Chapter 52

“Think about it. Pouring money into creating a guild is all well and good, but the average person doesn’t grasp how significant that is. The scale is so large that it doesn’t feel real to them.”

“……”

“But imagine if you, Your Grace, were to personally visit a high-end boutique with the Princess. Things would be different then, wouldn’t they? If you were to go on a real spending spree… my apologies. If you were to spend money like water, it would cause quite a stir.”

Berman even acted out the scene as he continued his persuasion.

“‘I heard he treated her coldly, but that must have been a rumor.’ ‘He must dote on the Princess to go shopping with her.’ ‘At this rate, the rumors about him setting up a magnificent guild for her must be true, right?’ Won’t they start whispering things like that? I know I would.”

Duke Ruthius knew it as well.

That showing something once was more effective than saying it a thousand times.

But considering Astell’s reaction that morning when he told her he had made a restaurant reservation, he was reluctant.

“Do you think she’ll be happy if I ask her to go to a boutique? She’ll probably think I’ve actually gone senile.”

“That’s likely. But what can you do? It’s all your own doing, Your Grace. You should have treated her better in the past.”

Duke Ruthius’s expression fell ever so slightly. It was a change only his closest confidant could notice.

“Still, don’t give up. It’s not as if there’s no way to be forgiven.”

“…I have no intention of being forgiven, but I suppose I could use it as a reference for maintaining an amicable relationship. Go on.”

He always spoke like that when he was embarrassed.

After twenty years of a secretive relationship, sharing each other’s vulnerabilities, he could now interpret Duke Ruthius’s words automatically.

Berman suppressed a smile.

“I heard the Princess gave you walnuts to eat, didn’t she? When I heard that, I thought she must be a very kind person. If I were her, I’d be praying for you to get dementia.”

“I don’t think she meant it in a good way…”

“Her words may be harsh, but deep down, she must be worried about your health. Did she say anything else?”

“…She told me to eat blueberries too, saying they were good for aging eyes.”

“You see! If that isn’t proof her heart is softening, what is? I have three daughters myself. Believe me.”

Berman was a father of three daughters, with whom he had an excellent relationship.

That was precisely why Duke Ruthius paid at least some heed to his advice.

“Go shopping with her. And buy her everything she asks for. Do it just a few times, and the way she looks at you will change.”

“……”

“Oh, and you are having meals with her, right?”

“I’ve been doing as you said, but she doesn’t seem to like it very much.”

“Do you expect things to change after just a few days? Don’t expect to be full after the first bite. Keep having meals with her. No matter how busy you are, don’t skip them. Eating together is the best way to get close to your children.”

“……”

“Of course, nagging is absolutely forbidden. Especially for you, Your Grace. The moment you open your mouth, you’re in the negative.”

“…Me?”

“Yes, so at least during meals, please don’t speak.”

Duke Ruthius pressed his lips together.

Why was Berman only telling him this now? He felt a slight resentment toward him.

***

Alex sighed as he gazed at the sunset-streaked sky.

Astell’s question kept replaying in his mind, leaving him dizzy.

“Do you know what happened between His Majesty and the Duke?”

Back when he knew nothing. As a child, Alex had hated Astell so much.

Her birth had led to their mother’s death, and their father had been broken because of it.

Of course, Duke Ruthius had always been a cold and detached person by nature.

He showed so little emotional fluctuation it was hard to tell if he felt anything at all, and he rarely expressed affection.

But the hand that briefly ruffled his hair, the gaze that silently looked down at him, the way he would quietly tie his shoelaces.

He had felt warmth in all those things.

Duke Ruthius loved his son. Alex had never doubted that.

But after their mother died, everything changed.

The warmth vanished from Duke Ruthius’s green eyes.

Without a trace.

It was then that Alex realized. The only person his father had ever loved was his mother.

The affection he had felt was merely the Duke’s effort not to disappoint the person he loved.

Alex fell into despair over a truth he never wanted to know.

And he blamed Astell for everything.

“You murderer, you killed our mother! You should have died, not her.”

“Just die, please.”

In his childish mind, he believed that if only Astell disappeared, everything would go back to the way it was.

He hated Astell so much for taking away his beautiful, warm mother and his stern yet caring father.

So he said many cruel things.

He knew he would regret it the moment he turned away, but seeing Astell’s innocent face, he couldn’t contain his anger.

*I’m suffering so much because of you. Why are you fine? It’s all your fault, so why do I have to be the one in pain?*

Looking back now, it was childish behavior.

That’s how young Alex was. He didn’t want to think his father had grown cold because of him.

He needed assurance that he wasn’t hated for failing to become a Sword Master, for being a son who couldn’t live up to his father’s expectations.

That was likely why he had hated Astell even more.

But Alex couldn’t even hold onto his hatred as he wished.

Because when he turned six, Duke Ruthius told him the secret behind his mother’s death.

The murderer who killed his mother was someone completely unexpected.

It wasn’t Astell.

“I plan to take revenge on him. When that happens, our family will be destroyed. As the heir, you will not be safe either.”

“But I intend to save Astell, no matter what. By any means necessary…”

“Alex, for the time you have left, live as you wish. You can curse and resent me. This is all I can do for you as your father.”

If he assassinated a member of the royal family, his house would be annihilated, and as the heir, Alex would surely not be spared.

Alex wished Duke Ruthius would lie to him.

To ask him to join the revenge. To tell him he would be safe regardless.

If he had persuaded him like that, Alex would have followed, pretending not to know the truth.

Even knowing it wasn’t true…

But Duke Ruthius was ruthless to the end.

He calmly foretold his own son’s death and merely advised him to live as he pleased.

He didn’t offer a single word of warm comfort as a father.

Would things have been different if he had said Astell would die with them?

Alex was confused.

The fact that Astell was innocent meant the world he had constructed had collapsed.

He felt like he would go mad, knowing he had been taking his anger out on the wrong person and saying such cruel things.

What was even more confusing was that he still hated Astell.

He hated Astell.

He was so envious of Astell, chosen by their father, that it drove him mad with hatred.

He couldn’t understand why he had to die while Astell got to live.

Above all…

*’If I had become a Sword Master, would Father still have tried to save only Astell?’*

The thought made it hard to breathe. It felt like the reason he had to die was because he was incompetent.

Unable to bear it any longer, Alex chose to enroll in the knights’ academy.

And on the night before he left the estate for the academy, he went to the annex.

“I really hate you.”

Those words were also directed at himself.

Because he loathed himself as much as he hated Astell.

His own weakness, which forced him to hate an innocent child, filled him with despair.

After that, he lived like a true delinquent.

His life had no future anyway. He was at least interested in swordsmanship and worked hard at it, but his other classes were a mess.

The academy apparently contacted Duke Ruthius several times, but that was all.

Duke Ruthius took no disciplinary action, and so Alex lived as he pleased.

But as cliché as it sounds, time really was a healer.

Alex, who seemed like he would be immature forever, grew older.

He came to calmly accept his future, and his hatred for Astell gradually faded.

When he thought about it, Astell was his only sibling.

*Right, at least you should live.* Such thoughts began to surface.

And yet, he couldn’t bring himself to treat her kindly.

He would tell himself not to, but the moment he saw Astell, harsh words would spill out on their own.

It was because changing his attitude felt somehow embarrassing.

Then that day came.

The day an unfamiliar sentence suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[system : 00:00:30 remaining until channel connection.]

It was the beginning of a change.