Chapter 534

Am I an orphan? The brothers remained silent for a long time after hearing Heinrich's bomb-like question. And then, German von Schwarz approached Heinrich slowly and looked down at him with narrowed eyes. "Where did you hear such an unbelievable thing? Is it from the emperor? If the source of the information is the emperor, we would have gone to the Allied Forces Headquarters to investigate immediately." "The fundamental difference. We are not brothers to begin with."

"Orphan Heinrich. Do you understand your place now?"

"Oh? Look at this kid's eyes. What, are you going to say something with your fancy abilities again?"

"...."

"Are you going to kill me like you did with Cain and Samuel?"

"...What?"

Two royal family members who died in an accident.

Heinrich felt something break inside him as he looked at Alphonse mentioning it.

German grabbed Alphonse, who was trying to cross the line.

"Alphonse, stop it. Are you drunk?"

"No, look at this bastard's eyes."

But as if Heinrich's judgment was already distorted, Alphonse approached him again despite his brother's opposition.

"Go ahead, you dirty orphan. Try it. Are you going to eat three royals because two weren't enough?"

-Smack!

"Ugh!"

But Alphonse couldn't say anything more.

It wasn't like German to do such a thing.

Louise von Schwarz, who had walked from somewhere, slapped Alphonse's cheek.

"You, you...."

Alphonse's eyes turned to fear and he began to retreat.

"You're talking about things that shouldn't be talked about in a place where they shouldn't be talked about. All three of you. Are the people of the Schwarz royal family doing this without any dignity or respect?"

German was frozen just like Alphonse, under Louise's cold gaze.

The Swordmaster's intimidation made everyone's breath stop.

No one could open their mouths at Louise's words. Alphonse von Schwarz also paled at her appearance.

But Heinrich was different.

Heinrich was staring straight at Louise von Schwarz.

"Do you have any dignity or respect to protect for an orphan who is not even recognized by his brothers?"

"...What?"

Louise von Schwarz's eyes narrowed at Heinrich's growl.

"Where should I protect my dignity?"

Alphonse and German were frightened.

The legitimate successor and eldest daughter of the royal family.

They were shocked to see her openly rebelling against Louise von Schwarz's words.

There is no dignity or respect to be protected for an orphan.

Heinrich, who had never been treated or handled like a royal family member until now, questioned whether it made sense to protect it when needed, and Louise von Schwarz looked at him with a cold gaze.

"That's enough. There's nothing more to discuss. There will be a time and place to sort out this matter."

Louise tried to organize her words as if she didn't want to talk about it anymore.

"Will that time come?"

"...What did you say?"

"I asked if that time will come."

Louise's expression became even colder at Heinrich's words." "Will you talk to me about that before this war ends? We are all treated as orphans and not even given proper human treatment. When will there be a time and place to talk about such things, when we are all looked down upon as orphans?... "

"Youngest."

Louise interrupts Heinrich's words and speaks coldly while grabbing his shoulder.

"Stop doing things even an orphan wouldn't do."

"...."

Actions that even an orphan wouldn't do.

Discussing a topic that should not be dealt with among brothers near the headquarters barracks.

Heinrich couldn't help but close his mouth at the words that could cause confusion for everyone. They were discussing a story that could spread and cause trouble in a place where it could spread to the entire army if they were not careful.

Actions that even an orphan wouldn't do.

Those words were breaking Heinrich's heart.

Louise looks at Heinrich, as well as her other two brothers who have become frozen.

"Alcohol is good food...."

Alcohol.

It's not usually there, but it was there today.

"But it seems like bad food for you guys, so don't put it in your mouth from now on."

Louise left for the headquarters barracks after leaving those words.

German and Alphonse also returned to their barracks quietly without saying anything to Heinrich.

Heinrich stood in place for a long time, unable to move.

* * *

After the party, late at night.

Not all troops were asleep. Some were still awake, guarding the surroundings even on this deep night, as monsters could appear near the Säckenrian area where the party was held.

The silence fell in the area near the Kernenstadt headquarters barracks, where there had been a slightly ominous noise.

But there was still a barracks where the fire had not gone out.

"Wouldn't you have to do something, sir?"

"We don't know where he heard that he was an orphan, but we can't leave it like that."

Alphonse and German visited the commander Louise's barracks in the middle of the night.

Louise was listening to their story while sitting on a makeshift bed.

"Is the youngest going to try to kill us?"

"That's not even more strange."

"Knowing the truth, he will surely not think of us as brothers, and will surely try to do something."

"Yeah, why did you confirm that when you knew the youngest might do something extreme?"

"Well? That... that was..."

"It would have been enough to just say no to such a baseless question. Why did you all cause a crisis by not being able to say that we are brothers?"

Alphonse and German were both silent under Louise's gaze.

"A crisis? Yes, it's a crisis. To the bloodline with powerful force that can annihilate an army with a gesture, who couldn't even say a few good words to us as brothers. It's a crisis to have created this situation by despising us, giving us the cold shoulder, and ignoring us." Alphonse and German had nothing to say, their mouths hanging open.

