Regina Lena – To the Unforgiven - Chapter 39

“Is it because there’s Ruber in the North, so you’re looking to the East, or do you have a personal interest in that damn bastard?”

 

Rena also wanted to answer the questions of the Southern Duke without adding or reducing a thing.

 

‘Both’.

 

But she couldn’t do that and just smiled, because she thought the Southern Duke would really grab the back of his neck and faint.

 

Then the Southern Duke shouted with a harsher face.

 

“I’ve said it repeatedly, but I’ll do it again, don’t have any dealings with the Eastern Duke! You’re not anyone else, but my representative! Don’t get mesmerized by his appearance!”

 

The Southern Duke smashed down the table and spoke with strength in every syllable. At that strong refusal, Rena smiled more gracefully.

 

‘I’m going to go crazy.’

 

There was nothing she could do but smile.

 

The Southern Duke’s hatred was more serious than expected. He even childishly tried to make her side with him and once she said something good about the Eastern Duke, he’d consider her an enemy right away.

 

So Rena hid her awkwardness and tried to choose her words, but a helping hand came down.

 

“My apologies for bothering you in the midst of your conversation, but Sir Rena, it’s time to leave.”

 

A calm, middle-aged man’s voice was heard through the fury of the Southern Duke. The secretary of the Southern Duke, who had been watching by his side, cut off his words.

 

“Cardinal Clavis invited you to the Greenhouse Garden.”

 

“Ah, yes. The time has already come.”

 

The secretary deliberately talked about the next schedule to let the atmosphere cool off, and Rena nodded coldly and prepared to get up.

 

Rena was scheduled to have tea time with Clavis after meeting the Southern Duke.

 

That was the second schedule of the day and the uncomfortable invitation that woke Rena from sleep in the early morning.

 

“You’ve never been to the Greenhouse Garden, so I’ll take you there.”

 

The secretary politely took the lead, and Rena didn’t turn down because she needed help. Meanwhile, the Southern Duke looked at Rena with suspicious eyes until the very end.

 

As soon as Rena, freed from the interrogation, came out into the hallway, she exhaled a long breath. The secretary who was watching her said soothingly.

 

“You must’ve been troubled. There are so many things piled up.”

 

“I can see that. What really happened?”

 

“There are many famous anecdotes about the arrogance of the Eastern Duke.”

 

Because the Emperor invited them on every national anniversary, the dukes met every year whether they liked it or not.

 

Each time, the Eastern Duke was arrogant and tenacious, arguing and provoking other dukes.

 

There was even a time when Eura, who was normally as cold as ice, grabbed the neck of the Eastern Duke, who was still a boy. Therefore, it was enough to say how reckless the Eastern Duke was.

 

But it wasn’t just his disrespectful attitude that caused the Southern Duke to hate Lynn.

 

“It’s a story that shouldn’t be recklessly mentioned, but in fact, my lord has sent a courtship letter to the Eastern Duke.”

 

“A courtship?”

 

“Yeah. When the Eastern Duke was just coming of age, right before you came as a foreign mercenary.”

 

Rena’s eyes widened at the unexpected words.

 

Courtship… That proud Southern Duke to the Eastern Duke?

 

“It was not his relatives. As you know, he had no daughters or granddaughters.”

 

“Then whose…?”

 

“It was a young girl in the South. The lady who was staying in the Imperial Palace harassed her father saying she was in love with the Eastern Duke, and that father harassed our Southern Duke.”

 

“And he just listened to that kind of joke?”

 

“Because it was such a desperate time.”

 

This was before the mercenary called Executioner appeared. It was a time when the dead were coming in endlessly, and the help from the North became increasingly remote and the South was pushed to the brink day by day.

 

In the meantime, the nobleman’s request to send a courtship letter to the Eastern Duke made the Southern Duke feel conflicted.

 

First of all, he just didn’t like it. It hurt his pride to send a courtship letter to that bastard in his own name. And he was reluctant to let a Southern daughter go, because of the dirty rumors surrounding Lynn.

 

But at the same time, the situation was harsh. If the Eastern Duke became the son-in-law of the South, the situation would not be the same as it was now. In addition, rumors surrounding the Eastern Duke have calmed down recently, and the woman liked him, so it wasn’t a forced relationship.

