Chapter 225

Chapter 225

Her elegant handwriting adorned the name on the paper. Lucius unfolded every letter, reading each one meticulously. The contents mostly revolved around the upcoming trial, filled with factual, emotionless details reminiscent of a report.

In the end, there was talk about the importance of the judge handling the trial. A short order to investigate him further. A suggestion to exclude some witnesses whose testimonies seemed dubious. A mention of preparing for any cunning tactics the Duke might employ, based on warnings from a previous trial he won using unexpected methods. And ultimately, emphasizing the significance of implicating the Duke in the trial. A plea to prepare Elena Anis’s testimony thoroughly.

Lucius raced through all of it at a swift pace. However, nowhere did he find what he was seeking.

Certainly, there were useful insights, especially regarding the potential strategies the Duke might employ during the trial, including unexpected stories Lucius hadn’t anticipated.

Yet, the information he desired was nowhere to be found.

[How has Lucius been since then? I worry about him.]

Words like these, or anything similar, were conspicuously absent.

Only after reading through everything did Lucius realize that what he sought was not present in this manner. Standing there, staring at the letters in a daze, he noticed an unusually dirty piece of paper. It seemed stained with water, covered in dust and ink blotches.

[I confirmed that the man who married Bella Anise and supposedly injured his leg is not Chris Fenry but Connor Fenry. As Connor Fenry was unmarried, the marriage is legally valid. I just met Elena Anise,who confessed that the Duke knew she was a fake. I will quickly take Elena Anise to a place beyond the Duke’s reach. Sending this letter and heading towards the Duke’s mansion.]

“Will proceed to the Duke’s mansion.”

Those words echoed deep into his soul.

If that was the case, then this letter must have been sent before she headed to the Duke’s mansion. Lucius couldn’t be unaware of what Deatrice did before she set out for the Duke’s mansion. That night when she heard the Emperor’s revelation, the night she cast him aside like a madman clinging desperately. Even then, Deatrice knew all these facts.

After pushing him away, she fled the palace as if running away and went to Elena Anis’s house to hear her testimony, then wrote a letter to Tom. Later, she must have gone to the Duke, confronted him about the truth.

This letter alone seemed to paint a picture of her actions that day.

Deatrice was the first to learn the truth. Around the time she became busier with the duties of the Count, going back and forth between the Chetworth, she must have stumbled upon something, tightening the knot of suspicion.

Seeing how she casually referred to her as Elena Anise in the letter, she probably knew that Bella Anise was not who she claimed to be a long time ago.

Reading the letter, Lucius could piece together the order in which Deatrice discovered the truth.

First, she learned that Elena Anise was not the same person as Bella Anise. Then, she found out about the man Bella Anise had married. Finally, on that night before Lucius confronted the Emperor, Deatrice confirmed Chris Fenry’s injury at the temple in the Imperial Palace and realized that the person with the injured leg was Connor Fenry.

[Confirmed that the man who married Bella Anise and supposedly injured his leg is not Chris Fenry but Connor Fenry. As Connor Fenry was unmarried, the marriage is legally valid.]

Rereading that sentence, Lucius tried to imagine the emotions Deatrice must have felt. She probably found it difficult after discovering he wasn’t a bastard. So, she must have leaned on Fredrick as she broke down.

She must have hated her father, and felt unbearable guilt toward Lucius. But…

“But even so, shouldn’t she have endured it?”

He glanced at the crumpled letter, muttering to himself.

If she truly loved him, shouldn’t she have stayed instead of leaving him wounded like that?

Even if she left for the sake of his peaceful revenge, Lucius had no interest in her involvement in such matters, especially when it came to the trial for him.

He wanted her by his side.

His feelings remained unchanged. Even now, after knowing the whole truth and understanding that she was the daughter of an enemy, he still wished she had stayed.

It wasn’t about comparing who loved whom more. At this point, he didn’t want to delve into that. However, the clear difference he felt was that her neat surrender, without even trying, was frustrating.

“Master.”

It was only at Tom’s call that Lucius realized a single tear was streaking down his face. Lucius was rampaging through the room like a madman, and Tom was screaming at him to stop, so the rest of the manor’s occupants were unwittingly watching from a nearby room.

‘I shouldn’t let people sense something strange.’

Lucius thought as he slammed the door behind him, covering his face with one hand.

He didn’t want the people inside the mansion to see him cry and realize that Deatrice had left for good.

For a moment, Lucius leaned against the closed door and buried his face in his hands, trying to control his rising emotions.

Regardless, the fact that she chose to leave was more important to Lucius than understanding why she made such a decision. Moreover…

“You’ve got Deatrice’s address.”

Moreover, the address written on the envelope was something that was not present in the letter she had sent to Lucius. Lucius felt a strange sense of detachment as he stood there. To have the first thing he said after rummaging through the aide’s room and reading the letter be this… Lucius himself couldn’t believe it.

[Ponto, Mason Tensar 87th Street 12]