"Who are you!"
The Duke of Devon raised his voice and took a step back.
The intruder, standing tall with his face concealed by a hood and cloak, appeared to be hesitating about something. However, that hesitation did not last long.
He strode closer, and with a flash of steel, he pierced Devon's heart squarely.
A short, gasping groan escaped his lips, and as Devon staggered and collapsed, he clutched the man's cloak with his last ounce of strength.
The face revealed as the hood was pulled back was a face he also recognized.
"Did Fabiana... order this..."
The intruder, Fabiana's aide, did not answer. He merely watched with a heavy and silent gaze as a life slowly faded away before his eyes.
He is a man who sheathes his sword only to swing it once more.
Devon's body convulsed violently once, and soon even his breathing, screams, and the strength in his fingertips vanished.
The room fell silent for a moment. Soon, flames slowly spread along the crack in the door and the corner of the wall.
As the smoke seeped into the room, the man picked up Devon's signet ring.
That was all. Turning around just as he was, he left the office without ever looking back.
The flames instantly engulfed the office and began to burn everything inside.
Not only the documents proving the negotiations with Talamand, but even the stamped contract lost their form and turned to dust, settling on the floor.
As if the transaction of that day had never existed in the first place, all traces were quietly being erased in the fire.
As the roof of the mansion turned red with flames, shadows crossing the yard increased one by one.
They were the Duke's attendants. Instead of rushing inside, they feigned panic, gathered all sorts of jewelry and gold ornaments from the burning house, and hid the heavy sacks deep within their bosoms.
Some clutched silver candlesticks, others jeweled ornaments, and climbed over the wall and disappeared into the back alley before the flames spread further.
Not a single person knocked on the Duke's office door or tried to check who was inside.
Amidst the increasingly fierce flames, along with the lives lost inside the office, even all the evidence and memories were quietly buried in the ashes.
***
A jewelry box was placed on the table. Slender fingers opened the lid of the jewelry box.
Inside, a ring lay neatly. Whenever a slender finger lifted the ring to catch the light, the golden pattern of the pyroxene on the ring sparkled in bursts.
"You're sure he's dead, right?"
Fabiana, the owner of the finger, looked down at the jewelry box and spoke in a low voice.
“As you can see.”
When her aide, who had intruded into the Duke of Devon's estate, answered briefly, Fabiana returned the jewelry box to him.
"Good job. I've checked it, so now go ahead and throw it away."
The fingertips of the man who received the jewelry box froze for a moment. He swallowed dryly, and finally let out the words he had been unable to hold back.
"Really... did you really have to go this far?"
"What do you mean by going this far?"
Fabiana raised her eyebrows slightly. She looked annoyed.
"It was my father who betrayed me first."
With those softly spoken words, silence fell over the room.
"...Fabiana."
At the sound of a man calling her name, Fabiana raised her head and looked up at him.
"I think we've come too far. Let's stop. This doesn't suit you. The more you do this, the more you'll fall apart. Now... let's take the child and leave."
Smack! A sharp sound rang out, and the man's head snapped all the way to the side.
At the sudden, sharp friction sound, the sleeping child was startled and burst into tears.
Fabiana felt regretful about the nannies she had sent out earlier, and ignoring the sound of crying, she glared straight at him again.
"How dare you utter such nonsense? This child is a descendant of the imperial family. His father is the late Emperor Liam. This means that someone like you has no right to interfere so rashly. And never again utter my name with that mouth."
Do I still look like that insignificant childhood friend of yours?
Fabiana, having spoken harshly, parted her skirt with a look of displeasure and walked out the door.
All that remained in the room was the bright red face of a crying child under the flickering lamp, and a man with a hot mark on his cheek.
Watching her walk away without even glancing at the one she had been sharing love with, he instinctively knew that there was no turning back.
She was the woman he loved, but the moment she gave the order to kill her father, he felt a chill run down deep inside his heart.
The aide let out a faint sigh and carefully held the child in his arms.
As if sensing the familiar warmth, the child looked up at him, sniffled, and then quickly smiled. He contorted his face when he saw the small hand tightly clenching its fingers.
***
As Calix turned through documents in the Emperor's office at the Imperial Palace, his hand paused briefly at the sound of knocking on the door. An aide who had entered delivered the news in a rather bewildered voice.
"Your Majesty, the Duke of Devon's mansion burned down overnight."
"...What?"
"The Duke was found dead. He was burned so severely that it is impossible to determine the exact cause of death, whether it died from the fire or some other cause."
“What caused the fire?”
"It is not yet known, but it appears highly likely to be an accident. I hear that Lady Fabiana fell ill from shock upon hearing this news. The ministers are also extremely worried."
Calix didn't ask any more questions. He simply closed the documents and tapped the desk once with his fingertips.
"First, prepare for the funeral. The investigation will be conducted afterward. Do not allow anyone to enter the mansion until I give permission, and likewise, restrict access to the grounds as much as possible."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will do as you command."
As the door closed, the office regained its silence. Soon, Calix picked up a pen and began to write a letter.
Finally, after signing, he sealed the envelope.
Outside the window, the afternoon sunlight was still serene, but it was impossible to know how long this silence would last.
He tightened his grip on the fingertips holding the envelope, just like someone hoping to protect the recipient, even from afar, with that single short letter.
***
Talamand, Odelia's study.
The carrier pigeon that had entered through the open window landed on the windowsill. Seeing the familiar seal, she paused her hand for a moment.
As she broke the seal, neat handwriting caught jer eye. It was the kind of handwriting that made her smile just by itself.
Odelia, who had been reading the letter with a gentle smile, flinched in surprise and caught her breath. Then she began reading it again from the beginning.
[Odelia.
It's a shame I can't take my time sending my greetings.
I am sharing this news briefly in advance, as I do not know when or in what form it will reach your ears.
I understand that the Duke of Devon recently visited Talamand. Not long after that... the Duke died. The cause of death is unclear, but his mansion burned down completely, and the Duke also lost his life in that fire.
It appears this is not a simple accident, so we plan to conduct an investigation promptly. At times like this, there will be more people lurking around you. Do not let your guard down.
C]
"Duke Devon.... is dead?
And that's because the whole mansion burned down?
The sentence written in that short letter settled in her heart like a spark, stirring up an old memory.
Blazing flames, suffocating smoke, ear-splitting screams.
Doesn't it look exactly like the day the Rubis family mansion collapsed?
It was exactly the same as that day. An ending where the reason and the mastermind were unknown, and only dissatisfaction consumed everything.
A corner of her heart felt both hot and cold, as if still standing in the flames of that day. Her fingertips clutched the letter tightly, turning pale.
Odelia slowly folded the letter.
She felt that behind the short sentences Calix wrote so calmly, there was a sincere truth that had not been spoken.
'Be careful.'
Odelia looked out the window toward the direction where the Imperial Palace was, as if she could hear his voice.
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