 

He still hated the Eastern Duke, but coveted his power. At that time, the young man was setting up a fairly plausible territory.

 

In the end, the Southern Duke relented and sent a courtship letter to the East.

 

Then the Eastern Duke replied like this without a single thought.

 

—Not interested in Southern women. Ask more politely if you need help.

 

The reply from the East was that. It was an insult that far exceeded the level of provocation, and it was the most gruesome rejection of the Southern Duke’s long life.

 

“He felt embarrassed because of the Eastern Duke’s reply.”

 

“That’s understandable.”

 

Rena finally agreed to the secretary’s explanation.

 

The Southern Duke suffered serious damage to his pride. He hated himself for coveting the Eastern Duke’s power even for a moment, and to erase it, he hated Lynn even more intensely.

 

“But that’s already a thing of the past. The reason why he reacts so sensitively now is because of you rather than the Eastern Duke.”

 

“Me?”

 

“It is disrespectful to say such a thing, but His Grace wanted to have you as his son.”

 

“…Not his daughter?”

 

“Because he knew you as a man back then.”

 

Rena laughed vaguely at the secretary’s sudden remark.

 

“But, after hearing your circumstances, he gave up. He didn’t express it, but when you said that you’re the daughter of Sir Ruber, he was quite embarrassed.”

 

It was okay to have her as a daughter rather than a son, it was just a matter of gender in any case. However, the existence of her father, Marquis Ruber, was an entirely different matter.

 

“Things are complicated when you’re not a mere nameless noble, and Marquis Ruber is involved as well. So, he eventually gave up on bringing you into the Duchy.”

 

The secretary said and smiled. It was a light thing as if he had merely stopped trying to raise a dog or cat.

 

But this was the first time Rena heard of this.

 

“Is it okay to talk about all this?”

 

“What’s the point of hiding it now?”

 

Rena was concerned as well, but she was not as honest as a secretary. In fact, it felt like grabbing a straw.

 

The Southern Duke was completely dependent on Rena as an old parent leaned on their child. The evidence was that he did not punish Rena on the multiple arbitrariness she had previously committed.

 

When Rena entered the palace at the invitation of the Southern Duke, she went to the Marquis at her own will, ruined the ball in her uniform, and improvised everything about the first expedition.

 

If anyone else did that, they would be punished and kicked out immediately. However, the Southern Duke only demanded a belated explanation and did not give Rena, who did not even ask the Southern Duke for permission, let alone his understanding, any disadvantage.

 

Just by looking at this, it was obvious where the power of the South was concentrated.

 

“That’s why he’s very worried in case you go to the East.”

 

The secretary, who had been a longtime assistant to the Southern Duke, and who was equally concerned about the South, confessed everything to Rena.

 

At least trying to make her understand.

 

The secretary said so and looked into Rena’s face.

 

Rena, who was always calm, had a strange expression on her face. There was something uncomfortable about it, so he had a complicated smile on her face.

 

“I know what it feels like to be abandoned.”

 

Rena said in a whisper with a face like that.

 

“So I won’t betray him first. Don’t worry.”

 

“If you say so…”

 

The secretary was concerned that Rena might be offended. But Rena just swallowed the bitter smile she had for a while and smiled again.

 

Meanwhile they arrived at the Greenhouse Garden outside the palace on the lake.

 

When no further guidance was needed, the secretary turned around after he said his farewell. As a result, Rena was left alone for a while, and she used that time to process the story she had just heard.

 

‘I didn’t expect he would think like that.’

 

She couldn’t believe he tried to let her in as his child. She didn’t even imagine it.

 

If that were the case, could she have appeared as the Duke’s adoptive daughter in front of her biological father who sold his daughter in order to become a marquis?

 

It’s a childish imagination, but a little thrilling. She imagined the Southern Duke, who became an adopted father, Lynn, who became her fiancée, and Uni, who was nothing but her younger sister, sitting around a table together.

 

She thought it would be fun to play with a family like that. Lynn and the Southern Duke would get into an awkward fight over their ambiguous relationship, and Uni would put the grown-ups to shame with just a few words while watching the scene. At that time, all Rena had to do was smile in between.

 

Such a scene was beautifully drawn before her eyes, and her heart was tickled.

 

She wanted to enjoy this sweetness a little more, but soon she let out a long breath to calm her excitement.

