Benedict Rugen, the grandson of Dr. Rugen, who had come to the mansion, was a man in his mid-thirties with blond hair and blue eyes. He wore neat clothes, a bowler hat, and thick-rimmed glasses. With a dignified appearance and a tall, slender build, he exuded a similar air to Dr. Rugen. Beside him stood a slim, brown-haired woman, presumably his wife. He took off his hat, his face slightly tense, and greeted me.
"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Rotsilt. I heard my grandfather was in critical condition, so I came here with my wife. I heard you've been taking care of him. Thank you."
Noah, with his arms crossed and an arrogant expression on his face, asked him in a commanding voice.
“Isn’t my wife pretty?”
Why, really! My face flushed with embarrassment. I was sure I was red, but I tried to maintain a calm demeanor.
“I didn’t know the hero of the front line would be such a lover.”
His wife smiled kindly at me as I rubbed my flushed cheeks. The doctor chuckled and added,
“I guess so, since you are so pretty.”
“Yes... Mr. Rugen. Thank you.”
“Madam, that surname has long since been abandoned. It is now Benedict Libert.”
"Yes, Dr. Libert. I see you changed your last name to conceal your identity. Why did you keep your first name?"
Dr. Libert slowly lowered his head in response to Noah's question.
"Yes, Colonel Rotsilt. I couldn't bring myself to abandon the name my grandfather gave me."
“I am no longer a colonel or a Duke. I received the title of Count here.”
"I heard you were in exile. I only found out my grandfather was here after hearing from Mr. Reynolds."
"Do you know how much your grandfather looked for you? He even called me his grandson."
Dr. Libert's face darkened abruptly, and his lips twisted. He lowered his head, clenched his teeth, and answered in a hushed voice.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Why haven’t you ever looked for your grandfather?”
At Noah's question, Dr. Libert hesitated and glanced at me. He seemed at a loss for words, so he quickly stepped forward and made a suggestion.
“How about seeing the doctor first?”
“Yes, I will do that.”
We headed to Dr. Rugen's room. He was leaning against the headboard, reading a book, when his faded blue eyes widened at the sight of his grandson and granddaughter.
“Do you recognize me? This is my wife, Merlin.”
Dr. Libert looked at the old man, reduced to nothing but bones, with pity.
Dr. Rugen tried to sit up. His eyes were bloodshot, his eyelids wrinkled and red.
"Father?"
He called Dr. Libert "Father." His voice was hoarse and trembling.
Dr. Rugen doesn't seem to recognize his grandson. He seems to have been transported back to the distant past. I approached him and asked him questions to determine the approximate time period he was staying.
“What year is it now?”
"It's the 22nd year of the Unified Empire. Your parents have returned after three years, Solar. Why aren't you happy? We've waited so long."
It seems to be referring to the Frogen Empire's standard year. I don't know exactly which period it corresponds to, so I looked to Noah, and he told me.
"That means it's been 22 years since Reinricht was absorbed by Frogen. Long before we were born."
"Then..."
“Dr. Rugen is now eighteen years old.”
Confusion and despair filled Dr. Libert's face as he looked back and forth between Noah and his grandfather.
“Grandfather. This is me, your grandson Benedict.”
"Grandson?"
Dr. Rugen, leaning against the headboard with my help, laughed out loud like an innocent boy.
"Father, you're back after such a long time, and you're still mischievous. You were clearly healthy until yesterday, but for some reason, you're not feeling well today. Oh, and Solar won a prize in a private life drawing contest a while ago."
Dr. Libert, who had been standing there blankly, slowly approached him and took his old, wrinkled hand in his. Tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. His wife, too, wiped them away with a handkerchief.
“What is going on? This is...”
“The doctor said it was Old Staircase Disease. It was like walking down an old staircase backwards.”
After I finished speaking, a heavy silence fell over the room. Dr. Rugen looked at his sobbing grandson and his wife.
“Father, Mother.”
The boy, among the old men with white hair, spoke.
“Run away quickly.”
Dr. Libert felt a sense of relief as he saw his grandfather lying on clean bedding in a well-cleaned room. His clothes, beard, and fingernails were all clean, a testament to the meticulous care he had taken. It was hard to believe, even after witnessing it with his own eyes, that the selfless and ruthless man once called the "Mad Duke" was caring for a sick and disabled old man.
Mrs. Rotsilt, with her jet-black hair, pale face, and cold demeanor, spoke with a cold, indifferent tone. However, the way she adjusted the towel around his grandfather's neck and covered him with a blanket revealed that she had always cared for him. Dr. Libert felt a deep sense of gratitude towards the Rotsilts.
