🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter – 22
Have you ever been in love?
It was an ambiguous question.
Sian loved Doloresa more than anyone else in the world. But he wasn’t sure if that was what Graham meant. He had never been in love with a romantic partner, after all.
After thinking for a moment, Sian answered honestly.
“Yes, I have. I love my daughter, Doloresa. Why do you ask suddenly?”
“I love my mother. So I want to protect her. I was wondering if Master would understand this feeling.”
“If that’s what you mean, I understand completely. I, too, became one of the Empire’s top swordsmen to protect Doloresa.”
Graham’s expression brightened. Sian’s answer seemed to be the right one.
“To be honest, I didn’t like Master when we first met. But I’ve decided to like you now. I think Master understands my heart better than my mother or even my father.”
“So?”
“Yes! My father doesn’t protect either my mother or me. He probably hasn’t even thought about wanting to protect us, right? He only ever hurts us.”
They were cruel words for a four-year-old.
Graham had realized all too quickly that the father who should have been his greatest protector wasn’t protecting him or his mother.
“But Master wants to protect someone else. To protect, you have to be strong. So you must have practiced swordsmanship very hard. Right?”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Then please make me strong like you, Master! I’ll work really hard!”
“Alright. I’ll do my best.”
Sian looked down at Graham’s golden crown of hair and smiled faintly.
After the training, Graham fell fast asleep. He wasn’t a child who usually took naps; the training must have been tough.
After seeing Sian off and returning to the drawing room, Rachel examined the letters that had arrived. There were more than just one or two.
“I expected it, but there are so many.”
There were various kinds: a notice from the Tax Management Bureau regarding Karl, a notification from the Noble Council of Elders about the revocation of the Elosa family’s count title, and even a marriage annulment declaration bearing the seals of the Emperor and the High Saint.
Among them was also a letter from Sian.
[I hope you are pleased with the outcome.
Sian Iza Dicarsinac]
So, the swift handling of the matter was likely Sian’s doing.
She smiled bitterly, feeling somewhat burdened by the excessive favor.
Sian had said Rachel could help him later. But Rachel couldn’t imagine what she, in her position, could ever do to help a Grand Duke.
“…He’s not planning to sell me and Graham into some terrible place or something, is he?”
She narrowed her eyes and glared at the letter, but nothing changed.
Putting down Sian’s letter, she picked up the last one. Checking the sender’s name, Rachel was startled. It was a letter from an unexpected person.
[The Faithful Servant of Goddess Yeniss, Bishop Ryllerth Van]
Ryllerth Van was a friend of Rachel’s father, Count Jamesword, and the second highest-ranking person in the Church after High Saint Titiyeniss.
Why would someone like that contact her all of a sudden?
A while ago, Rachel had looked through all the letters she had exchanged, trying to find someone to rely on. But there was no letter from Ryllerth among them. It meant they hadn’t been in contact even once since her marriage.
Worried something big might have happened, she quickly opened the letter. Inside was an unexpected story.
[Rachel Boara.
I heard the news about Count Elosa. So you filed for annulment.
My heart ached so much while reviewing the documents, you cannot imagine.
I didn’t know you were suffering this much. I’m truly sorry. Please forgive your father’s friend for being so inattentive.
I prayed to Goddess Yeniss every day for your happiness, but it seems the Goddess has been slacking off.
I will visit soon. In the name of the Goddess, I will deliver a… to Count Elosa’s anus…
…Anyway, I’ll visit soon.]
There was a straight line drawn through a part of the content around the middle.
“…Usually, if you make a mistake while writing a letter, you start over, don’t you?”
This was a Bishop, no less. It wasn’t as if he would lack for servants or ink.
Rachel stared intently at the part that read ‘to Count Elosa’s anus’.
Whether it was a mistake or not, the fact that her father’s friend, a Bishop, was saying he’d punish someone she disliked made her feel good. It felt like she had gained a powerful ally.
The next day, Sian visited the imperial palace for the first time in a while. He had avoided it consciously after the affair incident, but since Theodor’s punishment had been decided, he could delay no longer.
The audience chamber doors opened. Emperor Sigard, seated on an indescribably splendid throne, looked down at Sian.
Sian approached calmly, knelt, and offered a respectful bow.
“I greet Your Imperial Majesty.”
“Sian, my brother. It’s been a long time indeed.”
The tone was affectionate, but Sian wasn’t fooled. His suspicious and greedy brother was always looking for a flaw in his younger brother’s actions, ready to strike down his neck.
“It has been. How have you been?”
“As you know, it hasn’t been peaceful. The Crown Prince’s birthday banquet was a mess, wasn’t it? I hear it was Count Elosa’s doing.”
