“Walter, don’t talk nonsense.”

“Don’t think you can brush this off. I haven’t been able to sleep at all at your house until now.”

As if to prove his words, Walter Asner’s eyes were sunken and bloodshot.

Judging by his disheveled appearance and the smell of alcohol, he must have gone looking for him after work on his day off.

No wonder Walter was so worried and angry, since he hadn’t returned all night.

But given the place, it wasn’t appropriate to discuss here.

As Sidney glanced around trying to calm Walter down.

“There were circumstances. For now, as we go…”

Logan pushed Walter’s shoulder aside and stood blocking the way. He glared at Walter as if he would kill him and gritted his teeth.

“Where are you coming from now?”

“27 Dustin Avenue, from Sidney’s house. Even if you’re the commander, you shouldn’t interfere in your subordinates’ private lives…”

Walter Asner glared back, not backing down. The two men, looking like they might grab each other’s collars at any moment, seemed oblivious to the onlookers.

To stop this fight… Sidney made up her mind and tapped Logan’s arm.

“I’ll go in first.”

She spoke as if announcing it and turned away. The watching people hesitantly made way.

As if nothing was wrong, Sidney walked away quickly. Hoping the two men left behind would come to their senses.

Sidney’s determined footsteps faded as she disappeared among the people.

Perhaps they only realized it then. That they had almost turned Sidney Warden’s private life into gossip, and that Sidney was very angry about it.

The two men left behind, Logan Redford and Walter Asner, couldn’t chase after Sidney and frowned in dismay.

Then they swept stern gazes over the people surrounding them.

Logan Redford and Walter Asner.

They were heroes who had earned the absolute trust of Crown Prince Edward and achieved great merits on the battlefield, and were set to inherit the Redford and Asner marquisates.

What good would come from getting on the bad side of those two? The gathered people hurriedly went on their way, pretending to be busy.

As the people dispersed, Logan Redford also took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.

He struck a match to light it and narrowed his eyes as he exhaled a long stream of white smoke. Only after spotting Sidney Warden in the distance did he take a step.

He clicked his tongue at her coldness as she disappeared into the building without looking back, when Walter Asner caught up and spoke.

“Let’s talk.”

“…”

“It’s about Sidney.”

Logan, who was about to ignore him, hesitated. Walter Asner, frowning as if displeased with the whole situation, was looking away.

There seemed to be some resolve in his eyes as he stared at the building entrance where Sidney had just disappeared.

They say men understand men.

Walter Asner, who hovered around Sidney pretending to be a friend, and Logan Redford, who ordered Sidney around as her superior. They had been keeping each other in check without ever revealing their true feelings.

More precisely, they couldn’t speak it out loud. For Logan, it was an emotion that was difficult to reveal or even acknowledge to himself, regarding Sidney Warden who was posing as a man.

If Walter felt the same, it would be no different for him.

Even if not, to keep Sidney’s secret that she was a woman…

Logan pulled up one corner of his mouth as he exhaled a long stream of white cigarette smoke.

“Not here… Lead the way.”

“Anywhere is fine?”

“As you wish.”

Logan flicked his finger to discard the cigarette in response to Walter Asner’s provocation.

As if trying to meet expectations, Walter Asner led Logan to the underground prison.

Prisoners with chains on their legs were lined up waiting for food distribution.

Most of them were sentenced to exile or hanging in military trials, or destined for lifelong hard labor.

There were arguments that now that the war was over, they should be released on bail or have their sentences reduced like in regular or noble trials.

But the imperial army and royal family refuted this by bringing up the resistance forces trying to restore the Kingdom of Anes.

In this situation, nobles tried to escape to the noble courts, while those confined here were mostly commoners.

There were occasionally nobles, but in those cases they had been disowned by their families or were from humble houses.

Despite that, if they put on airs about being nobles, they would be harshly dealt with by the guards and prisoners who resented nobles.

Like the prisoner now voicing complaints while holding out his tray for food.

“Hey. There’s no meat in my soup. And why is the bread so hard…”

“Number 356! You again? Just eat what you’re given, you bastard!”

A large guard shouted as he strode towards prisoner 356. Then he swung his club, hitting the tray the prisoner was holding.

With a loud clatter, the tray tumbled to the floor and the food spilled out. The prisoner, robbed of his only meal of the day, trembled as he protested.

“How dare you, do you know who I am!”

