THE SOVEREIGN GOD'S MORTAL VENGEANCE!

9.

"You unfilial brat!" Richard roared, his fury exploding once again to mask the sheer fear and shock trembling in his chest. His crimson-flushed face was filled with utter disbelief.

"Who do you think you are, Lucas?! How dare you announce your departure from the Wine Family as if you actually possess any dignity! You are nothing more than a loser living off the charity of this place!"

Richard took a step forward, pointing a violently trembling finger straight at Lucas's face.

"You want to leave?! Fine! I don't care if you rot and die in the streets! But remember, from this very second, all your privileges are revoked! My monthly allowance, the house I prepared for your future marriage—even every single cent of wealth I have ever given you—I will take it all back! You walk out of here carrying nothing but your trash of a name!"

The booming echo of Richard's shout bounced off the mahogany walls, accompanied by a long sigh of relief and a sly smirk that returned to Edward's pale face. To Edward, if this bastard child left without wealth or the protection of the family name, killing him out there would be as easy as turning over his palm.

However, Lucas's response was completely beyond both of their expectations.

"HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!"

A light, extremely faint, and icy chuckle escaped the youth's lips. Lucas glanced at the worn, cheap clothes clinging to his body, then shifted his sharp gaze back to Richard with a look of pure contempt.

"Wealth?" Lucas muttered, his voice so flat yet sharp enough to slice through anyone's pride.

"A monthly allowance? A house for marriage?"

Lucas reached into his worn trouser pocket, casually stepping toward Richard's mahogany desk. With a deliberate, slow motion, he tossed a dull, heavily rusted silver coin that clattered loudly against the smooth wooden surface.

"Since when did you ever give me those things, Richard?" Lucas asked, his voice low yet capable of freezing the entire room's atmosphere.

He stared directly into the eyes of the Family Head, which instantly bulged in shock.

"The monthly allowance you refer to... is this miserable silver coin? A house for marriage? When have I ever heard of such a thing?"

Lucas stepped back, straightening his coarse collar with a chilling composure. Every word that left his mouth was like a razor-sharp blade dissecting Richard's lies and hypocrisy right in front of the guards and servants watching from the doorway.

"A decent living? You never even acknowledged my existence in this house," Lucas added with a tilted, mockery-laden smile.

"Don't act like a generous benefactor revoking his child's rights when, from the very beginning, you gave me nothing but suffering. This grand Wine Family wealth of yours..."

Standing not far away, Edward's eyes widened in panic. A thought flashed through his mind: 'Damn it! If Father finds out the truth, everything could turn against us in an instant!'

Unwilling to let years of effort to eliminate Lucas go to waste, Edward immediately shouted out.

"Y-You bastard! How dare you insult the Wine Family right in front of Father?!"

Lucas did not even glance at Edward. His eyes remained locked on Richard, who stood frozen in place, his expression a clear mix of bewilderment brought on by Lucas's words.

"Keep your cheap silver coin that you gave me back when my late mother was still alive, Richard," Lucas whispered coldly, turning on his heel and stepping firmly toward the exit.

Then, suddenly...

"Wait!"

Richard's roar thundered, halting Lucas right at the threshold of the double doors. The Head of the Wine Family was no longer merely filled with rage, but also a storm of confusion and doubt burning in his chest. His eyes darted nervously between the dull silver coin on the desk and his youngest son's exceptionally calm back.

"Lord Master!"

At that precise moment, a man in a gray suit wearing gold-rimmed glasses hurried into the room. It was Harold, Richard's personal assistant who managed all internal financial and logistical records for the Wine Estate. Out of breath, he carried a thick stack of documents in his hands.

However, before Harold could even offer a greeting, Richard took wide strides toward him. The Duke's gaze suddenly turned piercingly sharp, as if he wanted to skin his personal assistant alive.

"Harold," Richard hissed in a heavy, highly pressuring tone.

"Explain to me this instant. Gather all records regarding the monthly allowance allocated for Lucas over the past decade."

Harold flinched, his face instantly turning pale as his eyes caught the rusted silver coin on the mahogany desk, before shifting frantically to Edward, who was subtly shaking his head in sheer panic.

"W-What do you mean, Lord Master?" Harold whispered, trembling as cold sweat began drenching his forehead.

"Don't you dare play games with me!" Richard barked, grabbing Harold by the collar and sending the documents in the assistant's hands scattering across the floor.

"Every month, I signed off an allocation of ten thousand dollars for Lucas's needs and future living expenses! Where did all that money go?! C-Could it be that Young Master Lucas loves squandering money and gambling?!"

Hearing that excuse...

Edward let out a long, quiet sigh of relief, secretly wiping away the cold sweat dripping down his temple. Harold's cunning tongue had truly saved both of their necks at the most critical second.

'Harold! I truly wasn't wrong to trust you!' Edward thought to himself.

Capitalizing on the calculated accusation from the personal assistant, Edward immediately seized the opportunity without wasting time. Putting on an act of grief and distress, he stepped forward toward his father while clutching his bandaged arm.

"It's true, Father!" Edward interrupted, his voice dripping with convincing falsehoods.

"I didn't actually want to escalate the situation or expose my own brother's disgrace in front of you, Father... But what Harold said is the painful truth! I kept quiet all this time only to preserve Lucas's reputation as a member of our family."

Edward flicked a fleeting glance at Lucas out of the corner of his eye, a hidden, vicious sneer masked beneath his distressed expression.

"Lucas has always squandered that ten thousand dollars in shady, underground casinos on the outskirts of town! He lost over and over until he was buried in debt, and then he sold off the items in his room and the residence you provided just to pay off loan sharks!" Edward continued, his voice rising an octave in full-blown drama.

"That miserable silver coin he tossed earlier... was the last remainder of his betting money from tonight! He is deliberately twisting the facts and blaming you, Father..."

Catching Edward's signal, Harold promptly nodded, playing along as he dropped to his knees in terror before Richard.

"I-It's true, Lord Master! These scattered documents contain proof of the monthly expense transactions routinely withdrawn under Young Master Lucas's name! I wouldn't dare lie to you!" Harold cried out while gathering several falsified sheets he had prepared long ago to cover up his joint embezzlement with Edward.

Upon hearing the aligned confirmation from his eldest son and trusted assistant, the remaining trace of doubt in Richard's eyes evaporated completely. His once-wavering face hardened back into an expression of deep disgust and disappointment.

"You really are a loser, a slacker, and a troublemaker..." Richard hissed coldly, staring at Lucas's back with eyes growing heavier with hatred.

"You are not just a useless piece of trash, Lucas... You are a poisonous parasite rotting the noble name of the Wine Family!"

"Lucas! Now tell me, what is your excuse for daring to harm two estate guards, let alone your own elder brother?!"