"Your foolishness is already a crisis for the Schwarz royal family."

"...."

"...."

If they had treated him warmly, Heinrich wouldn't have felt hurt. But it was just their pride. Their pride that didn't want to be treated like orphans and their inferiority complex. That ruined everything. Heinrich von Schwarz knew he was an orphan and that those who he wanted to believe were his brothers actually saw him as less than others. That's the current situation in the Kernenstadt army, where no one knows what sudden action Heinrich might take. Although she didn't intervene, as the commander and military authority of Kernenstadt and the successor to the Schwarz family, Louise von Schwarz must take responsibility for the foolishness of the two brothers. "The source of the information seems to be the emperor?" "....Yes, Your Highness." "They said they met the emperor at the headquarters. How much heat did they receive, pretending to be friends with the emperor...?" Alphonse was about to add some unnecessary comments, but he shut his mouth when Louise glared at him. Louise von Schwarz couldn't know what Heinrich and the emperor talked about. But Heinrich, who met the emperor, couldn't bear it and asked if he was an orphan. Even without hearing what they talked about, she could tell. "I have to meet the emperor." Louise's stern expression was full of the energy to chew up the emperor. However, regardless of where she got the clue, the direct cause of the problem was the direct answer of German and Alphonse. "Don't do anything foolish before consulting with me." "Yes." "Yes, Your Highness." They had to act. Heinrich and the Schwarz family had crossed an irreversible river. Louise's plan to use Heinrich to elevate Kernenstadt's status and ultimately have the Schwarz family take the place of the Gradius family was ruined. "I don't even want to see them. Both of them disappear in front of me." "...." "...." Louise silently glared at the backs of the departing brothers, who had given a short salute. 'Emperor....' Vertus de Gradius. Louise couldn't even imagine feeling the emperor's influence in a place like this, in this way. The division of the Schwarz family. Wasn't it actually falling victim to the emperor's scheme? To be precise, it was more like being used for the stupidity of the other two brothers, excluding herself, and Heinrich's recklessness. If they could predict recklessness and stupidity after being treated like orphans, was there anything the Schwarz family didn't know about the empire? Louise couldn't erase that thought. * * * Heinrich was sitting on his barracks bed. It was late at night, but he couldn't sleep after hearing that kind of story. Orphan. "I have to admit that there was a possibility when I heard that story from Berthus, but I denied it inwardly. That's ridiculous. Does that even make sense? That's what I thought inside. But that ridiculous thing was true. When Heinrich faced the contempt and disdain that he had hidden until now, he felt like he couldn't breathe. That's what it was all about. Even he couldn't understand the rejection and hatred of his brothers. 'Ha, ha...' Heinrich laughed bitterly. Yes, an orphan killed two royals. He was only banished to the temple instead of being killed, which was fortunate. The Schwarz royal family is undoubtedly a group with a sense of propriety. But just hating them isn't enough. Now that he knows the truth, Heinrich realizes how much his brothers, who were not really brothers, had to endure. He thinks that their behavior of openly ignoring and despising him was inevitable. But still... Your brothers will kill you. Now the reality of that message can be felt. The position of an orphan is becoming more and more prominent, and it will even surpass the influence of Louise von Schwarz. She cannot watch such a situation forever, so when the time is right, she will try to dispose of him. He doesn't know who sent it or how they found out. But Heinrich and his brothers had a conversation that should not have been shared. Heinrich knew he was an orphan. His brothers told him he was an orphan. So he senses that he will face a different situation than before. Because his brothers don't know what Heinrich will do, they will try to kill him. Then when? It could be tonight, tomorrow, or during a future operation. Even if he knows the date, he doesn't know the method. It could be poisoning, assassination, or disguised as a death during an operation. Should he just sit still? Even though his brothers may try to kill him? As Berthus said, to survive, he must kill. But is it really the right choice to kill his brothers in a war for the fate of humanity? Heinrich sits quietly in the darkness of his tent. This place is too vulnerable. Even if the tent is thick, it can be easily cut by a knife. Unlike Ellen's tent, Heinrich's tent has no locking or defense mechanisms. Most tents are like this, so there is no room for complaints. From the perspective that the enemy is not human but monsters, the safety of the tent itself is meaningless. It's not a war where assassins or spies rampage. The entire campsite is an environment where night raiders can easily come and go. Monsters don't ambush, so it's too good of an environment. 'Hey.' '...!' Just like now. 'Who, who's there!'" A man in a black robe suddenly appears in the center of Heinrich's tent. Heinrich summons flames in his right hand and opens his eyes. The man takes off his hood and Heinrich realizes he is not an assassin. The man is revealed to be Reinhardt, and he asks if Heinrich received his letter. Heinrich is shocked and asks if it's really him. Reinhardt laughs and asks if he doesn't believe it's him. Heinrich thinks that Reinhardt hasn't changed at all. However, Reinhardt's state seems a bit strange, as if he's drunk.