Blond hair matted from lack of washing, protruding cheekbones and sunken cheeks from lack of food, torn lips and blue-black bruises around the eyes, and bruises visible even through the ragged prison uniform.

Despite his wretched appearance, the handsome features that had once captured Princess Catherine were still evident.

Recognizing Dean Hamilton, the count, Logan Redford unconsciously frowned. He was disgusted by the sight of him still being arrogant and unrepentant even here.

The large guard rolled his eyes and shouted as he kicked Dean Hamilton in the stomach.

“So what if I know? What difference does it make?”

“Ugh!”

Dean Hamilton collapsed, clutching his stomach. The guards swarmed around him, kicking and hurling insults.

“Huh?! Speak up! You murderer!”

“Does it hurt? Didn’t those women hurt too? Huh?!”

“Damn it! Scum like you should die!”

“Trash like you don’t even deserve this soup and bread! Tsk, ptooey!”

Someone’s sister and daughter. The stories of those women who were thoroughly violated and killed by Count Dean Hamilton enraged everyone.

Especially the guards who had been pushed to menial positions despite being soldiers themselves, just because they were commoners.

Of course, they couldn’t kill a prisoner, so they just kicked him a few times here and there.

But even that seemed to be a great shock to Dean Hamilton, who was shaking in fear with a terrified expression.

One of the guards kicked the bread that had fallen on the floor and ordered.

“Pick it up.”

No matter what, would a noble pick up something that fell on the floor? Logan Redford tilted his head with an amused smirk.

On the other hand, Walter Asner standing beside him frowned with a serious expression.

After hesitating for a long while, just as Dean Hamilton reached out a trembling hand to grab the shabby bread, the guard stomped on his hand with his boot.

“Argh!”

As Dean Hamilton cried out in pain, the guard removed his foot and sneered.

“Number 356, you should eat your soup before your bread.”

Everyone mocked Dean Hamilton, whistling or snickering.

Lick up the spilled soup from the floor. Unable to do even that, Dean Hamilton turned his head away.

The guard grabbed Dean Hamilton’s hair and pushed his face down. With his face shoved into the floor soaked with soup, Dean Hamilton thrashed and shouted.

“Let go!”

“Arrogant bastard! If you don’t eat this soup, you won’t be fed from now on.”

Count Dean Hamilton, who had lived in luxury as the second son-in-law of Duke Yant, strutting around arrogantly. But now he had fallen to being a laughingstock in prison after murdering innocent women one after another.

But this was only the beginning. What followed would be a hell so terrible that he would beg to be killed.

Logan Redford turned away slowly with a cold sneer.

In the interrogation room of the underground prison, Logan Redford and Walter Asner sat facing each other across a rough wooden table.

Logan crossed his legs and leaned back crookedly.

“I’m guessing you didn’t mean to show me Count Dean Hamilton.”

“I did want to show you. How a noble who will face military trial ends up, when even the great Duke Yant abandoned his second son-in-law for his own safety…”

“What does that have to do with Sidney?”

Logan Redford cut off Walter’s words and asked bluntly.

As if telling him to cut the useless talk and get to the point, Logan frowned and clicked his tongue.

At that irritable reaction, Walter Asner leaned back in his chair and sneered.

“If Sidney, Lieutenant Warden, is sent to military trial, would you be any different from Duke Yant, Commander?”

“And you? Can Lord Asner stand up for Sidney even if it endangers your family?”

“Of course.”

As soon as Walter Asner boldly answered, Logan sharply retorted as if he had been waiting for it.

“And can you actually save Sidney Warden? How would you do it after losing the protection of the Asner family?”

Leader of the neutral faction, heir to the Asner marquisate. Once he lost that, Walter Asner would be just a lieutenant in the imperial army.

There was nothing such a person could do for Sidney Warden, who had violated Arsenal Empire law and military law and deceived the emperor and imperial army.

To avoid such a worst-case scenario, to keep Sidney’s secret, he was trying to keep Logan Redford away.

Walter Asner snorted as if he had expected this and sneered.

“So you’re saying you’ll make the same choice as Duke Yant, Commander? Choosing your family over Sidney? At least I…”

“If it were me, I would use everything I have to ensure Sidney never ends up in such a predicament.”

“If such a situation is unavoidable…”

Walter’s rebuttal was drowned out by the sound of a chair being pushed back. Logan Redford looked down at Walter obliquely and spoke as if muttering.

“Walter Asner, I don’t give up anything. That’s how I can properly deal with the unavoidable situations you speak of.”