Chapter 5
The Reason to Live Sacrificing My Life
"So, what's your connection to Ideana?"
Shed Lester lowered the hand that had been propping up his chin and straightened his posture.
His demeanor seemed quite serious, and Eclaus unconsciously straightened his back as well.
Shed's eyes seemed to be testing him, but Eclaus wore a natural smile, masking his true intentions.
"You said we should get straight to the point, but now you're playing dumb."
"That's what I'm saying. You came here wanting to lobby for the business rights in the Ideana territory, right? Things like commercial rights, financial rights, development rights, distribution rights, and passage rights..."
Eclaus chuckled awkwardly at the embarrassingly blatant accusation.
He felt as though his hidden desires had been exposed in their nakedness.
"I'm sorry, but I have no intention of monopolizing the business in the Ideana territory to one entity."
"Haha, of course."
Eclaus smiled amiably, thinking,
'There's no one else who would dare to touch Ideana besides me anyway, so he's just playing hard to get.'
Just then, Shed added,
"You might think there aren't any other merchants or investors interested in Ideana..."
Eclaus's fingers twitched on the teacup at the remark that seemed to read his mind.
Damn it, did the Lupus Clan have some kind of secret mind-reading technique passed down through generations?
Shed's insight often disconcerted him.
But that was it.
"Then was there anyone else besides me who showed interest in the Ideana business rights?"
Eclaus was certain. There was no one else interested in Ideana besides him.
Ideana was too risky a place, so everyone was hesitant to take on the challenge. Even if they were interested, they would be weighing the stability and cautiously observing the situation.
"Of course not."
Shed said, lifting his teacup.
As Eclaus had expected, it was just a bluff...
"But there will be now. Since you came to see me."
"...!"
Shed leisurely took a sip of black tea.
Eclaus gritted his teeth and smiled.
"Are you going to spread rumors that I came to see you all over town? Without any business ethics?"
"Does morality even exist when money is involved?"
Shed retorted nonchalantly.
Damn Duke Leicester.
Eclaus had come here without informing anyone else.
Shed, the owner of this place, had also been surprised to see him here.
'He knows why I came here quietly.'
Eclaus was the wealthiest man in the world, running the largest merchant guild.
If it became known that he was interested in the Ideana business, others would inevitably try to follow suit.
Eclaus didn't want to mingle with those small fries, and he wanted to avoid unnecessary competition.
But Shed was trying to exploit him.
'...He must want something.'
Eclaus clenched his fist as he thought.
To restore the ruined Ideana, the help of the Bittel family would be essential.
Yet, the fact that he was saying things that would offend the Bittel family from the very beginning meant that he had other intentions.
'For someone who came from slavery, he's too clever.'
It would have been easier if he were just an ignorant warrior who only knew how to wield a sword.
'Well, if he were stupid, he wouldn't have made it this far.'
The achievements he had made so far weren't just the result of mindless swordplay.
People thought Shed Lester was a lucky man, but Eclaus thought differently.
He was a man who created his own luck.
He had saved the life of the late Duke Josef Lester and was adopted as his son, and he had strategically led the army on the front lines, earning great merit.
The undefeated hero. That title led people to make a mistake.
They thought that all he needed to do was swing a sword well, shoot an arrow well, and ride a horse well.
But in reality, half of the battles he had participated in had been won without shedding the blood of his own troops.
He was an excellent strategist and commander. Enough to make those proud knights listen to and follow the words of a Lupus Clan member.
'And yet the nobles are busy despising him. Not even knowing that he's the one they should fear the most.'
Or were they trying to trample him down even more because they were afraid? Because of an instinctive sense of crisis that if they didn't trample him now, they would be trampled on?
In any case, that was why he was difficult to deal with, mentally exhausting to argue with, and also interesting.
"What do you want?"
Eclaus crossed his arms unpleasantly and leaned back against the chair.
Then Shed put down his teacup and tilted his head slightly.
"Nothing special. Just balancing the scales as always."
Shed quietly stared at the flame of the burning incense stick.
He fiddled with an old newspaper clipping, so worn that the old letters were faded.
It was literally a worn-out and faded article.
Shed nonchalantly brought the edge of the old paper to the candle flame.
The dry, parched paper easily caught fire.
The old letters burned black and soon turned into white ashes, scattering and falling.
The same was true of the girl's face, engraved in a crude woodcut.
The flame fiercely devoured the records of the past.
Everything disappeared like that.
