Sorry, the Patricidal Tyrant Seems Beastly (1 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 16
The two uncles admired the handkerchiefs they’d received as gifts.
“Your embroidery truly lacks skill. Your mother wasn’t talented with needlework either. Don’t be too discouraged.”
“Aster, there’s nothing you won’t say to your niece.”
Charlotte tied the knot firmly, and Caesar touched his scabbard with a profound expression.
“When did you prepare this?”
“I’ve had it ready since a few days before the hunting tournament.”
Both remained silent, fiddling with their handkerchiefs.
Aside from the handkerchiefs given to the two uncles, one more remained. This one belonged to Benjamin.
“Do you have any game you particularly want to hunt?”
“Since His Highness the Crown Prince will likely take it all anyway?”
Charlotte replied with a smile, and Caesar’s expression grew strange.
“They say a rare blue bird has been released into the hunting grounds. Shall I catch it for you?”
“If the opportunity arises. Just don’t push yourself too hard deep in the forest.”
Their light conversation ended there. The two uncles were busy inspecting the knights.
The hunting grounds were generally chaotic.
“Did you hear they released black wolves into the hunting grounds?”
“I heard they’re twice as large as ordinary wolves?”
“It’s not just the black wolves. They’ve also released plenty of black and white leopards, so guard your lives well. Don’t let your guard down and end up with your throat torn out by the prey.”
This year’s hunting grounds were filled with rare game.
There were black wolves, black and white leopards, as well as white and red martens, white tigers, and black tigers.
Small animals like martens were near the entrance, leopards were placed midway, and wolves and tigers were meant to be deep in the forest.
Especially since they said there was even a black bear native to Fontria Forest, anyone venturing too deep into the woods half-heartedly would easily become the bear’s meal.
“It’s brutal.”
Charlotte covered her lips and gave a small laugh. Aster smiled and replied.
“A knight lives and dies by pride. Are you heading back to the barracks like this?”
“I still have one more handkerchief left. I’ll just deliver this one.”
Benjamin turned his head from across the way. Their eyes met in midair.
“I’ll go see His Highness the Crown Prince as well.”
Benjamin was dressed in his red uniform. A white cloak hung over his shoulders, embroidered with the imperial crest.
From head to toe, he looked cumbersome, but he stood there with a resigned expression—as if there was no helping it since this was an official event.
Spotting Charlotte and her group, he immediately began walking toward them.
“Don’t you have something for me?”
“What kind of thing?”
“Think carefully. You do have something to give me. If you don’t, House Windsor will be deeply disappointed beyond concealment…”
Charlotte took Benjamin’s wrist and slipped away to a secluded spot. Behind the barracks was relatively quiet.
“Charles.”
Benjamin looked down at his captured wrist, then placed his hand over hers.
“How long do you intend to hold on?”
“The hunting tournament is about to start.”
“So you’re not suggesting we hold hands and go together.”
Benjamin pulled his wrist free. His gentle gesture of wrapping his hand around hers to push it away felt natural.
His movement was light, and his expression calm.
Benjamin fixed his scabbard to his uniform trousers and draped one arm over it. In that posture, he slowly surveyed Charlotte.
“Where did you leave your crossbow?”
“I lent it to Katarina for a moment.”
Benjamin fiddled with the sword at his waist and asked again.
“Have you practiced with the crossbow?”
“Yes. I’m fairly familiar with how to operate it now.”
“‘Fairly’ isn’t enough.”
His warning was firm.
“When pulling the trigger, do it boldly—as if you’re aiming straight for the head of someone you despise.”
“…Aiming for whose head?”
Benjamin gently brushed Charlotte’s cheek.
“What game shall I bring you? Hunting isn’t my preference, but with you here, it’s fine. I’ll fetch your prey for you.”
“What are you saying…?”
“Wait, Charles.”
Benjamin pressed his cheek against Charlotte’s neck. His faint breath touched her throat and dispersed.
Charlotte stammered, and Benjamin turned his head to meet her eyes.
Their gazes locked at close range.
An indescribable breath passed between them, and Benjamin whispered into her ear.
“Then you’ll be the queen of the hunting tournament, Charles.”
Benjamin stroked her red hair and murmured.
“Stop that already… Benjamin, it tickles.”
“You must be quite ticklish.”
“How can you breathe right against my ear like that?”
“Charles is kind.”
“I do have something for you. Just a moment.”
Charlotte took out the last remaining handkerchief and placed it in Benjamin’s palm.
“Did you embroider this yourself?”
“…”
“You have pitiful skill, Charles.”
Benjamin looked at the embroidery on the handkerchief and gave a small laugh.
“Weren’t you the one who told me to pull the trigger as if aiming for the head of someone I hate?”
Charlotte turned to Katarina and said,
“Katarina, bring me the crossbow.”
“Charles, that’s treason.”
Benjamin fiddled with her wrist.
“Tie it on for me yourself.”
Charlotte tied the handkerchief around Benjamin’s scabbard.
[This is the timeline separator]The hunting grounds were quiet. The knights and nobles had departed for the hunt.
“Everyone’s gone.”
“They’ll be back soon.”
Charlotte glanced at the empty assembly area and started walking.
“Miss, that’s not the right way.”
Charlotte suddenly stopped in her tracks.
“Did I take a wrong turn?”
