Chapter 49
Chapter 49.
Agatha was speechless at the appearance of the unexpected group. Leon's expression hardened, and he interrogated Huber.
“What the hell, you were here, so why didn't you come out? And to let the Lord go out alone, are you out of your mind?”
“Do you know how hard it is to climb the walls of this mansion? The Lord who climbed up here in one go is the strange one. Besides, by the time we arrived, the situation was already over, and then, then…!”
“Then, what.”
Huber glanced between Enoch and Agatha before scratching his head vigorously. The knights standing behind him similarly avoided eye contact.
“Then, it didn’t seem like the right atmosphere to enter…”
Agatha thought she might combust from embarrassment. Even amidst this, she tried to break free from Enoch's embrace, but the man didn't budge.
“Please let me go.”
“Not unless the maids bring you a robe. Until then, no.”
Agatha, who had been whispering back and forth with Enoch, stiffened. She suddenly realized she had just woken up and was currently in a thin slip.
Her ears grew hot. It was then that Enoch, still holding her close, took off his uniform jacket and draped it over her.
“Madam!”
Pushing past the knights, Jessie and Marie arrived in the Marchioness's bedroom.
“Are you alright?”
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Upon entering, the faces of the two attendant maids turned deathly pale at the sight of Agatha covered in blood.
“No, I’m fine.”
As Agatha waved her hand, Enoch commanded the two.
“The Madam is safe. Help her wash up and move her to another room.”
Marie was the first to regain her composure.
“I’ll prepare the water right away. Jessie, you escort Madam to the bathroom first.”
“Madam, this way.”
Only then did Enoch release her. Agatha, about to follow Jessie, hesitated and turned back.
“And you?”
For a moment, the knights, the maids, and even Allen, the Head Steward who arrived late, held their breath.
“What do you mean?”
“What will you be doing now?”
He awkwardly averted his gaze, unlike the man who had held her so firmly moments before.
“…There’s still prisoner interrogation. And I have to prepare for the territorial war.”
“Territorial war?”
“You said you would deal with your relatives on this occasion. Of course, I have no intention of absorbing the Nobilis family’s land, so your cleanup will be a bit difficult, but…”
“…You’re really going to march out?”
“Your husband is still me. I don’t want to miss an opportunity to ensure my wife’s safety.”
After a moment of speechlessness, Agatha was led by the hand of an attendant maid who had appeared, and entered the bathroom.
In the bathtub filled with warm water, Agatha washed off the initial blood.
“I’ll change the water for you.”
“Mm.”
As she soaked in the warm water infused with herbs for calming effects for the second time, her tense body slowly began to relax.
Jessie continued to pour warm water and massage her body.
“Shall I add more hot water?”
“No, I think this is fine.”
He’s really going to march out.
Agatha finally felt it sinking in.
Enoch’s confession, and the fact that he was genuinely stepping forward to protect her.
“….”
Her pent-up heart felt as if it were slowly softening.
The two attendant maids pretended not to notice as Agatha quietly submerged her head in the warm water.
While Agatha regained her composure, Head Steward Allen was diligently handling the aftermath of the attack.
He summoned the resident repairmen to fix the damaged mansion, wiped away blood, removed carpets trampled by muddy feet, and opened the windows wide to air out the metallic scent.
As the Nobilis retainers busied themselves restoring the mansion’s daily routine, Enoch descended to the underground prison for prisoner interrogation.
Enoch’s declaration that he would eliminate Agatha’s relatives on this occasion was no empty threat.
He intended to implicate as many Nobilis relatives as possible this time to ensure Agatha's safety.
“Let’s begin immediately.”
The interrogation was lengthy. After several hours of effort, Enoch managed to extract one name.
Caden.
He was one of the collateral relatives of the Nobilis family.
Early in the morning, Aratus and the Nobilis retainers gathered in the grand hall of the newlywed mansion.
Upon hearing the name, Agatha wracked her memory.
It was a relative who had appeared in a letter from Marchioness Iris Domunia not long ago.
“I heard Madam Caden attended the first performance at Armand Hall, so she must have stepped forward this time.”
