A Barbaric Proposal Chapter 54

※21 Years Ago (2)※

The seven families had been relentless. Knight Henton’s flight ended in a desperate struggle, his life snuffed out by the Kleinfelter private militia before he could breach the border.

[Liene] "Then..."

She felt the first prickle of dread. This was where Klima’s agony began—and where her own reality started to fracture.

[Liene] "Did Prince Fernand escape? Or did he... did he die with them?"

—I watched them murder my father.

Black said he witnessed Henton's death with his own eyes.

Had Henton intended to smuggle his entire family out alongside the Prince?

Was that why he took his second son with him, only to be cut down by the Kleinfelter hounds?

[Klima] "I don't know. I was at home with my mother then."

[Liene] "Oh..."

The realization hit her. Knight Henton couldn't save everyone. He had chosen only his youngest, the small boy, to accompany the Prince into the night.

[Liene] "What happened next?"

[Klima] "The Kleinfelters... they came for us. And then..."

The insurrection of the Seven Families had been a masterpiece of shadows. They had waited for the King to depart for the hunt, then struck like vipers.

They left the King’s corpse to the scavengers so the world would believe wolves had torn him apart.

No one knew he had died by a traitor’s blade because every loyal guard had been slaughtered alongside him.

Henton, the sole survivor who had spirited Prince Fernand away, became the ultimate target.

Klima and his mother should have died to erase the trail. Yet, for reasons known only to himself, Lyndon Kleinfelter had spared them.

Klima had spent his life lurking in the dark, hidden from the other six families. In exchange for his life, the Kleinfelters used him as their butcher, a ghost to carry out their filthiest errands.

To ensure his leash never slackened, they kept his mother caged in their estate—a living collateral.

[Liene] "What a wretched life you've led."

She whispered, her heart aching with genuine grief.

She finally understood why Klima, a man who had claimed thirteen lives, didn't feel like a villain. He was a tool, forged in blood by evil men before he was old enough to know the weight of a soul.

[Liene] "I cannot find it in me to punish such a man. Especially not one who bears the name Henton."

To Liene, the name Henton now carried the same sacred weight as Arsak.

[Klima] "Th-then..."

A flicker of desperate hope ignited in his eyes.

[Klima] "You'll... you'll let my mother live?"

[Liene] "Of course. The Seven Families committed the crime. They are the ones who must bleed for it."

Klima fell silent. The hope in his eyes vanished, replaced by a churning sea of conflict.

[Liene] "You can trust me, I know your brother."

[Klima] "What?"

[Liene] "He is precious to me. And because of that, his family is my own."

Klima’s jaw dropped, his expression vacant.

[Klima] "How... how? My brother died that day..."

[Liene] "No. He survived. He returned to Nauk, never knowing his family was still drawing breath."

She reached out, expecting him to break into sobs.

He looked on the verge of collapse, his hands clutching his head as if to keep it from shattering.

She wanted to pull him into an embrace, to tell him to stop weeping—that they would go to his brother together.

[Klima] "My brother... is dead."

He didn't cry. His fingers dug into his scalp as he forced himself to remember.

[Klima] "My father killed him. He said if he left him alive, the Seven Families would only torture him. He chose to end it with his own hands."

[Liene] "No... that’s not right. Your brother is alive. He's—"

[Klima] "Father dressed him in Prince Fernand’s coat and drove a blade through his heart. He forced the knife into my hand and told me to... to destroy his face. So he couldn't be identified. My mother fainted when she couldn't stop him, and I... I did as I was told. I destroyed my brother."

Klima’s hands shook violently. Liene felt the tremors mirror in her own bones. A cold, rhythmic shudder took hold of her.

[Klima] "The face... the blood..."

When Lyndon Kleinfelter had stormed the Henton residence, he had found a boy driven mad, weeping over the mangled corpse of a child wearing royal silks. A bloody knife lay nearby.

Seeing the boy was already broken, Lyndon had realized he had found the perfect puppet.

[Liene] "Then... then the one who escaped..."

[Klima] "Wasn't my brother. My brother is dead."

[Liene] "Prince Fernand..."

She clenched her teeth so hard her jaw ached. If she didn't, the chattering of her teeth would drown out the world.

When I left Nauk, my name was Henton.

The memory of Black's voice echoed in her mind.

Now, the pieces clicked into a horrific mosaic. He had fled under the identity of Knight Henton’s second son.

That was why they were betrothed—because he was the Prince.

The Princess is the closest thing I have to a home.

He hadn't been speaking metaphorically. He meant she was literally living in his house. He had wanted to return to the life that was stolen from him, without destroying what was left. That was why he said he would forgo his revenge.

For the first time, Liene felt she truly saw the man behind the shadow of 'Black.'

[Liene] "Even so... my mind is unchanged.”

Her voice steadied through sheer will.

[Liene] "Knight Henton saved the Prince. He is my benefactor. I will treat you and his widow with the honor his sacrifice deserves. Please, allow me to do this."

