Chapter 76

Chapter 76

The Duchy of Brudenell, where I visited again, seemed to have regained its former vitality.

“Welcome.”

The butler politely bowed his head toward me.

“The Duchess is waiting.”

“Oh, the Duchess…?”

Confused, I stuttered.

It was, of course, Cassius Brudenell that I asked to visit. Because of that, I never dreamed of meeting the Duchess of Brudenell.

“Yes. Please, come this way.”

“I came to see Lord Cassius, not the Duchess.”

Seeing that I was coerced to go with him, I thought it was time for me to resist, at least even a little.

“I’m sad. Didn’t the Young Lady miss me?”

Unexpectedly, as Duchess Brudenell’s voice came from across the hallway, I hurriedly bowed my knees to greet her.

“…How have you been?”

“I wasn’t very good. But, it must’ve been the same for the Young Lady, so I hope you take it into consideration.”

Saying so, the Duchess walked towards me in a graceful manner, and she asked again.

“Well, you don’t want to see me?”

“…It’s not like that, I’m here to see Lord Cassius—”

“My son is not in a position to meet anyone. I believe the Young Lady knows it well.”

“I’m guessing he’s not in a condition to see anyone else.”

I answered calmly without hesitation and added, “Still, I think the Duchess knows well that meeting me has a better prognosis.”

“…Really, you won’t lose a single word.”

In the past, I would have apologized to her. After all, my relationship with her was my fiancé’s mother. However, she was now only the mother and Duchess of my ex-fiancé, so I just needed to show suitable manners.

“Does the Duchess have any business with me?”

“I don’t have anything to say here. Would you like some time for a cup of tea with me?”

“It’s okay to change places, but I don’t want to drink tea.”

I smiled politely.

“I hate wasting time on useless things.”

“Hmm.”

At my words, the Duchess gazed at me intently.

“You’ve changed a lot, Young Lady.”

Then, she led me to the nearby drawing room.

“Sit down. Since the Young Lady doesn’t want it, I won’t bring the tea.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, why did I catch the Young Lady’s busy steps…”

The Duchess paused for a moment before finishing her words, “I’m curious as to why you came to visit my son twice.”

“…Yes?”

“It’s the first time, I know it was to break off the engagement. Still, even if you don’t come to visit in person, there must be a way to send someone?”

“….”

I really had nothing to say this time. It was because the Duchess was right.

“And, now this. The Young Lady came to Cassius without revealing anything. Rather, it seems that you have more feelings for my son than when you were engaged.”

“What, what does the Duchess want to say…”

“What I want to say is this. Anytime you want to start over with my son, do whatever you please.”

“….?”

I blinked my eyes.

Even though I did expect a few words from the Duchess. it was mostly at the level of ‘stop playing with my son,’ this was something I never expected.

“I heard from Sir David. He said that Cassius responds well to the Young Lady and talks to her.”

“Yes, but…”

“When I heard that, I was convinced. Cassius is not sick, he’s pretending to be sick.”

As those exact same words I thought came out of her mouth, it gave me goosebumps.

“Nonetheless, if he stays in that state, what’s the difference between pretending to be sick or being really sick?”

“…There’s no guarantee that I’ll be able to save the Lord from that state.”

“I know.”

The Duchess sighed bitterly.

“But, who else could do it if it wasn’t the Young Lady? Me? My husband? That’s ridiculous.”

I opened my mouth slightly.

“Although the Duchess wants me to save Lord Cassius, you’re hoping for me to go further to be his lover.”

“…If you say it so directly, I’ll admit that.”

“I’ll tell you bluntly. The former is possible, though the latter is impossible.”

“I thought you’d say that.”

The Duchess let out a sigh, “He’s my son, but really… How would I not know how a woman feels?”

No, I do not think it was a problem of not knowing a woman’s heart…

Still, I decided not to say the same thing. Instead, I had no intention of getting Cassius out of his escape for nothing.

“Duchess… I want you to guarantee me one condition.”

