MLCDF 40

~Chapter 40~

“Huff… Huff… Why…?”

Count Dennis Aristea, the biological father of Rubiana Aristea, was sweating profusely as he rushed toward the courthouse.

‘Why? Why won’t anyone approve a loan?’

Unlike his quick-witted eldest daughter, who could fend for herself, the second daughter—an illegitimate child, the symbol of his affair—had always been a burden.

She couldn’t take care of herself, was constantly ill, and he had finally thought he’d gotten rid of her by marrying her off in exchange for a hefty dowry—his chance to turn his life around.

But the dowry disappeared in the blink of an eye, consumed by his gambling and the eldest daughter’s indulgences.

To make matters worse, his eldest daughter had caused an incident and ended up in prison.

‘Rubiana might not, but Cecilia won’t turn her back on me.’

He believed Cecilia, with her beauty, would surely marry into a wealthy family and bring back a large dowry.

After all, even the gloomy, sickly second daughter with her ghostly pale skin and blood-red eyes and lips had managed to marry into a rich family.

Besides, Cecilia was the one who always flattered him and followed his every word—born from his legal wife, his legitimate firstborn. She couldn’t be ignored.

In the end, he had taken out more loans on top of his existing debt to pay for her bail.

But the interest ballooned like snow, and his credit crashed.

Eventually, all of House Aristea’s possessions were seized, marked with red tags.

Even when the newspaper reported that the family had effectively gone bankrupt, Count Aristea believed there would still be a way out.

‘There are lenders who loan to nobles based on their title and honor.’

Even a low-ranking noble had certain privileges—those who held titles could use them as collateral.

But the hope Count Aristea had clung to—that this privilege would save him—was starting to crack.

‘Why? Why are they all rejecting me?!’

He had visited about ten moneylenders and been turned away by every one of them.

Some even had their staff drive him off with brooms before he could even step inside.

Even those who had previously lent him money when his gambling debts mounted were now slamming the door in his face.

Count Dennis had no idea what was behind this sudden coldness.

‘Damn it. If I can’t even borrow money now…’

He had no choice. Now he was headed to the courthouse.

There, by declaring that full repayment was impossible but showing a willingness to pay part of the debt, he might qualify for a partial debt settlement.

‘Someone will lend me something! After all, my daughter married into a ducal house—into the imperial family!’

Still, he needed something to fall back on. To prepare for any outcome, the courthouse was his first stop.

“Ugh, Father, slow down! You’re ruining my dress!”

Even now, the eldest daughter—the cause of this whole mess—was whining.

Unlike usual, she seemed unable to grasp the gravity of the situation. That made Count Aristea’s blood boil.

“Your damn dress?! If we can’t get to the courthouse, forget the dress—you won’t even have food to eat, you crazy girl! Now run!”

With a rough tug, he dragged his daughter toward the courthouse.

He couldn’t even afford to pay the servants’ wages anymore—he had no one else to bring with him but her.

“I’m here to file for debt relief!”

He explained his situation to the bored-looking clerk in the lobby, and the application procedure began.

The count was anxious to get things done, but the clerk leisurely flipped through the registry.

He wanted to shout at the clerk to hurry up, but held back—worried that making a scene would lead to his request being rejected.

“Oh? You have another direct family member, don’t you, sir?”

“Huh?”

He didn’t see why that mattered.

She was already married off, no longer part of the household.

“For debt relief approval, we need consent and a written statement from all direct family members. It’s to ensure you won’t rack up new debt.”

Thud.

Count Aristea’s heart sank heavily.

‘Not just Cecilia? They need Rubiana’s statement too?’

He had already sent countless letters to Rubiana’s new home, the ducal estate, asking for money—all ignored.

He even resorted to more extreme measures, sending a letter written in pig’s blood to make sure she would read it.

But would she really agree to write a supporting statement for him?

‘No, I have to try anyway.’

