The Strongest Daughter-In-Law Of The Black Lion Family [EN]: Chapter 105

#105.

Duke’s kneeling apology silenced the assembly. Only Ivan, seemingly unaware of the gravity of the situation, wore a bewildered expression.

“Duke? Why are you suddenly doing this?”

“……”

“Please, get up. The floor is cold.”

Despite Ivan’s urging, Duke remained unmoving. Instead, he repeatedly begged for death, his forehead pressed to the ground.

Ivan looked at Zerachiel with a flustered expression. He seemed genuinely curious as to why Duke, a respected elder within Jabesh, was acting this way.

Then, Zerachiel pointed his sword at the kneeling Duke. Ivan stepped back at the threatening gesture.

“Killing him can wait until we find Victor Orban.”

“…Young Master.”

“Where did you hide Victor? Tell me without deceit, and I will grant you a painless death, considering our past ties.”

His inorganic eyes showed no hesitation. This meant the matter was extremely serious.

Duke stared at the sword pointed at his neck, biting his lip.

He was equally shocked to belatedly learn that his son had committed such an act without his knowledge.

“I did not hide him. I swear, the Orban family has nothing to do with this.”

“Victor did this alone?”

“…Even if that’s the case, it’s my fault for not properly supervising my son. I will accept whatever punishment you deem fit.”

Duke said powerlessly, his head bowed. In any case, it was an act committed by a direct descendant of Orban. Moreover, the betrayal of the person slated to be the next chief physician had far-reaching consequences.

Amidst the palpable tension, Zachariah, who had been watching from the side, interjected.

“Stop it.”

“What do you mean, stop?”

Zerachiel retorted coldly, and Zachariah said,

“We have already confirmed that Duke is not involved in this matter. There’s no need to be so hostile.”

“Even if Duke is not at fault, this happened within Orban. Shouldn’t we hold him accountable for failing to manage it properly?”

Zachariah sighed deeply at his son’s every word, which was undeniably correct. It wasn’t that he didn’t know.

“It’s not that I want to let this go, but there’s no benefit in making it known yet.”

“That’s how you end up missing Victor Orban right in front of your eyes.”

Zachariah looked at his son, who was poking at his sore spots, with a weary expression.

He had no excuse, even with ten mouths [meaning he was completely without defense].

Who would have thought that Victor Orban would consider drugging Erhaden to safely escape Jabesh Castle?

By the time they realized Victor was the culprit, it was already too late.

He had taken advantage of the confusion to escape, and they were just about to send out a search party.

To take such a bold action, someone must have promised to protect him.

‘How foolish.’

If he were the mastermind, he would have lured him out and killed him. Victor was pathetic for leaving to save his own skin without knowing that.

Of course, it might have been better for him to die cleanly outside. If he had been caught in Jabesh Castle, he would have been torn limb from limb.

“First, we need to find Victor before this gets out. The elders will be furious if they find out.”

“More importantly, we need to act before Victor’s backer notices.”

“That’s a given.”

It was around the time Zachariah and Zerachiel were sorting out the situation, exchanging words.

Amidst the uncomfortable atmosphere, Ivan asked with a frustrated expression.

“What exactly is going on? I’d like to know too.”

Looking at his clueless expression, he seemed desperate to know. Zachariah said,

“There’s a traitor in Orban. The disturbance at the last wedding was all orchestrated by that bastard.”

“What!”

Ivan looked at Duke in surprise. The previous disturbance referred to Zachariah’s rampage.

Not only did Chelsia receive attention because of it, but distrust in Jabesh within the continent had also increased.

But the person who caused that was a member of Orban. This was a major incident that couldn’t be overlooked.

This was something that wouldn’t be strange even if an emergency elders’ meeting were called.

“But how did you find out? Is there any evidence?”

At Ivan’s successive questions, Zachariah glared coldly at Duke.

“Victor was the one who drugged the fox.”

“Excuse me?”

“It was the same drug that was used on me.”

He had acted with the expectation of being caught from the start. He had gone to great lengths to safely escape Jabesh Castle.

“…I’m sorry. This all happened because of my negligence.”

Duke said, bowing his head in silence. He never imagined that his son, who was slated to be the next head physician, would not only act as a spy but also try to kill the current head.

Duke was horrified by his beloved son’s great mistake, even though he hadn’t raised him with excessive care.

“I will take responsibility for this and step down from my position.”

“Are you trying to avoid responsibility in front of me?”

“That’s not what I mean…”

“Do you really not know that’s what the other party wants, Duke?”

At Zachariah’s quiet rebuke, Duke moved his lips. The relationship between Orban and Jabesh was stronger than any other family.

For Orban to break away from Jabesh would be an opportunity for their rivals.

Moreover, Orban was essentially in the same boat as Jabesh. The more they knew about each other, the safer it was to keep them close.

“And I will decide what punishment to give you. So don’t rashly say you’re going to quit or any other nonsense like that.”

“I misspoke. Please forgive me, Head.”

Zachariah’s momentum subsided as Duke admitted his mistake.

After a while, Zachariah looked at Zerachiel and said,

“By the way, how did you know Victor was the culprit?”

“You’re asking late.”

Zerachiel sheathed his sword and took something out of his pocket, handing it over.

“A rabbit beastkin [a human with rabbit-like features] staying in Hebel said he picked up what Victor dropped.”

“It’s the same drug.”

“He also testified that he saw it directly, so I was about to inform you.”

“Was it a trustworthy person’s statement?”

“He volunteered to harbor Jabesh’s poison, so he wouldn’t be able to play tricks.”

“Unexpected. The day would come when we would receive help from Hebel.”

Zachariah shrugged and received the evidence. Then, with a face as if he had belatedly realized something, he asked.

“By the way, why are you here? I received a call that Chelsia was coming this way, so I thought you were coming together.”

“If I had known my father knew about this, I wouldn’t have come so hastily.”

“So you were worried about this father.”

Zachariah rubbed his nose with a satisfied face, and Zerachiel said,

“It’s not like I was worried about my father. The opponent is Orban, isn’t it?”

“No affection.”

Zachariah chuckled and called Herman, who was waiting outside.

“From today, Orban cannot step one foot outside Jabesh territory until this matter is resolved.”

“I will obey your command.”

Herman, who already knew the situation, respectfully received the order.

* * *

The day after the search party led by Ivan and Isla was sent out.

An imperceptible cold atmosphere lingered within Jabesh Castle.

The Orban family’s mansion was under Jabesh’s surveillance with restricted access, and Duke, the head of Orban, remained in Jabesh Castle.

Those who did not know the exact details were puzzled but remained silent as it was a common occurrence in Jabesh Castle.

They were tracking where Victor was heading.

Chelsia was long overdue, and Zerachiel was growing impatient, reaching the edge of the territory.

“Squeak!”

In the distance, a pink rabbit with a bundle on its back was running towards them. Just as he was wondering, Ella returned to human form with a ‘pop’ and shouted.

“Chelsia-nim is in danger!”