Chapter 46
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: The Intellect I Trust the Most
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Because he's the intellect I trust most.
Lunch was over, and a drowsy afternoon had settled in.
Lately, Kara had been sleeping even more, and now she was deep in a nap beside me, her breathing soft and steady.
A vivid red handprint marked my back.
I'd teased her that all the extra sleep was from eating too much, and she'd smacked me for it.
'It hurts...'
Ignoring the ache in my back, I gently stroked the belly of my soundly sleeping wife, lost in thought.
The warmth of my wife and our child seeped through my fingertips, comforting and tender, but the unease gnawing at my chest refused to fade.
'Admit it. My brain isn't anything special.'
The possessed soul buff and original story knowledge.
They were great, sure, but at the core, half of me was just an average Korean guy with military service under his belt, and the other half a barbarian far removed from schemes and intrigue.
Unraveling the empire's tangled politics or the nobles' decades-old conspiracies all on my own was impossible.
It wasn't my territory anymore—not for a guy who found swinging an axe more comfortable.
'Agonizing alone will just make me miss the timing.'
Variables I couldn't predict were popping up.
Was adding a single line to a letter really going to fix everything?
Pretty words, nothing more.
What I needed now was help from someone smarter and more experienced—an expert.
'And I've got one I can trust.'
I hardened my resolve and rose from my seat.
There was no more time to brood alone.
No need to, as Kara had said.
The Eisen Baron had just finished preparing to head out and was about to climb into the carriage at the mansion's entrance.
"Baron, where are you off to?"
"Ah, Barg."
He turned back, fastening the collar of his coat.
"I'm heading to Northguard Keep over the princess's academy recommendation letter. There are additional documents to deliver as well. The Grand Duke is a prickly sort, but it's wise to build ties with Her Highness the Princess in advance."
"Perfect timing."
Bang—!
I flung open the carriage door before he could even respond.
"I'll come with you."
"Pardon? No, wait... Urk!"
I ignored his protests and crammed my bulk inside.
Creak.
The carriage wheels groaned in protest.
It was a small carriage meant for the baron alone.
The moment I squeezed in, it recreated that suffocating tightness from crossing the border.
I took a breath to test, and it felt even narrower than before.
My knees were crushing his, our shoulders already overlapping.
"Nngh... Barg, what is this? I can't breathe."
"Sorry. But I have something urgent to discuss right now."
I shut the door and got straight to the point, my expression hardening.
"To be blunt: Lord Karl is in danger."
"......What do you mean by that?"
The baron's face changed.
His eyes sharpened behind his glasses.
I took a deep breath.
I couldn't try to explain logically.
I didn't know politics.
Any clumsy reasoning would only invite suspicion.
My weapons were intuition and sincerity.
And Eisen would see beyond the keywords I tossed out—he always did.
Because the suspicions I'd plant were ones he'd never truly dismissed, not even once.
There had just been no hard proof.
Because it was Eisen.
The intellect I trusted most.
"You said Lord Karl has an indomitable will. The man who recovered from paralysis in his lower body suddenly collapses from some mystery illness."
I stared straight into the baron's eyes.
"I don't think... it's a disease."
"Illnesses can worsen. Could be aftereffects from rehab."
"But you said he's diligent. Wouldn't neglect rehab even after collapsing again, right?"
"......You're right. The young lord I know wouldn't."
"And Lord Kairun."
I pressed on.
"Bad comparison, maybe... but assume Lord Karl and Lord Kairun are the same age. For early admission to the academy, who fits more naturally?"
"Lord Karl, who'd already proven his strength early on. Though he never went for early admission, of course."
The baron answered promptly, but a subtle unease creased his brow.
"Yet they rush young Lord Kairun three years ahead. Like someone's racing against time."
Like a man desperate to clear away something—or someone.
I paused for a moment.
Then, locking eyes with Eisen, I prodded the most sensitive nerve in noble society.
"On top of that, Lord Kairun is... the son of the second wife...."
I let the words hang.
The silence after spoke louder than any full sentence, fueling the listener's doubts.
"Above all... the Grand Duchess's origins are troubling..."
"......!"
The baron's pupils wavered.
The recent kidnapping attempt on Alina and Her Highness the Princess.
The masked man's finger had pointed straight to Slokina.
They were the ones who'd always kept the Northern Ducal House in check.
The baron's hand began to tremble.
The Slokina princess-born Grand Duchess's son departs in haste, while the legitimate heir and next Grand Duke, Lord Karl, suffers a sudden health decline.
Could anyone call that coincidence?
It poured fuel on the ominous suspicions he'd long suppressed and ignored.
The baron fell silent.
All the signs pointed to one horrific possibility.
I pressed my eyebrows hard, feigning agony.
This time, appealing to emotion.
"Sorry. I might be overthinking. But... after nearly losing my father to poisoning, with Kara too, it all keeps overlapping in my mind."
"Poisoning... attempt..."
"You're far wiser than me, Baron, and you've watched the Ducal House for years."
I pleaded desperately.
"Is this hunch of mine... total nonsense? Have you never once suspected something like this?"
Silence stretched.
The air in the carriage grew heavy.
The baron closed his eyes.
The keywords I'd thrown.
Thoughts that had flickered through his mind more than once.
But no evidence.