He turned to the clerk and said,

“I’ll bring her here right awa—”

“That won’t be necessary.”

A voice he hadn’t heard in a while. Familiar yet chilling.

It was the same person, but the authority, grace, and firmness in that voice were unlike anything he’d ever heard from her before. The voice came from directly behind him.

“Ru-Rubiana!”

Standing at the center of the courthouse lobby was his second daughter, her expression ice cold.

Beside her stood her towering masked husband—the monstrous Duke—and bodyguards bearing the Maledictus spider crest. Court officials surrounded them.

Count Dennis had no idea what was going on, but he knew one thing: he needed to beg.

He had to get that written statement from her.

“Rubiana, my daughter. Have you been well? Your father—”

But Rubiana cut him off with a swift turn toward the clerk.

“My biological father, Dennis Aristea, has spent his life gambling and accruing debt. He has no means of securing funds. There is no reason to approve his application for debt relief.”

“What? You—!”

Dennis turned around in disbelief, but the clerk had already begun transcribing everything Rubiana said.

“Application rejected. He doesn’t meet the requirements.”

“No, wait—wait a minute!!”

Dennis banged on the glass partition of the clerk’s booth.

“Please! Just hear me out! I don’t owe that much—if I work for a few months, I can—!”

“That’s not your only debt.”

A cold, cutting voice.

For the first time, the masked Duke—who had remained silent—spoke.

“Did you forget about the settlement?”

“S-Settlement? What settlem—”

Rubiana pointed at Dennis and Cecilia with a clear voice.

“They sent me a letter laced with poison and a gift under a false name that left me blind for four days. The poison used is known to cause permanent vision loss.”

At that moment, someone stepped forward from the court staff, holding a scroll.

“Arrest warrant. Dennis Aristea and Cecilia Aristea, you are under arrest on charges of assault.”

“What?!”

Police officers who had been stationed with the court officials suddenly swarmed in, surrounding them.

“I didn’t do anything! Get your filthy hands off me!”

Dennis and Cecilia thrashed wildly, screaming in protest.

“Don’t bother denying it. Your servant confessed everything. Said you ordered it.”

“T-That’s a lie! I didn’t—!”

“I didn’t do anything either!”

At Cecilia’s outburst, Dennis stared at her, stunned.

“It was Father’s idea! I didn’t know anything! I’m innocent!”

“C-Cecilia…”

Count Aristea was speechless at the betrayal of his eldest daughter—the one he thought would always be on his side, the one he believed couldn’t survive financially without him.

“I swear! The letter, the gift—he did it all alone!”

The once-glittering eyes of the greed-ridden count turned dull and lifeless.

“R-Rubiana. Rubiana…”

Bound in chains by the officers, the count called out to me with a sob in his voice.

Even while restrained, he struggled, trying to crawl toward me.

“I—I’m sorry. I’m really sorry… Please, just spare me once…”

Then, he clenched his jaw and slammed his forehead against the stone floor.

“Please… I’m sorry, I’m sorry!!”

Before the police could stop him, he struck his head on the ground.

A thin line of red blood trickled down his forehead.

It was a pitiful sight.

Just barely, I felt a flicker of pity.

But—

‘I coughed up blood so many times because of him.’

Locked alone in a dusty backroom, vomiting blood whenever I fell ill, having to wipe it away while enduring stabbing pains in my throat.

Sobbing my lungs out to the point of tearing my throat every time my paintings were destroyed.

Compared to the blood I shed, his was nothing.

“The settlement is 3 billion won, Father.”

Count Aristea blinked for a full three seconds before reacting.

“T-Three billion…?”

Once he processed the situation, his face turned ghostly pale.

“I can’t… I can’t pay that kind of money. Where would I even get 3 billion…?”

“Then we’ll do it by the law.”

Fear crossed his face.

According to imperial law, a noble who harmed another noble—especially a family member—must suffer an equivalent punishment if a settlement isn’t reached.