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Chapter : 18
Claude thought to himself.
Even when his mother died—
‘I was too weak to protect her.’
Even when the palace servants avoided him—
‘They avoid me because I have no power.’
Even when Viscount Garten shut himself inside the guest room—
‘He thinks he can do that because I’m weak.’
Always the same conclusion.
‘It’s because I’m weak.’
That he was powerless. That he could protect nothing.
That was why he had always longed for strength.
A power that could protect anything and never lose it.
So hearing those words from a child who looked even weaker than himself—
[My dream is to become super strong and beat everybody up!]
—had felt both strange and oddly pleasant.
Because it really felt like that child could grow up and become exactly that.
‘…And me too.’
Claude couldn’t throw away the gifts the child had given him.
Because he wanted to have faith like that child too.
That was why the pear, the flag, and the bubble toy sat side by side on the desk in the guest room.
None of them were special in the slightest.
Yet simply looking at them made him feel as though the tension in his body loosened.
‘How strange.’
Claude closed his eyes.
“……”
And quietly drifted into a light sleep.
When he opened his eyes again, someone was knocking at the door.
Knock knock.
“Are you there?”
The child.
It was that child.
“I brought this because I thought it wouldn’t be scary—”
“Elisha, where are you?”
At that moment, someone called for the child.
“I’m coming!”
The small footsteps hurried away before he even had the chance to stop them.
Claude opened the door.
But the child was gone, and only a piece of paper lay in front of the doorway.
The paper, which looked as though it had been torn from a sketchbook, was made of material similar to the paper boat. One corner of it was slightly crumpled.
It seemed the child had tried to push it through the crack beneath the door.
There was only one thing drawn on the paper.
A sword.
The rough blade, clumsily colored in black oil pastel, almost seemed to carry the child’s voice within it.
[I thought this one wouldn’t be scary.]
“Ha! Hahahahaha!”
Claude collapsed to the floor laughing.
It was absurd.
Truly absurd.
And yet at the same time, a thought came to him.
Maybe someday, just like in this drawing, real swords would stop frightening him too.
‘…I see.’
Perhaps this was the child’s true strength.
The ability to make it feel like anything was possible.
Like things could somehow work out for the better.
That was why Claude couldn’t throw this drawing away either.
Right now, he desperately needed this hope.
This faith.
These days, the Duke felt troubled.
Ever since Elisha’s declaration about marriage.
[John! I’m gonna marry the Prince!]
He hadn’t shown it in front of Glen or Ian, but he had been greatly shaken by it.
Still, because children often became more stubborn when directly forbidden from something, he restrained himself.
‘S-She’s still young… She probably doesn’t even understand what marriage means.’
The Duke tried hard to suppress his anxiety by reminding himself of Elisha’s age.
Elisha was mature for her age, but she was still only three years old.
Children had many thoughts and dreams, and most of them disappeared as they grew older.
So even if Elisha said such things now, the chances of her actually making them reality were close to zero.
‘Then why…’
Why had he dreamed of a grown-up Elisha wearing a wedding dress?
—Father, I love this person.
The fully grown Elisha had been linking arms with someone.
And the moment the older Claude—now grown to Elisha’s age—met his eyes, he smiled.
His face looked filled with happiness to the marrow.
Yet the words he spoke were just as irritating as that expression.
—Please don’t worry, Father-in-law. I’ll take responsibility for your daughter’s happiness.
The Duke had woken up screaming.
“Who are you calling Father-in-law?!”
A brat with gray hair had no right to call him that!
After that, Elisha never mentioned marriage again, and he never had dreams like that again either.
Yet the Duke still couldn’t shake off his unease.
Because he had received reports that Elisha was interacting with Claude.
He didn’t know what Claude thought of Elisha, but Elisha clearly seemed to like Claude.
‘Then there’s only one answer! I just have to remove the First Prince from Elisha’s sight!’
Out of sight, out of mind.
If Claude suddenly disappeared right now, Elisha would probably be confused. Maybe even disappointed or upset.
But she would forget soon enough, as if nothing had happened.
Eventually, she’d probably even forget what Claude looked like. Children were like that.
