Chapter 18

Demius’s eyes narrowed.

But Seres shook her head firmly.

“There are things you don’t need to know.”

“…”

His lips parted slightly, his voice low and steady.

“You always say that, Mother.”

Screech—

The sound of steel grated through the air.

The tension between their crossed blades was finally beginning to break.

Seres’s hand ached as if her grip might tear apart, and at that moment, Demius’s lips curved faintly.

“I’m tired of hearing it.”

Clang!

The jarring vibration numbed her hand for an instant.

Before she could recover, Demius thrust again. Seres raised her sword in haste.

Clack!

Within seconds, several rapid exchanges followed.

Demius bit down hard, his eyes burning coldly.

“You still think I can’t see through you?”

“…!”

Seres’s gaze trembled.

At that look, Demius recalled something his nurse once told him.

‘Her Grace cherishes you more than anyone, my lord.’

Lies.

He had refused to believe it.

According to the nurse, the vassals of the duchy had begged the Grand Duchess for years to remarry, saying it was necessary for the sake of the estate and its heirs.

But she had refused every proposal.

Even as her black hair turned white, she ruled alone.

Yet that cold woman, who cared only for governing and slaying monsters, had done it out of love?

Impossible.

‘It must have been for political reasons.’

The scheming nobles probably tried to offer their daughters to her son as tribute. Seres must have seen through their ambitions and rejected them.

That would make sense. She always put the safety of the duchy above all else.

“How amusing,” Demius said quietly.

Their eyes met.

Dark blue, like the deep sea.

The same color as his own, though hers had faded to pale at the edges.

He spoke evenly.

“A woman who married the third son of some obscure viscount family, barely above common birth, refuses to accept my wife. I find that strange.”

“Demius.”

Her voice trembled.

Was it anger, or surprise?

For the first time, Demius saw something uncertain in her face.

Even the Iron-Blooded Duchess, it seemed, grew weaker with age.

But she was still the Grand Duchess.

The beast of Antaras, the northern wall of the empire.

Her tricks no longer worked on him.

“You despise Natalianne’s eyes for the same reason, don’t you?”

“You insolent boy!”

Clang!

Seres’s roar split the air as her sword came crashing down.

With a violent sound, Demius’s blade snapped clean in half.

Fragments of steel scattered, slicing his cheek.

“Foolish child!”

A thin line of blood trickled down his face as Seres shouted.

“Have you no sense of what should and shouldn’t be said? Did I raise you for this?”

“Raised me?”

Demius gave a bitter smile as the cut on his cheek stung.

“If those occasional sparring matches count as lessons, then perhaps you did. Though I could never tell if you were teaching a son or sharpening a blade for the duchy.”

“…”

Seres inhaled sharply, then answered in a low voice.

“I did my best.”

“I’m sure you did. You were always busy.”

His tone was cold.

“That’s why it was my nurse and my brother who raised me.”

His gaze hardened like tempered steel.

“The brother you cast aside.”

“…”

Seres’s brow furrowed slightly.

He had grown more defiant than ever.

Even when he’d run away to search for his brother, he hadn’t been this confrontational.

So what had changed him so completely?

“That girl,” she muttered.

Seres found the answer immediately.

Melissa.

If it was because of her, everything made sense.

“I’ll see to it that she’s expelled at once.”

“Do you really think I’d allow that?”

His voice dropped lower, sharper.

Seres glared, her tone icy.

“I am your mother, and the Grand Duchess.”

“And I am the heir you claim to want so badly.”

“!”

Her expression tightened.

Demius smiled faintly.

“If I disappear, only Natalianne will remain. Do you think she’d so easily take your title?”

“…”

The words struck home.

Seres clenched her jaw.

That was precisely why she hadn’t dared act against Melissa.

With Asellion gone and Demius estranged, only Natalianne remained.

But Natalianne was the most troublesome of the three.

She had lived in a distant magic tower since youth and was now a renowned mage across the empire.

Forcing her back would be difficult, and with her volatile temper, who knew what she might do if provoked?

She might even destroy the duchy itself.

‘That can’t happen.’

Seres’s teeth ground together.

The Eisenhart Duchy was the empire’s northern shield, the first line of defense against monsters.

If chaos erupted over succession, it wouldn’t just endanger their house but the entire frontier.

That must never happen.

Her brows tightened as she composed herself.

The duchy existed to defend the northern mountains, to protect the empire.

That was its purpose.

Her lids lowered, her thoughts heavy.

And this land…

This land still held the breath of that man.

Slowly, she opened her eyes again.

To protect it was the meaning of her remaining life.

Seres’s lips curved faintly, the trembling in her eyes fading away.

Looking straight at her son, she spoke with a calm, mocking tone.

“So this is a threat, then?”

“A negotiation,” he corrected coolly.

Seres’s eyes narrowed.

“Is that girl so precious to you?”

“She’s my partner. Of course she is.”

He spoke without hesitation, his voice low but firm.

“Even if you don’t approve.”

Seres’s mouth opened, but before she could reply, Demius continued.

“I know what you’ve been doing to her, Mother. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?”

“You expect me to accept a girl of unknown origin as my daughter-in-law? You’ve lost your senses. The son I raised was never this reckless. What could you possibly see in her?”

At her sharp tone, Demius gave a soundless laugh.

“You still don’t understand, do you?”

“…?”

Her brow furrowed slightly. His lips curved into a faint, measured smile.

“Do you believe light can be cut with a sword?”

“What kind of fool would believe that?”

“That fool is you.”

“…!”

Her face darkened.

Demius’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“Do as you please, but know that no one in this world can harm Melissa.”

He moved in an instant, closing the distance between them.

“And I won’t stand by either.”

The half-broken sword twisted against hers, hooking and dragging it downward.

Seres’s eyes widened as her weapon slipped from her grasp.

The blade spun through the air before clattering onto the stone floor.

Demius didn’t even glance at it.

He retrieved his broken sword and bowed his head briefly.

“Thank you for the sparring, Mother.”

Then he turned and strode away.

Seres stood motionless, watching his back grow smaller until he was gone.

Only after a long silence did her dry lips part.

“…Ha.”

He had grown.

A laugh rose in her throat but died as a quiet smile instead.

He hadn’t just grown stronger. He had surpassed her.

‘Good.’

With that strength, he could stand among the greatest in the continent.

He was worthy of being the next Grand Duke.

Pride swelled in her chest, followed by a calm relief.

“At last,” she whispered.

“Perhaps now I can rest.”

Her gaze lifted slowly toward the sky.

A faint crescent moon hung in the pale western light.

As the wind brushed her cheek, she felt the touch of a familiar hand.

‘My lord.’

A slender, gentle hand caressed her face.

Isilan.

The name she could no longer say aloud broke soundlessly on her lips.

‘Our child has grown so much.’

If you could see him now, you would be proud.

Pale moonlight traced her eyes like falling tears.

* * *

“What are you looking for?”

“Lord Demius!”

Ah—

Melissa glanced around quickly, then cupped her hand to her mouth and whispered.

“Wait, should I be calling you ‘dear’ now?”