Chapter 47
The strength in Dylan’s hand, which had been gripping Sion’s shoulder, slowly faded.
“…The Leander family, you said?”
“Yes. Here it is.”
Letting go of Sion completely, Dylan received the letter from his aide. His brows furrowed deeper and deeper as he read.
By the time his eyes reached the last line, the paper in his hand was already crushed—just like his expression.
“Those damned bastards. So they’re really coming to annul the engagement. Since the fake reconciliation worked as a smokescreen, they’re saying they don’t need the alliance anymore, huh.”
Cursing under his breath, Dylan threw the crumpled letter back at his aide and gave an order.
“Shut down the lab for the time being. Who knows what tricks those sly cat bastards might pull. As usual, make sure to dispose of anything that could serve as evidence—at sea.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And bring in a new candidate for Joanna Demos. The appearance will be the same anyway, so… ah.”
In the midst of issuing commands and striding toward the exit, Dylan suddenly stopped as if remembering something he’d forgotten.
Then, smoothly turning around, he looked at the boy standing in the middle of the corridor.
“Sion, I almost forgot about you.”
At Dylan Demos’s smiling face, Sion’s shoulders—already tense from holding his breath—visibly stiffened again.
With an easy stride, Dylan came back and bent down slightly to meet his son’s eyes.
“You’ve been under a dangerous illusion lately, so I’ll be kind enough to tell you…”
He reached out and lightly caressed Sion’s cheek with the large, gloved hand.
“Whether or not you can be replaced—that’s for me to decide. Not you. Me, the head of the house.”
“…”
“If you think that’s unfair, then endure it. Endure it and rise. Become the head yourself. Then, like me, you’ll rule this fortress.”
Dylan smiled faintly, turned his back, and added as he walked away:
“And if you wish to stop the experiments, don’t sever the line—train. Strengthen yourself.”
“…”
“Grow strong. That’s all you need. The reason those people suffer is all for the sake of creating a powerful heir. If you grow strong enough, no more sacrifices will be needed.”
With that, Dylan left the underground chamber completely.
Sion unclenched his aching fist and turned over his father’s last words in his mind.
He just had to grow stronger.
Then those people wouldn’t have to become sacrifices anymore…
Standing in the back of the busy laboratory as others hurried to clean up traces, Sion stared vacantly ahead and thought—
Before he too lost his mind, he had to carry out his plan. As soon as possible.
“Excuse me, is His Grace the Grand Duke here?”
“I’m afraid not, Lady. His Grace just left the office.”
“Pant… pant… Is the Grand Duke here?”
“Oh dear, Lady! You just missed him—His Grace left the tower a moment ago. But would you like a cookie? We just received some delicious chocolate cookies!”
“…N-no, thank you!”
Resisting even the temptation of cookies, Chloe searched every corner of the castle, but Lucian refused to appear before her.
Seeing her dejected expression, Cassie and Brooks cautiously suggested:
“Why don’t you leave a message with the attendants and wait in your room?”
“Yes, Princess. You can have some snacks, draw a bit, and he’ll come soon.”
“No.”
Despite her maid and knight insisting all morning, Chloe firmly shook her head.
“I want to hear it as soon as possible—whether Demos sent a reply or not.”
With resolute determination, Chloe began walking again.
She had heard the letter had been sent; by now, the reply must have arrived.
And if it hadn’t, she’d ask them to send another letter requesting an exact visitation time.
She wanted to meet as soon as possible.
As soon as possible—to save him.
Eventually, when Chloe wandered even into the remote corners of the castle searching for Lucian—
“I have nothing to say to you.”
—she heard an unexpected voice, from the secluded end of the garden.
‘Mother!’
Delighted, Chloe almost ran toward Melissa—until she saw the man standing in front of her mother.
It was Ian Leander, the man who had disappeared with Lucian.
“Ah—Lady Melissa…”
“Shh!”
When Brooks whispered, Chloe quickly put a finger to her lips, signaling him to stay quiet, and ducked behind a pillar.
Cassie and Brooks hesitated for a moment, then followed her example.
From their hiding place, they could hear Melissa’s cold voice clearly.
“If you’re that curious, why don’t you ask your brother?”
“You think I didn’t? No matter how much I asked, he wouldn’t tell me anything. That’s why I came to you.”
