* * *

“…But he’s still a noble, isn’t he? Killing him… wouldn’t that make him an Apostle? If we kill an Apostle recklessly, things will get complicated. The young lord’s crimes are certain, but if an Apostle is wrongly executed, heretics will rise. They may have disappeared decades ago, but no one knows when they might reappear…”

One of the elders, who had just been calling for Vivisian’s execution moments ago, murmured, his face pale.

He had only said it absentmindedly in an attempt to counter Haen’s words, but the Haen before him was dead serious.

The idea of killing an Apostle so carelessly was beyond imagination.

Haen turned his gaze to the elder who had just said something so foolish, looking at him with sheer disdain.

“Ah… Baron Nabidin, it was you. We’re not killing a noble or an Apostle. Now that a legitimate heir has been found, we’re simply executing an ‘uncontrollable criminal.’”

It was the same thing.

The criminal, the Apostle, the noble—Vivisian was all of them.

But with no proper Duke in place, and Haen being the one with the most authority and loyalty from others, there was no one who could refute him.

Besides, perhaps, deep down, all the elders wished that the ticking time bomb of a young lord would just disappear.

Meanwhile, outside the meeting room, Vivisian, who had been standing still in the hallway, listening to his own death sentence, let out a small laugh.

Asis, standing nearby, looked at him in confusion.

“Young lord? Why are you laughing all of a sudden? Did something good happen?”

“No. No, not at all. It’s not a good thing… It’s just that I heard something amusing.”

Vivisian, now sitting comfortably in his wheelchair, kept laughing on and off for a long time.

The passing servants who caught glimpses of his laughter all thought he seemed cheerful.

But Asis, who was standing closest to him, couldn’t shake the feeling that he seemed… just a little angry.

✽ ✽ ✽

I sat quietly by the window at the end of the hallway.

Sitting in a wheelchair, gazing out, felt strange.

The garden outside was dense with vibrant summer blooms.

As I blankly stared at the sea of blue flowers, the door to the conference room opened.

The people who had been raising their voices in discussion hesitated when they saw me, their footsteps becoming cautious as they passed.

I had no expectations of greetings or conversation.

I had long decided not to concern myself with what went on behind my back.

I lightly tapped my fingers on my lap, covered by a blanket, humming a lullaby.

The sound of familiar footsteps drew closer, and I felt Asis, who had been standing nearby, step back.

On a hunch, I turned my head—Haen was standing beside me.

“What were you looking at?”

His voice was surprisingly calm, as if he had left all his resentment and anger in the conference room.

The very person who had declared he would kill me the moment I stepped out of line now wore a gentle face.

I looked up at him in his perfectly fitted black uniform and shrugged.

“Just… the flower garden?”

“Hm, do you like it? I suppose we should reward the gardener who created a garden that pleases the young lord.”

He spoke as if I were some great figure who had to be kept happy at all costs.

It was amusing. I chuckled softly and rolled my wheelchair forward, waving off Haen’s offer to push me.

I headed straight to my room, Haen beside me, and Asis following behind.

Along the way, I encountered a few servants.

There were more unfamiliar faces than familiar ones.

Perhaps because most of them had only heard about my “sins” rather than witnessing them firsthand, their gazes carried more curiosity and mild disgust than fear.

I had neither the time nor the patience to acknowledge each one, so I ignored them all.

“Aren’t you curious about how the discussion ended?”

“I already know how it ended. Besides, I could hear everything from out here.”

“…You heard everything?”

A slightly surprised question came back.

Well, given what he had said, he had no choice but to be wary.

But I wasn’t particularly bothered, so I simply nodded nonchalantly.

“I heard it all, loud and clear.”

“…I see.”

Haen murmured, his voice tinged with contemplation.

I had no idea what he was thinking. His slow steps came to a halt.

Instead of stopping with him, I headed toward the guest room I had been using.

When I had put some distance between us, his voice called out from behind me.

“Hmm. Right. That’s right. I heard they cleared out your room. Do you want to go check it out?”

His voice was gentle, as if his earlier words about killing me had been nothing more than my own delusion.

That contrast struck me as a little amusing, and I let out a quiet chuckle before replying, “Sure.”

Haen took the lead, walking down the corridor. I followed behind, taking in my surroundings.

I wasn’t sure if the interior had changed or if it simply felt unfamiliar because I hadn’t been here in a while, but the hallway had an oddly foreign air to it.

As I scanned the unfamiliar space, we soon arrived at the door of my old room.

I didn’t enter right away.

Instead, I stood still in front of the large door—far grander than any guest room.

Peering through the open gap, I could see that the room was disturbingly identical to how I remembered it.

Sensing his curious gaze on me, I remained still, letting my eyes roam the room.

The bed, the furniture, the bookshelf… even the books on the desk.

It was exactly the same as before I was sent to prison.

