IHYMW 49

Chapter 49

Liette realized something was wrong the very next day after she had spoken with the headmaster.

In the Meren Ducal family, there was an unspoken rule: breakfast was always eaten together by the entire family. This morning was no different—

—except for the heavy silence.

Clatter, clatter.

Only the faint sound of dishes moving across the table echoed in the stillness.

“The weather’s getting chilly… I suppose winter is coming.”

Unable to bear the silence, Liette spoke first.

“I see.”

The Duke of Meren replied as he spooned up some soup. But his eyes were hollow, empty. His response was mechanical, like a bloodless wax doll.

Should I just be grateful he answered at all?

Not only her father, but her mother looked pale as well. Her eyes were swollen, as though she had been crying. Liette forced herself to swallow spoonfuls of soup, unsure if she was chewing actual food or gritty sand.

At last, she could not endure it any longer.

“Did something happen at home?”

“……”

Silence. It was as though her parents had sworn to each other not to speak.

“I received a recommendation letter from the headmaster for the Noble Assembly.”

At those words, the Duke of Meren’s eyes widened and he looked directly at his daughter. At last, a human reaction.

“……Congratulations.”

But it was only for a fleeting moment. Almost immediately, he returned to his dying-man demeanor, offering congratulations as though it pained him to speak.

Liette put her spoon down.

“The reason I mentioned the recommendation is to tell you that I’m no longer a child. You don’t need to hide family matters from me as if you’re whispering around a little girl.”

“……”

Her father brushed his hair back, lips twitching as though he wanted to say something. But in the end, after fidgeting anxiously, he fell silent again.

Father, what in the world…

At that moment, the Duchess, who had kept her mouth tightly closed until now, finally spoke.

“Liette, there’s nothing wrong. You don’t need to worry.”

Not convincing at all.

Liette’s red eyes sharply scanned their faces. The Duchess forced a smile toward her husband.

“Isn’t that right, dear?”

“……Yes. Liette, it’s just that some issues have come up with my work. But it’ll be resolved soon, so don’t worry.”

Even as he said it, the Duke of Meren still looked like a walking corpse.

……Hmm.

Their clumsy lies were impossible to believe, but Liette decided to let it go for now.

After the miserable breakfast, Liette’s steps carried her to the Croyt Ducal residence.

“You’ve come, Liette.”

The Duke of Croyt welcomed her with a warm smile.

“Hello, Uncle.”

She returned the smile and greeting. The duke brushed fallen leaves from her hair, gathered during her walk.

“Time really does fly. To think you’ll be graduating so soon.”

“Exactly. It feels like I just enrolled yesterday.”

The Duke pulled out a chair for her, and Liette sat down heavily. Then she leaned forward across the table, eyes gleaming.

“Uncle, do you know why I came today?”

The duke shook his head with a kind smile. Naturally, he couldn’t know—she had rushed over without explanation as soon as she heard he was home.

“Well, the reason is—”

Liette grinned as she pulled out a piece of paper.

“I came to show you this!”

Tada! She handed the paper to him. It was her recommendation letter to the Noble Assembly.

“I graduated top of my class, and the headmaster gave me this letter!”

The Duke of Croyt accepted it, stunned, and then exclaimed loudly:

“Truly, congratulations, Liette!”

“Thank you. It’s all thanks to your guidance, Uncle.”

But even as she smiled at his praise, her parents’ shadowed expressions returned to her mind, and her lips drooped.

“What’s wrong, Liette?”

Seeing her sudden gloom, the duke asked in concern.

Maybe Uncle knows the reason…

Her father and uncle had long been close friends, even comrades in politics. Liette hesitated, then spoke quietly.

“Uncle… has something happened to my father recently?”

The duke’s eyes twitched faintly, but soon he forced his usual kind smile.

“The Duke of Meren? I’m not sure what you mean.”

Liette immediately sensed the awkwardness in his reply.

“……Please, don’t hide things from me too, Uncle.”

Her voice was somber. The duke’s smile faded, replaced with a long sigh.

“……You’re right. This isn’t something that can be hidden.”

So something had happened. Liette tensed, listening closely.

“Your father has fallen into a trap.”

“…A trap?”

Her brows furrowed.

“You’ll learn more once you join the Assembly yourself, but the Imperial political stage is divided into factions.”

“I already know. The Moderates and the Radicals, right?”

She had been interested in politics, so this much she knew.

Recently, as the Imperial throne weakened, the Noble Assembly’s power had surged. The Assembly was divided between Radicals, who demanded reform, and Moderates, who resisted change.

“Your father and I belong to the Radicals. Each of us plays a role. For example, I plan things from behind the scenes, and your father acts at the front.”

It was the first time Liette had heard such details. In a way, it was like her uncle was the director, and her father the actor.

“This time was no different. I was preparing to expose the corruption of Marquis Callian, the leader of the Moderates, and when the time came, your father would take action.”

“…And then?”

The Duke of Croyt paused, frowning, before continuing.

“Your father was too eager. Marquis Callian has long been our enemy, and your father couldn’t contain himself. But we weren’t ready yet—we needed to wait. Still, he acted on his own… and fell straight into Callian’s trap.”

Liette’s heart pounded with dread. She had already guessed as much.

“…What kind of trap?”

“Your father discovered that Marquis Callian was smuggling illegal goods. He raided the scene—”

“And the scene itself was the trap, wasn’t it?”

The duke nodded grimly.

“As you guessed. It wasn’t mere smuggling. It was an important diplomatic transaction with another nation. Your father ruined it.”

“Then Marquis Callian must have suffered heavy losses.”

“…He’s concealing the full extent from me, but Callian surely seized the chance. He likely demanded enormous compensation.”

Liette pieced everything together.

To summarize: Callian was her father’s long-time political enemy. Her father had pursued his corruption, but acted prematurely despite Uncle’s warnings. In the end, he ruined Callian’s diplomatic deal and now owed ruinous damages from his personal wealth.

That explains Father’s expression… Could we actually go bankrupt?

Though the Merens were one of only two ducal families in the Empire, they weren’t particularly rich. Their title came from an ancestor’s wartime heroics, and though they still held vast lands, drought had weakened their fief.

Disaster upon disaster.

“What sort of man is Marquis Callian?”

She couldn’t sit idle while her family collapsed; she had to know her enemy.

“He’s like a snake. In politics, his influence is overwhelming.”

“In what way?”

The duke asked, “Do you know why the former Emperor was exiled?”

Of course she did. It had shaken the Empire.

Emperor Leopold I, father of the current Emperor, was deposed and exiled for his debauchery and failure to govern. His downfall had weakened the throne and empowered the Assembly.

“The one who exposed Leopold I… was Marquis Callian.”

“…What?”

The man who brought down an Emperor? Liette was stunned.

“On the surface, it seemed righteous. But in truth, he fabricated and exaggerated the Emperor’s faults.”

“And the Emperor never fought back?”

“He was always drunk. He didn’t even realize he’d been framed.”

The revelation left Liette reeling. A man who could topple an Emperor and still retain power…

“Even the current Emperor, Leopold II, fears him. After all, he saw his own father exiled because of Callian’s schemes.”

No wonder…

“I should have stopped your father more firmly,” the Duke of Croyt said bitterly.

But Liette forced a smile.

“Please don’t say that, Uncle. This is our family’s problem.”