansion around dinner time, Fiona, who was about to eat, looked at him curiously.
“You came back early?”
Abel smirked. “Well, I have nothing to do except threaten one person.”
Fiona let out a short laugh. “It doesn’t sound like a joke when the duke says it.”
Abel shrugged his shoulders, seeming indifferent. But he meant what he said; he wasn’t kidding. He then turned his gaze away. On the other side was Cali, a guest who had been staying at the mansion recently. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
Cali met the duke’s eyes and quietly lowered his head.
‘What should we do about that guy?’
“Don’t give him that look!” Fiona grumbled.
“All I did was stare.”
“Isn’t that the problem?”
All that came out of Abel’s mouth was grumbling as he saw his daughter defending the guy who had appeared out of nowhere in their lives.
“I’m the owner of this mansion…”
“Then be a generous master, Duke.”
In the end, he lost to his adopted daughter. That was how they finished their dinner.
As Fiona returned to her room, Abel grabbed Cali as if he had been waiting for this moment. “Wait a minute.”
Carli answered politely, “Yes, Duke.”
Abel looked at the young man in front of him with discontent. He had done some research and found out that Carli was actually a relative of Sigren. But that knowledge didn’t translate to trust. “What are your plans next?”
“I intend to continue doing what I originally intended.”
Abel already knew what this guy was up to. He contemplated for a moment, then said, “I hope you won’t involve Fiona in your plans.”
“I have no intention of doing so.”
Abel glared at Carli. He still didn’t like the guy. In fact, he had never liked any of the boys around his adopted daughter. “What do you think of Fiona?”
“Yes?” Carli was taken aback by the unexpected question. He didn’t know what the duke meant by asking such a thing, but he had to answer. He recalled Fiona. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com. From what he had seen in the past few days, she was a kind and lovely girl. Her demeanor was unpretentious and pure. When he sang a song she wanted to hear, she smiled so brightly. It was uncommon for anyone to accept the fact that they had been deceived by a man dressed as a woman, yet she accepted it so quickly. The trickery was not even enough to ruffle her. Carli could see why his grumpy cousin became a meek sheep in her presence. “She’s a good person.”
“And?”
“She’s kind and tolerant.”
“Yes, yes.” Abel nodded as he listened to the praise for Fiona. “However, even though she is merciful, she’s scary when she gets angry.”
She was indeed scary when she was angry. Cali chuckled to himself, struggling to imagine the intimidating Fiona based on his experiences with her.
“Ah, of course, I’ll take care of anyone who upsets her first.”
Cali stiffened. He was now being threatened by the duke.
“I know very well what you want and why you’re moving with Sigren.”
“…”
“But if you drag my daughter into it… you’ll die.”
It was a straightforward threat.
Cali bowed his head. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Oh, for your information, I would still kill you even if you approached her with pure intentions.”
“…”
Cali hesitated. “So, in the end, you want to kill me no matter what I do…”
“Yes… sigh, my daughter is so popular.”
Abel clicked his tongue. “If I had known it would be like this, I would have strongly opposed her when she said she was dating Sigren.”
Duke Heilon and the young lady seemed to get along very well, even though they were not related by blood. In fact, rather than giving a threat, Duke Heilon seemed to simply dislike the presence of boys around his daughter. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
“…”
Cali decided he didn’t hear the duke’s last words.
***
“Paul was found dead in prison, Your Majesty.”
“What is the cause of death?”
“They said it was a suicide.”
“Oh, my.” The empress frowned. “It’s unfortunate.”
Marquis Erez bowed his head. “I’m sorry for my shortcomings.”
“It’s alright. Did you find the whereabouts of that singer?”
“No, I couldn’t find her. I wonder if Heilon killed her.” The hesitant Marquis Erez opened his mouth. “I’m concerned that Prince Sigren may have become aware of the incident.”
“Even if he found out, what could he do anyway?”
“But…”
“That’s enough. Anyway, let’s try something else now.” Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
“I understand.”
“And we need to bring the crown prince back to high society soon. I think this period of self-reflection has been long enough.”
“Will it be alright?”
The empress smiled. “Of course. I can’t stay calm any longer.”
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