“Let me go to her side.”
Madame Cronach gasped.
‘Maybe.’
She thought she might not be able to kill Kaian.
When Claudel was very young, there was a toy that her husband Evan had carved by hand.
‘Claudel. Let’s throw this away now. Okay?’
‘No. It’s something my dad made.’
‘Let’s ask him to make it prettier. If you keep playing with dirty things, your stomach will hurt.’
‘I can just wash my hands after playing.’
Even though Claudel played with it until it was so dirty that she wondered how she could secretly throw it away, if the child cried and demanded it be given to her, there was no way she could refuse
Madame Cronach knew a long time ago that loving a daughter meant you couldn’t hate or dislike her, even if she was a thorn in her side.
The angry heart must slaughter Kaian. The heart of a mother who was so incompetent that she ran wild was said to be the one her daughter had been attached to. She didn’t seem to have the right to point a finger at Kaian, who couldn’t even raise Claudel properly.
‘You should have protected her!’
Kaian was more than capable of doing so. Seeing them together in the capital, they were a truly well-matched couple.
How many times had she prayed to God in her heart?
How much had she vowed to repay the favor to Kaian, who didn’t even know that he had saved her life and her daughter’s life?
She thought that she might never see her daughter again, who was motionless at the Castle of Valmonde.
At that time, Claudel was definitely happy.
Seeing that in person was such a moment of salvation for her, that when she saw Claudel and Kaian smiling, linking arms, and disappearing from the theater as soon as their eyes met, she momentarily forgot the tragedy she had experienced.
“I can’t live like this. I can’t even breathe.”
Kaian knelt in front of her and grabbed his head with both hands.
Kaian didn’t even ask Madame Cronach if it was true.
The evidence of the truth was in each other’s eyes.
When the red eyes, filled with despair at losing his wife and child, and the brown eyes filled with frustration at losing the daughter she had vowed to protect for the rest of her life met, it was obvious without a doubt who would go first.
They were in the same hell.
“Let me go too.”
The ardor of revenge that had felt like it would burn forever in the hellfire just a moment ago seemed to have thrown her into the cold, icy valley.
Kaian seemed completely out of his mind. How could such a cold-hearted sword and shield man crumble like this when he heard Claudel’s name?
How could the mask that made him feel fine as if nothing had happened be so thin?
‘Maybe.’
She thought she might not be able to kill Kaian.
When Claudel was very young, there was a toy that her husband Evan had carved by hand.
‘Claudel. Let’s throw this away now. Okay?’
‘No. It’s something my dad made.’
‘Let’s ask him to make it prettier. If you keep playing with dirty things, your stomach will hurt.’
‘I can just wash my hands after playing.’
Even though Claudel played with it until it was so dirty that she wondered how she could secretly throw it away, if the child cried and demanded it be given to her, there was no way she could refuse
Madame Cronach knew a long time ago that loving a daughter meant you couldn’t hate or dislike her, even if she was a thorn in her side.
The angry heart must slaughter Kaian. The heart of a mother who was so incompetent that she ran wild was said to be the one her daughter had been attached to. She didn’t seem to have the right to point a finger at Kaian, who couldn’t even raise Claudel properly.
‘You should have protected her!’
Kaian was more than capable of doing so. Seeing them together in the capital, they were a truly well-matched couple.
How many times had she prayed to God in her heart?
How much had she vowed to repay the favor to Kaian, who didn’t even know that he had saved her life and her daughter’s life?
She thought that she might never see her daughter again, who was motionless at the Castle of Valmonde.
At that time, Claudel was definitely happy.
Seeing that in person was such a moment of salvation for her, that when she saw Claudel and Kaian smiling, linking arms, and disappearing from the theater as soon as their eyes met, she momentarily forgot the tragedy she had experienced.
“I can’t live like this. I can’t even breathe.”
Kaian knelt in front of her and grabbed his head with both hands.
Kaian didn’t even ask Madame Cronach if it was true.
The evidence of the truth was in each other’s eyes.
When the red eyes, filled with despair at losing his wife and child, and the brown eyes filled with frustration at losing the daughter she had vowed to protect for the rest of her life met, it was obvious without a doubt who would go first.
They were in the same hell.
“Let me go too.”
