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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Joshua Ehrnhardt's Story (3)
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The assassin’s identity was revealed surprisingly quickly.
“Rosette Dallas?”
As Joshua repeated the name, his voice filled with fury, his aide began to explain.
“Yes. She is said to be the adopted daughter of Marquis Dallas from over ten years ago.”
He had heard of her.
“You mean the Young Lady Dallas who once caused a stir in high society.”
Thirteen years ago, a rumor had spread like wildfire that Marquis Dallas had adopted a commoner girl from an orphanage. People were curious about the child, but the Marquis never introduced her to high society.
Almost no stories about her circulated.
What little was known was that her name was ‘Rosette Dallas’ and that she had some talent for magic.
Such a Rosette Dallas finally made her appearance at a debutante ball held in the year she came of age.
Joshua also saw her for the first time that day. Rosette Dallas was not someone who stood out for her looks.
Befitting someone from the Marquisate of Dallas, she wore a splendid dress and accessories, but her frame was small, her hair and skin were lackluster, and her movements were unbefitting of a noble.
Moreover, a fancy mask covered about half her face, making it impossible to see her properly.
Some people sneered that you couldn’t expect more from a commoner.
But Joshua’s eyes were drawn to her. It was because of the immense amount of mana enveloping her.
‘So that’s why Marquis Dallas adopted Rosette Dallas.’
It was a shame. If he had discovered her first, he could have raised her into a fine mage. Of all people, she had to fall into the hands of Marquis Dallas first.
But that was all. He didn’t want to show any more interest in the daughter of Marquis Dallas.
However, when the party was in full swing, Joshua, who had slipped out into the garden to escape the crowd, ran into Rosette Dallas again.
-It's so stuffy in there, Bbi-bbi.
[Bbiit!]
-You think so too, right?
The voice coming from the empty thicket was soft and clear. A voice like one singing along with a small bird.
As if entranced, Joshua headed toward the source of the sound.
There was Rosette Dallas. She had taken off the stuffy-looking mask and placed it beside her.
-I want to go back to my room quickly and talk with you.
[Bbiik!]
-Bbi-bbi, you're the only one I have.
She gently kissed the beak of the small white bird perched on her hands.
Joshua stared blankly at the scene.
Rosette Dallas was a girl with a strange charm.
Her pink hair, which stood out even in the darkness, had a lovely sheen despite its rough texture, and her skin was as white as if it had never seen the sun.
Furthermore, when she sensed his presence and turned to look at him, he was even more shocked.
The pair of blue eyes staring at him sparkled like jewels. An untainted, pure emotion emanated from them.
He couldn’t look away. He had met people of various classes and personalities until now, but had there ever been someone so captivating?
What on earth was this unknown emotion?
[Bbit!]
Joshua, who had been watching her without blinking, came to his senses only when the white bird blocked his view of Rosette as if to protect her. He opened his mouth as if to make an excuse.
“I wasn't trying to eavesdrop...”
He was about to say he wasn't, but Rosette reacted unexpectedly. She put on her mask, shot to her feet, and then disappeared in the opposite direction as if fleeing.
Fleeing instead of greeting a member of the royal family with proper etiquette. It was absurd, but he didn't feel offended.
A small laugh simply escaped him.
He wanted to follow her and strike up a conversation, but he knew he shouldn't. The other person was the daughter of Marquis Dallas, after all.
Joshua glanced for a moment at the thicket where Rosette had been sitting before returning to the party.
Joshua never thought about her after that day. Rosette Dallas also stopped appearing in high society, and he didn't bother to seek her out.
However, a small, fond feeling for her remained.
But that Rosette Dallas was the one who did this? That girl with such clear eyes, really?
Joshua clenched his fists so tightly they trembled.
“Were there any other intruders besides her?”
The aide answered in a tone that suggested he couldn't believe it himself.
“According to the investigation, there were none.”
“None? Are you telling me that Rosette Dallas single-handedly broke through that tight security and murdered my master and Daniel?”
“I'm sorry to say, but yes.”
Joshua barely restrained the urge to grab the incompetent aide by the collar and shake him, asking again.
“There must have been someone from the Dallas family who supported her.”
“Well... the Dallas family is claiming this was Rosette Dallas's solo act. Marquis Dallas also claims to know nothing about it, effectively cutting her loose.”
“Ha, a solo act?”
Joshua slammed his fist on the desk.
“Nonsense. Are you telling me to believe that nonsense right now?”
“Well...”
The aide hesitated.
“What is it?”
“Many nobles are supporting that claim.”
“For instance?”
“The Duchy of Lilith is the most active.”
“Ha.”
A bitter laugh escaped him.
The Duchy of Lilith. The current Empress's family. Joshua's lips twisted as he thought of the current Empress, Leonie Ehrnhardt.
