Rewriting the Trash Ending - Chapter 52

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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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52.

***

Axid returned from the Wardrobe Chamber to find a mountain of documents awaiting his signature.
Yet his gaze did not rest on the papers whose ink had scarcely dried, but drifted instead to something further away.
A personal visit to the Wardrobe Chamber was something that had never once occurred in Axid’s life.
Whenever he ventured beyond the palace walls, it was almost always because an urgent dispatch arrived from the Northern Fortress.
So for him to abandon his duties and climb into a carriage was entirely because he had not wished to send Lumiere out alone into the rain.

“Your Grace, I think this deep night-sky shade suits you wonderfully. The color takes far better than I expected.”

The image of Lumiere holding first this bolt of fabric, then that one against her chest, her expression grave with consideration, surfaced in his mind — and his lips curved of their own accord.
He had always thought any garment that was dark and comfortable would suffice.
But the care she took on his behalf, that small tenderness he had never once felt in his rough-hewn existence, still warmed his chest.
It meant that for those moments, his thoughts had filled her mind entirely.
That she could be so gentle before him, yet maintain her dignity when touching upon matters of state — even that seemed lovable to him.
He had never entertained such embarrassingly sentimental thoughts about anyone before, and the strangeness of his own heart unsettled him.
Then.
“Your Grace, the Minister of Foreign Affairs requests an audience.”
An attendant announced from beyond the door that Pendro sought entry.
“Let him in.”
At Axid’s permission, a middle-aged man with golden hair and emerald eyes stepped through.
“Your Grace, I beg your pardon for presenting myself without forewarning, but I have urgent news to report.”
“What is it?”
“The Empire has notified us that a Diplomatic Delegation has gone missing. They are dispatching an investigation team to conduct a thorough search of the Northern region.”
“Ah.”
Axid let out a low murmur as memory returned to him.
The fact that the Delegation had already become cold corpses was known only to him and his knights.
Whatever an investigation team might uncover would amount to nothing more than the confirmation that the Delegation had been devoured by monsters.
“How shall we proceed, Your Grace?”
Pendro extended the official document, his inquiry cautious.
It was nothing new for the Empire to act arbitrarily, but to assemble an investigation team and set foot in the North without permission was an unmistakable provocation.
This was no longer a matter the Minister could handle alone.
“Tell them that should they cross our borders without leave, they will pay the price themselves.”
“But surely the Grand Duchess is of Imperial blood? If instead you were to have her send a letter of reconciliation to the Emperor in her own name, the Empire would have no loss of face — and they might have cause to withdraw……”
“Pendro.”
Pendro’s words died at the frost in that single name.
“Are you asking me to bow my head to the Emperor?”
“N-no, Your Grace, that was never my intention.”
“Absurd. Your suggestion is that I break Lumiere’s pride to save the Emperor’s face?”
His voice grew heavy, and the air turned cold.
“I-I spoke thoughtlessly. Please, forgive my presumption.”
Pendro bowed hastily, his eyes darting beneath lowered lids.
It was strange, all the same.
Where could one find a cheaper, easier gambit than using Lumiere — an Imperial-born woman — to face down the Emperor?
After all, she was not someone he intended to keep for long. What did it matter if she bent her head a little?
But he swallowed those words.
In the Duchy, the Grand Duke’s word was absolute.
“I shall send our reply according to your wishes, Your Grace.”
Axid dismissed Pendro with a slight nod of his head.
Alone once more, he let out a quiet laugh.
“Swift to act, are they.”
If the Delegation’s return had been delayed much longer, he had assumed the Empire would have assembled an investigation team straightaway — yet only now did their official letter arrive.
He knew the current Emperor wore a crown that did not suit his station, but their sluggish response was almost absurd enough to be laughable.
He tossed the Empire’s official letter into the waste bin with a soft chuckle.
Seeing the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who had been present moments before, now made him think suddenly of the woman who had barged into the Wardrobe Chamber so freely.

