The End of Your Arrogance - Chapter 48

“Have you heard the rumors?”

Selice was enjoying tea time in the Duchess’s garden with a group of elegant noblewomen. As she savored the fragrant aroma of the red tea, she asked curiously, “What rumors are you talking about?”

“They say a flock of crows has been gathering and spreading strange things,” one of the ladies replied, her hand trembling slightly as she held her teacup. Recovering her composure, Selice inquired, “What do you mean?”

“Are you not aware? For the past few days, a swarm of crows has been appearing on the Duke’s estate.”

“If they are crows, it could be an auspicious sign, indicating good things to come,” Selice remarked optimistically. In the hierarchy of ominous creatures in Aramantis, the eagle held the top position, followed closely by the crow.

“This is not something to be taken lightly. Those crows scatter pieces of paper with ominous words written on them,” the lady explained, causing Selice’s pupils to widen in surprise. “Ominous words?” she repeated.

“That’s right…”

Before the lady could continue, Selice called out to the steward who was standing behind her, “Steward! How on earth are you managing the estate?”

Her angry voice resonated through the serene spring garden. The steward apologized, “I apologize, Milady. We have already mobilized all the servants to collect the papers.”

“And what will you do if those damn birds return again?”

Thud, thud.

The sound of rough military boots, out of place in the beautiful garden, drew nearer. “Your Grace, have you arrived?” All the noblewomen stood up in unison, bowing respectfully to Ilya.

“What brings the Duke here?” they asked in unison.

Ilya calmly replied, “I heard there was an unusual occurrence in this place.”

Selice remained seated as Ilya approached. “Please, take a seat. It strains my neck to look up at you,” she said. The knights standing behind Ilya seemed to exude a fierce aura, but he casually pulled out a chair and sat down himself. “Everyone, please be seated,” he invited.

With the Duke’s calming voice, the noblewomen sighed in relief and took their seats. Ilya glanced around from where he sat, expressing rare admiration, “This is the Duchess’s garden I’ve only heard about. I often had the chance to be here with my brother, but it’s my first time with you, Your Grace. I hope we can do this more often.”

The steward approached Ilya’s side, and a cup of reddish tea was poured smoothly. “I may not enjoy tea, but I’ll make an effort to appreciate it from now on,” Ilya remarked.

A brief hint of disdain flickered across Selice’s face, and Ilya didn’t miss that moment. “Aunt, I’ve come to ask you something,” he said.

“To me? Go ahead and ask,” Selice replied.

Naz, who had been standing behind Ilya, handed her a few pieces of paper. “What could this be? My subordinates and I have no idea,” Ilya explained.

The steward received the papers, and Selice gave her a cold look. “Read it,” she ordered.

The steward’s tightly closed lips trembled slightly as she began to read aloud, “With the juice of a juete, they forever marred the face of a beautiful woman.”

“Is there anything else?” Selice asked.

After hesitating for a moment, the steward read the next paper aloud, “The cleansing water with hibiscus extract is exceptional, so I frequently buy it.”

Selice’s face lit up with a deep smile. “Juete and hibiscus are herbs commonly used by women,” she explained. Ilya looked surprised, as if he were hearing these names for the first time. “It’s a fragrant herb. People soak it in water and use it for cleansing,” she said.

“If you use it, your face might break out in rashes. It gets so itchy that you might end up scratching it.” Selice raised her hand, revealing well-maintained sharp nails, and teasingly smiled as she brought her hand close to her own face. “Your face will be completely ruined. I don’t think any man would continue to adore a woman who has lost her beauty.”

She sounded somewhat lonely as she said that. “Interesting. But why would something like this appear on the Duke’s estate?” Ilya asked, looking at Selice after taking a sip of tea.

“Well, who might have indulged in gossip? There’s only one woman in the Duke’s estate who would do such a thing,” Selice replied, and the other noblewomen started to murmur. A familiar name reached Ilya’s ears, and his smile deepened.

“What reason would my wife have to do such a thing?” he retorted.

“The Duke means that you may not fully understand women,” Selice explained. Ilya slowly stood up, gazing up at the sky as he murmured, “I may not fully understand women. There’s only one woman I’ve embraced in my lifetime, and that’s my wife.”

The noblewomen blushed and exchanged glances with him. “I appear to have disrupted the ladies’ enjoyment, so I shall depart,” Ilya said as he excused himself.

Kkaok kkaok (the sound of footsteps disappearing).

The sky turned pitch black with a loud, piercing cry as crows appeared out of nowhere, terrifying the women. Something thudded down from the sky, and Ilya watched it land on the tea table with wide eyes.

“Get rid of this abomination right away!” Selice yelled, and the steward and maids standing behind her rushed forward to approach the table.

“Stop,” Ilya called out, and the approaching maids came to a halt. “Aunt, it is just a leaf; why are you so afraid?” he chuckled as he picked up one of the leaves.

