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CHAPTER 65…………..
Cayenne locked eyes with the man. It was a gesture, telling him to look carefully at his face.
“Everyone told me you were dead. But I knew. I knew you were alive, breathing somewhere in this empire.”
“……”
“I prayed that no accident would happen, that you would not die before I could take revenge with my own hands. I prayed desperately that you would not fall ill, or suffer some misfortune and die before that moment came.”
“……”
“The war was the same. I did not go to the battlefield for the people of the empire. I never raised my sword to save them. I fought only for you. So that you would not meet a meaningless death in the chaos of war, so that I could keep you alive…”
And then, so that I could kill my father with my own hands.
Cayenne removed the gag from the black-clad man’s mouth. At last, his lower face was revealed.
He was smiling at Cayenne.
“…Cayenne.”
The black-clad man called his name. His voice was chillingly identical to Cayenne’s own.
“Congratulations on your marriage, my son.”
“……”
“How did you know I would come to your wedding?”
“Don’t ask foolish questions.”
“Yes… you must have learned it through Kailes. I knew the day would come when his helping me would be discovered. Now that you’ve become Duke of Wintel, even he couldn’t hide me forever. But don’t resent Kailes too much.”
“……”
“Kailes has done nothing wrong. It isn’t that he doesn’t care for you. He merely knows the truth.”
“The only truth is that I will kill you.”
“Yes, kill me. You have every right.”
“Why did you come to my wedding?”
“……”
“Why the wedding of all things?”
“Why not? You didn’t know, but I also came to see you when you inherited the title of Duke.”
“So that was you.”
“Yes. It was me.”
A heavy silence fell. Against that frozen quiet, Cayenne stared into the eyes of his birth father.
He had searched for him for years and years.
He thought that when the day came that he finally met him, he would be overcome with rage, that he would cut down his throat in an instant.
He thought he would hack apart the limp corpse and burn it to ashes in crimson flames.
“Is that all you have to say to me?”
Then why—why was he wasting time with such words?
“I’m sorry, Cayenne.”
Why—why was he studying his face so intently?
“Those are pitiful words for a last testament.”
“Between you and me, everything is pitiful. Life itself is a pitiful thing.”
“You have no right to speak of life.”
“Then what right do I have? Surely none at all. Not even the right to call myself a father.”
“……”
“At least I seem to have the right to die by your hand.”
He was still smiling as he looked at Cayenne.
And then he asked a short question.
“That child…”
“……”
“How is Judithe?”
Cayenne gave no answer.
“Cayenne. That child…”
He simply turned his back.
With heavy steps, Cayenne left the dungeon. His voice, as he gave orders to Valdefram, was harsher than usual.
“Valdefram. Gag him again and blindfold him. Do not give him food. We had a wedding today—this is not the day to spill blood.”
“…Yes, my lord.”
“And commend the knights for their service today. As for the lapse in the Tower of Stars’ security… we will let that matter rest.”
It was inevitable that security at the Tower of Stars had been neglected, since men had to be diverted to capture Cayenne’s father. If not for that, Dité would never have slipped into the chapel so easily.
“Instead, pour all strength into the search.”
“As you command.”
Rather than rebuke the knights, Cayenne ordered them to redouble the search for the vanished Dité, then left the underground prison.
By then, the sun had already set and a pale moon was rising into the sky.
Cayenne walked toward Castle Wintel beneath the moonlight. His face betrayed emotions he had not managed to put away.
His black eyes flickered dangerously.
“…Hah.”
Strange.
He could not yet say his revenge was complete, but in truth, it was as good as done.
The life of the father he had searched for so long now lay at his feet.
And yet, he felt no thrill. No sense of liberation.
Only disgust.
‘…Perhaps it is because I haven’t ended his life yet.’
Cayenne suppressed the rising disgust. Compared to the triumph of capturing him, this was nothing.
‘Reyen Wintel.’
Cayenne Wintel’s true father, Kailes Wintel’s younger brother.
And the man who had disgraced the Wintel family.
Cayenne’s only thought was to kill him.
When Etisha entered the marital chamber, she found it completely transformed.
