Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 142

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 142.
Two Blades, Four Names (26)
Things could not have gone more smoothly. I suppressed a sigh of relief that threatened to escape unbidden.
Isolet maintained her composure without the slightest hint of tension, her gaze steady upon the Duke.
“I ask that you ensure my brother and I remain safe from external threats while the Silverskull tournament proceeds tomorrow. Furthermore, I request your guarantee of our safety until we depart from your territory.”
“You are already safe. Have you forgotten that this is Duke Fontina’s Castle?”
The Duke’s voice carried none of the lightness, negligence, or affection one might use with children. It was a voice devoid of warmth, yet one could sense the steel beneath it.
“We are under threat.”
“From whom?”
“From two nobles within this castle.”
“Why would they target you? Is this a matter of personal vendetta?”
“It is.”
Duke Fontina’s gaze shifted from Isolet to me. His face bore the flushed hue of one recently roused from sleep, yet his eyes gleamed with an uncommon brilliance.
“I discerned long ago that you are not true siblings. This vendetta—is it the grievance of the benefactor’s daughter, or does it belong to this young man? When Duke Fontina speaks of repaying a debt, such words carry considerable weight. It is not something to be squandered carelessly on matters that are not your own.”
Isolet glanced toward me before responding.
“Though we are not blood siblings, within the religious framework we share a bond of even greater responsibility. I harbor no intention of abandoning his struggles, and therefore his danger is my danger as well.”
“Then it is well. Tell me who threatens you. At first light, I shall expel them from my territory.”
“That proves difficult. One of them is the father of the young man competing in tomorrow’s tournament.”
“What?”
The Duke’s fleshy jaw tightened. Among the five who had advanced to the semifinals, only one had brought a parent to the castle.
“Are you speaking of Kangpir Marquis?”
“Precisely, though the other has been inciting him. The second is Count Belnoir himself. They intend to attack and kill us this very night.”
The Duke fell silent. This was clearly no simple matter for him. Chloe, seated in a nearby chair, alternated her gaze between the two of us before looking away.
“I find this both astonishing and absurd. They are men of influence, yet none within Anomarad could escape unscathed after committing such rudeness within my territory and being discovered. I cannot fathom what has emboldened them so. What has transpired? Why do they seek your lives?”
At this moment, I stepped forward. The Duke’s lips curled downward in a cold expression as he studied me.
“Count Belnoir and I cannot exist beneath the same sky. Before I devoted myself to the Temple, I was the son of the Lord of Trabaches. The Count, consumed by petty grudges, destroyed my father and my house. Ignorant of these facts, I was deceived into becoming his ward for a time.”
Our eyes met. Mine did not waver.
“Eventually, I learned the truth and fled, swearing vengeance. My strength remains insufficient to stand against him now. Yet I would choose to die a hundred times by another’s hand rather than fall to his.”
Isolet looked toward me. It was a fabrication, crafted to conceal the existence of the Winterer.
Yet because sincerity infused the beginning and end of my words, my voice grew passionate, and that passion transformed what I had spoken into truth.
Chloe suddenly spoke.
“Now I understand what you said in the Banquet Hall earlier. So you encountered your enemy on that narrow bridge today.”
The Duke nodded in acknowledgment of his daughter’s words. His eyes began to gleam with keen intensity.
“Then your name is not your true one. What is your house name?”
It was a form of verification. If the Duke knew of House Jineman’s affairs, my fabrication would unravel.
“That house no longer exists. It vanished like trampled grass. Afterward, I underwent a ceremony at the Temple to renounce my former name. It is said that one who speaks the name of a fallen house after such a ceremony invites ruin upon themselves once more. I wish not to transgress such a taboo.”
Trabaches had once harbored many prosperous houses that had faded into obscurity—more so than anywhere else on the Continent. Duke Fontina was well aware of such matters. He also knew of the feuds that were a peculiar curse of Trabaches.
In recent years especially, such conflicts had grown frequent, and many houses had vanished. Even a Duke could not know all their names.
“Very well. Then why did the daughter of your enemy, Count Belnoir, come to aid you in persuading Chloe?”
“During my time as his ward, I formed a bond with that young lady akin to that of siblings. In truth, I did not expect her to help me.”
“Then if only Count Belnoir holds a grudge against you, why is Kangpir Marquis involved in this matter?”
“It is only natural that Kangpir Marquis desires his son’s victory. However, I believe he wishes to eliminate me beforehand because an old champion bearing the name Misteria defeated him in the past, and he fears I would become a significant obstacle to young master Luisan von Kangfir.”
“Your words lack credibility. Kangpir Marquis is renowned for his integrity and incorruptibility. Moreover, tomorrow’s tournament will feature formidable rivals such as Charlotte of Orlanne and Wolfren of Hyacan. Eliminating you alone would not guarantee victory, so why would he go to such lengths?”
