CHAPTER 55- Powerful Move

News of Dain's death caused the entire House of Nyxveil to fall into mourning. Only his life-force-sucked-away, headless body was able to be revived and placed before Father and Mother; both of them looked as if their world had just come to an end.

Alancia couldn't bear looking at Dain's rotten dead body and fainted. Ezekian's face turned pale as he couldn't even blink his eyes and mumbled, "Not even monsters kill like this!"

Mother couldn't stand looking at Dain and cried her heart out while clutching his body.

Father didn't show any particular expression of sorrow or remorse, but judging by his expression, it seemed he was more stunned by the state of Dain's body than by Dain's death itself. Somehow, his expression made me feel unsettled, and I couldn't shake off that feeling.

At first, Dain said Father taught him demonic arts, and then he mentioned someone named Sylvester...

I swear this confusion in my head would kill me someday. I wanted to trust Xavier's words when he said there was no trace of demonic energy in Father. But somehow, I kept questioning: What if he saw it wrong? What if there is something I wasn't aware of?

Yesterday, Dain's funeral took place, and that day it rained as if the sky had broken.

To the world, it was told that Dain was killed in an ambush by an unknown enemy. Other than those who witnessed the fight between me and Dain, not a single person knew the truth.

While Dain's body was being buried amid the rain, I could hear the whispers of the nobles who came to attend the funeral.

- "What if it was the Eldest Lady behind the death of the Young Lord?"

- "It would make more sense. After all, even though she is the master of Shadow, the sword of the First Hero of Nyxveil, she still lacks a lot."

- "The Young Lord was far more worthy of becoming the future Patriarch than her. How sad he had to lose his life so brutally!"

- "It must be the Eldest Lady behind this. Didn't you see how she didn't even shed a single tear?"

- "Poor Duke and Duchess, to be parents of such a heartless monster!"

The rain poured over the black umbrella I was holding, and the sound of Mother and Elizabeth's sobbing echoed in the air.

"How could you die like this, Dain? You promised we would live happily ever after!" Elizabeth cried bitterly. Her mother held her back, and behind her stood her father and... Rudrick.

The Marquess seemed more troubled by the thought of losing the chance to become relatives with the Nyxveils than by seeing his daughter in pain. His grim expression didn't escape my eyes.

Behind him, Rudrick seemed scared as he kept glancing at the Marquess.

"It's time to bury the deceased," the holy priest announced. Mother kissed Dain's bony hand and mumbled, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I couldn't protect you from stepping into the darkness."

Even at 36, she was strikingly beautiful. Amid her grief, she resembled a sorrowful painting, her elegance undiminished.

Father held her arms, and as the priests started covering the coffin, I was able to take one final glance at Dain's face.

"Hope you enjoy the afterlife... which is less likely the case," I whispered lightly under my breath.

I wasn't feeling anything in particular. I had killed him brutally, and I was seeing how people were crying and mourning for him while casting doubt on me.

Yet, I felt nothing. Rather, I felt a strange satisfaction in my heart. Dain... There wasn't a day in my life where he bothered to show even the smallest consideration toward me.

While torturing me in the dark, he acted like a saint in front of the world. He even poisoned me several times, and as I looked at him painfully while begging for the antidote, he smiled with a strange satisfaction.

Locking me in the warehouse when I was just five years old, humiliating me in front of the noble kids along with Elizabeth every time I attended a tea party, beating me whenever he got angry at something, and accusing me of crimes he committed...

I wonder if my lack of remorse for him is even weird.

The funeral came to an end, but the rain didn't.

It was 8 in the morning, yet the sky looked as if it were night. Because of the heavy rainfall, most of the guests couldn't return, so it was a bit crowded inside the mansion, and the rooms next to mine were also occupied by some guests.

Yesterday, Xavier also left along with Master. I don't know what kind of conversation or deal happened between them, but before leaving, Xavier said one thing to me: "I will become even stronger. So, you too get stronger"

He sounded rather determined... in a good way.

And Master left me with a book and said, "Try to read it a few times and mark the things you don't understand. You need to master Crimson Abyss even more before I unseal your mana core."

Since neither of them was staying with me anymore, the room felt bigger and more suffocating. I guess I had grown accustomed to Xavier's presence in just four days.

And here I am, standing near the window, looking at the rain falling viciously after practicing my footwork in my room.

The training ground is flooded, and attracting any attention won't do me any good today.

*Knock Knock*

I heard a knocking sound on my wooden door. I turned around, and Mika walked inside.

