Chapter 25

Eventually, Karel’s gaze swept over the crowd. When it came to a stop at a certain point, his stare lingered long enough to draw everyone’s attention. Curious, they turned their heads to follow his line of sight.

At the end of that line of sight was a scruffy-haired errand girl standing amidst the Selmane family. She flinched in surprise. Pretending it was due to the cold, her nose had long been dripping with something that could be tears or snot. Still, the sorrow of seeing them off was greater, and she had been consoling herself by thinking that if she had added the clumsy gift she had made to her current attire, it would have only looked ridiculous.

Just as she resolved to retrieve her shabby ornament, left behind in a third-floor room, Karel’s piercing blue gaze found her, and she froze in place.

Ah, if I stand out as some pitiful figure with a story to tell, it might tarnish the knight’s reputation…

The woman bit her lip hard, drawing it inward.

Throughout this, Karel’s gaze clung to her face with a relentless intensity. It was as though he were imagining the innocent and radiant eyes hidden behind her messy hair. As time passed, it became unmistakably clear to everyone who he was staring at.

“If you ever find it necessary.”

Before his words had fully settled, a glinting object rolled across the ground. It landed precisely at Selma’s feet, who stood at the forefront of the family.

Startled, Selma cautiously picked it up. Not even the frost-covered dirt could tarnish its brilliance.

It was a shield adorned with onyx and diamonds, behind which was a relief of a dragon pierced through the neck, crafted in pure gold.

The Shield of Cambiano, bearing the crest of Montferdia.

Selma’s eyes widened in shock. Those peering over her shoulder gasped audibly. Though they had only ever known the crest of Eldorff, none among them failed to recognize the shield-shaped ornament as belonging to Montferdia.

From afar, Randolph’s face twisted into a grim scowl.

Karel, having confirmed that everyone understood the significance of his gesture, turned his head forward once more.

To bestow a family’s emblem. It meant that, should his lineage ever continue through the girl, she would be under the protection of his house. It declared that the girl was connected to him, a woman he would take responsibility for.

Yet Karel knew the futility of his actions. Aside from that impulsive first night, he had never planted his seed within her. He considered the prospect of another life born of him to be a curse.

Still, even if such an event never came to pass, perhaps this emblem could serve as an option for her. While he could not guarantee that withering away in the gloomy Montferdia estate would be better than enduring the dangers of sunlight under her radiant beauty, it seemed he thought it might be worth leaving her this chance.

What meaning could any of this hold? The annex he had used within the Montferdia estate would soon be vacated. That woman wouldn’t even be able to claim a child with black hair and blue eyes as his son, let alone call him a Montferdia…

Karel’s gaze shifted away from her and meticulously scanned the village elders.

“Well then, I shall return.”

The cold gleam in his eyes was almost threatening, leaving the middle-aged men bewildered and uneasy.

“Advance.”

“Advance!”

With the command echoing through the silent forest, the twenty-four armed knights began to move. The faint sound of birds flapping their wings could be heard beyond the dawn horizon.

Karel never once looked back as he entered the forest.

Behind him, murmurs among the villagers grew louder.

***

Rumors spread like wildfire. Though it was merely an amplification of whispers that had already circulated among the visitors to Selmane, the voices now grew bolder.

“Selma! What’s going on? Where’s that girl? Did you really let her serve that Montferdia scoundrel in his bed? She’s not even of age, is she?”

The loudest voice belonged to the village chief.

It had only been a few days since Randolph, having spotted the girl during the farewell banquet for the expedition, had demanded to take her away. The chief, mindful of his dignity, had been trying to placate him, but then the young lord of Montferdia had gone and pulled such a stunt during the departure ceremony.

Since that day, Randolph had remained at the chief’s house, causing all sorts of trouble. He ranted about how he had waited because she wasn’t of age, only for her to sleep with someone else. He accused them of trying to pawn off a defiled commoner on him…

The chief felt nothing but frustration. He had been indulging her for years, thinking she might become the lord’s daughter-in-law, only to be blindsided like this.

“Well, I had no idea either.” 

