Chapter 177
At those words, Lynette turned her gaze to Euphen. However, instead of answering, he brought up something else.
“Is there somewhere you could stay for a while to avoid danger?”
“…I can go to a friend’s house.”
“It would be best if you stayed there.”
Agnis nodded without saying much.
‘Well, if danger arises, they might think of Agnis’s existence.’
If he realized that strangers were planning to bring him down, the current Count would surely try to seize this woman. Edwin and his mother were already in his grasp, so he would probably think that if he obtained Agnis as well, everything would be perfect.
“It would be difficult for you to take Edwin along, so we’ll escort you there.”
“It’s not very far from here.”
The woman spoke calmly and approached Edwin. At that, Euphen stopped her and picked the child up. When Lynette also tried to stand from her seat, Sillian spoke.
“If we all move together, we’ll attract attention. Wouldn’t it be better if The Prin-… Euphen went alone?”
“…”
The two men looked at each other for a moment.
“I’ll go.”
Perhaps because it was Euphen who said it, Sillian obediently nodded.
Agnis, Euphen, and Edwin left the house. It felt a little uncomfortable remaining in a house without its owner, but there was nothing to be done. It wasn’t as if they had anywhere else to go.
Silence flowed for a moment. Lynette glanced at Eshar, then cautiously opened her mouth.
“Eshar, what are we going to do now?”
They had overcome the biggest hurdle, so they needed to prepare for the next step. At those words, the woman lowered her gaze slightly and fell silent before speaking calmly.
“We have to seize the Count’s seal. Without that, sending letters won’t have any effect.”
“Are you going to announce that the man isn’t a legitimate member of the Count’s family?”
“That as well.”
Saying that meant there were many other things to do.
“And we also have to rescue Edwin’s mother.”
“Ah.”
Lynette nodded slightly. Seizing the Count’s seal alone would not solve everything. Even if they sent a letter correcting the truth, if his mother is still being held hostage when the investigator arrives, it would surely all be for nothing. They couldn’t tell Edwin to ignore his mother, and no one would listen only to the words of a ‘child’. Even if she did not share his blood, she is still undeniably a member of the Count’s family, so they would listen to her.
‘His mother might be in a situation similar to Edwin’s.’
Lynette let out a small sigh.
It’s true that the Countess had not been admirable, but she did not think the woman deserved to be placed in a situation like this. Moreover, the current Count had used violence against that small child, so there’s a possibility he might do the same to her as well.
“And that man’s…”
Eshar, who had spoken that far, frowned slightly and then said with a sigh.
“That man’s name is Nosh.”
Only then did they realize that they had been calling him ‘that man’ or ‘the loan shark’ the whole time.
“We also have to confiscate Nosh’s assets. As long as he has money, he could influence things again in one way or another.”
“What about his subordinates?”
“If he has no money, I doubt anyone will remain loyal to him.”
The woman let out a short laugh.
“Even if there are people like that, there probably won’t be many, so there’s no need to worry too much.”
Lynette lightly shrugged.
Indeed, he didn’t seem like the type to treat even his own subordinates well. If he knew how to take care of people, he wouldn’t have been so cruel to Edwin either.
“And we also have to replace the people Nosh planted in the Count’s household, so we’ll need to summon the vassals again.”
“Where are the vassals now?”
“The ones who tried to protect Edwin until the end were all driven out. Since they tried to follow that child to the very end, if we say we’re driving out Nosh, they’ll gladly return.”
“What about Nosh?”
“Hmm…”
Instead of answering, Eshar smiled slightly. Then she blatantly changed the subject.
“There’s a lot to do.”
Is she planning to kill him?
Lynette’s lips moved, but she didn’t voice the question aloud. In truth, that would be the simplest solution. She had pretended otherwise, but perhaps Eshar actually intended to resolve it that way.
“I’ll probably have to ask Lynette and Sillian to take care of a few things as well. That’s alright, isn’t it?”
Lynette turned her head toward Sillian. It was an offer they couldn’t really refuse. After all, the two of them had played a very large role in how things had turned out.
‘I should take responsibility.’
She slowly nodded. The man signaled his agreement with silence.
“Oh, and there’s one more problem.”
“What is it?”
“Edwin has a wife.”
“…What?”
At the sudden remark, a sharp voice slipped out. Lynette, whose eyes had widened, only calmed down a moment later.
Considering that the child is a noble, it wasn’t that strange. In very extreme cases, marriages were arranged when children had only just been born. For nobles, marriage was merely a means of maintaining or expanding power, so age was not particularly important.
However, considering Edwin’s situation, it was certainly strange. When the child inherited the Count’s title, wasn’t the family already on the brink of collapse? There was no way any house would be eager to arrange a marriage with such a family so early. If it had been a political marriage with another noble family for some reason, Nosh wouldn’t have been able to act so arbitrarily like this.
While Lynette was lost in thought, Sillian spoke calmly.
“It seems that wife is also one of Nosh’s people.”
“That’s right.”
Eshar gave a short laugh.
“To be exact, she’s Nosh’s lover.”
“…Oh.”
Discussion
0 CommentsNo comments yet.