A Barbaric Proposal Chapter 49

※Revenge and a Marriage Proposal※

[Liene] “...”

[Old Man] “...”

Liene received the old man in the Audience Hall.

The Audience Chamber was an uncomfortable place for an elderly man with leg problems, as there were no chairs for anyone other than royalty.

As promised, Black closed the door and left after bringing him.

Liene allowed the old man some time to fully absorb the fact that they were alone, slowly observing his one visible eye.

...No injuries or anything.

It meant Black had not coerced him.

Liene twisted her lips to herself.

I must truly not trust Lord Tiwakan.

In fact, the opposite was true. It was because she wanted to believe him that she scrutinised him more closely. She wanted to eliminate every shred of doubt.

[Liene] "I know you have something to tell me. I arranged this space because I want to hear it comfortably, so please speak freely."

[Liene] "That... The daughter of Arsak is a sinner of Nauk... Soon to shed blood. He will take revenge. Didn't you tell me that?"

[Old Man] "..."

[Liene] "Tell me what that means. What terrible thing did I do to be called a sinner?"

[Old Man] "..."

His mouth did not open easily.

[Liene] "You cannot move from this spot until you answer. I will not let you leave the palace, even if you die here and are reduced to bones."

It was a low blow, but she had to resort to the threat of not even giving him a tomb.

[Old Man] "Arsak... brought drought... to this land... Nauk's... sinner..."

Finally, he spoke haltingly.

[Liene] "Keep going."

[Old Man] "And so... many lives... perished... That sin... the blood of the Arsak family... must wash away..."

[Liene] "And then?"

She frowned inadvertently.

There were indeed people who spoke such things. They were the ones who, when the drought persisted for too long since the previous king's reign, claimed it was God's curse or the King's sin.

Twenty years had passed, and the words were no longer circulating widely, but that didn't mean they had completely vanished.

[Old Man] "S-someday... God will take revenge..."

[Liene] "You are lying to me. How dare you!"

She glared at him.

[Liene] "That was not what you meant when you first spoke. You said the daughter of Arsak would shed blood due to revenge. God's revenge is not carried out in a way that makes humans shed blood. That kind of revenge belongs to humans."

[Old Man] "A lie... N-no... Arsak's revenge is... God... will..."

[Liene] "You recognized Lord Tiwakan."

[Old Man] "..."

His eye narrowed slightly for a moment. She interpreted it as panic.

[Liene] "How do you know Lord Tiwakan? Did you meet him in his childhood?"

[Old Man] "..."

[Liene] "What is Lord Tiwakan's name?"

[Old Man] "..."

He closed his mouth and stared intently at her. His gaze seemed to be asking if she could bear the truth if he told it.

[Liene] "Answer me."

She bit back the anxiety surging up in her stomach.

Tell me the truth. I will listen to whatever it is.

I need to know who he is.

[Old Man] "Henton."

The word came clearly from his mouth. She briefly doubted if it was him speaking.

[Liene] "Henton?"

It was a name she had never heard.

[Old Man] "Henton's... second son."

[Liene] "And that was Lord Tiwakan?"

He closed his mouth again. However, his expression clearly said he had forced himself to speak the necessary truth.

She decided to accept his statement.

[Liene] "Alright. Then this is my final question."

He silently nodded his head. He had the attitude of a man who, having revealed a hidden truth, no longer had any intention of remaining silent.

[Liene] "Why did you strike the servant, Klima?"

[Old Man] "He saw..."

[Liene] "Saw what?"

[Old Man] "Putting the body... into the coffin..."

[Liene] "Ah..."

It was as she suspected.

Klima was the culprit. That meant he was an errand runner for the Kleinfelter family, and that included terrible acts like assassination.

She remembered Klima’s condition when he was caught—his body slick with blood. He had said he needed to offer a prayer of penance.

Was that... why?

It simply didn't fit. Why was a priest, who flagellated himself out of guilt, also acting as the Kleinfelter family's assassin?

[Liene] "Thank you for answering. You may go wherever you wish now. If you need a place to stay, I will arrange lodging within the castle. Or is there somewhere else you wish to go?"

[Old Man] "...A tomb."

[Liene] "Pardon?"

She thought she must have misheard, but apparently not.

[Old Man] "I will soon die... No need to be... comfortable..."

He finished speaking, supporting himself with his cane, and struggled to his feet. His movement was more resolute than a hundred words.

No matter how comfortable a bed she might arrange, he would not welcome it.

[Liene] "May you find the rest you seek wherever you go."

Liene rose from her chair and left the chamber first.

She deliberately left the door open, a final small kindness to make the old man's departure easier.

---

Even with the answer, her heart was far from at ease.

Liene continued walking, heading straight for the rear garden. It was still a bleak and unattractive place.

She slowly walked through the garden, where only thorny thickets remained, and gathered her thoughts.

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

No matter how many times she repeated it, the name was unfamiliar. Yet, it was strangely recognizable.

It was a name she hadn't even seen in the archives. That must mean the family was of such low standing—one who could vanish one day, with no one left to remember them.

[Liene] "No... the old man remembers."

Thinking of the broken old man and a wounded servant made her feel heavy, even though it wasn't her fault.

[Liene] "Perhaps I shouldn't have just sent him away."

She needed to make sure he had something—clothing or food.

She quickly turned around.

...And saw someone approaching. It was Black.

The moment she spotted him, all other thoughts completely vanished.

If someone were to draw a diagram of the space he occupied in her mind, she would never have believed it.

