286.Chapter 286
Dylan looked at Malaki, confusion written all over his face. “Malaki, what’s going on? It’s me, Dylan! I thought you and my grandparents, I never imagined you’d still be alive!”
Dylan thought, ‘I’ve finally found him, so why is he in such a hurry to leave? Does Malaki not want to see me?‘
Dylan felt a strange unease rise in him. He fixed his gaze on Malaki, speaking more forcefully. “Malaki, get off the carriage. We haven’t seen each other in such a long time. Let’s find somewhere to sit and talk.”
Malaki met his gaze, sighing deeply before finally agreeing, “Fine.”
A short while later, they were sitting together in a private room at a nearby restaurant.
They were supposed to be sitting together, but it didn’t quite feel that way. After entering the private room, Dylan casually ordered some food and then turned to look at Malaki, who was still standing at a distance.
“Malaki, I’m no longer the second son of the Stonor family. You don’t have to stand like that. Come, sit with me.”
“No, Lord Dylan,” Malaki replied, his voice heavy. “I’ve always felt unworthy to face you. Even now that I’m here, I feel it even more. Please, let me stand and answer your questions.”
Dylan blinked, not understanding. “What are you saying, Malaki? When my grandparents fell, it was because of the rebels. It had nothing to do with you. You’ve survived and made it this far. You should be happy, not ashamed.”
“Do you think I brought you here to accuse you of something?” Dylan asked with a smile.
“If that were the case, don’t worry, Malaki. Your loyalty to my grandparents‘ family is unmatched, and I trust your character. So no matter how you escaped back then, I won’t hold it against you.”
Malaki thought, ‘How could a kind and understanding man like him have treated Lady Sophie so harshly for the sake of a bastard child? Lady Sophie is his true sister, yet Dylan still laid a hand on her, and so mercilessly!‘
Suppressing his confusion and frustration, Malaki took a deep breath, then began speaking, as Lady Sophie had instructed him.
“Lord Dyla is kind–hearted, and I would never deceive you. Over the years, I should have come to find you earlier, but because of what happened back then, I feared I might put you in danger, so I stayed out of Hasen City, avoiding coming back.”
“Later, Lady Sophie found me and brought me to Solacecrest Manor to live. I came to the city this time to buy some seeds for her, but I didn’t expect to run into you again.”
As Malaki spoke, Dylan began to feel something wasn’t right.
“What do you mean by that, Malaki? What happened back then, and why would finding us have put us in danger?” Dylan asked, his tone sharp with confusion.
Malaki sighed again, his gaze fixed on Dylan as he spoke earnestly. “Lord Dylan, are you truly no longer part of the Duke’s estate?”
“Yes, it’s true,” Dylan replied. “I’ve wronged Sophie in so many ways, and now I want to make things right. Wherever she is, that’s where I’ll be.”
Hearing this, Malaki nodded. “Since you are no longer with the Duke’s estate, there are things you deserve to know.”
inking with each Hearing the shift in his tone, Dylan couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling creeping over him, his hea passing moment.
Sure enough, Dylan’s unease was confirmed the very next moment when Malaki lowered his gaze and said, “Lord Dylan, when the Padilla family fell, I went to the Duke’s estate seeking help. But instead, I overheard the Duke of Mowbay say something to Dale…”
“What did he say?” Dylan asked instinctively, his curiosity piqued.
Malaki’s voice grew somber as he repeated the words that had haunted him for years. “He said, ‘The Padilla family is beyond saving.”