"Young Duke has asked if you are free," she said, bowing her head before informing me. I narrowed my eyes. "What does he want?" Mika seemed to hesitate for some reason, and I raised an eyebrow.

Mika sighed. "His Highness, the First Prince, is in the Young Duke's room and wants to have tea with you two."

My hands turned cold as soon as I heard her. I did hear that someone from the Imperial Palace was coming today, but I didn't expect it to be Kaelith himself.

I gritted my teeth. It was frustrating. I knew I couldn't ignore Kaelith forever, but I wasn't in the mood to see him.

I shrugged my shoulders. I grabbed the towel from the chair and wiped off my face, only to receive a weird look from Mika.

"You aren't going in this state, are you?" she asked, looking me up and down.

I was in my training outfit, clearly not suitable attire to greet the so-called First Prince! But I had no intention of showing him any kind of imperial courtesy.

"It doesn't matter. Prepare some tea. I have a feeling this will be a long conversation," I said while passing by Mika, who sighed in defeat.

As I was walking downstairs, I could see Marquess Graham standing in front of Father's office, with Rudrick behind him. Rudrick didn't seem well... to be more specific, he looked drained.

I narrowed my eyes and activated hyper perception to get a better view of Rudrick. And my eyes widened at what I saw.

Though Rudrick seemed to cover it well with makeup, it was useless against my hyper perception.

The oval-shaped purple bruises covered his entire neck, which someone had desperately tried to hide with makeup...

They were clearly hickeys... So, the rumors spreading in the court of Ignis regarding Rudrick and the Graham family were true after all!

"My Lady?" I heard Mika calling me from behind. "Tell His Highness I am meeting with Father, so it will take some time for me to join them."

I tied up my hair into a ponytail. I was going to delay it a little, but now that I had seen it with my own eyes, I had no intention of letting it go.

"But, My Lady—" "You are my maid, Mika. So, act like one." I gave Mika a cold glare, and she was taken aback by it.

The door to Father's study opened, and both of them walked inside. Rudrick was limping as he followed.

"You are so dead today, Marquess Graham!" I mumbled with a dark smile on my face.

---

Marquess Graham walked into the study along with Rudrick. He gulped as he watched the person sitting on the chair behind the long white marble table, piled high with documents and papers. Everything about the study was exotic and screamed luxury.

Sylvester looked up, his green eyes intimidating. The other two men bowed their heads.

"What brings the Marquess to request a sudden meeting?" Sylvester asked, the round glasses resting on the bridge of his nose giving him an even more intimidating look.

"Your Grace, I have something to discuss with you," Marquess Graham replied calmly. Sylvester didn't seem pleased by his presence, yet for the sake of appearances, he nodded.

Marquess Graham got excited, but before he could say anything, there was another knock on the door.

Sylvester could feel Selentia's energy and narrowed his eyes. *What is she doing here?* he thought but gave permission for her to enter anyway.

Selentia opened the door and walked inside. Marquess Graham's eyes widened as he looked at Selentia. He clenched his fist angrily and thought, *Fuck! What is this bitch doing here? I was going to tell the Duke about the rumors of her killing Dain and have her removed from the succession!*

"You won't mind if I join the discussion too, right, Marquess Graham?" Selentia spoke coldly. Rudrick, who was hanging his head low, looked at Selentia with surprise.

His expression was complicated but not unreadable. Selentia stood confidently across from him, and he couldn't understand why he felt pleased to see her.

Perhaps it had something to do with what Selentia had told him days ago? Or maybe it was just his intuition.

"Young Lady, I need to discuss something with His Grace," Marquess Graham tried to hide his displeasure.

Selentia looked at Sylvester, who seemed to understand what she was asking for without her saying a word.

"Selentia is my successor. It's better for her to be present here and learn about the relationship between us personally," Sylvester replied calmly. Marquess Graham looked at him, shocked.

Sylvester's eyes darkened. "Do you have a problem with that?"

His words were more of a threat than a question. Marquess Graham felt angry, but he was helpless in front of Sylvester.

Selentia walked inside and sat on one of the sofas, while Marquess sat across from her. Rudrick stood behind him, and his gaze on Selentia only broke when she returned it.

Selentia was barely holding back her urge to behead Marquess Graham for what he was doing to Rudrick, but she had a better plan.

"So, what is it that the Marquess wishes to discuss with me?" Sylvester said as he took off his glasses. His hair fell over his forehead, giving him a more youthful vibe than usual.

