Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 12 Part 4
“Did you… know?” Lennoch’s voice trembled slightly.
Eleanor gave an awkward smile. “I only remembered recently. So much has changed since then…”
Although he was young at the time, he was shorter than her. He was thin, and his clothes were dirty, making him look no different from other commoners. But who would have thought that the small, insignificant boy would appear before her like this, as a strong man—and as the emperor of Baden, no less?
“In truth, I still find it hard to believe.”
“What do you mean?”
“The boy I named is so different from the person you are now.”
It’s also a mystery how someone of noble birth ended up in such a place.
At her words, Lennoch gave a bitter smile. “I told you, didn’t I? I caused a lot of trouble when I was young.”
“…Did you run away from home?”
“Something like that.”
Lennoch subtly avoided the crucial details, glossing over the important parts. He was kind and gentle, but at the same time, he was a person full of secrets.
Eleanor’s eyes hardened slightly. There was a time when he had skillfully changed the topic to the merger when she asked if he knew her well.
She leaned forward. “Now I need to know, too.”
“……?”
Lennoch was startled by her sudden closeness. The gentle blue in Eleanor’s eyes was now filled with strong determination.
“If there’s anything else you’re hiding, please tell me honestly.”
“……”
“You’ve been watching over me for a long time, haven’t you?”
Her posture showed she wouldn’t back down until she got an answer. Lennoch, who had been staring at her as if under a spell, realized that he could no longer keep this a secret.
“…I’m sorry,” he began, his lips reluctant to move. “I didn’t tell you because I thought it might upset you.”
In fact, it was something he should have confessed when they first met. Not something he was reluctantly sharing now. Guilt briefly flashed across his dry face.
“I found out you were a princess of Hartmann after I was rescued from the human traffickers.”
He wanted to meet her and greet her properly, but he couldn’t. The incident when the young prince escaped from the palace caused a huge uproar in the imperial family at the time. The Empress Dowager was most concerned that the imprial family’s authority would be undermined if the incident became known, so the whole affair was completely covered up.
“I never had a chance to see you again in Baden.”
Therefore…
“I decided to do what I could.”
“What you could do…”
“To become a perfect emperor.”
From then on, he stopped causing trouble and began studying the imperial disciplines he had so vehemently resisted. He also learned the virtues and etiquette required of an emperor. The Empress Dowager was moved by her son’s sudden change in attitude and lifted the restrictions on his actions, but the long-awaited meeting with Eleanor never took place. After all, it wasn’t common for a princess from another country to have a private meeting for personal reasons.
“I’ve always kept up with the news about Hartmann.”
“I see.”
“So when Adler asked me for help, I thought I might see you again.”
It was just before the fall of Hartmann, during a secret meeting. When Lennoch mentioned Adler’s name, Eleanor’s expression changed slightly.
‘Could he have known?’
Did Adler know that Lennoch had been watching her all along? A flurry of thoughts raced through Eleanor’s mind, causing her gaze to waver. Her head was just beginning to lower when Lennoch spoke again.
“In truth, Eleanor, after you married the Duke of Mecklen, I completely cut myself off from hearing about you.”
Eleanor’s face stiffened awkwardly at his sudden confession. Fortunately, Lennoch didn’t notice her change in expression.
“I thought it would be better for both of us. Ernst guaranteed your status.”
“……”
“More than anything…”
You became my friend’s wife.
A stifled groan escaped from Lennoch. The thought alone caused his insides to burn with anguish. On the day of Eleanor’s wedding, he couldn’t bring himself to step into the ceremony and instead stayed behind in his office, silently swearing to himself over and over.
I must never show it.
The line he had to keep was clear, so Lennoch deliberately acted as though he didn’t know Eleanor. For their happiness, he couldn’t let her know. But no matter how hard he tried to suppress it, his feelings were like a sharp awl that pierced through the hard surface and burst out.
Just like when they first met on the boutique street.
Lennoch’s voice, slightly hoarse, slipped from his lips. “If you get involved with me, it will only bring you harm.”
“Harm…”
“My life is always surrounded by things I don’t want. Especially death, which is an unbreakable tie for me.”
“Lennoch.”
“My father died just as I was about to ascend to the position of crown prince.”
The former emperor’s death was ruled an accident, but there were suspicious elements. The former empress, Edea, who had been forced into marriage due to external pressure, cursed her life and died in vain.
‘If she grows close to me, she might also be in danger.’
The thought alone made Lennoch want to throw the crown on his head to the ground right away.
“It’s all my fault.”
Even if Eleanor said it was okay, he couldn’t accept it.
“It was wrong of me to speak to you on the boutique street, to approach you even though I knew it was wrong. And… everything you’re going through now.”
“……”
“I shouldn’t have asked for the marriage.”