 

Then she stepped out into the Greenhouse Garden, which glittered like a mirage.

 

At the end of the road lined with flowers in full bloom, she saw a man. Needless to say, her heart immediately cooled at the sight.

 

Clavis was sitting at the tea table waiting for Rena.

 

However, his attire was different from usual. He had his long hair tied into one and wore a fancy suit instead of the cardinal’s uniform.

 

It was as if he had taken out the Clavis in the past, when he was not a cardinal, but the Western Duke. In other words, it was the same as when he pushed Rena into the crack 6 years ago.

 

Rena was shocked at first.

 

It was something a human with conscience would not dare to do, but Clavis took this devilish idea into action and just laughed out loud.

 

Like an angel in a torch, beautiful and noble.

 

.

.

.

“You’re really here.”

 

Clavis, who was resting on his chin with both hands, said with his eyes closed.

 

“I was afraid you wouldn’t come.”

 

“I have no choice but to come. Whose name is it that is written on that card?”

 

“You are so kind.”

 

Rena stood in front of the table and responded with only moderate manners.

 

Clavis smiled generously deeply, but he didn’t escort Rena when he got up.

 

“If you had dressed prettier, I would have taken out the chair.”

 

Instead, he mumbled in a voice full of regret. It was as if he were disappointed by his lover who appeared neglected.

 

“I can take out the chair by myself.”

 

She wondered if he was crazy, but still answered calmly. Then she deliberately pulled the chair out with a creaking noise and sat down softly.

 

Clavis burst into laughter at the harsh sound. He glanced at Rena’s behavior, looking almost insane.

 

Objectively speaking, seeing a beautiful man smiling brightly should be a good thing, however, Rena’s smile faded from her face.

 

As Rena’s eyes grew cold in his eyes, Clavis smiled more intensely.

 

“Don’t frown. You smiled well on the first day.”

 

“At the time, I didn’t know you would be like this.”

 

“Like what?”

 

Rena didn’t answer, so Clavis bowed down to the table and asked.

 

“Hmm? What did you mean like ‘this’?”

 

“Like a pervert.”

 

“Pfft!”

 

At Rena’s reply, Clavis burst into laughter. He laughed out loud for a long time, then moaned as he wiped his wet eyes from laughing.

 

“It’s the first time in my life I’ve ever heard such a thing.”

 

“It’s something to be thankful for. It means that there were a lot of polite people around.”

 

“No, there were a lot of low-key people. Unlike our Miss Rena.”

 

Who’s your Rena?

 

Rena looked at Clavis, who was too skinny, and thought that she had come out for nothing.

 

She actually didn’t want to come out if she could. Rather than her dislike of him, it was because of her judgment that he was worthless.

 

Nevertheless, the reason Rena accepted the invitation was that it would be better to see it once and finish it because he would still bother her even if she refused.

 

“Did you call me to talk like this?”

 

“Ugh, there are other important things, but I also wanted to talk about these.”

 

Rena wanted to get to the point, but Clavis smirked to the end.

 

“Miss Rena, do you have anything you want to say to me?”

 

“The one who has something to say must be the one who calls the other person, right?”

 

“With the way things are going, it’ll be a shame if you keep being so cold.”

 

“Then I’ll take it as you have nothing more to say…”

 

Rena finally got up at the continuous nonsense. At about the same time, Clavis reached out and grabbed Rena’s wrist.

 

Rena looked at Clavis unsurprisingly.

 

“Why don’t you have anything to say?”

 

Clavis looked up and asked, acting cute.

 

“About what I’ve done to you.”

 

Even his voice was sweet.

 

“That’s so weird. To figure something out, one has to ask the reason, right?”

 

However, his smiling eyes, in the shape of a crescent moon, were cold without any emotion.

 

“But why do you look like you’re done? Nothing has been resolved. But you don’t hate, you don’t wonder, and you don’t care.”

 

Clavis grabbed Rena’s wrist and pulled her closer. Then he muttered as he kissed Rena’s little fingernails.

 

“It’s really weird.”

 

The next moment, the gaze of Clavis, who had been smiling softly, changed.

 

“Rena Ruber.”

 

Clavis questioned with a voice entirely different from his soft one.

 

“How far did you find out?”