IBACM Chapter 83

Chapter 83

She dabbed at her tears with a handkerchief and continued speaking.

“I am fine.”

“But we cannot just let him go unpunished and return to daily life as if nothing happened!”

“The monster hunting mission must be canceled, of course.”

“That is not enough. He must fully understand how absurd his actions were.”

“The fact that he has been unusually quiet lately must mean he was hiding his unstable mind.”

The lords who secretly supported Somerset took this chance to raise their voices.

“Wait.”

One of the lords raised his hand and spoke.

“What is Dedrick’s condition?”

“Why are you asking about the condition of a madman?”

Lord Aulus snapped irritably, but Lord Ziyad sighed deeply.

“Lord Aulus, no matter what, he is still the youngest son of the Blackwood family. Please watch your words.”

At Lord Ziyad’s sharp gaze, Lord Aulus clicked his tongue and stayed silent. Lord Ziyad then continued.

“As far as I know, he is not insane but was merely raising a monster. And he claimed he had Lord Blackwood’s permission to do so. But the monster…”

Lord Ziyad turned to Delani with a cold look.

“I heard that someone provoked it first, Lady Delani.”

“That cannot be true. That monster was a threat to me. No matter what Dedrick said, the creature suddenly attacked me. You cannot imagine how terrifying it was to be attacked by something invisible.”

“That is just your one-sided claim…”

Before Lord Ziyad could finish, Lord Aulus cut him off with irritation.

“It does not change the fact that the monster is dangerous! And so is its insane master!”

“When I met Dedrick, I did not get such a bad impression…”

“We must deal with him immediately!”

“Calm down, Lord Aulus.”

As Lord Aulus stubbornly pushed his argument, Delani intervened to stop him.

If he went too far, the others would start seeing his behavior as unreasonable rather than focusing on punishing Dedrick.

Everyone present knew that Lord Aulus was not a beneficial figure for Blackwood’s reputation.

He was only tolerated because his family had served the first Grand Duke.

Before that tolerance wore out, Delani tried to regain control of the situation.

Bang!

The doors suddenly burst open, and Hogan entered.

His fierce presence made the noisy room go silent. But Lord Aulus, as usual, was not affected.

“How dare you enter in the middle of a meeting without permission?”

However, Hogan did not even glance at Lord Aulus. Instead, he sneered.

“You are all doing quite a job. Taking advantage of the Grand Duke’s absence to pull this off. Isn’t that right, Lady Delani?”

His sharp words made Delani frown.

“Are you planning to kill the youngest lord before the Grand Duke returns?”

At Hogan’s direct provocation, Delani’s expression darkened as she called his name lowly.

“Sir.”

But Hogan ignored her and went straight to his point.

“I heard there is a monster Dedrick raised. Hand it over to me immediately. You are too delicate to handle such a dangerous creature, Lady Delani.”

“Sir!”

“If it is considered dangerous, the Black Hawk knights have every right to take charge of it, regardless of whether Lord Blackwood permitted it or not.”

He stared sharply at Delani.

“Hand it over now.”

“That creature attacked me. I should be the one handling it!”

“Or are you just trying to deal with this before the Grand Duke returns?”

“Sir!”

Delani could no longer contain her anger and stood up abruptly. She then unwrapped the bandages around her neck, revealing a clear sword wound.

“You see this wound? I can imprison Dedrick immediately for harming me. Even after the Grand Duke returns, I have the right to demand justice!”

“Enough with the speech. Just get to the point.”

“You…! How dare you be so arrogant, even as a knight…!”

Boom!

Hogan slammed Lord Aulus’s table with such force that it shattered into pieces. Lord Aulus turned pale.

“Shut your mouth, Lord Aulus. You are the one crossing the line, not me. Can’t you see how displeased everyone is?”

Only then did Lord Aulus look around. Everyone wore uncomfortable expressions, clearly displeased with his behavior.

‘This is bad.’

Delani quickly spoke to regain control of the situation.

“I will send Dedrick to the Herba Academy as punishment.”

“Hah.”

