“C-come on. I don’t want to see your beautiful skin get damaged!”
“Aww… Hugh… You’re even more overprotective than I’d imagined.” Melza put on a wry grin and peered at my face.
Is it my imagination, or does she sound kind of happy…?
“Ha-ha!” the archduke guffawed. “Well, well, well. I’m glad to see you both getting along so splendidly after just one day!”
“Oh-ho… But of course. This is Hugh we’re talking about,” Melza answered, puffing her chest out with pride.
“Ha-ha…” My expression softened as I watched their exchange.
“A-amazing…!”
After wiping away the light sweat I had built up sparring, I stepped into the dining hall—and marveled at the multitude of dishes lined up on the table.
U-um… We’re just eating breakfast, right…?
“Oh-ho. The head chef put his heart and soul into this meal, you see.”
“D-did he…?”
“Ha-ha! Well, let’s be seated.” At the archduke’s urging, I took the chair across from Melza. “Now, then… Welcome to House Woodstock, Hugo, my boy. A toast to the newest member of our family!”
“Cheers,” said Melza and her father.
“Ch-cheers.”
To think, the archduke himself was raising a toast to me. To be honest, I had never done anything like this before. I nervously imitated the others and lifted my glass into the air.
“This duck terrine is the head chef’s specialty, Hugh,” said Melza.
“I—I see…”
I did spend some time studying table manners in preparation for this day, so maybe I can manage…
“Something the matter, my boy? You seem a little stiff.”
“D-do I…? Sorry…”
“Oh-ho… There’s no need to feel apprehensive, Hugh.”
Ah-ha-ha… It looks like Melza saw straight through me.
I awkwardly cut off a bite-sized piece of duck terrine and brought it to my mouth.
“I-it’s delicious…,” I mumbled.
“Ho-ho. Do you like it?”
“Yes! Whoa… I’ve never tasted anything this good before…!”
I knew there had to be better food out there than stale bread and vegetable scraps, but never in my wildest dreams had I imagined something this flavorful…
I chewed it thoroughly, savoring the taste.
“……”
“……”
I noticed the others staring at me and flinched slightly. “Umm… A-are you both okay…?”
D-did I slip up? Were my manners not up to par…?
But I needn’t have worried.
“Hugh… Try this one as well! It’s just as good!”
“Yes, eat up, my boy! And this one, too!”
“O-okay…”
For some reason, the two of them seemed quite worked up as they eagerly handed me one dish after another. I took each one and cleaned my plate. It was all so delicious I couldn’t help but wonder if there was some catch—if perhaps this was my last supper.
Once we finished eating, tea was brought out.
“Now, then… Is there anything you want to tell me, Hugo…?” the archduke said, turning suddenly stern.
Did Melza say something…?
I glanced her way—and her crimson eyes stared back as she gave me a silent nod.
Right… She’s already two steps ahead of me…
“…I came here hoping to join House Woodstock with a specific objective in mind.”
“Oh? And what, pray tell, does that objective entail?”
“Well…” I decided to come straight out with it. This would only bring me closer to my goal. “…I wish to use House Woodstock’s power and authority…to exact revenge on House Grenville and my father.”
I tried to gauge the archduke’s reaction. I thought he would be surprised…yet he merely stared back wordlessly.
“Hmm…,” he said at last. “Can you elaborate on why, exactly, you want revenge? And how you intend to wield the Woodstocks’ power to get it?”
“Y-yes…”
I was caught off guard by his response, but I pulled myself together and explained.
I told him how I had lived and died six times already and that I was presently on my seventh life. I told him how, at the end of each of those six lives, I was murdered by my own family—a family that had never once accepted me as one of their own. And finally, I explained that—thanks to Melza—I’d discovered that they had placed a psychic spell on me, brainwashing me to seek their approval…
“…When I died for the sixth time, I swore to myself that I would stop trying to win their favor—and that I would send them all to hell!”
A sharp pain shot through my heart as I put these sentiments into words, forcing me to press my clenched fist up against my chest. The effect was slight, but it helped alleviate the pain somewhat.
“…I see,” the archduke muttered, squeezing his eyes shut. A few moments passed, then…
Thump!
“That two-faced upstart! I’ll cut his head from his shoulders!” he bellowed, slamming his fists down so hard that he broke the table in two.
“Grandfather… It’s Hugh who must seek vengeance. Our job is to support him.”
“Yes, indeed! Hugo, my boy—I, Cyril of Woodstock, will do everything in my power to help you accomplish your goal!”
“Ah…”
I would never have expected such a bold show of support from the archduke. And to think, I had come here to usurp the Woodstocks’ authority, to use even the archduke’s precious daughter to my own ends…
“You aren’t alone, Hugh… You have me and Grandfather… We’re your family now…”
“M-Melza…”
Before I knew it, she had come around the table and embraced me. Her body was so warm and gentle; it softened my hard and lonely heart.
“…Ugh!”
