IHDOE Ch 78

[Katan] "Then grant me a reward."

[Satina] "Huh?"

He seized the opportunity, his expression bordering on brazen.

[Katan] "Did you not say it was thanks to me? So please grant me a reward."

His gaze dropped to her hand. Suddenly, she recalled the last time he had asked for a reward, when he kissed her hand and bit it.

Heat flushed her face as if the ghost of his tongue on the back of her hand still lingered. She hastily hid her hands behind her back.

[Satina] "I-I won't give you my hands anymore."

He smacked his lips in mock disappointment.

[Katan] "Does that mean you will grant me a different reward?"

He lowered his gaze to her feet. He stared so intently that she felt as if he might kiss her feet if allowed. She took a step back.

[Satina] "No. I won't give you anything."

[Katan] "How do you know what I desire?"

[Satina] "I don't know. And I don't care to know."

She tried to push him out of the room, but he refused to budge. Instead, he caught her by the waist as she pushed his shoulders and lifted her effortlessly.

[Satina] "Katan!"

She gasped and kicked her legs in the air.

[Katan] "Hold still. You will fall."

[Satina] "You can just put me down!"

He cradled her easily and set her onto the bed.

[Satina] "You..."

Before she could speak, Katan rested his head against her knees. He took her hand, placed it atop his head, and made a shameless request.

[Katan] "Stroke my hair."

[Satina] "What?"

She left her hand on his head where he had guided it.

[Katan] "Hurry."

Swept along by his persistence, Satina stroked his hair with a dazed look. Silky black strands felt soft beneath her touch.

[Katan] "Could you sing a song for me as well?"

[Satina] "What should I sing?"

[Katan] "Anything My Lady sings is fine."

He leaned his head against her hand and whispered.

[Katan] "Because the moment you sang, I became bound to you entirely."

[Satina] "You've grown better at flattery."

[Katan] "I am sincere. So please, hurry."

After a moment of hesitation, Satina began to sing a lullaby meant to soothe young children to sleep. Katan closed his eyes and listened intently to her melody.

In the middle of this rare, peaceful moment, a knock resounded at the door.

Satina stopped singing, and Katan glared at the door with rare irritation. She coaxed him off the bed and opened the door to find Sharlan standing outside.

[Sharlan] "You are late. What on earth were you doing in here?"

[Satina] "What else? I was resting."

[Sharlan] "Is that so?"

He glared at Katan, who stood behind Satina. Even if she had sung without any ulterior motive, Sharlan hated that the slave monopolized her song.

Furthermore, despite his docile facade, Katan couldn't entirely hide the dark, intense gaze that occasionally slipped through. How could a look steeped in such devotion belong to a slave looking at his master?

[Sharlan] "You had better not remain so close to someone like him, Sister."

He spoke in a gentle tone as he looked at Satina.

[Sharlan] "As I mentioned before, if you say the word, I will assign whichever knight you desire as your escort. Why not reconsider entrusting your protection to him?"

She shook her head.

[Satina] "As I said back then, Katan is the most skilled. If someone turns out to be better with a sword than him, I'll consider it then."

Veins bulged on Sharlan's neck. Thinking back to that moment still infuriated him. When he had arranged spars between the ducal knights and the slave, every single knight had lost.

Furthermore, when he wondered why the knights acted friendly toward the slave, he discovered they owed him their lives at the western fortress.

Sharlan had ordered their training doubled in outrage. Even recruiting swordsmen superior to House Bersabet's knights proved difficult, as their current roster was already exceptional. For now, the slave kept his position as Satina's escort.

[Sharlan] "Well, fine. One day, I will bring a knight who is superior to that slave. At any rate, I didn't come to discuss that right now."

[Satina] "Then?"

[Sharlan] "It is about Father."

Satina caught the key phrase and gestured for Katan to step outside. Once they were alone, Sharlan stepped closer and lowered his voice to a whisper.

[Sharlan] "Father fell into the trap set for him in the east. News of his disappearance will arrive shortly."

[Satina] "Which means..."

[Sharlan] "In accordance with family law, I will officially assume the role of Acting Head in one month. After a year passes, I will formally inherit the headship."

[Satina] "You worked hard."

She stroked his hair, but he caught her wrist.

[Sharlan] "Sister."

[Satina] "Yes?"

[Sharlan] "Remember, I am your only younger brother."

[Satina] "..."

[Sharlan] "I am your only family."

The words reminded her of a line from a bad ending. Goosebumps broke out across her skin, but she hid her reaction.

[Sharlan] "You said so first, Sister. That I am the only one you consider family in this house."

[Satina] "I know. I remember."

