Ainz Ooal Gown: Noble Knight.

Lei Wenhou remained silent for a few seconds.

Those slender blue eyes remained fixed on Rune's face, as if examining a newly unearthed antique—wanting to confirm its age and understand the meaning behind every mark on it.

"How did Baron Levion die?"

He asked very softly, but his tone no longer sounded like he was coaxing a child.

But Rune's nerves tensed up instantly.

This question—

He lowered his head.

My shoulders started to tremble.

It started gently, then grew stronger. Rune buried his face in the corner of the blanket, his small body curled up like a frightened little animal.

no answer.

Just shaking.

The room quieted down, so quiet that you could hear the occasional crackling of the candlelight and your own breathing.

Lei Wenhou did not urge him.

He simply stood there, looking down at the curled-up figure on the bed, his gaze as calm as if he were watching a play whose ending he already knew.

Rune buried his face in the blanket, letting his breathing become rapid and disordered, and keeping the trembling of his shoulders at a frequency of "too scared to speak".

The blanket concealed his expression, as well as his overly lucid eyes.

If you don't answer a difficult question, no one will criticize a child who has just "luckily escaped death".

That's enough.

Count Alves's voice was not loud, but it clearly interrupted the performance.

He took a step forward, blocking Rune's bed and meeting Raven's gaze head-on.

"My lord, my son is frightened and emotionally unstable." His voice was flat and even. "Now that things are clear, let's leave it at that."

Lei Wenhou looked at him.

Count Alves was also looking at him.

The two adults' eyes met in mid-air, neither willing to back down.

A few seconds later, Ravenhou laughed.

The smile was faint, so faint that it was almost impossible to discern any emotion. He withdrew his gaze and looked again at the small figure curled up in a ball on the bed.

"Sir Alves," he said, "you have a fine son."

It was impossible to tell whether his tone was praise or something else.

"Very quick-witted."

Count Alves did not respond.

Rune's lips twitched slightly as his face was buried in the blanket.

"Sharp reflexes?"

"Ha, just bluffing."

"He acts like he sees through everything, but he's just trying to scare the kids."

Rune silently defined Raven's behavior in his mind.

He'd seen this tactic many times before—first, put on an air of "I know everything" to throw the other person off balance, and then extract more information from them.

pity.

He's not a real child.

Lei Wenhou seemed unconcerned about receiving a response. He simply stood there, looking down at the small figure on the bed, and suddenly spoke:

"Runes".

Rune's shoulders twitched, but he didn't look up.

"You should talk to Princess Lana more."

His tone was casual, as if he were saying that the weather was nice today.

"You two should get along very well."

Rune's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

Princess Lana.

The name was like a fine needle, precisely piercing into the deepest, most hidden corner of his mind.

The third princess of the Kingdom of Ri Yestize, the kingdom's most brilliant mind, and the one who will betray and destroy the kingdom in the future.

Rather than being a person, it's more accurate to say that while the person appears human, their inner self is like a monster.

Has Lord Raven already noticed Princess Lana's unusual behavior?

No, right now, Lord Raven probably just thinks Princess Lana is smarter.

Rune continued to bury his face in the blanket, continuing to play the role of an overly frightened child.

Lei Wenhou looked at him, his smile deepening slightly.

Then he turned around.

"Lord Alves, farewell."

"Please take care, Your Excellency Marquis."

The footsteps gradually faded into the distance.

The door closed gently.

The room fell silent again.

--------------

When Lord Raven stepped out of the temple, the carriage waiting outside was already prepared.

He bent down and crawled into the carriage, leaned against the soft cushions, and closed his eyes.

The carriage started slowly, its wheels rolling monotonously over the stone pavement.

The carriage was dark. The curtains were drawn tightly, with only a few thin rays of light leaking through the gaps, drawing blurry lines in the air.

"grown ups."

The accompanying butler spoke cautiously.

"Are we not continuing with the plan?"

Lei Wenhou did not open his eyes.

He remained silent.

The wheels continued to turn, their rumbling sound rhythmic. Light streamed in through the gaps in the curtains, casting alternating shadows on his face.

A long time passed.

So long that the butler thought he wouldn't answer anymore.

"That child."

Lei Wenhou suddenly spoke, his voice very soft, as if he were talking to himself.

"He killed him."

The butler was taken aback.

"Shall we continue with the plan?"

Lei Wenhou opened his eyes and looked at the slightly swaying chandelier on the ceiling of the carriage. The light flickered with the bumps, shattering his shadow.

The carriage was quiet for a few seconds.

"The plan is scrapped; its value has surpassed the event itself."

He suddenly spoke, his voice soft yet clear.

The butler immediately bowed his head and said, "Yes."

Lei Wenhou did not speak again.

He closed his eyes again and leaned back against the soft cushions.

The wheels rumbled, and the light flickered.

A true nobleman is one who can discern the situation and make informed choices about what is at stake.

The carriage continued on its way, gradually disappearing at the end of the city's streets.

---------------

Aindora Mansion.

Count Alves walked in front, with Rune following behind.

On the way back from the temple, the count didn't say a word.

Not a single word.

Rune lowered his head and silently followed in his father's footsteps.

Go through the gate.

Cross the forecourt.

Walk through the long corridor.

The servants they encountered along the way all bowed their heads in greeting, but none of them dared to look at them for long.

Finally, the study door closed behind me.

Before the count could even speak...

"Thump."

The sound of a knee hitting the wooden floor.

Rune knelt down.

Decisive and efficient, without any hesitation.

The count paused for a moment.

Then he turned around and looked at the small figure kneeling upright on the ground.

silence.

Those who are talented are outstanding.

As long as you don't get beaten too hard later, it's not shameful to kneel down to your own father.

Rune silently prepared himself mentally.

"I know I was wrong."

He used a universal starting move.

First, adjust your attitude.

The count looked at him but said nothing.

"What's wrong?"

After a few seconds of silence, the father's voice came from above, still in that flat tone, devoid of any emotion.

Rune thought for a moment.

"I shouldn't have taken my younger sister out to play."

He deliberately picked the least serious mistake in an attempt to ease the tension.

But as soon as he finished speaking, he sensed something was wrong.

The father's gaze grew even more serious.

Something seemed to sink into those deep eyes.

Your mistake was—

The count paused.

"The blame for killing Baron Rivière wasn't placed on that commoner."

Rune paused for a moment.

He looked up at his father.

That perpetually serious face was expressionless at this moment. But in those eyes, there was something Rune had never seen before.

It's not anger.

It's not disappointment.

But -

Something cold, clear-headed, and taken for granted.

Rune opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

After all that effort...

So, the dark genes I carry are from you.

Rune silently complained to himself.