Volume 8 Chapter 14: How Dare You!
<span style="text-decoration:underline"><span style="font-weight:400">Volume 8 Chapter 14: How Dare You!
<span style="font-weight:400">While Keith and Krystal had to work overtime, Cedric did his thing. Right now, he was sitting in a waiting room. Did they have to put me in here? That re from him was something as it caused all the maids to flinch. That was when a butler entered the room. "Sorry for the dy, Sir Cedric. The Grand Duke shalle to meet with you."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Finally, does he think he could make me wait this long?" Cedric scoffed. The butler didn''t know what to say. He''s still the same. This was not the first time this man hade here.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Unlike you, I don''t have the luxury to y around all the time." A cold voice retorted. It was none other than Lionel, his words dripping with disdain.
<span style="font-weight:400">"You finally showed yourself, you statue."
<span style="font-weight:400">"What does the previous head of the Rustchil family want with me?" Lionel was curt.
<span style="font-weight:400">The smell of gunpowder filled the hallway. A battle between a lion and a wolf. Neither side was backing down from the other.
<span style="font-weight:400">"I need to have a word with you." Cedric went straight to the point.
<span style="font-weight:400">"?" Lionel paused before saying, "Let''s talk in the living room." Like that, the two had entered. The butler prepared two cups of tea for the two.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Oh, this is delicious." Sipping on the tea, it was rich and smooth as it went down his throat.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Of course it is," Lionel retorted as he took small sips. That only caused the vein on Cedric''s forehead to bulge. A smile soon appeared, "Your annoying personality hasn''t changed in thesest couple of years."
<span style="font-weight:400">"And your carefree attitude hasn''t changed either." Lionel wasn''t done either. Each one threw small jabs at the other.
<span style="font-weight:400">"..." The two went silent before Lionel asked, "How is your family doing?"
<span style="font-weight:400">Lionel heard about how Edmund was branded as a traitor, but the news turned out to be false, and everything had been cleared up. But there had to be damage.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Everything is better now. Right now, the dukedom is recovering from the merchants." It would return in a week or two.
<span style="font-weight:400">"You understand it''s because you gave up the title too soon, right?" Lionel shook his head. Cedric was one of the few people who handed down their title sooner than he should have. The only reason why the merchants went wild was because this man stepped down.
<span style="font-weight:400">Cedric would have them on a tight leash.
<span style="font-weight:400">"True. But if I didn''t step down, Edmund''s life would be more difficult." It was a double-edged sword. For him to step down, it allowed his son to be the grand duke sooner. However, that meant more mistakes. But it also allowed him to learn from them as well.
<span style="font-weight:400">"...But it''s truly not over, is it? It was said that the one who caused it was none other than the Grand duke''s brother." That was what the news was saying.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Is it actually so?"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Fifty-fifty."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"What about the other fifty?"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"That''s why I came here today," Cedric asked, "Has anything happened with your family?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"Like what?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"Did anyone try to make a deal with you or force you into doing something?"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"…Did that happen with Rodrick?" Hearing how he exined it, this was likely the case.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Mmhmm." Cedric nodded, "My youngest seemed to have struck a deal with someone. And this someone had to be high power as well."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"…Do you think I would do something like that?" Cedricing here to question him could imply that! He was a grand duke that rivaled him!
<span style="font-weight:400">"At first, I thought maybe." That may have caused Lionel''s expression to drop. However, Cedric shook his head, "You''re not the type of person who would do something like that."
<span style="font-weight:400">Lionel and Cedric did not mesh well with one another. But they know the other''s personality all too well. Doing something sneaky like that wasn''t something Lionel would do, especially against him.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Our kingdom has three powers." The royal family and the two grand Dukes. These three forces made up the entire power of the Solis Kingdom.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Then you''re suggesting that the royal family did this." That was the only other option.
<span style="font-weight:400">"If it''s not you, then they''re the logical choice. And it seems something is going on with them as well." The incident that urred with his family and the princess getting married to the prince of the Philosopher Kingdom. It can''t be a coincidence.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Then we''ll have to call that person here as well." "Indeed." There was one person who could answer their questions.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Also, let me stay here for a few days."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"… Don''t you have a mansion."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"But they don''t serve good food." One problem with staying in the mansion was the meals were horrible.
<span style="font-weight:400">"H-" "Did you really think I wouldn''t know? Of course, your grandson taught your chef some recipes." There was no way that was not the case. There were rumors that the marquis''s estate and the grand duke''s estate had delicious meals daily.
<span style="font-weight:400">"How do you-"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"I go to his cart every day and have his meals. And he also helped me a ton with this whole situation."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Keith did?!" Lionel''s eyes widened.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Mmhmm. I owe him plenty. And that''s why I came here to see if you were fine." Lionel was Keith''s grandfather. Despite their weird rtionship, it would be a disservice not to warn Lionel about what was urring.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Thanks for the warning." Lionel took a deep sigh.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"....By the way, have you ever thought about getting him engaged?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"…What?" A few more degrees dropped. The butler and maids quickly stepped back when they felt that pressure. Cedric continued, "This kid makes good food, and that dragator steak was delicious. He would make a good husband for my-" That was thest straw as a giant sword was thrown at the table.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"What is wrong with you?! How could you throw your sword like that?!"
<span style="font-weight:400">"How dare you! HOW DARE YOU! You made my grandson cook for you when he helped you!"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Oh, do you know he forced my granddaughter to work as a waitress! That''s something I won''t stand for!" If they were speaking of diservices, Cedric was having grips with that! There was no way he was going to let this go!
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Die!" "Go to hell!" The two charged at one another with their fist raised!
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Duchess! We need your help!" The butler quickly ran over to Camelia''s office.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"What''s with all that loud noise?
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<span style="font-weight:400">"It''s Sir Cedric and the duke are fighting one another!"
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<span style="font-weight:400">"No weapons?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"...They''re using their fists."
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<span style="font-weight:400">"Oh. You can just leave them alone." Camelia returned to reading a book. That caused the butler to sweat.
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<span style="font-weight:400">"The two of them had always been like that. One thing would lead to another. So best to let them get it out of their system." Camelia saw it all too many times; she was used to it.
<span style="font-weight:400">"..." But the mansion! Those two were enough to cause the entire mansion to rumble!