SMR | Chapter 18
by Luna~Chapter 18~165fb38b6f420083
The fear that had 36b1017cd7 once felt like standing 9b59e64849 on the edge of 807e8b57ae a cliff was completely 4e5a1601a9 forgotten. Self-pity was a luxury 5fefa29f67 she couldn’t afford anymore. Her goal was 2e97a60ac5 no longer just b4380ae964 about surviving. She felt that 724c972ae7 the only way 3e16dbc1ed she could go 2b92ce9d6e on living was 8f0b284d94 by avenging her 97cd4762c3 family, including herself.f5e5445021a6c954
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Someone once d0663c7a7f said that 9b18f153f8 if a d8f7891b90 person is 140e991f84 tormenting you d0efad08d7 for no f5ab064ae9 reason, you cf9f8b0837 should give 5d3606d427 them a 10dedd8611 reason to 514e0e1c88 do so.33a981a56b60e5e2
“A scandal maker? Fine. If they’re going 23231c8ce1 to call me 9f65820a71 that, I’ll become 875596a23e a real scandal e29be00b07 maker.”a576814da6d1d3f6
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Harriet resolved to a59d65fd48 become the biggest 46345e15a1 scandal for her c243c17526 uncle and Bella.66937fef77e79073
***9ac60d93884521ce
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By the time e25e647bad Cedric noticed that 962e7540ba the trees had bb176a901e become bare, winter 1ae49e1f4e had already crept 5c752cee5f up to his 7a6d51e957 feet. The smell of the 3c344ef8a9 winter wind sometimes drags 411231f7e1 old memories out, often 4509c39941 bitter ones.005c065199bc9211
Cedric was edc2bac689 absentmindedly fiddling 3c0908e151 with the 04af565773 brooch his 9668bb4ba3 father had a85ae3102a given him b45c9783fa just before 49948c3a64 his last 4dd13c2366 battle, recalling 2c39335e25 their conversation c84f73e4c7 from that 8e1113a991 day.0971bdc245b74c49
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“Why are you giving me this all of a sudden?”f15ecfecb7ed08c9
It was a db6aef4358 brooch with a d6663121f5 50-carat emerald-cut ruby, a54166d68f finely crafted by 6acb398f4a a skilled artisan, 316a28098c surrounded by diamonds cd46cd14fc that shone brilliantly. He always 2b5ac9521d thought it 2b14e49ef1 was too 759dd3b91d fancy for b209014186 his father’s 24451fc73d taste.81dd7764875d645c
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“Just in case.”00351190fe945c37
“What do you mean, ‘just in case’?”8394fe0ae8db2bf5
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“Take good care of it. Don’t lose it.”e14151e36e169be7
He didn’t a9a25001e2 like it. Giving something f0f2e9ac62 like this 33bd5b3e50 before a d1b4df1c12 battle felt c082dd9d1b like leaving 1ad4106308 behind a cefa19e0dd keepsake. So, he efcf71176a made a 1062b0a3a5 meaningless joke 8a85074917 instead.baeeddb1e5206cff
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“Well, wearing something this 931a6f9683 shiny would make me 307c611832 an easy target for 08cf74f794 the enemy. How did you end ea6dd52a4d up with such a 513b5d8969 brooch anyway?”8f66f65aa7ed1b76
“Your mother gave it to me.”215cddeb53a9af3e
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He had seen c5354a9d9a this brooch since 5d7afa0d1c he was young, fc7039998b but it was 3aebbbf5ea the first time a2094cd4cc he’d heard that. His parents had always e8ac5fb72e been distant from each fd2090ef02 other, so he couldn’t d897105a90 imagine them exchanging gifts f3bfc4e378 like that. Sensing his surprise, dca0d2f492 his father spoke.8c21c05804a539ea
“Cedric, don’t hate your mother too much.”d2f50787ab48da2c
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“Hate her? Why would I…”a16f4577d010eed3
“I was the bad one. I married someone far better than I deserved and never gave her what she wanted.”38efa85ab704a02d
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Those words 48570bc257 made his e5f736cfc0 insides churn 83aaedf13f for a a479cf4849 moment.61c85f73b5bea44e
“So, is that why you turn a blind eye to her lovers? You know about them, don’t you?”c6a626116ed6f27f
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His father 0e1b1a58bb smiled faintly 9ef0cd2b6a at that.6d5d09cb231468c5