Compared to Black, everything else was merely a speck.

[Liene] "How did you know... I was here?"

She waited quietly until he reached her.

[Black] "I saw you."

[Liene] "From where?"

[Black] "From the East Tower."

That meant he had been watching her since she left the Audience Hall.

[Black] "I wanted to stop you from coming to this dangerous place, but you seemed deep in thought."

[Liene] "Did you... wait for me?"

[Black] "Yes."

Why could this man... always say things that sounded like he was entirely devoted to her?

She felt awkward looking at his face and tapped the ground with the tip of her shoe.

[Liene] "It's not dangerous here. It's the rear garden."

[Black] "An arrow has flown here before, which means there is a route leading outside."

[Liene] "Oh... I didn't know the castle had such a thing..."

Seeing her surprised expression, Black pointed forward.

[Black] "I've found one route. But just in case.”

[Black] “Were you on your way back?"

[Liene] "Yes. I'm worried about just letting the old man go."

[Black] "If that's the case, you don't need to turn back. Fermos will take care of it."

[Liene] "I wanted to give him something to eat, at least."

[Black] "Yes."

His short reply implied that even that detail would be handled.

She sighed, feeling instantly relieved.

[Liene] "Thank you. For taking care of things like that."

[Black] "I merely imitated the Princess. Shall we continue your walk?"

Liene looked at the arm he held out toward her.

The intention was clear. She was supposed to loop her arm through his, stroll around the rear garden side-by-side like an affectionate couple, and talk softly.

...But was it truly alright?

Had she dispelled all her suspicions about this man?

—Do whatever it takes. So that I can trust you.

—In return, the Princess must never break her promise again.

That was their last conversation. The moment Liene brought up the old man, the result was sealed.

Whether a corner of her heart still felt heavy or not, she had to keep her promise.

[Liene] "I heard Lord Tiwakan's name."

She hesitated, then placed her hand on the arm he had offered.

As he turned and began to walk, they naturally settled into a stroll side-by-side.

[Liene] "The old man knew it."

[Black] "What did he say?"

[Liene] "Lord Tiwakan, please tell me."

Your name. Who you really are.

[Black] "...Henton."

The same name was spoken.

Was that name real, then?

Was he not lying?

[Black] "That was my name just before I left this land."

[Liene] "And... you changed your name."

[Black] "I didn't exactly change it. After that, whatever my name was didn't really matter anymore."

[Liene] "..."

She didn't know exactly what the life of a mercenary was like. But she knew that a child could not join a mercenary group. He must have endured countless unspoken events.

[Liene] "Tell me more. When you said your family was killed, were you talking about your father?”

[Black] "Yes."

The matter-of-fact response held no hint of falsehood. He spoke as if it were someone else's story, or a past long forgotten.

[Liene] "Do you also know... who killed him?"

[Black] "I was too young at the time to know the precise circumstances. But I remember the crest engraved on the gauntlets of those who killed my father."

[Liene] "What was it?"

[Black] "A leaf."

[Liene] "...!"

She stopped dead in her tracks.

[Liene] "A leaf...?"

The laurel leaf was the symbol of the Kleinfelter family. It was always on their helmets and banners.

Laffit's practice of attaching a leaf to the back of his arrows stemmed from the family tradition.

[Liene] "Then..."

She swayed, unable to absorb the shock.

His enemy was Kleinfelter. Kleinfelter's eldest son was her former lover, and she had claimed to carry his child to refuse Black's proposal.

The Kleinfelter family had killed his father.

He believed she was carrying a Kleinfelter heir in her womb.

Her former lover had told her Black had come for revenge.

Black had proposed marriage first.

Revenge. A marriage proposal.

Two concepts that could never meet now merged into one because of the Kleinfelter.

Because Black thought he might actually become a husband and have a child of Kleinfelter blood, and believed he could exact his revenge by taking Liene and her child from Kleinfelter.

[Black] "That's why I didn't tell you. I anticipated this reaction."

Black caught her as she stumbled.

[Liene] "Then why did... why did you want the child..."

[Black] "Whose child it was did not matter."

[Liene] "Why! Why!"

[Black] "Do I need to tell you again?"

He brushed the stray hair from her forehead, his gesture implying he had already told her multiple times.

[Black] "I desired the Princess more than I desired revenge. Since the Princess did not want me to kill Kleinfelter, I decided to let him be. Is that still so hard to believe?"

[Liene] "That... that makes no sense. How could you... How could you possibly do that? How..."

[Black] "After leaving Nauk, I never stayed in one place. Even less so after my name became Tiwakan."

He swept all her hair back and gently stroked her exposed forehead.

[Black] "After the wars ended, I needed a home to return to. Not just a place with a roof, but a place I could truly call home."

It was a strange thing. The hand stroking the forehead of the woman carrying the bloodline of his enemy was as gentle as ever.

[Black] "The closest thing to a home for me is the Princess. Even though she was not mine, I remembered you as my intended spouse."

[Liene] "...How, how could you possibly..."

[Black] "I am not skilled at making excuses. I hoped that if I revealed my name, it would make my clumsy explanations even more difficult, so I wished to remain undiscovered. I feel the same now. If I could have, I would have kept it hidden. Then I would have remained in that moment forever."

[Liene] "..."

She looked at him, her eyes questioning when that moment was.

[Black] "The moment when I wake up, and the Princess is beside me, and I can kiss you without permission or concern."

[Liene] "..."

[Black] "That was the home I imagined."

[Liene] "..."

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