He went to the reception room and spoke privately with Noah. Dr. Libert, sitting on the sofa, carefully stroked his teacup as he spoke.
“I didn’t know that the Colonel, or rather the Count, had left the Frogen Empire and taken refuge in Medea to protect my grandfather.”
Noah, sitting across from him with his legs crossed, raised his chin and spoke in a scolding tone.
"Your grandfather was imprisoned like livestock in a Leninist camp. Do you know how much trouble I had to go through to find him? My friend paid for someone to rescue him. If you'd taken him in earlier, we wouldn't have had to go through twice as much trouble."
Dr. Libert sighed deeply and rubbed his swollen eyes beneath his glasses.
"I'm sorry. Back then, I was so foolish that I believed my grandfather was the cause of the tragedy. I thought my parents lost their lives because he burned key research materials and fled, and I almost died too. I realized the truth and tried to find it, but I, too, had been on the run, so I didn't have the strength."
"Truth?"
"It was meant to protect human dignity. Emperor Meyer III, who attempted to exploit it for war and slaughter, was the cause of this tragedy. The Emperor failed to address scientific errors, leading to repeated failures and the scrapping of the development plan. Ultimately, he sought to eliminate all those involved. This was to prevent information from leaking to other countries."
“Well, the cause of the tragedy.”
Noah continued, sweeping his silver-white hair back.
"Your family was the one who researched the theory of realization for three generations. Starting with your grandfather, you fled before it was even completed. As a result, countless people who remained were disposed of and died."
"That was... the Emperor's order, so I had no choice but to follow it to save my life. I discovered my grandfather's letter too late and vowed never to complete it, so I risked my life and fled. That was too dangerous in these times of war. The power was beyond imagination. I felt a deep fear at inheriting such a tragedy."
Noah extended his hand toward Dr. Libert. He appeared to be clutching something tightly. He then opened his fingers, but his palm was empty.
"Yes, you hold a tragedy in your hands. But if a greater ordeal were to arise, you would say you had no choice but to let it go. Humans put themselves first."
“What do you want to say?”
"After Frogen abandoned development, the scientists who successfully escaped and scattered across various countries couldn't have kept this fact a secret. Right now, the great powers are desperately trying to develop it. Whoever completes it first will rule the world."
Dr. Libert's shoulders trembled. He asked, his legs shaking nervously as he ran both hands over his face.
“...Is that why you came to see my grandfather? To complete the work in the Medea United Kingdom?”
"Well."
“It’s a disaster that will take countless lives, and I can’t do it.”
Dr. Libert jumped to his feet, clenching his fists tightly, a vein appearing on his forehead. In contrast to his agitated state, Noah appeared relaxed, covering his mouth and laughing.
“Do you think you’re the only physicist in the world?”
"All remaining research data was destroyed before they fled, wasn't it? The few people who knew about it, aside from me, are all dead. Even your father, the former Duke."
At the doctor's words, Noah raised his finger and pointed to his head.
"The materials are here. The predicted probability calculations you submitted to the committee, the reactor design, and the chain reaction research report."
“How about that?”
Noah, who covered his mouth and laughed at Dr. Libert's rhyme, answered in a very low voice.
"The development plan was secretly transferred to the Frogen Army. They said it was for security and safety reasons. Of course, after it failed, they took charge of the cleanup. They called it 'disposal.'"
Dr. Libert's eyes shook greatly as he saw Noah's gloomy smile.
"As you know, it ended in failure. You know I can't help you, right?"
"The causes of failure and the problems with errors will be solved by the outstanding Esatian scientists in this field. The Esatians were the cornerstone of Frogen's rapid scientific advancement. Had their homeland, Eiland, not perished, they likely would have been the first to achieve this."
So the Emperor destroyed that country first. The doctor slowly backed away at the softly whispered words. He realized why Dr. Libert had insisted that development was already possible and that there was no need for it.
“No way. Grandpa and I...”
Dr. Libert was stricken with the fear of death that was creeping over him again, unable to speak. He collapsed onto the sofa, sighing and covering his face.
“Is that why you called me here under the pretext of protecting my grandfather?”
Noah stretched his back as if he were stretching, then stood up. He pulled a pistol from his pocket and aimed it straight at Dr. Libert, then grinned.
"Because there's a possibility that I might cooperate with the development. My wife doesn't want that."
“What does that mean?”
A voice, deeply muffled, flowed out through lips that were twisted up strangely, accompanied by the sound of a gun being loaded.
"It's to discard useless things. I was the one who dealt with the researchers who ran away and scattered."
