On the way back, they encountered the knights unit.
Ricky, Anna and Lars joined them and went back to the church.
Beryl was also in their care, and was sent because it was effective for him to be healed by priests.
Jamie’s party went straight to the Marquis mansion. The memorial service for Archbishop Sephira and the victims would be held the next day, but before that they had to rest their weary bodies.
“Jamie! My son!”
As soon as they arrived, Sears ran out and hugged Jamie tightly.
To be honest, Jamie was ready to get slapped. As if it wasn’t enough to ignore Sears’ words and go to Mirinae Forest, he even almost died.
However instead of scolding, Sears hugged Jamie and cried.
“I am glad… really glad.”
He didn’t think that she’d be this worried, and Jamie was quite puzzled. To the extent where he regretted not being able to empathize with her.
Jamie hesitated for a moment and then embraced his mother.
“Jamie?”
Sears looked at Jamie with a surprised look.
She was surprised by the unexpected act from her son, whenever she hugged him, Jamie would usually make a face or stay still.
Jamie smiled while wiping the tears from Sears’ eyes.
When he looked at his mother’s face, the face he saw before was overlapping.
The appearance of his maternal grandmother.
He couldn’t remember her face, but seeing Sears reminded him of her.
‘They look alike.’
The mother and daughter looked alike.
At that moment, Jamie’s eyes saw Sarah fidgeting and doing something.
Jamie gestured, and Sarah immediately ran for him with a bright smile.
“S-Sarah!”
“Hehehe!”
As if it was good, Sarah smiled.
“If you do that next time, your mother will really be mad.”
“Really be mad!”
“Sorry…”
Jamie bowed and apologized to Sears who was scolding him belatedly, and Sarah kept repeating the words.
He thought he wouldn’t be scolded, but his mother was strict in this case.
Meanwhile, Sarah was cutely following it.
“Who do you take after?”
“Who do you take after?”
Honestly, he didn’t take after anyone, so Jamie smiled.
“Do you have to go so far?”
The Marquis, who was watching this, awkwardly tried to stop Sears.
Sears let out a short sigh, as if she didn’t want to nag and ended it.
“Go and rest. Today must have been difficult.”
Sears kissed Jamie’s forehead lightly.
When her son, who would normally try to run away or make a face, allowed her to kiss him, she had a playful expression on her face.
“I guess it is good for my son to create trouble once in a while. I get to express my affection like this, comfortably.”
She was always comfortable…
She wouldn’t even let him go till she was done.
When he went up to the room after Sears patted him on his butt. Sarah was slowly falling asleep in Sears hands.
Sarah wouldn’t sleep during the day, but today she was too tired for it.
Sears took her sleepy daughter and spoke to the Marquis.
“We will also head up and rest.”
“Would you like to talk to me for a moment?”
“Talk? She slept too late at night…”
“Maid. Please take care of Sarah.”
“Yes.”
A maid came over and picked up Sarah and returned to the room.
Sears, who saw that, headed to the Marquis’s office along with the Marquis.
For some reason, it seemed like her father was shouldering something heavy.
“Are you alright?”
Sears asked her tense father.
She had no idea what he wanted to talk about. Did something bad happen to Jamie and he wasn’t able to bring it up?
‘He looked fine on the outside.’
As she was deep in thought, the Marquis spoke.
“Have you heard of Beryl?”
“Yes. I heard he was the one who brought Jamie out of the woods.”
“That guy is in critical condition now.”
“… I see.”
“Aren’t you worried?”
“Father. I…”
“I know. I know it very well.”
The Marquis knew what happened between Sears and Beryl.
And the Marquis was enraged at it.
Sears was his sweet daughter and Beryl was the one trying to forcefully oppress her.
However, as time passed, Beryl changed little by little.
“Have you heard things about him?”
“Yes. There were only bad things.”
The rumors chasing Beryl were ghastly ones, ‘the demon’, ‘the butcher’ and stuff.
They were the nicknames he was given because of his hand which showed no mercy.
Sears thought that all those actions were his anger induced ones, and to some extent she was right.
“Are you not willing to forgive him?”
“Is there anything to forgive? We already…”
“I am not telling you to accept him. Beryl, that guy, I feel very bad for him. And I feel extremely sorry for his wife too.”
“…”
“It might be his act to seek atonement when he risked his life to protect Jamie today.”
When Jamie didn’t answer, the Marquis sighed.
“If it is fine, meet him later. Apart from all that happened, he saved Jamie. If it wasn’t for Beryl, you might have never met Jamie.”
“I get it.”
The situation was complicated, but the Marquis said Beryl saved Jamie’s life.
Then that meant he saved Sears in a way, so she thought meeting him was fine.
Though she knew that it would be impossible for their relationship to change.
And Beryl too would be well aware of it.
