Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Side Story 11

At the Emperor’s words, the commotion halted instantly.

Even Philia, and Ernst himself, paused momentarily and turned to look at the Emperor.

Unaffected by the barrage of gazes, Lennoch stepped forward toward Orech.

“You called it the Hawk’s Seal Ring?”

“Y-yes.”

“Then I’ll send troops to Hartmann immediately.”

“……!”

Murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“Since the Empress’s homeland is Hartmann, the Baden imperial family deeply regrets the loss of one of Hartmann’s national treasures. I’ll mobilize all available military power to retrieve it.”

“N-no…”

As Orech fumbled for words, Eleanor caught a glimpse of the shadow behind him.

At that moment, she realized why Lennoch had said what he did.

She joined him.

“I’ll assist wholeheartedly.”

“Your Majesty the Empress…?”

“The Hawk’s Seal Ring was lost after Hartmann’s annexation. But based on your testimony, it’s clear someone hid it intentionally. What I can say for certain is that Baden didn’t take Hartmann’s treasure. As the First Princess of Hartmann, I will prove that myself.”

As the imperial couple spoke in unison, the hostage was moved to tears.

Meanwhile, Orech was losing his mind.

‘Why are people who should be in the palace here of all places?’

He’d thought a little chaos would be enough.

Greedy for the gold offered by Bahama’s noble Etetus, he now regretted his rashness—but it was too late.

Orech quickly surveyed his surroundings.

Philia looked to be at her limit holding off Ernst.

The soldiers, including the captain of the guard, still had them surrounded.

Even if they tried to negotiate now, if the Emperor decided to abandon the hostage and have them killed, it could be done in an instant.

If it had come to this—

“Y-you despicable scum! You stole the ring and now pretend to search for it? What utter hypocrisy!”

It was a stalling tactic.

Orech began slowly backing away, dragging the hostage.

He had to escape if he wanted to live.

To divert attention, Orech fabricated a lie from rumors he’d heard in Hartmann.

“Prince Schett himself told us everything! On the day of annexation, it was Prince Adler who gave up the ring because you threatened him! He tried to resist, but your threats forced him to hand it over! Are you still going to lie?!”

“Schett?”

Eleanor blinked a couple of times.

“He’s not a prince of Hartmann.”

“W-what?”

“Tracing the lineage, Schett is the child of a cousin from my mother’s side. He has no royal Hartmann blood whatsoever.”

“……!”

Orech’s face turned pale.

“Besides, he’s barred from entering the palace. The late king, in his anger, banned him outright. He has had no contact with the royal family.”

“T-that can’t be…”

How could he have picked the worst possible lie?

Stammering, Orech was suddenly consumed by a wicked impulse.

‘Forget the hostage. Maybe I should just kill her and run.’

He could do it if he made up his mind.

As he gripped tighter, the sharp dagger slowly pressed into the woman’s neck.

The moment he resolved to act, his eyes rolled back.

“Guh…!”

Struck hard on the back of the head, Orech collapsed.

Behind his fallen body stood a familiar face Eleanor knew well.

“Sir Joshua!”

“Are you all right, Your Majesty?”

It was Joshua and Eger, who had followed Ernst.

They had hidden among the crowd and seized the moment to approach Orech from behind.

Joshua reversed her grip on her weapon and used the handle to strike the back of Orech’s head.

Lennoch, who had been waiting for Joshua’s counterattack, called out to the captain of the guard. “What are you doing? Arrest him.”

“Y-yes, Your Majesty!”

Snapping to his senses, the captain rushed forward with his soldiers to detain the unconscious Orech.

Eleanor turned to check on Ernst, who had been pressing Philia.

Philia, clearly at her limit, looked like she might collapse any moment.

Eleanor briefly considered stopping Ernst to prevent him from killing her, but she soon saw Philia surrender and let out a breath of relief.

“What a pity.”

Looking at the kneeling Philia, Ernst gave a curt remark.

It was disappointment that he hadn’t landed the final blow.

But he wasn’t someone who would strike down an opponent who had lost the will to fight.

Once the guard had successfully apprehended Philia as well, the crowd erupted into loud cheers.

***

The woman who had been taken hostage was assigned a guard detail until she could return home safely.

While the city guard loaded Orech and Philia into a carriage, the imperial party tidied up the surroundings.

“Will you be returning to the palace right away?” Eger asked first. Though standing at Lennoch’s side, his eyes were clearly elsewhere.

Following his gaze, Lennoch gave a short answer. “I suppose so.”

A little ways off stood Ernst and Eleanor.

Facing each other, they both looked like they had much to say.

Lennoch’s brow furrowed slightly.

“Go on ahead.”

“Your Majesty…?”

“The guard is here. There’s no need to worry about protection.”

“I cannot allow that.”

Joshua, the Empress’s escort knight, objected immediately.

It was her duty to stay by the Empress’s side.

Lennoch raised a hand to stop her. “Count Mecklen will accompany her to the palace. All the knights acknowledge his skill, do they not?”

“……”

“Take the remaining men and escort the prisoners safely to the palace.”

There was nothing incorrect in the Emperor’s command.

Though demoted to count, Ernst still retained his knighthood and was a swordsman recognized not only by the knight order but by the entire empire.

It was likely why he had not been punished for his mother’s crimes.

Realizing this, Joshua reluctantly gave her assent. “Understood. I will ensure the prisoners are delivered safely.”

