Chapter 202
THE FORGOTTEN FIELDS (NOVEL) – CHAPTER 202
Chapter 202
Varkas stopped dead in his tracks at the threshold of the door and turned around.
Lucas approached him, his face flushed with anger, and continued speaking vehemently:
“If you cannot forgive her betrayal, then it is better for you to initiate the divorce proceedings just as the courtiers requested. There is no reason to maintain a sham marriage while leaving her abandoned like that.”
Receiving no response from Varkas, Lucas took another step forward and raised his voice:
“Even if you cover up all the charges, distrust has taken deep root in the hearts of the people of the East toward her. They will not openly show hostility out of fear of you, but the courtiers will never recognize her as the Grand Duke’s wife. It is better for her as well to return to the Imperial Palace…”
A muffled groan escaped from the lips of the brother who was prattling on arrogantly.
Varkas gripped Lucas’s jaw tightly and spoke calmly, as if engaging in an ordinary conversation:
“What do you know to speak about what is best for her?”
A choked whimper came out of Lucas’s mouth due to the powerful fist crushing his jaw.
Varkas pinned him with a frigid gaze and continued in a deliberate tone:
“Do not meddle in what does not concern you. My wife’s matter is under my exclusive jurisdiction, and it is not something for you to decide.”
“Then, do you plan to continue confining her as you are doing now?” Lucas exclaimed while roughly brushing Varkas’s hand off him.
Varkas twisted the corner of his lips and said:
“Why do you care so much about her situation?”
“I just…!” Lucas abruptly fell silent, as if he had wanted to shout something else.
Varkas directed a gaze of ice at his brother, who was biting his lips, unable to find an answer, and warned him in a grim tone:
“I will consider this as advice in good faith this time and let it slide. But there will not be a next time. You had better not play with my patience excessively.”
He concluded his words and turned around, leaving the meeting room.
At that instant, a gust of east wind blew from the top of the castle walls and struck his face sharply.
He turned as if drawn by something, and his gaze landed on the imposing tower that rose above the inner wall of the castle.
He gazed with narrowed eyes at the window of the room where she resided.
He thought he could discern her slender silhouette behind the tinted glass.
At that moment, the word “confinement” that his brother had hurled generated an annoying echo in his mind, so he shook his head, trying to dismiss the thought.
Even if life here were miserable, he could not send her back to the Imperial Palace again.
It was completely evident what kind of treatment an illegitimate princess expelled from the position of the Grand Duke’s wife and surrounded by scandal would receive.
The pack of hyenas seeking to ingratiate themselves with the Crown Prince would not leave her in peace, Garis, brimming with venom, would seize the opportunity to corner her, and the Emperor would remain as usual, being a mere spectator.
And the Empress would not care about her daughter’s life either; on the contrary, it was most likely that she would only think about how to use her.
He clenched his fist upon recalling her figure lying like a corpse under the fallen rocks.
The Empress had pushed them into that pilgrimage journey without blinking, despite knowing that her daughter could be in danger.
He was not capable of leaving her once more under the influence of that woman who resembled a viper.
In the end, there was only one conclusion he could reach.
Her remaining here was best for her, because on this continent of ‘Lobedain’, Calmore was the only place untouched by the influence of the Empress and the Crown Prince.
Varkas dissipated any remaining hesitation and marched toward the training ground. At that moment, a familiar voice reached him from behind:
“Lord.”
Varkas turned to find his direct subordinate, Regin, approaching with rapid steps, so he walked toward him.
“The investigation regarding the matter you ordered has concluded. This way…” the man began his speech in a cautious tone and moved forward, flanking the inner wall of the castle.
Varkas followed his subordinate in silence. The man did not open his mouth until they had crossed the back gate of the castle and entered the backyard.
“Just as I mentioned to Your Lordship, a secret passage was discovered in the castle’s underground storehouse. Based on the inspection with the magic artifact, it was confirmed that it extends to the entrance of the Armond forest.”
Varkas listened to his explanation and entered the storehouse building connected to the castle.
When they went down the stone stairs, the outlines of the dark storehouse appeared, where various goods were piled behind iron bars.
Varkas advanced toward the interior and discovered a wide passage in the inner chamber where valuable relics were displayed, examining its interior thoroughly.
The tunnel extended in a straight line and was wide enough for a massive Dire Wolf to pass through with total ease.
“There was a meticulous device hidden in the stone wall. The structure is designed so that the entrance does not open unless this ornament is pulled in a specific direction,” Regin said while pointing to a metallic torch holder embedded near the access point.