He opened the window, completely blew the ashes into the air, and headed to the bathroom.
As he took off the loosely draped gown, his firmly muscled body was revealed.
Countless scars were cruelly etched onto his taut skin.
They were so old and familiar that he often forgot that such marks existed on his body.
But today, for some reason, those marks stood out clearly.
Shed stared at the old scars, like the burnt newspaper clipping, and then turned his gaze to the bathtub.
As he immersed himself in the hot water, the long-standing fatigue melted away.
As the water touched his skin, the forgotten wounds throbbed, making their presence known.
There were still unhealed wounds on his arms, legs, hands, and shoulders.
Having fought in a long war, it was only natural that his body was not in perfect condition.
Such pain was ridiculously familiar, so Shed leaned back in the tub and closed his eyes.
But there was one wound that was hard to ignore.
'Luise Ideana.'
Her image floated into the darkness of his closed eyes.
Her height seemed to have shrunk a little more than he remembered, and her already frail body looked even thinner.
Her beautifully sparkling hair had been dyed a dark, dull color, as if she had used some kind of dye, and she spoke the southern dialect quite perfectly.
'I almost didn't recognize her and let her go.'
Shed slowly opened his eyes and cast his gaze through the hazy steam.
Contrary to his worry that he might not recognize her, he had actually recognized her at first glance.
Even if she changed her hair color, even if she was in a dark forest, even if she was wearing dirty, tattered maid's clothes, he could sense it like a beast with innate instincts.
That she was Luise Ideana.
The savior who had pulled him out of the mire, the betrayer who had plunged him into hell, and also the runaway who had dared to feign death and disappear.
How could he forget?
He had been thinking of that face every day since that day.
Shed had once given everything to her.
He had faced death dozens of times, obeying Ideana like a dog.
But in the end, all that came back to him was betrayal.
He thought of the countless Lupus Clan members who had been massacred at the hands of Ideana.
"What did you expect? A Lupus Clan member..."
She had mocked the slave who had been trained like a dog.
To think that he had believed that she, at least, would be different from the other nobles of Ideana. It was truly foolish.
He had gnashed the bit in his mouth like a beast and vowed revenge.
But that damned Ideana had even taken away his chance for revenge.
"We have confirmed the deaths of all members of the Ideana family."
Treason. Black Magic. Curse. Self-destruction.
Before he could even lift a finger, his revenge had ended in vain.
...Or so he thought it had ended.
'But she was alive...'
A chuckle escaped from his lips.
He felt the blood that had been cold and stagnant finally circulating.
The moment he found her in the forest, he had felt a frenzied joy.
An indescribable excitement had stirred up the desire that had been withered and dead.
Finally, he had a reason to live this boring and tiresome life.
Now, there was something he wanted to achieve, even if it meant sacrificing his life.
Liana caressed the sensation of the fabric brushing against her skin.
A thin, white silk dress that was almost see-through.
It was a completely different sensation from the rough and coarse fabric of the maid's uniform.
There was a time when she used to wear clothes like this every day.
There was also a time when she was uncomfortable with the cheap cloth of the maid's uniform because she couldn't get used to it.
But now, the sensation of the fabric touching her skin as softly as flower petals felt awkward.
The mansion was very warm, but Liana wrapped her arms around herself as if she felt cold.
Her body, which had just finished bathing, smelled of sweet roses.
She curled up and looked around.
A bedroom with a faint candle lit.
A room made of dark wood, with no decorations.
If there was one decoration that stood out, it was the sword placed at the head of the bed.
However, the crude and black scabbard did not seem to be for decoration.
It was clear to anyone that the room prepared for Liana, was not for her.
Liana bit her lip as a habit.
As she lowered her head, she saw her bare white feet with scratches.
She felt the coldness of the marble on her toes.
The chill that started at her toes traveled up her spine and covered her neck with a cold sensation.
Liana raised her head and looked out the window.
The sun had already set.
Her face was reflected in the darkened window.
Her pale face in the night sky resembled a ghost.
The same was true of the white silk dress illuminated by the moonlight.
Liana carefully brought her hand to her wax-like face reflected in the window.
It was as if she could pass through the glass and go outside if she did that.
If she could become a ghost and escape far away from this place...
Just then, the hinges made a high-pitched 'creak-' sound, breaking her reverie.
Liana was startled by the sound of the door opening and took her eyes off the window.
When she turned her head, a dark shadow was cast through the doorway.
Shed Lester.
He was standing in front of the door.