As expected, the nature of the mad Duke hasn't changed. He heard he aided Queen Medea's peace plan and married the woman he loved like a normal man. Furthermore, he came to him believing he had become more human after saving his grandfather, but that was a mistake. Dr. Libert, standing before the barrel of a gun like a cornered, helpless prey, looked at him with a heavy heart of regret.
"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Rotsilt. I heard my grandfather was in critical condition, so I came here with my wife. I heard you've been taking care of him. Thank you."
Noah, with his arms crossed and an arrogant expression on his face, asked him in a commanding voice.
“Isn’t my wife pretty?”
Why, really! My face flushed with embarrassment. I was sure I was red, but I tried to maintain a calm demeanor.
“I didn’t know the hero of the front line would be such a lover.”
His wife smiled kindly at me as I rubbed my flushed cheeks. The doctor chuckled and added,
“I guess so, since you are so pretty.”
“Yes... Mr. Rugen. Thank you.”
“Madam, that surname has long since been abandoned. It is now Benedict Libert.”
"Yes, Dr. Libert. I see you changed your last name to conceal your identity. Why did you keep your first name?"
Dr. Libert slowly lowered his head in response to Noah's question.
"Yes, Colonel Rotsilt. I couldn't bring myself to abandon the name my grandfather gave me."
“I am no longer a colonel or a Duke. I received the title of Count here.”
"I heard you were in exile. I only found out my grandfather was here after hearing from Mr. Reynolds."
"Do you know how much your grandfather looked for you? He even called me his grandson."
Dr. Libert's face darkened abruptly, and his lips twisted. He lowered his head, clenched his teeth, and answered in a hushed voice.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Why haven’t you ever looked for your grandfather?”
At Noah's question, Dr. Libert hesitated and glanced at me. He seemed at a loss for words, so he quickly stepped forward and made a suggestion.
“How about seeing the doctor first?”
“Yes, I will do that.”
We headed to Dr. Rugen's room. He was leaning against the headboard, reading a book, when his faded blue eyes widened at the sight of his grandson and granddaughter.
“Do you recognize me? This is my wife, Merlin.”
Dr. Libert looked at the old man, reduced to nothing but bones, with pity.
Dr. Rugen tried to sit up. His eyes were bloodshot, his eyelids wrinkled and red.
"Father?"
He called Dr. Libert "Father." His voice was hoarse and trembling.
Dr. Rugen doesn't seem to recognize his grandson. He seems to have been transported back to the distant past. I approached him and asked him questions to determine the approximate time period he was staying.
“What year is it now?”
"It's the 22nd year of the Unified Empire. Your parents have returned after three years, Solar. Why aren't you happy? We've waited so long."
It seems to be referring to the Frogen Empire's standard year. I don't know exactly which period it corresponds to, so I looked to Noah, and he told me.
"That means it's been 22 years since Reinricht was absorbed by Frogen. Long before we were born."
"Then..."
“Dr. Rugen is now eighteen years old.”
Confusion and despair filled Dr. Libert's face as he looked back and forth between Noah and his grandfather.
“Grandfather. This is me, your grandson Benedict.”
"Grandson?"
Dr. Rugen, leaning against the headboard with my help, laughed out loud like an innocent boy.
"Father, you're back after such a long time, and you're still mischievous. You were clearly healthy until yesterday, but for some reason, you're not feeling well today. Oh, and Solar won a prize in a private life drawing contest a while ago."
Dr. Libert, who had been standing there blankly, slowly approached him and took his old, wrinkled hand in his. Tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. His wife, too, wiped them away with a handkerchief.
“What is going on? This is...”
“The doctor said it was Old Staircase Disease. It was like walking down an old staircase backwards.”
After I finished speaking, a heavy silence fell over the room. Dr. Rugen looked at his sobbing grandson and his wife.
“Father, Mother.”
The boy, among the old men with white hair, spoke.
“Run away quickly.”
***
Dr. Libert felt a sense of relief as he saw his grandfather lying on clean bedding in a well-cleaned room. His clothes, beard, and fingernails were all clean, a testament to the meticulous care he had taken. It was hard to believe, even after witnessing it with his own eyes, that the selfless and ruthless man once called the "Mad Duke" was caring for a sick and disabled old man.
Mrs. Rotsilt, with her jet-black hair, pale face, and cold demeanor, spoke with a cold, indifferent tone. However, the way she adjusted the towel around his grandfather's neck and covered him with a blanket revealed that she had always cared for him. Dr. Libert felt a deep sense of gratitude towards the Rotsilts.
He went to the reception room and spoke privately with Noah. Dr. Libert, sitting on the sofa, carefully stroked his teacup as he spoke.
“I didn’t know that the Colonel, or rather the Count, had left the Frogen Empire and taken refuge in Medea to protect my grandfather.”
