Chapter 92
Chapter 92
Is she his granddaughter? I thought all of his descendants already croaked Ah, well, theyre all dead now.
Zion stepped closer while scratching his head. Hes trying to gauge Raymonds mood.
After Raymond opened his eyes again, he reached forward to close the dead girls eyes. Raymond realized why Duke Luthella dressed his granddaughter as a prostitute. Its not to commit incestuous acts. This girls body was too clean for him to think so.
What were you expecting from me?
Duke Luthella was likely hoping that if Raymond thought that this girl wasnt the dukes granddaughter but a young prostitute, he might not kill her.
Raymond was supposed to be a man whod feel pity towards a young prostitute, and so would not kill her.
Because he was a famous gentleman.
But that possibility would only come about if he had been in his own country.
Raymond glanced down at Duke Luthellas hand, which Zion had hacked off. Then, he turned to look at the closed eyes of the dead girl, lying on the bed. The duke must have told her that she should evoke sympathy so that she could be spared. But if she were to have been spared, shed choose to take revenge. Theres no way that this would succeed though.
And she would certainly aim for Raymond, who had killed most of the people here in this residence. Even if the dukes plan succeeded, theres no way for salvation to come.
Will this bring honor?
Duke Luthellas words echoed in his ears.
Dont think. Dont think about this. Raymond closed his eyes.
And Raymond needed to think about something else now. What should he think about? Raymond wanted to have his own thoughts. He wanted to think of anything better than this. Not blood. Not pus. Not tears. Something more comfortable, something more ideal.
Seriously.
While Raymond stared at a pool of blood, he thought of the woman he didnt want to think about. This only made him feel dejected.
* * *
And thats how Sir Raymond saved me.
So cool!
With the little girls huddled together, their eyes glistened with admiration as they listened to Carynnes story until the end. The evident excitement in their young faces was a bit burdensome for Carynne. After all, she had omitted many parts in the middle.
In the story she told, Thomas only grabbed her by the wristhe didnt stab her with a dagger. And, Raymond fought off those men with his fists, not with a gun.
Of course, Carynne also did not bring up the story of her hacking Thomas body to pieces in front of his son, Tom, or the fact that she hid that one part of the mans body.
The children asked navely and innocently.
When will Verdic die?
Im not sure?
Why didnt he die?
Never mind about them being innocent. This was what Carynne thought as she observed how clearly annoyed Lady Soleia was to hear that Verdic was safe and sound.
The villain should die first!
Yeah! And the interest rate that Verdic Evans demands is also too high.
What a realistic outcry. Carynne maintained the smile on her lips as she handed a snack towards Lady Lianne, who was parroting words that she must have heard from her mother.
While expressing her anger at Verdic Evans excessive exploitation of profit, she hardly pointed out any shortcomings on the corrupt loan sharks part.
Surely his wealth should be put to a better use.
Thats true.
Lianne looked to the side and made eye contact with Lewis, who visibly flinched in response.
With a more determined tone, Lianne asked him.
Of course, youll make sure to do that, right, Your Highness Lewis?
Umm.
Prince Lewis let out an awkward laugh, then he took the cup in front of him and took a sip of the hot tea. You have so many troubles already, dear ten-year-old.
While the children were voicing their thoughts here, their parents at the back also had such sharp gazes as they wordlessly expressed their political stances. The atmosphere would be more comfortable if its possible to one-sidedly talk smack about Verdic Evans, but the fact of the matter was that people who had never dealt business with Verdic Evans were a minority here. Rather, most of them were closely acquainted with the man.
Umm Ill think about it and consider it very deeply.
You could at the very least voice your opinion about this though. Are you trying to avoid it?
You only need to scold a bad person, but why does it seem like youre finding it difficult?
The girls ganged up on him. Are you doing that on purpose? Seriously?
Carynne picked up her cup and brought it to her lips. Her throat ached a little from all that talking. As everyones eyes were now focused on Prince Lewis, Carynne could finally breathe.
Alright Um Youre right. I personally think it would be fine to push for a law about interest rates, so
Your Highness, Id like to ask you to expand on that please. Then, if the Head of the Assembly will propose that as an item on the agenda, would you personally support it?