[Sharlan] "That is enough then."

He released her wrist with a satisfied smile.

[Sharlan] "Did your dress fitting go well? How about we shop for matching jewelry this weekend?"

[Satina] "This weekend won't do."

[Sharlan] "Why?"

[Satina] "I agreed to visit the Idiris viscounty with the Marchioness of Riermont."

[Sharlan] "When did you become close with her?"

He scowled with displeasure.

[Satina] "We talked a lot on our way back today."

[Sharlan] "Shall I accompany you?"

[Satina] "No, you're busy. Once Father's disappearance becomes public, managing family affairs will keep you overwhelmed."

[Sharlan] "Even so..."

He pouted slightly. Satina cupped his cheek with a gentle smile.

[Satina] "I rely solely on you. I'll bring back a gift."

[Sharlan] "Since you put it that way, Sister, I have no choice. Still, don't stay too long. Your health is already frail."

[Satina] "Mm, I understand."

The following weekend, Satina departed for the Idiris viscounty alongside the Marchioness of Riermont.

Though the Marchioness was initially calm, her hands eventually began to tremble uncontrollably. Clasping her shaking fingers as if in prayer, she spoke.

[M. Riermont] "It has been so long since I last heard any news about Max. When word first spread of his disappearance, many people tried to deceive me. They brought children with entirely different hair colors, claiming they were my nephew."

[Satina] "That was why I hesitated to speak, as well. I worried a misunderstanding might cause unnecessary disappointment."

The Marchioness shook her head.

[M. Riermont] "Did I not tell you? Even if the child is not my nephew, I will hold no resentment toward you."

The Idiris viscounty was a small, impoverished domain. Viscount Idiris, the local ruler, welcomed them in utter shock at the unexpected visit from high-ranking nobility.

Yet the Marchioness lacked the composure to pay attention to his hospitality. Her gaze was fixed entirely on the hunter's child brought forward by her knights.

The boy appeared to be roughly fifteen years old, with reddish-brown hair identical to the Marchioness'. Anxious in the presence of high nobility, his green eyes darted back and forth as he hid behind the hunter.

The hunter pushed the boy forward and bowed low. The Marchioness studied the child, her voice barely above a whisper.

[M. Riermont] "Where did you say you found this child?"

[Hunter] "Near the Phaum River. Twelve years ago, I pulled the infant from the river and raised him alongside my wife as our own flesh and blood."

[M. Riermont] "Is that so?"

[Hunter] "Since the child was covered in blood, I assumed his parents had fallen victim to wild beasts. I never dreamed noble lords had met with an accident. And this..."

The hunter pulled a pocket watch from his coat and presented it to the Marchioness. Carved into the casing was the exact same pear blossom motif as the watch in her possession.

[Hunter] "This was inside the child's swaddling cloth when I found him. I believed it was the sole clue to finding his parents, so I couldn't bring myself to sell it."

The Marchioness accepted the pocket watch with trembling hands. When she pressed a small latch on the casing, a miniature portrait of her and her sister in their youth popped open.

[M. Riermont] "This is... This is indeed the watch I made with my sister. We had a pair made to match."

Though years of neglect had rusted the mechanism and frozen the hands, she recognized the cherished keepsake instantly. She gently traced the casing with her thumb.

[M. Riermont] "Since this watch was missing from her remains, I assumed it was destroyed in the landslide..."

She pictured her sister trapped beneath the carriage wreckage, setting her child adrift in the river with the watch in a desperate bid to save his life.

Tears spilled from her eyes, dripping onto the metal casing. She clutched the watch to her chest and wept.

After a long while, she wiped her reddened eyes with a handkerchief.

[M. Riermont] "Child, will you come here?"

Seeing the watch had softened her heart, her tone grew far gentler. The boy stepped forward hesitantly.

[M. Riermont] "Unbutton your shirt for a moment..."

As the boy unbuttoned his shirt, two distinct moles were revealed on his shoulder blades. She gasped.

[M. Riermont] "When my nephew was born, my sister and I talked about these very marks. We said that with little wings on his shoulder blades, he must surely be an angel."

She touched the moles on the boy's back, her voice thick with longing.

[M. Riermont] "You are my nephew, Max! My nephew... my nephew is alive!"

Unable to contain her surging emotion, she wrapped her arms around the boy and held him tight.

[M. Riermont] "Let me look at your face again. Ah! Looking closely, the bridge of your nose is identical to my sister's! Thank God!"

The emotional reunion turned the audience chamber into a sea of tears.

While everyone else wept and rejoiced, Satina stood alone, watching the boy in the Marchioness' embrace with a grave look.

Strange. Why is his age wrong?

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