Chapter 55
“Your Grace! Your Grace!”
The Duke’s hand stopped mid-swing.
He had been practicing swordsmanship alone, unable to vent the frustration boiling inside him.
Aizen lowered his sword diagonally.
“Hi-hick… Hieronymus has—urk—fallen! Destroyed…! Theos betrayed us…! Antorea is under attack as we speak. Please… send… reinforcements—”
The messenger had clearly risked his life crossing the border; he was already a wreck.
He coughed up blood and collapsed at the Duke’s feet.
The flag strapped to his back fluttered, stained red with his own blood.
He died the moment he finished speaking.
“……”
The Duke’s expression did not change.
It wasn’t unexpected.
But it was revolting nonetheless.
Theos, Hieronymus, and Antorea had all been allies of the Hasfeld Empire—
a coalition formed to oppose them, bound together by a shared cause despite old grievances.
“Betrayal.”
So Theos had decided to offer up a fellow ally as sacrifice—to become their lapdog.
“Your Grace, your command?”
A knight beside him, pale-faced, awaited an order.
There was only one option: march to war.
If they hesitated now, other allies might begin to betray them one by one.
“The traitors shall share the same fate—annihilation.”
Theos had to be punished in the most brutal way possible,
and Antorea—still an ally—had to be saved from destruction.
That was the balance that only the strongest empire, Hasfeld, could uphold.
The answer was obvious.
Yet, for some reason, the Duke hesitated for a brief moment.
‘Adelle.’
At the thought of that name.
He hadn’t even been able to see her first day at the academy yet.
And Antorea—of all places, it had to be the farthest of the allied nations.
If he went, he might not return for half a year.
Half a year?
He wouldn’t be able to see his daughter—who grew by the day—for half a year?
“Your Grace! Urgent report!”
The Duke raised his head.
Another retainer came running, voice strained and breath ragged.
Why did bad news always come in pairs?
The man flinched at the sight of the dead messenger, but forced himself to speak.
“Please—look at this!”
He knelt and offered a folded paper.
The Duke took it. It was written in cipher—their code.
And yet, it reeked unmistakably of human hands.
When the Duke looked at him questioningly, the man said,
“It’s an assassination plan concerning the Prophetic Child.
The exact date matches the academy’s entrance ceremony.
We don’t know how, but the leaked route matches the one the Prophetic Child will take, Your Grace.”
“……”
Information about the Prophetic Child was classified even within Alkybiades.
Even Adelle herself was told almost nothing—
because she was a child incapable of lying.
The Duke stared at the cipher.
He couldn’t read it, but he could feel his temper boiling.
‘They dare touch what’s mine.’
They kept taking things from him—again and again.
He wanted to tear them apart with his own hands.
“The academy enrollment is canceled.”
“Your Grace…”
The weak voice came from Michael, but the Duke’s decision was swift.
Years of war had honed his instincts: cold reason and fast judgment.
A man who held military command could not afford hesitation;
every wasted second meant hundreds of deaths.
Cool, decisive, merciless—that was the Duke’s way.
Especially when it came to protecting Adelle.
“Prepare for war. Principles remain unchanged.
We do not return until the traitors’ blood washes our blades clean.”
“Forgive me, Your Grace, but I must speak.”
Michael dropped to one knee and pleaded.
The Duke looked down at him in silence.
“The Young Lady has been eagerly awaiting the academy.
If we cancel without explanation, she will be devastated.”
“…Is that important right now?”
“It is, Your Grace.”
Michael realized, with a shock, how outrageous his defiance was.
It was the first time in his life he had spoken against a direct order from the Duke.
Crises strike without warning, overturning daily life in an instant.
In wartime, disobedience is a grave crime.
He knew that better than anyone.
And yet, he couldn’t forget the little voice that had said—
[Michael, don’t get hurt.]
Adelle…
Michael raised his head.
“Punish me later, Your Grace—but please hear me now.
The Lady looks forward to the academy because she wants to make friends.
If the outside world is dangerous, summon the academy’s special class inside the duchy instead.
Please consider her feelings and soften the blow.”
“…Do it.”
The Duke spoke while sheathing his sword.
“All units, prepare to depart.”
“Your Grace, forgive me, but—”
“Enough. Do you not know how costly it is for a knight-commander to stay behind from war?”
Michael’s eyes widened—his intent had been noticed.
He had been about to volunteer to remain as Adelle’s bodyguard.
The Duke’s tone was cold as steel.
“Full command of the duchy goes to my heir, Blake.
You will all obey his orders.
Prepare to march—we will erase the name Theos from the face of this land.”
They all knew the truth:
fighting among humans was exactly what they wanted.
Even united, humanity barely stood a chance against them.
But there was no other choice—they were cunning beyond belief.
They must have promised Theos that if millions were sacrificed as tribute, a few nobles would be spared.
Theos had taken the bait.
That was why the Duke held firmly to his creed—
the noblesse oblige.
If they offered to let a few nobles live in exchange for countless lives,
the Duke refused to compromise.
