Barbaric Proposal

Chapter 26 | Doubt

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Rafit looked at his uncle with an unhappy expression.

[ Rafit ] “Since…….Since when is our family like this?”

Linden clicked her tongue at her nephew, who had a confused and dumbfounded expression on his face.

[ Linden ] “Are you really stupid all this time?”

[Raffit ] “Even without using such a thing, Kleinfelders will remain the most powerful family in Nauk.”

[Linden ] “That's because we've done these things so you can live comfortably, so you should be thanking me. The strongest, you say? While the throne is in the wrong family hands?”

[ Rafit ] “Are you so desperate to control Nauk? That position belongs to Princess Rienne! Do you know what kind of humiliation and pain he suffered because of it? ”

[ Linden ] “That doesn't mean it's hers. He's just a kid who doesn't even know how to use his powers properly.”

It was Kleinfelder who controlled the flow of things, with their hands firmly planted on the High Priest's neck.

[ Linden ] “Remember that the High Priest must change.”

[ Rafi ]”. .”

Rafit's face turned tired.

[ Rafit ] “What do you plan to do?”

[ Linden ] “If she can't fix this problem...”.

Kleinfelders have all the ways they need to get someone out of the picture. The difficult part was that their target was the High Priest.

[ Linden ] “…..Then we just need to find someone who can.”

But to be honest, it wasn't a problem for Linden.

To him, replacing the High Priest with the right person was more important.

[ Rafit ] “I said , you can't do this. What would you do if this came out? How will you deal with the consequences of injuring the High Priest? ”

[ Linden ] “This is your biggest weakness.”

Linden looked at her niece,******delightedly out of her.

[ Linden ] “You're too soft and weak. That's why your woman is so easy to take away from you. ”

His words were too sharp, piercing Rafit with precision like a sharp cutting edge.

[ Rafit ] “Uncle!”

Soon, it is understandable that Rafit lost control, showing his anger.

[ Rafit ] “He wasn't taken from me. I know Rienne still loves me.”

Rafit in a moment will lose his mind because of this. In Linden's eyes, his nephew looked pitiful. (1)

[Linden ] “You can't handle a single woman and now this is how it turned out. Now that the High Priest was on their side, there was no chance that the marriage would be postponed. ”

[ Rafit ] “I can fix this.”

[ Linden ] “How?”

[ Rafi ]”. .”

After a moment of calm, Linden had an idea. It was a thought that he immediately grasped with the cunning of a snake.

[ Linden ] “If the High Priest dies, a new one needs to be chosen. In the meantime, there needs to be a funeral. Without a single person available to lead, of course no marriage is possible. Do you understand what I'm saying? ”

Something like that would give them plenty of time. Rafit's face stiffened.

[ Linden ] “Today's a good day, I think. The road to the grave site will be rather dark.”

And darkness is the perfect cover for such heinous deeds.

[ Linden ] “Remember only. Think about what the right thing to do is. Or rather ... what is most beneficial to you. ”

[ Rafi ]”. .”

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Like the view of the moon in the morning, a dark plot appeared at the beginning of the hour.

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* * *

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The destruction of the temple stairs left a significant impact for the community.

Among those people was an old man—a broken beggar who once went to the Temple every day to get bread and water, given to him by the priests.

[Beggar ]”. .”

The old beggar stood still, staring at the collapsed stairs.

His one eye looked very teary, covered by his dirty and dangling hair. Even though he had two hands, the beggar was unable to use any of his hands.

His feet were no better. His shattered left leg would fall trembling to the ground whenever he used his cane to help him walk.

The fact that he used such a body to climb the stairs was not a miracle.

[ Mercenary ] “You're there! It's dangerous here, you have to step aside!”

The sound of someone shouting loudly towards the old man.

It was the Tiwakan mercenary. He was part of the group sent to retrieve the coffin from the Temple. Normally, someone like that would attract a lot of attention, but to his surprise the front of the Shrine was completely empty.

The Nauk people were still afraid of Tiwakan. Many of them believe maintaining eye contact with one of them is a quick way to remove your head.

But the old beggar stared at them without hesitation, standing in the middle of the road the entire time. It made them wonder if he had not heard the rumors or if he had simply lost his mind.

At first the mercenaries did not care about it, but when the coffin started to drop down, he finally started to get in the way.