The ardor of revenge that had felt like it would burn forever in the hellfire just a moment ago seemed to have thrown her into the cold, icy valley.
Kaian seemed completely out of his mind. How could such a cold-hearted sword and shield man crumble like this when he heard Claudel’s name?
How could the mask that made him feel fine as if nothing had happened be so thin?
When Madame Cronach didn’t say anything, Kaian trembled and babbled nonsense.
“...I lied.”
“...”
“It was my fault that Claudel ended up like that.”
The young Lord of Rowen was alone, without any parents or siblings to comfort him.
The man who had been so praised by the world was unable to express his sorrow for his wife who had disappeared, and he poured out his uncontrollable feelings in front of Madame Cronach.
“It doesn’t matter if you can’t kill me right away.”
His eyes, which felt like they were mad, were completely red with blood vessels bursting from the whites of his eyes.
A strange hope lingered in his eyes as he begged for her to kill him.
He wanted to escape this pain and go to Claudel’s side.
Even without saying it, she understood it on her own.
What good would it do to kill Kaian and take revenge? The rest of her life would be hell. If she recklessly charged at him and lost her life, would she be able to find her daughter’s soul in the afterlife?
It was not that she had not thought of this before. When she didn’t move, he became impatient and agitated.
Kaian picked up the dagger that had been thrown away while he was subduing her and put it in Madame Cronach’s hand.
“Ugh. Please...”
“Ahhh!”
In the end, Madame Cronach burst into tears and collapsed on the spot.
This place where the two faced each other was the center of hell.
When Kaian opened his eyes, everything was pitch black.
'When did I lose consciousness?'
His head felt numb as if his tired nerves had been cut off and then reconnected for a moment. He couldn't tell how much time had passed.
He slowly got up from where he had been lying on the floor.
Then, he saw a woman sitting quietly on a chair in the darkness, looking out the window.
'... They look alike.'
If it weren’t for the fact that her red hair, which showed its color even in places where the light didn’t reach, had naturally darkened brown hair that followed the night’s shadow, her body shape and the atmosphere she gave off were similar to a woman who had disappeared into the water before his eyes.
Kaian tried to control his emotions.
If Madame Cronach was Claudel’s biological mother, then he was now an inescapable sinner.
He didn’t have many opportunities to see Madame Cronach in person. After giving her money to keep her alive and do something, she had been in the capital and Kaian had been in Rowen. When the person who had survived the burns said that she wanted to look for her relatives and sent her out under surveillance, the woman headed to the Castle de Valmonde.
Originally, the village of Plogne was located at the edge of the Valmonde territory, so he didn’t find it particularly suspicious.
The informant he had planted in the Castle de Valmonde said that Madame Cronach had come in for a while without proof of identity, but had been kicked out right away.
That would be the case since the village of Plogne was not part of the kingdom and could not obtain official identification.
She caused a commotion in the lord’s castle, trying to find someone, and was treated as a commoner, and was put on a carriage and driven out to the edge of the territory.
After that, she came to him with her teeth gnashing as if she had some kind of grudge and asked Kaian to take her as her master and he provided her with funds so that she could work.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Kaian had no reason to refuse.
He guessed that Madame Cronach would seek revenge on Valquiterre.
However, there was an external reason for sparing her life.
The village of Plogne was a hidden secret known only to the royal family of the Ita Continent, a very small number of high-ranking nobles, and the heads of religions. Even within the kingdom of Oberon, only the royal relatives and a few families of founding fathers knew of its existence. If Valquiterre, who would become the next King, went hunting and got into trouble in Plogne, it could have been a huge problem.
'It seems that Valquiterre made a mistake,'
Queen Sylvia ordered the former Duke of Temnes.
'It would be good if Kaian went and cleaned up the mess.'
It was a bit awkward considering the relationship between Vermont and Temnes, but it was when Lady Elise and Kaian were on an outing to the capital.
In the end, Kaian went to check out the village of Plogne with Baron Colon and some private soldiers.
Perhaps because the terrain of the mountain was high and rugged, there was nothing unusual in the gateway city closest to Plogne.
However, as soon as they crossed the ridge of the mountain, a pungent smell stung their noses. Baron Colon, who had been a military man in his youth, folded a towel to cover his nose and mouth and said to Kaian.
