Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 28 Part 4

The name Eleanor, the one she most wanted to avoid, slipped from her father’s lips, making Vivia flinch violently.

Marquis Delph, with blood still drying on his hands, brushed his gaunt cheek.

“I realized something today—she’s the root cause of all these changes. The Emperor shifting toward a hardline stance is undoubtedly her influence.”

“That… can’t be.”

“At the dinner with the Emperor, wasn’t the Princess of Hartmann present?”

“Yes, yes.”

Vivia, fidgeting, stammered her reply while gauging her father’s mood.

Marquis Delph shook his head slowly. “You misjudged completely.”

“……?”

“It wasn’t Brianna.”

It must have been Evan’s ploy.

The idea of Brianna having a special connection with the Emperor was utterly ridiculous.

From the beginning, the Emperor had shown no interest in Brianna.

Anyone paying attention during the meeting could see that his focus was entirely on Eleanor.

“You don’t need me to tell you about what happened at Count Turin’s residence last night. It was, undoubtedly, a failure.”

“……!”

“I should have known when she entered the conference room unscathed.”

The futility of Vivia’s attempt to hide the incident became glaringly obvious.

Lowering her head, Vivia tightly gripped the hem of her dress.

Marquis Delph regarded her with a look of disdain.

‘This is the worst.’

He had trusted Caroline’s confidence, but the results remained unchanged.

“Eleanor—she’s already behaving as if she’s the Empress.”

“The Empress…?”

“No, even if she were Empress, today’s events defy explanation. Even Edea never managed to attend a single noble council meeting, yet Eleanor crossed that threshold effortlessly.”

Even Empress Edea hadn’t commanded the same level of influence over the nobility as Eleanor did now.

If, by some stroke of luck, Vivia were to ascend to the position of Empress, would the Emperor treat her with the same regard?

“……”

The answer was a resounding no.

“Now I understand why Caroline despises that woman so much.”

Vivia’s chance at becoming Empress was nearly nonexistent.

Today’s council atmosphere made the future all too clear.

The Princess of Hartmann appeared poised to attend noble councils regularly.

Furthermore, the newly inducted nobles in attendance were all pro-Emperor, and Eleanor was central to shaping their opinions.

It was evident that the Emperor’s dominance would only grow stronger over time.

‘Did I expose too much of my true feelings to the Emperor?’

Marquis Delph found himself troubled by his outburst in the council.

Considering his usual role as an almost passive observer, his vehement opposition had been out of character.

Lost in thought, he drew in a heavy breath.

Should he maintain his usual low profile, quietly observing events unfold?

Or perhaps…

***

The dungeon was damp and dark.

While most parts of the prison were harsh, the lowest level was utterly devoid of light, leaving its occupants mentally drained after just a few days.

Evan, classified as a major offender, was confined to this lowest level, completely isolated.

Huddled in the darkness, Evan pulled his legs tightly to his chest.

The chains around his ankles scraped against the floor with every slight movement.

‘It’s all over.’

The elaborate plan he had devised had crumbled entirely.

The knights who appeared just as he began putting up the posters seemed to know his every move in advance.

Unable to resist, he was dragged here and locked away, a stark reminder of his own recklessness.

‘Am I really going to die…?’

The thought alone sent his heart racing with fear.

Rumors of his impending execution had reached even his ears.

At first, he dismissed them as lies, but when the guards began informing him of the execution date, urging him to prepare himself, denial became impossible.

It didn’t help that the Emperor’s fury was reportedly so intense that even the pleas of Duke Nestor had fallen on deaf ears.

In the cave-like darkness of the prison, shallow breaths echoed faintly.

‘How much time has passed?’

Deprived of sunlight, his sense of time had dulled.

Sleep eluded him.

As his execution drew closer, he found even the act of breathing to be a waste of precious time, forcing himself to stay awake.

Red-rimmed eyes welled with tears.