[Beggar ] “Dia ...”.

Instead of leaving as ordered, the beggar approached the mercenary, trying to speak as he did.

His voice was heavy with phlegm, like a boil in his throat, making it difficult to understand.

[ Soldier Pay ] “What?”

The beggar struggled to raise his trembling hand, pointing somewhere.

 

And the one stuck on the old man's fingertips was Black, sitting on his dark-colored horse.

[Beggar ] “Who.

[ Soldiers Pay ] “Hah? What...?”

[Beggar ] “Ap..o...”.

Although the old man could not use his mouth as well as his hands and feet, the mercenary could vaguely understand what he was trying to say.

He looked back and forth between the pointy fingers of the old man and Black.

Tiwakan was known as a fighting force more ruthless than anyone on the battlefield. But for all their brutality, even they had rules that they held among themselves.

One such rule is that they are never allowed to kill an unarmed person without reason or permission.

The old man did not seem to recognize Black, and although the mercenary thought the question was a bit strange, he decided to answer it for that reason alone. He simply assumed that the old beggar's eyes were not working properly.

[ Mercenary ] “That person is the leader of Tiwakan, but for those of us who use that name, he is our God.”

[Beggar ]”. .”

[ Mercenary ] “Now you know, you have to get out of here. You obstruct.”

But the old man did not move. His eyes were fixed on Black, as if he was possessed.

[ Mercenary ] “Hey, you need to move.”

He could not even hear the words of those mercenaries. His lips, covered with the gray hair from his beard, trembled. Secretly, he whispered something completely unheard.

Are you finally back?

sin Nauk.

The blood that did not spill that day.

Did you come to finish it….?

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Twenty-one years ago the old beggar first arrived at Nauk.

And it was twenty-one years ago when nine waterfalls dried up, bringing with them endless signs of drought.

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* * *

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The time has finally come to go to the chapel.

Rienne, dressed in her scarlet clothes, replaced the garnish in her hair with a black rose. Mrs Flambard thinks she looks good that way, but says nothing in honor of the funeral.

That day, the gate to the castle will open.

The cemetery would originally be in the Temple, but now in the royal chapel, giving more people a chance to attend.

[ Rienne ] “I think things will be more crowded than before.”

Hearing Rienne's whisper, Mrs Flambard nodded.

[Mrs Flambard ] “It won't surprise me. Everyone is curious.”

[ Rienne ] “What..oh..”.

In the middle of her sentence, Rienne bitterly covered her mouth.

Everyone would be curious about his reaction, that was what he was going to say.

They all still think Rafit is dead, and now they are curious to see Rienne appear at the funeral of her dead lover in the arms of her new fiance.

The whole situation is fucked up.

They might even say bad things about Black and Tiwakan, and he could not ignore the possibility of Kleinfelder trying to start something, lighting a fire and encouraging such horrible words.

[ Rienne ] “I have to warn Mr. Tiwakan.”

[ Mrs Flambard ] “If you can't stop them, you'd better tell her in advance. He wouldn't be so angry like that.”

[ Rienne ] “…..Really?”

Although for some reason, Rienne could not imagine she was ever angry, even if someone threw the harshest curse they could at her.

Now that I think about it, I don't think I've seen him angry before.

Yet even so, every time he thought about it, fear, among many other emotions was at the forefront of his mind.

…..I've been acting strange lately.

She did not hate him, but even though she was not afraid of him, she still felt fear.

[Mrs Flambard ] “What do you think so deeply, Princess?”

After a long time of thinking about that person, Mrs Flambard tugged at the fabric of Rienne's dress.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Note your step. The road here is not flat. You will fall if you are not careful. ”

[ Rienne ] “….Ah.”

Before she knew it, Rienne was already approaching the chapel. He thought he was only thinking for a moment, but time disappeared, as it always happens when the man is involved.

[ Rienne ] “I know. I have to calm down...oh.”.

Knocks.

Something stopped his leg. Had he not noticed it, he might have even stumbled over it. Rienne, who had stopped a while earlier, looked down.

The end of someone's stick sticking out from the side of the road. It was as if they were trying to attract his attention.

[ Rienne ]”. .”

Moving his eyes to the side, he saw an old man extending his cane.

It was a beggar from the Temple.

