Chapter 45
We sat in the designated seats for the plaintiffs, waiting for the trial to begin.
After a while, as I looked around the courtroom, the door suddenly swung open, and a familiar figure entered. It was Duke Tristan.
He entered with his sharp, sensitive face and took a seat at the defendant’s bench opposite us. I stared intently at him. The very person I had been afraid of was right there in front of me. All I had wanted was for him to recognize me as his daughter, yet here we were.
I felt a mixture of regret and resentment. How could he have hated me enough to try to kill me? I began to think about it, but then I recalled Richard’s words from yesterday and pushed the thoughts aside.
I didn’t need to understand someone who had abused me. Duke Tristan not only deceived me and took everything from me but even tried to kill me.
What difference would it make for me, the victim, to ponder why such a person acted the way he did? Therefore, I had no choice but to formally reclaim what was mine and punish him.
Duke Tristan remained seated, enduring my gaze. I had expected him to avert his eyes, but to my surprise, he met my gaze calmly.
I could see hatred, jealousy, and derision mingling in his eyes. I didn’t know what expectations he had in this courtroom, but there was a very high probability that he would lose everything. It was only just that it should be so.
“Count,” someone called out, looking for Richard. It was Knight Lorenz. Richard, looking puzzled, acknowledged him and then stood up.
“I’ll be back shortly.”
“Okay, see you later.”
With that, he left the courtroom for a moment.
Eventually, aside from the staff, it was just me and Duke Tristan left in the courtroom.
“How brazen you are, Diarna,” he said, staring at me.
I flinched slightly at his voice but quickly regained my composure.
“I don’t understand what you mean by brazen. Isn’t that something I should be saying?”
When I asked back, he chuckled softly, a clear mockery.
“You’ll be dead within a year anyway.”
“…”
“The Darnnella’s disease inside you will kill you. So, why are you trying to reclaim your assets and title when you only have less than a year left to live?”
He finished speaking and looked at the place where Richard had been sitting.
“Everything you have will ultimately belong to your husband. You’re begging Count Theodore for your life to survive.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Diarna, even if you manage to reclaim all of this, you will eventually be discarded by Count Theodore. Why don’t you understand that?”
I was at a loss for words at his absurd statements. Perhaps seeing my reaction as an opportunity, he stood up and slowly began to walk toward me.
The sound of his footsteps echoed uncomfortably in the quiet courtroom.
“Did Count Theodore demand Duke Tristan’s title and assets from you?”
Then, at some point, he switched to a gentle fatherly tone.
“Think about it, Diarna. Why would Count Theodore demand such things from you? He never makes a losing deal. That’s common known. Yet, with this marriage, he has lost a lot. He simply wants to recover what he lost. You are being used by him. Poor thing.”
He approached me, whispering in a condescending manner.
I quietly listened to his words, trying to understand how he intended to deceive me.
“Give up on this trial and divorce Count Theodore. Then I will accept you back as my daughter,” he said.
What Duke Tristan ultimately wanted was for me to abandon the trial. If I were to give up here, he could continue to enjoy everything he possessed, while Richard would end up with nothing.
What would I have done in the past? Perhaps I would have given up on the trial just as Duke Tristan suggested. I had become accustomed to giving up over the years, believing that if I surrendered and resigned myself to my fate, he might eventually look back at me.
But now I understood that it was no longer the case.
“No, Father. It seems you don’t remember what I said yesterday. I proposed this lawsuit. Richard didn’t demand it from me.”
I refuted his words.
“And you said I would die within a year. No, I will live. Whether it’s one year from now or ten years from now. But I don’t know if that will be because of you.”
“What?”
“Why did you do that yesterday? Why did you want me dead so badly?”
My words, filled with resentment, made him clear his throat, indicating that he was somewhat troubled.
“I’m not foolish enough to return to someone who tried to kill me. So, give up on the idea of making me surrender. I’ve come this far; there’s no way I’m giving up now.”
I took a step toward Duke Tristan, a bold action I would not have dared to take before.
“Then perhaps it would be better for you to give up? Showing a gesture of concession might create a good impression among others.”
“Diarna…!”
“Yes, Father. No, Duke Tristan.”
I calmly responded to him, who raised his voice to call my name.
“Just give me back what’s mine. It originally belonged to me, not you. And didn’t you say yesterday that if I wanted, you would return the title, the property, and the mansion?”
As soon as I finished speaking, Duke Tristan attempted to shout something in response, but it was ultimately cut short by the entrance of the judge.
After the judge entered, Richard came in immediately and sat down next to me.
“What’s going on?”
I asked Richard, who had just sat beside me.
I found it odd that he had suddenly left just before the trial. Normally, he would have postponed other matters to prepare for today’s trial, so it was strange for him to leave, even for a short time.
Richard looked at me with his usual impassive expression and replied, “The child you brought, he has gone missing.”
