Chapter 182
## Chapter 182
The heat continued to course through her body, but her mind regained its functions with difficulty.
Varkas took a deep breath and then nodded toward the gathered men:
—Everyone withdraw, nothing is wrong.
If it were up to him, he would have ordered that beast removed from the room immediately, but since he had promised her, he had no choice but to be patient.
He swallowed hard, suppressing a sigh, and prepared to turn around, but at that moment, the head butler stepped out from the dispersing crowd with hesitant steps.
—Lord Duke… I have a report I would like to present…
Varkas threw him a severe look, which made the man in his forties shudder and close his mouth. Varkas gathered what was left of his patience and asked:
—What is the matter?
—The l-leader of the ‘Silver Alliance’ guild has been waiting for several hours. He says he has an urgent matter he must report to you…
The butler saw how the Duke’s brow furrowed, and his voice died down out of panic.
Varkas sighed deeply:
—Tell him I am coming immediately.
As soon as the butler left in a hurry, Varkas returned to the bedroom.
She had sat on the edge of the bed and was stroking the wolf, who was insistently nudging her, trying to calm him down.
Varkas observed the scene for a moment and then said in a deep, low voice:
—I have an urgent business matter, I must leave. Rest.
—I will be waiting for you, so…
The moment he turned around to leave, he heard her raspy voice.
He stopped and looked back; he saw that an intense flush covered her neck.
—Come back here again —said the woman as she clumsily played with the wolf’s pointed ear.
Then, she buried one of her cheeks in the wolf’s neck and stared at him.
Varkas contemplated those jewel-like eyes as if he had been pinned to the spot, and then nodded his head slowly.
A delicate smile formed on her lips.
And in that instant, a strange feeling stirred in his chest.
A long time later, he would manage to decipher the name of that feeling. It was ‘hope’.
—I am sorry to come without an appointment. I have urgent news that I needed to communicate to you immediately…
As soon as he entered the reception room, the man who was walking anxiously back and forth by the window spoke with bated breath.
Varkas sat in the chair, ignoring the formal greetings, gestured with his head toward the seat opposite him, and asked:
—What have you discovered?
—By your order, I stayed in the northeastern region keeping an eye on the remnants of the vassals of Duke Heimdall’s family. During that time, I obtained important information…
The man from the north, who sat cautiously in the opposite seat, took a crumpled notebook from his chest and handed it to him.
As Varkas examined it unhurriedly, the wrinkles between his eyebrows deepened.
The yellowish paper contained records of massive transactions of various grains, iron ore, and even military horses.
When he verified the clearly printed seal next to it, he let out a sarcastic laugh; it was the seal of one of the eastern noble families he knew very well.
—It seems that some nobles from the regions bordering ‘Balto’ were colluding with the north. I felt you needed to be aware, so I rushed here.
—… I thank you for your attention.
Varkas thanked him in a dry and formal manner; then, he closed the notebook, gripped it tightly in his hand, and stood up.
—I will assign you a room so you can rest. Stay here as long as you wish.
—There is something else I would like to say —the man shouted hastily as Varkas was preparing to leave—. Not long ago, the trail of ‘Björn Blódör Heimdall’ was lost.
Varkas furrowed his brow.
Björn was the central figure who had led the rebellion, and it was known that he was under siege alongside his father in ‘Amasik’.
For such a man to disappear meant that the rebels had managed to break the siege and escape.
Varkas looked at him suspiciously:
—Amasik is completely besieged. Is it not possible that the man simply shut himself away inside?
—That man is not the type to stay confined in a castle quietly. For him not to have appeared in so long is truly abnormal.
The man pulled out his handkerchief, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and continued with a trembling voice:
—Perhaps he escaped from Amasik a long time ago. No, furthermore, I am sure of it. He must be gathering the scattered forces to plan a counterattack.
—Your concern is exaggerated. What could that man do now? —Varkas scoffed and continued—: The scales have already tipped. Many nobles of the northern alliance have shifted their allegiance, and most of the extremists have been overthrown. Even if he escaped, he does not represent a major threat at this time.
—You say that because you do not truly know him. —The man raised his voice in annoyance—. Björn is not someone who accepts defeat just like that. He must be preparing a terrible response somewhere. You must track his whereabouts immediately.
The tone of certainty in the man’s voice made Varkas narrow his eyes.
All he knew about Björn was that he possessed an innate skill for swordsmanship, that he had massive support from the northern nobles, and that he had great tactical capacity.
As for his private personality, he knew almost nothing. But given that he had led such a reckless war, it was easy to deduce that he was not a person with a normal mind.
Finally, he nodded his head:
—All right. I will take the necessary measures immediately.
Only then did the man relax his shoulders, as if feeling a genuine relief.
Varkas left the reception room immediately and headed toward the office.
First, he needed to verify the truth of the information that ‘Lowell Draven’ had brought.
He was not so naive as to blindly believe the words of a man who had played the role of a double agent.
He sat in front of the desk, pulled out paper, and began to draft an order to investigate the lords of the regions adjacent to ‘Balto’.
It was a letter addressed to ‘Darin’.
If he sent a few soldiers under the pretext of buying military supplies, he could monitor the lords of that area without raising too many suspicions.
Varkas added some specific instructions, then sealed the letter with wax and handed it to the messenger.
Meanwhile, the sun had completely set.
Varkas tidied his desk with restless hands and left the office immediately.
He went down the stairs at a quick pace and saw the guards stationed before the bedroom door.
He dismissed them calmly and then knocked on the door cautiously.
However, there was no answer.
After hesitating for an instant, he turned the doorknob.
Upon entering the silent room, where the lights danced, a thick aroma invaded his nose.
He soon discovered the cause: a light smoke was rising from a small censer placed next to the window.
“Did she light sleeping herbs?”
Fearing that the pain in her leg had worsened, he approached the bed and drew back the curtain.
The first thing that caught his eye was that grey beast occupying most of the wide sheet.
He examined the wolf, who was plunged into a deep sleep, and then shifted his gaze to his wife, who lay beside him as if she were submerged in it.
She also seemed fast asleep.
Varkas sighed in despair and sat down listlessly on the edge of the bed.
In that moment, he heard a slight moan.
—… Are you just arriving now?
The woman murmured in a sleepy voice, extending her arms toward him:
—Get me out of here quickly. I have barely just managed to get him to sleep.
Varkas looked in silence at the woman, who was whispering without managed to open her eyes fully, and then leaned down slowly.
He slid his arms beneath her waist and lifted her warm body lightly, which caused the paws of the wolf, who had been motionless as a corpse, to move.
He stopped his movements instantly.
The wolf emitted a sound as if complaining in his dreams and then calmed down.
Varkas breathed a sigh of relief for a moment, and then let out an ironic laugh, wondering what on earth he was doing.
But the moment of self-criticism did not last long; she whispered in his ear in a faint voice:
—Let’s leave quickly before the effect of the herb passes.
Varkas stood up immediately.
He took the robe hanging from the wall, wrapped it tightly around the woman who wore a thin nightgown, and left the room in silence, the wide corridors and staircases where lights flickered appearing before him.
Varkas thought about it for a moment and then went up the stairs.
He could have gone to the room she previously used, but it was likely she would suffer unnecessary disturbances from the maids.
He entered the bedroom adjacent to his own private office.
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