The Villainess' Son is Innocent - Chapter 30
Chapter 15.2
“I may have given the orders, but there was no need for separate instructions. They performed admirably on their own. Don’t you feel you’ve earned it? As the child born to that woman, it’s only natural that you receive no one’s sympathy.”
The belief he tried to cling to crumbled in an instant.
“But with the emperor’s influence, those biases and perceptions can change. Devote yourself to him. He has the power to alter the way people perceive you.”
“…”
“Resistance is futile. If there arises another act of rebellion, like your one against Young Lord Lucretius, then you can say goodbye to whatever hope you had of seeing that girl again.”
He closed his tired eyes, reopening them to find nothing had changed. Emil asked in a fragile voice,
“Do you hate me that much?”
At this unexpected question, the duke finally lifted his gaze.
“Hate? You deem yourself worthy of hatred?”
“…”
“Emil Lachlan Ronchisté Calixt, you were merely fortunate enough to be born by chance.”
“…”
The duke’s callous expression was one that never changed, yet now, it revealed a hint of contempt.
“Don’t forget. Your role is solely as His Majesty’s sword and weapon.”
He gestured for Emil to leave, but then paused. Emil froze at the duke’s next words.
“Grandel informed me of your journey to Croscentine this time. And it occurred to me, that girl is attending Rilford, isn’t she?”
“…”
“If there’s something you hope to gain by traveling to a foreign country where your presence is not needed, then I can only assume you’ve found something of greater importance than yourself.”
“…”
With a click, the butler, who had been waiting, opened the door at the duke’s command.
He did not indicate a willingness to respect Emil’s thoughts. It was simply an order to depart now that the duke had spoken his piece.
* * *
As Emil exited the office, he walked briskly. From the outside, the room where he had resided since birth appeared the same.
The iron bars installed two years prior, the lack of warmth inside. It remained desolate, with very few personal belongings, though new furnishings were added to maintain the mansion’s dignity.
“Something of greater importance…”
The duke’s parting words probed at his mind.
After hearing her story and observing her lack of interest in foreign countries, it seemed strange to suddenly find her enrolled at Rilford. He’d thought about this ever since she first outstretched her hand to him.
The first person to look at him with pity. And because he was so desperate for a person’s affection and warmth, every gaze she cast upon him felt incredibly sweet.
“Shall we go and have some cake together?”
“Why don’t we live together? There’s plenty of this stuff at my house.”
“You haven’t hurt anyone.”
He knew she must have had a motive in approaching him from the start. A girl shining so brightly would not have sought him out without reason.
On one hand, he was willing to do anything for the girl who had given him a taste of happiness, even if only for a moment, and on the other, he hoped he was the one who mattered most to her.
‘Would she accept me this way?’
As his body matured, his hands, now firm and robust, pulled a small item from his pocket.
The red jewels on the cufflinks sparkled intensely.
“Isn’t it nice to have something you can use now, but also as you grow older?”
For a moment, Emil rolled one of the cufflinks in his fingers.
The people at the Lancaster mansion greeted him as warmly as ever. Isméralda grabbed Emil and asked him what had happened, and Isana said he had grown much taller, her eyes glistening with tears.
— Emil, if anything happens, promise to come to me or my husband immediately.
He reassured her not to worry, but Emil couldn’t shake the feeling that Isméralda Lancaster had seen through his sins and suspected that she’d been quietly deceived by him.
It was true that Emil had been in Ingscent.
Save for the fact he had secretly journeyed down to the capital for an audience with the emperor on several occasions.
— ‘It’ is a curse, I’ve heard, Duke. But I’ve also learned that it can be quite useful.
— We used to keep him locked away before he could turn uncontrollable. Wouldn’t it be best for Your Majesty to utilize him and then dispose of him? There are plenty of other bothersome people, are there not?
In their conversation, where they sporadically referred to the madness as “it,” Emil thought the woman the emperor and his father, the duke, spoke of was his mother, Roveline Castone.
— If you show loyalty, we’ll need to reward you. I happened to discover something while investigating the madness of the villainess. How about this?
Emil witnessed himself being reduced to the role of the emperor’s lapdog without even receiving the intent of being respected.
— It would be a shame to lose such a valuable weapon, so if you manage to satisfy me, I shall grant you the cure for that madness.
Emil could not refuse the emperor’s offer. So, the emperor promptly assigned someone to Emil.
— This is Grandel. He shall serve as your mentor for the time being.
— …Is that the boy?
— Yes, Emil Calixt. Although this man was once a ruthless wandering mercenary, he knows how to get the job done. I expect you to surpass him.
Following Grandel, Emil discovered that he was sensitive to the smell of blood.
— Unbelievable… you’re like a ticking time bomb.
— …
— Is this why they call it a curse?
The moment he smelled the coppery scent of blood, his sanity would spiral out of control. It felt as though he had become someone else entirely.
As the memory faded, Emil found Isméralda studying his expression, sensing that he had somehow grown out of place within a short period.
— Emil, is there something going on after all?
Emil wrestled with the urge to tell her everything. But, when he saw the young girl reflected in Isméralda’s face, he couldn’t bring himself to utter a word.
“…I just miss you all.”
The fleeting moments he spent in that mansion felt like a distant dream.
T/N: i was listening to “End of Beginning” by Djo while reading this… i think it describes this chapter perfectly.
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