<Chapter 110>
#12. Black Cloud (8)
Calix’s gaze, as he spoke with composure, was fixed on Durasen, the head of the Botenta family. The heavy silence that had settled quickly transformed into a commotion, perhaps due to his sudden statement.
Despite the changes occurring around him, Durasen showed no signs of being flustered.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
At that calmly delivered statement, Calix barely managed to swallow what almost became a mocking laugh. Though he had never spoken about it publicly, Calix had been suspicious of Durasen for quite some time.
To be specific, Calix’s suspicion of Botenta began when Bain Spangky, a branch member of the Padrian family, infiltrated the mansion and targeted Tonka.
Drought inevitably led to famine. So, to resolve this, it made sense to seek help from Botenta, who was nearby and possessed a large crop yield.
‘It was strange from the beginning that they wanted to increase the purchase of ‘Tonka’, a poisonous herb, in an area affected by drought.’
He only understood why Durasen had been so fixated on Tonka after uncovering the cause of this drought crisis. But that didn’t make it acceptable. Even Calix might have taken longer to discover the cause of the drought if it weren’t for Melty’s help.
‘But it doesn’t make sense that Bain Spangky, who has no expertise in plants, would know about this… unless someone told him.’
There weren’t many people who could properly combine Tonka to function as an effective herbicide. If the herbicide was needed because of the drought, it would have been right to request the supply of the herbicide itself, not the plant. Considering all these situations, it was clear that Bain wasn’t planning to use Tonka to solve the drought problem, but rather to reduce the supply of Tonka to other places. If they had followed his request and sold Tonka to Bain in large quantities, it would have been more difficult to end the current drought situation.
And the most suitable person behind all of this was Durasen, who was right in front of them. As someone who owned vast farmlands, he would be knowledgeable about herbicides and plants, and this was the reason why Bain Spangky didn’t have to worry about famine due to drought.
“Then I suppose I need to change my question.”
Calix, who had shrugged his shoulders lightly, let out a brief sigh. Among those seated around the table, some looked at Calix with hostile gazes. They seemed to want to shout about what nonsense he was spouting, but they also seemed to be trying to maintain a neutral attitude due to Calix’s calm and confident demeanor.
Ignoring the bewildered appearances of others, Calix continued.
“Why did you kill Iel Tuanivel?”
“Wh-What…!”
The gaze of the person who reflexively blurted out those words fell upon Durasen. In particular, the head of the Tuanivel family, who was at the center of this matter, stared at Durasen with a rigidly frozen face. Seeing his appearance, which showed a lack of trust, Calix mentally pushed back the Tuanivel head from his list of suspects.
“No matter how dangerous your situation has become, it’s not right to sell out another person.”
Watching Durasen reprimand with a solemn voice, Calix tilted his head with an expressionless face. Calix, with a brief mocking smile as if he didn’t understand Durasen’s words, looked at the Tuanivel head.
“Have you found Iel Tuanivel’s body?”
“B-Body…! Are you confessing to killing my child?”
“I guess you haven’t seen it. Well, if you had, things wouldn’t be like this.”
At the sight of Calix clicking his tongue lightly, Durasen’s eyebrows twitched. He had always tried to maintain a neutral stance during exchange meetings or conferences. But perhaps finding it difficult to maintain neutrality in a pressured situation, he raised his hand and said.
“It’s problematic to act like this without evidence.”
“Oh. Then, was there evidence when I was framed as a suspect? As far as I know, it was just suspicion…”
It was he who had set this up from the beginning. It was known that the Tuanivel family had recklessly barged in regarding Iel’s disappearance, but judging from the hostility that emanated as soon as they saw him, this was a pre-arranged setup to isolate Calix Kuse Padrian himself.
“Who else but you would do such a thing! I thought it was suspicious from the moment my daughter was called to this place!”
The Tuanivel head vented his anger, violently striking the table with a loud bang. It was Kamin Patel, sitting beside him, who restrained him as he seemed ready to grab Calix by the collar at any moment.
“Ah, really. It’s been noisy for a while now.”
“Kamin Patel!! How could you say such a…!”
“We need to hear what he has to say first to understand what that guy is talking about!”
