Chapter 50
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Expected Reaction
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Karl took a deep breath, then prepared to leave the office.
He reached for the wheel, but his grip lacked strength, and it spun idly beneath his fingers.
"Ugh..."
Karl's face flushed red.
His resolve was firm, but his body still hadn't caught up.
Swoosh.
I quietly approached and grasped the handle of the wheelchair.
"I'll push you."
"Ah... Thank you, Lord Wintersword. I keep owing you more and more."
"Owe me? Aren't you on your way to help my family? It's an honor."
I spoke with genuine sincerity.
Karl nodded, looking relieved at my words.
I leaned in to push the wheelchair, then paused for a moment.
A single piece of red tart had fallen beneath the desk.
"That's a piece Kairun dropped earlier. Things got hectic, so we couldn't clean it up."
'...So this is the poisoned tart.'
The bitter version.
Proof that Karla had tried to kill her stepson.
Karl fumbled in embarrassment to pick it up, but I was faster.
I casually scooped up the tart fragment.
And then.
Chomp.
I popped it straight into my mouth without hesitation.
"!! Lord Wintersword? That's from the floor..."
"It's a waste to throw it out. And..."
I chewed and swallowed the tart without a care.
A sharp bitterness of grapefruit lingered, followed by the faint sting of poison at the tip of my tongue.
'A trace amount like this won't even register in my body.'
This level of neurotoxin was little more than a tipsy snack.
If anything...
'Clears my head a bit.'
The poison sharpened my senses, my mind snapping into focus.
It felt like smoking a strong cigarette—my tangled thoughts untangling into clarity.
Destroying the evidence was just a bonus.
Processing even this fragment perfectly would erase every trace of Karla's poisoned tart.
That way, I could lighten the burden on Kairun, even if just a little.
"Mm, nice and bitter. Clears the mind right up."
I smacked my lips appreciatively, and Karl stared in bewilderment before bursting into a chuckle.
"Haha... After the baron’s outrageous proposal earlier, your antics almost seem tame."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Thanks to you, my nerves are settled."
I grinned and pushed the wheelchair forward.
Eisen, walking ahead, seemed itching to comment on my stunt, his lips twitching silently.
The Grand Duke halted upon entering the lord's castle, spotting us waiting ahead.
His crimson eyes swept coldly over Eisen and Radians first, then lingered sequentially on Karl behind me.
"Eisen. And... Your Highness Prince Radians."
His voice was slightly hoarse, likely from returning from a patrol outside.
"What brings you without notice?"
He shot me a glare, furrowing his brow.
"And dragging along an uninvited guest, no less."
'Wintersword... That Winter Claw savage.'
The Grand Duke recognized me instantly.
The architect of the plan he'd once hatched to incite war between tribes, eliminate their leaders, and absorb the alien races.
The very one who'd derailed it all.
No way he'd view me fondly.
He looked ready to bellow and chase me off on the spot.
But.
His gaze halted on my hand.
On the wheelchair handle I gripped.
And on his eldest son, Karl, seated above it.
Was I holding the Northguard heir hostage?
Or merely attending him?
The ambiguous setup made the Grand Duke click his tongue and hold his words.
Eisen stepped forward, bowing politely.
"Forgive the sudden visit. We have urgent matters to discuss, so we came unannounced."
"What's the business?"
"First, there's a procedural matter requiring Your Grace's endorsement..."
"Couldn't a formal letter suffice?"
"Unfortunate circumstances demanded my personal attendance. And this is Lord Wintersword. Given his prior role in saving young Kairun at the border, he wished to pay formal respects to Your Grace on this occasion."
The Grand Duke stared me down.
I met his crimson gaze without flinching.
"...We'll discuss the details inside."
The Grand Duke spoke curtly and turned toward his office.
As we moved to follow.
"Karl."
The Grand Duke stopped and looked back.
His gaze pierced his son coldly.
"Why are you tagging along?"
"......!"
"I don't need your help with official matters. Even telling you to rest in your room falls on deaf ears."
Harsh words spat out like always, habit ingrained even with outsiders present.
Normally, Karl would have bowed his head with "I'm sorry" and retreated.
His father's word was law, and he believed he had no right to defy it.
But not this time.
"It does concern me, Your Grace."
Prince Radians interjected abruptly from behind the Grand Duke.
"...What do you mean, Your Highness?"
"Karl is my academy classmate and dear friend."
Radians naturally placed a hand on Karl's shoulder.
"Isn't it too stingy to exclude a friend visiting after so long? I'd be quite miffed."
The prince's protection.
The Grand Duke's eyebrow twitched.
He glared sharply at Karl.
'You dare use the prince to defy me?'
But Karl gripped the wheelchair handles tightly.
I had his back.
Whether it helped or not.
His friend Radians stood beside him.
And deep in his chest burned a desperate wish to watch over his brother Kairun's growth, up close and for as long as possible.
'I won't back down.'
In the past, that gaze alone would have frozen his heart and sent him fleeing.
His retreats had become habit alongside the Grand Duke's coldness.
But now, he refused to yield.
Karl spoke, his voice trembling from old habit but firm for the first time.
"I... have something to say as well."
"......"
"About my future."
The Grand Duke stared at his son in surprise.
The son, always cowed, met his eyes squarely for the first time.
"...Very well."
The Grand Duke turned sharply and opened the office door.
He hadn't refused.
'Good.'
The group entered the Grand Duke's office.
The door closed, filling the room with heavy tension.
We couldn't unload everything at once.
We had to follow Eisen's strategy: tackle it step by step.
First, secure Princess Elisicia's academy recommendation letter to set the mood.
