Chapter 136
Chapter 136
Translation: godsn
One of the guards was so stubborn that it took nearly the price of a house in gold coins just to bribe him for a brief visit.
Regardless, he was incredibly lucky.
He had remained in the royal castle as the liaison between the Regent and Iason.
When the rebellion didn't go as planned, he was the first to go into hiding.
As a Valdinan living in Kazen, slipping away quietly and laying low was neither unfamiliar nor difficult for him.
And so, while Iason and his subordinates were all expelled from Valdina, Laju alone managed to stay.
"My lady, please take this. Clean water and a blanket."
Even in prison, his first concern was his grief-stricken lover.
"Oh, my. How could someone so refined end up like this..."
Her roughened face, tangled hair, and soiled dress.
The sight of his beautiful, elegant Catherine trapped in this wretched prison like a sick bird tore at Laju's heart.
"Virna, apply this ointment. The Grand Duke brought it. If you don't wrap it with clean bandages, the wound will fester."
When he saw the wounds still marking Virna's back, he wished it had been him instead.
He turned and glared through the bars at the Regent on the other side, grinding his teeth in silent fury.
You fool, this is all your fault. You pushed for this rebellion, scraping together every last ounce of strength you had, and still failed?
Not only had the Regent failed, but he had also dragged Iason down into the same pit.
You sold out His Grace the Grand Duke just to save your own skin?! How many times must you prove yourself a brainless imbecile? Just scraping by each crisis isn't enough!
The sight of this once-arrogant noble, who had never known a single fall from grace, now plummeting headlong into ruin was unbearably pathetic.
He would have done differently.
Had he possessed even half of Claudio's status and power, the outcome would have been different.
The long-held resentment toward the Regent and the catastrophic results he had brought about fueled the murderous rage boiling inside him.
If he could, he would kill the Regent right here, right now.
Damn the Valdina royal family! Damn you, Joaquin! And damn your niece too!
But the flames of fury rising in his chest were not directed first at the Regent.
They burned hottest for Princess Medeia.
That vile wench tricked our Virna and sold her out just to save herself?
Being kidnapped by the Rebel Army,
bearing the disgrace of fleeing to save her own life in front of the entire world,
being slashed by blind blades—all of it should have been that bitch's fate.
Count Laju trembled with rage.
His selfish tendency to blindly redirect all blame onto others was strikingly similar to Virna's.
Had he paused to think calmly for even a moment, he might have realized that none of this would have happened if they hadn't targeted Medeia in the first place. But if Laju had been capable of rational, level-headed judgment, he wouldn't have stepped into this mess to begin with.
Virna, I swear I will avenge your suffering. That princess will not die an easy death. If you survive this, if you return to the Empire...
But for now, before he could act on his seething rage, securing a way out for the ducal family took precedence.
Whether the Regent lived or died didn't matter.
But Catherine was his one and only love, and Virna was his own flesh and blood.
He couldn't leave them trapped in this filthy prison to be executed.
No matter what it took, he had to get the mother and daughter out.
"...Samon."
Turning his head, Laju approached Samon and handed him a small basket.
Inside were clean water, bread to stave off hunger, medicine, and painkillers.
"Thank you, Uncle Laju."
Samon moved closer to the bars. His eyes, gleaming in the darkness, were almost catlike.
"At least you're still holding onto your senses. That's something."
Laju sighed as he spoke.
Neither the Regent, Catherine, nor Virna were in their right minds.
No matter what Laju said, they seemed too far gone to hear.
Occasionally, they would only erupt in curses directed at the King and the Princess.
As if waiting for his turn, Samon spoke up.
"Yes, I can't afford to lose myself. Uncle, summon the Fourth Imperial Princess. If it's her, she can get our family out."
Laju swallowed a sigh of relief.
Even though the coup had failed and they were imprisoned, at least the young duke still had his wits about him. His investment in this losing hand hadn't been entirely wasted.
"True, you've picked the right target... but the Fourth Imperial Princess won't lift a finger. She's not the type to beg the King of Valdina for petty favors over some trivial matter."
