Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Red Star (12)
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Carmel's fingertips trembled faintly as he received the document.
He was still shaking in terror at the fear of being killed.
I decided to provide a little service.
Since I'd posted fake listings, fooling even one person would require some minimal effort.
"Don't come any closer. One more step forward, and you'll taste the bitterness of fear."
Drawing my spear to block Carmel's path ahead of him would surely inspire trust.
Indeed, Carmel—misjudging that I would protect him—checked the document with eyes gleaming brightly.
He could have skimmed through it hastily, but Carmel did no such thing.
After reading a bit of the front, he skipped not to the next page but to the latter half of the document.
I kept my body facing forward, turning only my head to observe Carmel's actions.
Even as he shouted that he was almost done, Carmel clung to the paper.
As if pondering what I should do next.
Immediately after, Carmel shouted.
"It's real, it's real. But a few things are missing."
Hearing Carmel's words, I smirked sourly.
'I had a vague feeling you'd say that. As expected.'
Carmel had no choice but to claim the document was real, no matter what.
Circumstantially, what Ellen had was what Carmel had intended to hand over to me.
However, simply calling it real as-is wouldn't be enough to use me to strike back at Ellen.
Moreover, claiming the document was falsified would mean the one Carmel was supposed to give me was fake.
As a next-best option, he'd said parts were missing to make me more decisively attack Ellen.
Of course, he didn't deny the possibility that things were genuinely missing.
"No, no. You skimmed over it. There's still plenty of time. Check it again."
"?"
Carmel looked up at me with a dazed expression.
I chuckled and snatched the document back from his hands.
Only then did Carmel realize the situation, his face twisting in rage.
It looked like he was crying.
Or was crying the right word?
Was it tears or fury?
His contorted face was a mix of betrayal and terror.
"You tricked me, you—"
"—No. Did you think there was anyone here who could be tricked?"
Ellen cut in.
Her eyes curved into long arcs.
As if she'd been eagerly awaiting this moment, she continued with evident delight.
"There was only trickery here. And Big Brother is no longer in this world, is he?"
I shook off Carmel as he grabbed at my feet.
Slowly, I turned my body toward Ellen.
Our eyes met briefly.
I didn't particularly stop Ellen as she parted the knights and approached.
"Did you check the document thoroughly? I hope it meets your satisfaction."
"We'll verify later if anything's truly missing."
"Don't you trust me?"
"I'm tempted to ask you the same. Who here is supposedly trustworthy?"
At those words, Ellen wore a strange expression, soon breaking into a deep smile.
"I like that. Very much. If you'd said you trusted me, I would've suspected you instead."
I passed by her side without even turning my head.
The next moment, a dull thud echoed from behind.
One of the knights must have clubbed Carmel with the baton he'd brought.
A short while later came the sound of something collapsing and a brief scream.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Ellen sat in a red chair adorned with delicate embroidery.
She tilted her wine glass as she waited for me.
A lavish feast was laid out on the table.
I sat across from her.
"You haven't eaten yet, have you? This is my first time orchestrating something like this, so I hope it meets your expectations."
"What about Carmel?"
"Unfortunately, he's been purged."
Wouldn't most people euphemistically say he went missing?
Yet she spoke of his purge as if boasting about slaying kin, utterly composed.
Why was that? The answer to that question wasn't clear.
Ellen smiled and added.
"There won't be a funeral. I have no intention of holding one."
With elegant movements, Ellen sliced into her steak.
As she began eating, I took in the feast before me.
When I cut into the thick slab of meat, blood still seeped out.
I quietly set down my utensils.
After a while of eating, Ellen wiped her mouth and spoke.
"You wanted to verify the document's authenticity. What I gave you is what Big Brother had. It's real. And the missing parts are real too."
"..."
"Big Brother intended to use you to connect with the Empress. I believe the contents regarding Red Star are factual."
"So the parts outside of Red Star... meaning the family-related contents, are partially missing or distorted."
Ellen smiled brightly, as if confirming it was correct.
It contrasted sharply with her emotionless demeanor while purging her kin.
She slid another document across the table.
"I've detailed all the vivisections and past misdeeds my brothers committed, based on my investigations so far."
I opened the document and checked its contents.
The vivisection parts matched what I'd seen underground, at least.
It even included background info I hadn't known.
The reason the sewer I used to enter the territory was infested with monsters.
It was because Carmel had dumped failed test subjects and monsters there.
"You've investigated more than I expected."
"Who knows? The family's scandals might run even deeper. I've written down everything I know... but Big Brother might have hidden more."
Ellen gazed toward the window and continued.
"Red Star seizes weaknesses and forces cooperation. With my brothers already ensnared, my role was set."
"That role being the purge."
As I replied, I recalled the info I'd gained from capturing Asren at the auction house.
Something about scheming through nobles who used the auction house.
Perhaps that was how they gathered leverage on those nobles?
Forcing their cooperation while granting benefits.
Once they accepted once or twice, they'd be irretrievably entangled.
"Even if Red Star is ousted, hiding this would just leave us vulnerable to other factions who know the secret."
The moment ties to Red Star formed, catastrophe was inevitable.
Whether soon or late, amid a situation demanding heavy sacrifices, Ellen had chosen a radical cure.
Purge everyone linked to Red Star, restore the family, and proclaim innocence of treason.
She looked my way.
"It was only a matter of time. My sole remaining choice was when to face the downfall. And that was the key."
"Then let me ask. Why now?"
"Because you sowed chaos in the duke's house before arriving. It shook both Red Star and my brothers. If not then, there'd be no other chance for the purge."
She rose and walked to the window.
"The moment the Empress begins purging Red Star, House Luoas will lose its center. I'll establish a new one before that happens."
"A new center?"
Ellen laughed.
Her eyes weren't on me but on the current Duke Luoas.
The gaze held nothing ordinary.
From the word "center" she uttered, I sensed killing intent.
"I'll be the new center."
I knew what choice Ellen would take next.
Ellen Luoas intended to kill the duke.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The sun was gradually rising over the horizon.
I gathered the documents Ellen had handed over and returned to the hideout.
Astier wasn't at the hideout.
I immediately pulled the documents from my leather pouch.
They detailed Red Star's experiments, finances, and spies tied to House Luoas.
Amid deliberately vague phrasing, decisive sentences stood out prominently.
I reviewed them, organizing what to submit to the Empress, while waiting for Astier to return.
And about seven minutes later.
Astier returned to the hideout.
"Ah, you're finally back."
I looked up from the documents at her.
Dried blood had soaked darkly into the hem of her clothes.
The metallic stench of blood emanated from her.
It was unlikely to be from her own wounds reopening.
"Even if I said to follow him to Yeongchang, I didn't tell you to go somewhere completely different."
Astier's eyes wavered as she returned with someone else's blood on her.
The next moment, her presence shifted.
The panic in her eyes vanished, replaced by welcome and delight.
That was when I noticed.
Her posture had changed ever so slightly.
"Duke, it seems the matter concluded faster than expected."
It was as if her personality had switched.
Instead of answering, I posed a question.
"Was there an intruder at the hideout?"
I waited for Astier's reaction.
To observe the change between before and after the persona switch.