My Sweet Deceiver

Chapter 43

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After locking Fabrice safely in her bedroom, Giselle returned to her office. She then examined the credibility of his testimony.

“Anghel.”

A man called Anghel showed his face in the dark.

He was a man with dark skin and a large build. His thick arms were full of geometric tattoos.

He had a skin colour and physique that was not common in Valloise, so it can be noticed at a glance that he was from another country.

Anghel, originally from the Haj, was a sl*ve.

He couldn’t stand his master’s beating, so he got on a boat and fled to another country.

The place where he floated to was Valloise. Anghel, a sl*ve, met Giselle when he tried to steal her bag. Normally, anyone would have called the police.

Giselle, a fickle young girl, had changed her heart and got Anghel. Since then, Anghel had Giselle as his master. Of course, he was not an aide in her social life, but a helper in such dark work.

“Yes, Miss.”

“Do you think the Marquis of Ingeliger spread rumours about the Second Prince?”

“There is a possibility, but when the scandal broke out, the Marquis was absent due to an armistice agreement. It is believed that a third person intervened.”

“A third person?”

Anghel said with a smile.

“He must have a reason to drop the Second Prince.”

“Oh. So, what about the First Prince?”

Giselle was listening to Anghel with interest.

“If he wanted to do it, there was no way he couldn’t do it, but there is little chance that he did the backstabbing because of his perceived tendency.”

“Then who do you think it would be, Anghel?”

Anghel said flatly.

“First Princess. She’s the most likely one for now.”

“If it’s the First Princess… Isn’t she timid? She doesn’t show her face well except at official events. I, too, have been in the social world for several years, but there were only a few times that I have seen the face of the First Princess.”

Giselle asked Anghel back when an unexpected person was mentioned.

“Of course, she is. On the surface. However, more than four people have been identified as members of a private intelligence group run by the First Princess. They’re all big names. We found out that the last import of Enland’s cobalt stone was also carried out with the design and planning of the First Princess.”

“Oh, my.”

Giselle added to Anghel, as if asking to keep talking.

Anghel continued.

“A recent epidemic in Enland had cut cassava yields in half compared to the previous year. Then the King of Enland was thinking about importing cassava from abroad. At that time, the First Princess exchanged the special grade cobalt stone in Enland with cassava, which is not used for food in Valloise.”

When Anghel finished speaking, Giselle laughed aloud.

“This is going to be fun.”

“She is evaluated as a difficult person, Miss,” said Anghel in a low voice.

“Anghel, don’t worry. You know my personality.”

“…”

“Whether she becomes the queen or I become the queen, one of the two will have to die to end the game.”

“…”

Anghel did not answer. 

The silence was also an answer.

“But why is Anghel saying this now?”

As Giselle smiled and looked at him, Anghel hurriedly knelt and answered in a loud voice.

After the sound of kneeling, the ground vibrated.

“Sorry, it took me a while to find it because there were no traces at all. I continued the investigation and only recently came across the full picture. I had no intention of deceiving you.”

“Keep your voice down.”

“I’m sorry, Miss. Please forgive me.”

Anghel begged as he knelt on his knees and hit his head on the floor.

When his head hit the marble floor hard, there was a crack sound like the breaking of walnut shells.

Even so, Giselle sat silently for a few minutes, and Anghel pressed his palms to the floor and remained motionless.

Giselle asked Anghel in a low voice.

“So, did she take the Prince out of the safe house last time?”

“It is expected that the person from the royal family did it.”

She thought she had kept Fabrice safe, but when he disappeared, Giselle tried to find out who did it.

However, she couldn’t catch the tail easily, perhaps because the investigation was slow or because the skill of the person who took out Fabrice was exceptional.

However, Anghel finally found out who took “her” Fabrice.

“Ha ha.”

Giselle smiled contentedly.

“Wake up, Anghel. Who would think that I was tormenting you, huh?”

“Thank you, Miss. Thank you.”

Anghel’s forehead, standing up, was bleeding.

“Oh, my. Your forehead is hurt. I’ll treat you.”

Giselle said with a refreshing smile.

“No, Miss! This wound is nothing.”

“You’re brave. Anghel, don’t make mistakes next time, okay?

“Thank you for your kindness.”

“Yes. So? Then go out and get good results.”

Giselle clapped her hands with a happy face. 

Anghel went out with a stiff face.

***

Mathieu Briem thought in the dark.

The final day was the next eve. 

There was still a week or so left. 

He scrutinized his plans so far.

He didn’t want to do this.

