The Isolated Marchioness Just Wants to Make a Living - Chapter 65

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 65

“Nogen never gets involved in the Imperial Family’s power struggles.”

“Neutrality can only be maintained when you have power. These are chaotic times. Living according to the natural order and keeping a low profile is the best course. That’s what I came here to tell you.”

“….”

“At the very least, don’t stir up trouble in the Eastern Region under the pretense of revenge. That would be better for the children of Sears too.”

Valerie sighed and turned around to leave the room.

Hilberry closed his eyes in exhaustion.

‘To think the Imperial Family was keeping a close eye on this incident.’

The Eastern Region had dared to wage a war of public opinion on Western Region territory, and the Imperial Family was probably behind it. Valerie had essentially come to deliver that message.

The problem was bigger than he had thought.

‘Thank goodness Brisa handled it well….’

The first sprouts had emerged yesterday. According to this morning’s report, they had grown remarkably in just one day.

‘Just what are those siblings….’

Brisa would explain, and Alpheus would do the labor. Then they would produce amazing results.

Now no one was criticizing Sears. Instead, praise was spreading that the House of Sears had solved the problem.

If they could successfully harvest herbs and leafy vegetables through hydroponic cultivation, they planned to plant summer wheat in the existing herb and leafy vegetable fields.

“Couldn’t we grow summer wheat using hydroponic cultivation as well?”

“Wheat is a difficult crop to grow hydroponically.”

“But I heard wheat doesn’t grow well in herb fields anyway.”

“I can solve that problem.”

At first, growing wheat in herb fields had sounded like nonsense.

But since they had managed to grow plants in water, it seemed like they could certainly solve that problem too. Even the farmers who had been skeptical were now trusting Brisa.

‘The new Marquis Sears probably knows nothing about the Imperial Family’s conflicts….’

He had simply helped because they had fought together. He probably never thought he would face scrutiny from the Crown Prince.

Originally, he had planned to take revenge on the Eastern Region. He had absolutely no intention of letting it slide. Even if they played dumb, he had intended to confront them aggressively.

But if he did that, it might only fuel the Crown Prince’s wariness.

In that case, the House of Sears might suffer even greater damage. Just as Valerie had warned.

‘Hah….’

Of course, he didn’t want to abandon Sears just to appease the Imperial Family. That would be wrong from the start.

‘Xavier… you think so too, don’t you?’

Hilberry quietly called out his deceased son’s name in his heart.

“I want to marry the person I love, Father. I want Ella, not the Imperial Princess.”

To his son’s request, Hilberry had said this.

“This father is not so incompetent as to force his son into marriage.”

And so Xavier married Ella.

Not long after, Leopold was born as well. Dreamlike happy times continued.

Then 9 years ago, Xavier went out personally as usual to face a monster wave with his special ability 【Air Strike】.

His daughter-in-law Ella remained at the Grand Duke’s Residence to care for her young son Leopold. However, Xavier suddenly went missing one day.

Eventually, Ella went out herself, saying she would find Xavier.

“Father, there’s a secret cave in that area that we used to visit together when we were young. I’ll go check there once. I’m wondering if he might be hiding there.”

That location was difficult to explain in words or writing, so Ella said she had to go there herself.

Hilberry sent a knight order with Ella. Since Ella was also skilled in combat, he wasn’t too worried.

That was the last of his daughter-in-law.

They too went missing, and Hilberry eventually moved personally. He began tracking the cave that Ella had described, though not precisely.

Indeed, it was difficult to find and he wandered for several days.

Only after much hardship did he discover the entrance to the cave. There lay the corpses of the knight order and his son and daughter-in-law.

But the bodies of the knight order and daughter-in-law bore the claw marks of a large beast.

He found one knight who was barely conscious.

That knight spoke to Hilberry in a pained whisper. Even in that moment, he was maintaining his will that this must not be revealed to others.

“There was… a huge… a huge wolf… Actually, I don’t know if it should be called a wolf… it was really, so, so enormous, and that wolf… with incredible strength… killed us… all…”

That knight was also nearly breathing his last.

“We shot… poison arrows at the wolf… and as that wolf… died… it transformed into Young Duke…”

It was unbelievable.

“Young Duke… discovered Lady Ella who had lost her life to his own claws and howled in grief before passing away…”

The knight departed this world with those final words.

Hilberry gasped for breath.

When he counted, the entire knight order was dead. And Xavier’s naked body was covered with traces of poison arrow wounds.

After holding their funeral.

Hilberry revealed that secret to no one.

And he searched through all the ancient texts.

In his search, he learned about an ancient curse. A curse that caused humans to lose their reason and transform into monsters existed in the four families of the cardinal directions.

As time passed, the four families of the cardinal directions united with the House of Sears from the Central Region to form the First Five Families.

The First Five Families established the Imperial Family and founded a great nation, which was the beginning of the Empire.

‘No way. No way…’

Hilberry couldn’t believe that curse had suddenly manifested.

Nevertheless, anxious about this, he had Leopold engaged at a young age. However, when Leopold was ten years old, the boy transformed into a young wolf…

That young wolf shattered Hilberry’s prosthetic leg to pieces.

Fortunately, he transformed when only the two of them were present, so no one else could discover it.

Hilberry bound the young wolf’s limbs and hid him under the bed.

Ten days later, when Leopold became human again, he remembered exactly the time he had spent as a wolf.

“If it hadn’t been the prosthetic leg… but the other leg instead, what would have happened…”

“It wasn’t your will, was it?”

“At that time it wasn’t my will, but when I come to my senses, I remember everything.”

From that day on, Leopold built a prison for himself in the garden. And he locked himself inside it. Hilberry couldn’t stop him.

When the appointed date came, Leopold would enter the warehouse-like prison by himself.

The door handle was positioned high so that once he transformed into a young wolf, he could never get out again.

Leopold would remain trapped inside for ten days, then open the door and come out after becoming human again.

Unrecognizably gaunt, and even darker than before.

‘Yes. Since he says he remembers everything… the pain of being trapped in there must be vivid.’

Thinking of Leopold trapped in that place made his heart break.

But he couldn’t forget the expression on the boy’s face as he looked at his broken prosthetic leg, so he left things as they were.

If Leopold were to harm someone while transformed into a monster…

Then Leopold would never be able to forgive himself.

Leopold didn’t give the key to that prison wall even to himself.

“I don’t need water or food. I’m… more afraid of eating such things and gaining strength. It’s better to just remain in an exhausted state.”

Hilberry accepted his sincerity. Even so, it was heartbreaking.

His grandson would be trapped there, unable to get even a bit of sunlight or drink a single sip of water, and that broke his heart…

“Grand Duke!”

It was then. The adjutant entered with a knock.

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