“…….”
Even while stepping back, Rutus kept his gaze fixed on Ellie’s coffin and slowly turned his head.
A low tone, like a whisper. The far end of the seat, away from the eyes of others. Ordinary attire that did not stand out among many black outfits.
Even after piecing these together, it took Rutus a little more time to slowly realize that this was just another situation he had been through many times before.
‘Hah…….’
Since reaching the level of Swordmaster, his unnecessarily heightened senses often burdened him with unwanted information.
For example, slander stemming from negative emotions, complaints, or gossip about him.
Usually, the source of such trivial and unpleasant things wasn’t significant, so he would deal with it accordingly based on the situation.
Nevertheless, it was always annoying and tiring.
“…….”
But Rutus had never once regretted becoming a Swordmaster.
Even though the power and responsibilities that inevitably followed his extraordinary martial prowess were bothersome. There were things he didn’t want to give up even after considering all that.
[Rutus!]
A playful voice with a little more warmth when calling his name.
The faint scent of grass and a hint of roses lingering around.
The warmth slowly transmitted through the skin of their clasped hands.
“…….”
For him, these were the reasons.
Watching Ellie’s jet-black hair gleam brilliantly under the sunlight.
For Rutus, that alone was worth enduring all the unpleasantness.
“…Ah.”
So, it was right to endure it now.
After today, he would never see Ellie in person again.
With that in mind, Rutus quietly clenched his fist.
Crunch.
A slight grinding sound was heard, possibly from his teeth clenching, but Rutus ignored it and intended to turn his head back towards Ellie.
“If you think about it, a family without collateral relatives and only one infant heir. It’s worth trying if you can have sons.”
“For a ducal family, taking a second wife isn’t much of a flaw. There will be many aiming for it.”
If only those voices hadn’t followed, he could have endured it without much difficulty.
“…….”
Rutus, who was about to turn his head back, suddenly froze in place.
After standing still for quite some time, looking awkwardly backward, the situation around Rutus grew increasingly chaotic as if people were wary of him.
Watching this with an unchanged expression, Rutus suddenly thought,
‘I might have already messed things up a bit.’
Should I continue to endure this?
These brazen fools who shamelessly spew such nonsense.
…Is it necessary?
Step by step.
Without hesitation, Rutus began walking away from Ellie’s coffin toward somewhere distant.
With each step, he felt the noise gradually subside.
And finally, when the crowd fell into complete silence,
“……?”
“Gasp, gasp…!”
Their eyes widened as they raised their heads at the black shadow cast over them, stopping their conversation.
Rutus, without a word, gazed at their pale, almost ghostly faces with abyss-like eyes.
How much time passed like this?
Without any visible anger, without a single shout or threat. Just matching their gazes with his dark purple eyes, steadily filling their faces with doubt.
And in that moment.
Screech.
“……!”
“Aaaa… Aaaagh!”
Rutus, who had drawn his sword from the black scabbard habitually worn at his waist, brought the blade to the neck of the nearest person.
Despite the sharp aura emanating from the blade, as if he could decapitate him at any moment, his expression remained strangely calm.
The man behind, who had been conversing with the one closest to Rutus, spoke up. His trembling was pitiful and pathetic.
“D-Duke, why… why are you doing this? How can you suddenly thrust your sword like this!”
“…Suddenly.”
“Aren’t you the Commander of the Imperial First Knight Order? The Empire’s sword wielding force against a civilian, how can you…!”
“…….”
Instead of answering, Rutus looked up at the arrogant face of the man in front of him. As if gaining confidence from the lack of response, the man gradually straightened his back and thrust his chest forward.
At that moment Rutius’s eyebrows furrowed slightly at this attitude.
“Guggle…guggle!”
Whether it was the shock of the blade pointed at him or being overwhelmed by the aura.
The man sitting in front of him foamed at the mouth and rolled his eyes back. When his head drooped forward and the blade grazed his neck, Rutus felt a strange sense of anticlimax.
‘…I can’t go around brandishing my sword because of scum like this.’
Now that he thought about it, they weren’t even worth fighting with.
Rutus took a step back, sheathing his sword, and called the commander of his knights.
“Commander.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Take these two and imprison them in the dungeon beneath the duchy immediately.”
“…What?”
“Their fate… well. Let’s decide that after the funeral is over.”
As soon as Rutus finished speaking, he turned and walked towards Ellie’s coffin. He had wasted too much time with these idiots.
He had ordered that the child, who was not yet a year old, greet her first in the early morning before the mourners arrived, and that he be kept within the duchy with the maidservants, as it would not be a good sight for a child to see.
The sky was already growing dark.
It was the first time he had left the child alone for so long, and he couldn’t leave Ellie like this any longer, so he felt a sense of urgency.
It wasn’t even possible to close the coffin until he gave the final order.
‘Wrapping this up…….’
Rutus was walking with an unfocused, dazed look when his aide suddenly blocked his path and spoke respectfully.
“Your Grace.”
“…….”
“Even though this is the duchy, it is impossible to imprison nobles arbitrarily from the capital, which is under imperial jurisdiction. You must at least state the charges to avoid any backlash.”
“…….”