They both had come too far from the way they were in the past.
And knowing that, the Marquis didn’t force his daughter anymore.
“And, your mother appeared in front of Jamie.”
The Marquis spoke about what Jamie said.
Her dark face brightened slightly.
“I knew.”
“You knew?”
“Yes. She appeared in front of me. So I had some faith. Father gave Jamie something from mother, and it was the same to me.”
-Everything is fine. So don’t worry.
There was no sound but she knew what the words were.
“Hu-”
At those words, the Marquis sighed and then let out a sad laugh.
“She is too much really. She appears in front of her daughter and grandson, but why not me? I was waiting for her too.”
There was sadness in his voice, but there was a little joy too.
It was because this gave him the sign that his long dead wife was still around for the family.
The Marquis titled his head and remembered the face of his wife.
“Thinking back, your mother was a wonderful woman.”
“I know.”
“I was so happy to be married to such a wonderful woman.”
“You don’t plan on getting married again?”
The Marquis had lived alone for a long time.
Sears wanted her father to let the past go and start a new life.
Above all else, wasn’t he the head of the great Bell family?
It didn’t sit well with her that this person was still living alone without any kids around him.
But the Marquis shook his head.
“I don’t have those thoughts. The only woman I have in my life is Tina. And when I am this old, what kind of remarriage will I have?”
“You should enjoy the twilight.”
“Enough. After all, within a few more years your eldest brother will take over the family. And then, I think I can go out on excursions alone.”
“Father.”
“Let’s end the conversation.”
The conversation which was flowing freely was stopped suddenly.
Sears was perplexed.
She didn’t understand why her father suddenly stopped a nice flow.
The Marquis who paused for a moment opened his mouth.
“Prepare your heart and listen to this.”
Why was he setting up such a mood?
Sears swallowed with fear.
And then, the Marquis opened his mouth.
“Archbishop Sephira passed away today.”
“… what?”
“According to the executioner, he was murdered by Sable.”
“N-No way.”
Sears shook her head at the words she didn’t want to believe.
Archbishop Sephira was murdered?
She thought the Marquis was joking.
But the Marquis shook his head.
“Do not lie. Why is a person as respected as the Archbishop murdered, murder…!”
“I have nothing to say. It is my fault for accepting him. If I had known his identity I would…”
The Marquis closed his eyes and bowed his head.
Sears’ mind went blank.
She couldn’t believe what she just heard.
What kind of person he was to her.
-Woah! I think our Lady Sears is a genius! How did you come up with this idea?
-If you run alone you will get hurt! Gosh! I told you, you would get hurt, Sears!
-Lady Sears. To become a good adult, you need to be patient and eat even when the food isn’t nice.
-I said it was dangerous there! Why did you go up it! Sears is being a naughty child? Why aren’t you listening to me? Your fair skin will get messed up!
-Lady Sears. I spoke too much today. Could we reconcile with this candy?
-Our pretty Sears. Even when you go there, you should live happily, please!
Archbishop Sephira was Sears’ life friend, a parent and a brother.
The days when he praised her, the days when they played in the fields, the days she was caught eating, the days he scolded her for climbing too high, the days he gave candy to her to reconcile till the day she got married to Count Welton.
Sears wept as she remembered those things.
“And… he said he would meet me…”
She thought that she could meet him again.
She didn’t realize that yesterday would be her last meeting.
“We are going to hold a memorial service tomorrow, so please rest till then. You haven’t been able to sleep, right?”
The Marquis called a maid to take Sears to her room.
And then pulled out a cigar and placed it in his mouth.
“This is savage.”
Archbishop, the most respected human being.
Having seen the man for a long time, he knew better than anyone how great Sephira was.
He wasn’t the kind of man to die in such a place like that.
But he wasn’t alive anymore.
“I will surely avenge you.”
If Archbishop Sephira had been alive, he would have definitely said the words ‘Don’t go after revenge, revenge only brings revenge onto us’.
“This man really…”
If only he had lived a little selfishly, maybe he wouldn’t have died.
“I am not going to follow what you would say.”
Zenith had crossed a line.
Although his mind was lacking. Marquis Bell was one of the most powerful figures in the Seldam Kingdom.
“I will do everything in my power. I will not stop until all worshippers of that evil god are brought to their knees by any means possible.”
The Marquis sucked the cigar deeply.
Smoke enough to give him a headache, but it didn’t matter to him.
“So please don’t be too heartbroken and watch from the sky in joy.”
A lot happened today.
And his body wasn’t what it used to be.
“I am getting old.”
And this seemed like the best time to burn the cigar.
The Marquis put off the cigar and stood up.
He told Sears to rest, but he didn’t have time to sleep.
If he wanted to destroy the Zenith church, then he had to start working right away.
The Marquis sat down at the desk and began to write down the appeals to the king.
