< — Negotiation — > (4)
“I am ashamed to face you.”
Hugo asked his wife for forgiveness after dealing with everything. The terrible things that happened to her, and the even more horrifying things that could have happened, that he didn’t even want to think about, the ringleader of the incident, they were all related to him.
The Count of Ramis and the Countess of Falcon, who were believed to have conspired together. Hugo didn’t know exactly how the two of them had hit it off, but he knew that the two of them held ill feelings towards him. But because they couldn’t dare to touch him, they targeted his wife.
Especially since the Countess of Falcon was involved, he really could not lift his head in front of his wife. It was an act committed by his ex-lover. It was the result of insufficient settlement and inability to deal with things neatly.
“You must have been disappointed with me.”
Lucia wanted to comfort her husband, who has a bitter look on his face. She did not think that this incident was his fault. It was just an unexpected connection, like walking along the streets and unintentionally bumping into people and an accident happened.[1]
“I am not disappointed, Hugh. I won’t be disappointed in you with just this.”
“…”
Hugo took her hand, which was covering the back of his hand in an attempt to comfort him and kissed the back of her hand.
“I’m sorry.”
“It is not your fault.”
“You went through something you shouldn’t have experienced.”
“If it is something I have to go through because I am married to you, I can handle it.”
“…You really.”
Hugo was touched by her brightly shining clear heart and wondered if he was really qualified to be with her.
“I don’t want you to feel sorry towards me due to this incident, but I have something to request.”
“What is it?”
Hugo wanted to give her whatever she wanted, even if it was the whole world.
“I want to give the remaining family of my late maid enough compensation. My heart hurts because I was unable to protect her.”
“If compensation will make you feel at ease then I will do so. But there is no reason for you to protect your servants. They are hired to protect you.”
“You are right. Their work is to protect me. And at the same time, I think I should protect them. Sir. Krotin protect me, and you protected Sir. Krotin in my place, didn’t you?”
Hugo thought that employees such as servants, were tools of convenience. He couldn’t fully understand what she meant by comparing them with Roy but he roughly understood what she was trying to say.
“They have thoughts and feelings too. They are sad and distressed when they lose their family. The maid’s remaining family will resent whoever killed their daughter or sister. Even they resent, there is nothing they can do. But there is no one who wants someone they don’t even know to hate them and resent them.”
Hugo also didn’t find a situation where the rest of the maid’s family resented and hated his wife, pleasing.
“Will they have no resentment if they are compensated?”
“How can money replace someone’s life? Instead, if they are given heartfelt consolation and sufficient compensation, they will be comforted. When someone is comforted, they will be able to stitch up their wound soon. That is why, Hugh. Give them sincere compensation. Tell them that their late daughter or sister did not die in vain but met with an accident while undergoing an important task, that we are sorry to lose an excellent talent, and that we offer our condolences with enough compensation. If I could, I would like to personally meet the rest of her family but…”
“That can’t happen.”
“Yes, I know. That is why you will go in my place and be considerate of them.”
“…Alright.”
* * *
The unprecedented event, that is, the murder of the Duke’s heir in the palace, came to an end with the execution of Knight Krotin. People whispered amongst themselves that many parts about the case were lacking, but that was all.
The King declared the end of the case, and the parties concerned, the two Dukes, Taran and Ramis, were silent. People were now looking for something new to talk about and were turning their attention away.
Now, all that was left was to wrap things up. Hugo called Fabian and ordered for the remaining things to be dealt with. In particular, he roughly took care of the things that were to be paid as a price to the King and handed the documents over to Fabian.
As Fabian roughly skimmed over the contents on the spot, his face paled and he trembled. He felt a lump in his throat and only after swallowing once was he able to ask the Duke:
“Your Grace, really…all of this…?”
The things on the document reached about 10% of the Taran family’s assets that were revealed. More than 90% of the Taran family’s assets were hidden and remained unrevealed. Argumentatively, it was not such a big part, but for Fabian, whose liver shrunk in the face of money, it was too much to bear. That crazy bastard’s life is so expensive! Fabian was dazed.
“If you can buy a life with money, the price paid is cheap.” (Hugo)
‘It is just as you say. I know. But even if I know, it is still too generous. Hoh. The King is also very shameless. What does he think he even did, to take so much?’ (Fabian)
Even though it wasn’t even his money, Fabian seemed like he was burning with regret inside.
