The Price of Breaching the Contract - Chapter 11

The servants of Duke’s Castle moved through the corridors with bated breath and hurried steps.

The situation unfolded in an instant after the Princess’s personal maid, who had arrived at the castle just moments before, screamed. Several servants nearby immediately rushed to Yuliana’s room to witness her condition, and the news even reached Santia, who was not far from the room.

Upon seeing Yuliana collapsed and staining the cream-colored carpet red, Santia wordlessly scooped her up and laid her on the bed. Then, he headed for the doctor who had examined Yuliana just before.

Astute servants, seeing their master’s face hardened with a terrifying expression, quickly found tasks to do and took action. Maids rushed to tidy up Yuliana’s clothes and surroundings, while servants sought tasks they could perform outside the room.

Devon, who had just been trying to rest, was grabbed by the scruff of his neck by Santia and dragged back to Yuliana’s room.

“Duke, Duke! Let go! What is this…!”

Devon, dragged in while shouting in indignation, fell silent upon seeing Yuliana’s condition. Unconscious, she was sweating profusely and moaning in pain within that short time. Seeing her clearly unwell, Devon clicked his tongue lightly and approached her.

After quickly examining her, Devon cautiously but confidently opened his mouth to Santia, who was glaring at him as if to kill him.

“It seems her body was strained from the journey. First, we must report to His Majesty the King. ”

“Report?”

However, Santia retorted with a sneer at those words.

“Yes, we must first inform His Majesty, Ugh.”

As Devon failed to recognize the sharply honed aura of Santia and acted confidently, black mana subtly leaked from him. However, upon seeing Yuliana stir slightly, Santia quickly contained his energy.

Instead, a low voice filled with anger threatened Devon.

“Do I look that stupid?”

“Huu…”

The contained energy, protecting Yuliana, was focused intensely on Devon. Facing Santia’s brutal anger for the first time, he could not continue his words and barely managed to inhale.

Santia, staring at the dazed Devon, continued his words as if chewing them over.

“Yuliana collapsed as soon as she took the medicine you brought. In case you didn’t know, she already suffered from travel sickness earlier.”

“B-but her body weakened, so it belatedly, ”

“No, I can’t trust you anymore.”

Only then did Devon realize that things were proceeding strangely, and he added excuses in a trembling voice. But Santia did not listen and issued an order that shocked Devon.

“Bihan!”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Go and fetch the estate doctor immediately.”

“Yes.”

The knight, Bihan, who had been waiting, immediately left the castle, and as expected, Devon’s shout followed.

“Duke!”

“Shut up.”

Santia’s voice rose sharply, and he glanced at Yuliana before sending a fierce glare. The moment he felt her stir, his rough energy turned into murderous intent.

“How dare you.”

Santia muttered threatening words through his teeth and grabbed Devon by the collar again, taking him outside.

Only when they were far enough away that Yuliana could not hear them did Santia release him. Reaching a space separated from her, the dark blue energy surged and rose again.

“Where’s the medicine?”

“Are you suspecting me now? It’s not medicine, but—”

Whether it was the boldness of having the King as his backer or his obtuseness in not realizing it, Devon babbled with an aggrieved look despite being pale.

Santia did not wait for Devon’s reply. His eyes fell on the bag in his hand, and the next moment, the bag was in Santia’s grasp.

Then, Devon widened his eyes and lunged at Santia.

“Duke! What is this rude behavior! This is medicine bestowed by His Majesty the King.”

“Ha! Unbelievable.”

However, the more Devon made excuses, the more Santia became convinced. He felt he had to find out the reason why he was trying so hard to hide it.

“But His Majesty the King’s order,”

“If you mention that damn King one more time, I’ll cut your throat right here.”

“What?! What kind of treason is this!”

“…Treason?”

One corner of Santia’s lips twisted crookedly upwards. At the same time, the moment Devon met the deep eyes beneath the raised eyebrows, he recalled the difference in power between himself and the man before him. Something he had not noticed until now was lurking, aiming for his life.

When Santia opened his mouth again, Devon had already taken two steps back.

“I don’t know who’s committing treason.”

He looked down at Devon, who had distanced himself, and chuckled in vain. Before he knew it, he had been driven to the point where even breathing was difficult.

“…Huu, huu… S-still, this won’t do. You must first get permission from His Majesty.”

“How ridiculous. You’re confined here during the investigation.”

