Barbaric Proposal

Chapter 28

...[ Servant ] “I can't...avoid it.”...

His faint voice came out from near Linden's feet.

Ever since he was young, his life belonged to the Kleinfelder family. With lives that would have been lost otherwise, he took care of all the dirty work they needed.

He had even killed a former High Priest in the past. Back then, everyone thought he had just tripped over a ladder and broke his neck.

Linden also hopes the job is done cleanly this time.

[ Servant ] “….There's not enough time…. The window of opportunity is small and too many people are watching...”.

He spoke very slowly, wearing a long robe that covered his ankles. Meanwhile, his eyes were fixed to the ground.

[ Linden ] “You call that a reason?”

Big punch!

Another blow came.

Without flinching, the young maid endured the blow from Linden, no sound of pain came out from her. Kicking him from each side, Linden stopped and took a deep breath.

[ Linden ] “You didn't leave proof?”

[ Server ] “Ya.”

[Linden ] “You'll never get caught. Do you understand me? Never let them know that I'm the one giving the order.”

[ Servant ] “Ya, Sir.”

[ Linden ] “They're tough opponents. We can't....captured....”.

If they ever did, the obvious end result would be the end of Kleinfelders. Linden closed just by thinking about it.

[ Linden ] “Or I have no choice but to dump you.”

[ Server ] “…….Yes, Mr.”

The young maid nodded obediently. Seeing that, Linden felt a little calmer.

Surprisingly he was loyal, not to mention silent. Even if the worst had to happen and her own identity was revealed, Linden was sure her name would never come out of the servant's mouth.

[ Linden ] “Out.”

He nodded and pulled himself off the ground, putting a palm over his bloody head. He looked more worried because there was no blood on his clothes than the fact that he was injured.

Using his clean hands, he took out the hood of his robe and carefully covered his face. After he left Linden's room, he quietly stepped into the dark corner of the servant hall.

 

Without any light to guide him, he descended the long, winding staircase towards the basement. Finally he walked out of the main building towards the small detached house behind him.

As soon as the house was seen, he quickly hid behind a nearby tree. Just outside of his range was a window, his eyes fixed on her as he peeked out from his point of view.

Through that stained glass window, a figure could be seen—like a barely visible shadow.

It was a woman, skinny and full of sadness, holding a basin of water.

[ Server ]”. .”

The servant's eyes started to glaze over as he watched the woman. He was the reason why a simple servant like himself was forced to do terrible things for Kleinfelder.

After living there for a while, he left Kleinfelder's estate, returning to his residence by taking the same path as usual.

The servant was heading to the Temple, and his name was Klimah. (1)

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* * *

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[ Rienne ]”. .”

Although she was exhausted, lack of sleep started to become a habit. As the morning sun pierced through the window, Rienne's eyes trembled while adjusting to the light.

[ Rienne ] “It's morning.”

But his body was very tired, not wanting to move. Opening her eyes, Rienne counted.

[ Rienne ] “One…. Three.”

Finally gathering strength, Rienne put away her blanket.

[ Rienne ] “It is also cooler than yesterday.”

As soon as Rienne began to lower her bare feet from the bed to the floor, she felt a cold air bite down on her skin. Not wasting any time, she put on her sandals and cleaned her nightgown.

I hate winter so much. It feels like things are getting harder and colder.

Winter had not even really started yet, yet once the temperature dropped even a little, she began to crave once again the warmth of her bed sheets.

[ Rienne ] “I have to be fast.”

The season seemed to bring a thorough feeling of lethargy, but he knew the stronger the feeling was, the more he needed to push himself to make a move.

Wanting to shower and change clothes, Rienne took off the scarf she was wearing and hurriedly walked into the bathroom, wearing only her thin nightgown.

[ Rienne ] “...Ah.”.

But when he opened the door, his body froze.

There's someone inside.

Not much different from him, Black was just wearing pants, and it seemed like he was going to take it off—it seemed like he was also thinking of taking a bath.

[ Rienne ] “Why....you're here.....?”.

Rienne was so embarrassed that she completely ignored to close the door and leave. All he thought about was the burning question of why he had undressed in his bathroom from the start.

