"I don't care," she responded without hesitation. "If it's for the better of Young Highness, then I'll gladly give my life for his sake."
Regulus was dumbfounded.
It doesn't seem like she wasn't saying anything false at all.
After all, the girl wouldn't act in a hypocritical manner.
If she said so, then there was no lie mixed within.
This girl was just being genuine.
He couldn't help but cast pity on her.
Such a personality wouldn't last long in this cruel reality.
Even he wouldn't deny that he lied numerous times just to wake up to this day.
However, for Sophie?
If only he could urge her to change that personality immediately, he would have long ago, but he knew how difficult it would be to accomplish.
It was like telling a snake to transform into a dragon quickly.
Hence, what he could only do was place his hope on his son.
He knew that for Sophie to survive, she needed someone to rely on, and she had long given her life to Luke.
'Luke, that brat… I hope he won't just use her as a disposable tool. Sophie's way more valuable to be treated as such. Even more so in his future lover.'
If only Sophie could be Luke's lover. But it doesn't seem to be the case since Luke acted uninterested in her.
Or, perhaps Luke was only not into romance at all.
He hadn't shown any interest in any girls yet, given how he met many young maidens in the Empire's gathering.
'Ah! How could I forget? He's into theory!'
He couldn't help but giggle.
After all, the time that Luke would only act excited was when his thesis had finally been completed.
Clank!
Regulus was awakened from his stupor by the noise of glass hitting each other.
He gazed in the direction of the noise and saw that Sophie was having a difficult time attempting to extract the flesh part of the meat, having been squeezed from the bones by each side.
She didn't even notice that her actions caused a disturbance to him.
She was such an innocent and genuine girl.
However, she was too gullible.
He could only shake his head, feeling helpless.
"All right. But I don't think that Luke, my son, would neglect you. The artifacts I provided are more than sufficient to protect both of you. Still, the decision is up to him."
"The decision is up to him." Sophie nodded and quickly focused on eating.
Regulu's laughed for a while before eating, too.
He also had an appointment after breakfast, such as meeting with his cousin's concubine.
They were also another headache in the house, even more so in their sons, aiming for the throne.
As if he would let them anyway.
Regardless, as much as he wanted them away from the castle, he couldn't do so after he promised his cousin to take care of them.
After all, he couldn't just let his death be in vain, right?
He fought heroically and died gloriously.
He couldn't just let his wife and sons tarnish his reputation.
If such a future would arrive, then his cousin should have blamed his casanova nature, not him.
***
The Archduke's castle spans wide, as it could be compared to billions of dollars of villa castles in the modern world.
It could even be called a mini-city due to how outrageously massive it is.
Of course, aside from the castle, the size of his territory spans even outside of his kingdom.
It wasn't even an exaggeration to claim that Regulus owned a country!
And since there were hundreds of nobles in the Empire, which means there should also be hundreds of countries in the world, it just showed how massive the world was.
After all, it wasn't only the Humans who resided in the world, as they only took up, at most, one-fourth or so.
The others were divided by the Elves, Dwarves, and Dark Forces.
Hence, even if Alexander the Great reincarnated here and would go on a mission to conquer the world… it would be impossible.
Unless he was ready to become a God!
Nevertheless, it was only a wonder.
In another chamber, which in contrast to Luke's, had been illuminated by an enormous luxurious chandelier above accompanied by the sunlight permeating the window double the size of Luke's, there were three people facing each other, sitting on different luxury sofas.
In front of them was a rectangular glass table reflecting different painted artistic scenes, from war to romance.
Atop it was a sumptuous teapot, possibly carrying an expensive, rich wine worth ten glasses of tea cup.
Currently, it has been reduced to half, while the three cups were also just emptied after they sipped alongside their conversation.
Suddenly, a handsome young man with fierce, striking crimson eyebrows shot a glance at the person wearing black all over, maintaining the mysteriousness, as he calmly grabbed the teapot handle and poured his empty cup, not minding the glare of the young man.
When his cup was halfway on the contents, the young man finally opened his mouth and asked while distracted by the gas coming out of the heat from the tea.
"Are you confident in assassinating him? I have already provided you with enough information, even the well-known defensive artifacts he possessed."
The mysterious individual elegantly returned the teapot as he took hold of his cup handle and took a sip.
Not once his face was seen despite the blinding light inside the chamber.
It was as if the light couldn't penetrate the shadow provided by his hood.
"Well, I wouldn't be here discussing the terms and agreements if I'm not confident," he said softly in a manly, ambiguous tone.
The young man heaved a sigh of relief.
He was drowned by skepticism and anxiousness, so he couldn't help but impulsively ask the mysterious individual in front of him.
Of course, he had the right to question him since he was his employer, and knowing the updates regarding the job he had given to him was only valid.
Meanwhile, the other individual had the same appearance as him, albeit he wore a mild countenance and a gentle facial structure.
His simple movement alone, motioning towards the teapot to fill his also emptied tea cup, was so eye-catching that he quickly grabbed their attention.
He was aware of this, so he didn't mind as he smiled and said, "Brandon, you should be relaxed. Even if the mission fails, there's no need to worry.
We can just attempt again and again."
"But!"
Brandon couldn't bring himself to show any disrespect to his brother, so he quickly adjusted.
This time, he lowered his tone and asked, "What if Father will find out?"
"It's Uncle, Second Brother." He shook his head and replied, "And what if he finds out? I'm pretty sure that he already has an idea of two since he is a Warlock.
Do you know what differentiates the Warlock from a High-Rank Mage?
They could cast Domain-Level Spells, so they could passively spread their domain.
Hence, nothing can escape Uncle's eyes."
Hearing that, Brandon was agitated.
With a shivering body, he asked with crimson eyes filled with terror, "What should we do, Wilfrid?"
"Continue."
He smiled.
However, a while later, he sent a cold glare to his brother.
"And don't call me by my name."
.
.
.
A/N: As an author without a proofreader or an editor, when I read back to my previous chapters, I noticed I still made a mistake. It was inevitable, as editing and proofreading was just too exhausting for a lazy and busy person like me. Hence, I'm requesting and disturbing you all to please, if you can, point out those mistakes and I will fix it. It might not be an instant, but I will really fix my mistakes.
Thank you for understanding and reading!