Chapter 48
45
===
Stepping through the open doorway, Edward felt the intersection of the cold hallway air and the slightly lukewarm air inside the hall. He lifted his gaze from the floor. And the moment his eyes met the man’s, he realized.
That his and his father’s wishes had scattered like the wind.
Even at a distance where his features were not clearly visible, his presence was intense. Even the fabric tapestry hanging behind him could not overwhelm his presence.
Was it because of his magnificent physique, or his handsome appearance that even another man would admire? It seemed to be more because of the atmosphere he exuded.
The closer he got to him, the drier Edward’s mouth became. Then, when he stopped in front of the platform and looked up at him, the Duke opened his mouth.
“Edward Rinko, Marquis Rinko.”
As if possessed, Edward knelt on his left knee.
Ares watched him kneeling silently. The Marquis and Marchioness were restless at the sight, but Edward remained in that position, waiting for the Duke’s words.
“I heard you went to Duke Taylor’s residence in my stead. Thank you for your hard work on the long journey.”
“It was nothing, Your Grace. I simply did what I had to do.”
“Rise.”
Only then did Edward rise from his position. Ares stared intently into Edward’s hazel eyes. A son who observed the Oath of Fealty that even his parents had omitted.
“Marquis, there is one thing I need you to confirm.”
Edward’s eyebrows twitched as if he didn’t understand, but he nodded.
“If you need my confirmation, I should certainly provide it.”
Ares smiled, pulling at his lips. He, who had a smile that could bewitch even a god of death, turned his gaze somewhere. Edward, who had been looking at Ares, naturally turned his head following his gaze.
At the place where his gaze stopped, a woman who did not fit in with this hall at all was standing there. A white dress soiled in places as if she had suffered hardships, and disheveled blonde hair…
“…?!”
Edward’s eyes narrowed slightly, then widened. She looked quite different from the last time he had seen her, but he could not fail to recognize her characteristic blonde hair and deep green eyes.
“No, why…”
At that moment, his mother pointed a finger at her and shouted sharply.
“Edward, do you know a woman like that?!”
“…Mother?!”
Edward felt goosebumps rising on his spine. But the desperate Marchioness did not notice her son’s reaction.
“It’s one thing to try to survive, but there’s a limit. How dare you not know your place and mention my son!!!”
“Mother!!!”
Edward shouted to stop his mother’s mouth, and at the same time, an elegant voice overlapped.
“I wanted to apologize for making Taylor take an unnecessary trip, but it’s good to meet you like this. Marquis Rinko.”
As Grace took a step towards Edward, the Marchioness stared alternately at her and her son with wide eyes. Her shock reached its peak when Grace extended her right hand towards her most precious son.
“…What are you doing?”
Despite the Marchioness’s hollow question, Grace’s eyes were cold and calm like a winter sea. Meeting her calm gaze, Edward thought that the person who had called him might have been Grace, not the Duke.
Why she was here, who had made Princess Taylor look like this, why…
Leaving behind the swamp-like questions, Edward had no choice but to kiss the back of Grace’s hand.
The Marchioness’s feelings when she saw her son, whom she would not hesitate to give her life for, kissing Grace’s hand were beyond words. Not only she but also the Marquis was speechless, and Flora, who was watching the situation from afar, could only blink with her mouth half-open.
“What on earth…”
The Marchioness stared at Grace with eyes that wavered like a ship in a storm. Grace, who had shaken her mercilessly, repeated the same answer in an extremely calm tone.
“I’ve been saying it, Marchioness.”
“……”
“I am Grace, and Jessie and I cannot be the ‘Unseen Ones’.”
Edward felt his heart pounding as if it were sinking. Instinctively, when he looked back at the Duke, he too was watching the situation with deeply sunken eyes. Edward felt an indescribable fear from the man standing blankly.
Grace took a step towards the Marchioness. In her eyes, which had seemed calm, a threatening flame rose as if to burn the Marchioness.
“The child who came with me is named Jessie Moulton. Her father was a knight of Duke Taylor’s family who held a single title, and he returned as ashes after protecting my parents to the end. By the ‘Unseen Ones’.”
