Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 12 Part 5
“Is there any clue about Umar’s death?”
Lennoch, who had been hurriedly treated at the inn, hadn’t yet received a report from Ernst about Umar’s suicide. There was nothing unusual about Lennoch’s behavior—he was as composed as always, completely setting aside any personal feelings and addressing Ernst purely from the position of the emperor.
The Duke of Mecklen also answered in his usual manner. “It’s not certain, but there are some questionable aspects. First, there was a sudden change in Umar’s schedule. He abruptly canceled his planned activities for today.”
“Hmm.”
“It seems this wasn’t the first time. Whenever this happened, Umar would always stay in that room.”
“By that room, do you mean the room where Umar was found after his suicide?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Did he allow anyone else into that room?”
“No, he locked it from the inside to prevent anyone from entering.”
If he died in a locked room, then it was indeed suicide. Lennoch had a puzzled expression.
“Is there anything else unusual?”
“Nothing has been discovered yet. Ah, he did have a chronic illness, but it wasn’t severe enough to lead to death.”
“A chronic illness?”
“It seems his heart wasn’t in the best condition. However, it had recently improved significantly.”
Ernst explained what he had heard from the aide who usually handled Umar’s minor affairs.
“Umar was taking medication regularly. He recently changed doctors, and it seems the new doctor was quite skilled, as Umar met with him for consultations once a week.”
“A doctor…” Lennoch rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Is the doctor a local?”
“No, it seems he’s from another region. He was introduced by a relative, so that’s all they know.”
Ernst frowned slightly as he added, “According to the aide’s schedule, Umar was supposed to meet with him two days from now. But just in case, I’ll have the doctor found and get a statement regarding Umar’s condition.”
“Hmm. What’s the doctor’s name?”
“He was introduced to the people around him under the alias ‘Dr. K.’ No one knows his real name.”
That alone was suspicious enough. Lennoch nodded. “Once the fire is under control, send a knight to investigate immediately.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Also, ensure the Duchess and Lady Brianna return to the palace at first light.”
“Yes, understood.”
With that, the conversation between the two men came to a long pause.
***
The fire that had raged throughout the night was fully extinguished only by morning. Most of Hadum was completely destroyed, with only a few houses remaining. The catastrophe that struck overnight resulted in many casualties and injuries. The city’s doctors were overwhelmed, so reinforcements were brought in from other areas to assist.
As time passed, more and more residents wandered around the disaster area, searching for lost family members, leading to the construction of temporary shelters near the affected areas.
“Lady Eleanor, it’s time to depart.”
“Just a moment.”
Eleanor asked the knight for a brief moment and looked around the temporary shelter. It looked like a scene from a war. The refugees lying on hastily spread mats appeared more burdened by psychological trauma than physical pain. Those who had lost family members wore expressions that words couldn’t describe.
Passing quickly through the crowd, Eleanor heard people shouting in anger, others staring blankly, and some crying out the names of their loved ones.
‘Lennoch… Lennoch…’
She walked back and forth through the entire temporary shelter several times, but Lennoch the kid was nowhere to be seen.
‘Could he not have made it out?’
It wasn’t just the child she couldn’t find. The mother and child from Hartmann, with whom she had briefly spoken in the slums, were also missing. Anxiety slowly crept into her already uneasy heart.
“Lady Eleanor, what are you doing here?”
“Lady Brianna.”
Brianna, who had grown tired of waiting, approached Eleanor. Seeing the worried look on Eleanor’s face, she checked her shoulder.
“Does it still hurt?”
“I’m fine.”
“Let’s return to the palace quickly. It would be best to see the palace doctor for treatment.”
“It’s not that serious. It’s a wound that will heal soon.”
“No, it’s quite severe.”
Brianna emphasized the word ‘severe.’ It wasn’t a broken bone, just a simple bruise, but Eleanor couldn’t understand why Brianna was reacting so sensitively.
“Let’s go.”
As Eleanor hesitated to move, Brianna pushed her gently, urging her toward the carriage. Reluctantly, Eleanor gave up searching for Lennoch and the people from Hartmann and headed toward the carriage.
Not far from where they were, the carriage stood with armed knights lined up beside it. Compared to the small group they had when they first arrived in Hadum, the number of people had increased significantly.
As she boarded the carriage, Brianna gave a brief explanation. “His Majesty assigned half of the knights who came with us to guard you and me.”
