Chapter 15

“I’ve had a bedroom prepared for you on the fourth floor. You may have the entire floor to yourself. Tell the head maid what you need, and she will arrange it. A tailor will visit tomorrow. You are to be fitted for a dress.”

“You rattle that off as if you’ve been waiting.”

“From now on, you will be making more public appearances, so you must be prepared. In your current state, you are nothing but an embarrassment to the family.”

My appearance didn’t matter. All I needed to do was prove myself with my skills.

I was confident I wouldn’t be looked down on even if I were dressed in rags.

But any further power struggle was pointless.

It wouldn’t bring the annex back, and besides, I could just leave this house whenever I wanted.

Most of all, I had a nagging feeling that Duke Ruthius was enjoying this power struggle, which left a bad taste in my mouth.

I took a step back.

“Fine. I’ll accept the bedroom and the dress as a down payment.”

“…You’re accepting this more quickly than I expected.”

“I don’t want to waste energy on what’s already done. But that’s as far as you go. I won’t tolerate any more interference. It shouldn’t be difficult for you, Duke. Just act as you always have.”

Duke Ruthius sipped his tea leisurely, the corners of his mouth lifted in a subtle smile.

An unsettling feeling made me narrow my eyes.

“Is there something else you want to say?”

“Alex is on his way back from the academy. I hear he’s become a Hunter.”

Alex was the Young Duke of House Ruthius and Astell’s older brother, two years her senior.

When they were young, Alex tormented Astell relentlessly.

He shamelessly called her a murderer who killed their mother—a little brat with a filthy mouth.

Despite that, he was exceptionally skilled with a sword. If he continued on that path, he could have easily become the next captain of the Imperial Knights.

However, his father was one of only three Swordmasters in the empire’s history.

That was Alex’s misfortune. He was endlessly compared to Duke Ruthius throughout his childhood.

Eventually, he gave up on everything and began to act out recklessly.

His already foul personality worsened, and he took it all out on Astell.

Then one day, when Astell was nine years old.

Alex, at the rather young age of eleven, was set to enter the knight academy.

One day, shortly before his enrollment, he came to the annex just before leaving the estate.

He called Astell out without warning and said with a serious expression,

“I really hate you.”

Who didn’t know that? What kind of twisted person comes all this way just to state the obvious?

He probably wanted to torment Astell until the very end.

And yet Astell, that gentle soul, was worried about Alex.

She thought he looked like he was about to cry.

‘Cry? What was there to cry about? This is why she drives me crazy!’

Anyway, as the rotten little brat grew up, he became more “aristocratic.”

Meaning he became a perfect scoundrel.

I heard he was known for being selfish and crude at the academy. He supposedly caused a lot of trouble, too.

I don’t know why Duke Ruthius just lets Alex be. He’s the one disgracing the family name, not me.

‘Could it be that he doesn’t know?’

It was possible. Duke Ruthius wasn’t one to pay attention to his children.

Of course, I had no reason to care how Alex lived his life.

Whether he ruined his own life with his behavior was none of my business.

If only he wasn’t the pathetic type to take out his jealousy and inferiority complex on his younger sister.

‘This is going to be a pain.’

Just from Astell’s memories, I could tell Alex and I were complete opposites.

If I were still in the annex, at least I wouldn’t have to see him as often.

‘No matter how angry I get, I won’t hit him.’

If I’m going to beat him, I’ll do it where no one can see. The plan is to lie low and then move out.

I forced back the sigh that rose in my throat.

“So?”

“It means you’re not the only Hunter who can represent the family.”

“Then cast me out.”

Duke Ruthius set down his teacup.

I shot a scornful look at his unreadable expression.

“You can’t do that, can you? You were once a Swordmaster yourself, Duke, so you must have some idea of my abilities.”

It was true.

Duke Ruthius had a rough grasp of my skill level.

That was why he had prepared a bedroom in the main mansion and scheduled a fitting with a tailor.

“So stop with the empty threats and listen carefully. I’m going to lay out a few important points for you.”

“And what are they?”

