North x Northwest

Chapter 355

“Still, many imperials have blind faith and use this field to justify their wrongdoings. Lazillieré begged to write a statement from the moment the scalping was mentioned. Mireille, on the other hand, suffers from an inferiority complex, which he compensates by wearing flashy jewellery and mistreating slaves. I told that bastard that I was going to dismantle his superior façade by treating him the same way he treated slaves, layer by layer.”

“..!”

Lil looked at him in shock.

Ed had been talking while his eyes fluttered like a madman. It wasn’t difficult at all to imagine him suddenly dropping a knife covered in blood and hair.

Ed asked back in a peaceful tone, a complete contrast with his appearance just seconds ago.

“…Why? What’s wrong?”

But Lil was still slightly disturbed by Ed’s unexpectedly calm voice.

“Is that why you haven’t cleared up those rumours till now?”

“I can’t deny that they’re useful at times.”

An article about Jeanne caught her eye.

‘As Annette suggested, Jeanne chose to divorce Mireille.’

Divorce itself was a supposedly difficult and tedious legal process, but according to the article, Jeanne tearfully reasoned with the Emperor that she couldn’t possibly continue her marriage to the mentally unstable and violent René Mireille. The noble ladies who frequented Annette’s salon supported Jeanne, and so, the Emperor also sympathised with Jeanne’s unfortunate situation and granted her a divorce. Jeanne then filed a lawsuit for a huge amount of alimony and division of property, which the Emperor likewise treated generously.

Meanwhile, the problems of bandits and security along the Great Trade Route were gradually resolved as the Imperial Army began to operate smoothly. The Navy additionally actively captured smuggling ships with the full support of the Imperial Family. In the process, it became known that young boys and girls from fallen kingdoms and fallen noble families were sold as slaves and brutally exploited through smuggling routes throughout the Empire, causing a widespread public outcry once again.

Annette, who witnessed the condition of the children who had been escorted to Sesbron first hand, became furious and heavily criticised Mireille. The viciousness of the slave trade perpetrated by the Garni Merchant Association was revealed to the world, and voices calling for the rescue of the children rose loudly.

With an editorial by a scholar calling for the immunity of nobles from families like Mireille to be abolished, Lil covered Sesbron’s uproar. Turning her head, she looked at the world outside the window. The withered tree branches shed their yellow leaves. It was late autumn, and the farmland that had finished the year’s farming was wasting away.

“Edgar.”

“Hmm?”

Lil placed her palm on the window. The glass with water droplets on it was cold and slippery.

‘It’s a pity to see these lands from such a distant light. Beneath that quietly withering land, a pulse of change could be beating, and we don’t even know about it… The upcoming spring could be different from any other spring…’

Lil wanted to feel the world surrounding her more vividly. If the world was changing along with the people in it, she wanted to be the first to sense the signs.

“I want to know more about the world.”

‘By the time winter turns into spring, I’ll be ready to set sail anywhere.’

Feeling somehow impatient, Lil elaborated without being asked.

“You said that ancient times are in contact with providence, right? I want to know about those ancient times too.”

“Then…”

“Once I’m done in Obernyu, I want to set foot on another continent and travel to a country I didn’t even know the name of.”

“That’s a really good idea.”

“I’ll go with you to any desert or jungle you want to visit along the way.”

“Are you for real?”

Lil only turned her head in front of the window and looked at him. His green eyes behind the glasses were already full of anticipation.

“Yes.”

“It’ll be my honour.”

Ed took her hand and placed his lips on the back of it. After a few more touches, he threw away the report he had been holding and stuck closer to her side. Ed hugged her from behind, resting his chin on the back of her neck where it met her shoulder while looking out the window as well.

“What have you been looking at so intently since a while ago?”

While waiting for Lil’s answer he bowed and raised his head slightly, causing Lil to become annoyed by the glasses that kept bouncing near her face. She pulled his glasses off his face, rested them on his forehead, and finally answered.

