Atonement, About it's Cruelty - Chapter 4
Listening quietly to the secretary’s whisper, a bitter smile spread across the Grand Duke’s lips. He stared intently at the uninvited guest sitting across from him and said pointedly.
“Interesting. Understood, you may leave now.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
After the secretary bowed politely and exited, only three people remained in the room: the Grand Duke, the prostitute, and…
Oscar von Reinhardt.
The ash at the end of Oscar’s cigarette steadily burned away as he sat enveloped in wisps of smoke, his striking blue eyes piercing through the haze.
He was of noble birth. His father, a great general of Luxen, was still the subject of adoration, his statue standing in the palace square of Luxen twenty years after his death.
And what of his mother, rumored to be the most beautiful woman in Eastern Norfolk?
Yet, Oscar’s presence evoked images not of grand castles but of dark mines filled with black iron and coal, and ravens circling over a castle blackened by fire rather than resplendent beauty.
The wolf of Luxen, feared even by the King of Felpe. He owned lands wider than the city-state of Felpe itself, and even fellow Luxen nobles found it difficult to catch a glimpse of his elusive face.
When the Grand Duke learned that such a man had come to see him personally, his spirits soared.
It was a moment of triumph.
With Oscar’s help, the Grand Duke ascended to the presidency of Felpe Bank and gained entry into Norfolk Royal Union Chamber. The Felpe nobility, who had once dismissed him, now truly acknowledged him as their Grand Duke, and it seemed he could have everything.
Yes, it seemed so.
Until Oscar became unsettling.
“Marquis Reinhardt, what is this discourtesy?”
“Discourtesy?”
Oscar’s icy eyes shimmered menacingly through the smoke.
“Exactly, I told you to continue what you were doing. Did I not say I would wait?”
“Marquis!”
“If you’re referring to my late arrival, my apologies. I assumed this was to be a discreet meeting, yet somehow uninvited guests have appeared.”
Oscar, cigarette between his lips, chuckled with a hint of amusement. The Grand Duke, who had facilitated the arrival of the uninvited guests, felt his heart sink at Oscar’s nonchalant demeanor, as if he already knew everything.
“By the way…”
Oscar trailed off, his voice lazy with a teasing smile.
“I wonder what interesting news you have for me?”
His hair framing his forehead added to his decadent charm, fitting perfectly with the debauched revelry around him. Despite his noble lineage, there was a scent of rogueness about him, a hint of back-alley prowlers that seemed innate to those of high birth. Such traits often seemed to reach deep into one’s instincts.
The s*xual gratification that had excited the Grand Duke moments ago cooled quicker than water in a thin pot. A chill swept over him, making even the smallest hairs stand on end.
His instincts were sounding an alarm.
The man before him was thoroughly mad. The Grand Duke knew he had to appease him somehow.
His eyes darted nervously.
About three years ago,
When Oscar first approached him,
He had made two requests to make him truly the Grand Duke.
One was to bring along a person Oscar had appointed when he attended the Norfolk Royal Union Chamber.
The other was…
“The safe you’ve been keeping an eye on.”
“…”
“Which number was it again? Was it in the four thousands? No…”
The Grand Duke’s shifting gaze finally locked with Oscar’s piercing blue eyes. It doesn’t even have a hint of jest.
Swallowing nervously, the Grand Duke felt the icy tone of the man sitting across from him.
“Safe 5555.”
Felpe Bank’s secret safe number 5555.
The safe that Oscar von Reinhardt wanted to open.
The Grand Duke moistened his dry lips as he clutched his trembling heart.
“Have you still not found the key to that safe?”
* * *
Two hours earlier,
While Oscar and his wolves were dealing with the uninvited guests,
The door to the VIP reception room of Felpe Bank gently opened. A pair of light brown eyes twinkled through the gap.
The room was lined with dark, weighty wooden walls and adorned with gilt decorations. The carpet looked exceptionally plush, and despite the late hour, a staff member remained on duty, engrossed in a newspaper.
Was it here?
Seo-ah quickly looked at the interior through the gap before stepping inside. The carpet, as soft as it appeared, muffled her footsteps completely, allowing her to enter unnoticed.
The employee, still absorbed in the newspaper, didn’t realize someone had entered.
Walking to the table, she placed her bag on a customer’s single sofa. After a while Seo-ah tentatively reached out and tapped the table.
Knock, knock.
The sound, though gently made, reverberated like thunder in the silent room. She held her breath, focusing intently on any response from the employee.
Rustle.
The sound of paper turning was the only response. Seo-ah cautiously looked up.
“…”
The employee was still lost in the paper. Taking a deep breath, she tapped the table again.
Knock, knock.
“Excuse me… hello.”
Startled, the employee who had been flipping the evening paper, finally looked up. He reflexively stood up, and Seo-ah instinctively averted her gaze.
“Good day. Welco…”
His greeting trailed off, and came a moment of silence.
Seo-ah’s face tingled with discomfort. She struggled to maintain her composure and lifted her eyes to meet his, which were a clear, striking green.
As their eyes met, she quickly looked down again, and the employee asked abruptly.
“How did you get in here?”
Still averting her gaze, Seo-ah thought over her response before subtly pointing behind her.
“…Through the door.”
“…”
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