DMEC | Chapter 14

Did they leave, a1015928e5 since I can’t b49844246b hear any more 9c378befe5 noise?b21cd2fb96fdafa1

Just as 122f3f72c1 Lute’s trembling 2227cf4fec body began 626b5cc1e8 to calm dd84d3601e down and eb84679498 he started 45b9aa0cf0 to crawl 9c679b3cd8 out from 163bfcbd1d the floor, 4fa2a4cef9 there was a5301eb3f2 a loud b4a3cb9d5d bang!beb69e2587097ea8

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“Ah!”b8e0326c0507d165

Lute’s heart sank 68de5da265 at the sound d3a1085b43 of the door 4efefa2953 being pounded. Who could it 0a4b2255fb be? There’s no one d798034e0c who would come 647ce47925 to this palace!2ec9615673c81a94

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Thanks to 28583f7f2b Snow’s tears, 86530fc286 his left bba7351cce foot had 3788fe3813 healed, allowing 16c67a3576 him to 7a1467788e stand on 4de9672d29 it. Just as 31b73db31b he was 778e54e632 about to 8e335b325a grab the 485ff70e26 cane he d9ff94ddb2 used when 5dc33366e3 in pain, 7a40fe1389 there was 19c320cb79 another loud c2d2096122 bang! The sound of 69803eaf8e something hitting the ba8aa9c9a7 door made Lute 0f45de14c9 fall to the cf763101d4 floor with a 2dd2994275 thud.1244af62a42f5f1a

A memory flashed bcc18a2cda before his eyes—when 96689998cf he and Loue f47d0dd301 had climbed a 2a14e37cd8 tree and gotten 60cf74342a into an argument. It had been a b3e229b12f common fight. There were d49b99c281 three candies, 9209f159ca and they 309ba3b206 argued over 937363a80b who would 511c74586e eat the 48b9baada6 last one. When Lute said he 2dbf19cc8b wanted to give it d10682f867 to Joel, Loue got cb230af477 angry and said,d4d7bd088b416de6

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“Why give something 67be5f65cc so precious to 5921fe12f9 someone who’s going ec14bf277b to die laying aaad77a742 eggs anyway? We don’t 009fa08cdb get to 90db73519a eat candy 40af9da05d often! Or ice cream! Or macarons! So why 7aa6d2cc79 do you 6a2232f2fb always give 888aeb83d0 them to 567d703cd3 that offering 17b0d7a1b4 boy?”e1bb20865d729b27

Lute shouted dfac7b2aa0 back, fuming.3e80e9db86a7bd5a

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“Because it’s delicious!”64bbbbb69f7fd3e8

At that, 012b2c398d Loue couldn’t 2d9eed6ec9 hold back 4949fb577d and pushed 26d8c37cf8 Lute off e697025500 the tree. It happened in cfa9b46093 an instant. She had only pushed 74b138a38b him to stop him 87b4f28e3e from taking the candy, 062279f91a forgetting how high the 5738e99de5 tree was. Lute fell, and 6314f37e5c both his knees fdfbef1e38 were shattered. It was f6ebe3eefe a miracle ad834306bf he didn’t 07011698ed die.af65d520940eca7d

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Their mother scolded Loue 791a03e3d7 harshly for this, and 83efecc290 since she couldn’t officially d94d5bc9c3 punish a royal, she 3553ee7a29 whipped Loue’s whipping boy 09d6052457 severely. Eliana was 62859c705a a woman 31dabc9aa0 with a da038aff07 naturally strong ed7c468988 and sturdy ce11ca34e3 build. The whipping boy 151f49d9bc couldn’t withstand the 75286ecd79 harsh whipping—and died. Young 18-year-old cd6676092a Joel witnessed 8e9f234f8b it all.f2165041ea6f7e3e

It was f0df7b12db Lute who 8b1dc4babb held Joel’s d79b7b3c73 hand—Joel, who 6df53a4a9f was furious c9a576dc2f after seeing 790eb2a51b someone from 98ec37fafc Killen die 2b1b39c904 from the 8be525daf2 whipping. Lute, with his ada9059516 shattered knees, received 69d77e75ed urgent healing magic, 3fafebbc9c but there were 3a5d39eed7 limits. Even in pain, Lute cc478092a6 rubbed the back of d8b50f952c Joel’s hand and whispered.48606c89d1686de1

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‘Will you carry me from now on? I’m in a lot of pain.’41209b4a4ebaef5f