“It’s just that… I’ve decided I will give up my right to succession. So if you have any intention of taking Obernyu, you better say it now.”

When Ed laughed out loud at her joke, his melodious laughter tickled her earlobe. Lil shrugged her shoulders for a moment before Ed proceeded to bite her earlobe and whispered.

“…Does that mean there won’t be a penny left?..”

She snorted and shook her head.

Before long, the end of the road from Sesbron to Obernyu was seen. Lil pointed to the Obernyu Castle visible from their carriage window. The castle of the monarch who ruled for hundreds of years was as imposing as the giant trees surrounding it.

As Lil exhaled a nervous yet unconscious breath, a white fog formed on the window.

“This is where Mortu first found me.”

***

Joseph I’s boudoir was filled with the vigour of death.

It was a mix of an unknown moisture, an uncomfortable smell, and the acrid scent coming from the incense burner. The curtains on the bed were draped down, and it was the kind of scenery where one wouldn’t be surprised if there was some kind of horrible figure lying behind it.

As Lil and Ed entered the boudoir, Dr. Limue, the family doctor, stood up from his chair. Ed went to his side and said he would check in with the doctor. Limue, who knew Ed was also a doctor, handed him the medical log and began to explain. Lil planned to listen as well, but their conversation quickly became too difficult to comprehend, so she lifted the thin bed curtains with the back of her hand instead. The figure of a person covered with a thick blanket slowly emerged starting from the feet. Eventually, when Lil finally reached Joseph I’s bedside, her breathing stopped.

She looked down at him in sheer shock.

He was so lifeless that she thought he was actually lying in a coffin rather than a bed. His breathing was shallow, and his skin was as rough and grey as the bark of a tree. Perhaps due to that exact reason, it almost looked like he had already weathered away.

The Archduchess, sitting in the chair next to the bed, held Joseph’s hand and whispered.

“…Joseph, Liloa has returned…”

As if he heard that, his eyelids twitched and his unfocused eyes were revealed. As was typical for patients with limited consciousness, it could take a long time for them to find someone with their eyes.

Even though Lil knew he was sick, she couldn’t believe what she saw. The image of her father that she remembered was that of a strong ruler. When she was younger, she looked up to him as a powerful monarch. She had always been trying so hard to be acknowledged by him, even if only for a moment, and she remembered eagerly looking up at him, hoping he’d stroke her hair.

When Lil heard the news that a new mistress would be appointed, she was horrified. However, seeing his unfocused eyes now made her feel a strange sense of pity. He didn’t even seem to recognize her anymore. He looked at her as if looking into space. His eyes that neither moved nor closed were as empty as an empty well…

But soon, someone trapped in the well called out to Lil.

“…Lilo…”

Startled, Lil stared at Joseph’s lips.

‘They were twitching.’

When the Archduchess lifted her body in her seat as if she had seen it too, Lil spoke.

“I am sure, just now…”

Lil hurriedly looked at Limue. The doctor explained as he nodded his head.

“Sometimes he recognizes people.”

She leaned closer to his bed, allowing his damp scent to assault her nose. The stench emanated from his breath. It was obvious that death was inherent in the most fundamental evidence of life.

“Father?”

“…Liloa…”

The voice was sparse like wind coming from a deep cave. It was desolate, without emotion or energy. His throat slowly moved as if he was about to speak again.

“…Child…”

It was an expression that Lil couldn’t properly place. When Joseph spoke again, it was too soft to hear. Only the sound of dry scraping of vocal cords came out of his throat.

Joseph’s eyes grew bloodshot as he exerted more effort, but the Archduchess grabbed his hand as soon as it emerged from the blanket.

However, Joseph brushed off the Archduchess and grabbed Lil’s wrist. When Lil reflexively swung her wrist, his thin body jumped up. The raised face that appeared to push out his eyeballs came closer to hers in an instant. His trembling throat forced out his voice as if his vocal cords did everything they could.

“Where is the child?”

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