“I greet His Grace the Duke.”
The sound, which had been slightly offbeat perhaps due to the cane, came to a stop. Rutus spoke to the young man who bowed before him.
“Your father, the previous butler of the capital residence, was of commoner origin, was he not? I heard he was granted the title of baronet for having once helped the late duke.”
“That is correct.”
This was a story Rutus and Ellie had heard through their sources.
Though the former butler had been given the title of baronet, it was in name only—no territory came with it, and it couldn’t be passed down. It was an honorary position.
A high-ranking noble house such as a ducal household wouldn’t normally appoint a commoner to the role of head maid or butler, so it must have been a makeshift decision by the former duke.
In other words, the man now standing before them was a commoner. Under normal circumstances, there should be no reason for him to even appear again after quitting his post as a servant.
‘…And yet he embezzled?’
Ellie tilted her head, unable to hide her confusion. Technically, it was the father—the previous butler—who had committed the deed, but even so, it was strange that the man hadn’t been immediately detained and was instead summoned to the study so politely.
…Not that she couldn’t guess why.
The child looked up at the man before him with sparkling eyes. Noticing a subtle trace of affection in his expression, Ellie asked quietly,
-…Did you know each other?
Mouth opening silently.
After a brief moment of hesitation, the child shook his head in denial. It was an answer inconsistent with his earlier reaction.
‘Hmm…’
From the circumstances, it was clear that the embezzled funds had flowed entirely to the son, and it was equally clear that Rutus had no intention of letting him go lightly.
Even if he chose the study as the location out of consideration for the child’s emotions.
Still, not once had he told the former servant to straighten his back after bowing or to take a seat. That alone said enough.
Especially for someone with an injured leg, being made to maintain the same posture for so long must have been exhausting.
“You must know why you were called. Go on, let’s hear it—have you prepared an excuse?”
“……”
Even if it wasn’t something you did yourself, I have no intention of overlooking your ingratitude and defiance against your master.
At Rutus’s emotionless tone, Ellie turned her gaze toward the child.
“Uh-Uh…”
There was visible panic on the boy’s face as his eyes darted about.
Only then did Ellie begin to understand why Rutus had bothered to bring the child here. She parted her lips slightly.
Even if the child had accidentally overheard it, it was something that could have been handled secretly without issue.
‘And yet he deliberately created this situation to tell Adi the truth?’
This wasn’t just because he was going soft on the child.
This was simply to give him hope—and then snatch it away. Nothing more, nothing less.
Faced with such a blatantly malicious intention, Ellie didn’t know how to react and watched the situation unfold with a bitter expression.
– Should’ve realized when I heard the sound of the study being smashed…
When he had lashed out at the Knight Commander or the current butler, at least he’d shown his anger openly and offered a chance for forgiveness.
“If you won’t speak, then I will. Over the past year and six months, the discrepancy in the ledgers for the annex’s internal funds amounts to around 17,348 gold.”
“…”
“I had entrusted the task of supplying those funds to my aide. After he was dispatched to the ducal territory, the butler took over that role.”
“…”
“The period during which the records were altered overlaps with the time my aide left for the duchy. This couldn’t have happened without your father’s tacit approval. Isn’t that interesting?”
It was not the man standing here who had done it.
Even if he begged for forgiveness, Rutus had no intention of granting him even a chance. Ellie looked down at the servant without a word.
It wasn’t as though she had any fondness for that servant, either.
As Rutus had said, who could possibly smile and forgive someone who bled their child dry to fill the stomach of their own?
However…
‘This is what’s called guilt by association, isn’t it?’
She found it futile that the one who should be punished no longer existed in this world.
Rutus would surely make it seem like he quietly dismissed the servant, but once the child left the room, he would definitely punish him.
Somehow, a bitter taste filled her mouth, and Ellie clicked her tongue softly.
It was then that the servant, who had insisted on silence until now, finally opened his mouth.
“…I won’t make excuses. But please allow me to return this.”
The servant spoke in a low voice as he took something out from his coat.
Reflexively, Rutus shifted into a defensive stance, ready to restrain him.
“……”
But what the servant pulled out was, contrary to the tension in the air, merely a single, thin piece of paper.
It looked as if it had been handled for a long time—faint traces of use could be seen.
“It’s a secret account and the password left in my name by my father while he was alive. I’d suspected the large sums being deposited every few months, but I turned a blind eye out of fear of what might come.”
“……”
“I knew he was devastated after my leg ended up like this…”
He hadn’t expected it to be this severe. Though it was an obvious thing to say, the servant spoke as he bent low and bowed his head deeply.
“…I did something unforgivable to the young master. I sincerely apologize.”