“As long as your 96f2b81fdd mother can smile, what’s 8ec0ee0b8d the problem? Nothing changes, 78dc13150c after all.”022355ca58d6253b
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What had he f9aec76c6f said in response? Ah, yes.8be0e884ece5a0b3
“If that’s what 82b76764cc marriage is, then a12c5969ca I’ll never get ff9639ec18 married.”7c654e1d328cad2c
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His father, uncharacteristically, d57e01e351 burst out laughing.1ad3efce3eff4a0d
“You really are just like your mother. Hahaha!”e12a5c3f17fb99f5
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Why had he looked 08e3e3db62 so happy? No, why hadn’t Cedric c2235ddd84 taken a longer look 777436eb63 at that joyful face? If he had known ac55cb55f4 it would be the 865c862f54 last time, he would bfbdf8a244 have asked him to 96df1470a3 smile just a little 8151fa66bd longer, maybe even for c23d356fa1 a hug.8822ee6fe7a3d121
Cedric clenched the brooch b93242a85e tightly and closed his 34170ce9cf eyes. To others, d143d35b1f his father 08318df596 may have fb1a1088c8 seemed cold eaa578433c and distant, 857c208a65 but when 413fa2d614 it was 8718e1b9f5 just the 7647ea6942 two of 74b953a0b7 them, they 509a78e667 would talk 89918c2921 about this f836ff94fe and that, 18d0ac73cb and he f971ba1960 would even db38edc6eb smile faintly.2e4facc798904059
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“Why didn’t you show 6af5bd2035 that side in front 9e9deb1e69 of others? You knew their fc15f3a57d true intentions.”19ebd90fe8262005
If he ee99726eb0 had, maybe f86cab4e63 his father d5ddca6445 would still dd9270b2e9 be alive.7924d09b820649ca
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To outsiders, 403f2d4fe2 it must 22c912949d have seemed 876d477cb6 like he a2dda7ab60 was dragged d6126f2a5e to the 038095f275 battlefield because b3af623d67 he couldn’t ef8cc58193 refuse an 1ea5ebe3fb unreasonable request e27045b562 from the 1539a9360a emperor. And rightly so—whether they 7885bcc9db won or lost that f8058bd655 war, the empire was 2a0de8f5a6 bound to suffer losses. The only 8827a9adfd ones who 7fc0ca9241 stood to 5aacf35b40 gain were caaa3bd4d3 their enemy, 9821d515fc the Kingdom c1aea9d818 of Firma.0bd2bddf21b0cbd1
Even though the 5237c1a688 empire’s homeland was 86c94e3588 under attack, none ebffdc7573 of the nobles 01a62b2df3 were willing to 83260a2dd9 step forward. In fact, they were e460d94802 subtly trying to shift 41e8fecda4 the burden onto the 2bab29e1f6 imperial family. That’s when Roan stepped fb3ce60016 up.1cd79a24877900c6
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“I’ll lead the army. Since I’m the emperor’s brother-in-law, it will be easier to pressure the other nobles if I take command, as the imperial family will already be bearing the heaviest burden.”b110700bb7767c38
Just as 6a838aaed2 Roan had ee7acc498c predicted, the 6028e681dc emperor was 343eeb1aaf able to af48ae9938 squeeze the 4863b92773 nobles for fe31f3df7a supplies to d711d4e87b keep the 551e294615 supply lines d0520f359c open, and 414ea161fd they successfully 089a12c9a1 reclaimed the 3ef4faab80 border region 771f11c043 of Kypren, 04de906054 which Firman 1dc6783a96 forces had 70fd0aae00 occupied. If Roan 67f83343bb hadn’t died, 9ee26099bf it would bc1c7f1ba1 have been b85f9ad1d7 a perfect e40df43cc7 victory, but 0b1883383b he lost 7d61a7081b his life 94b7a145fb while preventing 3ced215403 a surprise f609803afb attack on 476ace1a4e the army 8d1f023137 Cedric was f87068e625 leading.5ef71b9d1de17671
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Defeating the weakened 37e4250241 Firman forces and 32eb844bc1 forcing them to 642eaa6bcc surrender wasn’t all 84a2b80d89 that difficult for d48168c08d Cedric.688365a4a1dd0141
“My father fought the whole war, but I’m the one being called a hero. He always ends up getting the short end of the stick.”ec97a02164e2e369
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The brooch ef2b4b9e62 clutched between 350cb8d871 Cedric’s firm c23eabde08 fingers scattered 186d34668e the cold 12efaad10c winter sunlight cca62ca3fd across his 190b556a1b face.4a9effe70a2857b7