She’d come the opposite way. Though Charlotte retraced her steps with her eyes, she had no intention of turning back. It felt as if something was grabbing her ankles, pulling her down into the earth.
And soon,
she understood why.
“How long has it been since the mistress died, yet you’re out here with a child…”
She’d taken a wrong turn—it led to the Tuteo family barracks. Even Tuteo housemaids were rarely seen.
“Let’s go back, Katarina.”
Just as Charlotte was about to turn around, she froze at their next words.
“Didn’t the head of the house even dig up the late mistress’s grave? He covered it back up for now, but…”
“Be quiet! Someone might hear!”
Charlotte’s face twisted like a demon’s.
‘Who dug up whose grave?’
Of course, Mother’s urn wasn’t there. Who else had personally taken the urn from that grave…
She herself had dug up the grave with her own hands and carried her mother’s urn back to her maternal grandparents’ home.
Charlotte looked down at her own hands. Her mind went blank white.
She jerked her head up sharply and scraped her fingernails against the tree bark. It crumbled with a rustle.
“Dug up the grave…”
If Father had dug up the grave, there could only be one reason.
He must have used the urn as bait to seize my throat—just as in my past life, he’d trapped Mother’s life with my very existence.
“You’re determined to drag me out, aren’t you?”
Charlotte swept her hair back and stepped toward the Tuteo family barracks.
“Oh, Miss?”
“Why is the young lady here?”
The maids blocked Charlotte’s path.
“Step aside.”
Katarina pushed them aside with her scabbard.
“W-wait, couldn’t you just step inside for a moment…?”
As Charlotte parted the tent flap and entered, a noblewoman with wavy brown hair smiled while fiddling with a teacup.
“What brings you all the way here?”
“We meet again, Madame.”
“I was completely fooled, wasn’t I? I didn’t realize you were that household’s young lady.”
Chloe smiled behind her hand in the Tuteo family barracks.
She was Father’s mistress—the woman who’d taken Mother’s place.
“Everyone, leave.”
Chloe naturally dismissed the maids.
“May I take a good look at my stepdaughter?”
Charlotte smiled smoothly.
“Katarina, wait outside.”
At Charlotte’s nod toward the entrance, Katarina stood guard by the tent flap.
“Since I’m your mother now, may I speak informally? The head of the house says I should embrace you, so shouldn’t I also prepare my heart fully to hold you, my dear?”
A moth, blind to its own death, flutters its wings before me.
“If you value that child’s life even a little, listen carefully.”
Unfortunately, I have no intention of breaking your wings right now.
“If you ever call me ‘daughter’ or ‘my child’ again, I’ll bury you alive—so behave yourself.”
Strictly speaking, we’re strangers. Worse than strangers. What right does a father who abandoned custody have to expect family loyalty?
“You probably can’t understand at all why I’m like this. You won’t find any reason behind my actions, and I don’t expect your understanding either.”
Charlotte smiled as she murmured.
“It would be greedy of me to ask you to understand someone who crawled out of a grave.”
I resolved to cut ties with House Tuteo, so why do you keep lingering before me? I severed it myself—why does it still remain connected?
Charlotte took a step forward.
You can’t even imagine it. The child floundering in death thrashed in agony until her very last breath.
The day I returned stiffly to House Tuteo,
you were there—digging up my birth mother’s grave. Mother and daughter died like that. They lived lives worse than beasts and were torn to shreds.
“Why… did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Why, why? Why on earth did you do it?”
“Don’t come closer.”
“…”
“Don’t come any closer!”
Chloe cried out desperately, and a maid waiting outside returned.
“Madame?”
Charlotte whispered, her eyes reddening.
“Hold tightly to what you have and endure.”
I should have left that house sooner. If only I’d left earlier, I might have prevented someone’s miserable death.
To Charlotte, House Tuteo was nothing but traces of past regrets.
It feels as if my very birth became someone else’s sin. If only you’d given me a little more time…
‘I wouldn’t have lost Mother like that.’
How absurd. It’s so ridiculous it brings tears to my eyes.
“I told you not to come!”
Chloe, unable to contain her anger, threw the teacup. It shattered against Katarina’s sword.
The glass fragments, broken by the blade, grazed Charlotte’s cheek. She slowly touched her cheek.
“It hurts.”
It stings.
“Miss!”
Mother. Mother. They treat me worse than an animal.
Benjamin, wasn’t it you who said—if someone annoys you, picture the face you hate and shoot straight for their head?
“Katarina. Bring me the crossbow.”
“…”
“Hand over the crossbow.”
She loaded a bolt into the crossbow and aimed directly at her target. Charlotte focused on Chloe’s head and pulled the trigger. Bang—the bolt grazed her temple and struck the porcelain vase across the room.
Crash! With a sharp shattering sound, the vase broke, scattering fragments everywhere.
“Try that nasty habit once more, and I’ll put a bolt straight through your head.”
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
I’d be mad, too, people come dragging you about, yelling and shooting. Enough to put a respectable bear right off her hibernation prep!
Girl’s got herself a collection of brooms for all that sweeping
The scent of the air after rain deserves its own word. ‘Petrichor’ was coined in the 1900s, which is a scientific term and thus doesn’t feel right. Tamil has Maṇvāsanai (literally meaning “earth smell” or “soil fragrance”) but the odds of me pronouncing this correctly are quite small. Also, I don’t live in an area where I encounter Tamil speakers regularly, so that’s out.