The Duke had no intention of telling the Cardinal what had happened. What he had been doing with the Chimera was forbidden by law since the temple did not like creating life in a way that went against nature.
If he was caught, the temple would cause an uproar and try to get him to give up all his rights as the Duke. It would also put a spell on him that would bind his power and other things. The Duke refused to fall into such a trap.
"Hmm, you are mistaken. The person I was talking about was like 'a son' to me, so I called him my son. I was also thinking of adopting that kid as my successor, so that is where the misunderstanding erupted.
I apologize if my words made you question my intentions for my kid. But I was unaware that the temple liked to interfere in such matters."
The Duke asked and probed at the same time.