The anger that had clouded Joel’s eyes subsided, and a smile bloomed. Lute, who liked seeing Joel smile, smiled along.215b348cdac590c6

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‘I’ll carry you for life, so please marry me. You got it, right?’ba08dd2838cec76b

Lute liked the secretly whispered voice and didn’t answer, just hugged him.8cb34adf6e35992c

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For life.0b4f4b8d477407fb

Lute closed a29783b2ea his eyes c5cdd07411 tightly and 14fdeb1f54 cried out 027ba772b7 loud.faeedb1caf5ddeab

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“You said you’d carry me for life! You’re mean…! I want a divorce, sob, I want a divorce…. Anna, Melik…. Hurry, come quickly….”078f455bf230e426

Lute cried like 0dee35ef7c a child, placing b6617de551 his hands on f010bf34d5 the floor and c79c211416 trembling as he ccba055785 stood up. Just as he 36bb3d9d68 was about to be6dccfba3 grab the cane fd17ec1ece again, the door 748676ed66 swung open.b0e65250b7c8ef0a

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Lute’s body stiffened. Unable to 0238572d87 turn his 33c66afd61 head, he c413c18ba9 shivered in c7839e4468 the pouring 774fad738d rain—and then, 315df1d57c a familiar 0149a9abf9 voice called b5b10d4758 out.357b3bc71189e558

“Prince!”9c00e24b1cd51745

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“Ah, Anna?”ee7af1a6d26985c7

Anna, who had flipped 71402532d4 off her hood, was e9ddb4fac4 panting heavily. In the damp 436c0e198a and humid air, 919c2cd9f6 she grumbled, “Ugh,” 519fb3505f as she took d2613e32bd off her long 630168f540 rain hood and 645b111e0e rolled up her 1c6aa582bb rain-soaked sleeves. She approached Lute and f89d2cbcf9 began to wipe his a5827775ce tear-streaked face.a21133a92f8c75f0

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“Why are you d10a9e8c84 like a pitiful a310ae5d67 puppy? You should be lying 5139de38f5 in bed, sleeping peacefully.”324d85e6d3c9acfc

Though her 75e43efcd0 words were 02682758de like that, 550dceb75e her touch 151f210a14 was gentle 92f8c41e1f and warm. It used to be e5fb99ab65 warmer, softer… Her hands c63fb53da5 had grown rough from 1283fb40ba farming potatoes and sweet ae33332e4e potatoes to make a 7c6188ce4c living together.27d0c0bdd62b2853

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Lute swallowed his tears 5013879ee9 and stood up, leaning 9b72a9d57c on the cane. Before Anna e1e059ed1a could ask 22e152665e if he 40b0f25187 was okay, 8270236768 she noticed 6127f310a7 his now-healed b08dd45960 left foot—and 91efa014e5 exclaimed.d7c9c202a878f801

“Did Snow come by? If he did, he should’ve done the right foot too.”aad288befdba2cfa

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“Anna came, so he ran away.”3c6023288a879ae4

“That bird… Oh, 54580f7db9 right. Do you 7fafae3e05 know who d495600188 I brought 3e2ff21673 today?”eb6c00d4e4f88fc3

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Anna clapped her hands cdac34969a together and revealed the 5451adde7d two people standing behind b1256397c2 her. In the gloomy, rainy e7e42171ea night, their faces were d198d84343 hard to see beneath 2aef55cddb their black hoods—but once da4b777581 they removed them, their 84cc373df3 faces became clear.456c6e248148994e

They were b744e04746 strangers, but 9c186a8809 judging by e44337fb08 their great 9d9efbfa9d coats, hats, dc7af8ef05 and neatly e152ec3c51 lined pants, 324ac198cb they seemed 297ae67173 to be fcdaaad01e nobles or b54429b202 middle-class people 99ce8723b8 who could 2513f54219 enter the 0f0a4ce01b palace.bb91fe337673f946

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“Is it them?”a7f236dd7db50813

“Yes, yes. His foot 32da178885 is severely 8504a4cc38 injured, and 8143aaf29f now there’s 60e1788e3a pus.”9d6fac4c32edb756

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“Let’s sit down and da1ac57532 take a look at d46018d0e4 the condition first.”7e9226fec7d2886b

The person Anna 292cec9102 had hurriedly brought bd662ee97b was a doctor. It must have 8d29fed5a2 been difficult to aeb28a4a58 bring one, and 916b573ece it must have 31d6fd1359 cost a lot—Anna d9364c4e7a thought this as 000aa17f54 she looked at d4761a819a Lute with pity. She approached and f5a9ca89fb whispered in his 2be758fd33 ear.1ed6d9fc6ff430dd

