A Barbaric Proposal Chapter 46

※A Precarious Situation (2)※

Liene found herself alone with Black in the bedroom, where a strange current flowed, making it hard to breathe with every intake of air.

[Liene] "......Thank you for your concern. I am fine now, so please leave to attend to your duties."

[Black] "Would the Princess do the same?"

[Liene] "......."

Black took her silent expression as his answer.

[Black] "Lie down. I will watch over you from here."

After speaking, he pulled a chair from the fireplace, placed it beside the bed, and sat down.

[Liene] "......."

She sat on the bed, nervously fiddling with the edge of the blanket.

In truth, regardless of the suspicion it might raise, she could have argued more forcefully.

I am a busy woman, and I have more pressing concerns than the baby in my belly right now. You have no right to treat me like this.

Is it normal to monitor someone under the pretense of concern?

Even if you are betrothed to me, I am the ruler of this place; I am the one wearing the crown.

But she could not bring herself to say those words.

Because his concern felt genuine.

He... he didn't doubt me. Not once.

Usually, wouldn't a man seeing a bloody sheet suspect her menstrual cycle and interrogate her?

Black believed the issue was with the baby.

That fact deeply confused her.

How can he be like that?

I am filled with doubt every single moment.

I cannot keep my heart focused even on the smallest matters.

How is he able to dismiss all suspicion?

[Black] "......Is it difficult to talk to me about the child?"

Black, who had been silently watching her grow increasingly distressed as clutching the blanket, suddenly asked.

[Liene] "......Pardon?"

[Black] "Are you concerned that I will constantly be conscious of the child's real father? Is that why you couldn't even tell me you were in pain?"

[Liene] "That... perhaps."

[Black] "That is unnecessary. This is my child."

[Liene] "......."

This was what she found so suspicious.

Why?

Conversely, if you had a child, I would be on edge all the time.

[Liene] "You know it's not true, both of us. It can't be."

Her reply was edged with sharpness.

[Liene] "Truly... it can't be like that. Because we are human."

[Black] "I have decided to make it so, and I am trying hard."

[Liene] "Is this something that can be achieved just by trying?"

It's not.

You said your blood relative died. Is that something that can be forgotten over time?

You haven't even forgotten the fact that we were betrothed when you were a child, a time you barely remember. How can you forget death?

[Liene] "No one is that generous. ......I can't believe it."

[Black] "My actions do not stem from generosity."

[Liene] "Then what is it?"

[Black] "Because I believe that is what it takes for you to accept me. Without resentment or hatred."

[Liene] "......."

[Black] "What must I do for you to believe me?"

That's exactly why I can't believe you.

Because you speak with such selfless nobility, as if you jumped out of a book.

Such a thing doesn't exist in this world. It never existed in the world I live in.

[Liene] "Does that mean you will do anything?"

[Black] "......If that is what it takes for the Princess to trust me."

It was a statement so blindly devoted it was hard to believe Black had said it.

He was a predator everywhere else. He was a being with no reason to be so blindly devoted.

But why is he acting so blindly towards me? It just doesn't make sense.

[Black] "However, the Princess must also give me something in return."

[Liene] "What... would that be?"

[Black] "A promise. A resolution. Anything. Something that signifies you will absolutely make the child in your womb mine."

[Liene] "......."

[Black] "Can you do that?"

[Liene] "First, show me."

She finally let go of the blanket and faced him.

[Liene] "Show me that you will do anything."

[Black] "What do you desire?"

[Liene] "I heard Sir Fermos took an old man who was begging in front of the Temple. I want to meet him."

He frowned slightly before answering.

[Black] "Doesn't that have nothing to do with the child?"

[Liene] "No. It has everything to do with it."

It was deeply relevant.

[Liene] "Because I need to hear what others have to say about the man who claims he will be the father of my child."

[Black] "......."

Black finally understood why she insisted she could not trust him.

[Black] "The Princess’ heart seems to have reverted to before I announced our betrothal. To that time when my identity and intentions were suspect."

She couldn't bring herself to deny it.

[Black] "Very well. I will do as you wish. But."

His lips curved into a wry smile.