Marquess looked at Selentia, who was busy eating a cookie from the table, and thought, *Be as arrogant as you want. Today, I will make sure that smug face of yours gets ruined.*

Marquess Graham cleared his throat. "There is a rumor going around, Your Grace." Sylvester raised an eyebrow, and Marquess nodded. "Yes, a very outrageous rumor at that."

"What kind of rumor are you speaking of?" Sylvester asked, a little curious. Marquess thought it was a good opportunity.

He put on a sad face and sighed. "I know you haven't overcome the loss of your son, Your Grace. After all, Dain was such a nice and kind child."

Sylvester couldn't show it, but he didn't feel even the slightest bit of sadness at Dain's death. He was more shocked by the fact that Dain's life force had been sucked away, and he was busy trying to find the demon who might have done it.

After all, only demons can consume Death Qi.

"That's why I think I need to let you know, Your Grace. To serve justice to Dain and to my daughter, who lost her beloved fiancé," Marquess said, giving an emotional reason that didn't pique Sylvester's interest.

But Marquess was too dumb to read his expression.

Marquess Graham looked at Selentia, who was picking up another cookie from the table. His eyes darkened with twisted excitement. "There are rumors going around that it was Young Lady Selentia who killed Dain to secure her succession."

Sylvester felt like rolling his eyes and rubbed his forehead. *It's not even a rumor. She is the one who killed Dain. This bastard isn't even trying to hide what he's trying to do.*

Sylvester looked at Selentia, who seemed unfazed by such a bold accusation, and he narrowed his gaze. *What will you do this time, Selentia? How will you face these rumors that could take away your position?*

Selentia wiped the cookie crumbs from her mouth and poured herself a glass of water. Marquess Graham grew angry at her actions and looked at Sylvester. "You should investigate this, Your Grace. The real criminal should be caught and punished."

"Marquess Graham," Selentia finally spoke. Marquess smirked slightly before looking at Selentia. "Yes, Young Lady."

"There is no need to go through all the trouble to catch the criminal," Selentia said, standing up with a cold smile on her lips.

Sylvester followed her movements. Marquess's eyes darkened. "Why?"

Selentia stood before Marquess. "Because the criminal is right in front of you."

Sylvester's eyes widened as he heard Selentia. *Why is she admitting this? I thought she was planning to hide it!*

Marquess's eyes began to shine with a sinister glow. "You're admitting you killed Dain so proudly!"

Selentia smiled and placed her hands on his shoulders. "It's not even a secret that I killed Dain. What's there to admit?"

Marquess frowned in confusion. He tried to move, but Selentia's grip on his shoulders was tight, and his eyes widened when he realized he couldn't even budge.

"What are you doing— AHHHHHH!"

Marquess let out a painful groan as Selentia began injecting her aura into his flesh. Sylvester's eyes widened, and Rudrick looked at Selentia with pure... admiration.

Red and black aura engulfed Marquess's entire body, and he cried out in pain.

"AHHHHH— STOPPPP— UGHHHH— STOPPPPP—"

Blood began to pour from his eyes and nose, and his body trembled as he screamed in agony.

His eyes rolled back, and he felt as though someone was burning his flesh and twisting his bones. The pain was so unbearable that he began praying for death within just two minutes.

Selentia looked up at Rudrick, who was holding his breath. His heart was beating fast, filled with an unexplainable amount of satisfaction.

"Had you been less curious about me, you would have met an easier end, Marquess," Selentia said with a cold, chilling smile.

Sylvester found himself in awe of Selentia and thought, *She did the same to Dain, but seeing this right in front of me, I can't help but be amazed by how powerful and strong she really is! More than being strong, she is cruel, brutal, and merciless.*

Selentia removed her hand from Marquess's shoulder, and he fell to his knees. He vomited blood and could barely keep his eyes open.

He was terrified and traumatized. The pain he was feeling was so brutal that he just wanted to die.

Selentia looked at Sylvester. "We can't let outsiders know about Dain's secret, Your Grace."

Sylvester lowered his head and mumbled, pleased, *What an amusing kid!*

"Elizabeth saw Dain using demonic power. I'm sure she told the Marquess as well. But the Marquess is trying to use rumors as an excuse to create more problems for our House," Selentia spoke coldly and firmly.

Sylvester rested his hands on the table and intertwined his fingers, leaning forward. "So, what do you think is the best course of action?"

Selentia looked at Marquess, who was trembling in fear and mumbling for forgiveness.

"Let's just kill the Marquess and Elizabeth. Send the Marchioness to the church."

