piratefiction Chapter 191 The Chapter of Dove: The Brooch
Chapter 191 The Chapter of Dove: The Brooch
Chapter 191 The Chapter of Dove: The Brooch
That night, the Takagi family remained silent.
The silence was broken as midnight approached when the father's return. The old knight, his temples streaked with gray, removed his armor with the help of a maid. He hesitated for a moment outside his eldest daughter's room, raised his hand to knock, then lowered it. Just as he was about to push the door open, the door to the master bedroom creaked open.
The mother leaned out halfway, her face serious. She shook her head and used her eyes to pull the old knight, who was about to push open the door, back into their room.
The woman closed the door and locked it.
"How is it?" she asked in a low voice, her voice filled with anxiety.
"————"
"Hurry up and tell me, Albert, why are you keeping me in suspense now?"
Dove and Chloe's mother was a dignified and respectable woman who rarely called her husband by his first name, even in private.
Today is an exception.
"Duke Tunes has granted permission for this duel. The time is tomorrow at noon."
"By God!"
The mother cried out in alarm, and all the strength in her body seemed to drain away with that shout.
"I have persuaded the Duke, and I have also confirmed with Augustine and Baron Monet several times. They have no intention of backing out."
The old knight spoke hesitantly, seemingly somewhat guilty.
"—This concerns the honor of a knight, and we must understand Augustine's decision—a knight of the kingdom cannot refuse a challenge, especially when the name of his family is mentioned."
"For some bullshit glory, our daughter is going to—she's going to—"
The lady shouted emotionally, her voice suddenly hoarse from speaking loudly. The word that terrified her was stuck in her throat, and she couldn't say it no matter what she tried.
"Why did Dove Ennis say such hurtful things? It's all my fault. I, as her mother, didn't teach her well."
Even if she didn't want Augustine, she couldn't challenge his honor in public—had this child gone mad? The Monet family were official knights of the Silver Lance Order, veterans of real combat against the Empire, and strong young men at that. How could our Dove compare?
Hearing the woman's words, the old knight lowered his eyes, not daring to look at her, and whispered comfortingly, "This is not your fault, please don't blame yourself."
"Yes, it's not my fault, it's yours! Albert, you've instilled too many unrealistic fantasies in our daughters—why do perfectly good girls want to be knights! Always thinking about glory and creeds—Augustine was such a good boy, what was Doffin thinking to take his proposal as a provocation?"
"That's not how it works. Girls can serve the gods too. The Holy Rose Knights are the most radiant flowers of the Thirteen Holy Knights—"
"You still dare to say that?! She's not you. A male knight can have a fiefdom and start a family. In the Rose Knights, the best fate for a female knight is to live a life of widowhood—if she doesn't die on the battlefield—I thought Doffin was still young, and that so-called knightly dream was just a phase. Being a knight's squire and inheriting some of the heroic spirit of a knightly family was a good thing—but I never expected—"
"This was Dove's own choice; I didn't force her—I didn't force any of our children—"
"How old is Dove? You've already filled her head with chivalrous legends—this shouldn't be a decision a girl should make on her own!"
The lady vented all her anger on her husband, and the old knight, momentarily speechless, turned red in the face and couldn't utter a single word.
Seeing her husband's embarrassed expression, the woman's tone softened immediately.
"Albert, my Albert—I'm sorry, I'm so heartbroken—I shouldn't have said these things. You didn't pressure Dove; it was my fault for not persuading her—she's disliked the lifestyle of aristocratic women since she was little, and I had to force her to learn even basic manners—I never imagined she would be so stubborn—"
The woman walked to her husband's side and rested her head on his shoulder. The relentless years had taken away the man's sharpness, but his shoulder remained as strong as when they first met.
"I know there are some things you can't say. Although Doffin is a girl, she is, after all, the eldest daughter of the Takagi family—you two have the same temperament, valuing knightly honor above all else. It's alright, I can secretly plead with the Monet family. I watched Albert grow up; he's like my son. He will definitely listen to me—he will definitely give up the duel. I will make him give it up. If he truly loves Doffin, he won't be willing to harm her."
The old knight held his wife in his arms, stroking her long hair. He sighed.
"I can't stop this duel, and neither can you—Augustine was young and impetuous, and I used to be like that too. When it comes to the honor of the family, he will never back down."
"Then I'll drag Dove to apologize to him—"
"You know our daughter's personality best. If you do this, she might never acknowledge you as her mother again," the man said softly. "You said she inherited my stubbornness. Dove will absolutely not give up."
"Oh God, am I supposed to watch my daughter die?!" the woman said, her voice trembling with tears. "Even if she wins by some miracle, what girl would kill her future husband?! Her reputation would be ruined."
"It's alright—it's alright." The old knight stroked the woman's back, and she hugged her husband tightly. His steady heartbeat calmed her down. She sensed that her husband had something to say, so she listened quietly.
"The Duke of Tunes is actually doing them a favor," the old knight said gently to his wife. "Neither he, Baron Monet, nor I, nor even Dove and Augustine, want anyone to die."
Upon hearing this, the woman wiped away her tears and looked up.
"But a knight's duel isn't—"
"Doffin isn't a formal knight, and the Monet family doesn't want to bear the stigma of killing a girl. If blood is spilled on the battlefield, Duke Thuns will immediately halt the duel and declare the other side the victor." The old knight stroked the woman's head and said slowly, "If two people can pledge their lives to each other in a duel, wouldn't that be a beautiful story? The Takagi and Monet families, a duel to choose a husband—in this kingdom of knights, let our children be united in marriage."
The lady finally stopped crying and laughed, giving her husband a hard punch on the chest.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner! You made me worry!"
"You didn't give me a chance either—"
Before he could finish speaking, the old knight's mouth was sealed with a big kiss.
The mistress of the Takagi family pressed her husband down on the bed and kissed him passionately for a while, then lay on the man's chest and whispered to him.
"I can finally rest easy—the Monet family is a good family, and Augustine is a good boy—my Dove is finally married. I was worried that she was always wielding swords and spears, which would interfere with important matters—"
"Don't speak too soon. My Dove isn't a coward; she was easily fooled by that kid—but she might not lose. I'm going to go cheer Dove on—"
He was about to continue speaking when his wife covered his mouth.
"I'm warning you, Albert, you're not allowed to ruin this marriage! From now until the end of the duel, you are not allowed to speak to Doffin!"
"Hmm!"
The parents' voices turned into indistinct murmurs.
Chloe lifted her ear from the keyhole, her chest heaving. The girl quietly left the doorway, walked down the stairs, her pace quickening until she was running as she left the house.
pat.
Tears followed her footsteps, shattering on the ground.
The girl's shadow flickered in the dark night as she ran and ran until the tightness in her chest made it hard for her to breathe.
Under the moonlight, the girl's figure remained still in the deep well water.
She looked at her elaborate clothes, her makeup ruined, and the girl looked like a clumsy clown.
Chloe ripped the brooch off her chest and threw it hard on the ground, kicking it once, then twice, until the enamel-painted rose lost its shape.
Why—why not me?!
Just because you were born a few years earlier than me?
If you want to be a knight, then go be one! Why did you have to steal my Augustine!
Why did you steal my life?!
The girl's resentment spread like the weeds in the garden, and among those weeds, a night-blooming jasmine quietly stretched out its poisonous stamens in a dark corner.