‘I knew from the moment he gave the mine away as the Madam’s dowry. Is it because master spends money so senselessly that to balance it out, we have a frugal Lady of the House?’
Without any change in expression, Fabian continued to grumble inside.
“How do we usually compensate for the death of a maid?” (Hugo)
“We hand the body over to the family, settle any unpaid salaries, pay for funeral expenses as well as some compensation.” (Fabian)
“How much is the compensation?” (Hug)
“It is the equivalent of five years of that individual’s annual salary that they have customarily received.” (Fabian)
When a noble killed a commoner, they were not innocent under the law, but once they compensated with money, the case was practically over. With the exception of the capital city which had many nobles gathered in it, there were almost no opportunities for commoners to encounter nobility. The two classes had completely different places of residence and separate scopes of activity.
However, when a commoner voluntarily stepped into a aristocratic domain, that is, when they worked for and belonged to the royal palace or a noble family, they had to be prepared to die if they were unlucky. Despite that, many commoners competed fiercely to work for aristocrats due to the high pay. If you worked in a noble family for ten years, it was possible to support your entire family and buy a decent house.
Like most nations with a caste system, Xenon also established order with a noble-oriented law. Unless it was a case where an innocent commoner was killed by a noble while coincidentally crossing the road, when employees, such as servants or maids, were caught in the affairs of high-ranking people and died, they should be glad to even be returned with an intact corpse.
‘The compensation is not that much.’
Hugo recalled the conversation he had had with his wife. He still could not understand his wife’s excessive sympathy. But she had asked him to do it and it wasn’t anything difficult, so there was no reason not to do so.
“Give the remaining family of the deceased maid, 50 years of compensation for the maid’s service and send someone to offer condolences at the funeral. If someone among the remaining family needs it, provide them with a job.”
“…”
Fabian momentarily forgot how to speak and vacantly stared at his lord. When Fabian did not reply, Hugo frowned slightly. Fabian was startled and quickly answered in affirmative, going to the extent of even nodding his head.
“What of the others, apart from the maid that were killed by Roy?”
“The royal family will compensate them.”
It was a principle that those who worked in the palace were compensated by the royal family for accidents that occurred in the palace. From Kwiz’s standpoint, he suffered no loss in this incident. Even if it was said that they had compensate the dead, they only had to pay them with some of the Countess of Falcon’s assets, which had been used to replenish the national treasury.
The deceased Countess of Falcon was convicted with the felony of bringing poison into the Royal Palace and conspiring to assassinate the King. They executed her corpse, deprived her of her title, and took all of her possessions into the national treasury.*
“The royal family’s compensation will not be that much either.” (Hugo)
“That is quite likely.” (Fabian)
“Treat them in a similar manner as well.” (Hugo)
Since they all died to Roy who was trying to protect his wife, Hugo decided to neatly take care of everything.
Fabian’s expression was strange as he came out of the Duke’s office. He stood in front of the closed office door for a while, then he turned and looked at the door, thinking of the Duke who was sitting inside.
‘So people can change.’
Fabian’s way of looking at things was that people could never change. People had their own inborn temperament and the only time it could change was when they were children. He thought that even if they changed, their fundamentals couldn’t be changed, and the person that formed as they grew older did not change until the day they died.
Something that could shake Fabian’s distinctive personal view had happened under his very own eyes. He could not imagine ever hearing the words ‘take care of the late maid’s remaining family’ from his lord.
The Duke that Fabian knew, rather than calling him a wicked person, he was someone that had no interest in his surroundings. He only did things as he pleased, and apart from the minimum amount of people he kept at his side out of need, he let the others run their course regardless of the turnout and left things to his subordinate’s discretion.
Fabian thought that he was nothing more than a convenient tool for the Duke. Sometimes, that fact felt bitter, but still, he comforted himself that he was able to work for the Duke because his ability was recognized.
However, he was honestly moved upon seeing the way his lord had handled Roy’s case this time. For the person who risked his life for his master, his master mobilized all his ability and saved him.
Fabian was a realist who thought that surviving was the best and sneered at nobles who clung to honor. Which is why he thought that there was no method more perfect than this to save Roy. Belief rose in his heart that even if he was in a situation to die for his lord, he would not be abandoned nor ignored. He felt relief that even if he died an unlucky death, he wouldn’t have to worry about the rest of his family.