Sylvester's eyes widened at Selentia's proposal.

"It's better not to leave any loose ends, or the House of Nyxveil will be dragged down for being demon worshipers, right?" Selentia looked at Rudrick, whose mouth was slightly parted.

"Even if I agree with your proposal, do you think killing the patriarch and his daughter of one of the most prominent noble houses in the Empire is that easy?"

Sylvester raised an eyebrow. Selentia didn't know it, but Sylvester was testing her.

"It won't be hard if it's you, right?" Selentia tilted her head. Sylvester could feel a strong excitement in his heart as he looked at Selentia.

"You want me to clean up after you?" Sylvester hardened his voice.

"Wouldn't it be better for you anyway? I mean, if this father-daughter pair were to run their mouths, it would be you who would be targeted by others and dragged down." Selentia smirked slightly.

"You have many enemies, Your Grace. Your choice: Do you want to risk the entire House of Nyxveil by not eliminating this threat, or are you going to remove the possible danger before it even happens?"

Sylvester covered his mouth. Selentia thought he was stunned, but she was wrong.

Sylvester was smiling in satisfaction. He didn't know how long it had been since he felt this excited and amused.

Selentia grabbed Marquess by his collar. He was trembling in fear just looking at her.

She noticed the chain underneath his shirt. She harshly yanked off the pendant and looked at Rudrick, who blinked in shock.

"What are you doing?" Sylvester narrowed his eyes, looking at the pendant Selentia was holding.

The pendant itself was a round turquoise stone that looked shabby compared to the golden chain it hung from. Sylvester couldn't sense any special energy, but he knew it wasn't just any ordinary stone.

After all, even for demons like Sylvester, a Spirit Stone was something he had only heard of.

"Why are you taking this?" Sylvester asked. "I felt it while injecting my aura into Marquess's body. It seemed like this thing was trying to resist my aura," Selentia replied, showing it to Sylvester. "I wanted to look into it."

Sylvester didn't find Selentia's words troubling. He looked at Rudrick. "What are you going to do about this one?"

Selentia looked at Rudrick. "I'm going to take him to the academy with me as my attendant."

Sylvester was stunned. "By whose permission?"

Selentia tilted her head. "Yours, of course. I don't have any male attendant to run errands for me at the academy."

Sylvester looked at Selentia in disbelief. "Am I supposed to give you permission for that? Didn't you say no one who saw Dain's demonic power should be left alive?"

Selentia nodded. "That only applies to the members of the House of Graham. Who would even believe the words of an attendant?"

Sylvester narrowed his eyes further. "Tell me something, Selentia. I heard that you offered this kid a chance to become your attendant once before. The fact that you want me to eliminate the House of Graham—does it have something to do with him?"

Rudrick flinched at Sylvester's claim and mumbled under his breath, "There's no way that's the reason."

Selentia nodded. "You're not half wrong, though. The Marquess wouldn't let this guy work under me. So, if there's no Marquess and no House of Graham, no one will be there to stop him either."

Sylvester was speechless for a moment before he burst into laughter. Rudrick's mouth hung open as he looked at Selentia, thinking, *She can't be serious, can she?*

"You keep doing unpredictable things, Selentia," Sylvester said with a pleasant smile on his face. Selentia bowed her head slightly. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Sylvester looked at Rudrick. "You should be glad you caught the eye of someone who will persuade me to wipe out an entire household for you."

Rudrick felt his heart beating fast as he glanced at Selentia. At that moment, Rudrick thought:

*All these years, I believed I would never be able to get out of that hell. I believed I would never be saved by anyone. I questioned God and cursed Him for making my life so unbearable. I prayed for a miracle, but I never believed one would come. However...*

*There it is. The miracle, the salvation, the subject of my prayers. There she is, standing proudly and confidently, pulling me out of hell and taking me into the light once again.*

Rudrick's tears began to fall as he bowed 90 degrees in front of Selentia. "Thank you, Young Lady."

Selentia looked at Rudrick and smiled softly. "I hope you will serve me with your loyalty, Rudrick."

Rudrick nodded and wiped away his tears as he looked up. He smiled brightly.

The rain stopped, and the sun began to peek out from behind the dark clouds. The once-dark sky started to gleam with bright sunlight as the dark cloud of misfortune began to fade away.

"I will serve you until the day I die, Young Lady," Rudrick said with a smile.

And he thought, *If the reason I had to go through such hard and brutal years was to meet her, then I think it was worth it. Thank you, God, for letting me meet a miracle.*