Chapter 75
As I walked through the Imperial Palace, it was impossible not to notice everyone whispering while looking my way.
Rumors had spread that Count Chester had squandered his family’s wealth and even handed down the title of head of the household to his daughter.
It was gossip not worth confirming, something I had simply tucked away in my mind, but seeing it with my own eyes made me realize—Count Chester really had gone mad.
His miserable downfall made Rayana’s brows furrow unconsciously.
To think he abandoned my mother just to live like that? Resentment welled up suddenly.
Rayana moved to pass him and head out toward the terrace.
“Where are you going?”
Count Chester tried to grab her arm, but she slipped away lightly.
“Excuse me.”
“Rayana!”
The count looked at her in disbelief as she attempted to leave.
“So you’ve really been avoiding me? You mean to forget this father of yours, to cast me aside after all the grace you’ve received?”
Shouting, he truly looked like a man gone insane.
Thirteen years had passed; when the aged count raised his voice, it cracked and rasped.
Just as she was about to ignore him and leave, Rayana suddenly wondered what his true purpose was in seeking her out.
“Why have you come here? Did you come only to shout at me? Or perhaps to punish me as you did before?”
Facing him directly, Rayana found her breath strangely stifled, her hands trembling ever so slightly.
Even though the man before her was now smaller in stature than herself, the reaction was odd.
She had not flinched before monsters, nor tensed before demons.
And yet here she was, trembling before a withered, frail old count.
Grinding her teeth, Rayana suppressed the surge of emotion. She felt pathetic for even faltering.
“You’ve still been upset about what happened when you were little.”
The count suddenly broke into a bright smile. His emotional swings were so bizarre that Rayana’s skin crawled.
“Rayana, it was all for your sake. You knew nothing of the world—what if you had gone out and suffered? I only disciplined you to teach you.”
Rayana had risen to glory, hailed as a hero, while Count Chester had fallen into ruin.
The more her fame spread, the more the count obsessed over her. To him, she would be his salvation when she returned from war, the sun that would drag him out of his pit of debt.
It was only natural, then, that he clung to her—she was his only escape. There was no way he would let her go.
But starting today, he could no longer cling. His only escape was gone. No wonder his mind felt as though it would explode.
His vision ran red, and before him he felt he might just tear Rayana apart with his teeth.
As Rayana’s past became common knowledge in society, Count Chester’s reputation had been ground into the dirt.
He was left abandoned by all, as if stranded alone on a deserted island.
“You—you dare… how dare you…”
Unable to form words out of sheer rage, the count panted heavily.
Rayana’s eyes swept him slowly from head to toe.
His already poor figure had shrunken further, making him look pitiful. Dark hollows circled his eyes, whether from sleepless nights or drug use.
Age spots and wrinkles marred his skin, adding to his wretchedness, while the shabby fabric of his formal attire revealed the state of his finances.
All this—just to live like that?
Normally calm and composed, Rayana felt a rare flicker of anger.
This man, who had ruined her childhood, was not even worth vengeance.
He had already thrown himself into his own hell. What more was there to do?
“It seems, Count, that you did not heed His Majesty’s words. You look unwell—perhaps you’ve developed an ailment of the ears?”
“What—what are you saying?”
“His Majesty clearly declared: the records of my adoption into the Chester family will be erased. I am no longer your daughter.”
Her firm, unyielding tone carried no trace of the soft, gentle girl he once knew.
Only the hardened soldier, weathered by years of war, stood before him now.
“If you think to use that as a pretext to extort money from me, give up. I am no child to be robbed blind, nor can you take anything from me by force anymore.”
The count’s eyes widened in disbelief.
This girl, who once trembled before him, now glared at him coldly, declaring that he could not take a single thing from her.
“I would prefer you refrain from calling me your daughter or yourself my father. Such words only offend me. Now, I’ll be going.”
Rayana made no effort to hide her disgust as she brushed past Count Chester and left the terrace.
Of all the things she had learned from Crociade, the most invaluable had been attitude.
Valencia never loses. That air of confidence was not arrogance, for his skill backed it absolutely.
From her exchange with Count Chester, Rayana realized this truth profoundly.
Crociade and Theodore—both had become precious to her beyond measure. She never wanted to return to the days before she knew Valencia.
“My words are not finished! How dare you ignore me…!”
The count’s voice turned eerie, but Rayana did not slow her steps.
Infuriated, he broke into a run to grab her.
She could have easily dodged him with her eyes closed.
“You dare ignore me!”
His thunderous shout froze her body for a moment.
The damned aftereffects of childhood beatings.
In that instant’s pause, the count drew a small dagger hidden in his clothing.
As Rayana blinked, she saw crimson droplets scatter through the air—and Count Chester’s face, twisted in madness.
The terrace atop the grand hall, reserved only for the Imperial Family.
Aileia shoved Theodore roughly into a corner, yelling in fury.
“Have you lost your mind?! Do you know how hard Father and Uncle have worked to conceal the fact that you harbor a demon—and yet you pull a stunt like this!”
Her temper finally snapped, her voice ringing sharp.
Theodore was neither someone who could easily be dragged along, nor someone whose body could be tossed aside.
Yet now he slumped against the railing as if the world had ended, powerless.
“Why… why…”
He kept fiddling with the cufflinks at his wrist, repeating the same words.
So blinded, he didn’t even realize he looked like a madman.
His emotions churned wildly, his golden eyes flickering with the storm inside.
Aileia pressed a hand to her forehead, staring at him.
“Since when?”
“…”
“Answer me! Since when have you been able to wield the demon’s power?”
No matter how many times she demanded, Theodore only muttered the same phrase, vacant, unable to answer.
But Aileia could tell from his state.
She had studied the ancient tablets since coming of age, had seen the inexplicable choices of her father and uncle.
She knew well—the power Theodore used without backlash was the very power only a demon’s vessel could wield.
It wasn’t entirely clear, but one thing was certain: even with the demon’s eyes, he had retained his sanity. A remarkable feat.
Or… perhaps not sane at all?
For he only muttered the same words over and over, like a lunatic.
She had her suspicions. The moment Rayana had uttered the word disownment, Aileia’s gaze had shifted to Theodore.
She feared the moment her cousin’s mind would finally break.
If it did, the demon would seize the chance to take control—and then it might slaughter everyone gathered in the hall.
It was enough to bring the entire Astel Empire to ruin. Aileia felt faint at the thought.
“Were you planning to kill everyone in the hall?”
The savage glint in Theodore’s eyes answered for him.
“I know it’s not my place, but do you really think you and Rayana would survive if all those people died?”
Foolish man.
At Rayana’s name, Theodore’s fierce gaze melted into sorrow.
Despite being publicly rejected in the hall just now, he still dripped with longing.
“Rayana abandoned the Chester estate. She said that was all she wanted.”