“Do you see this as an ordinary leaf?” Selice retorted.

“Well, it might have been nibbled by some bugs, but it is still just a leaf,” Ilya responded, showing the partially chewed leaf.

“But there are words written on it. We can’t show such a sinister thing to the ladies,” Ilya said, handing the leaf to Naz, who stood behind him. “Captain, read it.”

“It’s not a sentence, just a few words…” Naz stammered, feeling embarrassed.

“Captain, isn’t your creativity lacking a bit?” Ilya teased. He picked out a few more leaves and arranged them in a line, then changed their order a few times. “Now try reading it.”

A low, eerie voice echoed through the room. “It all began in the cabin.”

Selice, who had maintained her composure until now, contorted her face like a demon.

“What nonsensical antics are these? There must be some undesirable elements within the Duke’s estate!”

“Aunt is right. From now on, we plan to capture all those unscrupulous individuals,” Ilya declared firmly.

With sharp eyes, Ilya commanded the knights, “Search the cabin immediately. And from this moment on, no one is allowed to enter the Duchess’s garden.”

“Yes, Your Grace!” The sound of the knights’ determined steps echoed throughout the spring garden. As bugs wriggled and crawled on the fallen leaves, the noblewomen screamed in fear.

The intriguing events that Stas had mentioned were just beginning.

****

Thanks to the crows that appeared and disappeared without warning, the Duke’s estate had been on edge for several days.

Since that day, Selice has locked herself in her room and hasn’t come out.

“She must be so anxious. Everything she had built up has now come crashing down.”

The ambiguous sentences written on the papers scattered by the crows sparked various speculations.

The servants who worked on the Duke’s estate were well aware of Selice’s cruel nature. Thanks to the strict surveillance by the steward, they had kept quiet until now, but they too had eyes and ears, as well as mouths.

They were infuriated by Selice’s past misdeeds and couldn’t help but gossip about them. With Rene and Stas subtly encouraging the rumors, the gossip spread rapidly beyond the Duke’s estate, reaching the Earl of Glen’s castle, and eventually spreading throughout the entire Duchy.

Rene grinned proudly as she looked at a wooden box placed in a corner. “How did you manage it?” Ilya asked, and Rene brought the box over and placed it on the table.

When Rene opened the lid, Ilya grimaced at what he saw. The bugs inside the box had a color similar to the leaves. Their wriggling and squirming appearance was far from pleasant to look at.

“These little ones are the heroes of this incident, but it’s a bit disappointing when you look at them like this,” Rene said.

Seeing Ilya’s puzzled expression, Rene took out a leaf from the feeder. Its sweet scent filled the air, stimulating his senses.

“Is it honey?”

“Yeah, I dipped the brush in honey water and wrote the letters on the leaves.”

Rene grinned mischievously and tossed the leaf she was holding back into the box. The leaf quickly turned black due to the swarming bugs.

“It looks like you, Your Grace, have a sweet tooth, and they seem to like it too.”

“Seeing that makes me lose my appetite for sweets in the future.”

After a while, as the bugs retreated, the letters appeared distinctly once again. A satisfied smile adorned Ilya’s face.

“The Duchess’s garden must be a mess by now.”

“Yeah, I bet Naz is busy cleaning up everything, even plucking every blade of grass.”

Seeing Ilya in a good mood, Rene finally brought up something she had wanted to say for a while.

“Your Grace, Selice has invited Pia to the Eternal Tournament.”

Ilya shouted in surprise, “Why are you telling me now? No, what if she goes there alone?”

Rene retorted calmly, “She’s not going alone! I sent my capable servant along with her, and Loren Kyeong is guarding outside.”

Ilya attempted to dash out, but Rene magically restrained him.

“If you go, Pia will figure out you’re the master!”

Trying to argue, Ilya’s anger flared up.

****

Evelyn stepped down from the carriage, wearing a plain robe. The steward was waiting at the entrance of the Eternal Tournament.

With a displeased expression, the steward urged Evelyn, “The Duchess is already here, hurry inside.”

Evelyn followed behind the steward and entered the elegant building. Things she couldn’t see during her previous visit with Ilya at night were now catching her eye one by one.

The Eternal Tournament was housed on this floor of the building. The stained glass on this level gleamed brightly in the afternoon sun.

Under the central railing below the stained glass, a massive sculpture of a double-headed eagle caught Evelyn’s attention. The twin-headed eagle sculpture seemed to exude a lifelike vitality, as if it were about to soar into the sky.

“That’s the symbol of the Duke’s family, the Twin-Headed Eagle,” Evelyn mused, captivated by the statue.

Wait? Did that sculpture just move? Evelyn stopped in her tracks and stared intently.

“What are you dawdling for?” the steward scolded, and Evelyn hurriedly walked again.

But as she did, the golden eagle sculpture trembled ever so slightly.