‘Still, I don’t like it!’
Even so, the Duke did not change the way he treated Claude.
After all, Claude was royalty.
And he was also a guest the Duke himself had invited.
The day before Claude was set to return.
The Duke spent some time speaking with Claude alone in the drawing room.
“If there is anything you desire, I shall give it to you as a farewell gift before you leave.”
Once Claude returned to the imperial palace like this, the Empress Consort would undoubtedly pressure him.
She would be tense, wondering whether Claude had formed ties with House Rollcade.
And Claude had been put into that situation entirely because of their side.
The Duke was a man who possessed at least a speck of conscience, and he intended to take responsibility for that much.
If Claude asked for knights to protect him, or requested a better tutor than the viscount, the Duke was prepared to grant it.
Of course, absurd demands like handing over House Cade root and stem, or offering up his own life, were out of the question.
After thinking for a moment, Claude spoke.
“May I go and retrieve it myself?”
What, was he planning to take some object?
‘I thought he was clever. But I suppose age can’t be hidden.’
Concealing his disappointment, the Duke nodded.
“Of course—”
But the moment Claude stood up, the Duke stopped speaking.
Something—
Something felt ominous.
The Duke hurried after Claude.
“What I want…”
And then he saw it.
“Elisha Rollcade.”
“Hm?”
Claude was holding out his hand toward Elisha.
“It is you.”
And from somewhere, Glen suddenly burst in.
“My granddaughter is absolutely not allowed!”
“Treason!”
Grandfather was a noble of the Empire.
So while he openly showed that he disliked Claude, he had never gone too far.
He always acted as though he remained conscious of Claude’s royal status.
But now, Grandfather was different.
The grandfather who shouted with veins bulging in his neck looked like an entirely different person from before.
“I can no longer respect an imperial family filled with thieves and murderers! From this day onward, the imperial family shall be our enemy!”
“F-Please calm down, Father.”
“You’re the one who needs to come to your senses! Are you planning to hand our baby girl over to the imperial family just like that?!”
The one trying to stop him was the Duke.
“Let go of me, you brat! Let go, I say!”
When persuasion failed, the Duke physically dragged Glen away.
If someone misunderstood Glen’s words, rumors could spread that House Rollcade harbored treasonous intentions.
So that was the wisest choice.
‘He showed Claude that the head of the family didn’t agree with those thoughts.’
And that night—
Mary brought news.
“So His Highness is leaving tomorrow.”
“Really?”
“A carriage from the imperial palace arrived too. Two knights came to escort the prince.”
“I see.”
I nodded.
On the outside, I responded indifferently, but a rough feeling stirred in my chest.
When Claude first arrived, all I wanted was for him to leave the ducal estate safely and quietly.
‘But there’s no one at the imperial palace who’ll take Claude’s side.’
Honestly, Claude’s upbringing environment was terrible.
It would have been stranger if he hadn’t grown twisted.
‘Still, there’s nothing I can do for him right now.’
It was already late at night.
And there wasn’t anyone suitable to place by Claude’s side.
‘Still, there’ll be the vassals’ meeting later…’
I’d figure something out somehow then.
Thinking about the future so late at night made me yawn.
The moment Mary noticed my condition, she opened the bedroom door and guided me toward the bed.
“Good night, Young Miss.”
“You too, Mary.”
Mary pulled the blanket up beneath my chin, and I obediently closed my eyes.
It seemed like that would be the end of the night.
But then—
BOOM!
A strange sound rang out.
“What was that?”
“It sounded like it came from the main gate…”
Mary slightly parted the curtains she had just closed and peered outside.
All I could see was dark night air, but Mary apparently saw something else.
“Ah… I think the iron gate has been broken.”
“That huge gate?”
“Maybe… thieves broke in?”
“I dunno…”
Would thieves really make that much noise?
If I were a thief, I wouldn’t infiltrate a ducal estate in the first place. But even if I did, I’d sneak in quietly, grab the valuables, and run.
That would be easiest and simplest.
‘So that’s not a thief.’
I started to lie back down, then froze.
‘What if that was done to draw everyone’s attention?’
