Ch.6The First Death

When did it start?

When I stopped calling the young master “oppa”…

“Haha, that’s not possible. Chloe and Claude are siblings, after all.”

Yes, it was then.

Mother responded to my declaration, “I want to marry oppa when I grow up!” as if it were just a child’s adorable whim.

From that moment on, I stopped calling the young master “oppa.”

I wanted him to see me not as a little sister but as someone unrelated. Only then could we marry.

But it seems it was all for nothing.

“Haaa…”

Chloe let out a deep sigh on the castle rooftop.

The night sky was heavily clouded, making the world unusually dark despite it being nighttime.

Since childhood, the young master had always stayed by my side, teaching me everything I was curious about.

Letters, mathematics, music, science—I can proudly say I know more than others my age.

The young master was always in the position of teaching me, never being taught by anyone else.

That’s why I was so surprised when he first started learning magic from someone. I was anxious about getting in his way.

But that worry was unfounded, and the young master quickly mastered magic. He truly is a genius.

The young master literally knew everything.

But it seems he doesn’t know my heart.

“Engagement…”

Engagement, the step before marriage.

I heard his fiancée is the granddaughter of the Laurel Duchy… so it must be that woman I saw at the banquet hall before.

“You… deceived me…”

That note… I disposed of it immediately after receiving it nine years ago, fearing the young master would find it, but I still remember its contents clearly.

It contained useless promises about supporting the young master in his inevitable success or giving me lots of money, but the most important part said: [I will let you live with Claude.]

I believed those words and persuaded the young master to be adopted… but the Duke, no, that Duke lied to me.

Saying he’d let us live together? But… that’s not true.

He’s leaving.

The young master is leaving because of the engagement…!

Haha… Yes, even if the young master marries, I could follow him.

But I can’t bear that.

The more I think about another woman by the young master’s side… my heart aches terribly. It hurts too much.

“What, what should I—”

*Tap*

“—!?”

Who’s there?

I just heard footsteps behind—

“Hmm… So you’re the girl Claude keeps around.”

“…I pay my respects, Lord Pierre.”

The youngest runt appeared at the rooftop entrance, his clothes disheveled.

This bastard, with his two older brothers and two older sisters, has been spoiled from all sides since childhood. Despite being seven years older than me, he’s no different from a child.

“I came out for some fresh air… and found something nice.”

“…”

The sky is very dark with clouds, but not so dark that I can’t see.

His pupils are slightly dilated, his face somewhat flushed, and he’s breathing through both his nose and mouth as if struggling to breathe.

He’s drunk.

“So… so… what exactly were you doing alone in a place like this?”

“I… I was also getting some fresh air.”

“Reaaally…?”

The youngest runt, who seems barely able to keep his balance, approaches me slowly with a disgusting smile.

“Claude doesn’t seem to be around—*hic*!”

At that moment, the moon emerged from behind the clouds, bathing everything in moonlight, and the slowly approaching runt stopped in his tracks, holding his breath.

……….

“…? What’s wrong?”

“Oh, ohhh…”

She’s too beautiful.

Too beautiful to be considered a commoner.

Her eyes are slightly red as if she’s been crying until just now… but even that doesn’t look ugly—it radiates a strange charm.

I thought I was used to seeing her often… but tonight she looks especially pretty.

Particularly, that slightly exhausted aura combined with the moonlight creates a fantastic harmony.

This… I can’t resist.

……….

“Come here.”

“Pardon?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself. It’s dangerous there by the railing, isn’t it?”

“B-but…”

What is he talking about?

He says it’s dangerous by the railing, yet he’s striding toward the railing himself.

Moreover, his expression doesn’t show any concern at all—

*Grab*

“Ugh…”

My wrist hurts.

No matter how scrawny he is, he’s still a man, and the difference in strength is unavoidable.

After my body lurched forward briefly, I found myself in the runt’s arms.

It’s disgusting.

“L-let me—”

“Don’t shout. We’re on the rooftop, so it won’t be heard far. Besides, no one can stop me anyway, so give up.”

“—No, ah…!”

Both instinctively and rationally, I know.

I know what this bastard, who’s always looked at me with lecherous eyes, is trying to do.

“Don’t worry too much. I’ll treat you well.”