Pandora's box—one he'd ignored because opening it would unleash a bloodstorm on the Ducal House.
Yet here was this rough northerner trying to pry it open.
'......'
The baron slowly opened his eyes.
He adjusted his glasses, looking at me like a stern professor eyeing a promising student.
"Hah... I've considered it. That's why I buried it."
"Then..."
"But it's not a bad instinct. Suspicion is the foundation of politics."
The baron grinned.
"This trip's a good chance to verify your doubts firsthand. It'll be a fine lesson."
"Baron!"
"You saved Her Highness and Alina anyway. Time to leave a real impression on the Grand Duke. If your suspicion holds... we'll have saved the Ducal House."
Reassuring.
This man could turn my shaky hunch into solid certainty.
"I'll give you ten minutes. Get ready."
The baron opened the cramped door and stepped out.
He ordered the waiting knight.
"Stow this carriage. Bring out that one."
"The bed carriage from the border, sir?"
"Yes. Right now."
I cheered inwardly.
"Oh, perfect. Why not buy it outright, Baron? Kara absolutely loved it."
"What?!!!!"
That was when it happened.
The second-floor office window flew open, and Ronas stuck his head out.
He'd heard "purchase" like a ghost.
"Purchase?! That thing's exorbitant! What about the family budget? Father!!"
Ronas's wail echoed through the garden.
The baron whispered to me.
"That's why... planning to sneak it in next quarter. Buy after the budget's locked—less nagging."
"A true master."
We shared a quiet chuckle at Ronas's expense.
But the laughter was brief.
I grabbed the baron.
"One more favor, Baron."
"What is it?"
"Prepare two carriages for departure."
"Two? One's enough for us."
"Explanation later. Pull out the bed carriage from the border too. It's essential."
I pleaded earnestly.
The baron was heading to Northguard Keep now.
If he pieced together the assassination threat to Lord Karl as I suspected?
Most effective move: isolation.
To safely bring the mobility-impaired Karl to Eisengard, we'd need a spacious, comfortable carriage that could fit a wheelchair.
The second one was an ambulance for Karl.
No time to explain now.
He stared into my eyes, then nodded without protest.
"...Understood. I'll trust your gut this once. Knight! Pull out Carriage Number Two!"
"Yes, sir!"
"No! You're not buying that one too, are you?! Father!!!"
Ronas's scream from the window grew even more desperate.
I mentally apologized to Ronas and turned away.
One thing left.
Saying goodbye to Kara before leaving.
No time to go back to the entrance and climb stairs.
Thud thud thud!
I dashed across the garden.
Without hesitation, I vaulted the garden wall in one leap, then scaled the sturdy garden tree.
Crack.
The branch bent, but I used the rebound to launch toward the second-floor bedroom balcony.
Thump!
"......!"
I landed and flung open the window.
Kara jolted awake from her bed.
"Barg?!"
Watching from below, the baron stroked his chin.
"Hmm...."
He adjusted his glasses and muttered to himself.
"If they end up in separate rooms at the academy... putting on shows like that might work."
A strategy to make the dean snap: 'Just share a room, you lunatics!' and give up.
"Not bad at all. I'll mention it to Barg."
The baron smiled contentedly as he waited for the carriage.
Meanwhile, Kara blinked in surprise at me tumbling in through the window, but soon broke into a welcoming smile.
"Kara, sudden notice, but I need to head to Northguard Keep. With the baron."
But how to explain the reason?
Tell her a bloodbath might erupt at the ducal house?
Or hide it so she wouldn't worry?
As I mulled it over, lips parting uncertainly, Kara approached and pulled me into a tight embrace.
She buried my face against her rock-hard abs.
"Baby, Daddy'll be safe~"
"...Not asking why?"
"Eh, starting from window-climbing? Too long a story."
Kara leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to my lips.
Smack.
"You finally spilled it, huh?"
"...Yeah. I'll be back soon."
Kara knew the old me—the simple, straightforward fool—for longer.
But lately, seeing me brood alone must've worried her.
The sudden trip announcement should've been jarring, but she seemed glad.
It meant I'd finally decided to share the burden instead of shouldering it alone.
"Sure, jealous it's someone else... but I'll tease you plenty when you get back."
I smiled at her one little pout and pulled the Behemoth leather uniform from the closet.
The outfit I'd saved for my academy entrance ceremony.
Though it got torn up the first time I wore it saving Kairun.
Meeting the Grand Duke called for some decorum.
And if things turned to combat, no armor was sturdier.
As I donned the uniform, Kara stepped up and tied my necktie.
She hadn't known how at first.
Her imperial army or formal uniforms had different collar styles—not like this crude men's tie.
But for me, she'd learned from the baron specifically.
Those deft hands now tying a perfect knot around my neck.
That focused gaze looking up at me.
Too lovable to bear.
"He said ten minutes. Three left."
The moment my outfit was straight, we crushed each other in an embrace, as if on cue.
We spent the remaining time just feeling each other's warmth.
No words needed.
Just before the ten minutes were up.
I reluctantly stepped to the window frame.
"Back quick."
I leaped out without hesitation.
Thump!
"Hah... Barg. That's a special, expensive uniform. Tough, yes, but try not jumping in it."
The baron tsked from the carriage, having watched.
"Sorry."
I boarded with an awkward grin.
And so, the two carriages set off toward the ducal keep.