Before the sun sets, the funeral must be completed. There is no more time to waste here……
Seeing Rutus stare blankly into space, the aide, who had been looking down, raised his eyes and asked again.
“…Your Grace?”
“…….”
Instead of answering, Rutus slowly turned his head to look at those kneeling, held by the commander of the knights.
Charges. Charges.
“…On the left. Draft evasion, corruption in military service, tax evasion, excessive taxation.”
“…….”
“On the right. Tax evasion, illegal slave trade, use of prohibited substances,”
“…….”
“-Let’s leave it at that for now. Those who are curious can confirm through official documents later.”
With those words, Rutus turned away indifferently. He intended to finish the funeral before the child fell asleep.
After the mourners left, there should be time for the child to pay respects at Ellie’s gravestone.
The Ellie he knew would prefer to see the child’s face rather than his on her last journey.
So, as soon as possible.
“…Wrap this up. Close the coffin.”
Rutus said, pressing his fingers to his forehead. After that……
Honestly, he didn’t remember well.
It should have been a scene etched more vividly than any other, but strangely.
Had the dark brown coffin covered Ellie and then completely disappeared beneath the mound of earth?
Or had a neat gravestone been erected over the tidy grave?
“…….”
…How was it?
“…-Your Grace!”
“race-!”
Ah.
He seemed to remember seeing a very red sunset.
* * *
What Rutus remembered afterward was fragmented: the reddish eyes of the child that was in front of him, Ellie’s well-kept gravestone.
If he were to add anything more, it would be the fate of those he had ordered imprisoned in the underground dungeon.
He had organized the charges and handed them over to the imperial court, so whatever happened, it wasn’t likely to be hopeful. He didn’t pay attention, so he didn’t know what ultimately happened to them.
“Your Grace.”
“…….”
As the commander of the knights, he should have been attending the palace daily, but thanks to the emperor considering his situation and granting him leave, he didn’t need to worry about going to work.
He spent time in this state, feeling that ‘it was more bearable than expected.’
No matter how much it felt like dying, he didn’t actually die.
Whether it was a fortnight, a month, or even longer, he couldn’t accurately measure, but after a certain amount of time, he began to regain his sanity.
“Your Grace.”
After all, if he didn’t intend to live and die in a daze forever, he had to continue his duties somehow.
Rutus, dressed in light indoor clothes, slowly got up from where he had been half-reclining on his bed. He habitually reached for the empty space beside him, then reminded himself that Ellie was dead.
“…Grace,”
“Stop calling me. Just state your business.”
Rutus, opening the bedroom door and snapping at his aide, frowned. After days of staring into the void, oblivious to whether it was day or night, a headache had developed.
That, for starters, was bothersome.
“Yes. You’ve received this many letters and marriage proposals in your name. Should I handle them?”
TL/N: TF!
There was something even more bothersome. The nonsense he had heard on the day of Ellie’s funeral had absurdly become reality.
Leaning his forehead against the half-open door, Rutus asked.
“…Why are you reporting this? Where is the butler?”
“Rumor has it that the initial letters were all returned, so many are disguised as business matters.”
“…Burn them. Use them as firewood.”
“Yes.”
“And make a list of the families spreading such nonsense. They seem to have too much free time, so canceling a few business deals should keep them busy.”
“Cutting ties with this many families might impact the duchy,”
“Is it significant enough to affect our finances?”
“…No, it isn’t. In fact, since most businesses are practically monopolized by Ratcliffe, it might even increase our profits.”
Then there’s no problem. You can go now. Rutus’s words were short and to the point, and his aide bowed briefly.
As he dismissed his aide, Rutus picked up some pills from the bedside table and swallowed them. He had started taking them to reduce his headaches, whether it was a few days or ten days ago.
Swallowing the bitter pills without water, Rutus asked slowly.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“The child… which room is he in?”
He used to sleep in the couple’s bed or at least in the crib beside it. Since Rutus judged that he couldn’t take care of the child, he hadn’t seen him for a while.
He had allowed the head maid’s request to keep the child in another room for a while, hadn’t he?
Which room had he ordered directly—or had the head maid suggested it?
“…….”
“You ordered the child to use the central room on the upper floor. I reported it every day.”
“…Right.”
“But it’s very early in the morning now… so he’s probably asleep.”
Rutus nodded absent-mindedly at the aide’s words. Then, holding a lit candlestick, he left the room.
‘No wonder it’s so dark; it’s night.’
Intending to just quietly look at the child’s face, Rutus climbed the stairs.
Ellie had once told him that young children would forget who you were if they didn’t see you for a while.
She had warned him to show his face often, even if he was busy. That’s why he always made an effort to be there when the child went to bed, despite his busy schedule.
That was the only time he could properly see the child’s face.
Rutus climbed the stairs with his long legs, lost in these thoughts, and stood in front of the child’s room.
But once he arrived, he hesitated to open the door.
He spent several moments just holding the doorknob in the dark hallway.
After a few minutes.
Rutus had been standing in front of the child’s room for a long time when he opened the door for an unexpected reason.
Bang!
Crash! Thud!
Suddenly, he sensed an unfamiliar presence in the room.
“Ugh…!”
The kind of presence that only someone professionally trained could make.
* * * *
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