Varkas pulled it to one side. With a clicking sound, the stone blocks moved by themselves, and the entrance to the passage disappeared completely.
He turned the mechanism toward the opposite side again and, with a faint sound similar to the turning of clock gears, the secret passage appeared again in an instant.
“It seems the dwarves who designed the castle placed some tricks.”
Regin concurred with his words, saying:
“Even the previous Grand Duke was unaware of this tunnel’s existence… It seems certain that the slaves brought during the Warring Kingdoms era built it in secret.”
“Was there no other concealment installation?”
“We performed a thorough inspection with the magic artifact, but nothing additional was found,” the man presented his report in a solemn tone, and then asked cautiously, gauging his opinion: “What do we do?”
Instead of answering, Varkas swept his gaze across the darkness of the tunnel with gloomy eyes.
The fact that a secret passage like this existed inside the vault, the key to which only the mistress of the house possessed, was enough to make the argument he had painstakingly built for her sake utterly useless in a second.
Varkas turned to him with a cold look:
“How many people know about the existence of this secret passage?”
“Only Labumir and I.”
“You have done well,” Varkas praised him in a dry tone and added coldly: “Make sure this information does not leak to the outside, and seal this passage immediately.”
Regin bowed his head with a serene face, as if he had been expecting this order.
Varkas left his subordinate behind and went straight out of the basement. Upon leaving the building, the wind, which had gained strength, disheveled his hair.
Varkas roughly adjusted his hair and looked out of habit toward her place of residence, then turned around and left.
At dawn the next day, Varkas mounted his horse, preparing for departure.
Hundreds of courtiers had gathered in front of the castle gate to see him off.
Varkas examined the lines of knights arrayed in an orderly fashion, and then his gaze landed on the members of his family.
At the front of the line were Lucas, with whom he had argued yesterday, and Lina, who was forced to remain inside the annex building for a time.
As he approached them on horseback, his sister looked down in confusion, while Lucas presented a courteous greeting with a serene face, as if nothing had happened:
“I wish you success, brother. We hope for your safe return.”
Varkas responded with a nod of his head and swept his gaze across the training ground.
There was no trace of her anywhere.
He felt bitterness in his mouth and pulled the reins of his horse slowly.
Shortly after, the guard blew the ox horn with a loud tone.
The march of the knights began with discipline outside the castle gate, which was wide open.
As Varkas led the ranks across the plains, he suddenly turned around upon reaching the middle of the hill.
The dawn light of a bluish hue poured over the imposing castle walls.
A single fragment.
Passed before his eyes like a spark, those brief months that had filled him with hope, and the bitter frustration that awaited him at the end of them.
He spurred his horse hard as if erasing that from his mind, and cut the last vestige of attachment remaining to him, mocking himself for having expected something different in this empty life.
“We have sent advance communications to the lords of the northeastern regions. In the event that the rebels make any movement, they will be able to mobilize available forces and suppress them immediately.”
When they reached the edges of the birch forest, which revealed its whiteness after crossing the plains, Perov approached and began to speak cautiously.
Varkas opened his canteen to moisten his mouth, then wiped his lips and sighed calmly:
“Military suppression is the last resort. The outbreak of a civil war in the East must be prevented at any cost.”
“Do you intend to negotiate with the rebels?”
“We cannot deplete our forces at a time when we must watch the North, can we?” Varkas replied in a dry tone while closing his canteen and placing it in the saddlebags. “If we offer to cover up their crimes in exchange for the restitution of the lands and titles, they will withdraw peacefully, unless they are fools.”
“Those men betrayed their ruler for some money; perhaps common sense does not work with them.”
“In that case, bloodshed will be inevitable,” he replied in a calm tone and spurred his horse again.
The journey passed in calm. Perhaps thanks to the stability of security during the past summer, the monotonous march continued without encountering even monsters of the dragon or wyvern species that abound in autumn, let alone bands of raiders.
Thanks to this, they managed to emerge from the vast forests and reach an open plateau in less than ten days.
“Let us take a rest here,” Varkas dictated the order while stopping his horse near the grassland area, so the escort blew the horn to give the signal.
Immediately, the knights following him with discipline dismounted from their horses. Varkas also descended from Turk’s back and unfolded the map to reexamine the topography.
At that instant, the echo of a horn resonated from the lower part of the slope that stretched out peacefully.
Varkas turned his head and narrowed his eyes to discover thousands of horsemen charging from behind the thick fog.
Even from a distance, the banners of the knights of Roim could be distinguished with total clarity.
“Why is the Imperial Army in the East…?” Perov murmured, his voice tinged with bewilderment.
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