Chapter 40: Marcus — Part 3
Half a month later, the report arrived.
I had expected my wife and son to delay it with various excuses, but surprisingly it came quickly.
“I thought it would be best to inform you as soon as possible.”
Ella said that and personally brought the report to me.
It stated that she had passed away half a year ago.
I had not truly expected anything.
It was not as if we could meet now after all this time.
But the strength drained from my body anyway.
For a while I remained frozen at that line, staring blankly.
Eventually I was able to read the rest of the document.
It said that she had left almost all the jewelry she possessed to her eldest granddaughter.
Was the Stone of Protection among them?
Perhaps she had thrown it away in anger.
What had Eris thought of me?
At that moment I realized something.
Half a year ago.
That was around the time I had felt that love had disappeared from my life.
While I was lost in thought over that strange coincidence, Ella spoke.
“I will make a discreet inquiry with that count’s family.
We will try to resolve it peacefully.”
“Do not do anything rough.
If we explain the circumstances, I believe it will be returned without issue.”
“Of course.”
Ella opened her mouth wide and laughed.
After that, I set my own spies in motion and ordered them to investigate Eris’s life and her family in greater detail.
I had once been king, ruling the country carefully and maintaining balanced relations with other nations.
During that time I had gathered loyal retainers and spies, and I had connections in foreign countries as well.
Fortunately, Eris had married happily and lived a happy life.
The report was filled with cheerful anecdotes.
It made me happy, yet also bitter, leaving me with complicated feelings.
The only thing that troubled me was the timing of her marriage.
About a year and a half later, I had visited the Kingdom of Rhys again with my wife.
It had been for a royal wedding there, if I recall correctly.
Eris had married several months after that visit.
She must have seen me then.
Seen me together with my wife.
By that time my son had already been born.
The Kingdom of Rhys had been informed that I had lost my memories of the visit due to the carriage accident upon my previous return.
She might have heard that as well.
Even so, it was impossible that she could have continued loving me forever.
She had one son, and two grandchildren—a grandson and a granddaughter.
Reading the records of the elder and younger daughters, I felt that the elder resembled Eris.
Then a thought suddenly occurred to me.
Would that woman Ella truly handle this peacefully?
Of course not.
That suspicion quickly became certainty.
Lady Maria was in danger.
The spy reports were also troubling in other ways.
It said that the man Maria was to marry already had another woman—and even a child.
Had Eris’s son not investigated such matters?
He was utterly unreliable.
Frowning, I looked at Maria’s portrait.
Somehow she resembled Eris.
As I gazed at the portrait, suddenly the image of Eris on the day we parted came back to me.
I was giving her a pendant.
It was a pendant with a silver ornament shaped like a bud.
“This is a charm my father gave me.
It protects me and grants my wishes.
“Perhaps I should ask it to carry your feelings to me.”
“I would only end up telling it how lonely I am and how much I want to see you.
I would hate that.”
“Then how about reporting happy things instead?
If I know you are happy, I can rest easy.”
“That might be nice.
Then I will find many happy things every day and tell them to the stone.”
“That might be painful too.
Because of my position I cannot move freely, but hearing that might make me rush to you without thinking.”
“Then ask the stone to whisper softly.
That way it will be fine.”
She said that and smiled.
I held the silver bud and made my wish.
Yes.
To convey a wish to the stone, one had to touch it.
After that I told her again,
“I will come for you as soon as possible.
Please wait for me.
I promise.”
Perhaps her feelings had been surrounding me all this time.
Just as she once stroked my back when I confided my fears about the burdens of kingship.
Softly and gently.
Knowing her, she had probably only been worried about me.
But it seemed her encouragement had reached me all these years.
I had never even told her that I was the King of Belsia.
If she had come to see me with the stone, everything might have turned out differently.
How foolish I had been—such a thoughtless young man.
But it was already too late.
—Eris.
After sitting with my head lowered for a long time, I stood and took out the oath of contract from a hidden cabinet.
This must be the situation my father once spoke of.
Even if the stone returned to Belsia, there might be no one able to inherit it.
Even if I named the crown prince, if the stone rejected him, the bond between the stone and the royal house of Belsia would end there.
I had a feeling that would happen.
Normally, a private succession ceremony would be held so the line of inheritance would not be broken.
I had been designated as the next successor when I was fifteen.
If the stone had been present, it would have immediately revealed whether it accepted or rejected the successor.
But if the stone had truly been carrying her feelings all this time, then it had never rejected her.
In that case, I decided to pass it on to her granddaughter, Lady Maria.
As preparation for the turbulent marriage that awaited her—and even more so as protection from Ella and from Belsia itself—this would be my gift to her.
I recited the same oath used during the royal succession ceremony, and then I offered a heartfelt prayer to the stone.
“After me, grant your protection to Maria Cruz, the granddaughter of Eris Bale, who has lived with the stone for many years.”
This was the first time I had performed the succession ritual without the stone present, but it should still work.
If she conveyed her wish to the stone and the stone accepted it, it would protect her.
Not long after that, a simple cold worsened my condition, and I became bedridden.
It seemed my health would not recover.
My son then declared in the council that the protection would pass from former King Marcus to the crown prince.
Because he had learned it would never pass to him.
They asked me to record everything I knew about the transfer of the stone while I still could.
I dictated the document to Nick and had him prepare two copies.
One copy would be stored in the royal archives of Belsia.
That version contained only the information I had told my son earlier.
The other copy contained more detailed information.
The oath of succession was written there as well.
I entrusted that document to Nick, my loyal attendant and the leader of my spies.
He would deliver it to Lady Maria six months after my mourning period ended.
At that time, he would also deliver my gift to her.
Near the border between the Kingdom of Rhys and Belsia lies land that I personally own.
I will give that land to her.
Originally, it was land I intended to give to Eris.
It is fertile and wealthy land, extremely valuable.
When it comes to protecting oneself, the more resources one has, the better.
Once my mourning period ends, discussions about distributing my personal property will begin.
The legal documents regarding those rights have already been carefully prepared.
From now on, the land will be managed by Nick and the retainers loyal to me.
They will gradually move there.
Until it is handed over to Lady Maria, the land will be managed by a representative so that time passes in between.
That way, she will not have to confront my son directly.
“Nick, it will be troublesome, but I leave it to you.”
“Leave it to me, Marcus-sama.”
I opened the portrait of Lady Maria, who resembled Eris, and smiled.
“Lady Maria, I hope you live a happy life.”
Morning when the bells of mourning rang throughout the Kingdom of Belsia.
“Why am I here?
What is going on?”
A small voice echoed inside Maria Cruz’s bedroom in the Cruz household.
【End of the Stone Mystery Arc】