[Black ] “Do you want to get ready first?”

Black asked with his hands still at the waistline of his pants.

[ Rienne ] “No, I…. Why are you here....?”

[Black ] “I didn't know you were up.”

[ Rienne ] “But why..?”.

[Black ] “This is my bathroom too, now.”

[ Rienne ] “Oh..”.

He just remembered.

She was already using the next room now, which meant they had to share the bathroom from now on. That means Rienne should…..

…pollinate!

Realize, Rienne closed the bathroom door.

[ Rienne ] “I'm sorry.. Many things happened recently.. so I haven't fully woken up.”.

Rienne said this through the tightly shut door. He was still very surprised, his mouth was also not functioning properly.

What have I done…..How could I forget this?

Just then, he could hear footsteps approaching on the other side of the door. Rienne held the doorknob tightly just in case she tried to open it.

[Black ] “Nothing.”

But that's all he said. He did not try to open the door. Even so, Rienne could not let go. Although there was no one around to witness her embarrassment, she could feel her face heating up.

[Rienne ] “I will pay more attention to things like this in the future…. So please, clean it up. ”

[Black ] “No bathtub here. What is the reason for that?”

Before Rienne could leave, Black asked a very sudden question.

[ Rienne ] “What?”

[Black ] “I asked why you didn't shower.”

[ Rienne ] “Oh, shower....”.

There used to be one.

There used to be a large, colorful marble bathtub in the room. It was a beautiful piece, lined with golden edges, and it was simply amazing to liven up the now large and empty bathroom.

But like so many other things, it was sold. The fine marble was cut into pieces, and is now laid out in Kleinfelder's garden as a decoration.

[ Rienne ] “…..I'm useless for that. I feel like using too much water with a bathtub like that.”

Saying that, Rienne's heart stung for a moment.

It was a much smaller lie in comparison, but he did not feel happy about having to do it too often.

[ Rienne ] “Do you need a bathtub?”

[Black ] “Not now.”

[Black ] “There is a possibility we want to shower together in the future.”

[ Rienne ] “What....what?”.

Rienne tried to think of words to say, but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out.

Shower.....together? Butwhy?

[Black ] “I'll buy you a new one.”

[ Rienne ]”. .”

And that was the end of the conversation.

Slipping. Knocks.

Behind the door, inside the quiet bathroom, there was the sound of a cloth rubbing against the skin.

….Butwhy….

Unknowingly, Rienne swallowed a dry spit in her throat.

Why.....Will you shower with me….?

Then he heard the sound of water splashing. He's probably washing his face right now. Suddenly, Rienne recalled the moment when she lowered her face towards him as she carefully cleaned it for him.

It was all too easy to imagine her wet shoulders and arms, or her soaked hair, clinging to her forehead.

Why are we..... together……?

Rienne could not bear that thought and quickly turned around.

It's all his fault, saying so many weird things when he looks like that.

Closing her ears, Rienne returned to her room. The sound of water splashing sounded nothing. He hears it all the time whenever he washes his own face.

However, his heart did not stop pounding.

Closing the door behind her, Rienne stood still and waited until her heartbeat subsided.

…..I can't keep doing this.

It is not a good idea to have any feelings towards the man beyond strict vigilance.

I must know what his true motives are—the truth behind why everyone keeps saying that his goal is revenge. Focus on that and don't dwell on useless thoughts.

Rienne swallowed with difficulty.

He had to meet the old beggar again.

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* * *

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[Mrs Flambard ] “What? Where did you say you were going?”

[ Rienne ] “Ke entrance Temple.”

[ Mrs Flambard ] “But why all of a sudden? Do you have any business there—?”

[ Rienne ] “Ya.”

As Mrs Flambard asked, confused and confused, Rienne quickly interrupted.

There was no point in telling her everything. It was Rienne's job to worry about what Black was doing, and she didn't want to make the woman worry unnecessarily.

More importantly, Mrs Flambard is an honest woman. If Rienne had said something to her, she would not have been able to stand in front of Black calmly if she had known she had the potential to harm them.

