# 33
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After Walter had been kneeling, deep in thought for a long time, he suddenly got up without any warning.
“Lead me to where Grace is.”
“But the missus said that the matter is an internal palace matter, and that Your Highness’s hasty intervention may be inappropriate. Why don’t we wait a little?”
“Whether I wait or not is my decision.”
“…….”
“If you don’t care about what your lady might be exposed to, stop gossiping and come forward.”
His face was impassive, but a ferocious, hurried aura was crashing around him like a raging tide. It wasn't a word
Progressive
He suggested, and even if Jessie refused, it seemed clear that he would find Grace no matter what it took.
Indeed, as soon as Jessie hesitated for a moment, Walter turned around without hesitation and ordered Joseph:
“Find Grace, Joseph.”
“Your command, Your Highness!”
The two men walked out of the room with long strides, and Jessie had no choice but to run after them. She, too, was unable to leave Grace to her fate.
“I will lead you.”
She moved as if she was flying, driving Walter quickly. When the doors to the room where Grace was led began to appear, Walter's sensitive ear picked up a sharp sound echoing in the place:
“They also took her to the basement, looked for the woman who came with her and brought her to me!”
“Get up!!”
The basement.
He felt a sudden heat glow in his chest. He passed Jesse in an instant, and violently opened the door before the soldiers or the bridesmaids could react.
The air rushed in, scattering his hair, but Walter did not feel the wind. From the chaos of the scene inside the room, his senses only caught one thing.
As he saw the bridesmaids violently grabbing her arms, he was overcome by an impulse that immediately overthrew them. He gritted his teeth and said as if he was chewing his words:
“Raise your hands.”
＊ ＊ ＊
With Walter's sudden appearance, the room became increasingly turbulent, as if a fire had broken out in it. Grace's bridesmaids flinched as if they had touched a hot pot, and Flora froze before her mother, the Countess of Lewin, pulled her to her feet. The noble ladies rushed to greet the Duke, and chaos ensued.
In the midst of this commotion, Walter stood like a silent island, seeing only Grace. Then the Marquise seemed to regain consciousness, and she cleared her throat to attract attention.
When Grace and Walter's eyes met hers at the same time, the Marquise straightened her chest and tilted her eyebrows. Her expression was that of an adult scolding a naughty child.
“Your Highness.”
Even her tone was like that. Then she cast a stern look at Jesse and continued:
“I intended to explain immediately why this woman was brought without your Highness’s permission. It was, in accordance with Richmond custom, to control a disturbance in the Inner Palace. I hope you will understand.”
Every word the Marquise said provoked Walter, but he caught one word and pronounced it clearly:
“Norms?”
"Yes."
Norms. What accumulated over time until it became a habit.
But what is the original? Who determines the time required for an act to become customary? Aren't norms essentially a trick for anyone who wants to tamper with the painting as he pleases, using time as an excuse to impose actions on everyone?
However, she spoke of it as if it were a heavenly law. Walter found it only bitter sarcasm. He looked at the seating arrangement and smiled a metallic smile.
“I was wondering why the arrangement of the room looked so familiar... It's the arrangement the late Empress Isabella used when questioning noble ladies. Since when has Empress Isabella's style become the norm in Richmond?”
“…….”
“Did the eldest lady tell you that? She said her mother’s method works here?”
In front of the young Duke's momentum, the noble ladies froze in their places. They did not dare to move, but merely turned their eyes to the Marquise. Mentioning Eliza's name was taboo to her.
But that was only a custom among the noblewomen.
When Walter said the name, the Marquise felt as if a sharp thorn had been stuck in her heart. She tried to hold her breath with difficulty.
“I was working to settle a dispute between the women of the palace. Unfortunately, a dispute occurred between the woman you brought and the maids.”
"dispute?"
"I'm sorry to say, but the maids who served her claim that they were detained, beaten, and threatened with death. Don't you think that such a thing should not happen at Richmond Castle?"
Walter crossed his arms and looked at the two maids with a fixed look.
“Detention, beating, death threats... when did this happen?”
“Your Highness, this is within the jurisdiction of the Inner Palace.”
“I will listen first and then decide.”
Walter interrupted, then turned his gaze again to the two maids:
“Ajiba. When did it happen?”
The Marquise clenched her fists and pointed at them with her eyes. Their mouths felt dry before they spoke cautiously:
“Yesterday, after we made dinner, we were on our way back.”
“Do you remember where you were taken?”
“Inside the palace... near the first floor... we do not remember the exact location...”
“It was a dark room, without any light!”
“Inside Richmond Castle, a dark room with no light... Are you sure?”
They raised their heads violently and answered together:
"Yes, Your Highness! That's right, without a trace of falsehood!"
Flora, who was almost clinging to her mother's embrace, rushed to their side with tears in her eyes.
“Your Highness! They are girls dear to me. They cannot lie. Please believe me.”
Flora cried beautifully, then raised her head, confident that the Duke, whose heart had been drawn to her before, would be moved.
But Walter wasn't looking at her.
He ordered his assistant to bring a chair and place it in front of the two maids, then he sat on it quietly.
The moment he sat down, the owner of the room changed.
A cold weight, like the current of the depths of the sea, began to swirl around him, then rushed soundlessly like a sweeping tide, swallowing everyone.
The two maids began to tremble visibly, and the Countess of Lwyn quickly pulled Flora into the line of ladies, instinctively knowing that this was the time to withdraw.
Walter took control, leaned back on the chair and ordered:
“Joseph. Bring the castle security officer.”
The Marquise's shoulders trembled.
“You suddenly summon the security officer?!”
Walter smiled venomously as he answered:
“I believe what the two maids say. But Grace was with me all night. After dinner especially.”
“But their testimony”
"They don't even remember the location of the room. That means they were in a state of panic. How can they be sure that the person they encountered was Grace?"
“That's why I was trying to take a neutral position.”
“Word
Neutral
It is a mistake in itf.”
He cut her off coldly, then warned her in a low voice:
"I'm not the one who proves. I'm the one who judges, Emily Linko."
M.M.: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 in the middle of the forehead
“…….”
“And if Maid Grace is in doubt, Knight Rexton, who has been guarding the corridor the whole time, will respond.”
Before he finished his words, Joseph's strong voice rang out:
“I was guarding the corridor all the time. I saw the two maids disappear with dinner, but the mademoile and her maid never appeared in the corridor after dinner!”
Walter glanced at the Marchioness, then pointed to Joseph:
“Bring the security official. We have to hold him accountable.”
“Your command, Your Highness!!”
Then the Countess of Lewin came forward with a pale face; Her husband is a security official.
“Your Highness, summoning him out of the blue… it’s not worth it.”
But her words made the fire worse. The young Duke turned to her, enunciating each word as if he were grinding it with his teeth:
“This is happening inside the castle I reside in, and in the main palace, and then you say it’s a trivial matter?”
“That's because”
He didn't listen. He turned to the two astonished maids:
“We will summon you both soon to verify the truth. Until then, rest and recover.”
Then he got up and extended his hand to Grace. She looked at him, at the man who mercilessly brandished the sword she had given him, then placed her hand in his palm. His large, strong hand immediately wrapped around hers.
As she was leaving with him, her eyes met those of the Marquise.
Her gaze was immersed in a desolate depth... as if it were a deep swamp.