Selma replied, her eyebrows drooping in apparent distress. It was, in fact, the truth.

“He’s such a noble man. If he ordered her to serve him at night, what could she possibly know to refuse? Maybe I raised her too innocently, thinking she’d be sent to the lord’s house, as you said.”

Selma’s lips trembled, as though she might burst into tears at any moment. Her display of sincerity somewhat dampened the chief’s anger.

“Hmm, well. It’s true that knowing about such things wouldn’t help a girl serve her husband any better…”

But still, of all people, to catch that man’s eye…

The chief could only feel trapped in this mess. Just a few days ago, he had thought it fortunate that the girl had caught the eye of a nobleman. Now, things had taken such a turn…

“Well, it’s fate, I suppose. Of all people, she had to get involved with someone who’s as good as dead.”

With a sigh, the chief stormed out of Selmane after muttering what sounded like a curse.

Good as dead…?

Like most Oedel villagers, Selma didn’t know the exact circumstances of the expedition and tilted her head in confusion.

* * *

It had been over a fortnight since the expedition entered the Northern Gray Mountain Range.

During that time, significant changes occurred in the scenery of Selmane. Until recently, the large table where the expedition had gathered was now occupied daily by Randolph.

His routine was always the same. Accompanied by the village chief or a couple of village elders, he would visit Selmane around dusk, claim the large table, and order the most expensive drink available. Though the most expensive drink was merely an 8-year-old Elplü whiskey, a pride of Eldorff, it was hardly a burden for him. Occasionally, he would even buy a round of beer or wine for all the tables and once paid for a three-gold tab with a ruby ring worth at least ten gold. News of the lord’s son spending money like water in Selmane quickly spread, drawing Oedel’s drunkards to the tavern every night.

All of this was Randolph’s attempt to win Selma’s favor.

“Just in case. You never know when it might come in handy later.”

Whenever Selma tried to decline his gestures, he would respond with such remarks.

“It’s for you to use when you need a large sum of money. For something like… a dowry.”

There was only one person at Selmane he could be referring to, and she was the one who had received Montferdia’s crest. Since no one else in Oedel would dare take her even with a dowry, Randolph’s intentions were clear.

Thus, Randolph, who had spent some time tormenting the village chief after the expedition’s departure, had changed his approach.

What did it matter if she had been touched by Montferdia? She was so young and so beautiful. If anything, her experience with men would make her easier to tame.

Besides, if it was Montferdia…

Though it wouldn’t make him Montferdia himself, Randolph’s twisted logic began to take shape

“Sure, everyone’s fretting now over whether she’s carrying Montferdia’s child, but he’s bound to die soon anyway.”

The woman would eventually fall into his hands. Even if she took the money he had spent and called it a dowry, it would save face. If she bore a child with black hair and blue eyes, it might even give him leverage over Montferdia.

Even if the tavern keeper pocketed all the money he had spent, Randolph was prepared to let it slide generously.

“Then I could just make her a concubine. How could I take a penniless commoner who isn’t even a virgin as my wife? The children would be raised by a governess anyway…”

So, in the end, his calculation was that he just needed to stay on the good side of the tavern keeper, who seemed so protective of the girl.

“By the way, isn’t that girl coming out again today?”

As always, Randolph asked in a suggestive tone.

“I’ve already told you, she’s taking a break because she’s unwell.”

The problem was that the tavern keeper was far too stubborn.

“How sick could she be to avoid the hall every single day?”

“…She’s very sick. Her leg is completely broken.”

“Oh dear. Has she seen a doctor?”

“Of course. Do I look like such a cruel employer to you?”

From the next day, Randolph began showing up at Selmane every day with a doctor in tow. It was a blatant display to prove that the girl’s illness, which kept her from working at the tavern, was a lie. Smiling slyly at Selma’s troubled expression, Randolph would casually remark:

“Hey, it’s not like I’m asking her to serve me in bed like that shameless brat. I just want to see her face. Isn’t this too much?”

In a small village like Oedel, where there was only one doctor, there was no room left for further excuses.