“Did you decorate it yourself?”

Haen, who had been watching me with a puzzled expression, nodded at my slow, deliberate question.

“Yeah. I figured it’d be easier for you to adjust if it looked the same. You don’t like it?”

Seeing everything just as it had been before I was thrown out—there was no way I could find that comforting or welcoming. It was nothing but unpleasant.

What an interesting way to show consideration.

With that thought, I let the smirk that had twisted my lips fade into a sigh.

“Well… I’ll change the interior.”

“Do as you like.”

“And I have something to discuss. Do you have time? It won’t take long.”

“If it’s quick.”

“Good. Asis, leave us.”

Pleased with his prompt response, I smiled and gestured for Asis to leave.

The moment he stepped out and shut the door behind him, the room felt unnecessarily vast.

“Tell me how you plan to use me from now on. If you keep acting on your own without telling me, like in the meeting today, it’s going to be a problem.”

I casually brought it up while surveying the room.

Haen tilted his head slightly.

“I told you I’d pay you when all of this is over. I never said I’d share information. What if you betray me after I do? Why would I tell you my plans?”

“…We’re in the same boat. Do you really want to act this uncooperative?”

“What? Ahaha! Vivi, my friend. You’ve gotten so naive after rotting in prison, haven’t you? I guess after eight whole years in that gloomy place, even you couldn’t help but soften up…. Listen carefully, Vivi. You took my hand because you wanted something, and I took yours because I wanted something. It’s a deal, not a partnership. We’re not in the same boat—I can let go anytime. And so can you.”

His curved eyes gleamed with quiet clarity, silently saying, ‘I can discard you whenever I want.’

Finding that expression distasteful, I stared at him, unimpressed. Haen simply shrugged.

“We should end the conversation here. I’ll send the duke’s seal through Asis—take good care of it. We’ll start work tomorrow… but the elders handle most of the approvals, so there won’t be much for you to do. Well then, I’ll be counting on you until we find the branch family, Vivi.”

With a gaze as cold as ice, he left me with a warm-sounding farewell and walked out.

Left alone in the center of the room, I blinked before bursting into laughter.

“Yeah, you’re right. You can abandon me… and I can abandon you.”

I can abandon you too.

I repeated those words to myself with a faint smile.

✽ ✽ ✽

I became the temporary duke in complete silence.

Of course, the fact that I took the position quietly and the fact that it was officially announced were two entirely different matters.

The moment the news spread, the entire domain erupted into chaos.

Fortunately, Haen must have pulled some strings because the uproar died down fairly quickly.

And so, a week passed since I was hastily installed as the interim duke.

To be honest, it still didn’t feel real.

Every day was so leisurely that I could hardly believe my own status.

The more work you do, the more power you gain.

The elders had no intention of giving me too much authority.

In other words… anyone looking from the outside would be shocked at how little work I actually had.

I had barely any tasks. Just sitting at my desk for thirty minutes was enough to finish everything I had to do for the day.

‘Even my childhood homework was more than this…’

With a laugh somewhere between disbelief and exasperation, I flipped through the remaining documents.

Seeing there weren’t many left, I picked up the pace.

After quickly reviewing and signing the last ones, I realized it was already lunchtime.

Stretching, I got up from my desk.

Asis, who had been organizing documents near the door, immediately lifted his head.

“You’re done already?”

“There wasn’t much.”

“…There was a lot, though.”

“Huh? Didn’t seem like much to me. Did something get lost in the middle?”

Yawning, I muttered absentmindedly, assuming Asis would handle it if anything was missing.

Lazily, I walked over to the sofa and sprawled out.

“If you’re skipping lunch, you should just go to your bedroom.”

“Haen told me not to stay in the bedroom all morning.”

“You finished work, though. Should be fine now, right?”

“Exactly. I’m done with work, so why does he keep insisting I stay in the study? If he wants me to work, he should at least give me something to do.”

“What a nag.”

I grumbled, throwing an arm over my eyes.

At my complaint, Asis suddenly burst out laughing.

He laughed so hard it took him a while to calm down.

Lowering my arm, I glanced at him.

His face was flushed, looking exactly like someone who had just laughed their heart out.

“…By the way, Asis. I’ve been meaning to ask. Why did you choose to work as my attendant?”

“Huh? Oh… I needed to make money.”

It wasn’t the answer I had been expecting, but technically, it wasn’t wrong either.

With a hum, I rubbed my chin.

“That’s true… You need a job to make money.”

Nodding to myself, I mumbled, and Asis let out an awkward chuckle.

I watched his utterly ordinary face for a moment before crossing my arms.

His composed expression made it clear—he had no intention of revealing whatever secret he was keeping.

Well, I couldn’t blame him.

That wasn’t something he could just blurt out.

Even I wouldn’t have imagined it… if I hadn’t known the original story.

* * *