“So that's how things turned out.”
Thirteen years ago, after the death of the former Empress, Ophelia Ehrnhardt, the nobles had clamored as if they had been waiting for the Emperor to take a new empress.
The Emperor, feigning reluctance, appointed Leonie Lilith, then the Young Lady of Lilith, as the new Empress. It hadn't even been three months since Ophelia's death.
Joshua was deeply shocked by his father's attitude. Even if it was a loveless marriage, how could he bring in a new empress so quickly?
But what was more shocking was the boy Leonie brought with her, named Louis. The nine-year-old boy, who introduced himself as Leonie's son, Louis Lilith, had blonde hair and golden eyes.
“......!”
Golden eyes were the symbol of the Ehrnhardt imperial family. This meant that Louis wasn't just an illegitimate child, but the Emperor's son.
After a formal paternity test, the child was confirmed to be the son of the Emperor and Leonie. Afterward, the Emperor, as if he had been waiting, gave Louis the Ehrnhardt surname.
And so, a second prince appeared in the imperial family, which had previously only had the first prince, Joshua.
Before he appeared, everyone naturally assumed Joshua would inherit the throne. But after that, the succession dynamic shifted subtly.
Unfortunately, Joshua had no support base. His maternal family, the Kingdom of Iveln, was too weak to interfere in the Empire's line of succession.
The one who supported him was his master, Duke Adrian.
In effect, the noble factions were divided between the Duchy of Adrian and the Duchy of Lilith.
‘And the Dallas family is a key power within the Lilith faction.’
It was clearly a ploy by the Marquisate of Dallas to eliminate the opposing faction.
However, Joshua hit an unexpected obstacle. The Emperor was trying to quickly wrap up the incident as Rosette Dallas's solo act.
“I, too, find the deaths of Duke Adrian and his heir regrettable. However, Prince, there is no evidence that Marquis Dallas instigated it.”
“If we investigate a little more...!”
“Didn't I say it has been investigated enough?”
Thirteen years ago, when his wife Ophelia Ehrnhardt was poisoned, the Emperor had concluded the case just as quickly.
Even when Joshua cried and begged him, saying a mere lady-in-waiting couldn't have acted alone and pleading for further investigation, he didn't even pretend to listen.
Just like in the past, Joshua realized too late that this was another cleverly orchestrated plot. He also realized that Duke Adrian's death had occurred with the Emperor's tacit approval.
Sadly, there was nothing more Joshua could do. He wanted to meet Rosette Dallas and ask if this was Marquis Dallas's scheme, but he didn't. It would be useless anyway.
“I will uncover the truth behind my father's death one day. As the Duchess of Adrian, I will not let this slide.”
He could only look at Isabelle, who had inherited the position of heir overnight, and say with conviction.
“When I ascend the throne, I will reinvestigate this matter.”
But he couldn't just stand by while rage burned within him. In the end, Joshua secretly visited Rosette Dallas the day before her execution. He was heavily drunk, something he rarely did.
“Why on earth did you do it?”
“......”
“What sin did my master and Daniel commit to deserve death! Why!”
He cried like a child, demanding answers. He himself didn't know what kind of reaction he wanted from Rosette Dallas.
But Rosette Dallas, once again, showed an unexpected reaction.
Tears streamed down her face from her small, thin body, which still made it hard to believe she was an adult. It was as if she regretted killing the two of them.
Regret? How ridiculous. If she was going to regret it so much, she shouldn't have done it in the first place.
“I...”
Rosette Dallas's lips trembled. But she couldn't continue, only able to cry.
There was so much he wanted to say, but what was the use now?
“Your execution date has been set.”
“......”
“Your death won't bring them back, but at least it can honor their spirits. If you have even a shred of guilt, then atone for it until the moment you die.”
Joshua barely managed to leave those words behind and returned to his room. But he couldn't sleep all night.
Would everything really be resolved if Rosette Dallas, that girl, was executed? She was, in the end, just a chess piece for the Duke of Lilith and Marquis Dallas.
Her death wouldn't honor the spirits of Duke Adrian and Daniel.
‘But what can I do?’
Here, without my master or Daniel, what on earth...!
Fuming with such anger, Joshua fell asleep at some point as if he had fainted.
When he woke up again.
“......!”
He had returned to his twelve-year-old self.
“What in the world...?”
At first, he thought he was dreaming, but all his senses were vivid. He had never heard of a dream being this real.
Flustered, his gaze suddenly fell upon the necklace he always wore. It was set with a gem that shimmered with various colors, like an opal.
It was a gift from his mother, the Empress of the Empire and the Princess of Iveln. He had heard it was an heirloom passed down in the Iveln royal family.
At the time, Ophelia had placed it in his hand and whispered something meaningful.
-This will save you someday.