When Rutus silently unfolded the paper, Ellie moved behind him to check it—and covered her eyes with one hand.
<Depositor: N.P759.06.13 – 17,794G>
Far from being withdrawn and used, the amount had only accrued interest instead.
‘If it was going to come to this, then why did Adi…’
Why did he have to be treated like that?
She felt resentment, yet the date of birth written on the paper weighed on her mind, and she couldn’t bring herself to truly hate him.
…If that birthdate was real, then he would have been fifteen at the time.
Most commoners started working in their early teens, so it wasn’t an especially young age.
‘But still, that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a child…’
According to imperial law, adulthood began only after turning sixteen.
So the servant must have still been a minor.
If her dearly raised child had become disabled, she, too, would have felt resentment.
But the fact that this resentment wasn’t directed at the real culprits, but rather at an innocent child—that’s what made her angry.
She trembled with fury at the former head servant’s cowardice—ending his life without even trying to clean up the mess he’d made.
–……
The dead speak no words.
Only the living were left behind, struggling with festering wounds.
After a moment of silence, the one to break it was unexpectedly the child who had stayed quiet all along.
‘Come to think of it, he should’ve said a few words long ago… why—ah.’
[I’ll just stay still by your side. I’m really, really good at that……]
[……Then let’s make a deal. If you don’t keep your promise, you won’t get any snacks for a week. Agreed?]
[A-A week?]
[Yes.]
Right… they had made a promise like that. Ellie turned her head to look at the child.
If he was prepared to give up a whole week’s worth of snacks just to say what he needed to say, then it was only right that she listened.
The child clutched Rutus’ sleeve with both hands and said,
“P-Please don’t get mad…”
“…”
“He’s not a bad person.”
Watching the child speak timidly, Rutus stared at the child before finally opening his mouth with a stiff expression.
“Even so, this isn’t something that can be overlooked.”
If the embezzlement of a duke’s estate was brushed aside lightly, there was a real risk that similar incidents would follow.
‘That… makes no sense.’
Ellie shared the same opinion.
Then the child asked Rutus what would happen if they didn’t let it go.
“If handled through normal procedure, the perpetrator would be executed on the spot, and any relatives within the fourth degree would be brought to trial.”
“Gasp.”
“Though it was embezzlement, there’s no record of actual usage, so he probably won’t be executed. Most likely, he’ll be sentenced to forced labor.”
“H-Huhhh.”
“Well… with his leg in that condition, even if he’s sent to labor, he won’t survive long.”
“Uhhhk…”
“…”
Couldn’t that strange sound be dealt with somehow? Though Rutus didn’t say it out loud, his expression while answering the child clearly showed his discomfort.
The child, now pale as a sheet after hearing Rutus’ response, turned to look at Ellie.
The inappropriate conversation—especially in front of a five-year-old—was starting to give Ellie a headache.
‘What was the point of choosing the study for this, then…?’
Ellie shifted her gaze to the servant, who was still bowing deeply.
Was he frozen from fear after the conversation just now, or was he simply exhausted from staying in that position?
“…”
His hands were trembling.
Seeing the face of the servant, who looked to be somewhere between a youth and a young man, still bearing traces of innocence, Ellie couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She finally leaned in and whispered something in the child’s ear.
She hinted at a way to keep the servant from going to trial immediately.
‘This isn’t how it’s supposed to be…’
Reason told her the right thing was to hold a trial by the law, but her desire to follow the child’s wishes was stronger.
The child, listening carefully to Ellie’s whisper, suddenly shouted,
“Th-Then give Hyung to me!”
“…What?”
The servant, startled by the unfiltered outburst, reflexively asked back. Realizing his slip, he quickly bowed his head again.
Rutus, now visibly troubled, locked eyes with the child and spoke.
“Buying and selling people is illegal.”
“That’s not what I meant!”
“…”
“I mean instead of a trial, if we just hire him again as a servant. We can make a pro-promiise that he stays until I say it’s okay…”
“Hiring someone as a servant is too light to replace forced labor. Besides, with his injuries, he probably can’t even work properly.”
“But still…”
As the child persisted, Rutus sighed and said,
“We can’t make an exception just for him. If the remaining relatives start demanding fairness, it’ll only undermine the duke’s authority—”
“H-Hyung doesn’t have a mom!”
At that, the child shouted.
– …
Ellie rubbed the back of her neck.
She couldn’t understand why the child was speaking that way.
TL/N: FOR REFERENCE “HYUNG”/”형” IN KOREAN MEANS BIG BROTHER AND IT ONLY SAID BY MALES TO MALES AND SAID TO A PERSON YOU’RE FAMILIAR WITH (MORE LIKE CLOSE TO TOO🥹)
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