“……”

Evan wiped his damp eyes with a blood-crusted hand.

The injury was self-inflicted, a result of punching the wall in frustration and despair after hearing of his execution.

Though the flesh had torn and bled, no one stopped him or tended to his wounds.

To the guards, he was a condemned noble, unworthy of care.

Having raged, cried, and burned with hatred, Evan had now reached a stage of resignation.

“…I want to live.”

He wished desperately for someone to save him.

He would do anything, even live as a slave for the rest of his life, if it meant survival.

‘I should have just listened to Father.’

In his eagerness to prove his brother wrong, he had escalated matters to this catastrophic point.

There was no one to blame but himself.

But now, regret came too late, the consequences far beyond his ability to control.

Biting his parched lips, Evan buried his face deep into his knees.

‘Save me.’

Anyone.

‘I want to live.’

Father.

What was his father doing now?

Perhaps he was pulling strings to get Evan out of prison.

But such hope was fleeting.

His father always favored his brother.

It was possible he had abandoned Evan, deeming him a reckless troublemaker unworthy of rescue.

‘Brother.’

Did he hit him too hard?

The image of his brother’s face during their last argument lingered in his mind, a small pang of guilt surfacing.

He hadn’t thought that would be their final encounter.

Facing death, he regretted their petty quarrels.

In hindsight, their fights seemed trivial.

Instead of wasting energy on those disputes, he should have focused on planning his next moves, as his father advised.

But now, such thoughts were meaningless.

He was at the end of his rope.

“……”

The finality of it all left him engulfed in despair.

What had he been fighting so hard for?

A sense of defeat and futility overwhelmed him.

Evan’s gaze fell lifelessly to the floor.

***

[Young Master Henrik must miss you very much, madam. These days, he often brings you up.]

This was the message from Milo.

Having received business updates from Milo in writing, Eleanor smiled softly at the comment he had added at the end.

It seemed she had been away from home for too long.

For Milo, normally so curt, to relay such a message, it was clear that Henrik’s loneliness had become quite apparent.

Since she had been planning to visit him anyway, Eleanor decided to return to Hippias with Lennoch this evening.

‘It should be fine, right?’

Though Henrik had a cold demeanor, he was surprisingly shy.

Having spent some time with her newfound family, Eleanor knew that Henrik might find Lennoch intimidating.

Still, despite Henrik’s youth and inexperience, she believed that with proper guidance and support, he could grow into a solid foundation for the family.

Imagining Henrik someday standing confidently beside Lennoch, Eleanor couldn’t help but smile with a faint sense of hope.

As usual, Eleanor greeted the knights stationed at the entrance of Zair Palace. However, she suddenly hesitated.

‘The knight… has changed?’

“This is my first time meeting you.”

“I am Hans von Lausanne, newly assigned to guard His Majesty’s palace. It’s an honor to meet you, Director.”

The knight, Hans, seemed well-acquainted with Eleanor, indicating that the handover had already been completed.

Though she returned his smile, she couldn’t help but feel puzzled.

‘Recently, the guards seem to be changing rather often.’

With frequent visits to the palace, Eleanor had grown familiar with the faces she encountered.

The knights in charge of security followed strict schedules, so it was easy to notice any changes.

Yet, the sudden replacement of guards without prior notice seemed unusual.

With her curiosity piqued, Eleanor proceeded to the study.

“Your Majesty.”

“You’ve arrived.”

“I greet you, Director.”

The man conversing with Lennoch stood and offered a courteous bow upon seeing Eleanor.

She immediately recognized him as the knight who had been guarding the entrance to Zaire Palace until yesterday.

However, today he was dressed in civilian attire instead of a uniform.

Though surprised, Eleanor maintained her composure.

“I’ll take my leave now.”

“Do so.”

As the man saluted smartly and exited the study, Eleanor’s head instinctively turned to follow him.

“Your Majesty, was it just now… Oh.”