[ Rienne ] “Wait here a minute, Bu.”

Rienne knew about the old man. On the occasion that he would visit the Temple, he would bring food to give to him. He never looked like a bad person, only someone who was hit hard with a difficult life.

[Rienne ] “I have to attend the funeral today so I have nothing to share. If you want, can you wait until the ceremony is over?”

[Beggar ]”. .”

Without a word, the old man looked at Rienne.

[Rienne ] “Peti dies will be brought here soon. Be careful and take your stick so that your feet do not hurt too much.”

[Beggar ] “....daugh..ter..of...ak....... sin.......ner.......”.

[ Rienne ] “What?”

As he muttered, his beard covered his lips, so he did not quite catch what he said.

[ Rienne ] “What did you say?”

Rienne leaned towards the old man, urging him to share again.

[Beggar ] “Past sins....must be repaid.....with blood…. And now...his daughter..ter of Arsak....... will bleed....”.

[ Rienne ] “What are you .....?”

Seeing Rienne's changed expression, Madame Flambard walked in and grabbed her arm.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Princess! You can't get too close to strangers. How can you trust someone you don't even know?”

[ Rienne ] “Wait—I think she's trying to tell me something.”

After being assigned to oversee the funeral, Tiwakan was on standby. Seeing the commotion, a pair of mercenaries rushed over from their post in the distance.

[ Mercenary ] “Princess! Are you okay?!”

They quickly entered and caught the old beggar, violently dragging him to a safe distance from Rienne.

[Rienne ] “Yes, I'm fine but I haven't finished talking to her yet. Can you give us a little space, please? ”

[ Mercenary ] “Oh, really?”

Quickly the two of them moved aside, but their eyes were still fixed on the tattered old man. Although their intention was to protect her and nothing else, they were still very intimidating.

Rienne turned to face the old man.

[ Rienne ] “Can you repeat it yourself? What are you trying to say?”

The old man's lips twitched.

[Beggar ] “...wat.ch...” (2).

[ Rienne ] “.......?”

Thinking she misheard, Rienne shook her head.

[Black ] “Is there something going on?”

As soon as Rienne turned her back to look at the source of the voice, Black stood right behind her.

He didn't even hear it coming.

[ Mercenary ] “Princess has something important to talk about with this man.”

The mercenary did not hesitate to reply as Black approached. Although her posture was as loose and relaxed as before, for some reason Rienne felt the air in front of her suddenly become sharp like a knife.

It showed him a glimpse of why his people thought of him as their leader.

[ Black ]”. .”

Black looked at the beggar.

Immediately, Rienne saw one of the old man's eyes tremble as he moved away from Black's gaze. As soon as he saw that, he suddenly realized what he was trying to say.

[Black ] “I understand. Do you need more time? ”

He asked if he wanted to continue talking to her.

[ Rienne ] “No.”

Quickly, Rienne turned around and held onto Black's arm, a part of her afraid that her hand would begin to tremble.

[Rienne ] “I don't think she can speak properly now. If we spend too much time here, we'll be late for the funeral, but if you have anything you want to say to me, please come see me later.

His last words were addressed to the old man. His eyes were still trembling as he remained silent.

[ Rienne ] “Let's go.”

[Black ] “….If you want.”

Black took the opposite hand and placed it over the hand of Rienne, who was still holding her arm. Then, as his body wavered and he leaned slightly on her, Black stopped and looked at her.

[Black ] “Are you okay?”

[ Rienne ] “…..Yes.”

[Black ] “You don't look healthy.”

He's not good. That old man…. She said…..

Rienne bit her lips and tightened her grip on Black's arm.

[ Rienne ] “I'll be fine.. during the funeral ends safely.”.

[Black ] “I have been told to stay alert.”

[ Rienne ] “Good.”

That's not good. There aren't. The old man said….

—The Princess Arsak will bleed.

That severed quiet and blunt voice…. Suddenly the words connected so clearly that it made his head spin.

- Revenge.

Who is that old man? How does he know Black?

When everyone told him that he was there for revenge, was this what they were talking about?

Does this mean the person he wants revenge on...is he?

[ Rienne ]”. .”

Bong! Bong!

The sound of the chapel bell shook the idea in his mind.

His head was completely muddled, his thoughts mixed with each other.