First Aide, Ethel Masro, brought maps and data on House Caden and presented them to Enoch.
“They govern the southern region among the Nobilis family’s territories. House Caden is a faction aligned with the second-ranked succession line, so we should be able to capture that entire branch this time.”
“I heard that branch has had a particularly high number of assassination attempts.”
Ethel nodded at Aratus’s question, who had become familiar with the internal affairs of the Nobilis family.
“That’s correct. The first-ranked usually attempts kidnappings. Although they have the highest succession rank, their roots are in foreign countries, so a marriage is essential to fully inherit the Nobilis family.”
If Agatha were to die, it was highly probable that the first and second-ranked succession lines would divide the Nobilis family in half.
“Whether it’s a messenger or a carrier pigeon, it takes time. They won’t know the situation properly either, so the sooner you depart, the more easily you can conquer House Caden first.”
If one family was raided, evidence linking to related families would surely surface.
This was an opportunity to eliminate up to the second-ranked succession line all at once.
“What shall we do?”
As all eyes turned to him, Enoch called out a name.
“Second Commander, Hubert Karwen.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
Huber immediately stood up.
“Stockpile provisions and inspect the weapons.”
“Then…!”
“Send out the heralds.”
Tension and anticipation flickered across the faces of the Aratus faction members.
“We begin the territorial war.”
The first thing Enoch did was inspect the troops and report on the territorial war.
While the declaration of territorial war was submitted to the Emperor through the Imperial Household,
Crown Prince Antony Roxiva received the news in bed, as usual. Antony, having received the report from the Head Steward, languidly pushed himself up.
“So, we’re having a territorial war?”
“Yes, Your Highness. Rumor has it His Majesty is quite pleased.”
“He would be.”
While he welcomed Agatha’s divorce, the Emperor was growing increasingly anxious.
Before he knew it, the sole heir of Nobilis had been married seven times without an heir.
When he thought the situation was unfolding strangely again, it was proven that the Marquis cherished Agatha enough to declare a territorial war, so he couldn’t help but be pleased.
“My chances of dying have decreased a bit now.”
Antony, who was subtly relaxing the muscles in his body, frowned deeply as he recalled yesterday’s events.
“What the hell, then. Was yesterday’s suspicious incident a trap?”
“I don’t think so. As Your Highness has also been informed, there were indeed problems within House Aratus, weren’t there?”
“Still, this is strange. Is it possible to improve relations and declare a territorial war in just one day?”
Wasn’t he just acting all this time?
If Antony, who knew the details, felt this way, then lesser-known nobles were in an uproar upon hearing the news of the territorial war.
- It’s clear that House Aratus set a trap to deal with the Nobilis relatives!
As rumors spread like wildfire, Agatha sat quietly beside Enoch in the grand hall, where the retainers had departed.
The meeting had ended long ago. The heralds to declare the territorial war had left, and the departure date was set.
Once the master of the house made a decision, the rest was up to the retainers.
Aratus selected the knights who would march in the territorial war, inspected the weapons, and mobilized the army.
Nobilis handed over military command to Aratus and ordered the territorial army to mobilize to block any information exchange among relatives until the Aratus army arrived.
In addition, they were to provide supplies and secure supply routes necessary for the territorial war.
The preparations were proceeding perfectly, as if meticulously planned.
“We will depart immediately.”
“……”
Agatha did not object, as it was advantageous to strike without giving the enemy time to prepare, but…
Somehow, she couldn’t bring herself to speak.
She didn’t doubt his abilities, but anything could happen on the battlefield.
“…Please be careful.”
“It won’t take long this time either.”
Enoch kissed Agatha’s forehead gently before standing up.
Agatha couldn’t stop him. While she was glad he was acting to ensure her safety, seeing the man heading towards danger made her heart feel complicated.
Even as he marched off to war, First Commander Leon Takran remained as Agatha’s guard.
“It would be better to take at least one more person…”
Leon, who would now be providing close protection at the mansion as well, shook his head.
“Your safety is paramount to the Lord. Please consider the Marquis’s feelings.”
Agatha approached the window and watched Enoch mount his horse and leave the mansion. A sense of impending war emanated from him and the knights following him.