Then, use it as a bridge to propose Karl's academy stay for treatment and sharing quarters with Kairun.
Eisen placed the princess's recommendation letter on the table for step one.
"First, regarding Her Highness Princess Elisicia's academy enrollment recommendation. Procedurally, we need Your Grace's endorsement..."
"The bastard princess, eh..."
The Grand Duke toyed with his teacup and cut in sharply.
"Isn't she the imperial family's discarded child? Is Northguard's name worth lending for that?"
His blatant disdain for the princess made me tense up unnecessarily.
I glanced at Radians beside me.
'Is it really okay to say that in front of the prince?'
But Radians remained unfazed.
Sensing my look, he leaned in and whispered.
"Don't worry. The imperial family treats Elysia far worse than that."
"......"
"This is downright polite, really. You'll get used to it."
The prince wet his lips with tea, hiding their faint tremble.
"A bastard princess visiting Northguard... The recommendation must stem from petty imperial intrigue. They wouldn't want her seeking endorsements from other vassal states."
The Grand Duke clicked his tongue.
"Tch. Whoever recommended Northguard to the princess—it’s quite the malicious jest."
"Hot hot!"
Radians, seated nearby, yelped.
Stung by the remark, he'd hastily brought the teacup to his lips and scalded himself.
"Your Highness? Are you all right?"
"No, it's nothing. The tea's just hot. Must be spring brew, eh, Baron Eisen? Doesn't cool right away, haha..."
Radians cooled his reddened lips, averting his gaze awkwardly.
He was the very one who'd told Elisicia to seek the Grand Duke's recommendation via Eisen.
"Your Grace, that's precisely why it holds value."
Eisen calmly countered amid the prince's commotion.
"The imperial family checks Her Highness but has already slotted her into a role. Hence sending her to the academy openly."
"A role?"
The Grand Duke's eyebrow twitched.
"A pawn for political marriage. She's destined for some other vassal state or powerful house needing imperial blood. If we extend a hand now and build ties, we'll gain a mighty ally in future negotiations with whatever house she weds."
"Hmm."
"Moreover, with Prince Radians here. Aiding the princess also upholds His Highness's dignity."
The Grand Duke glanced at Radians beside him.
"......"
The Grand Duke pondered briefly.
No downside.
Just lending his name.
"However."
His gaze shifted to Eisen.
"Word is your daughter met with misfortune."
'He already knows?'
Of course—the news of Baron Eisen's daughter’s kidnapping had spread faster than wind through the duchy, even if Elisicia's identity stayed obscure.
"Yes. Fortunately, Lord Barg rescued her unharmed."
"Is the princess involved?"
"Indeed. The full report we'll submit details it, including the culprits behind the abduction."
"Oh?"
The Grand Duke's eyes sharpened.
Kidnapping. Culprits. Princess.
The northern wolf caught the scent.
"Even unappetizing fare piques interest when someone else reaches first."
The Grand Duke signed the recommendation.
His calculus complete: benefits outweighed costs.
"Take it."
"My thanks."
Eisen pocketed the letter.
Step one: success.
But now came the real crux.
As Eisen opened his mouth again, the Grand Duke raised a hand to silence him.
"There. Recommendation signed."
The Grand Duke's gaze pierced past Eisen and Radians to Karl in the wheelchair.
"Now, the true purpose. Not you, Eisen, or Your Highness."
"......!"
"Karl. Speak. You said you had words for me earlier?"
The Grand Duke had swiftly seen through them—the recommendation was no true aim.
All eyes turned to Karl.
He steadied his breath.
Memories flashed: days since the leg injury, forever shrinking before his father.
Unsightly.
Useless.
His chest, carved by those dagger-words, now filled with the office's heaviest air.
Today was different.
His benefactor at his back, friend at his side, resolve to protect his brother in his heart.
"...I want to go to the academy."
Karl spoke.
"I want treatment at its infirmary. And... I want to stay by Kairun's side until he finishes his studies. Watch over him. Teach him."
The Grand Duke's face hardened coldly.
The expected reaction began.
"Treatment?"
The Grand Duke scoffed.
"If Northguard's physicians can't fix it, what makes you think academy hacks can? Foolish hope."
"......"
"Northguard is the empire's shield. Symbol of the power that once battled monsters. You think I'll parade my wheelchair-bound heir through the academy, teeming with empire's elite houses? To flaunt our shame?"
The Grand Duke's gaze turned to me.
'Even that barbarian stands tall on his own feet, yet my son...'
Contempt and disappointment flickered in his eyes.
"No. Stay quietly within the castle walls. Best for you and the house."
The atmosphere froze solid.
"Your Grace..."
Eisen moved to speak, but Karl cut in first.
"Father."
Karl gripped the wheelchair handles tightly.
"A shattered ice wall... is hard to mend. But not impossible."
"What nonsense is this?"
"What did the founding emperor and our ancestors do... in that desperate age when monsters poured forth? When all lost homes and kin, they rose from the ruins."
The instinctive tremor in Karl's voice faded.
"The empire's birth... was sun and moon rising anew for the people. Rising from collapse. Isn't that the true strength our forebears showed the empire? Northguard's strength?"
"......"
"I want to show you me rising again. Not hiding, but advancing despite my broken body. Prove it's not shame, but pride for the house."
Karl swallowed his sob and stared straight at his father.
"I want to be... your proud son once more..."
His plea—a man's desperate cry—leaked beyond the office.
Kairun, eavesdropping through the door crack, bit his lip.
Bit back sobs.
His brother's sincerity, his raw courage, pierced to the bone.
The Grand Duke stared at Karl, expression unchanging.