“First, I fired the nanny and Vivian.”

“…Why?”

“They’ve been stealing my dresses and accessories and selling them off.”

Duke Ruthius’s expression hardened for a moment before relaxing.

‘He looked like he’d been blindsided… Or was I imagining it?’

The change was so quick I wasn’t sure if I’d seen it correctly.

“Zenia will give you a list of the stolen items. Tell the butler to use it to demand restitution from them.”

“You fire them, and I have to clean up the mess?”

“You were the one who hired them. You should be grateful I did you the favor of firing them.”

Even though I had fired two of his employees without notice, Duke Ruthius’s reaction was indifferent.

It meant he was willing to overlook such a transgression.

Just the other day, he’d kept me hidden away in the annex, afraid of what others might think.

‘What is this power that it changes people so drastically? It’s disillusioning.’

I hid my contempt and continued.

“Second, I intend to hire a few more people.”

“I will assign some maids to you.”

“I’ll pass. I need people who will work for me, not spies. I’ll find my own staff. From now on, I’ll be responsible for Zenia’s salary as well.”

“Do you have the means for that? You talk as if you can live on your own, but in the end, you still need my help.”

“Don’t worry. We haven’t signed a contract yet, but I’m about to land a very generous sponsor.”

At my warning that I would squeeze them for all they were worth, Duke Ruthius laughed as if it were ridiculous.

And for good reason.

No matter how much I demanded, to the empire’s wealthiest man, it would be like taking a single scoop of water from the ocean.

“Third, and this is the most important part. It’s the reason I came here today.”

“You have a long preamble.”

“From now on, consult me on all matters concerning me. If something like this happens again, I will renounce my name and leave this house immediately. So it would be wise for you to respect that boundary. Unless you want to lose the family’s Hunter overnight.”

It was a very effective warning for Duke Ruthius. He gave a slight twitch of his brow in acknowledgment.

“In five days, a joint memorial service for the victims will be held in Hegea Grand Plaza. You are to attend.”

“I’ll think about it.”

I gave a short reply and turned to leave, but paused at the door.

“Do you know something?”

“What is it?”

“If you had shown me even a little affection, if you had held me warmly just once in all those years… I probably would have given my life for you, Duke.”

“…”

The office door closed.

Duke Ruthius picked up his documents and resumed his work.

But for a long while, the pile of papers did not shrink.

* * *

In the end, Zenia and I had no choice but to move into the main mansion.

I couldn’t very well sleep in a roofless ruin.

The only thing I managed to salvage was Astell’s diary. Everything else was buried along with the annex.

The fourth floor of the mansion consisted of three bedrooms, two drawing rooms, a dressing room, and a study.

The bedroom, in particular, was truly magnificent.

If this was a bedroom, then the one I had used in the annex was a doghouse.

‘It’s too lavish for a guest room, but too feminine to be Alex’s…’

No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like something prepared in just a few days.

But it couldn’t have been prepared for me.

‘Was Duke Ruthius planning to remarry?’

In any case, as wonderful as the bedroom was, the food was the real masterpiece.

I felt a little bad for Zenia, but the taste was fantastically, incomparably better.

My mood slightly improved after the meal, and I threw myself onto the vast bed.

“So soft and comfortable.”

My body, stiff from the carriage accident, seemed to melt into the soft sheets.

“Haaah…”

As I rolled around, groaning like an old woman, Zenia stifled a laugh.

Her attitude seemed to have softened subtly since the carriage accident. Was it just my imagination?

I pushed aside the awkward feeling and asked,

“Zenia, do you know how much it costs to rent a house in the capital?”

“Housing in the capital is murderously expensive. It depends on the quality of the house, but on average, you’d need about 50 million Ruan a year.”

“Fifty million? Not to buy, but to rent? Surely that’s not a lump sum?”

“Of course it’s a lump sum, paid all at once.”

“…Is there no monthly rent?”

“Monthly rent? What’s that?”

“You put down a deposit and pay each month… Never mind.”

I took out the check I had received from Kaiel from my inventory.