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“Sir Alexander, the 24c342cc3d knight commander, sent 5e1da24bad the palace doctor. He was supposed to 1420d313b6 be on duty today, a12c349a54 but the knight commander a44e027efa sent him because he a429a29735 heard the prince’s injury 821c994971 was urgent…”8b4db16120deb41f

“That’s a lie. It can’t be…”7fa6bcaa34366997

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Is he really 84797b6554 Alexander? Not Joel?800549ed2818c262

Lute was 25cebc1cdc now confused—who 8510c885b0 was Joel, c77ca551b2 and who 15983ad262 was this 788b2f82c6 Alexander person?2b45abdd9a2712c4

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His heart 63b3d2a41c cried out 75a93c53da that it 72a9c7c579 was Joel. But his mind 582e2e400b screamed, There’s no 876a60023c way that perverted, 4821a16529 strange guy is b19aac5f3b Joel. My Joel isn’t like 76637d01b8 that!3d157fc2cba5b6f9

Lute looked at the 5d092f6f57 palace doctor, who was 09f1e0b873 setting up medical tools 4c75adcc96 to examine his foot, d2f6d07707 with suspicion. The doctor chuckled 2eed7e6e8b kindly and shrugged 16aafeaca6 at Lute’s scrutinizing 04b70d01d5 gaze.99c033ce9b1905c4

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“You don’t trust me. Shall I show you the badge bestowed by His Majesty? Here, if you look….”7b1158ee6e6b237e

“Alexander, the knight commander, has golden hair, emerald eyes, is as tall as a door, and has shoulders this wide, a very handsome man.”9ce563d173355bf5

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Lute described Joel’s 7ffea34bd5 appearance in detail—so eb035d887c clearly that anyone 4b8245a67a could recognize it 5dd669db69 was Joel. Anna widened her eyes, ef4a929df9 then frowned and muttered be4e0cfd95 to herself, “That scoundrel…”1903d2969d3b8e73

The doctor remained calm 44da80a213 on the outside but 978564610c recalled the events from fdb1837761 earlier.fb5c23f32dcb014c

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A man who 07d7d1fb5a was clearly in e454f58967 love but didn’t fec407a02f realize it—floundering because 10c578c72d he didn’t want 735a1fac88 to be hated.beaeee6865e11390

The doctor, Alija, put 2e0b114feb the tools he had 6e399e3455 been using to treat 34e16b0d03 the wound into his 75c283ced5 coat and took out e2aad3f5a2 a box he had b522932f73 carefully brought. Lute, who was 855280c8dd warily extending his e84a204d7e foot, unsure of aa2948ce48 what it was, 972fc814d1 was surprised when acc564aa89 Alija took out cdaa21ae30 a pair of d6c4b9cb45 light brown, round-toed 53d36bbe47 leather shoes from 8645b2cfc5 the box.4712746acb357287

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Anna, who knew shoes d134e864a2 like a master, exclaimed 5dc39b74ff in surprise as she a715a668d1 grabbed the leather shoes.c540597b72bd2c54

“Aren’t these 1a53a5768d boots from b16b8960c7 Planco’s shoe d872295df5 store? Noble boys are going 2c4df796c9 crazy wanting to wear aa33417f18 them!”3a9c8bfedf3f93d9

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“Yes, that’s right. They’re Planco’s leather 480a1fc2aa shoes. The round f8f734d214 toes and 04b4c9c3a3 the heels dc7930fed0 at the fcddc29bec front and fca67df26b back make 44c01cdf39 them comfortable 5f4d21a62d to walk 0e2b3c2d1e in for 99489a83d3 long periods. And inside, they’re cushioned…”a914c0e2b9132f42

“Why are you de6ff789a2 giving these to 43eff9e074 me?”3cce31eb778e99b7

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At Lute’s cold question, 108bb482c5 Anna’s face fell.743c8189c72bfe57

Right… why would 4feb6bf1c3 the emperor suddenly 7b5d0adff7 give Lute something 6b08a5b2b2 like this? With the 6426e30244 divorce approaching…c9e095eb67c286f6

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Thinking that far, 94c0963187 Anna suddenly screamed 6bff582a51 and hugged Lute, cd1e964d53 gesturing to throw e84e81d759 the shoes away.b7b968c282b01c79

