KFBRV Pt 2 Ch 93

When she lost her senses, she called out to him—Zion, Zion—with such heart-wrenching longing. But as soon as she regained her clarity, she returned to that cold, formal title.

[Zion] "Don't worry. Lady Brentano and Countess Lilienthal are handling those fools in the House of Lords."

Odette had demanded the right to succeed to the Albrecht title, but her request wasn't a simple plea for a personal favor. She wanted a total reform of the law.

Currently, the laws of Barzeha give absolute priority to sons regarding titles and property. Daughters could only inherit in limited cases where no sons existed. Even then, it wasn't a formal succession but a mere claim that often lost out to distant male relatives.

Odette wanted the eldest daughter and the eldest son to hold identical rights. She wanted to make the succession laws perfectly equal.

The Purifier who saved the world had asked for only one thing. Without a valid reason to refuse, the Emperor couldn't say no. To put it simply, Odette's popularity was so high that the citizens would likely support her even if she demanded the throne itself.

The problem lay in the ripple effect. While it seemed to only govern titles, this law was the root of every legal basis used to treat noblewomen differently from men. Changing this single clause would strip countless other discriminatory laws of their power.

Naturally, the House of Lords—composed entirely of men—resisted fiercely. Even the House of Commons, also male-dominated, protested, fearing the change would eventually reach them.

[Zion] "I think Lady Brentano is more suited for politics than scholarship. Her skill in playing the House of Lords is a masterpiece. She should become the Chancellor once the law changes."

If you traced the lineage of any nobleman, you would eventually find one who owed a debt of gratitude to Duke Brentano's family. Despite this, many in the House of Lords had stood by and watched while the Duke's house fell. Against Karin, none of them had the moral high ground to speak of "daring" to challenge tradition.

None of them could match her logic, either. Few people could provide such specific philosophical, legal, and theological evidence for truths everyone else took for granted.

Zion recalled how Karin faced a hundred men alone with her clear arguments and revised his opinion.

[Zion] "No, I take that back. She is definitely more suited to be a scholar."

The House of Lords, crushed by her logic, likely hoped the Great Cathedral would support them. Usually, the Cathedral—the symbol of tradition and conservatism—would never stay quiet during such reforms.

To their misfortune, the Pope intended to release a statement supporting Odette. Once the situation settled, Zion's puppets, who made up more than half the votes, would pass the bill cleanly.

[Odette] "What about the House of Commons?"

[Zion] "You don't need to worry about those fools. I’ll settle them this week. It is rare to find a member of that assembly who hasn't received my funding. Since I paid for their education and their elections, they owe me this much."

[Odette] "How many did you fund?"

[Zion] "Education? Exclude only five of the sitting members. As for the elections, you don't need to exclude anyone."

He handled the background support while others took the lead. Of course, "background support" meant blackmail and threats. The names of Lilienthal and Brentano needed to be at the front of this reform. If Zion stepped forward, the symbolism would fade.

Many idiots would try to diminish Odette's name, claiming the reform was only possible because a man helped her. Zion refused to let his name overshadow hers.

[Odette] "The knots are gone. Let me go now."

Having heard what she needed, Odette pressed him. She was anxious to get to Karl.

Zion sighed inwardly. He had accepted this arrangement, but it still stung to see exactly how low he ranked on her list of priorities right after they had been together.

His chest burned with jealousy at the thought of that bastard Karl acting noble to win more of her heart.

[Zion] "You haven't eaten. Why not have a meal before you go?"

[Odette] "No, I’m fine. I just need to use the bath for a moment."

Right then—knock, knock. A maid arrived to tidy the bedroom.

She froze and looked at him. She felt deeply embarrassed whenever the servants caught them together, especially because they treated her like the mistress of the house.

Odette tried to scramble toward the bathroom, but her legs had no strength left. She collapsed onto the floor and looked up at Zion, pleading for help.

At least she clings to me in moments like this.

[Zion] "I’ll take you to the bath."

He lifted her, still wrapped in the blanket, and carried her to the bathroom connected to the bedroom. Only after he closed the door and sent the maid away did Odette relax.

The maid was simply doing her job. What was there to be ashamed of? Zion couldn't understand it, but he liked that she reached for him in these moments. He almost hoped she would stay embarrassed forever.

[Zion] "I’ll bring warm water. Stay here."

He went to fetch the metal pitchers. Because Odette hated facing the maids, he had taken over the duty of attending her baths since she arrived at the mansion. By now, he was nearly perfect at assisting her with bathing and dressing.

Yes, this was more than enough. He should be satisfied. He washed her hair as she relaxed in the warm water, hiding his crumbling heart as he watched her excited expression at the thought of meeting Karl.

*****

It's already been a week. Something is definitely wrong.

Paula hadn't been worried when she first entered the City Watch Station. She figured her mother was just throwing a pathetic fit. But things were taking a strange turn.

Why are they keeping me here so long? You can't just throw someone in a cell without evidence, can you?

They had locked her behind bars for a week and hadn't even called her for questioning. Since she wasn't the thief, there was no evidence. This wasn't how one treated an innocent citizen. This was how the authority acted when they were already certain of someone's guilt.

[Paula] "I said I didn't steal it! Is this how you treat people?"

She screamed, but no one responded.

[Prisoner] "Exactly! There are only innocent people here!"

The prisoners in the other cells—obvious criminals she wanted nothing to do with—were the only ones who agreed with her. Finally, today, the bars opened.

[Guard] "Out. Paula."

She followed the guard up the stairs to a small hallway in the building.

Room 3, the interrogation room. Perhaps because it was a new building, even the name of the room sounded modern.

[Guard] "Inside."

Feeling suddenly small, Paula opened the wooden door. A thick cloud of cigarette smoke greeted her. Shouting echoed from the next room, and two officers sat on cheap chairs.

[Officer] "Well? Are you ready to confess? We called you because we heard you finally stopped causing a scene."

She swallowed hard. She had visited this building once before to run an errand for the Count. Back then, she had only seen the entrance; she never imagined the inside would be so rough.

Controlled by the Chancellor, this was a department directly under the Emperor. They held the power to drag away anyone who looked suspicious, provided they weren't nobility.

She realized where she truly was, but she squeezed out every bit of courage to fight back.

[Paula] "Put out that cigarette, will you?"

She remembered the officers who had treated her with such respect during her errand. She began to cough loudly for effect.

[Paula] "I don't care how powerful the Imperial Watch is. You can't lock up an innocent citizen like this. You clearly made a judgment based only on Sasha's words. This is unacceptable!"

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