[ Rienne ] “I'm just worried about the parents I saw yesterday. The temple usually distributes food, but the staircase has not been fixed, so I will bring it myself.”

[Mrs Flambard ] “Then, you should order the guards to do it for you. Aren't you too busy to handle such a thing?”

[ Rienne ] “I want to do it personally. I'm sure you have a lot of things to do yourself, so I'll be fine going alone. ”

Mrs Flambard flinched forward hearing that.

[Mrs Flambard ] “What? No, you can't do something like that! Too far to go alone!”

[ Rienne ] “I will ask the guard to escort me.”

He has to move as fast as he can.

Tiwakan has already started to settle in Puri Nauk.

If Rienne wanted to go out, Black told her that he would escort her himself or tell one of his men to go with her. That meant he needed to speak to his chief of bodyguards separately and return before anyone noticed.

[ Rienne ] “So please give me food to bring. Preferably something easy to eat with your hands.”

[ Mrs Flambard ] “If you have no choice, then how else, but I have to insist on coming with you.”

[ Rienne ] “No, Mom. You need to focus on changing the wedding dress. Have you forgotten? With the wedding remaining eight days away, there is no missed moment where I am not worried about running out of time.”

[ Bu Flambard ] “Ah, correct…. Then I'll take care of the food and get back to work…. But...”.

[ Rienne ] “What is it?”

Mrs Flambard threw her face away, turned silent.

[ Rienne ] “What's the matter, Bu?”

[Mrs Flambard ] “About wedding ceremony.”

[ Rienne ] “Ya?”

[Mrs Flambard ] “I've been careful to pay attention to the date when changing clothes but…..Yesterday, High Priest..

 Mrs Flambard hesitated for a moment and then continued talking.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Do we not need to wait until the new High Priest is appointed?”

[ Rienne ] “True..”.

[Mrs Flambard ] “From what I remember, nine days have passed after the High Priest Motiya was buried before the High Priest Milrod was given the position. I know there's a reason why they have to wait, but now the wedding's eight days away, so I'm not sure what we're going to do with that clerk. I hope God will not punish me for working on wedding clothes so soon after death.”

[ Rienne ] “Oh..”.

Rienne's expression stiffened.

So that's why they killed him.

That was the reason why Kleinfelder killed the High Priest. After the new High Priest is chosen, according to the law of the Temple, he will fast for nine days to surrender himself to the God in prayer.

It was considered as his first ‘conversation’ with the gods. They said if the God did not recognize the legitimacy of the new High Priest, he would not be able to endure for nine days and starve.

This process is considered a rite of passage for the High Priest and cannot be ignored even for a day.

[Mrs Flambard ] “You look unwell, Princess. Do you feel pain?”

His face was filled with worry as he looked at Rienne.

[ Rienne ] “No…. I don't hurt.”

She's afraid.

What would Kleinfelder do after a very long time just to delay the wedding?

They were not the type to simply surrender to Nauk, but they also knew that they would never be able to defeat Tiwakan in a direct war. They would try to stab him from behind under the cover of darkness if that happened.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Are you sure?”

[ Rienne ] “Yes…..I'm fine.”

[Mrs Flambard ] “Alright then. With all that going on, I know you haven't been able to sleep well, so I understand if you're a little tired.. But I'm glad there's at least one thing to worry about right now.”

[ Rienne ] “What?”

Madam Flambard carefully patted Rienne's arm, as if telling her that she could calm down.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Your monthly fever, Princess. If the wedding should be postponed, then your first night should also be, so at least we don't have to worry about it now.”

[ Rienne ] “Oh...ya, you are right.”.

[Mrs Flambard ] “Then I will go and prepare the food. I will do what I can, but an early apology if not much.”

[ Rienne ] “I understand. Please, fast.”

[Mrs Flambard ] “Ya, Princess.”

After Mrs Flambard left, Rienne began to get ready to leave. All the time, confusion appeared in his head.

If they delayed the marriage, she would be able to safely hide her monthly fever. But at the same time, he would give Kleinfelder a chance to prepare for their next move.

So what can I do now?

Complexity was tied like a knot, which he could not undo on his own.