Mort (9)

The next day, I woke to the sound of birdsong.

For a moment, I stared at the ceiling and recalled the previous night. Victor kissing me and smiling gently had been so wonderful that it made my heart ache.

A foolish smile slipped out. Embarrassed for no reason, I squirmed beneath the blankets before calling for the maids.

“Y-you are awake, My Lady.”

Huh?

I blinked.

Mary, who was holding a washbasin, had gone pale. The other maids also looked visibly tense.

Has something happened? Though puzzled, I washed my face and had my hair brushed first. As I did, I slowly began to notice something strange.

The room was still dark. Normally, the maids would draw the curtains and open the windows as soon as they entered, but none of them touched the curtains.

Wondering why, I finished getting ready, climbed out of bed, and approached the window. I could simply open them myself.

“My Lady, wait……!”

Before Mary could stop me, I drew the curtains.

The bedroom was on the fourth floor of the inner castle. From there, the garden and the central district below the castle were clearly visible. It was a considerable distance to the naked eye, but my eyesight was good even by northern standards, so I often looked out over Mort from there.

Normally, the central square was filled with bustling merchants, street vendors, and onlookers. But today was different.

“What is that structure in the square?”

I asked with a frown. None of the maids answered.

Doubting my own eyes, I looked down at the square once more.

That wooden structure visible in the distance looked like……

“It is an execution platform……”

An ominous feeling swept down my back. I quickly turned my head. At some point, Sir Raul had entered the room and stood there silently.

I asked urgently,

“What is happening? Is someone being executed today?”

“I was ordered not to tell Your Grace.”

“Raul.”

Raul let out a deep sigh. He was Victor’s knight, but by now he and I had also become fairly close. Since we were the only ones who could share the sort of stories mercenaries told, we had talked about all manner of things.

I bit my lip as I looked at the large axe said to have severed a dire wolf’s neck in a single blow. At last, the hesitant knight spoke.

“……Several vassals are to be executed this morning. His Grace personally gave the order.”

“What are the charges?”

“Embezzling the budget and insulting the sovereign’s family.”

I clenched my teeth. My ominous premonition had proven correct.

There were not many vassals with access to the budget. Therefore, it was obvious who would be executed today. It had to be the men I had seen in the corridor yesterday.

I simply could not believe it. I had been certain Victor would give them a merciful punishment, so how could the lord of the land of knights impose something so cruel?

Punishment and execution were sometimes necessary, but they must not be used recklessly over minor offenses. It was not merely because I came from a land where a human life was worth more than gold. Any lord ought to understand that. At least, that was what I had been taught.

I strode across the room.

“I need to see Victor.”

As I approached the door, the knights blocked my path.

“The Grand Duke ordered us not to allow Your Grace to leave.”

I opened my mouth, closed it again, then turned to Raul. Raul merely stood there with the same gloomy expression.

I found it even harder to believe.

“Did Victor give this order himself as well?”

“……Yes, My Lady.”

“And if I say I must leave?”

Raul remained silent. The apprentice knights watched uneasily, but they did not move away from the door. They were truly loyal knights.

But this was not the time to praise them.

“Raul.”

I spoke slowly.

“I have a sword right now.”

“…….”

Raul’s gaze darkened further.

I did not enjoy threatening others. My swordsmanship was something I had gained to protect people, not to frighten anyone. Especially not weak people like these knights.

But I was in a hurry.

At my words, the apprentice knights standing by the door looked confused. There was nothing in my hands.

But I had not lied. This was a bedroom, and weapons covered the walls. Moreover, the sword I used every night was beside the bed. At worst, it would take me only a few seconds to seize the swords of those young and clumsy knights.

Raul, who understood that fact, let out a pained groan. I did not want to trouble him when he was merely following orders, but I spoke once more.

“Please do not make me draw my sword.”

“Your Grace, I was given an order.”

“Then disobey it.”

I spoke firmly.

Raul’s eyes widened.

“Gold is more important than orders, and life is more important than gold. Is that not what you believe?”

“……Yes, it is.”

“Then disobey the order.”

Raul immediately understood the mercenary saying. It was a warning that I had no intention of yielding and would not hesitate to use force to achieve my goal.

