They Say an Age Gap Like This Doesn’t Even Need Matching - Chapter 88

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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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I gazed indifferently at the corpses of traitors hanging from the castle wall.
One of them was Marquis Morak.
When we discovered Marquis Morak, he was traveling through the Thirteen Noble Houses with his knights, seizing assets under the pretext of collecting wills.
When I told him to write his will fairly, just like the other nobles, Marquis Morak’s expression grew uneasy.
Yet confident he would survive, he obediently wrote his will.
After that, there was nothing remarkable.
I simply arrested him for instigating murder while breaking the rules and evading justice himself, then locked him in prison.
I never expected the families of the thirteen nobles imprisoned in the same cell to beat him so brutally…
‘As if I couldn’t have predicted it.’
I had already imagined countless times what expressions they would wear and how they would seek their revenge.
I had envisioned it many times in my mind beforehand.
Still, we showed the wretch one final mercy.
Wouldn’t it be terribly unjust to fall into Hell without understanding why one died?
[This… this isn’t right, is it?]
Marquis Morak looked up at me with trembling eyes.
[This isn’t what you promised.]
I tilted my head slightly.
[A promise?]
[You said you would spare my life…]
[I did spare it.]
I replied calmly.
[Until now.]
[Wasn’t it fun?]
Raern, standing beside me, removed his mask and broke into a wide smile.
[We kept our promise, didn’t we?]
I had clearly warned him that next time would be far more entertaining, so why hadn’t he anticipated it?
Tsk.
The reaction Marquis Morak showed then was remarkable.
‘A dying man thrashing about like a freshly caught fish.’
It was truly magnificent.
In any case, he too breathed his last under the righteous stone-throwing of the fiefdom’s people, and hung on the castle wall alongside his fellow traitors.
Thus, the wealth of fourteen nobles became entirely the property of Count Brin.
It was only natural, since Count Brin was the sole survivor.
Everything they had stolen returned to its rightful place as if nothing had happened.
The only difference was that now it would never be taken again.
“Commander, you truly seem to have a remarkable spirit of frugality.”
Kei, who was viewing the castle wall with me, spoke.
“You think so?”
“Yes. As someone who deals in information, I find your approach of using only the necessary resources quite admirable.”
Of all the Emperor’s documents containing countless pieces of information, I had used only one—Duke Rovert’s ledger of secrets—this time.
Marquis Morak was going around claiming that I was his backer, so I exchanged letters with him to verify if it was true.
“Thank you for the praise.”
I added with a smile.
“I’m not accustomed to wasteful spending.”
To think I’d be praised by the legend of the Information Guild today.
Quite satisfying.
Count Brin’s reaction, which I’d expected to mirror Raern’s joy, differed slightly from my anticipation.
A corpse hanging from the castle wall.
And the fief residents gathered beneath it.
Their faces, delighted by the vengeance they had achieved, bore the grimy traces of tears.
The count, who had witnessed all of this with his own eyes, remained silent for a long time.
“….”
His mouth opened and closed several times without producing words.
Each time he tried to speak, his throat seemed to constrict, and no sound emerged.
The fief residents offered him words of comfort.
“You’ve endured so much, Count!”
“Only good things await you now!”
“Stay strong!”
The count lowered his head and barely managed to respond.
“Thank you, all of you.”
On the way back to the Lord’s Castle.
“It ended so easily… didn’t it.”
I looked at the count, hearing the hollow, lifeless voice that escaped him.
“No.”
I denied his words.
“This is just the beginning.”
His pupils wavered.
They were the eyes of someone who understood something.
And simultaneously, the eyes of someone who had not yet fully grasped it.
“You still have work to do.”
I continued calmly.
“You must protect what you’ve reclaimed.”
At those words, Count Brin’s shoulders trembled slightly.
“Will I… be able to bear it.”
That question was not directed at me.
It was closer to words he cast upon himself.
A person who had once lost everything while trying to uphold his convictions could not feign ignorance of fear.
A family barely surviving on one meal a day.
Fief residents whose faces bore the resignation of hunger and exhaustion.
Witnessing that tragedy, Count Brin must have crumbled day after day.
Can I truly say there were never days when I doubted whether the convictions I fought to protect held any meaning?
I passed by the count’s side and spoke.
“If you can’t handle it, it will be taken from you again.”
It may have been a cruel thing to say.
Yet precisely because of that, it was clearer.
The count’s hand slowly fell from his face.
His gaze, which had remained fixed on the ground, gradually rose.
His hunched shoulders straightened, and light returned to his eyes.
Now his pupils no longer wavered.
“I will not let it be taken from me a second time. I will protect it with my life.”
Elhart, who had been watching his transformation, opened his mouth quietly.
“That is sufficient.”
The count lifted his head.
Elhart looked down at him directly.
“A person who knows fear yet endures is always stronger than one who knows no fear.”
His low, steady voice carried absolute conviction.
It was not baseless comfort, but an assertion that only one who had experienced it firsthand could make.
Count Brin’s eyes grew red at the rims.
“I will remember this, Your Majesty.”
He bowed deeply.
I watched him for a moment, then turned my gaze away.
‘This much will do.’
The corners of my mouth lifted slightly.
‘It will be enough as a beginning.’
Now it was time to set the next objective.
But first, I needed to establish my place within House Brin.
***
The people of House Brin possessed an uncanny ability to read the room.
“We’ve prepared a room for the lady on this side.”
“The lady?”
I repeated the question, and the servant nodded as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Yes, the young master’s wife, of course.”
“Right.”
Elhart accepted it without the slightest hesitation, as if it were obvious.
I stared at him in disbelief as he responded so casually.
The news had already spread—every time we passed through the corridors, eyes followed us.
“My, you two look absolutely perfect together.”
“There’s no need to be shy.”
“You should hold hands while you walk.”
“….”
“….”
I turned my head to look at Elhart.
Warmth seeped into my palm.
The naturalness of it only made me more flustered.
“We should practice. This is the real thing now.”
“You don’t need to practice something as simple as holding hands.”
I muttered quietly, but it was already too late.
“Oh my, oh my!”
“See? Didn’t I tell you? He said it was simple!”
Cheers erupted from those around us.
This might turn out to be more troublesome than I thought.
“Well then….”
The Eldest Daughter-in-law of House Brin appeared from somewhere, her eyes sparkling.
“You should go on a date!”
“A date?”
So they wanted us to wander around outside together?
Without any particular purpose?
“That’s a good idea.”
Elhart nodded readily.
“Why are you being so enthusiastic about this?”
“We need to do it perfectly. We should learn what we don’t know and gain as much experience as possible.”
It was a reasonable explanation.
The problem was, he was doing far too well at it.
I sighed and nodded.
“Fine, let’s give it a try.”
This thing called a date.
“Well then, allow me to plan the itinerary for you.”
Her suggestion, coming from a child of five, carried a strangely compelling weight.
I made every effort to accommodate all of her opinions.
“Boating on the lake, strolling through the park, visiting a dessert café….”
As I wrote down each suggestion, people began gathering one by one.
“Attending a concert or poetry recitation together would also be lovely.”
“What about experiencing a haunted house? Your love will surely blossom with excitement!”
As I continued jotting down recommended activities, the paper was soon filled to capacity.
How could I possibly accomplish all of this in a single day?
…No, perhaps the mistake was thinking we could finish everything in one day from the start.

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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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