"...Even if I threaten to expose her relationship with me and her eccentricities?"
"How many men do you think have disappeared after making such vulgar threats? The Fourth Princess wouldn't even bat an eye."
Samon couldn't deny the validity of Laju's point.
He gnawed at his lip.
Was there truly no way out? Were they doomed to simply await execution?
"Unless we can grasp a weakness far greater than mere bedroom affairs."
"Huh?"
At Laju's meaningful addition, Samon looked up at him sharply.
"What do you...?"
"This uncle has already taken measures. I bribed the Fourth Princess's handmaid to administer a pregnancy-inducing drug not long ago."
They'd seized the chaos when the diplomatic mission was in disarray, fleeing the royal castle in panic after the failed rebellion.
Samon stared blankly for a moment before comprehending Laju's words.
Pregnancy. Yes, that was undoubtedly a matter the Fourth Princess couldn't ignore.
"But even so, wouldn't the physician discover the deception during examination?"
Moreover, the physician accompanying this diplomatic mission was renowned as a Divine Physician. He'd surely detect the drug-induced false pregnancy.
"Don't worry. He'll report exactly what we want to the Princess. The Divine Physician's grandson is in my grasp."
Laju's eyes gleamed with oily satisfaction.
He had kidnapped the Divine Physician's grandson to coerce him.
With his son and daughter-in-law already gone and his only remaining descendant's life at stake, the Divine Physician had no choice but to obey Laju's orders.
"I've already sent word to the imperial family. That the Fourth Princess is carrying your child. The Emperor will respond soon."
News of Valdina's situation must have reached Perdiccas II's ears by now.
Given how the Emperor doted on the Fourth Princess, and with the East Imperial Consort and East Marquis backing her, he couldn't possibly allow his first grandchild to be born a bastard.
"Uncle, thank you. I will never forget this kindness you've shown our family by risking yourself for us."
Samon prostrated himself in gratitude.
When everyone else had turned their backs, Laju was the first and only one who had sought out the Claudios, braving danger to secure their survival.
Even his cold, selfish nature couldn't help being moved.
"We're family now. No need for such formalities."
Laju waved his hand dismissively.
His gaze briefly flickered to Catherine and Virna leaning against the barred walls.
"Then, Uncle. Please also inform the Holy Kingdom of this matter. Say we hope the Pope will bestow his blessing when the child is born."
Laju understood Samon's implication.
This was an additional safeguard to prevent the Kazen imperial family from potentially covering up the Princess's pregnancy entirely.
"Quite clever indeed. Leave it to me."
Laju offered his praise.
The two men's eyes met, shining darkly like the backs of cockroaches.
Under brilliant sunshine, Valdina's streets were more crowded than ever as citizens poured out.
They had come to welcome their King's triumphant return.
"Long live Valdina! Long live His Majesty the King!"
At the procession's forefront approached Pelleus astride a white steed, followed by two hundred Agema warriors.
In the sunlight, Pelleus's armor gleamed silver-white alongside his platinum hair.
The light behind him seemed almost like a divine halo.
"When did our young King become so majestic?" people marveled, sighing in awe.
The terrifying greatsword on his back had seemingly vanished without a trace.
"He cut down the plains' enemies and raced back across months of distance in a single breath to crush the rebels for our sake."
"Unlike that flip-flopping Claudio trash who can't even compare! As they say, know one and know ten—that bastard would've fled alone to save himself even if he'd become King!"
"Pah! I still hear his creepy words echoing in my ears. Even madness has its limits—he should've been grateful for living in luxury with that stone head of his. How dare he overreach!"
"Right, exactly! Who dares steal His Majesty's throne! There is only one true King of Valdina—His Majesty Pelleus!"
Just as Medeia had intended, the people's endless praises for the King and condemnations of the Regent flowed ceaselessly.
Boom! Boom! Fireworks bursting throughout the streets and the military band's majestic music created a festival-like atmosphere.
It was truly the first time in ages that Valdina had been so joyously alive.