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Chapter 51
Marquis Himonas, Samuel Himonas, could not understand what kind of situation this was.
Why was the Princess sitting in the chair of his office right now, and why was his own subordinate kneeling before her?
“Baron Brus, I would appreciate it if you would stop disappointing me.”
“My apologies, Your Highness.”
The man who appeared to be her guard knight standing behind her, and Baron Brus, both seemed accustomed to this entire situation.
Samuel disliked how they acted as though he weren’t even there, but since she was royalty, he forcibly lifted the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“Your Highness, what brings you all the way here?”
“One of the dogs I keep has been running wild. As its owner, I must calm it down. What else could I do?”
“A dog? Where would there be a dog here—”
Samuel Himonas stopped mid-sentence.
Because every pair of eyes was fixed on him.
As if asking whether he truly didn’t understand.
Amid them, the Princess was smiling brightly.
“Surely… you’re not referring to me as that dog?”
“Why would you assume I’m not? And to be precise, it isn’t only the Marquis. There’s one over here as well.”
The Princess smiled sweetly and gestured toward the floor with her chin.
Where Baron Brus was kneeling.
The Baron appeared calm, as though accustomed to such treatment.
Samuel Himonas felt anger surge at the humiliating remark. Perhaps it reminded him of himself before he had become a Marquis.
“Your Highness, even as royalty, you must not behave without decorum.”
Since she had only just come of age, he seemed to think he couldn’t openly show anger. So Samuel forced a smile and spoke as if gently admonishing her.
“Without decorum…?”
The Princess seemed to mull over his words.
She studied her nails thoughtfully before finally speaking again.
“Pan.”
“Yes, my master.”
“Was I lacking in decorum?”
Her voice was gentle, yet it carried the chill of a thousand needles.
“No. My master is one who may do anything.”
“Right?”
Satisfied by her guard knight’s answer, the Princess smiled radiantly.
To others it would have seemed beautiful and innocent, but to the Marquis, it felt chilling.
Come to think of it—how exactly had she traveled from the Imperial Palace to Himonas?
He had clearly received a report that she was at the Palace during the day.
“Marquis, they say I was not lacking in decorum. I dislike liars very much.”
“Pardon?”
“I have come all this way, so you will show me nothing but the truth.”
“Show you…?”
At that moment, silence fell over the room like icy water.
That silence was broken when the door opened and Kedell entered the office.
Sweat running cold down his back, the Marquis hurriedly shouted, as if relieved by the interruption.
“Do you know what place this is? How dare you barge in!”
His voice boomed through the office.
But Kedell merely yawned tiredly, as if the Marquis didn’t even exist.
Samuel was startled by this unfamiliar side of Kedell.
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“If you had handled things properly, I wouldn’t have had to come, Kedell.”
“Then you should’ve come during the day. I’m exhausted…”
As Kedell scratched his messy hair, a blade was suddenly pressed against his neck.
Pan had drawn his sword and aimed it at him.
“What kind of attitude is that? Watch your insolence, Kedell.”
“Pan, you really need to fix that temper.”
Kedell frowned and casually pushed the blade aside.
It was well-honed; the moment his hand touched it, a cut opened across his skin.
“Ah! I’m bleeding!”
He grabbed his finger and began making a fuss.
A single drop of blood fell to the floor.
The wound was deeper than expected.
But the blood was not red.
It was thick and black—like corruption.
Samuel Himonas knew exactly what it was.
Hadn’t he seen it countless times during experiments?
“…Corruption?”
At his mutter, all eyes turned toward him again.
“Enough, both of you. What kind of spectacle are you making in front of others?”
The Princess, who had been pressing her temple at the chaotic scene, spoke firmly.
“My apologies.”
Pan immediately sheathed his sword and returned to her side.
She turned her gaze to Kedell.
“Kedell, you too. It’ll heal soon anyway.”
“Of course! It’s already healed! But pain still hurts, you know!”
As Kedell whined, treating the Marquis as though he didn’t exist, Samuel could only stand there blankly.
“Baron Brus, you may leave.”
“Yes.”
With her dismissal, the Baron rose and walked out without hesitation.
“Ah.”
The Princess clapped lightly, as if remembering something.
The Baron stopped.
“Has it been long since you’ve seen her?”
At her words, Baron Brus’s face lit up.
His eyes gleamed in a way that was disturbingly eerie.
“The weather is nice tonight. Why not see her today? She would like that.”
It was night—how could she know the weather was nice?
But such details didn’t seem to matter.
The Baron bowed deeply, almost to the ground.
“Thank you.”
She waved him off.
“Now, Marquis. Shall we see why you released the demonic beast without permission?”
* * *
When Elexina removed her hand from the Marquis’s head, he collapsed limply onto the floor.
“Ugh.”
Kedell stepped back as if avoiding something filthy.
Despite hitting the ground, the Marquis didn’t move.
“Did you kill him?”
“No. Just throw him over there.”
At her command, Pan lifted the Marquis and tossed him onto the sofa.
“Hm…”
Elexina leaned back in his chair, tapping her finger thoughtfully.
“What is it?” Pan asked.
“Something is strange.”
“In what way?”
“When did Daphne Himonas stop listening to her father?”
Kedell thought for a moment.
“Probably when the Marquis told her to adopt another child.”
“She used to be like a doll. Now she has a will of her own.”
Pan frowned slightly.
“Does that matter? We don’t need Daphne Himonas. We need Jaquet Himonas.”
“True. In the future I saw, that child held the key.”
She tapped the table with her finger.
“Himonas has awakened.”
“He has? Really?”
Kedell looked excited.
“But I don’t know which one.”
“Why not?”
Pan answered instead.
“Only ice and aura remained. We can’t tell which of the two it was.”
“Tch.”
Kedell ruffled his hair in frustration.
“Then we’ll confirm it.”
“How?”
“Kedell.”
“What? Why?”
Elexina glared at them, signaling them to stop.
They quickly fell silent.
Seeing their obedience, she smiled with satisfaction.
“The Founding Festival is coming soon, isn’t it?”
“You’ll confirm when they attend?”
“Yes. What do you think?”
“An excellent idea.”
“Good.”
She stood.
“Kedell, keep a close eye on the Marquis and the Baron.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I’m leaving. I used too much power. I’ll go heal by spending time with my children.”
As she spoke, a door appeared in one corner of the office.
Elexina and Pan stepped through it, and the door vanished in an instant.
Kedell sighed, scratching his head, and began cleaning up the aftermath.