Noah, sitting across from him with his legs crossed, raised his chin and spoke in a scolding tone.
"Your grandfather was imprisoned like livestock in a Leninist camp. Do you know how much trouble I had to go through to find him? My friend paid for someone to rescue him. If you'd taken him in earlier, we wouldn't have had to go through twice as much trouble."
Dr. Libert sighed deeply and rubbed his swollen eyes beneath his glasses.
"I'm sorry. Back then, I was so foolish that I believed my grandfather was the cause of the tragedy. I thought my parents lost their lives because he burned key research materials and fled, and I almost died too. I realized the truth and tried to find it, but I, too, had been on the run, so I didn't have the strength."
"Truth?"
"It was meant to protect human dignity. Emperor Meyer III, who attempted to exploit it for war and slaughter, was the cause of this tragedy. The Emperor failed to address scientific errors, leading to repeated failures and the scrapping of the development plan. Ultimately, he sought to eliminate all those involved. This was to prevent information from leaking to other countries."
“Well, the cause of the tragedy.”
Noah continued, sweeping his silver-white hair back.
"Your family was the one who researched the theory of realization for three generations. Starting with your grandfather, you fled before it was even completed. As a result, countless people who remained were disposed of and died."
"That was... the Emperor's order, so I had no choice but to follow it to save my life. I discovered my grandfather's letter too late and vowed never to complete it, so I risked my life and fled. That was too dangerous in these times of war. The power was beyond imagination. I felt a deep fear at inheriting such a tragedy."
Noah extended his hand toward Dr. Libert. He appeared to be clutching something tightly. He then opened his fingers, but his palm was empty.
"Yes, you hold a tragedy in your hands. But if a greater ordeal were to arise, you would say you had no choice but to let it go. Humans put themselves first."
“What do you want to say?”
"After Frogen abandoned development, the scientists who successfully escaped and scattered across various countries couldn't have kept this fact a secret. Right now, the great powers are desperately trying to develop it. Whoever completes it first will rule the world."
Dr. Libert's shoulders trembled. He asked, his legs shaking nervously as he ran both hands over his face.
“...Is that why you came to see my grandfather? To complete the work in the Medea United Kingdom?”
"Well."
“It’s a disaster that will take countless lives, and I can’t do it.”
Dr. Libert jumped to his feet, clenching his fists tightly, a vein appearing on his forehead. In contrast to his agitated state, Noah appeared relaxed, covering his mouth and laughing.
“Do you think you’re the only physicist in the world?”
"All remaining research data was destroyed before they fled, wasn't it? The few people who knew about it, aside from me, are all dead. Even your father, the former Duke."
At the doctor's words, Noah raised his finger and pointed to his head.
"The materials are here. The predicted probability calculations you submitted to the committee, the reactor design, and the chain reaction research report."
“How about that?”
Noah, who covered his mouth and laughed at Dr. Libert's rhyme, answered in a very low voice.
"The development plan was secretly transferred to the Frogen Army. They said it was for security and safety reasons. Of course, after it failed, they took charge of the cleanup. They called it 'disposal.'"
Dr. Libert's eyes shook greatly as he saw Noah's gloomy smile.
"As you know, it ended in failure. You know I can't help you, right?"
"The causes of failure and the problems with errors will be solved by the outstanding Esatian scientists in this field. The Esatians were the cornerstone of Frogen's rapid scientific advancement. Had their homeland, Eiland, not perished, they likely would have been the first to achieve this."
So the Emperor destroyed that country first. The doctor slowly backed away at the softly whispered words. He realized why Dr. Libert had insisted that development was already possible and that there was no need for it.
“No way. Grandpa and I...”
Dr. Libert was stricken with the fear of death that was creeping over him again, unable to speak. He collapsed onto the sofa, sighing and covering his face.
“Is that why you called me here under the pretext of protecting my grandfather?”
Noah stretched his back as if he were stretching, then stood up. He pulled a pistol from his pocket and aimed it straight at Dr. Libert, then grinned.
"Because there's a possibility that I might cooperate with the development. My wife doesn't want that."
“What does that mean?”
A voice, deeply muffled, flowed out through lips that were twisted up strangely, accompanied by the sound of a gun being loaded.
"It's to discard useless things. I was the one who dealt with the researchers who ran away and scattered."
As expected, the nature of the mad Duke hasn't changed. He heard he aided Queen Medea's peace plan and married the woman he loved like a normal man. Furthermore, he came to him believing he had become more human after saving his grandfather, but that was a mistake. Dr. Libert, standing before the barrel of a gun like a cornered, helpless prey, looked at him with a heavy heart of regret.
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