Taylor. Why is that family name coming up?
The nobles of the Marquis faction stirred all at once, and the Marchioness grabbed her son’s arm tightly.
“Edward. …Edward?!”
Edward gritted his teeth and whispered heavily.
“Stop it, Mother. She is Princess Taylor.”
It was a terrible thing to say.
The Marchioness could not believe what she had heard. Princess Taylor?
She let go of her son’s arm and shook her head.
“That can’t be.”
Edward quickly stood to shield his mother from the Duke and Princess Grace’s gazes.
“Mother, please.”
Edward blocked her with a choked voice, but the Marchioness could not back down. It was too far to turn back. The Marchioness forced a smile and said to her son.
“You must have misunderstood something. Princess Taylor?! Look at that woman’s appearance, where does she look like Princess Taylor…”
The end of the Marchioness’s harsh words gradually faded and stopped.
‘My hair comes from my father, my eyes from my mother. And I resemble my father more than my mother. As my ancestors usually did.’
The Marchioness’s gaze reached the long, flowing blonde hair.
Taylor of the Golden Wheat Field. It was said that the people of that family were born with clear blonde hair, as if they were born with gold on their heads. A slight spasm occurred at the corner of the Marchioness’s eye.
Edward’s mind turned white as he watched his mother. He had to hurry and take his mother out of the hall before they were driven into a deeper corner.
This place was a huge trap set by the Duke and Princess Grace.
“Your Grace, my mother doesn’t seem to be in good health. I’m sorry, but I’ll be leaving now…”
“I slept too long.”
Before Edward’s urgent words could finish, a leaden, blue voice was heard from somewhere.
“My sleep was too long.”
The reason why the voice, which was not very loud, seemed to be embedded in the ear was because of the clear pronunciation characteristic of someone who had been thoroughly educated since they first started learning to speak.
The faces of the elderly Marquis faction nobles turned dark at her unique pronunciation, which was once classified as ‘high-class speech’ and spread like a trend among noble ladies.
Clack, clack.
The sound of hard shoe heels shook the air in the hall, which had become dense with tension. And after a while, she appeared from the edge of the huge fabric tapestry representing Richmond.
Everything was the same, from the straight back and shoulders without any bends, like her clear pronunciation, to the fluid movements like flowing water. However, the only differences were the unadorned black dress reminiscent of mourning clothes and the hair that had turned silver-white.
But whether her appearance was the same or different, that was not important. What was important was that the Queen of Richmond had appeared before people for the first time in over a decade. When the knight family nobles rose from their seats all at once at her appearance, the Marquis faction nobles had no choice but to rise from their seats as well.
As Ares approached and politely offered his hand, the nobles all bowed in greeting. Grace also bowed to Eliza, and Edward also bowed politely. But the Marquis and Marchioness just stood blankly, staring at Eliza.
As Eliza took Ares’s hand and ascended the platform, a look of anger settled in her eyes, and the couple, realizing this, belatedly greeted her. Ares’s lips seemed to rise and fall at the sight of the old woman’s fiercely raised black eyes.
“Duke. This old woman’s legs are uncomfortable and I need to sit down, so bring me a chair.”
“There’s no need for that, Grandmother.”
Ares led her to the Duke’s chair.
“Please sit. I, with my strong legs, will stand.”
Eliza, who chuckled at the brazen words, suddenly gasped, feeling a stabbing pain in the center of her chest. Seeing the chair that ‘Walter’ should have been sitting in, her heart ached as if it were being torn apart. But she could no longer be immersed in helplessness.
“Then I will.”
Eliza turned gracefully and slowly sat in the huge chair. As the Queen’s maid took her place on the left, Ares stood tall on the right, clasping his hands behind his back.
Eliza slowly scanned the vassals standing like sharp spears. Some were expressionless, some seemed flustered, and some were holding back tears with reddened eyes. Her gaze, which had brushed past the demure Grace, continued to the descendant of the once most trusted family.
Eliza stared blankly at the Marquis and Marchioness, then closed her eyes. After taking a long breath, she called him.
“Henry Rinko.”
“…Yes, Grand Duchess.”
“Recite the Oath of Fealty.”
