Chapter 196……………………….
Roland Cassius—how exactly did he end up imprisoned in the imperial palace dungeon?
There was a rather absurd story behind it.
First of all, the origin of the whole matter was the emperor.
The man who had lost the empress he had lived with for many years—love her or hate her—because of Riena, and who had also been left with a permanent disability.
What must he have felt while lying in bed?
Naturally, he must have burned with a desire for revenge. He must have found Riena utterly unforgivable.
However, the main culprit, Riena, was already long gone, far away. So the emperor’s anger turned toward the Cassius family, who had cherished and raised her all this time.
Still, the emperor had not lost his reason entirely.
He knew perfectly well that he could not hold the Cassius family responsible for Riena’s crimes—especially since they had already disowned their adopted daughter in the past.
So the emperor decided to thoroughly investigate the Cassius family instead.
‘How many people in this world can be shaken without even a speck of dust falling out?’
Especially large noble houses like the Cassius family—there were always countless minor and major violations of the law.
Normally the imperial family would turn a blind eye as a reward for loyalty, but if they seriously decided to dig into it, the outcome was obvious.
Investigators dispatched by the imperial palace combed through the Cassius castle, their townhouse in the capital, and every building owned by the Cassius family.
They even barged into the houses of Cassius vassal families, confiscating decades’ worth of ledgers and documents.
And the result?
Well… as you can see.
“Release me immediately! I can’t endure a place this miserable even for a moment!”
The emperor had probably been aiming for Edmund Cassius—the current Duke of Cassius and Riena’s father.
But the one who ended up dragged here and imprisoned was Roland.
I asked coldly,
“Then why did you commit so many corrupt acts when you were still the duke?”
According to what Terrence told me, Edmund hadn’t exactly lived a perfectly law-abiding life either—but compared to his father, it was nothing.
No wonder even the furious emperor had chosen to arrest Roland instead of Edmund.
“Tax evasion, bribery, slush funds, forced evictions… quite an impressive list.”
Roland cleared his throat pompously.
“Baron Lucibius, you may not understand, but a little illegality is sometimes a necessary evil when governing a large territory.”
A little?
“Fine, let’s say that’s true. But why are there so many assault records too? There are quite a few people claiming you beat them. At this rate, you must have swung your cane like an annual tradition.”
“Well, if I hit them, it must have been deserved! Anyone who dares to act insolently toward me deserves it!”
Not a trace of remorse.
‘Yes… this is what he was always like.’
Even in Walk Only the Flower Path After Regressing, the novel written from Riena’s memories, he was described as having a bad personality. That much was certain.
Of course, Riena—who was endlessly generous toward her own side—had described him as “a grandfather you can’t help but love.”
But to most people, he was simply a hateful old man.
“Baron Lucibius! Hurry and get me out of here!”
And now he was making shameless demands as if it were only natural.
“Why would I rescue you? I have no desire to, and I don’t even have the authority.”
“What do you mean you don’t? You’re the true saint chosen by the goddess, aren’t you? The one who defeated that witch and saved the world! Even His Majesty the Emperor wouldn’t ignore your words!”
I pressed my hand to my forehead.
Had it been a mistake to honestly tell this man everything that happened in the Beast Territory?
But when I had just arrived in the capital, Roland—who wasn’t imprisoned yet—kept pestering me until I ended up telling him everything.
Besides, he already knew about Gaius, so it was hard to make up a lie.
‘And I was feeling too emotional back then.’
The exhilaration from the Siege of Miloam still lingered, and Roland had helped with the Gaius situation, so my heart had softened.
I had even briefly thought this old man might be someone on my side—someone hard to hate.
What nonsense.
“Anyway, stop dreaming and reflect on your actions in there.”
At that, the door to the solitary cell rattled loudly, and Roland’s furious voice came through the small hatch where meal trays were passed.
“You traitor! You didn’t even marry my son! And you defeated that witch thanks to my help!”
“Yes, yes. I never once said I’d marry him. And that’s separate from the help you gave.”
“Then why did you come see me today?!”
“Oh, partly to check on your condition—and also to give you a little gift I prepared.”
“A gift? What gift?”
I didn’t have to answer.
Because the man who had approached with the guard and was now standing behind me spoke first.
“Father. It’s me.”
“Isaac!”