While he struggled with the decision, I picked up a long ribbon and tied back my hair. Mary hurried over and straightened it for me.

When I finally raised my head, Sir Raul gestured heavily.

“Move aside.”

“But, Sir……”

“Do you want your heads split in two? I am saying this for your own good. Move.”

Raul spoke as though grumbling, but his tone was firm. After hesitating, the knights finally stepped away from the door.

As I left the room, I gave him an apologetic look.

“I am sorry, Raul.”

“Not at all, My Lady. Please forgive my rudeness in daring to block your path.”

Sir Raul placed a hand over his chest in a rather knightly manner.

I should apologize more properly later.

With a bitter smile, I left the room.

Victor was alone in the Grand Duke’s office when I arrived in a hurry. I deliberately made my footsteps loud as I entered.

Victor lifted his gaze from the document he had been reading. The voice that had whispered affection to me the night before spoke indifferently.

“I did not think you would be able to leave.”

“Are you serious?”

Had he truly thought such frail knights could stop me?

But Victor quietly nodded.

“You care for the weak, so I thought you would be unable to refuse their pleas.”

“……That was despicable of you, Victor.”

Victor’s eyes widened before twisting into a bitter smile. I looked down at him with a rigid expression.

The Victor before me felt unfamiliar. He had ordered unjust deaths and remained calm, then admitted that he had used his own knights to stop me. None of it was worthy of a knight or a lord.

Even after spending months together, he seemed like someone I was seeing for the first time. Calming the rage boiling inside me, I asked,

“Are the people being executed today the vassals I told you about yesterday?”

“Yes.”

“Were their crimes truly serious enough to warrant death?”

Victor answered dryly.

“Mort’s legal code states that anyone who insults the sovereign’s family is to be hanged.”

“You know that code is excessively cruel.”

I snapped at him.

“Is that not why you hid this from me? Because even you thought it was unjust?”

Birdsong echoed outside the window. The white office, flooded with bright sunlight, resembled a temple’s prayer chamber. Victor seated within it was as beautiful as ever, but regret weighed so heavily on my heart that I felt nothing.

Had I known that speaking honestly to Victor would cost someone their life, I would never have opened my mouth.

Clenching my teeth, I pleaded,

“Tell them to stop, Victor. Stop the execution and give them a merciful punishment.”

“They insulted you.”

“If this is because of me, then I hate it even more!”

My voice rose on its own. Victor looked at me with an unreadable expression. Clenching my fists, I said,

“I do not want anyone to die because of me. It is what I hate most in the world.”

“…….”

“Victor.”

Silence passed between us. For a long while, we continued staring into each other’s eyes.

After a moment, Victor called for the butler.

“Dideric.”

“You called, Your Grace.”

I sensed Dideric behind me. Still looking directly into my eyes, Victor ordered,

“Tell them that the Grand Duchess ordered the execution stopped. Return the prisoners to the dungeon.”

“As you command.”

Click. The door closed.

I did not look away. I did not thank him either. There was no reason to express gratitude for what was only right.

In the end, Victor was the first to turn his head. Rubbing the corner of his eye, he said,

“Do you know? If I had truly wanted to hide it, I could have hidden it much better. You could have remained completely unaware.”

“Why did you not?”

“Because you spoke honestly to me. I wanted to be honest with you at least once as well.”

“…….”

He approached and cupped my face with one hand. His desperate touch caressed my cheek.

“I want to protect you, Marion. That is all I want.”

“But your method was wrong.”

I shook my head. No matter how much I liked Victor, I could not agree with such methods.

Death was the end of life and the termination of every future. That was why condemning someone to death required the utmost caution.

My life and Victor’s life had been different. Since birth, I had fought monsters to protect people, while Victor had fought other humans on the battlefield. So I could understand to some extent why our values differed.

But even I had a line I could not allow him to cross.

I took Victor’s hand and lowered it from my face.

“I have already endured enough death. I never want to see anyone die again. Never.”

Victor did not answer.

Without hesitation, I turned and headed outside. The musky scent that had always enchanted me gradually faded behind me.