Hogan scoffed in disbelief, but Delani continued with a serious expression.

“You, more than anyone, should know that I am being very lenient.”

Hogan ran a heavy hand over his face, deep in thought.

‘Even after the Grand Duke returns, this will be a problem. If this matter is overlooked too lightly, the knights and nobles will rebel.’

After all, they would not ignore an attack on the ‘Grand Duchess.’

But sending Dedrick to the Herba Academy was both a punishment and a form of forgiveness. It was probably the best option.

Otherwise, it would cause endless trouble when Dedrick eventually took his place as the heir of Blackwood.

Hogan sighed heavily, feeling the weight of the situation.

‘…Young Master, you’ve walked right into her trap.’

In the end, he took a step back.

As Hogan’s energy settled slightly, Delani spoke confidently.

“I think it would be good for Dedrick to take some time to reflect there. Once he graduates, the country will provide for him, so he’ll be able to make a living even if he’s not the heir.”

She made it sound as if she cared about Dedrick’s future, but everyone knew that the place she was sending him to was infamous. Hardly anyone graduated from there unharmed.

Lord Ziyad was especially troubled. He knew very well how cruel the Grand Duchess could be, but in this case, even he couldn’t openly oppose her.

So, he carefully tried to negotiate for a lighter punishment.

“The young master will soon come of age. Instead of the academy, wouldn’t it be better for him to stay here, assisting the Grand Duchess and seeking her forgiveness?”

“I am already being very generous, Lord Ziyad. If I let him off with such a light punishment, I would lose all dignity.”

Delani lowered her eyebrows in a sorrowful expression, playing the perfect victim.

“As a mother, of course, I would love to forgive him. But if Dedrick stays here, the noble families will strongly oppose it. He will be shamed for the rest of his life because of this incident. Wouldn’t it be better for him to serve his punishment properly?”

To outsiders, Delani appeared as if she truly cared for Dedrick.

Lord Aulus, waiting for his chance, quickly supported her words.

“The Grand Duchess was harmed, so it is only right that he faces punishment. In fact, I would say this is a merciful decision! Don’t you agree, Lord Ziyad? And Sir Hogan?”

“Merciful?”

“…”

Hogan’s sharp retort made Lord Aulus flinch under his intimidating presence.

‘There’s no way out of this.’

Lord Ziyad furrowed his brows in frustration. Somerset and Axel were not capable of leading Blackwood.

He had hoped Dedrick would grow strong and take over the family one day.

‘But now he’s trapped.’

Completely.

Even the lords who supported Dedrick couldn’t speak up in this situation.

In the end, it was decided that Dedrick would be sent to Herba Academy.

“If the young master’s punishment is settled, let’s discuss the monster again. As I mentioned before, our knights are best suited to guard it, so please leave it to me, Grand Duchess.”

“No.”

Hogan’s forehead tensed with anger, but Delani calmly avoided his gaze and spoke.

“This all happened because of me, so I will take care of it until Dedrick returns from his studies. I also want to fix the wardrobe properly and return it to him.”

“But once His Grace returns, the monster must be given back. So—”

“Then I will take care of it until that time.”

“This is also for your own safety, Grand Duchess.”

“Thank you for your concern, Sir Hogan. But I have already hired a magician to set up a secure barrier. There is no danger.”

Before Hogan could argue further, she added,

“I also know how much you care for Dedrick, which is exactly why I can’t entrust this to you.”

“…”

“If I leave it with you, you might let him see the monster. But he is being punished—he shouldn’t have free access to something that belongs to him. There must be control.”

Delani watched Hogan’s frustrated expression with satisfaction and warned him,

“If you continue to insist, I will have no choice but to make Dedrick’s punishment even harsher.”

It was a threat, and Hogan had no choice but to back down. Dedrick’s safety was more important to him than the monster.

“…Do not kill it.”

“Of course not.”

Delani smiled gently.

To others, it looked like the kind smile of a caring mother.

But in reality, it was the victorious smile of someone who had secured an eternal weakness to control Dedrick forever.