“That is correct.”
“I’ve been waiting for you to come and report. The old men in the Council of Elders are needlessly long-winded.”
It meant he knew everything but had summoned Sian anyway. It was a blatant demand to bow his head before him and recount the deeds done in his service.
Calming his breath, Sian delivered the prepared words.
“As you saw, Theodor Elosa committed adultery. Over the past three years, the Council of Elders and the Guild tracked him, but no evidence was found suggesting he was preparing for rebellion rather than an affair.”
“Are you certain?”
“I am certain.”
“I don’t believe you.”
*I know.*
For all his imposing demeanor, the fearful Sigard trusted neither the reports of the Noble Council of Elders nor Sian’s.
Once Sigard got the idea that someone was plotting rebellion, he would not let go of his suspicion until that person’s head was struck off.
Theodor was no exception.
Even knowing Theodor had not rebelled, the Council of Elders had to pin the crime of treason on him. Because Emperor Sigard did not believe Theodor had merely committed adultery.
The nobles of the Council of Elders knew well what happened when they went against the Emperor’s whims. Trembling in fear, they followed the Emperor’s baseless orders.
He felt a twinge of pity for Theodor, who had to shoulder a crime he didn’t commit.
Sigard looked down at his silent brother and spoke wearily.
“I ordered the Council of Elders to strip Theodor Elosa of his title.”
“…I heard. I was on my way after delivering the imperial command to him personally.”
“Oh, so you reported that Theodor only committed adultery, knowing I had given the order.”
“I must report only what I know, even if I am aware that I am mistaken.”
“That’s right. That’s how it should be. Because you fear me.”
Half right, half wrong.
Sian did not fear Sigard. What he feared was the possibility that Sigard might harm Doloresa.
Sigard was the ruthless man who had poisoned his own father to claim the throne. Everyone knew it was Sigard who killed the former emperor, but no one dared speak. Because no one knew what else he might do.
Empress Dowager Belwinder had tearfully begged Sian. She pleaded with him not to covet the Emperor’s position.
She said Sigard was the type of person who would do anything to become Emperor.
Sian, who had been mentioned as the next emperor, had to give up the throne to protect the imperial family and the empire. He wasn’t afraid of death, but he feared Sigard might threaten his mother Belwinder or his friend Stefan.
At first, he was angry. Not because he couldn’t become Emperor. He hated the fact that he had to submit to the parricidal monster without being able to bring him to justice. He wanted to confront his brother, even if it meant death.
But he soon gave up. Because Sian had a daughter.
His own life had become precious. To protect Doloresa, Sian Dicarsinac had to stay alive.
The odd jobs he did for the Guild were nothing.
Fearful that showing any weakness might give a pretext to harm Doloresa, he remained courteous to everyone and honed himself sharply.
As Sigard watched his brother bow respectfully, he smirked sinisterly.
“Acknowledge your incompetence.”
“…I am ashamed that my inadequate skills have caused you concern.”
“Though his title has been stripped, there may still be accomplices who conspired in rebellion with him. Continue to monitor them steadily.”
“I will obey your command.”
When Sian acknowledged his own incompetence with his own mouth, Sigard became very pleased.
*The brother who is better than his brother. The competent younger brother. The one who should have become Emperor.* All were words used to describe Sian.
Sigard hated, hated, hated being compared to his brother.
What satisfied him most about becoming Emperor was that he could stand over Sian’s head without even having to kill him.
It was also good that he could handle the disgusting brother as he pleased.
He burdened his brother’s heart and blocked his path.
He was intoxicated by the sense of superiority that came from conquering someone better than him by force.
Feeling magnanimous, Sigard briefly pondered how to best display his generosity.
“Be sure to compensate the former Countess Elosa so generously it overflows. I hear she realized her husband was up to something suspicious and exposed him.”
Sian did not answer.
He hated having Rachel’s name on Sigard’s lips and in his voice.
“Yes, that’s right. It would be foolish to join in just because someone close commits rebellion. Reward her handsomely as a warning to other nobles not to participate in rebellion.”
Although Sian knew no one would participate in a rebellion that didn’t exist, he had to follow Sigard’s order.
“I will see to it.”
“Good. Now then, my brother. Let’s discuss something else.”
“Yes. What would you like to discuss?”
This time, the chilling voice carried his daughter’s name.
“How is my daughter, Doloresa, doing?”
At the words ‘my daughter,’ Sian nearly lost his temper. He lowered his gaze and slowly steadied his breathing.
*How dare you call her that, after abandoning her.*
How dare he call the baby he heartlessly abandoned before she was even ten days old his daughter.
Sian simply couldn’t understand why Sigard insisted on calling Doloresa his daughter every single time.