As she turned her head back, Eleanor froze slightly, startled by the handsome features suddenly so close to her.

His unexpected proximity was disconcerting but undeniably captivating.

The gently curved eyes and the relaxed line of his lips made his smile even more charming.

Feeling shy under his kind gaze, Eleanor subtly pulled back her chin.

“Your Majesty, wasn’t that the knight who was guarding the entrance just now?”

“He was, but… Is something bothering you?”

“Well… It just seemed like a sudden change. Has he been reassigned?”

Lennoch appeared momentarily conflicted, as though uncertain how much to disclose.

After a brief hesitation, he opened his mouth to explain.

“He is no longer part of the imperial guard.”

“What do you mean?”

“As of yesterday, he resigned.”

Though his tone was light, the weight of his words was significant.

Lennoch elaborated kindly, “I needed someone trustworthy to handle secret matters for me. Do you remember the incident with Hail’s nanny?”

“…Yes, I do.”

That incident was not something Eleanor could easily forget.

Recalling the nanny, Eleanor’s expression turned somber.

Back then, the nanny had mysteriously died while in prison, leaving no opportunity for intervention.

“Since then, I’ve felt the need to recruit individuals I can trust independently.”

The warden suspected of involvement in the nanny’s death had also died. Two deaths, both without leaving a trace, implied the presence of an accomplice within the imperial court.

It could have been anyone familiar with the palace: a noble, a maid, a knight, or even a lowly stable worker.

One thing was certain—the culprit was well-versed in palace affairs and likely a longstanding observer of the imperial family.

Instead of hastily uprooting these scattered collaborators, Lennoch decided to form a separate organization comprised of trusted individuals.

They would be loyal solely to him.

Starting with this organization, he planned to systematically cleanse the deeply corrupted inner workings of the palace.

“So, I’ve selected reliable knights, stripped them of their imperial titles, and secretly reorganized them into a personal task force. The man who just left will now handle covert missions for me.”

Just as before.

The attack on Lady Jutland, who had attempted to harm Eleanor, had not been a coincidence.

As if on instinct, Lennoch reached out to touch Eleanor’s cheek but stopped midway.

Following his gaze downward, Eleanor noticed him staring at his own hand.

“It won’t always remain clean.”

“……?”

He might have to stain it with blood many more times in the future.

Lennoch knew that impartial arbitration had its limits. To achieve complete control, he would have to become colder and more resolute.

A faint trace of ruthlessness flickered in his green eyes.

At that moment, a pale, milk-colored hand gently rested atop his.

Eleanor’s hand, a stark contrast against his darker skin tone, twitched slightly as it lay atop his palm.

“Soon, you’ll be surrounded by good people.”

Though she sensed Lennoch was preparing something without her knowledge, Eleanor chose not to pry.

She trusted that whatever he was doing, he would handle it well.

Instead, she offered words of encouragement to support his decision.

“And I’ll be right beside you.”

“……”

“I believe Henrik will also become a great asset to Your Majesty someday. Although he’s shy, he’s thoughtful and kind at heart.”

Eleanor’s confident tone carried no trace of doubt.

Lennoch, who had been silently listening, let out a soft laugh.

Her assumption that she would naturally remain by his side seemed endearingly cute.

As long as he had her, nothing else mattered.

Clearing his mind of complicated thoughts, Lennoch responded playfully, “For the sake of the future, I must make a good impression on your brother.”

“Make a good impression? There’s no need to be so modest, Lennoch.”

Feeling slightly embarrassed at the thought of the Emperor humbling himself before a noble, Eleanor smiled awkwardly.

However, Lennoch had already considered involving Henrik in the central administration someday, should the boy prove capable.

For now, he would wait and observe.

Looking down at Eleanor with affectionate eyes, Lennoch spoke gently, “Then let’s visit your family estate together today.”

To seek permission for their marriage.

***

“Absolutely not.”

Henrik leapt to his feet and shook his head adamantly.