IWTRAE Chapter 105

#Episode 105

“Generous? Do you really think you’re in a position to say that? Because of your foolish decision, not only is Matteus’s future in jeopardy, but he’ll also be punished simply for being a follower’s family member! And you’re not even worried about your brother?”

“So that’s why you’re trying to kill me, right? If you kill me and cover up the truth, my brother won’t suffer any consequences!”

“Why are you so twisted?!”

As Melina continued to argue without backing down, the conversation grew increasingly heated.

‘A sibling fight…?’

Their exchange was filled with threats of life and death, yet to Vasha, it sounded more like a family quarrel. Even though Bernardo repeatedly gripped and released the hilt of his sword, he showed no real intention of drawing it.

‘Alright, if Melina can buy some time like this, I might be able to regain my strength….’

Vasha silently rooted for Melina.

Just as Vasha predicted, Bernardo, frustrated by Melina’s unwavering defiance, didn’t strike her down. Instead, he pounded his own chest in irritation.

“I should have stopped the nanny when she insisted on bringing you back the moment you left home. She was right. You’ve been corrupted somewhere…!”

He thought mentioning her blood brother, Matteus, might sway Melina, but it only made her more defiant.

‘Now that I think about it, Matteus reacted the same way whenever I mentioned Melina… Those two siblings are exactly alike!’

Looking back, Matteus had never once won an argument against Melina. So it was nearly impossible for Bernardo, who was just as poor with words as Matteus, to persuade her.

“I’ll give you one last chance, Melina.”

Bernardo lowered his voice menacingly.

He knew he couldn’t afford to waste any more time. That vampire was gradually regaining strength.

‘If that vampire finds an opportunity to drink Melina’s blood….’

He needed a way to separate Melina and Vasha immediately. Keeping his guard up, Bernardo continued,

“That vampire may be treating you kindly now, but behind your back, he’s probably torturing children. Are you really defending something like that?”

“What nonsense are you spouting? My lady would never—”

“The vampire must have taken the survivor of the Van Drake family! There’s only one reason a vampire would deliberately take a young Van Drake!”

‘He knows about Todd’s existence… Was he chasing Todd, not me?’

Vasha was startled to realize that the knight was aware of Todd. The situation had worsened.

‘At least he doesn’t seem to know that Todd is still acting as the heir to Renfield… but it’s only a matter of time before he finds out.’

That uncertainty weighed on Vasha’s mind.

“Van Drake…?”

Melina furrowed her brows. To her, Bernardo’s words sounded completely out of place.

Of course, Melina knew of the Van Drake family. Their downfall had recently been a hot topic in high society.

“Why are you looking for Van Drake’s survivor with my lady? And torture? That’s beyond ridiculous! It’s one thing to slander her, but this is too much! My lady would never do such a thing!”

“Think carefully! There must be something suspicious. The Van Drake survivor is a child around ten years old. Are you really going to turn a blind eye to their suffering just because you’re charmed by appearances?”

Bernardo’s veins bulged as he shouted. His intense reaction made it clear he wasn’t making things up.

He might be a stubborn man who viewed the world through rigid standards, but he wasn’t someone who fabricated lies or spread baseless accusations.

‘That’s more like something my brother would do….’

That meant Bernardo was likely under a serious misunderstanding.

‘A child, huh? The only young person my lady has been spending time with is Young Master Todd. So, what does this mean? If I follow his logic, then Todd is… Van Drake? Ha! Even if I don’t know much, I at least know that the Van Drakes and vampires are sworn enemies!’

Melina scoffed at the absurdity of her own thought.

“………..”

But then, after a moment of silence, something suddenly clicked. She gasped and exclaimed,

“Wait, could Young Master really be…?”

“What are you talking about?”

“No, not you, sir. I mean our Young Master.”

Melina shot Bernardo a sharp look, silently telling him to stay out of it. Instinctively, he clamped his mouth shut. Overcome with curiosity, Melina turned to Vasha and asked,

“The new heir of the Renfield family, Young Master Todd… Is he really Van Drake?”

“Hah… well, this is troublesome.”

Vasha clicked his tongue, clearly displeased that the truth had been uncovered so quickly.

Bernardo, after processing Melina’s words, jumped in.

“Wait a minute. Van Drake is an heir? What do you mean? Are you saying you’ve met Van Drake before?”

“Of course! My lady cherishes Young Master Todd so much! And he cares deeply for her too…”

“…What?”

Bernardo was at a loss for words.

So, the Van Drake survivor he had been chasing was pretending to be the heir of Count Renfield?

And to top it off, that vampire and Van Drake had a good relationship?

That was as absurd as saying the Divine Faction and the Faith Faction had suddenly decided to hold a peace summit.

Even when Melina insisted her lady wasn’t capable of such things, Bernardo couldn’t bring himself to trust her.

But judging by the vampire’s reaction, it seemed Melina had hit the nail on the head—making it even more infuriating.

‘Brainwashing? No, Van Drakes are immune to vampire mind control… and threats wouldn’t work either.’

If the Van Drake clan could be intimidated, they wouldn’t have been exterminated in the first place.

Still reeling from the revelation, Bernardo muttered to himself,

“The vampire really left Van Drake alone? No torture, nothing? The kid is completely fine? Arms and legs intact, able to talk and everything?”

Bernardo’s endless, horrifying assumptions made Vasha’s face gradually distort.

‘Just what does he take me for…?’

Although she felt wronged, Vasha couldn’t deny that Bernardo’s misunderstanding was reasonable.

Had it been any other vampire facing Todd, Bernardo’s assumption would have been perfectly logical.

‘If anything, it would’ve been even worse.’

But that didn’t mean she could just accept it. Sensing an opportunity to turn the tables, Vasha raised her voice.

“You were so sure I would torture Van Drake’s successor—but what about you? Wasn’t it your Lamphas that annihilated the Van Drakes? And yet, you dare accuse me? How ridiculous.”

Even with Vasha’s biting sarcasm, Bernardo couldn’t immediately respond.

“You’re taking Todd away from me under the pretense of saving him—but what exactly do you plan to do? Are you really going to drag that child to the guillotine?”

“That’s not it…!”

Like a great tree that seemed unshakable yet eventually succumbed to a storm, Bernardo faltered. The frustration on his face was too raw to be a lie.

‘…Wait. Could he really have been trying to save Todd?’

A holy knight, defying the Lamphas faith to protect a Van Drake? That was as absurd as a vampire making a Van Drake their familiar.

But even the latter had already happened. So, was the former truly impossible?

‘If that knight came after us to save Todd… then everything fits together.’

Why else would someone as high-ranking as Lapis Ignarius come alone on a vampire hunt without the church’s support?

Why had he told the Lamphas Church nothing beyond “hunting a vampire”?

At first, Vasha had assumed it was because the church lacked proof of her existence. But now, it seemed Bernardo had been deliberately hiding Todd’s identity from them.

If Bernardo had revealed Todd’s true nature to the Lamphas Church, not even Laurus could have protected them.

This mansion would have been surrounded by holy knights long ago, Todd would have been sent to the guillotine, and Vasha would have been reduced to ashes.

Just thinking about it sent a chill down her spine.

🍓; ‘Hit the nail on the head’ is an idiom that means to say or do something exactly right, to identify the core issue precisely, or to make an accurate statement.