“Oh, no. I spoke out of turn.”

Pendro, the Foreign Minister, was a man of ambition, but he possessed the acumen to read a room just as keenly as he coveted advancement.
He kept his position precisely because his habit of weighing gains and losses proved genuinely useful.
Today’s weighing of her against the scales had been distasteful, but at least the Count knew when he’d crossed a line—he would bow his head without hesitation.
Yet his daughter, even as she claimed to have overstepped, pushed forward to speak her mind regardless.
And her tone carried something more: a subtle dismissal, a hint of instruction.
‘Is she angling for a concubine’s position?’
The Grand Duchess’s seat was already filled, so she must be after that strange rank called Honorable Marchioness.
Like all the others, she had kept her distance until now—and then, unbidden, she crossed the line. Her intent was transparent.
Displeasure stirred in his chest, yet even so, he was grateful this time.
Thanks to her presumption, Lumiere had fixed something in place with her words—she had called him her husband.
He was in no position to be a complete husband to her.
All his life he would have to gather up the warmth she shed and chew upon it, reliving those crumbs.
So he could only feel gratitude that she had given him at least one memory to hold.
Axid smiled bitterly and picked up his pen.

***

The heavy, tense atmosphere that had hung over the Grand Duke’s Palace was gradually lifting.
Perhaps it was the paid leave and generous bonuses that had lightened the mood.
Or perhaps those released from confinement had simply returned to their duties without incident.
In any case, when others encountered Lumiere, they no longer trembled with fear or showed visible strain as they once had.
Some even worked with visible diligence, whether emboldened by the paid leave and ample rewards their colleagues had received, or simply keen to demonstrate their earnestness.
Either way, it was a relief that energy had returned to the palace.
“You really didn’t need to go to all this trouble.”
Lumiere said this with a note of concern as she walked linked arm-in-arm with Axid.
Today was the tea reception she was hosting.
For reasons she couldn’t quite fathom, Axid had insisted on escorting her all the way to the Greenhouse where the gathering would be held.
She knew he disliked drawing attention, and it made her uneasy to think she was causing him inconvenience—though she also felt a peculiar warmth at it.
‘It’s like he’s showing off that his husband takes care of him like this. It’s so…’
While it was not uncommon for a husband to greet his wife’s guests alongside her, it was unusual for him to escort her to the venue unless circumstances demanded it.
Some of the more authoritarian nobility even avoided such gestures, viewing them as beneath their dignity.
For this reason, many women measured their husband’s affection by such courtesies.
‘Does it make me look like I’m just being showy?’
“Does a husband require a reason to escort his wife?”
His matter-of-fact voice brushed against her ear, and heat flooded her earlobes.
Husband. And wife.
His tone was neither tender nor soft, yet the way he spoke those titles so plainly sent warmth rushing to her cheeks.
He had merely stated a fact, yet she felt herself drawn closer to him.
She gave a small, embarrassed cough and pushed the shyness away.

How much further had they walked?
Before long, they arrived at the entrance to the Greenhouse.
The attendant stationed at the door seemed startled and drew back in surprise.
She had not expected His Grace the Grand Duke to escort the lady this far in person.
Lumiere swallowed the thought and stepped inside with him, feigning indifference.
The women within rose at once and offered their courtesies.
“We are honored to receive Your Highnesses.”
Their faces bore unmistakable bewilderment and poorly concealed tension.
He leaned close and whispered against her ear.
“If anything troubles you, do not bear it in silence.”
“Don’t worry—I have no intention of suffering in silence.”
“That’s all I needed to hear.”
Axid swept his gaze across the assembly.
The ladies who met his eyes shrank back, their complexions draining of color.
He had no fondness for intimidating women, yet among those present were ladies who had refused his audience.
If his warning was heeded as intended, they would not dare treat Lumiere carelessly.
“I’ll see you later. Go ahead.”
“…Very well.”
He held her bright gaze a moment longer before she could push him away, then turned with reluctant steps.

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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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