“Those two are persons of noble standing and cannot be harmed carelessly. However, if a commoner like myself were to die, it would merely tarnish the honor of the Duke as host, and no one would question it. Furthermore, I am singled out because I have presumed to borrow the name ‘Misteria,’ which is above my station. I have heard that Kangpir Marquis himself was defeated by the bearer of this name when he stood on the threshold of a five-victory streak.”
The rapid exchange of words was almost an interrogation. Boris answered without hesitation even once.
The Duke’s eyes narrowed slightly before returning to their normal state.
He was a Duke who had been born when the old kingdom still existed in Anomarad, survived the brief republic that followed, and rose to his present position through the new monarchy without ever falling from grace.
Just as five heroes were said to exist across the Continent, he was counted among the foremost in political acumen in Anomarad, and it was said that only his younger sister, Queen Anliche, could be compared to him. Reading the mind of a fifteen-year-old boy should have been child’s play.
Yet listening to the boy’s responses, regardless of his true intentions, he was no ordinary youth. Each word emerged from careful calculation, without stammering or panic.
Even young nobles of aristocratic birth would tremble in the presence of Duke Fontina’s authority, yet this boy who claimed to have lived as a commoner showed no sign of fear. It was remarkable.
Finally, the Duke spoke as if testing his opponent.
“But is this not all mere speculation? Present me with concrete evidence to view Kangpir Marquis differently. Without such evidence, what reason do I have to believe your words?”
At that moment, Isolet stepped forward and withdrew a flat steel badge from her sleeve, placing it upon the table.
It appeared to have been removed from armor or some other object, and upon it was intricately engraved the head of a horse.
“The attacks began from the very first night. I removed this from the wrist guard of one of the attackers. You would know better than anyone whose coat of arms this is, Duke.”
Of course, it was the coat of arms of House Kangfir.
Boris had no idea that Isolet possessed such a thing. He had not even known an attack had occurred.
Because he had fallen asleep listening to Isolet’s chant, he would not have awakened before morning even if thunder and lightning had struck.
After a moment, the Duke let out a short, derisive laugh.
“Hmph, so even he who posed as a gentleman cannot escape his nature. He is no different from the court schemers. But to deliberately preserve such evidence—you are a cunning girl indeed. Your actions are as if you anticipated meeting me today, are they not?”
Isolet did not answer, and the Duke finally spoke to Boris.
“Very well. I shall accept your words. Then what do you wish me to do? Shall I move your lodgings secretly elsewhere and assign soldiers to ensure tomorrow’s tournament proceeds safely?”
Isolet answered.
“That alone would be insufficient. Our enemies are Anomarad nobility, so nowhere will be safe until we leave this country. The Duke cannot bear responsibility for all of it, so I ask only that you lend us your carriage so we may depart the Pontina Territory without attack. I have heard that within the Territory, even an empty carriage is considered protected, and to lay hands upon it is regarded as an attempt against the Duke himself.”
The proposal was so bold that Chloe’s eyebrows rose slightly.
Only the Duke’s family members were permitted to ride in the Duke’s carriage.
“Your request is unreasonable. Is assigning escort soldiers insufficient?”
“If you do so, Duke, you will lose the opportunity to bestow a new favor upon your benefactor alongside several soldiers.”
The manner in which Isolet spoke sometimes carried this sort of indirect, cold edge. Duke Fontina suddenly burst out.
“You dare attempt to command me! You grow bolder the more I listen!”
Yet Isolet did not yield.
“I merely hope for the Duke’s magnanimity; I have not come to beg for it. Had I been in a position to do so, I would have knelt and prostrated myself from the beginning, licking the dust from the carpet.”
“No one can blame me for failing to repay an old debt. In another light, the fact that I am even listening to you now is no small favor. Your tongue is sharp—let me test it. Setting aside the matter of old debts, do you have even the smallest reason why I should grant your request?”
“I do.”
Isolet’s pink eyes met the Duke’s gaze directly. Even as she said this, the Duke did not immediately cast out the daughter of his benefactor.
“Speak.”
“First, the death of a Silverskull semifinalist within your castle would tarnish the tournament’s reputation and inflict great damage to your honor. Second, even if we survive tonight by some fortune, matters will worsen by tomorrow. If we are killed tomorrow afternoon, this Silverskull tournament will lose its champion.”
“Ha! Did you truly say champion? Your arrogance knows no bounds.”
“I will become champion, so set aside such concerns. Shall I explain the third reason?”
Up to this point, Boris could have anticipated such arguments. But what the third reason might be did not readily come to mind.
“I trust the third will prove to be a tale of greater utility.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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