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He figured they would suspect him. He would have thought the same if he were them.
Grand Duke Yvette Lacheize would do anything for the throne.
The most frequently cited of her actions was the Expedition of Glory.
In the name of Eridrahan, she launched an expedition to Til Nebe Cedric, the continent of unbelievers across the sea who did not believe in Eridrahan. This was solely to gain the support of Archbishop Victor, one of the Electors.
And as the vanguard of that expedition, sent in place of the Grand Duke, was the young Rahan Norwich.
Everyone said he would fail, but after a six-year expedition, Rahan Norwich established the Temple of Eridrahan in Til Nebe Cedric. And then, he returned.
This was the reason why Archbishop Victor, who had always maintained neutrality among the Electors, had no choice but to support Grand Duke Lacheize.
And Lady Esselheim suspected that, once again, Grand Duke Lacheize was attempting to seize the Achen Elector family by putting Rahan forward.
In truth, she wasn't exactly wrong. Rahan snorted.
"Think whatever you like."
However, he was anxious deep down. The Grand Duke had instructed him to kidnap a woman and merely pretend to have married her. After that, she had said she would 'take care of it.'
But exactly how was she going to take care of it?
It was a fact that he had ruined a perfectly good wedding and kidnapped the bride, so Rahan had no idea what kind of vicious retaliation he might face from the Ducal House.
Regardless of Rahan's inner thoughts, another maid standing behind Lady Esselheim was infuriated by his insolent words.
"How dare you!"
It was then.
Clop, clop, clop...
The sound of urgent hoofbeats echoed from somewhere. People's gazes naturally turned toward the entrance of the monastery.
"Urgent news!"
The person who appeared at the entrance was a female knight. She was mounted on a horse and dressed in light armor.
As soon as she entered the monastery, she looked around, spotted Rahan, and screamed.
"Good grief! Sir Norwich! You crazy bastard!"
Everyone present widened their eyes in shock. Even Rahan.
Ignoring them, the female knight leaped off her horse and poured a torrent of abuse onto Rahan Norwich.
"I don't care how much you like women! You lunatic! How could you cause a mess like this?!"
"Damn it, Riet."
Rahan frowned and took a step back from the female knight.
At the same time, everyone who heard that name doubted their ears.
Riet? That Riet Klein? The 'Little Giant' of the Grand Duchy?
However, the female knight called Riet paid no mind to the surrounding stares.
"Because of you, I had to ride a million cubits in three days!"
At that point, Lady Esselheim stepped forward.
"Who are you?"
The female knight seemed to realize immediately that she was dealing with someone of high status; she let go of Rahan's collar and gave a polite bow to the lady.
"Ah, my apologies. As the representative of Grand Duke Lacheize, I have come to deliver punishment to Rahan Norwich, who abandoned his duty to protect the Grand Duke and deserted the Grand Duchy."
Lady Esselheim furrowed her brow.
"I am Esselheim, a close lady-in-waiting to Her Majesty the Empress. But... punishment?"
"Oh dear, you were Lady Esselheim! Well, you see..."
"Listen here."
At that moment, Philod interrupted.
"You claim to be the Grand Duke's representative? I am Philod Achen. That son of a demon just stole my bride. Does that mean..."
Philod was about to ask Riet if it meant Grand Duke Lacheize was coming here, but he couldn't finish his sentence.
It was because Riet let out a loud shriek.
"What? Stole the bride? You mean it's already all over?"
Then, she slumped to the ground and pretended to wail.
"This is a disaster! A total disaster! How furious will Her Highness the Grand Duke be!"
"What are you talking about?"
"You're saying Rahan Norwich didn't come on the Grand Duke's orders?"
The crowd began to murmur.
Eventually, unable to watch any longer, Abbot Wilbert stepped in.
"Now look here, Knight. I have no idea what you're talking about. Why is Grand Duke Lacheize being mentioned here? And what is this about delivering punishment to Rahan Norwich?"
Of course, it was a highly calculated question. Riet pretended to wipe away her tears and explained the whole story.
