Chapter 219
‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.
The servant quickly gathered his thoughts over a few brief seconds and then spoke tremblingly.
“L-last night… angry mobs stormed the Count’s manor, broke down the doors, and killed the Count. I don’t know exactly who they were…”
His voice grew faint when he said he didn’t know—only half of that was true.
They had made it seem like all the chaos was caused and ended by the mobs, but the servant truly did not know the real instigators. Still, he had at least realized they were not merchants from Pahel.
“So you don’t know exactly who they were… but I heard they were merchants from the harbor.”
“Yes, y-yes. That’s what is said. Since the Count treated the merchants so harshly…”
“Stop speaking so vaguely. Why do you think I dragged you all the way here? It’s not just to hear such vague nonsense…”
At the Grand Duke’s words, a knight immediately drew his longsword and pointed it at the servant’s neck.
“There’s no use for a throat that speaks unnecessary words—cut it off.”
“P-please spare me! I don’t know who they really are, but I can say for sure they weren’t people from Pahel.”
The Grand Duke raised his hand to stop the knight’s action.
“How can you be so sure they weren’t from Pahel? Yet you say you don’t know who they are.”
“Yes. It’s true that those who broke in were merchants from the harbor. But there was a group leading them—people heavily armed, with imposing builds like mountains. I’ve never seen them before, but I thought maybe the greatest knights from the central region would look like that. There’s no one that big around Pahel, that I’m certain of.”
“Good. Tell me everything they did and said, without leaving anything out.”
“They seemed to say they wouldn’t forgive the Count. They called him less than a beast and said even death would be too luxurious for him. Also…”
“Also?”
“The leader of the group had brown hair and blue eyes. He wore something like a mask, but when he confronted the Count and spoke, he pulled it off with his own hands.”
Brown hair and blue eyes. That was Cain Vernat. The Grand Duke’s eyes narrowed.
“And?”
“Eh? And, you want me to say what else…?”
“I’m asking what that brown-haired leader said to the Count.”
“I-I couldn’t hear clearly because he whispered so close to the Count’s face.”
“Even if it’s not exact, tell me what you can.”
The Grand Duke’s patience was wearing thin. Sensing the Grand Duke’s irritation, the servant began babbling nervously, grasping at whatever words came to mind.
Better to speak something rather than lose your throat from holding back. The brown-haired man won’t appear to save you if you keep secrets.
“Mm…”
“Mm?”
“He said… mother! Yes, mother. The brown-haired man definitely said ‘mother.’”
“Mother?”
This was an unexpected turn. The conversation was going in a completely different direction than anticipated.
Just as a sigh escaped his lips in frustration, the kneeling servant hastened to appease the Grand Duke.
“Yes. He said something like ‘I will never forgive what you did to my mother.’”
“Whose mother? Are you saying the brown-haired man told the Count he would avenge his mother?”
“Yes. Not exactly, but it was definitely something along those lines. Count Schuck has made many enemies everywhere, so I thought that man was just another victim.”
“Mother…”
Mother? A large question mark formed in the Grand Duke’s mind. He had suspected there was a reason he didn’t understand for Cain Vernat’s brutal killing of Count Schuck, but ‘mother’—
What was Cain Vernat’s original name before he took on the Vernat family name? He tried to remember but couldn’t.
As a minor noble from the provinces who rose to gain a major noble’s name by catching the Emperor’s favor, and whose entire family line was wiped out, he had no need to know that original name.
Right. Since he was from the provinces, there might have been a grudge with Count Schuck.
The Grand Duke drew his own tentative conclusion.
“Is that all you heard?”
“He also said he would not forgive him and would kill him…”
“I believe I’ve heard enough from you.”
The Grand Duke stood up. As the servant looked up to follow his movements, a knight suddenly kicked his head back down to the floor.
“You’re no longer useful… We must silence useless mouths.”
“P-please spare me! You said if I told you what I knew, you would spare me!”
“When did I ever make such a promise to the likes of you? Insolent…”
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