At Kamin Patel’s exclamation, spoken in an irritated voice, the Tuanivel head sealed his lips tightly.
“Kamin Patel… Would you be this composed if it were your child?”
“Did I say I’m being composed? I said let’s accurately grasp the situation. How can you do anything without properly understanding the situation first?”
“…”
Having easily silenced his opponent, Kamin Patel gestured to Calix as if telling him to continue. Having unexpectedly gained the help of a strong ally, Calix glanced at Kamin Patel with a peculiar expression. At his nod, signaling him to go ahead, Calix continued.
“Since coming here, I keep hearing strange stories. About how Padrian contacted Iel Tuanivel.”
“Are you claiming it’s not true?”
“It’s not a claim, it’s a fact that it’s not true. Because there’s no way Padrian would have sent such a letter.”
Smiling slightly, Calix tapped the table and looked around at the people seated. Those who made eye contact with him all wore expressions that seemed to say, ‘What nonsense are you talking about?’ They all seemed to know that the reason Iel Tuanivel had stepped into the Botenta mansion was because of a letter sent from Padrian.
“It’s hard to say it wasn’t sent when many have already confirmed its existence.”
At Durasen’s stiff words, Calix smiled slightly.
“Who has seen the physical letter that even I haven’t seen? Surely you’re not suggesting that the others who arrived here today have seen it…”
“I’ve seen it.”
“I’ve seen it too, so it would be best not to try to back out.”
Looking at the Tuanivel head who was expressing hostility while gritting his teeth, Calix smiled slightly. Apart from Durasen and the Tuanivel head who had spoken in rigid tones, no one readily raised their hands.
“Is that so? Perhaps the letter looked like this?”
As soon as Calix extended his hand to the side, Angel handed him the topmost letter from what he had prepared in advance. And Calix held it up for all to see. Prominently stamped on the envelope was the Padrian family crest.
“…That’s right.”
“What’s the problem with that letter in the first place!”
Alternately looking at Durasen and the Tuanivel head who were nodding, Calix smiled slightly and continued.
“And you’ve undoubtedly confirmed its contents as well?”
“I think I’ve already said countless times that I saw it myself.”
“How long do you intend to continue with this useless talk!”
Looking them over and clicking his tongue lightly, Calix slowly moved his hand to extract the letter paper from inside the envelope.
“Well, isn’t it strange? It would take about three days to travel from the Tuanivel territory to here. But…”
Calix unfolded the paper. And he tapped the paper with the tip of his pen. And with his movement, everyone around was astonished at the scene unfolding before their eyes.
The letters written on the letter were slowly disappearing. In less than a few seconds, the densely written letters on the paper all flew away, leaving it completely empty.
“Wh-What is this…?”
“All letters sent from Padrian with the family seal are like this. They are designed to disappear after a certain time upon opening. There’s only a grace period of a day or two.”
Having finished saying that, Calix opened his mouth with a cheerful face.
“Isn’t it fascinating? That you claim to have directly seen letters that should have certainly disappeared.”
“……”
Durasen kept his mouth shut. The eyes of the Tuanivel head, watching him maintain heavy silence, were trembling. He seemed bewildered by the situation of coming to doubt someone who had always maintained a reliable neutrality. He wasn’t the only one feeling such bewilderment.
“I didn’t know. Then… you’re saying that the letter I saw was a fake.”
“B-But it definitely came from Padrian…”
Unlike how he had been asserting until now that Iel Tuanivel had come after seeing Padrian’s letter, Durasen easily changed his words. At his tone, which suggested he truly didn’t know, Calix twisted his lips.
He had already strung together the suspicious points about him. Nevertheless, there was a reason for bringing this up in a state where people from other families were gathered. Something that Durasen had but Calix didn’t—that was the support of the majority.
Having planted doubts in everyone’s suspicions, it was now time to deliver the decisive blow.
“But Durasen-ssi, why aren’t you mentioning that?”
“…What are you trying to say now?”
Though he had a tired face, his heavily sunken eyes remained unchanged. Facing Durasen directly, Calix smiled slightly.
“I’m referring to the fact that you’re hiding Iel Tuanivel’s body.”