“What is it? If it’s money, you can take it since you know we’re overflowed with that. Also, there’s no position any higher than that of the next Duchess. Whether it’s these or not, I’ll push you with all my heart.”

Without hesitation, I opened my mouth.

“When I become Countess Garneid, please make a blood oath between the County of Garneid and the Duchy of Brudenell.”

“Ha.”

The Duchess looked really surprised this time.

“It’s one of the two… The Young Lady doesn’t know what the blood oat is… or, you’re really crazy.”

A blood oath.

As long as my lineage continues, a member of the Duchy of Brudenell could not harm a member of the Count of Garneid, and vice versa.

“Do you know that it completely binds the future of the children of the Young Lady and the future of our descendants?”

“I know.”

“Even after the two families are destroyed, the blood oath continues. It’s such a binding oath.”

“I know it well.”

“Then, you will understand that I can’t allow that.”

“I can’t save Lord Cassius without the pledge of blood.”

As Duchess Brudenell stared at me, I met her gaze. And so, the staring at each other lasted for several minutes.

The first to raise the white flag was the Duchess.

“Yes, we’ll do what the Young Lady wants! I’ll tell him, but if he refuses, I can’t help it.”

“Lord Cassius will accept it, so that’s fine.”

“…You didn’t even need my permission from the beginning, Young Lady.”

I did not have to answer that question. It was because the Duchess then stood up from her seat and murmured.

“You’ll definitely regret it. Perhaps, it’ll be fine while the Young Lady is alive though your descendants will be cursed for the rest of their life when you die. Are you okay with that?”

“That’s all right.”

I also got up from my seat and nodded.

In the eyes of the Duchess, it would inevitably seem strange since the blood oath was a powerful restraint that was both a blessing and a curse.

If a member of the County Garneid family kills the lover of the Duchy of Brudenell, the Duchy of Brudenell would not be able to take revenge. Naturally, the sparks would bounce off other clans near the County of Garneid, which could end up in a small feud that could shove the entire empire into the fire.

Nevertheless, the pact of blood was necessary.

It was because the Duchy of Brudenell had too much authority in this world. Even after Cassius’ death, this right would be passed on to his children from generation to generation.

I had to set up a defense in place to protect my family from such a family.

･ : * ✧ * :･ ﾟ

I took a deep breath in front of the open door. Even though the servant opened the door for me, I did not know why it was so difficult to enter the room.

“Lord Cassius.”

As I called Cassius, who was standing by the window, again, he slowly turned and looked at me.

“I have something to tell you .”

“…What is it?”

“Gabriel, no, Lucifer Bynell is trying to kill the Lord.”

“Ha.”

Cassius let out a smirk mixed with a dry cough. Now, he did not seem to want to hide from me that he was not crazy.

“Tell him to kill me. Isn’t that what you want?”

An accusation, followed by resignation.

…But, why? Somehow, I felt more relieved to see that he seemed to be more alive, speaking aggressively like this.

“Do you really think so?”

“Yes.”

He answered without hesitation.

“I forced you into bondage and threatened you. Meanwhile, with Gabriel, you were quite fond of him. It’s not difficult to see where the scale leans.”

“…What if I ask you to kill Gabriel?”

A spark blazed in Cassius’ gold eyes, and he asked again.

“What did you just say?”

I slowly explained what had happened between Gabriel and me, that to him, I was nothing more than a good tool. In addition, when I tried to refuse, he even tried to drag me away by force.

“Please, kill him.”

I swear I am not advocating murder. However, Gabriel was dangerous. If he did not die, he would obviously hurt Ophelia and other innocent people.

And…

‘Cassius Brudenell needs a mission to get him back to his old self.’

If I could protect my family from generation to generation with just the life of a wicked person, would it not be worth thinking about…?

At the thought, I took one step closer to Cassius.

At first, his body, which had stood motionless as if in a dull room, seemed to tremble as I got closer.

“Please.”

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