Softly glowing incense candles lit the floor, and colorful flower petals decorated the bed. Thin veils hung in layers around the room, leaving the furniture only dim silhouettes.
‘I didn’t think they would prepare this much…’
No wonder the maids had seemed so busy.
Etisha pulled aside the veils one by one as she slowly approached the bed.
She wore a white dress tinged with pink, like a nightgown version of a wedding dress. The garment fit her snugly everywhere except at the shoulders, which hung a little loose.
As the straps slipped constantly down her shoulders, she adjusted them and climbed onto the bed.
She didn’t know when Cayenne would return, but greeting him in a room decorated like this would be terribly embarrassing.
‘Ah, um. What should I do?’
Looking around awkwardly, Etisha saw a small table covered in petals, where wine, snacks, and two empty glasses had been set.
‘Maybe I should have a little drink.’
Yes, that would be best.
Waiting for Cayenne in this state was too nerve-wracking. Better to drink; with luck, she might even fall asleep.
She poured the wine into a glass and brought it to her lips. Heat burned down her throat.
‘…Hot!’
The alcohol was stronger than she expected. Thinking it was champagne, she had filled the glass, but even a shallow pour would have been enough with liquor like this.
‘Well, I poured it already, I’d better drink it.’
She sipped, nibbling on some dried grapes as well. Time passed, but there was still no sound from outside the room.
‘I’ll just have to wait patiently.’
Draining the glass, Etisha leaned back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
The conversation she had with Cayenne at the cabin earlier in the day came back to her.
<If Lady Etisha truly wishes to help me, then please… be my strength.>
<Your strength, my lord? How?>
Society…
It had never been part of Etisha’s life, not even after she came to the north.
Simply attending a few parties was not enough to count as entering high society.
‘First, I would need a debutante ball.’
Every noblewoman usually held hers before reaching adulthood, to make her name known and formally enter society.
But Etisha had never had hers, even now as an adult.
Because every time, Larienne had sabotaged her.
On the eve of the ball, Larienne might douse her with ice water so she caught a cold, or lock her in a stable so she couldn’t appear.
So Etisha’s debutante balls failed again and again. In the end, Viscount Heinz chose never to debut her at all.
To invite guests only for the lady of honor not to appear—such insults had happened more than once. Rather than risk his reputation further, he thought it better to abandon the idea altogether.
And truly, Heinz’s family still held a good position in society even without Etisha, thanks to Larienne. Larienne’s influence was even greater, and she had long since made the capital’s social scene her playground.
‘I never imagined I would be having my debut now…’
Unexpected, but not frightening.
Etisha was ready to step onto the battlefield of society for Cayenne and for Wintel’s honor.
Cayenne and Lady Cirileze were the direct targets of Dité’s scandal; this time, Etisha herself would have to step forward.
The new Duchess of Wintel. The new leading lady of the northern social world…
‘What should I do?’
The answer was not hard.
From what she knew, there was only one way to smother a rumor that spread like disease through society.
Introduce a new, stronger story to take over.
‘The question is, what kind of news…?’
What could shake society more powerfully than the scandal already spreading?
Clack.
Her eyes blinked rapidly at the sound of the door opening. Footsteps followed, slow but firm.
‘The duke?’
Etisha peered from the bed. But the many veils obscured her view; she could only see a silhouette moving beyond them.
“……”
She held her breath, watching intently.
Perhaps because of the wine, her head felt hot, and all her senses focused on that figure.
The shadow was tall, broad-shouldered. His steps were slow but unhesitating, his movements calm and elegant.
‘The duke…’
Even from just the outline, Etisha knew it was Cayenne. It could only be him.
No one else in the empire could seize her gaze with their mere presence.
Like she had done, Cayenne pushed aside the veils one by one, drawing closer to the bed. The nearer he came, the clearer his form grew.
At last, only the final veil remained. He stopped before the bed, surely seeing the outline of Etisha lying there.
“My lady.”
Cayenne spoke.
Etisha could not bear the new form of address.
It was beyond mere embarrassment—something far more overwhelming.
