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#9
My body had stiffened rigidly without my realizing it, yet my fingers and voice alone moved fluidly and flawlessly, as if without a hint of tension.
I gathered my concentration. Now was not the time for unnecessary thoughts.
‘Gert doesn’t seem to be in a good mood, so I’d better finish this as quickly as possible.’
Just then, Eurich, who seemed unable to bear his thirst, grimaced and tipped his wine glass once more. The wine that had been filling it was now completely drained.
‘Perfect.’
All the conditions were met. Now, I only had to wait.
The lips that were singing finally curved into a faint, graceful arc.
The song was gradually building toward its climax.
The waves drown out the lovers’ cries
The waves drown out the lovers too
All that remains is but…
Following the dazzling movement of my fingers, a sound as if waves were crashing against a cliff and While echoed through the hall.
Just as other members of the audience, anticipating the end of the song, held their breath with regretful sighs, waiting for the final note…
…All that accepts…
“Shut up! Alcides, Alcides, Alcides! What’s so special about his blood that it’s utterly infuriating!”
A sharp scream tore through the banquet hall before the song could conclude.
Just as an extraordinary performance was unfolding.
Forced back to reality without a moment to savor the lingering notes, the crowd suppressed their anger and shot sharp glances toward the source of the commotion.
At the end of those gazes stood Eurich, his face deathly pale, screaming.
Just as a pleasant intoxication can turn into a hangover, the initially cheerful atmosphere had transformed into a tense, icy stillness.
The first to break that chilly silence was Eurich’s father, Stello.
“What nonsense are you spouting? You’re deeply drunk. Go to your room early!”
His face ashen, Stello hurriedly glanced at Gert and tried to drag Eurich away.
But Eurich, swept up in the aftermath of the performance, was slow to regain his senses. The劝阻 from his real father seemed to mix with the reprimands of the illusory father in his vision.
“With this pathetic appearance, you dare covet Gert’s position? What a laughable joke!”
Unable to contain his rage, Eurich shook off Stello’s arm. With bloodshot, blazing eyes, he glared at Stello and shouted.
“What am I lacking?! I am the legitimate successor of the House of Lübenhertz! Just because I wasn’t born an Alkides, I have to be pushed aside by that bastard?!”
Stello, who hadn’t expected his son to go this far, was momentarily dumbfounded before his face contorted in anger.
‘You fool!’
To openly reproach Gert in his presence like this…
But the line hadn’t been crossed yet. Gert wasn’t overly sensitive about his origins. He had different taboos. Insults about his birth could still be dismissed as the ravings of a drunken fool.
Stello quickly reached out to cover Eurich’s mouth.
But the current Eurich was completely entranced by the song. He slapped Stello’s hand away and raised his voice even louder.
“The others are all the same too! The way they’d revere even the man who killed his own father as the Grand Duke of Lübenhertz, just because he’s an Alcides. And that bastard, laughing ha-ha ho-ho at the banquet just to look good for his commoner wife… Our uncle in hell would be delighted to see it, wouldn’t he?!”
“Eurich!”
As Eurich finally uttered that taboo, the banquet hall fell silent as if doused with cold water.
A stillness incomparable to before.
Those present held their breath, even swallowing carefully, while watching Gert’s reaction.
But Eurych’s, who had dropped a bombshell in the hall, still hadn’t grasped the situation.
“You’ll eventually go mad and die anyway! Don’t worry about your wife then. I, the next Grand Duke of Lübenherz, will take her as my mistress and cherish her thoroughly…”
How long did he ramble on like that?
Eurych’s, utterly immersed in his own emotions, gradually regained his reason from the piercing, murderous aura that crept over his skin.
The echo of his father’s shouts, the hazy sound of the lyre, and Orphea’s damp, clinging song that had filled his ears—all had vanished without a trace.
And all that remained was Gert’s pure, undiluted rage, which seemed ready to tear him apart limb from limb right then and there.
Only then, realizing what he had done, did the color drain completely from Eurych’s face.
“…Ge-Gert.”
‘Wow… Eurich is done for.’
I had hoped Eurich would reveal his true feelings, but I hadn’t expected him to self-destruct so spectacularly…
There was no one who didn’t know the fact that before Gert came of age, he had killed his own father and was cursed by the gods. Everyone just hushed it up out of fear of Gert’s wrath.
Of course, there were no witnesses or evidence that Gert had killed his father. But the circumstances pointed to it.
Those born with the power of a demigod, an ‘Alcides,’ possessed a divine blessing: the ‘Guardian of Slaughter,’ a divine retribution that would fall upon anyone who killed an Alcides.
Gert’s father was also an Alcides and possessed this Guardian.
Since Gert’s father died and Gert was cursed by the gods, it was natural to assume Gert had killed him.
In any case, Gert became the next Grand Duke of Lübenherz and an unparalleled hero no one could match.
Thus, the accusation of patricide faded away ambiguously, and no one spoke of it again.
And now, that sinful crime had been dragged out before everyone by Eurich after over a decade!
Eurich, too, seemed to realize he had made a grave mistake, his face turning as pale as a drowned corpse.
Stammering, he made excuses to Gert.
“N-no. It’s like something… something came over me. There’s no way I could harbor such thoughts about you.”
“Something came over you?”
Gert raised only his left eyebrow as he repeated the question. Seeming to take it as an opportunity to explain, Eurich nodded frantically and cried out.
“Yes, the song! I was affected by the song! By Orphea’s song!”
As soon as Eurich pointed at me, all eyes turned toward me once again.
‘Quick on the uptake, aren’t you?’
But I couldn’t admit it outright. I put on an utterly clueless expression and asked.
“Me?”
“Yes! You must have enchanted me with your song, made me say things I didn’t mean! You witch!”
I had fully anticipated Eurich trying to paint me as a witch. In my past life, he had pinned Gert’s death on me in a similar way.
So, I had prepared my defenses early.
“Everyone heard the same song, and the others are fine, aren’t they?”
People murmured in agreement with my words. Everyone had been engrossed in my song, but Eurich was the only one who caused a disturbance.
“Besides, what would I gain by controlling you?”
“I-if I fall, eventually there would be no successor for this family! You plan to seize control of this house after Gert dies…”
“What are you talking about?”
I laughed exaggeratedly and shook my head.
“I just asked Gert for a divorce earlier, didn’t I? Did you forget? What would a divorced woman like me have to do with the succession of Rübenherz?”
“The Grand Duchess has a point.”
“That’s right. She clearly stated boldly in front of everyone that she wanted a divorce.”
Others whispered, taking my side.
Seeing that directly attacking me was pointless, Eurich immediately switched targets.
“Gert, haven’t I been a good brother to you until now? You don’t really believe I hate you, do you?”
Gert continued to stare at Eurich with an unreadable expression. But compared to the murderous aura he had been radiating earlier, it was considerably subdued.
Whether Gert’s attitude gave him hope, excitement rose to Eurich’s face.
Pointing at me, he accused,
“The suspicious one is Orphea! Look at the current situation. While I may be in an awkward position, in the end, it’s your dignity that’s been trampled into the mud, Gert!”
Gert remained silent, letting Eurich rant.
At first, Eurich had been watching Gert’s reaction, but gradually, perhaps thinking Gert agreed with him, his voice grew louder and his tone more confident.
“Think about it carefully. First, she asks for a divorce in front of everyone, and then she uses my mouth to condemn you… She definitely holds a grudge against you!”
‘Impressive, truly impressive.’
My mouth hung open. I was almost admiring how, in such a short time, he had devised such a plausible way to attack me.