His sword would always remain pointed at them.
War had begun again.
Orders spread like wildfire; the camp moved in perfect unison.
Michael cast a worried glance at the Duke, but in the end, he obeyed.
Blake was an intelligent man.
The moment he received the report from a retainer, he grasped everything.
“He said to tell me directly?”
“Yes, young master—pardon, acting lord.”
The title had changed, but Blake’s expression did not.
“What a troublesome little sister.”
So this was what it felt like—to have someone you needed to protect.
The rest of the report didn’t matter much.
The part that struck deepest was what the Duke had said concerning Adelle.
“Protect her. If you fail, I’ll hold you personally responsible—with your life.”
That had been the Duke’s message for Blake.
He murmured dryly,
“What a bloodthirsty father.”
The servant bowed his head silently.
Blake pushed back his black hair and asked,
“Where is Adelle now?”
“I miss Madeleine already,” I said as I drew.
Well—if you could even call it “drawing.”
It looked more like messy coloring, but I was trying my best with my crayons.
“Huh—Young Master?”
“What brings you here, sir?”
The servants’ surprised voices rang out.
I was lying on my stomach on the bed, kicking my legs idly back and forth.
Young Master?
I turned around.
But before I could even face him, a strong hand pressed down on the back of my head.
“Keep drawing, my blissfully carefree little sister.”
“O-Oppa?”
“…Everyone out.”
Blake’s order was curt.
Sarina, who had been bringing a fruit tray, froze for a moment, eyes wide,
then hurriedly withdrew.
In an instant, the room emptied.
Not even the knights were there.
Only my brother and I remained.
“What is this creature you’ve drawn?”
“It’s you, Oppa…”
“…This? This black monkey is supposed to be me?”
He looked scandalized for a moment, then exhaled sharply.
“Why are you so weak?”
“…?”
“You. The child.
Even if you’re only eight, you should have at least some means to survive on your own.”
His sudden scolding left me dumbfounded.
He looked me over from head to toe, shaking his head as if in disbelief.
“I could kill you in one second.”
“……”
“You’re completely defenseless.
If I so much as lift a finger, you’d be dead.”
My chest tightened—tears pricked my eyes.
Why was he suddenly being like this?
Is my drawing really that bad?
That was the only reason I could think of.
But the maids always praised me, saying even the “Prophetic Child” was good at art.
“Ha…”
Blake sighed, and I carefully peeked up at him.
His crimson eyes—like liquid blood—twisted faintly with emotion.
“Don’t look at me like that.”
What did he mean, “like that”?
“What’s going on?”
“…The Duke.”
He didn’t call him Father. The distance in his tone was clear.
“Father has gone to war.”
Those few words stunned me.
Father had gone to the battlefield again.
I didn’t know the details, but the air felt heavy and grim.
“And you—you’re not going to the academy.”
“Why…?”
I put my crayon down, smoothed my hair, and sat properly on the bed.
Blake stood a short distance away, looking down at me.
“Don’t leave this room. Not even outside the door.”
“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”
“It’s only five years. Things might be resolved by then.”
Five years?
He must have been referring to the time when I’d come of age and begin handling divine power.
I was planning to marry Khan in two years anyway, but I couldn’t say that out loud.
Still, this was just too sudden.
“You won’t even explain? What happened? Why?”
“You don’t need to know.”
“I don’t want to! Tell me! I don’t like secrets anymore!”
“You don’t need to know.”
I was speechless.
Had my brother always been this hard, this unyielding?
He was like stone.
So solid that it made me feel fragile.
And maybe he was right.
If he wanted to kill me, he could—instantly.
But why now?
He’d always known that.
Those red eyes—I’d never been able to tell what he was thinking.
Now, even less so.
He straightened his cuffs.
“You’re just… going to leave like this?”
“I’ve said what I needed to.”
“What about my knights?”
“They’ve all been deployed.”
“Wait—Oppa—”
“I’m busy.”
“No, wait—”
He was so cold that my eyes stung.
Or maybe I was already crying.
“……”
“……Ha.”
Blake glanced at me, sighed deeply, and his shoulders eased slightly.
He took a slow, steady breath, as if calming himself.
“I’m not angry at you. I’m just angry about something else.
I’ll explain later. For now, you’re in danger.”
“…Okay.”
“There are no guards, so it’s dangerous even outside your room.
I don’t think the duchy is completely safe.”
“…Okay.”
“But… I’ll let you stay at Madeleine Duchy.
You can see your friend there.”
My eyes widened.
At my reaction, he seemed to relax a little.
“If you die… I die too.”
At the time, he’d meant it literally.
But to my naïve ears, it sounded strangely romantic—
as if he cared for me deeply.
The Duke doesn’t make empty threats.
If he says he’ll answer with his life, he means it.
That was what Blake would later say when recalling that day.
But right then, I was too touched to speak.
“Don’t get hurt, okay?”
“…Yeah.”
He nodded once, then turned to leave—
and for a long while after, I simply stared at the closed door.
