Marquess Rogen

"Sir, Miss Tine has arrived," A man in his 40s lowered his head, not meeting Marquess Rogen's eyes.

"Escort her in," Marquess Rogen said, releasing smoke out of his mouth.

On the one hand, he held the cigar sloppily, leaving traces of ashes onto the red carpet. With the number of ashes on the floor, it seemed like he spent the whole day in his room.

Recently, he has been feeling stressed and annoyed as his plans kept failing. He didn't understand why it was failing, as he thought it was the perfect plan. However, it was foolish of him to lower his guard.

Marquess Rogen left the cigar in an ashtray and fixed his necktie. He wanted to look the most presentable and have an aura that shows that he is undefeatable. All this to show Tine his superiority.

Marquess Rogen knew the rotten side of Tine, and he liked it. It all began when Tine started to support Silence. He met the small, angelic girl who was bold enough to go to the underground market and meet him.

It was around when the Countess died. That was when Tine took a step into the underground market.

The underground market was known to be the most dangerous place in the empire, aside from the forest. Mostly it is where many criminals settle and where many illegal products are imported and traded.

One of the problems concerning the empire was the selling of slaves. Ever since the abolishment of slaves, many of them have continued to struggle for a living. With an eye-opener to the nobles, the underground market was created, opened, and was ready to sell.

Right now, the man standing right in front of Tine was not just any ordinary old man. But he was one of the few nobles who ruled the underground market.

With Marquess Rogen's power and influence, he hid in the dark and never once he was exposed to the public about his doings. Because in the public's eyes, he was just a businessman who looked like he had nothing to do with the bad side of town.

An old sketchy but normal-looking man.

Tine comfortably sat on the couch, ignoring the smell of cigars that filled the room. Like what she had expected, the man in front of her eyes never changed at all. Habits like smoking when he has a problem that bothered him a ton were just among his many issues.

"It's great to see you energetic," Tine said, flashing an angelic smile.

"It has been a while, Tine," Marquess Rogen said, spreading his arms on the couch's rails.

"So tell me. Why hasn't my shadow been coming back to me?" Tine asked, making Marquess Rogen shudder with the sudden change of tone.

Marquess Rogen looked at Tine and sighed before continuing, "It's because of him." he said bitterly.

Tine titled her head as no clue on who 'he' is referring to. The 'he' Marquess Rogen was talking about felt somewhat familiar, but Tine couldn't remember at all. It left her with a question, but it would fade later on.

"And so, what are you going to about him?" Tine asked, raising a brow as she rested her chin with her hands closed.

"Kill him," Marquess Rogen answered without delay.

"But?" Tine added, thinking there was more to it.

"But...he can wait, and we'll deal with your problem first."

"Good, you remembered," Tine said, crossing her arms together and continued, "So what happened to my shadow?"

"To tell you the truth, the Duke sabotaged our plans. None...I mean, only a few are alive. Some decided to leave, and some stayed. Perhaps your shadow was killed or is somewhere out there living a better life."

Tine clicked her tongue and bit her fingernail. 

Just what is her shadow thinking? Dying or fleeing to have a better life when they were only slaves. Tine rolled her eyes and released her annoyance.

"Stupid, weak shadow. Now all the money I spent is wasted. You owe me a favor," Tine appealed.

Marquess Rogen stayed silent, thinking deeply about it. It's not like he owed something to Tine, but he agreed to it for entertainment purposes. He thought there was no way a girl like her could harm him anyway.

"Do something or kill her. I hate seeing her face. Every time I see her, the temptation of wanting to kill her grows stronger," Tine frowned.

"And you want me to do something about it?" Marquess Rogen asked, lighting up a new cigar.

"Yes, who else can do it ?" Tine smirked.

Flattered by what Tine said, and Marquess Rogen took it as a compliment. Even if Tine spoke to him informally, he didn't mind it. After all, they were partners who had similar motives.

They both had a motive to get a position they desire, no matter what. Even if it means taking someone else's life.

"That reminds me. You should introduce your son to me and maybe ask him to meet Laura," Tine smirked as her eyes turned icy.

"I don't see that as a problem. Use him as much as you can. He's not a son who I'm proud of," Marquess Rogen said, exhaling smoke out as he lowered his cigar.

"Then, if you don't mind."

A young man crouched onto the floor behind the door, with his ear against the door, covering his mouth with a hand. His breathing fastened, and his vision turned blurred.

He stayed there unmoving until he heard footsteps approaching his direction. Instinctively he hid in a corner and peeked, seeing a girl with blonde hair coming out of the door, saying her farewells to his father.

The young man stuck his head higher and lowered his head when Tine turned around. Tine turned around when she felt someone's gaze on her, but she stayed quiet, and turned her head back front, and thought it was strange as she sensed someone else's presence in the hallway.

With no time to spare, Tine continued to her way while the young man who hid sighed out of relief and watched Tine's back disappear before he could go back to his room.

As he watched Tine, his mouth formed a frown. He knew he wasn't a son that his father was proud of, but the young man didn't like how his father did things. It was quite saddening to see his father change into some wicked man.

"Sir Louis, what are you doing here?" His aide asked.

"Nothing," Louis said as his facial expression changed into a completely different person.

"I'm here to remind you that you have a meeting with the supplier with an hour."

"I'm well aware of that," Louis said as he got out of his hiding spot and fixed his coat.

"Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No, I'm fine, Marq," Louise assured, putting a hand on Marq's shoulder and walked back to his room.

Louis walked back to his room, clenching his fists, and kept his poker face on. Not yet, don't show it, just a little bit more, he thought. And felt his chest tightening as his stomach sank.

Louis opened the door to his room, and once he was in his room alone, he locked the door and jumped onto his bed. He buried his face into his pillow and groaned out loud.

It all felt so painful for him. But never once did Louis think of giving up, and all he wanted to have in his whole life was to be acknowledged by his father. Yet in his father's eyes, he was just a useless person.

Then what's the point of being alive? Louis sat on his bed and punched his pillow, releasing the pain and sadness stored in him.

"Just what does it take to be acknowledged by you?" Louis screamed as he buried his face into the pillow and continued, "Is it because I killed mother?"

Marquess Rogen's wife died after giving birth to Louis, and it wounded him deeply. Even if Marquess Rogen kept Louis in the estate, he didn't show any love to him. All through Louis' childhood, he grew up wanting to be loved.

To Marquess Rogen, Louis is just an unwanted child, and at first, he wanted to sell him off as a slave. But because Louis was useful enough to help with Marquess Rogen's business, he decided to keep him longer.

Keep him longer and throw him after he becomes useless and an eyesore to him.

Even Louis himself knew that he was not loved nor favored by Marquess Rogen. But still, he continued to strive to fight for his own life and maybe someday to be acknowledged.

Louis got out of his bed and stood in front of the mirror, touching his face. He pitied himself for not being able to do what he wanted, but then something struck into his head. He clasped his hand together and had an idea.

Louis thought if he could fulfill what his father wants, he might be acknowledged by him. But at the same time, Louis didn't like the thought of hurting someone. But if it's for his father, then he might be willing to do anything.

"Wait for me. I'll do anything just to have you acknowledge me, and it'll start with her," Louis smirked, looking picture of a girl on this hands, who had black hair and purple eyes.

"It all starts with you."