Lennoch wished that Eleanor wouldn’t hate him, but even that seemed too much to hope for now. He thought that if he just let go, everything would be fine. But instead, he had plunged Eleanor into the depths of unhappiness, and the endless despair of that realization overwhelmed him.
“I will take responsibility and set everything right.”
“……!”
At that moment, their gazes intertwined in the air.
“I will help you with whatever you want.”
For some reason, her heart had been trembling strangely since earlier. Eleanor struggled to calm her wildly beating heart. The emperor’s clear green eyes were so transparent. And the reflection of herself in those eyes…
“I don’t understand.”
“……”
“Why do you care so much about me?”
Though he hadn’t expressed it, she could tell how much weight he had carried until he finally said those words. She could feel Lennoch’s sincerity, that he wished for her happiness more than anyone else.
“I… yes. I was lucky enough to save Your Majesty as a child. And I’ve already been repaid for that.”
No matter the outcome of the marriage, the intention was clear. He had tried to save her. While she couldn’t say it was the right thing to do, Eleanor decided to accept his apology.
But.
“Is there something you want from me?”
Otherwise, there was no reason for him to show such excessive kindness.
“Does Your Majesty… I mean, what…”
Suddenly, she couldn’t find the right words. It was a vague emotion, just out of reach. His words of concern for her echoed in her mind, making the back of her neck grow warm. Eleanor awkwardly averted her eyes.
Then Lennoch spoke, “No.”
There’s nothing I want.
His voice was heavy and firm. “I’m doing this to take responsibility, so all you have to do is accept it.”
“……”
“That’s enough.”
Eleanor slowly turned her gaze back to him. A faint smile played on Lennoch’s face, as if to say it was truly okay. However, Eleanor felt as though there was a hidden sorrow in his smiling face.
***
“F-fire, fire—!”
A city patrolman, who had been making his rounds, spotted the blazing flames and shouted. Smoke billowed between the rows of houses lined up along the hillside. The fire that engulfed the slums quickly grew, spreading its reach. Everyone, from the patrolmen, guards, knights, and citizens, gathered to help extinguish the flames.
“It doesn’t look good.”
“Your Grace!”
Ernst, who had just dismounted from his horse, entered the chaos of people moving about. One of the knights overseeing the situation stepped in front of Ernst.
“It’s dangerous; please stay back.”
The scene was nothing short of pandemonium. Screams and shouts echoed from all directions, making it difficult to distinguish between the two. Water was hauled, and sand was thrown on the flames to stop them from spreading, but it was all in vain.
“This is terrible,” Ernst muttered as he watched the flames roaring as if they were about to swallow the black sky whole. He had never witnessed a fire of this magnitude before.
The sight of people frantically struggling to escape was almost grotesque. If there were a hell where God imprisoned sinners, it would surely look like this.
Unless they sprouted wings, there was no way anyone here could save them. The sense of helplessness in the face of such a massive disaster was overwhelming. Ernst’s eyebrows furrowed deeply.
“Your Majesty!”
It hadn’t been long since Ernst arrived when Lennoch also arrived at the scene. He had just received an urgent report while in Eleanor’s room and had rushed over. Lennoch, dressed lightly with only a cloak draped over him, met Ernst’s gaze.
“Your Majesty.” Ernst bowed his head in greeting.
Lennoch, watching him briefly, responded calmly, “You arrived before me.”
“Yes.”
There was much to say, but work came first. The guard captain approached and reached behind him. “Your Majesty, we’ve set up a temporary command post over there. It’s dangerous here…”
“That won’t be necessary.” Lennoch cut off the captain’s words. “I’ll stay here and continue receiving reports.”
“But, Your Majesty…”
The captain looked to Ernst, clearly hoping he would intervene and persuade the emperor. But Ernst’s thoughts weren’t much different from Lennoch’s.
“I’ll stay with His Majesty.”
‘Oh no.’
The guard captain sighed inwardly as he watched the two of them stand side by side, arms crossed. But as a mere guard, there was no way he could stop both the Duke and the Emperor.
Skipping the formalities, the captain quickly reported. “We’re still fighting the fire, so we haven’t pinpointed the exact origin. The houses are built close together, and most of them are wooden, so the fire is spreading very quickly.”
“……”
“We’re evacuating the people from the slums first, but the roads are narrow, and there are so many people that it’s difficult to conduct a smooth rescue.”
In the end, there was no immEdeate solution. Lennoch took the lead in the meeting, focusing on finding ways to minimize the damage. After coming up with some plans and sending the knights off to carry out their orders, only Lennoch and Ernst were left.
Lennoch spoke first to Ernst, who remained stoically silent.
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Maya Loureiro
essa. inversa foi muito necessária, porém ainda vaga e incompleta afinal não estão sendo 100% abertos aos seus pensamentos(Eli~) e sentimentos (Lennoch). Estão no caminho ❣️