Chapter 47
47
Baron Roman's gaze towards the Chairman was far from friendly.
'What on earth is he thinking?'
He had heard that day that the Child of Destiny and he had walked together in the castle, appearing quite affectionate.
The Chairman walking with the Child of Destiny looked unusually comfortable and gentle, they said.
'Impossible. That man is Jean-Marc Nuanok.'
A man who had been excessively cold even to his only son.
Some even whispered that the death of his son, Louis Nuanok, might have been suicide.
A man who had driven his son so mercilessly could not possibly be treating the Child of Destiny gently and kindly.
'Is he planning to use the Child of Destiny for something?'
Baron Roman's lips twisted upward.
If so, it was a good thing.
He desperately wanted discord between the Chairman and Duke Dubled.
In the days of the previous generation, the Council held immense power within Dubled.
Before his son's death, the Chairman had stepped forward to promote the Council's interests.
But after his son died and Theodore Dubled took the Duke's seat, the Chairman acted like a toothless tiger.
It wasn't that he had no interest in the Council's interests, but he didn't step forward to check Theodore and regain his former glory.
"Chairman."
At Roman's call, the Chairman looked at him with a dry expression.
"If you are thinking of stepping forward this time, I will assist you from behind."
"Speak plainly, without cutting corners."
At the question of what he meant, Roman smiled slyly, thinking, 'As if you don't know.'
"Spinelle won't only be used in the battle against Kruger. Armor containing Spinelle is essential for soldiers in any battle. If the Temple doesn't distribute Spinelle to Dubled, the Duke's military power will inevitably weaken."
"So?"
"You have connections with the Temple, don't you?"
"……."
"If we can obtain Spinelle without the Duke's knowledge, our military power will surpass his."
"Are you suggesting we start a civil war?"
Roman shrugged with a sly look.
"I'm saying that the Council needs to have the power to resist the Duke's madness. Well, if the Duke gets too greedy, it wouldn't be bad to show him who's boss."
When the Chairman remained silent, Roman moved closer to him.
"How long must we suffer at the Duke's hands?"
"It's true that I have connections with the Temple, but they won't readily give us aid."
"What about the Child of Destiny?"
Roman grinned and looked out the window at Dubled Castle.
"Now that Divine Power has been reevaluated, the Papal State will want to bring the Child of Destiny back at any cost. If we use that girl as a bargaining chip, anything is possible."
Roman continued excitedly.
"Here's what I'm thinking. We kidnap the girl, hand her over to a slave trader, and leak the information to the Temple. If the Temple retrieves the child, the Duke, who failed to properly manage her, will have no choice but to lose her, and the Temple will secure the child-"
That's when it happened.
Knock, knock. A knock sounded, and the Nuanok family's butler entered.
"Master, a letter has arrived from the castle."
"From the Duke?"
"The seal on the letter was not the Duke's family Seal."
Not the Duke's family Seal, but a letter from the castle.
The Chairman narrowed his eyes slightly and took the letter from the butler.
Upon opening the envelope, he saw a child's crooked handwriting.
[Jean-Marc Nuanok is invited to LeBlaine's first tea party.
The cookie crumbs look like dirt, but they are not as mysterious as dirt. Please come alone and secretly.]
The Chairman's eyes trembled as he read the invitation, which contained neither time nor place.
[Dad, the cookie crumbs look like dirt. But why aren't they as mysterious as dirt?]
How could she know this?
How could the Child of Destiny know the words his dead son had said as a child?
"Chairman?"
Roman craned his neck, wondering what was wrong.
But the Chairman silently stuffed the letter into his jacket and stood up.
"Prepare the carriage!"
Baron Roman stared in bewilderment at the Chairman, who was hurriedly leaving the study.
I gave the maid Uni ten kisses.
It was the price for delivering my invitation to the Chairman without anyone knowing.
"Here too, please give me kisses here too."
"We only agreed to ten kisses."
"You have to pay interest too!"
As expected of someone from a loan shark family, she was incredibly good at collecting interest.
I kissed the opposite cheek that Uni pointed to.
"Are you satisfied?"
"Yes~!"
Uni hugged me tightly once with a pleased expression and skipped out of the room.
'Well, now all that's left is to wait.'
I waited for him in the gazebo in the corner of the garden so it would be easy to talk when the Chairman arrived.
Swinging the drink that came with the set to match the pretense of a tea party.
And as the sun was setting, the Chairman came to find me.
He seemed to have searched for me for a long time, as he was panting.
"How, how did you know that story?"
He got straight to the point without even greeting me. He seemed very anxious.