"These are sensitive matters, but since things have come to this, I suppose I must speak here."
"Speak about what?"
"Damn it! To think I have to say this with my own mouth!"
Riet shouted exaggeratedly and clenched her fist.
"Grand Duke Lacheize was attacked a few days ago by unidentified thugs! And damn it! Unfortunately, she lost her left eye!"
The crowd stirred at those words.
"The Grand Duke was attacked?"
"Her left eye, what?"
Riet's manner of speaking was so frivolous that everyone present was certain they had misheard.
However, the weight of those words was heavy.
Was it possible that the Grand Duke Lacheize had lost an eye?
"What do you mean?"
"As I mentioned earlier, the damn Rahan Norwich is in charge of the duty to protect Her Excellency Grand Duke Lacheize. But a few days ago, he abandoned that duty!"
According to Riet, Rahan Norwich was supposed to be guarding Grand Duke Lacheize two weeks ago. However, he abandoned his duty and left the Ducal Palace.
Riet explained in a contemptuous tone.
"That's right. On the day Her Highness Grand Duke Lacheize was attacked and lost an eye, this man—true to his reputation as a notorious womanizer—skipped his guard duty to go meet a woman!"
Everyone present was stunned by this bewildering news.
"And upon learning that Her Highness the Grand Duke had been attacked, he took advantage of her loss of consciousness to escape the Grand Duchy."
It is only natural for a sinner to flee. Even if he were the Grand Duke's right hand.
Rahan Norwich had fled in fear. Just as everyone was going crazy trying to find his whereabouts, Grand Duke Lacheize regained consciousness.
"And the wise Her Excellency the Grand Duke predicted that he would have deserted the Grand Duchy out of greed for the daughter of the Achen Elector family in order to be pardoned for his crime, and thus sent me here."
According to Riet Klein, Rahan Norwich had recently learned about the events occurring within the Achen Elector family.
Riet placed a hand on her chest and grieved theatrically.
"Oh, our poor Her Excellency the Grand Duke."
The people murmured again.
"This is..."
"Then isn't this a truly grave matter?"
"I think I now understand what that man was aiming for."
Of course, everything Riet said was a lie.
Rahan observed the situation with a sullen face. If he could, he wanted to ask, 'Did I really do that?'
The Grand Duke said she would take care of it; was this it?
Grand Duke Lacheize was not unaware of the criticism she would receive from the public if she married her right hand to Iris Achen.
She would certainly be accused of playing tricks on the Achen Ducal House, a powerful Elector family.
Therefore, she had found a very flashy excuse.
Namely, her own eyeball.
The Grand Duke had indeed lost an eye during an attack while hunting recently. That much was true. It was obvious that it was the work of Elio Foldenbach. That had happened several months ago.
However, as mentioned before, the injury of a powerful person like Grand Duke Lacheize was information that could not leak out, so she had kept it a secret and used it for this opportunity.
'Is she actually insane?'
Rahan was flabbergasted. However, the Grand Duke's choice was correct. Despite the intense commotion, the people were accepting the situation on their own.
Above all, Philod was the most enraged.
"You scoundrel! Do you think things will go your way just because of this? You were aiming for the Elector's Right of Immunity, weren't you? But the Elector is my father!"
Electors possessed three Rights of Immunity that allowed them to be forgiven in the name of the Archbishop, provided the crime was not a great sin such as treason or religious heresy.
This applied only to the Elector themselves, their spouse, and one direct descendant.
Naturally, people began to guess the details of the situation in connection with this.
The guess was as follows:
Rahan Norwich had neglected his duty to protect Grand Duke Lacheize, causing her a severe injury.
Worrying about how to avoid responsibility for such a great crime, he thought of Iris Achen, the daughter of the former Achen Elector and a candidate for Elector.
Iris Achen was in a position where she lacked nothing to inherit the title of Elector.
Thus, Rahan Norwich escaped the Grand Duchy to use the Right of Immunity that would follow if she inherited the title. Then, he kidnapped Iris Achen and spent the first night with her.
"I will kill you!"
Philod Achen screamed while looking at Rahan.
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