Chapter 26

After a few seconds of silence, Fadelmon suddenly yelled.

“Where did you even hear such nonsense?!”

Well, that wasn’t unexpected.

Even though he had to know the witness had been caught, Fadelmon pretended to be innocent with a shameless face.

“That was all made up by your relatives to pin the blame on me. I actually tried to stop them! You really believed what they said?”

He touched his forehead and sighed dramatically, acting like he was heartbroken.

“Your late father—my brother, the Duke of Elemoer—must be screaming from the afterlife! To think you’re falling for a plot to divide close family like us!”

For Fadelmon, denying everything was probably the only strategy left.

Just like the collateral relatives tried to blame him, now he was trying to blame them instead.

“I feel burdened thinking about how much I still have to teach you. Sometimes I resent my brother for leaving a naive girl like you behind.”

He tried to act like a concerned adult, but I just watched him calmly, seeing right through the act.

When I set down my empty teacup, he flinched slightly, then ordered a servant to bring more tea.

“Bring some Talis tea—it’s good for stress and clears your mind. I drink it often. Have a sip.”

I already sensed the trap hidden behind his suddenly gentle tone.

I shrugged and replied, “You should drink it, Uncle.”

“It’s rude to refuse something an elder offers. I hope you’re not like this outside the house too?”

Fadelmon frowned and nodded toward the teacup.

He seemed desperate.

Not surprising—his relatives had betrayed him, and he was now taking all the blame alone. He probably thought his best chance was to hurry up and kill me to take the inheritance.

He likely assumed that my four bodyguards had already been handled by his men.

‘If I don’t drink this, he’ll probably try to force it into me.’

I smirked and picked up the teacup.

The steam told me the tea was very hot.

Then, without hesitation, I flung it straight at Fadelmon’s face.

“AAAGH!”

He screamed in pain.

“You! You!!”

Two of his servants rushed over and pressed a cold wet towel to his face.

“Are you okay, Count?!”

“Count!”

‘Too bad—it wasn’t hot enough to cause real burns,’ I thought.

I placed the empty cup loudly back on the table.

“You little brat! What do you think you’re doing?!”

With a towel to his red face, Fadelmon pointed at me, furious.

“You damn girl!”

Unbothered, I answered coldly.

“You keep talking about manners. But manners are for humans.”

When I stood up, Fadelmon and his men flinched.

“For someone less than human, a splash of hot water to help you wake up shouldn’t be such a big deal.”

“You crazy—!”

“I didn’t come here for a confession. I knew you’d deny everything. I just…”

I dusted off my dress.

“…came to see how desperately you’d squirm.”

His eyes shook with panic.

“What, did you think I wouldn’t figure it out? Like the poison in the tea?”

He clenched his teeth.

“So you knew everything, Katrin.”

Since I’d seen through him, this entire scene was just a one-man show.

I spoke with mocking sarcasm.

“To try to kill your niece with poisoned tea instead of repaying your debt to your dead brother… Can you even call yourself human? More like a pig.”

Then I pulled a small vial from my dress and poured the tea from the pot into it.

“Is your face okay? Even if I didn’t drink it, it’s poison—might be harmful to the skin.”

Seeing that, Fadelmon quickly shouted to his men.

“Stop her!”

He didn’t want this poison to be used as evidence.

His men started to rush toward me.

But just then, Heros burst through the door and stepped in front of me.

“That guy’s Katrin’s butler!”

Fadelmon shouted with his red, burned face.

“Kill him! He’s just a servant!”

His men lunged at Heros.

But I already knew how strong Heros was.

“Ugh!”

“Agh!”

With each kick, Heros took them down like they were nothing.

The sound of bones cracking echoed with each blow.

“W-What kind of monster…”

Fadelmon’s men were all groaning on the floor, and Fadelmon stood there yelling, helpless.

“What are you all doing?! Help him!”

But no one was coming.

All of Fadelmon’s armed guards had already been taken down by the Scavengers.

I looked out the window.

Cain, wearing a mask, gave me a thumbs-up to show the mission was complete.

“It’d be best if you don’t try anything stupid,” I said, staring coldly at Fadelmon.

“Unless you want the rest of the tea forced down your throat.”

“Y-You…!”

Trembling in fear, Fadelmon stepped back.

“I’ll let you go this time… I don’t want nightmares,” I added calmly.

“Grrr…”

“But I wonder if the court judge will let you off so easily.”

Once you go to prison, you’ll never see the light again, Fadelmon.

With that last cold remark, I left his mansion with Heros.

“Katrin Elemoer!”

Fadelmon’s enraged scream echoed behind us.

As we walked out, Heros asked,

“Miss, are you hurt?”

“I’m fine. Did you get the thing I asked for earlier? With the key I gave you?”

He nodded.

“Yes, I went to the place you mentioned and took everything. Not a single thing left.”

I smiled and walked with light steps.

I hadn’t come just to collect evidence of Fadelmon trying to kill me again.

And it wasn’t just to watch him freak out, like I told him.

It was because there was an Easter egg hidden in his mansion.

What? An Easter egg in a story like Star of the Revolution?

When Etias’s revolutionaries burned down Fadelmon Elemoer’s mansion, many treasures stolen from the Lady of Elemoer and secret imperial documents were destroyed. And with them, the truth of this letter vanished forever.

“And Miss,” Heros said, handing me a container filled with rolled-up scrolls, “may I ask what these are?”

I looked up at the sky and shrugged.

“My father’s legacy.”

They were a powerful tool to solve Etias’s military shortage… and a weapon I could use too: secrets that could ruin the current emperor.