The Person I Loved Hated Me - Chapter 31

Eivard met with Rhys in a corner of the castle where he had been summoned. “About last night,” Rhys began after confirming no one was nearby. “His Highness has learned of his connection to her.”

The moment he was told, Eivard let out a sigh of relief, freed from the heavy anxiety he had been carrying. “So, it was prevented in time, then.”

“Yep. According to my brother, he’s not the type to hold a grudge, and he probably won’t interfere with the two of them living as commoners.”

Eivard knew that Rhys’s brother, Flurey, served the Crown Prince. So, this was reliable information. “I see. Then the rest is my problem.”

“Your father doesn’t trust you, after all.”

Because Eivard knew a secret that could never be revealed, Sebastian had placed him under surveillance. The two men who had abruptly joined Eivard’s squad as new recruits were private soldiers of the Winslet ducal house. To earn their trust, Eivard refrained from interfering with their actions, and to avoid misunderstandings, he had not contacted his birth family, the Trulin Marquisate.

“How can I earn his trust?”

Simply avoiding contact with the Trulin Marquisate wouldn’t be enough to gain Sebastian’s confidence. Cutting ties might serve as proof, but since he hadn’t been in contact, he didn’t even know the status of his disinheritance.

“You’re so earnest,” Rhys snorted.

“What do you mean by that?” Eivard retorted.

“She’s a commoner. It’s unthinkable for a chancellor to meddle in a commoner’s marriage. Whether you leave the marquisate or not, isn’t your relationship up to her?”

“That may be true, but what about Lord Rhodias’s records with women?”

The lives of royalty were meticulously documented including their relationships with women. Recording every union, including those with consorts, served as proof of legitimate lineage. Even one-night stands were carefully logged, in case the royal bloodline faced extinction.

So, there should undoubtedly be records of Rhodias and Dietrich. Though strictly guarded and rarely disclosed, such documentation existed. If—however unlikely, Eivard were to bring Clara into the Trulin Marquisate and later claim a connection to Rhodias, those records could confirm Prince Rhodias’s blood tie to Clara. That was Sebastian’s fear.

That was precisely why Eivard wanted to earn Sebastian’s trust. Without it, his future with Clara could be jeopardized.

Yet Rhys replied casually, as if making small talk, “Nope. Nothing like that.”

“Huh? Then the two of them…”

“My grandfather testified, so it’s certain. But the records are gone. They’ve been erased.”

“Erased? You mean the former Duke Winslet tampered with the records?”

“My grandfather wouldn’t do something like that without authorization. So, we think the king must have been involved.”

“His Majesty? Why… Oh, I see.”

It made sense after a moment’s thought. Rhodias’s death coincided with Clara’s birth. Moreover, Clara bore a unique trait significant to the royal family.

While accessing the records was difficult, if someone managed to sneak a peek and the truth came out, a succession dispute could erupt between Prince Dian, regarded as Rhodias’s only child, and Clara. To prevent unnecessary conflict, the king himself likely ordered the records destroyed. An order the former Duke Winslet would have had to obey.

“Not only did my grandfather testify, but the fact that the records were erased convinced my father of their origins. He took it as the king’s will. So, he can’t complain no matter who they marry. They’re commoners, not nobles.”

The rest was up to Eivard. Even if Sebastian couldn’t object, Eivard’s knowledge of the secret and his blood tie to the Trulin Marquisate remained undeniable facts. Making an enemy of the powerful Duke Winslet was no strategy for securing a future with Clara.

He would never speak of Clara and Isaac’s origins to anyone, least of all the Trulin Marquisate. With no evidence left, even if Eivard made claims, others could simply deny them. Still, Clara’s eyes undeniable and conspicuous, could not be hidden and might be used against her.

How could he alleviate Sebastian’s unease? There was no way but to prove himself through action.

“By the way, your disinheritance papers haven’t been submitted yet.”

“Is that so? I’d have thought I’d be of no use to the Trulin Marquisate if I’m not under their control.”

Visiting that house was a hassle, but it seemed Eivard had to take action.

“You’re plenty useful. But if you can’t see that, so be it. I’d advise you to hurry with the disinheritance.”

“Are you planning to crush the Trulin Marquisate?”

The marquisate had already fallen from grace the moment they used bribes for Eivard’s promotion. They were unfit to influence state affairs. Eivard calmly accepted that their removal was inevitable.

“Crushing them might be difficult. But I’d like the current head and your father to step down. That leaves you as the only decent candidate.”

“I have no intention of inheriting the marquisate.”

If Eivard became head of the Trulin Marquisate, there would be no obstacle to making Clara his wife, no matter what others said. But Clara would struggle in noble society. Eivard had no desire to subject the woman he loved to such hardship.

“Figured as much. It’d just get in the way of your future with her. Oh, right! I reported to those two first thing this morning and saw her. She’s unbelievably beautiful. I almost regretted refusing to clean up after His Highness.”

Eivard ignored Rhys’s foolish remark and returned to the knight barracks to focus on training.

He was leaving the Trulin Marquisate to make his way as a knight. It was too late to worry about delayed promotions, but since a promotion might separate him from Clara, perhaps this was for the best.

At that moment, Eivard could see nothing but a future with Clara.

He was so elated that he optimistically assumed everything would be fine once he was disinherited.

He never imagined Clara would visit him soon after—a welcome surprise, to be sure. Nor did he expect an unknown young lady to appear, claiming to be his fiancée.

And after Clara left, when Franz asked, “Clara seems to think you dislike her, Captain?” Eivard turned pale as he remembered something crucial.

Yes! Eivard had never once conveyed his feelings to Clara. He had noticed her affection and assumed it was mutual, but from Clara’s perspective, it was one-sided.

Moreover, the barrier of status noble and commoner stood between them. Clara wasn’t the type to force her way over such a wall.

She had likely heard from Isaac what kind of person he was. Hence her belief that he “disliked” her.

Yet despite that, she had continued to love him. He hadn’t realized until now what a miracle that was.

Of course, he had intended to tell her. He had even said he wanted to talk to confess his feelings. But that didn’t count as actually conveying them.

This couldn’t go on. Clara’s current perception of him was as the third son of the Trulin Marquisate, engaged to the Notoria Viscount’s daughter. If he confessed now, what would she think? Clara, who had lived her life as the child of a mistress, would undoubtedly be hurt.

“I must approach her with sincerity.”

First, annul the engagement. Simultaneously, secure his disinheritance from the Trulin Marquisate.

Even if the engagement was a sham, once the documents were submitted and accepted, it couldn’t be overturned only nullified. Fury boiled within him. He resolved then and there to leave his family and win Clara, no matter what.

It wouldn’t be easy, but if he didn’t act, there would be no future with Clara.