'There is a valley even at such a high place. The mountain breeze flows through it.'
In the distance, they could still see smoke rising.
They had set out from the capital at the Queen's urging and arrived four days later, but it seemed that the fire had not completely gone out.
When they got closer, they saw that the village was a pile of ashes.
Kaian had heard of what was in the village of Plogne, but the sacred tree was nowhere to be found, and instead, there was a shallow mound of ash, which suggested that the kindling must have been quite large.
“...I lied.”
“...”
“It was my fault that Claudel ended up like that.”
The young Lord of Rowen was alone, without any parents or siblings to comfort him.
The man who had been so praised by the world was unable to express his sorrow for his wife who had disappeared, and he poured out his uncontrollable feelings in front of Madame Cronach.
“It doesn’t matter if you can’t kill me right away.”
His eyes, which felt like they were mad, were completely red with blood vessels bursting from the whites of his eyes.
A strange hope lingered in his eyes as he begged for her to kill him.
He wanted to escape this pain and go to Claudel’s side.
Even without saying it, she understood it on her own.
What good would it do to kill Kaian and take revenge? The rest of her life would be hell. If she recklessly charged at him and lost her life, would she be able to find her daughter’s soul in the afterlife?
It was not that she had not thought of this before. When she didn’t move, he became impatient and agitated.
Kaian picked up the dagger that had been thrown away while he was subduing her and put it in Madame Cronach’s hand.
“Ugh. Please...”
“Ahhh!”
In the end, Madame Cronach burst into tears and collapsed on the spot.
This place where the two faced each other was the center of hell.
***
When Kaian opened his eyes, everything was pitch black.
'When did I lose consciousness?'
His head felt numb as if his tired nerves had been cut off and then reconnected for a moment. He couldn't tell how much time had passed.
He slowly got up from where he had been lying on the floor.
Then, he saw a woman sitting quietly on a chair in the darkness, looking out the window.
'... They look alike.'
If it weren’t for the fact that her red hair, which showed its color even in places where the light didn’t reach, had naturally darkened brown hair that followed the night’s shadow, her body shape and the atmosphere she gave off were similar to a woman who had disappeared into the water before his eyes.
Kaian tried to control his emotions.
If Madame Cronach was Claudel’s biological mother, then he was now an inescapable sinner.
He didn’t have many opportunities to see Madame Cronach in person. After giving her money to keep her alive and do something, she had been in the capital and Kaian had been in Rowen. When the person who had survived the burns said that she wanted to look for her relatives and sent her out under surveillance, the woman headed to the Castle de Valmonde.
Originally, the village of Plogne was located at the edge of the Valmonde territory, so he didn’t find it particularly suspicious.
The informant he had planted in the Castle de Valmonde said that Madame Cronach had come in for a while without proof of identity, but had been kicked out right away.
That would be the case since the village of Plogne was not part of the kingdom and could not obtain official identification.
She caused a commotion in the lord’s castle, trying to find someone, and was treated as a commoner, and was put on a carriage and driven out to the edge of the territory.
After that, she came to him with her teeth gnashing as if she had some kind of grudge and asked Kaian to take her as her master and he provided her with funds so that she could work.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Kaian had no reason to refuse.
He guessed that Madame Cronach would seek revenge on Valquiterre.
However, there was an external reason for sparing her life.
The village of Plogne was a hidden secret known only to the royal family of the Ita Continent, a very small number of high-ranking nobles, and the heads of religions. Even within the kingdom of Oberon, only the royal relatives and a few families of founding fathers knew of its existence. If Valquiterre, who would become the next King, went hunting and got into trouble in Plogne, it could have been a huge problem.
'It seems that Valquiterre made a mistake,'
Queen Sylvia ordered the former Duke of Temnes.
'It would be good if Kaian went and cleaned up the mess.'
It was a bit awkward considering the relationship between Vermont and Temnes, but it was when Lady Elise and Kaian were on an outing to the capital.
In the end, Kaian went to check out the village of Plogne with Baron Colon and some private soldiers.
Perhaps because the terrain of the mountain was high and rugged, there was nothing unusual in the gateway city closest to Plogne.