The knight Haron, who had been listening to Santia’s words, blocked Devon, who was staggering and trying to leave the room. For a trained young knight, stopping a powerless doctor was nothing.

“This can’t be happening! His Majesty will be furious if he finds out!”

Leaving Devon, who was belatedly raising his voice, blocked by Haron, Santia strode away.

“Keep a close watch on him.”

“Don’t worry. Captain!”

Haron guarded the door with a determined look.

It was not long before Bihan, who had hurried down to the estate, brought back a white-haired old man.

“My lord, this is the only doctor in the estate.”

Bihan led the two people before Santia and stepped back neatly.

“I offer my first greetings. My name is Joel.”

The doctor with curly white hair and a beard bowed politely. Directly behind him, a woman with short hair like a man bowed her head with her eyes closed.

Santia acknowledged the greeting with a simple nod and asked with a gesture of his chin.

“Who’s that?”

“Ah, this is my assistant, Shuri. I thought we might be attending to a precious lady.”

It seemed Bihan had informed him that he would be treating the Duchess. He would have no experience treating nobles, but he was quick-witted.

As Santia stared without a word, Joel took it as a rebuke and added an explanation.

“She’s a child who can’t see. Please forgive her rudeness in greeting you with her eyes closed.”

“That’s enough. Come in.”

Santia glanced lightly at the woman and moved his feet.

Joel, following him straight into Yuliana’s room, gasped at the sight of the blood-stained carpet. However, as Santia gave a silent command, the two approached Yuliana’s side.

Joel stood at a distance and quietly gave Shuri various instructions. And after he finally looked at Santia’s expression, Shuri knelt by the bed.

Tension and anxiety mixed together, and the air in the room became sharp. Following Joel’s calm instructions, Shuri continued to touch Yuliana’s body.

Then, when she touched her lower abdomen and examined the still-unstopped bleeding, Joel visibly panicked and looked back at Santia.

“D-do it again.”

With a helpless expression, he gave the same instructions to his assistant. But as the same result came out, he soon wore a miserable face and finished the examination.

“I-I’m sorry, but H-how should I say this.”

“Speak.”

Santia glared fiercely at the stammering Joel. At his command, Joel opened and closed his lips for a long time, searching for words. As if he didn’t know how to express it in words.

As the time exceeding a moment passed and Santia’s patience ran out, the next words finally followed.

“T-the, Princess seems to have had a miscarriage.”

Unlike the long time he had pondered, his one word was concise.

“…Miscarriage?”

“Y-yes…”

Santia could not immediately understand the meaning. Only after his dark eyelashes went down and up a couple of times did a reaction come out.

“The miscarriage where you lose a child?”

“Yes, yes! I’m really sorry!”

Joel nodded his head repeatedly, not knowing what to do. It was his first time examining such a precious person, so he was already very nervous, and an unexpected result had come out.

“Is that true? I’ll kill you if it’s a lie.”

“I-it’s true! How, how dare I tell a lie.”

“Check again.”

“Huu, yes.!”

At the high-handed order, Joel inhaled and repeated the same thing once more. The assistant also touched her hand with an even more cautious touch.

But contrary to everyone’s wishes, his opinion did not change. Joel closed his eyes tightly with a truly apologetic heart and apologized.

“Even if I look again, it’s definitely a miscarriage. I’m sorry.”

“…”

As he finished speaking, a suffocating silence was created. Joel hesitated with a troubled face at Santia, who had no reaction.

Santia opened his lips to say something, but no words came out. He felt like he had been hit hard on the back of the head with something hard. He had only heard one word, but strangely, his head was dizzy and he felt nauseous.

The words that came out, barely focusing his eyes, were in a rare dazed tone from him.

“She’s never been pregnant, how can she have a miscarriage?”

“Huh! In the early stages, her belly wasn’t big, so you might not have known, but she was definitely pregnant.”

Santia could not finish his words because his lips were numb, and he bit his lip. It was as if his thought process was creaking. Then, he blankly asked a question at a fact that suddenly came to mind.

“Does riding a horse cause a miscarriage?”

“No, no. The baby isn’t that weak. Usually, it’s mostly due to a major shock or using medicine that doesn’t suit the body.”

What had he expected? Santia somehow felt disappointed at Joel’s answer.

He stared at Yuliana, who was sleeping without focus. He didn’t even know what emotions to have about the shocking event that he had never thought about in his life.

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