Chapter 28.1

Because of that, Leox turned away while mumbling.

This was because he suddenly remembered the Grand Duke’s order to call in the Deputy Chief.

While Leox moved away from her room, the Grand Duke looked at Bebe.

He calmly stroked Bebe’s messy hair.

‘You’re such a great kid.’

His heart spoke deep inside as he observed the five-year-old struggle to live.

As soon as Bebe came here and heard that she was the secret child of the previous Emperor, he investigated the matter.

Surely there was no credible story about Bebe. It was only said that the toys of the current Emperor were in the abandoned Eastern Palace.

And there was news that the current Emperor lost his toy.

Nothing was revealed about what was in it, but the fact that there was a child in front of him and her mother was not difficult to predict.

“It is said that her whole body was covered with scars.’

Based on the stories he had heard through Cecilia and the fact that she suffered from nightmares and had a body filled with scars was the kind of treatment he expected she had experienced.

‘I guess you’ve suffered a lot, huh.’

Funny enough, it was only a few days after Bebe came that his mind changed.

When he looked at the five-year-old kid trying to live, some kind of feeling he had forgotten suddenly exploded. He who had lived without feelings for a long time suddenly felt.

‘I’m trying to save this kid.’

Even a child who would certainly die if trampled on is trying to live like this, but how did she live within that period?

He shook his hands and pretended to be okay.

He gave a rather lonely smile.

A long time has passed since then. There was silence in the room. The deputy chief, who came in with the leader, Leox, looked at Bebe without saying a word.

“There’s no one I can trust.”

“That’s what it’s supposed to be.”

“…In times like this, people usually say, ‘I’m here’.”

“That’s because I’m not very good at talking.”

Then the Deputy smiled leisurely.

As if it had happened frequently in the past, the Grand Duke made an absurd expression, but only shook his head from side to side.

It was then…

“You were looking for me, Your Grace.”

“Deputy Chief.”

As if he was waiting not far away, he came inside without a single drop of sweat, and only bowed his head without a change of expression.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”

“What?”

“I’m sure you did your research as soon as you felt it was weird.”

“…Ah.”

The knight let out a small, bittersweet smile.

“Are you trying to hand over all your credit to Leox this time again?”

“I-I didn’t mean to hide it. I’m sorry, Your Grace.”

“There’s no need to do that. So tell me, Deputy Chief Lewis.”

Only then did he bow and say what he saw. But it wasn’t the information about who sent the assassins right away, but it was still great for a short period of time.

“You’re better than that.”

“No, I just happened to be capable of investigating it first. I’m sure he’d come to the same conclusion as I did if the situation had worked out.”

With what he said, the face of the Grand Duke hardened once again.

“Being humble is good, but excessive humility can be poisonous to you, so do it properly.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“More than that, choose some of the people you can trust. This time, Allen, Bebe and the guest will also have a new knight.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Please keep a low profile towards the knights that Allen didn’t bring while he was running here. Dispose of them for about a week.”

It was then that Louis, who had been listening to the dialogues of the Grand Duke all along, was curious about his expression.

The Knights of the Grand Duchy was divided into numerous groups of leaders and a group of deputy captains.

The leadership positions were filled with aristocrats, and they were largely the ruling class.

The people, led by Lewis, the Deputy Captain, were not aristocrats but ordinary people who came up here purely by strength.

However, they were the majority class. They were the people who had to do what the leader told them to do even though they didn’t like it.

So, he had no idea why the Grand Duke told this to him, who came from the plebian class.

“But the reason why you leave me to do what he’s supposed to do is …”

“I guess Leox didn’t tell you. He will be demoted from the Head Chief position starting today. And you will take over as the Deputy, so Louis, you can do whatever you want.”

“M-Me, Sir?”

“Don’t you like it?”

“…I can do anything if you let me do it. I’ll do my best as much as I can, but…”

“But?”

“If someone like you is going to be in charge, I’d like you to continue to be in charge.”

When he looked at it, he only had pouty lips.

He knew what Louis was talking about at once, even if he didn’t say it properly.

Regardless of who the ruling class was, it’s all the same for the upper class. Rather, it was better for the original person to do it than for the new ruling personnel to come and turn it all over.

That way, he’d be less tired.