Before she knew it, the third son-in-law, Marquis Ante, had approached. Among the sons-in-law, he was the quickest on the uptake, and his actions were even quicker. When Marquis Ante extended one hand, the Countess smirked and placed her hand on it.
“It seems like everyone who’s supposed to come has roughly arrived.”
“Well, it seems they’re all waiting for someone else.”
“……”
The seats of the Cartien family always drew attention, but today, there were more glances flicking toward another place. Countess Cartien, who had been walking haughtily toward the center of the hall, narrowed her eyes.
“That over there, then,”
“It’s said to be the seat of the Red-Eyed Wolf, Madame.”
“……”
“His Highness the Crown Prince has been insisting that he will grant him a title today without fail. It seems things have been noisy about that for the past few days.”
With the spacing of the few central seats narrowed, the empty spots stood out even more. The gazes and curiosity toward the empty seat grew as time passed. Before long, the fourth son-in-law, Count Levoni, joined them and supported the Countess’s other hand.
“I’ve also heard it’s an issue of approval from the nobles. They say it’s a Dukedom, but where is that easy? At best, it’ll be a Barony.”
“That will still face considerable opposition.”
“In any case, it’s a fact that he saved His Highness the Crown Prince’s life.”
“Hmph.”
Countess Cartien let out a light snort.
He must have grown quite a lot in the meantime.
She tapped the back of her son-in-law’s hand with her slender fingers wrapped in lace gloves.
“I’ve come to see Lady Tatiana.”
Well, even back then, he wasn’t one to be trifled with.
She clearly remembered the man who hadn’t yielded even a bit before her, full of spirit. At the time, she didn’t know his identity, but even if she had, it wouldn’t have changed anything.
After all, he’s just a bastard.
Even if he saved the Emperor’s life dozens of times instead of the Crown Prince, in Freya’s social circles, nothing is as important as one’s origins. They might tolerate capable commoners, but the world is particularly strict toward bastards, who are nothing more than stains on their own.
‘Who would have thought he was Levelin’s son.’
It was already 26 years ago, an enormous scandal that was still occasionally brought up in a place where most things wouldn’t even remain in memory. The precious lady of the Targa family bearing a child whose father was unknown. From the moment Levelin wandered the streets clutching her full-term belly, the child’s life in the womb was destined for ruin.
If only the father’s identity had been known for certain, there might have been some root to attach to, but the child didn’t even have that luck. The Marquis’s daughter, who gave birth to him in some shabby home, died without uttering a word due to postpartum pain. Moreover, Marquis Targa, who had nearly become his maternal grandfather, had marked him as the family’s shame and forbidden even mentioning him, effectively denying his existence from that side as well.
Whether he achieved merits or whatever, what did it matter to her? To Countess Cartien, there was only one important thing.
He must not get entangled with my precious daughter anymore.
“So, is he really coming today?”
“I doubt it. He doesn’t usually show up at events like this, and as you know, before… hmm.”
The mother-in-law had been quite ruthless.
Marquis Ante couldn’t bring himself to say the truth and glossed over it with an awkward smile. Thinking back on that time, even as a fellow man, it made him shudder.
‘He got thoroughly caught up in the wrong thing.’
It was a time when love letters to the youngest princess of the Cartien family were pouring in endlessly. So, a single letter from an ignorant mercenary wouldn’t even be worth mentioning. However, his mother-in-law had used that opportunity differently.
The Red-Eyed Wolf sweeping through the battlefield in his black robe.
The opponent was the leader of a mercenary group who had begun to gain some fame on the battlefield. The Countess had made an example of just such a person, of how one without the right to dare to covet her daughter should pay the price.
If it was the process by which the Countess had made him a laughingstock… just thinking about it made her chest feel chilly.
Afterward, the letters pouring into the Cartien family went through a self-censorship process, but the person who became the example tasted hell. The gossip columns that detailed Tatiana’s every move shifted their interest to the ‘ignorant mercenary’ pointed out by Countess Cartien. It was around that time that Kainel’s origins, mistaken for those of an ordinary slum mercenary, were thoroughly exposed.
‘It was no different from a beheading, except they didn’t cut off his head.’
A man’s power is strength, and for a mercenary, even more so. Right after such a great humiliation, even at the imperial banquet supposedly held for him, he only briefly showed his face and left. Recalling that moment made Marquis Ante’s shoulders tremble, so he appropriately changed the subject.
“I don’t know, but the Targa family must regret it quite a bit too. Even if it’s uncertain whether he carries their blood, if they had just accepted him as a suitable grandson, all the merits would have gone to the marquis family.”
