HST 69

Chapter 69

In a pitch-dark basement where not a single ray of light reached, a man was tied up. Bound to a chair, his eyes were covered, and his body hung limp, as if he hadn’t yet come to his senses.

It was Gwen.

He had not yet fully come out from under the effects of the anesthetic.

Across from him stood two unidentified men. One sat arrogantly with his legs crossed, while the other stood silently with a blank expression.

The standing man slowly opened his mouth.
“Shall we wake him?”

“Go ahead.”

The man in the chair spoke languidly, flicking his finger.

At the order, the standing man immediately lifted the bucket of water at his feet and splashed it over Gwen, who lay slumped as if unconscious.

Splash.

Ice-cold water poured over him, soaking his body in an instant.

Struck by the chill, Gwen began to stir.
“Ugh… hnng…”

A groan escaped from between his cracked, dry lips. Trembling uncontrollably, he tried to look around—only to realize it was pointless.

‘…My eyes are covered.’

He could tell thick cloth was wrapped tightly around them.

Why had they brought him here like this? Having just awakened, his head spun violently, but he forced himself to stay conscious. If he lost awareness again, he might be killed.

‘Kidnapping a penniless old man like me…’

Gwen quickly gathered his thoughts, trying to assess the situation. His body was bound so tightly he couldn’t move at all, and his vision was blocked by the black cloth. He sharpened his hearing instead.

From somewhere farther away came the faint rustling sound of papers being turned. No one spoke to him.

‘That damp, musty smell… This is definitely underground. Turning documents in a place like this…’

He pictured a dark basement in his mind, then tried to guess the intent of whoever was silently flipping through papers.

An inexplicable chill crept over him, as if he were forgetting something important.

Then—

Clatter.

Something fell to the floor and rolled. Gwen flinched, startled. Unlike the distant sound of paper, this metallic clanging was very close.

“…This isn’t even funny.”

A low voice broke the silence and pierced his ears.

The moment he heard it, Gwen’s entire body stiffened.

The voice echoing through the underground storeroom was unmistakably familiar.

His lips trembled. As if refusing to believe it, he bit down hard on his lower lip. Praying his intuition was wrong, he spoke slowly.

“…Lord Cedric?”

It was undeniably Cedric’s voice. Gwen, who had served him for over thirty years, could never mistake it.

Still, he desperately hoped he was wrong. Though their relationship was one of master and servant, they had been close enough at times to be called friends.

“Untie him.”

At the command, someone roughly grabbed Gwen’s face and tore away the cloth covering his eyes.

As soon as his vision cleared, Gwen widened his eyes to see the man before him. His blurred sight gradually sharpened.

When the silhouette resolved into a clear figure, despair washed over him.

“…Why… why did you kidnap me?!”

The reality he had tried so hard to deny stood right before him.

Beneath pitch-black hair, reddish eyes gleamed coldly.

It was Cedric.

Gwen shook his head in disbelief, resentment filling his gaze. Yet he wasn’t the only one who felt betrayed—Cedric, too, was glaring at Gwen with reproach.

“How could you betray me?”

Suppressing his boiling rage, Cedric stared at him. He crumpled the paper in his hand and spoke again.

“Abandoning me and my house… and joining hands with the Serviat family!”

His thunderous roar echoed through the basement.

Cedric strode toward Gwen and thrust the papers he was holding at him.

“…Gwen, you were planning quite a ridiculous venture.”

He waved the sheets in front of him—documents densely filled with plans for a department store.

Seeing them, Gwen’s mind snapped fully awake.

‘So that’s what this is about…!’

They were the business plans he had meticulously discussed with Rose all day long.

How dare he rummage through something he had carefully kept on his person.

Forgetting even that he was bound, Gwen reached out toward Cedric.

Crash!

Losing his balance, he toppled awkwardly to the floor.

“Ghk…”

Cedric stared down at him, then began tearing the documents apart mercilessly. Shreds of paper fluttered down over Gwen’s head like snow.

“Were your ambitions really this light? With all your ability, all you could manage was a shop for empty-headed women?”

After shredding the plans to pieces, Cedric brushed his hands off, then crouched down to meet Gwen’s eyes.

“I won’t mince words. Come back to House Wens.”

He spoke quietly, his sharp gaze fixed on Gwen, making no move to help him up.

“…How could someone already cast aside by his master return to House Wens? And I already refused your offer once, didn’t I?”

Gwen replied with a bitter chuckle. A faint sadness lingered on his face—no doubt memories of the thirty years he had devoted to House Wens flashing before his eyes.

Cedric’s brow twitched. Thinking of Eric, who had cut Gwen off on his own authority, he let out a deep sigh.

