Chapter 150
‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.
“It’s been a while, Marquis.”
“Been a while? What are you talking about?”
It hadn’t been two months since Christian visited the Marquis’ residence. They were hardly on such close terms to greet one another like old friends. Cain felt his fatigue deepen from Christian’s unwelcome jest.
“You said you were heading south to investigate something urgently, correct?”
“Yes.”
“How urgent could it be that you didn’t even meet with His Majesty but sent word through the Palatine? What would you do if you earned His Majesty’s displeasure?”
“Are you worried I might incur His Majesty’s displeasure? I don’t think that’s why you’re here. So what’s going on?”
“Why wouldn’t I worry about the highest-ranking knight of the Empire upsetting the Emperor? What kind of talk is that?”
“I’m sure you didn’t come here just to trade jokes, so I’d suggest you get to the point quickly.”
Cain didn’t like the relaxed expression on Christian’s face. He made no attempt to hide his discomfort, wanting to end the unnecessary, draining conversation as quickly as possible.
“It seems that the Marquis is not in the best of moods.”
“Yes. So, please get to the point.”
Christian raised both of his palms as if finally noticing the serious atmosphere. He gestured as if he understood.
“You mentioned needing to urgently investigate the incident of the Duke’s death.”
When Cain had left the capital, his excuse was that he needed to investigate Duke Kristin’s death. The Emperor had granted him full authority to reopen the case, and there was no better reason for him to travel south.
“There’s nothing particularly significant. The Emperor has appointed me as the head of the investigation into the death of the late Duke Kristin, so I’ve come for that reason.”
But then, an unexpected complication arose.
‘Those damn snakes.’
Vlahova was never one to be easily deceived. He had granted permission to reopen the investigation into Duke Kristin’s death, but then he insisted on including his own men in the investigation team.
And among those chosen was Christian Calvino. Christian had joined the Imperial Knights early, thinking of his elder brother who was supposed to inherit the Countship, and had risen to a fairly high rank at a young age.
As the administrator of the Imperial Second Knights, which guarded the Crown Prince, Christian had now been assigned to this investigation.
The reason Christian had visited the Marquis’ residence previously was to pass on the Emperor’s wishes regarding the investigation and lay out the direction they were to take. He hadn’t bothered to notify Cain in advance, simply showing up uninvited.
Of course, Cain had not taken kindly to this and had practically chased him out of the residence for recklessly speaking of the late Duke’s death.
“No matter how urgent the matter is, you cannot act independently when His Majesty has directly appointed someone to lead the investigation.”
As long as Christian was here, Cain couldn’t act freely. His plan to use the late Duke Kristin as an excuse to hide Agatha’s absence had backfired and tied him down even more.
Cain gritted his teeth in frustration.
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
The bad weather had persisted for several days. Looking out at the sky, which seemed ready to burst into a downpour, Agatha drew the curtains shut.
She had decided to stay in Arta because most of the area was within the Duke’s territory. Here, she could move around without having to worry much about prying eyes.
Thanks to this, she had managed to gather Kristin’s knights fairly easily. With Karon and Rubens assisting, even the old members, who had cut off contact after their retirement, started reaching out, saying they would come to meet her.
“Lady Agatha, it’s cold. Please come inside.”
Esther, who had been watching Agatha lost in thought by the window, called her over. It hadn’t been long since breakfast, but it was already close to lunchtime, and she was holding a steaming bowl of soup in her hands.
“You should eat.”
“I’m not really hungry.”
“Again? If you keep skipping meals like this, it’ll be a problem.”
Having learned that Agatha was the wife of her long-lost brother, Esther seemed eager to do everything she could for her. While Agatha and her party were staying in Arta, Esther had taken it upon herself to serve her.
However, Agatha couldn’t bring herself to tell Esther that she had left Cain after leaving divorce papers behind. Even if Esther eventually found out, it seemed better to keep silent about the divorce for now.
It wasn’t so much out of consideration for Esther, but because communicating with the knights and solidifying the family matters had taken all of her energy. She simply didn’t have time for anything else.
“Wait, stop right there. Don’t come any closer.”
Despite the distance, the strong smell of food wafted toward her. It seemed the meal had been prepared with large chunks of meat, meant for the Duchess. The warmth of the freshly cooked food filled the room.
The closer Esther got, the stronger the odor of the meat became, and Agatha quickly covered her mouth to block it.
“Are you feeling unwell again?”
Esther hurriedly set the tray down.
“You look very pale.”
Her face, already pale, had lost all color. Realizing Agatha’s condition was not good, Esther brought over a cup of hot water she had brought along.
“…I suppose the travel fatigue hasn’t worn off yet.”
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