‘But still, the price of that bastard’s life should never be this much.’
Regardless, his way of thinking hadn’t changed. Fabian still thought that the money leaving their hands was such a pity.
Translator’s Corner:
[1] Yea…I did a literal translation here. Not sure what she’s trying to say.
*T/N: They executed her corpse? Tf? And yes, I did double check.
*.*.*
- Notice – 12/24/2024 - December 24, 2024
- Emilone’s Temptation Labyrinth – Chapter 67 - December 21, 2024
- Forget My Husband, I’ll Go Make Money – Side Story 21 - December 14, 2024
Does Hugh now see that people should be handled differently from usual negotiations? Is this affair really over.? What woman is Krotin asking about from the party? Is she a potential problem for the future?
No~ he’s just curious as to whether lucia can remember all the noble she met. Because that’s a lot of people u know~!😂
Yup! That’s right, maybe there is a misunderstanding from above comment =)))
Isnt it a sort of metaphor?
Her feeling bad about him having to kill and lose honor for her.
But Roy’s question is basically an answer. “Do you remember all the people you meet?”
Aligns with “The number or identities of people I kill don’t bother me”
Just like she meets so many people that they are irrelevant. While these few killings are nothing in the grand scheme of all his violence.
Also could be hinting that she is the duchess and her worrying and feeling guilty over a knight is already enough to absolve her guilt. Because she remembers his small identity. While others who die under the Duke may not even get that sort of remembrance.
I’m not sure. The translation makes it hard to understand the deeper meanings. Especially in dialogue. Words often have an obvious meaning, and hidden meanings.
Damn.
What she’s trying to say in footnote 1 is that it is foolish to blame someone for an innocent/ insignificant action that starts a chain of events ending in someone being harmed
Not really. He didn’t really change. He doesn’t care one bit about the maids and their families. The only one he care is lucia. And since lucia pleaded him he dis it.
But he did change in a way. He was able to understand the explanation of how his actions to protect Roy was analogous to Lucia wanting to protect, or in this case atone for, her maid. Hugo even extended the compensation to the others who Roy killed, going further than what Lucia requested. He is learning empathy beyond his own loved ones.
This is a debate ongoing with philosophers from ancient times, the Karmic believers will tell you that unless his intention was good, he would gain bad Karma regardless of whatever he did.
Realists will tell you that no matter what, he did a good thing, even if he didn’t care about the outcome.
I’m of the notion that, he simply not caring isn’t “bad” it’s just not “good” there is more than black or white in this world, whatever people think of as “bad” will always change, it was common sense to cut off the hand of the person stealing an apple, forget moral standards, the thing that matters is that he HAVES a moral code, even if we don’t see eye to eye with it, the moral code can always be expanded and even changed.
The troubling people have always being those that have NO moral code, even among thieves there are moral codes.
Thank you for the chapter! I’ve been waiting for the baby news since forever 😂 I’m waiting for the misunderstanding that i hope won’t happen. And i want to see damian 😁
Saaaaame. I was excited for a baby then realized he truly believes he can’t have one unless he drinks their blood first (idk, something like that) SO HE MIGHT THINK SHE CHEATED ON HIM AGHHHH
Yah. I can see the drama coming 😅
Thank you for the chapter ♥️
Her** blood
Thank you, for the great chapter 💕
I think that the Taran’s should go home for a couple of months to get away from all the drama.
Can’t help but sympathize with fabian… That’s a whole lot of cash… Spending that much money like loose change is a luxury really rich people can experience i guess…
Fabian and Roy is really are two kinds
Roy is always cheeky , noisy and livelier and more importantly a trouble maker but his troubles are most funniest thing to read but Fabian is always tired out of huge works and most importantly doesn’t likes troubles which increases his work loads no matter how bloody the situation it is and his sense of humour is on different level but it is fun to read his calculative nature for hugo’s money(eg. still, the price of that bastard’s life should never be this much😂) and his point of view for almost everyone especially Hugo ,Roy (his dear bastard😁)and his shameless king(eg.The King is also very shameless. What does he think he even did, to take so much?😆)
Maybe they mean something like drawn and quartered her? They started the paragraph with explaining that she’d been accused of high treason, so maybe that’s how they wanted it interpreted?