No, um, for me to say for sure
Your Highness!
I wonder what I was doing when I was ten years old.
As Carynne watched the kids, she tried to think about it. She couldnt remember, so she didnt know. Carynne was either very thoroughly tempered by medications for her lunacy, or she was being brainwashed by Nancy herself.
Have fun with your debates over there. Leave me out of it.
Carynne closed her eyes and savored the tea. As expected, anything prepared by the royal family was a delicacy. Carynne was satisfied. For someone like herwho was stuck in place and unable to move forward in timeno matter how the world would progress, no matter how the relationship between the royal family, the nobility and the nouveau riche would change, it was all meaningless.
Its a bit self-deprecating, but what meaning was there to anything when time would not pass for her? Despite these kids perhaps having potential, whats the point? Did anything matter when, in Carynnes world, none of these kids would become adults anyway?
Who on earth made this.
Carynne savored the taste of the biscuit that was broken down by her teeth and melted by her tongue. However, her short-lived peace was soon broken by that young tyrant.
Ah, we wont have that many chances to meet Lady Carynne, so wouldnt it be better to ask her more questions first? You can always ask me later.
Hey.
Carynne felt the teacup in her hands shake.
Oh my I dont believe my stories are worth all that much, Your Highness.
Please dont twist my words.
Alright. What would you like to hear?
What do you like about Sir Raymond? Oh, dont answer right away. How about we try to guess?
Prince Lewis asked with a smile. Carynne grew stiff.
I beg your pardon?
Please. Dont bother me.
However, Carynnes silent protest was so easily ignored. Despite the imploring look she gave him, Prince Lewis smiled broadly and made a suggestion to the young nobles.
What do you say? Ill give a prize to whoever Miss Carynne says has guessed right. You can look forward to that prize.
At that, the eyes of the young nobles and their parents behind them glimmered. We cant miss this. Carynne could practically hear their thoughts.
As soon as Prince Lewis finished speaking, a boy raised his hand.
Oh, so soon? Speak up, then, William. You seem confident.
Your Highness is asking the obvious. Of course, its Sir Raymonds merits. I heard that Sir Raymond had dealt with a thousand people all by himself.
William spoke confidently. He was the youngest son of Baron Strieder, who was standing behind his son while looking at him amusedly.
I do think that a thousand people is a bit exaggerated.
Still though, everyone knows that hes famous for his physical prowess. And he saved you, right, Miss Carynne Evans? How can you not like him for that?
Miss Carynne. When that kid, whose height couldnt even come up to her chest just yet, called her with that title, she felt just a bit incensed.
Nonetheless, Prince Lewis nodded after hearing Williams answer.
Thats possible, too. I also heard that Sir Raymond has such a heightened eyesight that he can see two kilometers away. Then maybe Sir Raymonds merits are what made Miss Carynne fall for him? Does anyone have other guesses?
Prince Lewis scheme succeeded.
The boys were rather indifferent to Carynnes storytime, but they listened with rapt attention when Raymonds exploits were brought up. If Carynne was like the princess of a fairytale to the girls, then Raymond would be the knight of a fairytale to the boys.
It was thanks to this that the matter of Verdics high interest rates was immediately pushed aside. Lady Lianne seemed to be unhappy with the topic change, but she soon joined in on the conversation.
Umm Can Sir Raymond really jump down from the top of the cathedral?
My house wasnt as high as the cathedral, so Im not very sure.
Oh, shed push him from there if given the chance. Carynne was determined to do so. Raymond was alright even after jumping off the seventh floor. So she wondered, what was his limit? If he were to fall from a higher place, his head would surely be cracked open, and hed die. Would Raymond still be able to land normally on the ground if someone would push him from behind?
Still though, I cant imagine him getting hurt.
Carynne envied Raymond. If she was as strong as Raymondif she was properly armedCarynne could become the mass murderer she wanted to be. She could just kill everything and still survive in the end. She wouldnt kill only weak people like children or women, and she wouldnt need to exert herself to do so.
Fleetingly, she wondered if Raymond was shooting a bullet through a human head right about now.