Spring in My Grasp - Chapter 46

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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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(46) A Family Undone by Cookies

“I still don’t understand why everyone blames Alexis for this.”
I sat with Lea in the Glass Garden of the castle, which I had been tending with care, sharing a light lunch together. I divided a small meat pie between us and slowly sipped warm vegetable soup.
“Even if Alexis holds the position of Holy Knight, he can’t simply release criminals at will.”
Lea let out a soft chuckle at my words.
“I suppose not…”
There are times when people fail to recognize or understand matters that concern themselves.
Lea recalled the period when Alexis had suddenly become consumed with work, returning to the castle late into the night. And once Count Belloa was released from prison, he had ceased his frantic pace, departing at reasonable hours as if by magic—or rather, he had not.
‘Who would have sent such cookies to Lady Rowan in the first place.’
Did people realize that an entire family’s downfall stemmed from nothing but cookies? As Lea picked up the fragrant cookie before her, she stifled an inward laugh.
It was certainly a cruel turn of events, but Audrey would never again perpetrate such wickedness against me. More importantly, her own family had crumbled, leaving her with nothing to rely upon save her position as a daughter-in-law of Count Glister’s household. Yet that very circumstance had begun to spawn new problems.
“The Countess favors her eldest son far too much. I don’t understand her reasoning, but I also cannot fathom Count Glister’s. He’s his own son—why does he treat him this way?”
At some point, I had ceased addressing the Countess as “Mother.” From the moment Alexis brought me into this castle, I sensed that our connection had severed.
And above all, Alexis’s demeanor was resolute. If he did not regard her as his mother, neither would I.
“The Count has never been particularly affectionate toward his family. As for Francis, the Countess shields him so thoroughly that the Count simply lets matters be. Besides, Francis is obedient to the Count, so there’s rarely any conflict.”
“If Alexis had been raised with such respect, he would have flourished far more splendidly.”
I replied while sipping my soup. Lea smiled silently once more.
I myself could not pinpoint when it began, but I had come to shelter and care for Alexis. Perhaps the atmosphere had not always been as austere as it was now, but Alexis was someone who naturally emanated a cold presence. Yet I alone seemed to pity him and look after him.
“Still, it’s fortunate that His Majesty has taken Alexis’s side.”
I nodded at Lea’s remark. Even if we paid little attention to the affairs of the world, we at least understood the happenings within our own household.
***
The catalyst for this entire affair was Audrey. When her birth family faced crisis, she had appealed to the Glister Earl Family for assistance. However, because the matter unfolded with such delicate intricacy, the Glister household turned a cold shoulder to the Belloa Family, who would become their in-laws.
Furthermore, the Countess Glister, fearing that her own family might incur the Royal Court’s displeasure, treated Audrey with a chill markedly different from before. Yet the problem did not end there. Through Count Belloa’s influence, the backlash even reached Francis, who had entered the Royal Palace to conduct administrative duties.
Francis, who had never been appointed to royal service because of his own exceptional abilities, now found himself burdened with the weakness of being Count Belloa’s son-in-law. Consequently, his superiors—who had long regarded him as an eyesore—demoted him to the position of administrator in a provincial small city.
-This is absurd!
Naturally, Francis refused to accept it. He was unquestionably the eldest son of the Glister Earl Family and the designated heir. He had no intention whatsoever of leaving the capital to work in such a provincial town.
He formally protested the decision, but it remained unchanged, earning him only the mockery of his colleagues. Unable to endure further, Francis was forced to abandon his position at the Royal Court and confine himself to the mansion.
-This is all because of the Young Master!
When Francis lost his position and, despondent, shut himself away in the mansion, Audrey blamed Alexis for everything.
-Father’s downfall was orchestrated! The Young Master deliberately exploited his status to entangle our family in conspiracy!
Neither Francis nor Audrey had remained idle during this time. As their circumstances deteriorated, they investigated frantically. And they finally discovered that Alexis was among those investigating the Belloa Family. But Audrey possessed an even deeper conviction—that Alexis’s influence was undoubtedly instrumental in her family’s destruction.
-That madman orchestrated my demotion as well!
Consumed by inferiority, Francis insisted that Alexis had orchestrated his own demotion.
But there was a fact they did not know. So long as the Glister Family did not lay a hand upon his wife, Alexis harbored not the slightest interest in them.
However, the members of the Glister Family, believing themselves to be the objects of his malice, began to conspire and fabricate a scheme.
They wrote that Alexis had, since childhood, brought shame upon the family name and engaged in all manner of wickedness. They then added that, now blessed by divine grace and having become a Holy Knight, he perpetrated every conceivable act to destroy his own family.
They claimed that the Belloa Family had fallen victim to his machinations and that he schemed to ruin the life of his own elder brother, Francis. They formally petitioned the King to severely punish him.
The Holy Knight—one of the Kingdom’s greatest blessings. That they would so publicly denounce Alexis, their own blood, compelled the King to take action.
Alexis was currently stationed at the Temple, dispatched to serve the Royal Court and assist the King. The throne was a position that demanded far greater burden and peril than one might imagine. If the Glister Family’s claims were true, the King could not entrust his safety to someone he could not trust.
The King, having ordered an investigation in his own manner, summoned them all to a single place when the time came. He decided it would be better to observe directly and render his judgment immediately. The High Priest was also present at this gathering.
-Let us establish the facts here.
As the King spoke, the Glister Family erupted into chaos and frenzy. In particular, the Countess Glister and Audrey shrieked with such vehemence that blood seemed to pour from their lips.
-How he caused scandal and lived so dissolutely as he grew, bringing such shame upon our family! Yet after becoming a Holy Knight, how can he so despise and persecute the family that raised and cared for him?!
-Our father is innocent! There has been no proper proof of guilt established, has there? Yet the Young Master, who has always envied my brother and despised me, orchestrated Father’s entanglement in conspiracy!
Count Glister spoke with equal fervor. From his perspective, the emergence of a Holy Knight from his family was no longer a matter of honor and glory. That blade’s edge was pointed directly at the Glister Family itself.
The King listened to their words, then turned his gaze toward the High Priest and Alexis. As if he had anticipated this, Alexis maintained a composed, emotionless expression.
The King held this beautiful Holy Knight in exceptionally high regard. The manifestation of such a powerful Holy Knight during his reign was an extraordinarily auspicious omen.
-You may speak on your own behalf if you wish.
At the King’s words, the High Priest stepped forward. He believed his own testimony would carry greater credibility than Alexis’s own account. The High Priest had heard rumors that Alexis had been a family burden before becoming a Holy Knight, but he had not imagined it to be of this magnitude.
And he recalled the profound affection Alexis displayed toward his wife. The High Priest understood at once. Why he was so persistently attentive to her.
-There appears to be a misunderstanding. The Belloa Family’s circumstances are entirely unrelated to Alexis.
The High Priest spoke. He could not bring himself to swear by God. Entirely unrelated? Far from it. It was Alexis himself who had investigated the Belloa Family’s misconduct and presented the evidence.
A family that had engaged in trade for so long could not possibly emerge from rigorous investigation without a speck of dust. Knowing this, Alexis had insisted that his evidence was still insufficient and that more thorough investigation was necessary to confirm the facts.
Moreover, the evidence he had presented was illegal narcotics. To investigate the Belloa Family on this basis was tantamount to poisoning that place and ensuring its complete annihilation.

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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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