“Not a chance. How stubborn that old man is.”
Countess Cartien narrowed her eyes with a sneer. In the Freya Empire, nobles have always been of two kinds.
Those who enjoy being nobles to the fullest, and those who can’t escape the noble framework and end up weeded out.
Marquis Targa is the latter.
He’s been obsessed with honor and justification to the point that he hasn’t shown his face at events like this for a long time. The seating arrangement in the current imperial banquet hall blatantly shows the hierarchy of the nobles.
“He should know when to stop. I remember that when his daughter was still alive, he had quite a central seat.”
“I hear he’s completely secluded these days.”
“Well, that might be for the best. For an outcast grandson to return as a war hero by his own hand, what irony is there like this.”
Countess Cartien proceeded to the center of the banquet hall. She was busy just receiving the greetings from those competitively bending their knees toward her.
“In any case, at best he’ll be a Baron. I doubt anyone would accept a Baron whose father is unknown.”
“Still, he’s quite popular these days. They say there’s no battlefield he hasn’t been to. Among the knights and the imperial citizens, his fame is so high that they’ll have to grant him some title or another. You can’t ignore the eyes of the imperial citizens these days.”
“Then let them do that.”
But it means to stop at that level before her. Countess Cartien originally couldn’t tolerate others receiving attention. The two sons-in-law, extremely sensitive to their mother-in-law’s mood, belatedly tried to appease her from both sides.
“Haha, in any case, today we should be grateful to that wolf too. Thanks to him, our Tiara’s story has been completely overshadowed, hasn’t it?”
“That’s right. Recently, there was all that fuss about Tiara being seen with men here and there, but it’s all quiet now.”
“…Well, that’s true.”
Countess Cartien let out a smirk. For the Cartien family, scandals were as everyday as jam with scones, but the youngest daughter was different.
Since the marriage hadn’t been finalized yet, it was better to go as smoothly as possible. Even today, there were noticeably fewer people asking why Tatiana was late to the banquet, so the sons-in-law’s words weren’t entirely wrong.
“You live long and see all. Who would have thought I’d have reason to be grateful to that man.”
“You’ll live long. There will be many more enjoyable things ahead.”
“Well, that should be the case, right?”
She lightly glanced at her good-natured third son-in-law. Indeed, having one like this keeps the atmosphere alive. One has a heavy mouth, one has a heavy purse. So, having another with heavy lineage isn’t bad either.
A very small flaw, one that wouldn’t show in an intensely thick bloodline.
“Later, Duke Atlas will appear escorting Her Highness the Imperial Consort.”
“Yes, Madame.”
“He’ll call Tatiana to his side. To the position of future Duchess.”
The attention taken now would return tenfold. Her youngest daughter, Tatiana, called the Queen of the social world and the jewel of Lebron, would make her appearance, and even the engagement would be announced. So, no matter how famous a war hero appears, it won’t be easy to surpass an event of this magnitude.
‘Who knows.’
Unless some absurd event happens where all that explodes at the same time.
△▲△▲△
The modest villa located on the outskirts of Lebron exuded a cozy atmosphere. In this season in the winter country, it was hard to find a place not yet covered in snow, but the fresh green small hill stretching out in front of it seemed as if it had been cut out from a picture book. Even the white-haired old lady sitting on the rocking chair at the entrance, knitting, was like that.
“Why do you keep coming to a place like this, Young Master?”
“…I told you not to stand up.”
Kainel strode to the chair to prevent the lady from standing and bent one knee to lower his posture. Mrs. Hart put down her knitting and waved both hands in refusal, but Kainel was firm. He had always been like that once he set his mind to something.
“Young master, this makes me uncomfortable. You know that and still do it.”
“What’s so uncomfortable?”
“Young Master, really.”
“Is this place uncomfortable? What more?”
It wasn’t questioning or probing. He truly didn’t know, so as he looked around wondering what more this place lacked, Mrs. Hart swallowed a laugh and pressed down on the back of Kainel’s hand. Though she couldn’t see well due to long-term illness and old age, she always spotted Kainel at once.
“It’s too much. What fortune does an old woman like me have to have such a peaceful old age.”
“……”
“It’s really like a dream. I’m already grateful just that you grew up well.”
Mrs. Hart put strength into her hand placed on the back of his. She wanted to stroke his cheek like when he was a child, but she no longer dared to. Kainel felt complicated at her pleased smile that fully conveyed both pride and regret.
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