[Klima] "...? Why? Why would you do that?"

[Liene] "Because Prince Fernand is my fiancé."

[Klima] "Wh-what...?"

Klima’s pupils darted erratically. His instability was infectious, making Liene’s pulse race.

[Liene] "What is it?"

[Klima] "Why...? How could he be?"

[Liene] "Lord Tiwakan is Prince Fernand. If he isn't your brother, then he must be—"

[Klima] "But you are an Arsak."

A chill raced down her spine, turning her blood to ice. Perhaps her heart had known the truth the moment Klima mentioned 'Seven.'

There were only six noble houses in Nauk powerful enough to lead a coup: Kleinfelter, Ellaroyden, Burrey, Zerquess, Armendariz, and Rosadel.

To make seven, you needed one more. The family that profited most. The family that claimed the throne in the vacuum of the slaughter.

The Arsaks.

[Liene] "Ah... ah... Ah!"

She finally understood why Klima had clutched his head. She wanted to tear her own thoughts out.

She gripped her hair, a strangled groan escaping her throat, sounding like a distant explosion in the silence of her mind.

It was her. She was the enemy’s blood. The man she loved... she was the one he should have killed. Not some distant villain, but her.

---

Liene blinked. In the dry, lightless cellar, time had no meaning.

[Klima] "You're awake."

His voice pulled her from the abyss. She realized she had blacked out again.

[Klima] "I didn't know what to do... so I just stayed here."

His timid voice brought the horror rushing back.

Fernand. Fernand Gainers. 

That was his name. What was she supposed to do now?

He fidgeted, his tears finally dry, looking at her with an anxious uncertainty.

[Klima] "Should I... should I take you back to the castle now?"

He had clearly abandoned his role as Kleinfelter’s dog. It should have been a relief, but Liene felt nothing but a hollow numbness.

[Liene] "Why did he propose to me?"

[Klima] "Pardon? What was that?"

I didn't want to lose you to anyone else.

The memory of Black's voice provided the answer.

Yes, from his perspective, it was a reclamation. Nauk, the throne, the Princess—they were all his by right.

[Liene] "Then he should have just taken it. He could have married me and seized the sovereignty. That would have been enough."

[Klima] "Princess?"

He pointed to himself, confused, but Liene was staring into the void.

[Liene] "Why did he act as if... as if he actually wanted me?"

I wanted to find my home.

Maybe that was the only truth. Maybe his promise to forget revenge was real. He could have razed Nauk to the ground at any moment, yet he chose to walk through the front door.

[Liene] "Did he just want to come home and rest? Was that all?"

Klima listened in silence, realizing she wasn't speaking to him at all.

[Liene] "He never lied to me... except for his name."

And he had hidden his name for the same reason he had told the truth about everything else.

[Liene] "He desperately wanted me never to find out."

Because if he had told her... she never would have trusted him. She would have spent every night waiting for him to slit her throat, involving the six families to "protect" herself, unknowingly releasing vipers into her own bed.

If he kept the secret, it all made sense. His desire, his protection, his devotion—it could all be real.

[Liene] "I’m going back to the castle."

She stood. The weakness that had claimed her moments ago vanished, replaced by a cold, sharp clarity.

She looked down at Klima, who remained huddled on the floor.

[Liene] "Everything I said stands. I will not punish you for your crimes."

She had no right to. Not as an Arsak—the bloodline that wore a stolen crown and lived in a palace built on Gainers' corpses.

She realized there was another liar. The old beggar at the temple who had called Black 'Henton.' He knew. He had lied to protect Fernand.

A bitter smile touched her lips.

The old man had tried to tell her the truth at first, but Black must have intervened. There would be more lies like this. Small deceits to guard a massive secret.

Liene decided then: she would keep his secret. Not because she feared the six families' reaction to a returning Prince, but for him.

If you want it this way, I will be your fool. If that is what it takes to keep you, I will stay in the dark.

[Liene] "Stay hidden, as you have been. It won't be for much longer. If Kleinfelter sends word, ignore it."

[Klima] "But... but my mother?"

[Liene] "I will handle it. When she is safe, I will send for you. After that, the choice is yours. You can leave Nauk, or stay and receive a new name and a new life. No one will ever know you were a Henton."

[Klima] "Is that... is that allowed? After what I've done?"

[Liene] "I will take your sins upon myself. They are sins you would never have committed if not for the Arsaks."

Her mind was terrifyingly calm.

[Liene] "Tell me the way back to the castle. I'll go alone."

[Klima] "I must guide you. The tunnels are a labyrinth..."

[Liene] "No."

Exposing Klima near the castle was too dangerous.

[Liene] "Describe it in detail. That is enough. As far as the world is concerned, you never kidnapped me."

[Klima] "But if you get lost, it's dangerous—"

[Liene] "Then that is my burden to bear."

The beggar's prophecy echoed in her mind: the daughter of Arsak would not bleed. But she would carry the weight of a kingdom's worth of sins.

With a face like stone, Liene memorized the path home.

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