~Chapter 88~
As Letitia stormed out of the office, the members who had been watching from nearby slowly returned to their desks.
They flinched at the sadness radiating from Yushen, but quietly went back to their work, keeping their distance.
“Good work, everyone.”
Yushen left those words behind and walked out of the office toward his own.
All the while, Letitia’s retreating figure lingered before his eyes. Part of him wanted to stop her, to reach out and pull her back.
But there was only one reason he couldn’t.
“You and I come from completely different worlds.”
“Fold those feelings while you still can. The longer you cling to something impossible, the more it’ll hurt you.”
The words she had spoken, so harsh in her attempt to sever things cleanly, had made her expression painfully sincere.
Because of that, he couldn’t move closer—or farther away. All he could do was watch her leave. Sadly, that was all he could manage at the moment.
There were countless things he wanted to say. He had a confession prepared, a line he had wanted to say to her properly. If he could say it now, she would probably blush.
And if he admitted that, thanks to her, he had even partially overcome his trauma… he could’ve seen her happy expression too.
‘If I knew I’d regret it this much, I should’ve at least started talking.’
Yushen had planned to tell her about the past that caused his trauma—a story he had never shared with anyone—because she had helped him begin to overcome it.
He owed her that much, at the very least. But she left first, and the chance was gone.
It didn’t have to be right now… but he had thought this moment was the right one, which made him feel the loss all the more.
‘…Focus on what I need to do first.’
Believing another proper opportunity would come, Yushen gathered his coat in his office. He planned to visit Henry’s estate with Winter, determined not to miss the weakness Letitia had revealed.
Once all the crucial evidence was collected, he would leave the scene to Winter and then make a rare visit somewhere else.
After joining Luce, Yushen mostly stayed at his residence.
He visited the marquis’s estate once a month for dinner, but only because Conrad had allowed him to live outside the estate on that condition.
Never before had Yushen gone there of his own volition.
But today, for the first time, he visited Conrad personally.
“Welcome, Yushen.”
“…….”
“I never thought the day would come when you’d seek me out first.”
Conrad smiled gently and gestured toward the sofa as Yushen stepped into the study.
Yushen clenched his fists and sat down.
From the moment the study door opened, Yushen’s body had stiffened. The study was filled with Conrad’s presence—the very source of his trauma.
Though his trauma wasn’t fully resolved, it was natural for his body to stiffen and memories to resurface upon sensing Conrad.
Yet it wasn’t enough to make him flee this time, so he kept his expression composed as best he could.
That didn’t fool Conrad.
‘Still the same.’
Conrad sat in his seat, smirking inwardly, and asked,
“So? What brings you here? You’ve never sought me out before, so it must be something serious.”
“…I’m not here to ask for anything. I came to confirm something.”
Confirm.
Conrad could already guess. If Yushen knew that Henry was under his control, there was only one plausible question.
Had Conrad assisted Henry in infiltrating Luce, or did he know of it in advance?
Of course, Conrad had known and had helped.
‘This isn’t just any organization—it’s temple-affiliated. How would someone from the palace infiltrate it otherwise?’
But who would ever admit that? Not a fool.
“Confirm what?”
“…Are you pretending not to understand, or do you truly not?”
“You haven’t asked anything yet. How am I supposed to know? I’m not a mind reader.”
Conrad shrugged, and that alone was enough of an answer for Yushen.
What he wanted to confirm wasn’t the details themselves—it was how much conscience Conrad still possessed.
Yushen figured that someone as intelligent as Conrad would easily understand why he was here. That was why he had kept his inquiry vague.
‘…I don’t need to be bound by family ties anymore.’
It was uncomfortable to think of putting a blood relative in prison.
But that discomfort vanished. There was no reason to show mercy to someone without conscience.
“I’m warning you.”
“Hm? All of a sudden?”
“The reason I gave you an opportunity… is because you’re my brother.”
At the word “brother,” Conrad’s violet eyes widened. Aside from when Yushen first entered the estate as a child, he had never been called that.
“…It’s been a long time since I heard that.”
“You won’t hear it again.”
Conrad laughed softly, meeting Yushen’s determined expression. He understood the meaning behind that single word: Yushen no longer considered him family.
A memory flashed of the child who had clung to him, despite everything.
‘Even half-blood or not… a sibling is a sibling.’
Shaking off the sentimental thought, Conrad nodded.
“I’m curious. How hard will you try to catch me?”
“You won’t need to try. You’ve committed too many crimes already. That’s all.”
With that, Yushen left the estate without looking back.
Conrad watched his back through the study window. The shoulders that once looked lonely now carried a commanding presence.
Somehow, it seemed that—while Conrad remained at the marquis’s estate—Yushen would never return.
Conrad turned and sat on the sofa. Family ties or not, they were enemies now. There was no point indulging in sentiment.
“Isis.”
At his call, Isis entered and stood close.
“Yes?”
“Why has he changed so much?”
Having observed Yushen closely for years, Conrad immediately noticed the difference.
Outwardly unchanged, but inwardly completely different.
“He’s known to have softened even further since joining Luce.”
“So why? There must’ve been a trigger.”
“They say it started when he fell in unrequited love.”
“…Unrequited love?”
“Oh… the female member from the rumors?”
“Yes.”
“Interesting.”
Conrad hadn’t imagined anyone could change Yushen, once as rigid as stone, in this way.
His curiosity about Letitia deepened. He wondered what kind of woman could do this. The sense of déjà vu from their first encounter came to mind as well.
“Isis, prepare a carriage.”
“To Luce?”
“Yes. We’re going to the one who’s holding something interesting and waiting to toy with him.”
Isis handed him a bundle of papers she had been gathering. Though fewer than Henry’s reports, it contained essential information.
Conrad’s expression shifted strangely as he examined each sheet. His frown deepened, yet a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
By the time he finished, he was laughing.
“…What is she?”
A blood relative of the empire’s most wanted witch.
And Henry had conducted his own investigation on her.
Things were more entertaining than he expected.
“Isis,” Conrad said, standing.
“Let’s go to Luce.”