‘Maybe it’s because I’m getting older and more sensitive?’

He struggled to ignore the slightest bit of conscience he had left piercing him.

From his mother, to her son. 

The First prince.

He rationalized that this event was only a small stream in the great history of Fabrice’s succession to the throne.

He was going to send the First Prince in the easiest, fastest, and surest way.

Rebellion.

What a sweet thing to say.

Mathieu pulled out a small picture from the drawer of his desk. It was a picture of Marianne taken at her coming-of-age ceremony. 

His young-looking daughter’s face was now blurred.

‘My lovely daughter. My one and only daughter.’

‘If you were alive, you would have started to have grey hair by now.’

‘Would there be wrinkles around your eyes?’

‘My daughter, who will never be seen again.’

Mathieu stroked Marianne’s smiling face.

‘When can I die and go to see you?’

Mathieu rubbed his darkened eyes.

Tears did not come out.

It had been ten years since his daughter died. Still, whenever he thought of Marianne, it was inevitable that he would become emotional.

‘Daughter, I will make your wish come true. I must make sure that your son succeeds to the throne.’

Mathieu gave a wild smile in the dark. He got up from his seat and went to the bedroom.

His wife, Anne, was lying in bed and reading something, so she hadn’t slept yet.

“It’s late at night. What are you doing?”

Mathieu asked, taking off his robe.

The Duchess, Anne, answered, hiding the book she was reading. She was startled, and Mathieu questioned how she responded.

“… It’s nothing. Hurry up and go to bed.”

And what was that dubious answer?

Mathieu glanced at the book Anne was reading.

It was a fairly thick book with an old-looking leather cover, with nothing written on it.

Mathieu, skeptical of her actions, looked at her with suspicion.

“You didn’t get anything weird from somewhere, did you?”

“What do you mean by weird! It’s just a book.”

To Anne, who was furious, Mathieu said as if asking.

“You’ve had something suspicious things once or twice.”

“What are you saying?”

Anne retorted in a small voice.

“A few years ago, didn’t you bring a wandering wizard and make a fuss about divination or summoning?”

“Why are you bringing up what happened a few years ago now…?”

Anne’s voice crawled away.

“And it was because I missed my Marianne so much…”

Anne, the frail Duchess, finally began to whimper.

“I wanted to see my daughter, Marianne, so what should I do?”

Mathieu soothed the Duchess with a troubled face.

It was not that he was ignorant of Anne’s desire to see her daughter. Rather, he felt sorry.

However, it was impossible to set up an altar while chanting spells in Valloise, where the punishment for pagans was severe.

“Stop crying.”

“I miss Marianne…”

Mathieu patted Anne. At the same time, he retraced his memory.

Even a few years ago, Mathieu Briem remembered vividly. How hard it was to deal with the strange things and the wizard that was in the mansion at that time.

All the goods were burned down, and the wizard was driven out of the gate.

Fortunately, he had noticed before she was turned into a heretic.

He firmly joined the group and spent a while looking at the temple.

Who wouldn’t have reported them as pagans?

Oh, how anxious he was.

After barely stopping crying, Anne blew her nose, and Mathieu soothed her and said, “If you’re driven to paganism, you’ll be in trouble, so take it easy.”

Mathieu replied, and turned back to his usual self.

Anne replied in a disquieting tone.

“…Yes, I will. Go to sleep.”

Mathieu soon fell asleep. Anne, who waited until he fell asleep, took out the hidden book again and read it with concentration.

The book was a scripture handed down in the ‘Mother of the Earth’ school that Fantine had given Anne.

The Duchess was already absorbed in the Haj religion. It was thanks to her that she experienced several miracles.

She had a splitting headache, but when she prayed as Fantine recommended, she felt better, and she almost fell and hurt herself in the mansion, but she was able to avoid the accident by predicting it in advance.

Anne, the Duchess, had been unusually interested in religions other than Nateism. On several occasions, Mathieu was almost in trouble because of this. It wasn’t because he was in power, but she would have already been driven into a heretic if it wasn’t for him.

Anne, who confirmed that Mathieu was snoring and sleeping deeply, sneaked out of the bedroom. Then she went to a small room that was used as a warehouse.

The room was where Anne set up an altar on Fantine’s advice. Of course, from Fantine’s point of view, it was to leave clear evidence of the Duchess’ pagan worship.

Anne went to the room, stroked the mother’s wooden statue, and prayed.

Not knowing what was happening inside the house, Mathieu Briem was only trying to put Fabrice on the throne.

(To be continued in the next episode)

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