“Fine. I admit we wronged you.”

Pressing his throbbing forehead, Cedric continued.

“But wasn’t it the foolish mistake of someone who knew nothing? I’ll overlook the disloyalty and misconduct you committed behind my back. Come back. I never imagined that someone who said he wanted a peaceful retirement would be doing something like this.”

It was a clear order.

Cedric’s eyes had gone cold as he stared silently at Gwen.

Gwen knew everything about House Wens—the madness in his master’s eyes, the stench of blood that clung to him. He couldn’t fail to notice that Cedric was plotting something dangerous.

Still, Gwen believed that turning a blind eye and deaf ear was the duty of a servant.

Swallowing hard, he looked into those unnaturally red eyes.

‘If I refuse here… he might kill me.’

He didn’t need words. Cedric’s crazed gaze was warning enough.

Anxiously, Gwen’s eyes darted about. Chewing his dry lips, he finally squeezed his eyes shut.

“…I can’t do that.”

“What?”

Cedric felt as though he’d been struck on the back of the head with a hammer. Refusing him for the sake of some insignificant Rose? It was absurd. He had been certain Gwen would seize his hand without hesitation.

“I now serve a new master. Not House Wens—Lady Rose de Serviat.”

“Ha… hahaha! Gwen, you’ve truly lost your mind.”

Cedric let out a hollow laugh. More than the betrayal itself, he found it ridiculous that he’d been pushed aside for Rose.

“So what you’re saying is… you’re making me your enemy?”

His icy voice cut like a blade into Gwen’s ears.

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t afraid of death. His body shook uncontrollably.

Gwen was terrified. If he could run, he would flee this instant. But his loyalty now belonged to Rose.

Even if it meant death, he could not turn his back on her to stand with Cedric again.

Cedric silently watched Gwen tremble. For over thirty years, they had been together. Without Gwen, it would have been impossible to rebuild their crumbling house.

Turning away, Cedric approached the knight standing beside him and drew a long sword from its sheath.

Shing—

The sharp blade gleamed.

‘…Is this the end?’

The instant he saw the flashing steel, Gwen knew his fate. He closed his eyes, accepting death.

Scrape—

Dragging the sword along the floor, Cedric approached and stopped before him. Raising the blade high, he swung it down without hesitation.

The sword cut through the air toward Gwen.

Eyes shut tight, he waited for death without pain.

But something was strange.

‘…Why… don’t I feel anything?’

He had clearly heard the blade slicing the air—so why was there no pain?

Slowly, Gwen opened his eyes. What he saw was the rope that had bound him—cleanly severed.

Staring blankly, he realized his body now moved freely.

“Ghk…”

Stiff from being bound so long, even moving hurt. Gwen struggled to his feet and looked at Cedric.

“Why… did you spare me?”

He had been sure Cedric would kill him. Was it thirty years of shared history that stayed his hand?

Dazed, Gwen watched him.

Cedric stepped closer and slowly reached out. Gwen flinched instinctively. Cedric smiled faintly and brushed the dirt from Gwen’s shoulder.

The smile in Cedric’s eyes was chillingly cold.

“Shouldn’t I at least give you time to say goodbye to your wife?”

Gwen froze.

Only then did he realize—Cedric had never intended to let him live.

“We’ve shared thirty years of history. I couldn’t be completely heartless. Give my regards to your wife.”

Murderous intent pressed down on Gwen’s entire body. Cedric gestured to the knight behind him.

“Take Gwen home. And don’t forget to give him a bouquet of flowers on the way. The one we left by the roadside has been bothering me.”

Turning a sickly smile on Gwen, Cedric continued,

“It’s his last gift to his wife—make it the biggest, most beautiful one.”

“Yes, sir.”

At the order, the knight dragged Gwen away.

“Oh, and don’t think of running. There’s nowhere in the capital beyond my reach.”

With that final warning, Cedric nodded to the knight.

Left alone, Cedric’s strangely colored eyes flashed.

“This is my final courtesy, Gwen.”

A traitor had no need to be spared. Yet softened by age, Cedric wished to grant Gwen—his companion of thirty years—a final mercy.

To him, Gwen was a fragile man he could kill anytime he wished. Letting him go now posed no loss at all.

Cedric could kill him ten times over—no, a hundred.

But that was nothing more than Cedric’s arrogance.

Life always turns in unexpected directions.

Cedric had underestimated Gwen.

Courtesy was not shown by Cedric alone.

Gwen, too, had not yet cast aside his loyalty to his former master.

Did Cedric know how foolish it was to turn his closest ally into an enemy?

From that day on, Gwen abandoned all lingering attachment to Cedric.

The shield that had once protected him would become a blade—aimed straight at his throat.