Obviously, It's My Child - Chapter 178
In a place where no adults smiled, it was impossible for a child to laugh and play alone.
Duchy Klausener would not be much different from the place Linus lived in.
Of course, there was no peril akin to treading on a thin ice sheet laid over a pit of spikes, but Erich too had been raised in an environment of grave silence.
Therefore, it was undoubtedly that vibrant woman who allowed such laughter to ring through this house.
[Not in my house.]
That was the first thought that came to Linus as he woke from a fever.
He might have said something first, though he couldn’t remember.
Seeing the red flowers, he thought it was a grave. Either he was already dead and buried, or he had crawled out from that grave.
As he reached out impulsively to touch the flower, someone gripped his wrist tightly.
[It’s Duchess Klausener, Your Highness.]
He recognized Maximilian’s face.
Even in a haze, he recognized him and, fully waking, realized that it wasn’t death coming to kiss him but a red-haired woman.
It was a mistake even now. Strictly speaking, the woman’s hair was not red but brown.
However, standing against the sunset, her hair was completely red.
[Duchess.]
[Yes.]
Maximilian had answered.
Linus had not been calling for Claire, it was just a confirmation, a repetition.
[Erich?]
He wanted to ask but couldn’t finish because his throat was parched and he was coughing.
He remembered hearing about the marriage. Frankly, he had thought, what does it matter to him whether Erich married or not.
Though, he was surprised that the match was with an Arren.
How could he not be shocked to hear that his stern cousin was in love and even had a child?
But such surprises merely grazed the surface of his emotions for a moment. To Linus, it was all irrelevant.
[Why am I here?]
[You drifted in from the sea. Don’t you remember?]
[It would have been better if you had left me there.]
[Why were you in the winter sea? Where did you fall in?]
[What does it matter to you?]
[There were no guards or servants for Your Highness in Ludendorff. It seems they aren’t searching the sea in the Duchy Ernst either.]
The woman said,
[I find it awkward to explain how we came to be protecting a prince with no subordinate.]
[Is there no guess as to what someone might be trying to do when they throw themselves into the sea?]
[……]
[It’s already a nuisance that you didn’t leave me alone, but this is truly irritating. Leave.]
At that moment, her tone changed abruptly.
[Hey.]
It was the most impudent thing he had ever heard.
[I’m your cousin’s wife. Even Archduke Victoria doesn’t treat me as rudely as you do. And you, being so young and disrespectful.]
It was only then that Linus looked at her face, not just the tips of her red hair.
From her clearly dark lashes, sparks flew like pieces of gold.
It was then that he realized the woman was not a flower but a flame.
[Nine people jumped into the winter sea to save you. One of them is bedridden, and four are still coughing. Do you think the Klausener security department has nothing better to do than scour the city for your whereabouts?]
[I never asked to be saved.]
[Even though you were flailing your arms and struggling.]
[Just throw me back into the sea. No, there’s no need. I’ll go on my own.]
Linus tried to get out of bed unsteadily, but he couldn’t even withstand Claire lightly pushing him with one hand, not Maximillian’s and collapsed back onto the bed.
Claire mocked him as he floundered like someone stuck in mud.
[Not even strong enough to push away a woman.]
[You’re just doing this because it would be troublesome if I died here.]
[Think of something useful if you understand. Cooperate with Sir Maximilian.]
Claire glared at him.
[Your life may be yours, but not in my house. Nor can it be where the people who saved your life are.]
Linus looked at her with a strange sense of resignation.
In truth, this wasn’t the first time.
He was truly fed up with everything, and if he could cause his mother any pain with a life that no one would mourn, he would use it without hesitation.
Every time someone died, it was not him but others.
The people his mother assigned to him seemed ready to do anything to protect the illusion of the imperial succession right that lay above his head.
The woman was the first person who didn’t mention it. She neither said she would kill him for it nor that he must live because of it.
And she didn’t say it was troublesome for him to die in her house. That might be a factor, but it didn’t seem to be the main reason.
So he stayed here, despite the fact that he could throw himself off the terrace.
He was curious about why he was kept alive.
‘If I die, Erich’s claim to the throne will rise.’
If he were to die, the direct imperial line would disappear. This would remove all the ambiguities in the line of succession.
The established order was Archduke Victoria, Archduke Manfred, and then Erich Klausener.
Archduke Manfred’s daughter, Bettina, lost her claim due to intermarriage among the Rommel nobility.
Thus, even if the next emperor were to be Archduke Manfred, the next in line would be Erich.
And if the principle of requiring an Arren spouse is prioritized, Erich’s son might be higher in the line of succession than Erich himself.
Wasn’t that woman interested in the Empress position? Or the position of Empress Dowager?
It wouldn’t take much effort.
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