However, as soon as they crossed the ridge of the mountain, a pungent smell stung their noses. Baron Colon, who had been a military man in his youth, folded a towel to cover his nose and mouth and said to Kaian.
'There is a valley even at such a high place. The mountain breeze flows through it.'
In the distance, they could still see smoke rising.
They had set out from the capital at the Queen's urging and arrived four days later, but it seemed that the fire had not completely gone out.
When they got closer, they saw that the village was a pile of ashes.
Kaian had heard of what was in the village of Plogne, but the sacred tree was nowhere to be found, and instead, there was a shallow mound of ash, which suggested that the kindling must have been quite large.
The moment he saw it, something cold passed through his heart.
He realized that Valquiterre had made a huge mistake.
The Queen who had called him in and ordered him to completely erase all traces of it was considered a master.
'It means that I will bear the price of burning down the sanctuary together with Valquiterre.'
That was why he spared Madame Cronach.
The Queen had passed the responsibility of rectification on Kaian, who would live with Valquiterre for the next generation.
Shouldn't he have a trump card left for him?
That was his judgment as he was raised as the successor to the Duke of Temnes.
And he had never regretted the choice he had made without the adults' knowledge before they had given him full authority. That was because the truth of the war that the Kingdom of Oberon had fought was different from what was widely known to the world.
After Queen Sylvia died, the young King's reign was unstable, and it was known that the kingdom of Oberon was attacked by many foreign countries that harbored ambitions for Oberon, leading to war. This was because the kingdom of Oberon did not properly reveal the inside story about the loss of the sacred tree, and this was what happened when they protested.
He realized that Valquiterre had made a huge mistake.
The Queen who had called him in and ordered him to completely erase all traces of it was considered a master.
'It means that I will bear the price of burning down the sanctuary together with Valquiterre.'
That was why he spared Madame Cronach.
The Queen had passed the responsibility of rectification on Kaian, who would live with Valquiterre for the next generation.
Shouldn't he have a trump card left for him?
That was his judgment as he was raised as the successor to the Duke of Temnes.
And he had never regretted the choice he had made without the adults' knowledge before they had given him full authority. That was because the truth of the war that the Kingdom of Oberon had fought was different from what was widely known to the world.
After Queen Sylvia died, the young King's reign was unstable, and it was known that the kingdom of Oberon was attacked by many foreign countries that harbored ambitions for Oberon, leading to war. This was because the kingdom of Oberon did not properly reveal the inside story about the loss of the sacred tree, and this was what happened when they protested.
However, since it was not right to carelessly reveal the existence of Arbor, who was said to bring prophecy, the foreign countries made an excuse that they would attack Oberon since a young child was sitting on the throne.
Kaian buried his secret card and headed to the battlefield.
What he had to protect with all his heart was the kingdom of Oberon and Valquiterre.
Protecting the young King, who had grown up like a brother and friend since childhood, was considered the most noble thing for him as the new head of the household.
So he thought that Queen Sylvia had placed the responsibility on him, not anyone else.
But when the twisted and tangled threads met in an unexpected place, the ominous feeling he had felt the moment he saw the burnt sacred tree came to mind.
“Why don’t you kill me?”
Kaian had always been confident in his own conclusions, but now he was at a loss as to what to do due to the layer of misfortunes that had come upon him.
He wondered if this was the feeling of helplessness he had never felt in his entire life.
Madame Cronach slowly responded to his foolish question.
“This is hell, where are you sending me?”
The man who had been longing for the end of his suffering collapsed.
Kaian buried his secret card and headed to the battlefield.
What he had to protect with all his heart was the kingdom of Oberon and Valquiterre.
Protecting the young King, who had grown up like a brother and friend since childhood, was considered the most noble thing for him as the new head of the household.
So he thought that Queen Sylvia had placed the responsibility on him, not anyone else.
But when the twisted and tangled threads met in an unexpected place, the ominous feeling he had felt the moment he saw the burnt sacred tree came to mind.
“Why don’t you kill me?”
Kaian had always been confident in his own conclusions, but now he was at a loss as to what to do due to the layer of misfortunes that had come upon him.
He wondered if this was the feeling of helplessness he had never felt in his entire life.
Madame Cronach slowly responded to his foolish question.
“This is hell, where are you sending me?”
The man who had been longing for the end of his suffering collapsed.
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