Recognizing his son’s voice, Roland asked eagerly,
“You came to visit me?”
Just then, the guard unlocked the cell door.
“Or did you bribe someone to get me out—”
Isaac Cassius stepped into the cell and answered proudly.
“No. I got arrested too.”
He held up the handcuffs around his wrists.
“What?!”
Now that the door was open, Roland’s face was visible—and it was filled with shock.
“Why you?!”
“Just got caught for something I did a while ago.”
I kindly explained the details.
“Fraud. It came out during the investigation of the Cassius family.”
I shot Isaac a cold look as the guard removed his handcuffs.
“No wonder the way you planned that investment scam last time seemed too experienced. And you pretended it was your first time.”
He shrugged.
“You shouldn’t trust the words of a con artist.”
“You’re already rich. Why commit fraud?”
“Isn’t it only natural to want to mess with idiots who have nothing but money?”
I shook my head at Isaac’s shamelessness and rotten personality.
In that regard, father and son were truly identical.
“You can’t do this!”
“Move! I’m innocent! I’m getting out of here!”
Meanwhile, Roland had already tried to escape through the open door, only to be stopped by the guard.
Of course, it didn’t work.
The guard shoved Roland back inside and locked the door firmly.
“Wait! Isaac—take this guy away!”
Roland pounded on the door and shouted.
“Oh, that’s the gift I mentioned.”
“What gift?”
“You’ll be sharing a room with your son. Solitary confinement must be lonely, so I personally proposed the idea to His Majesty the Emperor and got permission.”
Apparently the emperor didn’t care much about Roland to begin with, because he readily agreed to my suggestion.
“I don’t need it!”
But the person concerned rejected my goodwill outright.
“You expect me to stay in this cramped room with him?”
“It’s the largest cell in the entire empire. This is the nobles’ prison.”
“There’s only one bed!”
“Then sleep together like a loving father and son.”
“This is torture!”
“Father, since that’s the situation now, I look forward to living together. By the way, if you snore at night, I’ll push you off the bed.”
“Take this bastard away!”
Ignoring a certain criminal’s desperate screams, I left the imperial dungeon.
If you do bad things, you get punished.
A very simple principle.
“So that’s what happened.”
Terrence nodded as he listened to my story.
We had finished dinner together and were now spending a quiet moment in my room.
“I genuinely meant it as a kindness, but I didn’t expect him to call it torture. Honestly, the hardest part of solitary confinement for prisoners is loneliness.”
“In time, he will surely realize your good intentions and feel grateful.”
“I doubt it. That old man will probably struggle with that realization for the rest of his life.”
Our eyes met as we chatted idly, and we burst out laughing.
It was strange. It wasn’t even a particularly funny story, yet whenever I talked with him, laughter came naturally and I felt cheerful.
So this is what love feels like.
Thinking that, I glanced at Terrence cautiously.
‘…The mood is good. Maybe today will work?’
Alright. Let’s try.
I steeled my resolve and subtly leaned against him.
“Um, Terrence. It’s late… maybe a drink—”
At that moment, Terrence suddenly lifted me into his arms and headed toward the bed.
Wait… that fast?
But contrary to my expectations, he simply laid me down on the bed and carefully tucked the blanket around me.
“Idel, I think you should rest now. You visited several places today—the Cassius estate, Lady Margaret’s mansion, and more. You must be tired.”
“What? Not at all! I wasn’t even walking around—I was riding in a carriage!”
“No, you must be fatigued. I’ll head back now, so please rest comfortably.”
“W-wait.”
“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”
And just like that, all I could do was watch helplessly as Terrence left.
“I failed again…”
After he was gone, I muttered weakly and stared at the ceiling.
I, Idel Lucibius—who had saved the world and resolved nearly every major problem in my life—was now facing a new, unexpected obstacle.
For several days now, my lover had been avoiding me whenever the atmosphere became even slightly romantic.
How did this problem begin?
The story goes back to the day we had just returned to the capital.
That day, we celebrated our safe return with a small toast during dinner.
The atmosphere was warm and cheerful.
At least… until I choked on my wine.
The red wine I coughed out splashed onto my lips and the front of my clothes, staining them red.
Like fresh blood.
“Ah… this is embarrassing.”
Once I finally stopped coughing, I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
But his reaction was… strange.
No—very strange.
He was staring at me blankly, his face completely pale.
