Chapter 765: Why?
"You tell me why," the older man said, his voice dripping with incredulity. His eyes narrowed, and his tone took on a biting edge. "After all, you’ve come this far, Princess Dora. So, go ahead. Tell me—why would I ever intentionally harm the very princes I’ve spent my life serving? I’ve done everything in my power to make them strong, to raise them above all others, to put them at the top of the food chain. So why, then, would I turn against them?" His lip curled as he continued, "Your allegations are not only outrageous but deeply hurtful, and quite frankly, not something I’m inclined to appreciate."
"Are you denying the charges, then?" Dora’s voice remained calm, her expression unreadable as she tilted her head slightly, watching his reaction.
The old man scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Denying the charges? Do you honestly believe you’re some kind of courtroom, where I must stand trial before you and defend my actions?" He gave a mocking laugh, though it sounded forced. "I have no idea why you’ve come here with this nonsense, but I can assure you I have nothing to do with—"
"Anna," Dora interjected softly, her voice barely above a whisper, yet the name hit him like a physical blow.
The change in the man’s demeanor was immediate and unmistakable. His body stiffened, and the mocking arrogance that had oozed from his words evaporated. His posture, once lazy and indifferent, transformed in an instant. Muscles tensed, eyes sharp—he now looked like a predator ready to strike, the sudden shift betraying a truth he’d hoped to keep hidden.
"How dare you besmirch my daughter’s name by bringing it up here!" Lord Rupert glared at her, even as he felt his lungs struggle to draw in air. He tightened his hand on his stick but continued to glare at Dora, trying to intimidate her.
However, Dora was not one to be intimidated. Instead, she leaned back in the seat and continued, as if the old man had not spoken. "Yes. One might wonder what kind of a grudge would you hold against the princes that you would do something like this to ruin them, to harm their brotherhood. But then, one does not need to look far away. Where is your daughter, Sir Rupert? She hasn’t returned to the country in more than a year. Why? You don’t look too well to begin with and your daughter, is busy studying abroad, not even making time to visit her old father? Why?"
Lord Rupert’s grip on his cane tightened, his knuckles white with tension as he stood up, banging his stick on the floor, "What does it have to do with you? If my daughter visits me or not? Why are you trying to involve her in your mess? She is innocent of all this!"
Dora leaned forward, her voice smooth. "If she’s innocent, then why hasn’t she returned? Why have none of her friends or acquaintances heard from her? Why haven’t you heard from her, Lord Rupert?"
"You have no right!" he bellowed, slamming the cane into the ground. "No right to speak about my Anna like this! My daughter is not your concern, do you hear me?"
"But she is, isn’t she?" Dora’s calm reply cut through his rage like a knife. "Because your hatred, your rage—it all started the day she vanished. It all started the day you decided to destroy them. To destroy Kael because you know that Kael is responsible for her death. On the surface of it all, you seemed to believe Kael when he said that he did not intentionally harm Anna, but you still blame him."