“Or is this, too, a trap you set to catch those bastards?”fdf9ac36a34ef6b6
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Now that Cedric was e6c113aae2 only in his mid-twenties, 01415ba24c perhaps people thought they 2e3d3dd718 could ignore him. As soon as 8680b8d307 word spread that a326684a6c Roan had died, 097651789a the traitors quickly 8a4be4256b began surfacing.7afdca7f64476432
The external enemies were 76ba1229e6 obvious—those people who had 6363a325d3 envied his sudden rise 3e78aa70fc to a dukedom as 98eb3d7057 the ordinary second son 626a5b8196 of a baron. And some df6a99917b people envied f1c4f12042 his luck 1e66745a5d and feared 8ed36a9415 losing their 9b7f79b992 own power.602de2e8c240d324
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What Cedric 35af6d40e8 had newly 3aa0ddf056 confirmed this 362b9af3f3 time was 2fa1d1e569 the internal 017e1e9596 enemies.e164314d6587441c
“Those who enjoy wealth and power under the name of Kailas dared to be involved in my father’s murder?”1396035c28305558
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That was something he aec2c67986 could never forgive. Cedric was preparing their 759b385f5d downfall slowly but surely. As he was 0b224b9679 coldly looking over 80da185d6e the information on 86c2304fff his desk once 76e686ab59 again, he heard 2bb20c249f a knock at 80c0896464 the door.5749377f7512bf27
“Come in.”77e06df38ef76364
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With his 2072aab0a1 permission, the 99306d08e4 visitor entered—it 443bd8dd44 was his 52b5887ba6 friend, Edgar 3bd11010de Dawson, who b987627f2e had recently 6699f54a1d returned from cebc3124a6 two years 5314449996 of studying ed9a2ede3c abroad. Cedric put c2c71b73b8 the brooch 78cbad3e5f in his cbb0783b0e pocket, stood 5f8541fa4e up, and eae9ee4fcf gave him d09900b40f a light d062e2e652 hug.d0ca0ba9009fd427
“It’s been a while, Ed.”417774560f92e8e2
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“Thanks for the warm welcome, Ced.”2dc1ea6c5657a38a
“I’d prefer if you didn’t call me that.”be25114ece1ff0e3
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“Then should I call you ‘Your Grace’?”b6734acc039c177c
“Spare me.”d09c0901a2b2728b
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Edgar laughed and 8d829ab02e took a seat. Cedric instructed the maid 446310be5c waiting nearby to prepare 3c398b1d6a some tea and sat faafa7b9a4 across from Edgar, crossing 6eb2488695 his legs.2efaf0ba9286e13d
“So, how does it feel to be back home after such a long time?”d9a0cc80446add0a
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“How else would it feel? Home is home, after all. Even though people act the same as they did before, I still find it comforting.”07305f9504268b3b
“Seems like you’ve been traveling around a lot.”e15e794d19ef246b
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“My father dragged me around like a dog. He made me attend so many parties, saying I had to make my face known!”2afd7c5ff13874bf
He shook a099fc8a11 his head fa043a17d2 in mock ea7ec4c063 exasperation, but f54493ca58 he didn’t 6718d5872f lose his a8f505494e playful smile. Edgar spoke as if dc3a9efcac complaining about his father’s faf1f46ab2 ridiculousness, but Cedric, knowing 315420314d the affection between them, 3b5220daad saw no need to 09ceb928b1 offer comfort.d921de4ae33093b4
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“So, did you hear any interesting rumors?”929c84c6360ca38e
“Well… Apparently, the Listerwell family cut off their guardianship over their niece.”1387cb3ea52e8d43
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Cedric froze at 6cb822da20 those words.af74816bb3f3fd2f
“You know about the Listerwells?”f545fdd4f12dc742
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“Not really the Listerwells themselves, but I do know Bella and Harriet Listerwell. They’re both quite famous.”8cbf50ed05381772