“If your brother won’t tell you, why come to me?”
“Because…!”
Clearly frustrated, Ian ran a hand through his neatly combed hair and sighed deeply.
“Because you’re easier to talk to than he is.”
“…”
“You know it too. To Lucian Leander, I’m still just the little brother. He never tells me anything that actually matters.”
At those words, Melissa’s tightly pressed lips loosened slightly, and she asked quietly,
“He really… didn’t tell you anything?”
“He did. Just that it was all his fault. That he behaved like trash and left, and that I should comply with every request. That he’d take responsibility for the consequences himself.”
A faint, bitter smile spread across Melissa’s face.
“So he does know it was his fault.”
“…Was it? What exactly did he do wrong?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
At her firm tone, Ian’s confidence faltered a little. He carefully asked,
“Was it something serious? Is that why you acted the way you did?”
But even then, Melissa didn’t answer.
A silence long enough to be painful stretched between them, until at last she sighed and murmured,
“I’ll admit, it might have been harsh on you. You were forced to hear about the divorce without knowing anything.”
Kicking lightly at the ground, Melissa muttered,
“They said there were no labs in the basement, no traces of magical stone trading either… so if everything really was a misunderstanding, then yes—you had to face it all without any explanation…”
“Then tell me.”
Seizing the moment, Ian pressed quickly.
“What exactly happened? What could have possibly happened to make my brother fall apart like that?”
At that, Melissa stopped tapping the ground and looked up at him.
Under the clear noon sunlight, Ian’s green eyes shone with earnestness.
“Why did you leave so coldly? You two were so happy—how could it all flip like that, just overnight?”
“…”
“Please, Melissa. Even if not now… we were family once.”
Family.
At that word, Chloe’s grip on the pillar tightened.
She’d guessed they might once have been close—maybe even that her mother had gotten along with the Leanders.
But family…?
That word was far heavier than she expected, and confusion clouded Chloe’s eyes.
As the girl stood lost in thought, Ian’s low voice broke the long silence.
“I can accept it now. You’ve grown, and so have I.”
His eyes held deep understanding.
“It’s true, isn’t it? That thing.”
“…That thing?”
“The affair.”
Affair.
…Affair?
Melissa blinked, wondering if she’d misheard.
“W-what did you say?”
No, she must have heard wrong. She must have.
She prayed he’d correct himself.
“Ian Leander—what did you just say I did?”
“I’ve already confirmed it.”
But Ian crushed that hope.
“I read the reports. The wolf family—your family—has always been full of philanderers.”
“What nonsense!”
Enraged by the slander reaching even her ancestors, Melissa jumped up.
“My parents and grandparents were the most loving couples you could find!”
“I heard they were wolf couples, not lovebirds.”
“Are you seriously going to keep spouting nonsense?”
“You’re the one refusing to admit the truth. All the other reports might be false, but the affair—that part checks out. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have personally designated him and brought him here.”
“Designated who? Who are you even talking about?”
“Brooks Lowell.”
“…Excuse me?”
Brooks, who had been eavesdropping with an increasingly grave face, reflexively responded when his name suddenly came up.
“W–wait, are you… talking about me?”
Before Chloe could stop him, he stepped forward, looking utterly dumbfounded—like someone had just told him a lion had given birth to a rabbit.
“M–me? With Lady Melissa…? What are you even saying…?”
“Ian, what kind of idiotic story are you making up?”
Rubbing her forehead in disbelief, Melissa growled,
“I’ve never done anything like that—and especially not with him!”
“She’s right! Sir Brooks isn’t like that with my mother!”
Chloe, deciding this had gone far enough, jumped out from hiding and backed them up.
“Sir Brooks is married—and he just had the most adorable baby girl recently!”
“That’s right! I have a daughter—the most precious, sweetest baby in the world!”
Brooks waved his arms desperately, pretending to rock a baby.
“Even while I’ve been here, I’ve cried so much because I miss her so much…!”
“I’ve heard about that too.”
But even his heartfelt outburst didn’t sway Ian in the slightest.
“I heard this one makes it your tenth child.”
The man was relentless. Despite Brooks’s wounded and trembling eyes, Ian didn’t back down an inch.
“So, are you finally planning to acknowledge this one as yours?”