The sight of his white teeth was like a knife scoring her heart.

[Black] "The Princess cannot break her promise a second time."

Black held her gaze relentlessly until she finally nodded her agreement.

---

She couldn't just lie there indefinitely.

Liene forced herself to stay in the bedroom until the medicine arrived, as Black had instructed.

She gulped down the medicine Madam Flambard gave her in one go and headed to the study.

The medicine was extremely bitter—so much so that she worried it would startle the baby even more.

Still, Fermos had assured her it was safe, having carefully scrutinized the ingredients.

[Liene] "It must be somewhere."

What she was searching for was the royal archives from twenty years ago.

[Liene] "My father's coronation was twenty-one years ago. That means he was harmed while my father was King."

Since a betrothal was discussed, the family might have been quite prominent.

She began scanning the families that attended the coronation.

[Liene] "Did he say the name started with the consonant 'P'.......?"

Among the thirteen families invited to the coronation, none had a name starting with that sound.

Her arm ached from flipping through the heavy royal archive books, thick with dust.

[Liene] "Was the betrothal itself a lie?"

She chewed her lip, glaring at the unchanged text no matter how hard she looked.

[Liene] "No, the Madam might have misremembered. It might be among these."

She meticulously examined the thirteen families.

Six of them were the great nobles of Nauk who had created the Risburry Treaty. Three others had died out or lost their former glory over time, and the remaining four had left Nauk one by one over the past two decades.

[Liene] "None of the timelines match."

The families that left Nauk all contradicted Black’s claims.

She felt dizzy from inhaling dust while examining the old documents.

[Liene] "Maybe the timeline is wrong."

If Black hadn't entirely made up the story, he might not have been exact about the year.

People rarely specified the exact year when referring to a long period like twenty years.

[Liene] "It might be a little before twenty years ago."

Liene began searching for records preceding the coronation.

[Liene] "......What is this?"

And she discovered a peculiar fact.

The records from before the coronation—that is, from twenty-five to twenty-one years ago—were missing.

[Liene] "What on earth happened?"

Absurdly, the clear traces of where the pages had been sliced out with a knife remained.

It was outrageous that someone had tampered with the royal archives, and the fact that the very section she needed to know about was missing was extremely suspicious.

[Liene] "Surely.......”

At that very moment, there was one person she couldn't help but suspect.

[Liene] "Sir Fermos......."

He had been hiding in the office even though he had never been granted entry permission.

How often he had been coming and going before that, no one knew.

[Liene] "Was he ordered by that man?"

Could the missing five years of records contain something about Black?

Did he anticipate she would search and remove them beforehand?

[Liene] "Then... that means I should be suspicious, doesn't it?"

Her hand, resting on the missing pages, trembled slightly.

[Liene] "He's the one acting suspiciously!"

Thud!

Liene put down the record and stood up.

There was no point in looking for missing records.

[Liene] "I need to search his room."

If Fermos was the culprit, one of two things was true:

He had destroyed them, or he had hidden them.

She decided to leave the result to chance. If her luck held, he hadn't destroyed them yet and merely hidden them.

Liene rose and headed somewhere.

It was the room opposite the Madam's bedroom—the room she used as a child. Fermos was reportedly using that room as his own office now.

---

Thud!

The door was unlocked.

If it had been locked, Liene was prepared to gladly break it down.

She had no intention of searching secretly. The royal archives were the property of the royal family, and unauthorized people were naturally forbidden from possessing or damaging them.

This time, she fully intended to press charges.

She had no desire to consider his rank, but what Fermos had done was disloyalty and an insult to the royal family.

[Fermos] "Oh...? Your Highness? What brings you here?"

But she hadn't expected Fermos to be in the room at this hour.

She quickly composed her startled expression and spoke.

[Liene] "I came to ask you a question."

[Fermos] "How did you know I was here?"

[Liene] "......That won't be important."

[Fermos] "Er, um... Of course not. I was just surprised. But shouldn't the Princess be resting? My Lord will not be pleased to see you walking around like this."

[Liene] "I will be direct."

She cut off the unnecessary conversation.

