The situation on the second floor was even worse. Not only was there dust, but cobwebs had formed on the stair railings.

“Have you been confined here for this long?”

He calculated how many days Barbara had been locked in the annex. The incident had occurred on the fourth day after he confessed to Daphne that she had a lover.

It was approaching two months. Only then did he realize how thoughtless he had been.

“Haah, Mother…”

A sigh escaped him involuntarily.

It would be troublesome if Barbara’s health was in poor condition or if she resented him. He had no time to spare on turning around her sulking heart. That’s how pressured Leonhardt felt.

He knocked on the bedroom door, hoping it wasn’t too late.

“It’s Leon.”

But there was no response.

“I’m coming in.”

Leonhardt opened the door and entered. Fortunately, there was a lamp lit inside, and moonlight was streaming through the window.

“Mother?”

When he called again, a whimpering sound came from the bed.

“Did I come too late?”

Speaking as gently as possible, he approached the bed. He was about to pull back the thick curtains surrounding the bed when he stopped abruptly.

He had to take a moment to process what he was seeing.

He had been told that his mother was in the central bedroom on the second floor. And the only place where there was any sign of life was this bed.

So who was this elderly woman with a gag in her mouth and shackles on her feet?

“M-Mother?”

When he called with a trembling voice, the woman squirmed.

She was so weak that she couldn’t even sit up. Moreover, her black-dyed hair had grown out, revealing yellow roots.

Leonhardt was momentarily stunned by Barbara’s pitiful state before cautiously approaching. He first removed the gag.

“Oh, my son…”

Her voice was severely cracked and weak, fading almost immediately.

He quickly stood up and looked around. Fortunately, there was a water bottle and cup nearby. When he poured the water, it seemed to have a stale smell from sitting too long. He briefly wondered if it was safe to drink.

In his urgency, he trickled some water into Barbara’s mouth. After barely moistening her lips, she spoke again.

“Why, why did you come only now.”

Barbara burst into tears she had been holding back.

“What is all this? Mother, who did this to you…”

He stopped mid-sentence. There was no need to ask the obvious.

Barbara clung to Leonhardt’s chest and sobbed loudly.

“S-save me. I feel like I’m really going to die at this rate.”

“Mother, don’t worry. I’ll somehow…”

Somehow, what?

Leonhardt fell silent. As long as Gustav was the duke, there was almost nothing he could do for his mother.

Perhaps he could arrange better food through the bribed guard. It was utterly hopeless.

His arms holding Barbara tightened gradually.

He vowed repeatedly that he would never forgive the person who had reduced his mother and himself to this state.

Leonhardt gently comforted Barbara, who was still sobbing.

“Mother, please listen to me.”

He explained in detail everything that had happened so far.

“Mother, do you understand now? Father doesn’t consider us family.”

Barbara, who had seemed ready to crumble just moments ago, gradually regained her composure.

The face that had been wailing like a child was now filled with anger. Her sunken cheeks quivered, and the loose skin under her eyes trembled.

Leonhardt looked sympathetically at her, aged beyond recognition in just two months, and said:

“I want to help you, but there’s nothing I can do right now. I’ve spent all my money buying information from the guild, and I barely managed to bribe the guard with what was left. I’m sorry this is all I can do for you.”

As he hung his head, Barbara reached out and stroked his hair.

“No, that’s absolutely not true. You’re more remarkable than you think.”

Leonhardt almost sighed. How could she say such unrealistic things in such a serious situation?

Suppressing his irritation, he asked gently:

“Thank you for your kind words. But, Mother… do you have any money?”

Barbara’s expression turned serious as she emphasized again:

“You are not Gustav’s son.”

She pulled on Leonhardt’s sleeve and whispered in his ear.

“Your real father is… the Emperor.”

Leonhardt first thought of the girl Emperor, then naturally his thoughts turned to her father, the former Emperor, known as the most ferocious tyrant in history.

“Th-that’s impossible.”

But Barbara slowly shook her head with a pained expression.

“I had no choice. You don’t know how cruel your father was.”

Barbara shuddered as if painful memories had surfaced.

Was it youthful recklessness? Or perhaps spite?

In any case, after spending a night with the former Emperor, Barbara never had a day of peace. And eventually, she ended up in this state.

She spoke each word with effort, as if squeezing them out:

“I didn’t intend to deceive Gustav from the beginning. But I had no power, and I had no choice but to maintain the marriage as they instructed.”

A normal person would have asked who “they” were. But the question that came from Leon’s lips was different.

“Does Father—no, does Gustav know that I’m not his child?”

Barbara looked at Leonhardt with an expression of disbelief.

She had sincerely hoped he would be Gustav’s child. But as he grew, he resembled the former Emperor too much, making her live in constant anxiety.

Now it seemed he resembled not only in appearance but also in character. Just like the former Emperor who cared for no one but himself.

Barbara raised one corner of her sagging lips in a bitter smile.

“Gustav must know. He would have noticed long ago. But there’s no evidence. Above all, if this fact were revealed, the family would be in danger. So don’t worry too much.”

But Leonhardt didn’t hear her words.

“…So that’s why he treated you poorly and didn’t want to pass the title to me.”

“No, that can’t be!”

“Then what’s the reason I never received proper heir education until now?”

“W-well… Gustav is the type who needs to do everything himself. That’s why things kept getting postponed.”

“I used to think so too. But he’s not the kind of man who would make such a foolish choice as the head of a family. I should have realized it with just a little thought… I’ve been too complacent.”

Barbara hadn’t been completely free of suspicion either. She had just been avoiding the issue, fearing what might happen if she stirred things up.

“But Leon, think about it. You have Daphne. If you marry her, you can become one with the Armin family. Gustav wouldn’t give that up.”

Hearing those words, Leonhardt snickered.

“Mother, get a grip. Gustav maintained the engagement because of Daphne.”

“What do you mean?”

She wasn’t asking because she didn’t know. She was afraid that her last hope might be shattered.

Her hope was ultimately crushed by the words that came from Leonhardt’s mouth.

“She’s someone else’s child too.”

Leonhardt muttered as if in a daze.

The two remained silent for a while. The darkness surrounding them seemed to deepen.

After a moment, Leonhardt giggled and slowly rose to his feet.

“That’s too much, Mother. I’m neither a Mücke nor a member of the imperial family. What am I supposed to do now?”

He staggered out.

Barbara couldn’t even ask him to remove her shackles. She could only watch her son’s retreating back.

‘I’ve finally placed an inescapable burden on my child.’

She let out a long sigh before beginning to sob.

“How did things come to this?”

It was a pointless question.

⁕⁕⁕

After she was confined to the annex, the chief butler Fred did his best.

Despite Gustav’s orders to barely keep her alive, he regularly sent a doctor and assigned plenty of maids.

Unaware of these circumstances, Barbara behaved as terribly as she could. She frequently overturned meals when maids brought them.

Not only did this soil the bed sheets and blankets, but foods with high water content, like soup, soaked through to the mattress.

After washing the blankets and changing the mattress, Barbara would repeat the same behavior at the next meal. Sweeping, cleaning, washing… The endless service wasn’t the worst part.

Barbara spewed curses from sunrise to sunset. She directed language that even commoners would find difficult to utter, primarily at three people: Gustav, Daphne, and Christine.

It wasn’t just for a day or two; hearing her curses became more terrible than the physical labor.