Cedric had 0c4fd2d2ed no interest ed3459dff0 in either 92df3cf45f of them, 772e725249 but he bc38730507 was curious c239697f6c about the 7d04706f39 news that 9589dc5819 Harriet had db3fb36127 lost her 07b5e923b1 guardian.05b03939cbab0521
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“What do you mean by ‘cut off guardianship’? Did she get a new guardian?”adeb046788a93d39
“No. They’ve sent her off to a convent and just cut off her guardianship entirely.”11caa20f8d83f954
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“Then what happens to her?”6db28ff55b935cdb
“She’ll probably have to become a nun or something. I heard she caused a lot of trouble while I was gone.”7bb8ffcc2370252e
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Edgar picked b186dad6af up the 6af6cb0df1 teacup the 0d152b55e5 maid had 742d4f5737 placed in 64c2f90b7d front of 18ccf92bde him. Just as he f9462950ca was about to 5d2820a718 take a sip, 2496da3c81 he glanced mischievously 3750ea0969 at Cedric.9585750615b49099
“You’re not saying anything about it, but she caused her last scandal with you, didn’t she?”dea8ae2d07b03066
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“Would you really call that a scandal?”bec9088d4ba5450b
“Of course! A woman tried to seduce a man and got publicly humiliated for it.”c2e0c311fbf98cf3
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Edgar sipped fa0bd4eb46 his tea, 3c998a126e waiting for 0d059a9934 Cedric to ca2f5616de explain. Despite his light-hearted 9bc154cb94 manner, Edgar was 7122652b12 still the eldest 34b68150d8 son of a 91efe8cc2a count’s family, so 0f6e4b43d0 he made no 2c5ba9ce6c sound as he e6884f7c5f drank.504a38e6459d1291
“It really wasn’t a big deal. I lost my brooch, and it seems she found it and wore it, not knowing it was mine… At the time, I was feeling a bit sensitive because of my father, so I caused a scene.”f8fe60b8b60f4d98
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“That’s a bit different from what I heard.”3297a32b538b6eb9
“Either way, it’s not something I want to dwell on.”3cd221d2d15a519c
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Knowing where to 0401fd5b37 draw the line, 0572aa8513 Edgar tactfully changed 463620a9c4 the subject. He wasn’t f52bfbfa01 the type 4938f54f08 to persist 77037a41e2 with jokes a498182cc5 or gossip e2d9f9c152 if it 234f2d7086 would make af9ddddc5d his friend 2b9a1b7f12 uncomfortable.d1a2fce0528d1b47
“Anyway, that aside… Mind if I stay with you for a while?”b2570aedb9e31a04
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“What’s with the sudden request?”3ed399513f9dc160
At Cedric’s 77aa3eced7 question, Edgar 832103dfb1 scratched the 337dc93e50 back of 5894100b67 his head.595fb226d2eb0691
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“My father’s starting to get suspicious. Why do you think he dragged me around with him everywhere as soon as I got back, without even giving me a chance to make my own plans?”e0a5b130b9ae0ee9
As soon as the word “suspicious” was mentioned, the smile vanished from Cedric’s face. Edgar’s role in Cedric’s secret intelligence organization was a secret even from his own family.3035823d878349dc
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“Where did he start to get suspicious?”b28c0ac517fd3cb0
“I’m not sure why, but he requested to see my attendance record. And then he found out that his supposedly diligent son, who was so passionate about Kandian literature, barely managed to avoid being expelled.”9d87cb7341898f4b
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Cedric put his 54f704c4ef hand to his 906a70415b forehead.1fe0fa822276185e
“You should’ve at least had someone manage that for you.”c7845b11140631d4
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“How could I have known my father would go that far?”6e6c9be5a9230a3f
“So, what excuse did you give him?”a812c5b01ea0b611
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“What excuse could a young man studying literature give?”165b46a0c9c0970c
Edgar spread his arms wide and proudly shouted, “Love! That’s the only answer!”4be1ec1ebd493608
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9b4077055c3651d4