I jumped off the gazebo chair and looked up at the Chairman.
"I have something to ask you before that."
"Please speak."
"How much does Harabuji miss his son?"
"……Are you even saying anything?"
"If you could see Louis again, what price would you pay?"
He looked at me with a stiff face and said.
"I would sell my soul."
Good, I was waiting for those words.
I gently grabbed Etwal. The Chairman frowned at me.
"You mustn't shout at a child……."
At the slightly timid voice from behind the gazebo, the Chairman froze without even turning his head.
His pupils dilated, and soon the gaze he had been scolding me with wavered.
As if he couldn't believe it.
He slowly turned his head.
"Father……."
Louis Nuanok smiled painfully as he looked at his father, whose face had turned pale.
The Chairman simply stared at his son without saying a word. He asked, his gaze fixed on his son.
"What trickery is this? Who on earth has disguised themselves as my son? Is it the Duke who told you to mock me like this, or is it you, Agi-nim?"
Even as he spoke coldly as if he couldn't believe it, his gaze was still trembling slightly.
Louis's Adam's apple bobbed up and down. He bit his lip tightly as if trying to hold back tears, and then looked at his father again.
"I'm sorry for asking you to eat pancakes together first and not being able to keep that promise."
The Chairman's face contorted as the story that only he knew came out of Louis's mouth.
His shoulders, which had always been full of pressure, shrank, and wrinkles deepened all over his face.
It wasn't the figure of a powerful man who controlled the Council. It was the figure of an old and lonely father who had lost his son.
"……."
I tugged at the Chairman's sleeve, unable to say anything.
"Say something. Quickly!"
"……."
"Do you know how hard it is to maintain a soul? It's going to disappear soon!"
I was already drained after Bune left, but I was worried about the Chairman, who missed his son so much, so I was forcibly maintaining his soul.
As Louis cautiously approached, the Chairman gritted his teeth.
"……Worthless wretch."
'Huh? No, that's not it!'
I opened my eyes in surprise, but the Chairman randomly punched Louis's shoulders and chest.
"Worthless wretch! Worthless, you worthless……!"
"……."
"You lived such a worthless life, and you disappoint me until the end! You worthless wretch! Why did you leave me behind first!"
The Chairman's face became wet.
Louis stood still without saying a word, simply enduring his punches.
The Chairman, who was groaning as if he was about to suffocate with sorrow, soon collapsed to the ground.
"You…… Did you commit suicide?"
"……."
"Is it true that you couldn't find a landfill, as people say, and that you committed suicide because you were afraid of my rage?"
Louis bent his knees and stared at his father.
"I was always doing worthless things…… So, I wanted to give you Spinelle as a birthday present."
"You……."
"It was an accident that happened because I was in a hurry. I was sometimes afraid of you, but respect, gratitude, and love were greater than fear."
The Chairman cried like a child. Until Louis disappeared.
I glanced at the Chairman, who was sitting on the gazebo with a drained face.
'What should I say in this situation?'
I don't know because I don't have a real dad.
As I was holding my temples with both fists and groaning, the Chairman's voice was heard.
"What are you, Agi-nim?"
"Huh?"
"I expect that you are definitely not an ordinary child."
His dry gaze turned to me.
I didn't avoid his eyes.
"What do I believe in to tell you that?"
"I was sincere when I said I would give even my soul."
I know.
That look was sincere.
That's why I took the risk and showed Louis to the Chairman.
'There's no one who would believe me even if I told them.'
Above all, Louis emphasized firmly to him as he left.
[I have become a Familiar of someone who cherishes Agi-nim. If Father harms Agi-nim, my soul will not find rest.]
Even though he looked nothing like the Chairman, he was indeed his son. The way he threatened was just like the Chairman.
Unlike the Chairman, Louis threatened with his own life, not the lives of others.
He seemed very grateful to me for letting him meet his father again. He's a good person who knows how to repay kindness.
Thinking that, I glanced at him.
'Above all, I need the Chairman's help right now.'
There's no way a child like me can own a Spinelle Mutation Zone.
Besides, the Chairman is the right person to get help from.
He's appropriately greedy, prioritizes personal gain over family or country, and, above all, he's someone who won't be harmed if I defect.
'But just in case…….'
"Take off your jacket."
"Pardon?"
"Turn your pants pockets inside out too."
"What……."
Having been hit in the back of the head more than once or twice, I thoroughly searched him to confirm that he had no Magic tool or Divine tools.
Only then did I start the story.
"I've regressed three times. And I summoned a demon in this life."
The Chairman's expression was filled with shock.