Not necessarily drawn and quartered, you can have a post mortum execution simply by decapitation, hanging the body (usually in a public display) or shooting the corpse. It’s symoblic in that it says “you did something so bad that we’re so angry we’ll shoot you again even if you are dead!”.
Aww you took my comment lol I was thinking Posthumous Execution is probably what they did.
Thanks for the update.:)
Thanks for the new chapter!
Corpse execution is actually a legit thing in some (historical) cultures, especially ones that value the integrity of the deceased body since chilling out in the afterlife with no head or your bowels removed isn’t the greatest of times.
The main idea was that “even if you’re dead, you’re still getting the same punishment” and since executions are a public event, it kind of also served as a warning “we’ll punish you no matter what, even if you die”. Plus, honor is also a factor (since they mentioned in plot honour>>>life) since the act of public execution, publicly strips you of any you had.
Yup, and it is also symbolic in that in cases where people commit suicide to preserve their honour, shooting the corpse also means that they are not letting the person whitewash the issue with “he committed suicide so he was never really convicted of the crime”. It’s usually only used for crimes where they really don’t want the criminal to get away with a clean record.
Sometimes, in rare cases, it is used for the public to relieve their anger at heinous crimes, like when someone did something that gets people so angry, you’d kick the corpse to relieve your anger even if they are dead. This is the 2nd part of legal punishment, to expel any or at least most of the remaining anger of the victim’s family so that they can believe that the “system” is vaguely fair and that at least some justice is done. Though there are some people who will never be happy, at least the majority tend to settle down after that.
Fabian is also somewhat frugal. It seems. Though it’s good that Hugo blindly follows his wife’s orders, I wonder if it’ll really change his nature
Thank you for chapter 😜😜😜
I wonder what those two think of how things are proceeding around them, now that thry’re dead. I think Ramis must have been annoyed to die so “shallowly” swallowing his own fear, not knowing it could be worse. He must have thought, “so close! A beautiful lady, defeating my rival, and my inevitable rise to power! All should have been mine!” Or something. Falcon would have probably been anguished. “All I did was love the wrong man, what did she have that I didn’t?! I could have lived a longer life. I might have been more prosperous. I, who am far more beautiful and wonderful than her, had suffered such injustice!” These are just my thoughts of what they might have thought. After all, I don’t really know. (Presuming that the fear has left them and all that’s left is lingering regret and rage.) Note that I do not completely remember their names, so I’ll just call them Ramis and Falcon.
A lot had to be given up due to their deaths (Roy’s honor and position, a lot of monetary compensation, more deaths, and to think they got off less than if they had been blamed and rightfully got accused of their crime and conspiracy, because they had to still snag Lucia’s honor with them as some sort of parting obstacle. Reveal their crimes=Lucia’s honor would be questioned.) , and I feel like they really don’t deserve the priviledge, considering what they’ve done, but they still are humans, and nobles at that, in addition to their name and statuses.
It’s kind of unsatisfactory for Count Ravis and Countess Falcon to die straightforwardly just like that. They died too fast to even feel regret or remorse… But I guess it was really necessary in order to prevent them from taking the chances to slander and involve the ducal couple.
And here I thought Sir Krotin would arrange something like the Count had an improper, scandalous and unspeakable conduct with the poor maid inside a princess court room… Then escape himself.
But really, his behavior and decision making was so swift with an attitude of nipping everything at its bud. It’s impeccable now that there was time to ponder about it.
Thanks for translating 💕
I’m satisfied with the things they did to punish Anita -w- <3 The product of her life's hard work was striped just like that, that must have been a horrible blow for her in the afterlife huehuehue òwó
I'm proud of Hugh, he is growing little by little thanks to Lucia's guiding uwu Even Fabian who was always on denial noticed it and now feels truly appreciated <3
Thank you for your hard work! <3
I think I have read that “execute her corpse” thing somewhere.
IIRC in this case just take it literally, like they beheaded her corpse, threw here to be eaten by fishes, or pulled apart her limbs, depending on her crime. This is to mark her as a criminal and bring shame to her name and her family. At the same time, it desecrated her body.. Something very disrespectful and shameful for the dead.
I understand that Hugo is rich — like EXTREMELY RICH! Still, I lowkey want him to be stingy. I want him to keep growing rich. I want it explicitly stated that if Hugo wanted to BUY half the world, he would be able to do so, like literally!! Do some of you feel the same way as I do? No? Okay…..