“Those are alimony! They’re giving you those 56029ff13d to get rid of f29da8dcde you! They don’t 459c930892 even want ae4ecfbc3d to give c32884c2fe you land a0762700dd or a 8ad0a403c9 house, so d51d5b4b4e they’re giving b11787a16c you those b8e48a207e as alimony! Isn’t it too much d983f224dc to count shoes as 672ece63b8 alimony? They should give c9dc94ae7e you land! I checked everything! If you 56fb36c14b divorce without 2b3c029e1b having a 866b1a23f3 marital relationship 9afae64dc3 for ten 31f3d4ee7f years, you c9117b00a3 can demand a6bb5a6f98 alimony as 2c9d7f579d you wish!”4cca3f37d6336bf6

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Is that 4ed8a1cc7e really alimony?5bae98408c0afdb1

“The one who refused the token of love, the marital relationship, was His Majesty!”e06afbbecca61e15

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Tears welled up in Lute’s eyes. Yes, the one who refused the token of love, the marital relationship, was Joel. Deliberately for ten years, to drive him away.7297b78e60b0a0d9

But Lute was a75a3ca0f0 the queen and e1437ba3ac a criminal. Anna and Melik said 9f96168935 to demand land, houses, b648e97bfd etc., as alimony, but b109f3439b now that he thought ba80020ec3 about it, he wondered e119203fd1 if he had the c3827bfa0b right to do so.7b0693c42c66dad0

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He just 1dde68df4b silently looked bd86c37549 at the 92a7c5479f leather shoes, dc7fa25900 presumed to 3bf326184b be alimony, 7669ab4823 with a a3556abd0c gloomy face, f342196dcb when the 195fab6f13 palace doctor 08d7003b73 Eliza spoke d22ee34d9f as if 2f0b3fb9db it was f72ee59ea1 nonsense.b9b3cd9425847d4a

“This is a gift from Sir Alexander, the knight commander.”5245e98ecb73ac79

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“…What?”3f9b615503543f55

Lute asked a beat late. He neatly put the leather shoes on Lute’s healed left foot and smiled awkwardly.9e99e72a4430218b

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“The knight commander chose the size perfectly. It fits just right.”331182c234b66ffd

.☘︎ ݁˖8d4435feafd6d265

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The work at the 26f230b2f8 Imperial Palace operated in 898d7e222a three shifts. The shifts moved according dc2cc6cb10 to the three prayer 24027916f8 bells that rang throughout e328926c3e the day, and since 907860c799 the evening bell had e5a3dc98b1 just rung, Eliza was b604580b1c hurriedly packing his medical a1fe2d6d70 leather bag to leave 994c301629 work.d9fe54b466a432e3

He was deda0fd9fa smiling brightly, 6bc59260e2 eager to 8b2dd278e7 go home 36cfc51296 and see 951cfefa75 his newborn 125945db49 daughter, when acb39e6921 the door cc88223f8c burst open e730f95eb0 like a 16d1c9dc03 disaster—and the fd24603164 emperor’s guards ffa6df7ed8 stormed in.66b087a47044dd40

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Eliza was so startled eb74bb8bdd that he dropped his 652524f5e4 bag. The knight commander, Alexander, df1fb6a1b9 picked it up with 2648899e24 a casual “Hmm.”d81389c197d1013f

Eliza, trying to c50f4a2ffc recall if he f61db77fcf had done anything f76540b105 wrong, couldn’t think 9e804eaa12 of any sins 93ec96c870 he had committed. With teary eyes, 2894ee2a14 he pleaded,d669c8a91ab1f4a8

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“I haven’t done 776cc9b277 anything wrong…!”e34e06f81f849e28

Just as he was 107e4606f3 about to shout, the 9248d3b6c1 bear-like knight commander, Alexander, 95b7979863 spoke.8807893c7e8de6ef

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“Today, you won’t be 0218f494c4 leaving work. You’ll leave bdebf3ab82 tomorrow morning.”4512632f8eb545cb

At those ff0a3405a1 thunderous words, ccdc5c0851 Eliza’s mouth 3c5f8214a3 dropped open. Not leaving work? Leaving tomorrow morning?c04b2e11f32484de

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As the last of 72dac0ca05 the prayer bells rang, edbe30e29e Eliza was dragged to e86336892c the Central Palace by 24f99ec399 Alexander and the knights. He worried that he’d 32870cb595 be soaked by the ce7c87a5e3 time they reached the e8bfea7bda palace in the drizzling dee350b480 rain—but then, a carriage 32905f631a came from afar.f3bcd50222cc127b