[Liene] "What did you do with the royal archives you stole?"

[Fermos] "......Pardon?"

His eyes widened, and he adjusted his monocle.

[Fermos] "What did I do?"

[Liene] "I don't wish to speak at length. If you have them, hand them over. It won't erase your crime, but it will lighten the charge slightly."

[Fermos] "So what are you referring to? Royal archives? Which records, and why and when would I have taken them?"

[Liene] "Are you trying to deny it?"

[Fermos] "Absolutely not! Why would I take the royal archives? I can simply read and memorize them."

Fermos, jumping in protest, looked genuinely wronged. His expression clearly showed he knew nothing.

...No, I can't be sure.

This man is notoriously smooth. Who knows if he's skilled at lying?

[Liene] "It must have been to prevent me from seeing them."

[Fermos] "Hmm? Are you saying there are records the Princess hasn't seen yet?"

[Liene] "......."

That question left her speechless.

[Fermos] "It is right for you to suspect me. But I swear upon the God of War, I have never laid a hand on the royal archives."

When she looked unconvinced, Fermos offered his hands with a harmless expression.

[Fermos] "Do you know who the God of War in Tiwakan is?"

[Liene] "......No."

[Fermos] "It is Lord Tiwakan."

[Liene] "I see. Why is that relevant......"

[Fermos] "To swear upon the God of War is to stake one's life on the name of our Lord. There is not a single person in Tiwakan who would use their Lord’s name carelessly."

[Liene] "......."

Fermos spoke with such conviction and pride that she had no choice but to believe him.

Even to a mercenary who saw war as a means to make money—or perhaps, especially to such a mercenary—conviction was vital.

In a life defined by death and money, conviction was the only thing that made them human.

For the Tiwakan, that conviction was Black.

[Liene] "......Since you say that, I will not press my suspicion further. I truly hope those words are the truth. For the sake of your commander’s name."

[Fermos] "The one thing I would never do in my life is stain my Lord’s name. Such a person does not deserve to be called Tiwakan."

...Yes. I understand that much.

Liene quietly swallowed a sigh.

Then who on earth did this?

[Fermos] "Do you intend to find the culprit?"

He asked, perhaps seeing the turmoil on her face.

[Liene] "Yes."

[Fermos] "Then I will assist you. The Princess has conveniently given me a clue about the person who killed the Cardinal, so I happen to have some free time."

[Liene] "Will you really do that?"

[Fermos] "Yes. But there is a condition."

...The Commander and his subordinate.

They all give one thing only to immediately demand another. It was impossible not to believe they were working together.

[Liene] "What is it?"

[Fermos] "Go back to your bedroom. And lie down quietly. My Lord said you wished to see the old man who knows the servant's whereabouts? I have already commanded him to be brought to the castle, so I will notify you when he arrives. Until then, you must rest well."

They sought to gain something, but what they asked for would be much more beneficial for Liene than for themself.

[Liene] "I am not that tired."

[Fermos] "This is not for the Princess’ sake, but for my Lord's. If you wish for me to be of help, you must absolutely comply. If something were to happen to the Princess... ugh, I don't even want to think about it. Just keep in mind that the result would be terrible."

[Liene] "......."

His words struck her like a physical blow.

For that man’s sake, he said. That sounds like he is worried about me that much.

What on earth is that man trying to achieve by going to such lengths?

[Liene] "Will a statement like 'I will try my best' suffice?"

[Fermos] "No. It will not. You must lie down quietly."

[Liene] "Then promise me. Promise you will absolutely find the culprit. The real culprit. Swear upon the God of War."

Fermos might be capable of framing a fake culprit for his Lord’s benefit. She couldn't rule out that possibility.

He readily raised his hand and swore.

[Fermos] "If that is what it takes for you to rest, then willingly."

[Liene] "......Thank you."

And just like that, it became even harder to understand him.

Could people with ulterior motives truly act this way?

[Fermos] "Please return at once. I will only move once the Princess returns to her bedroom. Have you taken all your medicine?"

In the end, Liene was escorted back to her bedroom by Fermos.

Fermos was so thorough that he even posted a mercenary to guard her door.

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