“Eger, you should go too.”

“…Me as well?”

“There’s the evening banquet, remember? Make sure everything’s prepared so we can enter right away once we arrive.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Though concerned for the Emperor and Eleanor, Eger couldn’t suppress a flicker of excitement at the thought of moving with Joshua.

As he watched Joshua and her group depart, Lennoch turned back toward Eleanor.

Judging by the atmosphere, it didn’t look like their conversation would be ending anytime soon.

***

Eleanor tried not to look back.

She felt a prickling gaze shooting into her from somewhere.

She could guess who it was staring at them so intensely.

‘I’m sorry, Lennoch.’

Eleanor apologized inwardly.

It would’ve been better if Lennoch had been part of this conversation, too, but she couldn’t bring herself to call him, not with the lingering doubts about Ernst’s actions.

Why, of all days, had Ernst suddenly returned to the capital on the first day of the festival?

How had he known to come to the red clock tower?

And what was the meaning behind the words he’d spoken while watching the hostage?

“What did you mean by ‘It’s different this time’?”

What had changed?

“What do you know?”

Eleanor didn’t want to show Ernst her unease.

Fortunately, her expression and tone remained steady.

Then, as if peeling off something glued shut, Ernst’s lips slowly parted.

“…That’s what you wanted to talk to me about?”

His voice lacked the force it had when confronting the hostage-takers.

“You’re kind to everyone else but endlessly cold to me.”

“……”

“Well, I suppose I brought it all upon myself.”

Unexpectedly, Ernst admitted his fault.

For a moment, Eleanor felt like he was a stranger.

“Do you not resent me?”

She meant it exactly as she said.

Eleanor felt no guilt toward Ernst.

Caroline, the loss of his title—those were all consequences of his own actions, and she had no reason to feel remorse.

Yet what came from Ernst was wholly unexpected.

“How could I possibly hate you?”

“…Ernst?”

“If anything, I’m the one who should be asking for your forgiveness.”

Strange.

Strange.

“If I had known we would meet again like this, I wouldn’t have shown up back then.”

A chill ran down Eleanor’s spine.

His tone and demeanor had clearly shifted.

And in his distant gaze, it felt like he was seeing something beyond her.

‘What in the world happened to him?’

Had something changed in him after leaving the palace?

Eleanor instinctively clutched her arm, chilled.

At that moment, Ernst slowly looked her over, as if confirming something.

“Sometimes I wonder. If you had known the same things I did.”

“……”

“Then I might understand why you demanded that sudden divorce.”

No way.

“Even if you don’t know now, it doesn’t matter.”

Ernst looked like a man who had come to a great resolution.

“Because now it’s my turn to pay for the sins of my past life.”

Eleanor’s breath caught in her throat.

***

The past.

The day of Caroline’s trial.

Unable to keep watching, Ernst had left the courtroom but hadn’t returned to the family estate.

He wandered the streets.

Before the final verdict was read, during a recess, he made his way to the defendants’ chamber.

He couldn’t even recall what had driven him to do it.

Using the last of his authority, Ernst had entered Caroline’s room and questioned her.

“Why did you keep Vito alive?”

“Hee, heeheehee.”

Caroline, her hair disheveled, laughed like a madwoman.

As if to reject any attempt at conversation.

But Ernst stubbornly waited.

He showed clearly that if she didn’t answer here, he wouldn’t leave.

Eventually, even Caroline couldn’t resist.

“Heehee, hee, you really… Ernst, you…!”

Caroline, who seemed utterly insane, still had some sense left.

After laughing for a long while, she suddenly twisted her face.

“I thought you came to see your poor mother out of pity. I thought maybe you’d feel something. But no—can’t even offer help, just tossing annoying questions?”

“……”

“We’re nothing special as mother and son, are we? You’ve always been that way. Just like your father—so cold and calculating it made my skin crawl. A monster, not even human.”

Then Caroline suddenly screamed, “Your substitute!”

“……”

“Damn noble society, all about bloodlines. If the head of House Mecklen is gone, I’m powerless. What if you died suddenly like your father? When the previous Duke of Mecklen died, I survived because you were the only heir. But if something happens to you, I’m finished. I needed a backup plan, didn’t I?”

“……”

“What? Were you hoping for some loving words?”

“Do you feel no remorse for Vito?”

“…Remorse?”

“You framed Vito’s mother for a crime she didn’t commit, and then killed her yourself.”

“Ha.”

Caroline snorted at Ernst’s reply.

“Now I’ve heard it all. Save a drowning man and he demands money?”

“……”

“If I hadn’t killed Rachel, do you think you’d be Duke Mecklen now? That seat is mine to give! I put you there! Because I killed Rachel, not Vito—you became the duke! And you don’t even appreciate your mother’s grace!”

Red veins bulged in Caroline’s eyes as her fury mounted.

When she began thrashing wildly, the soldiers nearby rushed in to restrain her, but her madness only intensified.

“I made it happen! I put you in that seat! It was all me!”

“…Goodbye, Mother.”

“Ernst—!!”

That day, Ernst killed his mother in his heart.

When Caroline climbed the scaffold, he didn’t go to see her.

He had thought it ended there.

But—

“That’s when it started.”

Ernst’s eyes twisted slightly as he recalled the recurring nightmares.

“When I began to recover the memories of my past life.”