Brianna didn’t realize that she had grown accustomed to calling Eleanor by name. The carriage carrying the two of them set off directly for the imperial palace. As Eleanor looked out the small window at the group of knights following closely to protect them, she suddenly thought of Raul.
“By the way, how is Sir Raul? And what about the knight who was unconscious…”
“They’re safe, all of them. They’ve stabilized thanks to emergency treatment, and they’ll be transferred to the carriage as soon as they’re ready.”
“That’s a relief.”
“His Majesty and the Duke have business to attend to, so they said they’ll return to the palace tomorrow.”
As Brianna relayed the information, she suddenly frowned, as if something had come to mind.
“Mayor Umar committed suicide,” she added.
“…Umar?”
“With the fire and everything else going on, the city is in turmoil. The Duke went to the city hall this morning.”
Lennoch had ordered not to wake Eleanor, who had fallen asleep late in the night after tossing and turning. Brianna, eager to fill Eleanor in, continued her account.
“Doesn’t it seem too coincidental? His sudden death during all of this.”
“Yes, it does.”
“There was already something suspicious about him. The way he kept avoiding showing the budget was strange, too.”
She wasn’t wrong. Eleanor had been suspicious of that as well. But what reason would Umar have to suddenly commit suicide?
Then, Brianna offered a hypothesis. “Could it be that Umar was so shocked by His Majesty personally coming out of the palace to investigate the missing persons case that he decided to kill himself?”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. We went missing, and His Majesty and the Duke left the palace to search for us. Even though it was a kidnapping case involving nobles, it’s not common for the emperor to personally lead the knights, is it?”
Eleanor couldn’t hide her embarrassment and lowered her gaze slightly.
Suddenly, she remembered the conversation she had with Lennoch the previous night. After they had finished talking, he stayed by her bedside until she fell asleep. At first, she had felt uncomfortable with him watching over her, so she refused, but he insisted that someone had to be there in case her condition worsened. Fortunately, her embarrassment didn’t last long, and she quickly fell asleep.
As the memories kept resurfacing, Eleanor tried to push them aside and focused on listening to Brianna.
“And the Duke came along, too. Of course, Duke Mecklen would have followed since His Majesty was leading, but wouldn’t anyone be terrified with one of the empire’s top swordsmen around?”
There was a hint of pride in Brianna’s voice as she mentioned Ernst, as if she were showing off a newly acquired dress.
“Umar must have been embezzling the city’s budget.”
“……”
“But then His Majesty came out personally because of our kidnapping, so he must have been shocked.”
“Hmm.”
“His Majesty was supposed to meet Mayor Umar in person yesterday. So, Umar, panicked by the prospect, took his own life.”
As Eleanor listened to Brianna’s reasoning, she raised a hand to rub her forehead. While it didn’t sound entirely implausible, it seemed a bit far-fetched that someone would commit suicide over budget mismanagement.
‘What if… Umar was connected to El Gino?’
That would make for a more convincing theory. If Umar was involved with the masked man who suddenly appeared in El Gino, they wouldn’t have expected that they would forcibly take one of their members. To cover up the sudden turn of events, Umar orchestrated the kidnapping. But Eleanor still tilted her head.
‘It’s still strange.’
Even if that were the case, would he really need to go as far as suicide? He could have just denied everything. Umar’s confident refusal to reveal the budget suggested that he had something to rely on.
‘Or, did the organization members know something important?’
It didn’t seem likely that they would share crucial secrets with low-ranking members. Yet, they had recklessly gone to rescue them. The kidnapping of nobles was not something that could be taken lightly.
Brianna noticed Eleanor’s prolonged silence and asked cautiously, “What are you thinking about?”
“What happened to the people who attacked us last night?”
“I’m not sure about that.”
Since the knights had taken them away, she didn’t know what happened next. As Brianna recalled the events of the previous night, she paled visibly. Just thinking about the man who had chased after her with a sword still made her heart race with fear.
Shaking her head as if to rid herself of the memories, Brianna spoke, “I suppose His Majesty or the Duke will interrogate the culprits directly.”
“Directly…”
“Oh, I overheard His Majesty giving orders to keep the capture of those men a secret.”
Though it was a brief explanation, it was enough. Eleanor decided that as soon as they returned to the palace, she would find a way to contact Milo.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
Maya Loureiro
Brianna está cada vez mais proativa – sua linha de raciocínio está equivocada, porém é inegável que está mais interessada e acima de tudo, motivada!