“No… quickly—”

“You’ll… receive plenty of money, just like Claude’s mother.”

…What?

What did you just—

“Ah, right. You grew up on that money too, didn’t you? Well, I should repay that debt!”

“…”

I couldn’t hear anything more.

His mouth was moving, but I couldn’t properly hear.

*Slide*

“Hehe, yes… you’ve become obedient. Good, good, that’s better.”

Seeing me stay still, the youngest runt stopped exerting force on me, his face contorting into a grin.

I can see the red marks on my wrist. They’re from the runt gripping my wrist with all his might just moments ago.

Such filthy marks on my body…

“Using moonlight as illumination is quite nice. Now, come here and—”

*Thwack!*

“—What, AAAAARGH!!!”

I struck the back of the head of the runt, who was in the process of removing his pants, with a cleaning tool as hard as I could, and he fell straight off the building.

After hearing something burst at the end, I finally came to my senses.

Looking down over the railing, I saw a body with an empty space where the head should have been. He must have fallen head-first.

“…Ah.”

I killed someone.

Strangely, I felt no guilt. Rather, my heart was filled with satisfaction that he died well.

My only concern is that if this is discovered, it might harm the young master.

[A bastard child can’t inherit.]

[Why not?]

[Well… because there’s a legitimate heir?]

“…”

At that moment, common knowledge the young master had taught me in the past flashed through my mind.

[Then if there’s no legitimate heir, can they inherit?]

[Hmm… generally, yes.]

Right… the reason the young master is getting engaged is because he was ordered to.

If the young master becomes the Duke… no one can give him orders.

“In that case…”

Among the young master’s half-siblings… not a single one ever looked kindly upon him. They all just insulted him, sneering at his “dirty blood.”

That’s fortunate… I don’t need to feel guilty.

Four remain.

No, some have had children, so there are more. But that doesn’t matter.

……….

“…That concludes the autopsy results.”

“Crazy bastard.”

The Duke’s palace, which had been in an uproar, gradually returned to normal as time passed.

Except for the Duke, who received the report with a haggard appearance.

“He got completely drunk in the middle of the night, went up to the rooftop to urinate, and accidentally fell to his death?”

All the evidence points to this.

The fact that he drank heavily yesterday is confirmed by countless witnesses including myself, and several servants including Chloe testified to seeing him hiccupping as he went to the rooftop. His pants were also partially lowered.

What makes this conclusion more credible is that this bastard had been caught several times before urinating from the rooftop toward the outside.

“What… what will you do, sir?”

“…We’ll simply announce it as an accidental fall.”

There’s no need to reveal the detailed cause of death.

“Everyone’s been sworn to secrecy, I assume?”

“Of course, sir.”

If the fact that he died for such a ridiculous reason spreads, others will look down on us.

As a father, I don’t even have time to mourn my son’s death before thinking about the family’s honor… the role of the head of the family is truly disgusting.

“Didn’t the guards patrolling the garden see anything?”

“No, sir. Last night was so cloudy that while the castle walls with their torches were visible, the rooftop was too dark to see clearly.”

Hmm… that’s possible.

I woke up suddenly last night, and looking out the window, the outside was so cloudy that nothing was visible.

…I woke up at what must have been the moment my son died. If I had gone to the rooftop then, could I have saved Pierre?

“No one but Pierre would do something so foolish, but such incidents must never happen again. Seal off the rooftop door at night.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll see to it immediately.”

With those words, the Duke carefully placed the report on his desk and walked to the window with his hands behind his back.

Tears were streaming from his eyes, but the Duke deliberately tilted his head slightly upward to prevent them from flowing out.

The Duke turned his back to ensure his vassal wouldn’t see his tears, staring out the window.

“…Everyone is cleaning diligently.”

At the spot where Pierre was found, numerous servants and maids were rushing to erase all traces of Pierre.

The Duke noticed that Chloe, dressed in a maid’s uniform, was among them.

“…”

‘She’s grown a lot.’

Has it already been nine years since I allowed her to stay at the castle to be with Claude? Indeed, there’s no trace of the youthful appearance she had when she first arrived.

But… I’m certain I told the head maid to exempt her from such menial tasks… why is she there?

…No, let’s not worry about it. I’m being too sensitive because of my son’s death.

Such matters can be looked into later without issue.