“You needn’t cry, my boy. Your revenge on House Grenville starts now!”
“Oh… Th-thank you!” With a sniffle, I wiped away my tears with the end of my sleeve.
“Now that we’ve settled on destroying House Grenville,” the archduke said with a grin, “how shall we go about crushing them?”
“Oh, yes… I do have something in mind, actually.”
“You do?”
At that point, I proceeded to explain everything I had learned over the course of my six previous lives.
To begin with, I knew from my first and sixth lives that my father was scheming to seize control of the Southenklein Empire. To that end, he was procuring weapons, hiring mercenaries, and securing the necessary funds to prepare his own private army.
At the same time, he was arranging the assassination of various important figures throughout the realm. I had even been party to his schemes during my first life.
“…Based on all this, I believe he’s planning a coup d’état.”
“I can’t believe it…”
Once I finished, the archduke glanced toward Melza. She nodded at him, and he fell into a thoughtful silence. He was probably hesitant to accept what I’d said, but at his granddaughter’s confirmation, he was forced to recognize it as the truth.
“So…what do you recommend we do, Hugh?” Melza asked.
“Well, when it comes to securing funds, procuring weapons, and hiring mercenaries, precise timing is crucial.”
“Indeed… And when, exactly, will that upstart marquis show his hand?” the archduke asked, leaning forward.
“Four years from now, around the time of the Imperial Academy’s graduation ceremony.”
Yes… I recalled Louis divulging this information with a cruel smirk during my second life, as I lay writhing on the floor, succumbing to his poison.
“Ha-ha-ha! It’s been so much easier to get things done with you filling in for me at the academy! Thanks to you, we’ve all but secured the necessary funds, and we can finally sit down at the negotiating table!”
“N-negotiating…table…?”
“I suppose I can tell you, as a parting gift. Father and I are going to seize the whole empire! Then we’ll finally be able to set this corrupt world right!”
Even now Louis’s ecstatic grin remained etched into my memory.
“We’ll simply have to crush all their dirty schemes…,” Melza muttered.
“Yes… Once the coup is thwarted, the Grenvilles and their associates will be plunged into the depths of despair.” I gave her a firm nod. “But the marquis is a cunning man. If we simply block his path, we’ll never pin anything on him.”
“I suppose you’re right…” The archduke nodded, stroking his chin. “He’ll just shift the blame onto some underling…a count or a viscount, perhaps…”
“That’s why, between now and that graduation ceremony, I want to gather every piece of information we can get our hands on about his coup, cut off his every avenue for escape, and then cast him straight into hell!”
Yes… When the time is right, I’ll end them. I can’t wait to see the looks of despair on their faces!
“…Hmm. I get the gist, I think,” replied the archduke. “In that case, my boy, we must start collecting as much information about House Grenville as we can.”
“Agreed. I’ve learned a lot during my past six lifetimes, and I’m ready to share it all.”
I then described in detail the course of events leading up to my father’s planned coup. I told the archduke and Melza how Baron Henry Ascombe, who had amassed enormous wealth from the sapphire mines located throughout his holdings, was providing considerable financial support to House Grenville. Armaments and armor were being purchased at great expense from a weapons merchant named Nathan Harris. And in addition to the knights in my father’s employ, one Dominique Bard, leader of the Bard Mercenary Company, was acting as my father’s agent and carrying out his dirty work.
“…Those three are the key players in my father’s schemes. If we can get to them before he puts his plans into action…”
“Hmm. Leave that bunch to me,” the archduke said, nodding easily.
“Ho-ho… Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, shall we relax and enjoy our tea?” Melza suggested with a giggle.
“Ha-ha! How very right! After all, Hugo, my boy…we’re supposed to be celebrating! Welcome to House Woodstock!” The archduke laughed and patted me on the head.
“Ha-ha… Ah-ha-ha!”
As I gazed at my newfound family, for the first time in my life, genuine laughter bubbled up from the bottom of my heart.
“Thank you for everything.”
After passing through the portal and returning to the archduke’s residence in the capital, I offered my gratitude along with a deep, respectful bow.
To be perfectly honest, going back to that cottage was the last thing I wanted to do, but this trip was only meant to be my first face-to-face meeting with Melza. I would have to go back to House Grenville at least once.
“Hugo, my boy—I’ll talk things over with the marquis and see that the engagement ceremony is held right away. You’ll only have to wait a fortnight—no, a week at most.”
“Thank you… But, um… What about Melza?”
“Yes… It seems she’s finding it difficult to be apart from you. She’s shut herself up in her room.”
“I see…”
I would have liked to see her again at least once before I left, but it looked like that wouldn’t be possible.
In any event, we would have the rest of our lives to enjoy each other’s company once the ceremony was over, so I just needed to be patient.
“I’ll take my leave, then.”
The archduke waved good-bye, and my carriage set off for the Grenville estate… But someone unexpected was waiting for me inside.
“Um… Why are you in here, Melza?” I asked the figure seated across from me with a strained smile.