TVIOWHFW 94

John was still wearing a mask-like smile. Not a hint of agitation could be felt from his face. Liandro narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Is this something you already knew?”

There’s no way.

“I also happened to find out while investigating the Countess Pelsis.”

No matter how much the Duke of Blanchet has stretched out his hand across the entire empire, there’s no way he could have uncovered such a secret.

“Well, I can roughly understand what you’re trying to say.”

John nodded indifferently.

“So, what do you want to say?”

“That I am the only one who can currently help Estelle.”

“You seem very confident.”

“I’m just telling the truth. As an outsider, you can’t do anything.”

Outsider.

John’s gaze sharpened.

“Isn’t it just foolishness, then? There’s only so much I can overlook.”

Suddenly, his changed tone made Liandro tense up, clenching his fist unconsciously. John took a relaxed step closer to Liandro and warned him.

“What do you think is the fate of my wife that you’ve grasped?”

“That…”

Liandro swallowed hard.

[A document addressed to the future Lord of Pelsis.]

A hidden vault in the basement. There, a strange record was found. It was a record written by Liandro’s father.

[“I’ve found the sacrificial victim. Luckily, it seems the victim does not remember anything. The curse appears to have taken a strong hold.”]

[“The Libertan family has decided to adopt the victim for easier handling.”]

[“The protection on the victim is stronger than expected. It seems they are immune to ordinary methods of harm to the soul.”]

Instinctively, Liandro realized that the victim referred to Estelle.

[“The situation has changed. We have decided to quickly resolve everything to honor the honor of Countess Pelsis.”]

[“We are currently looking for an opportunity to sever ties with the Libertan family. There must be a reason everyone can accept.”]

Liandro wanted to learn more about the curse or the truth mentioned in the record. But there were no further records. Of course, even with this much, he could confirm some facts.

‘From Countess Pelsis, they teamed up with the Duke of Libertan and made Estelle the sacrificial victim.’

Having lived his whole life as a knight, Liandro was ignorant about curses or sacrifices. But he knew it was a terrible act.

‘I called her a villainess…’

It feels like stepping into an unbearable truth.

But Liandro made up his mind to save Estelle and atone for his sins. So, just as he had done in the past, he couldn’t avoid it.

“I can’t tell you that. It’s just that the wounds are so great that you can hardly imagine.”

“Interesting.”

John’s aura suddenly surged like a storm.

“Did you think I’d be swayed by such words? If the Countess Pelsis colluded with the Duke of Libertan and committed such heinous acts—”

At that moment, his bracelet beneath his black suit prickled sharply with a tingling shock.

-John! John!

Estelle was urgently calling him.

~·~·*· . ·*· . ·*· . ·*·~·~

Crown Prince Carlos drew his sword and shouted.

“Save the Duchess from the attackers!”

Several knights behind the crown prince rode in on horseback. The attackers, caught off guard by the unexpected reinforcement, tensed.

“Damn! Reinforcements are already here!”

“It looks like this plan—”

One of the attackers declared solemnly.

“Don’t panic just because more enemies have joined! We don’t need to win the fight outright. Our goal is merely to kidnap the target!”

But Carlos had already arrived near me.

Riding swiftly, his sword clashed fiercely with that of an attacker.

Was the reputation of the empire’s famous crown prince justified? The attackers couldn’t effectively resist Carlos’s sword.

‘It doesn’t seem like the crown prince and the attackers know each other.’

The atmosphere was too serious for them to be acquaintances. The furious clashes of swords felt almost as if they were fighting enemies.

‘Some casualties are already happening…’

As the attackers one by one disappeared from Carlos’s sword, they shouted anxiously.

“Focus only on the Duchess! Only target the Duchess!”

But the tide had already turned long ago.

“Don’t worry, madam. Though it’s difficult for us to break through with our skills, defending you is entirely manageable.”

True to their words, the bodyguards started protecting me more steadily. I cautiously asked one of the nearby knights.

“Do you have any idea who these attackers might be?”

The attackers all wore black masks, and their speech was quite plain, so there were no distinctive features.

“Sorry. Honestly, I have no idea.”

“No, that’s understandable.”

I called John, but I felt confident that I could handle it even without his help. I glanced sideways at a faintly glowing magic device and looked for John.

‘Is John not coming?’

“Failure of this operation. Everyone, retreat!”

The remaining attackers, few in number, ultimately chose to flee.

“Knights, pursue those heinous attackers!”

After giving the order, Carlos caught his breath and approached me. His guard first bowed to the crown prince.

“Your Highness, thank you for your help.”

“So, Duchess Blanchet.”

Carlos’s golden eyes pierced through me, filled with a strange expectation.

“Hmm, madam, are you unharmed?”

“I am safe thanks to Your Highness’s rescue.”

I politely lifted my skirt slightly in gratitude. Carlos’s lips curled into a sly smile.

“No need to thank me. I was simply performing my duty as the empire’s crown prince.”

“Since the esteemed Crown Prince risked himself to save me, it’s only natural.”

“Well, if you think that way, then it’s not wrong. Without my help, you might have faced a serious problem. Those knights alone wouldn’t have been enough to handle it, I suppose.”

Carlos swept his proud gaze over the bodyguards. They looked ashamed and bowed their heads quietly.

‘I don’t like this.’

Whether it was a performance or something else, I had received the crown prince’s help. But I felt uncomfortable, as if looking down on those who had done their best to protect me.

‘Even after helping me like this, it’s easy to make them feel bad.’

Looking back, Carlos always seemed like this every time we met.

“I didn’t expect us to be attacked like this.”

“Aren’t bodyguards supposed to always be prepared for such attacks? At least, they shouldn’t create situations that make their clients worry. What do you think?”

“The words of Your Highness are correct.”

The bodyguard bowed and apologized.

“It would have been better to handle the attack before the madam even noticed. Our incompetence has put you in danger, and that’s a sin we should pay for with our lives.”

“That’s too much…”

“Don’t defend us. You admit your fault, don’t you?”

Carlos nodded toward me as if to say, “See?” His face, proud of his handsome features, looked arrogant yet impressive.

‘That’s probably why many young ladies still admire the crown prince.’

But I knew all too well what kind of cruel heart lay beneath that handsome face. That’s why I found the image of the perfect, prince-like crown prince to be rather repulsive.

“Lift your head. We’ll handle the matter of the mistake back at the Blanchet estate.”

“Yes, madam.”

I brushed my platinum hair aside and turned my gaze to the crown prince.

“By the way, I’m really glad Your Highness happened to pass by nearby. How did you happen to find us?”

“I happened to see you while passing by.”

“Really? Normally, wouldn’t Your Highness be with His Majesty the Emperor right now?”

Just then, the emperor was greeting guests near the palace in a forest. In such a setting, the crown prince was supposed to be nearby as well.

“I was actually there too.”

Hearing that, Carlos casually replied.

“I was on my way back to the palace when I coincidentally saw you.”

“Truly lucky coincidence.”

“Well, I was worried about you, so I followed. I couldn’t just stand by while you were in danger.”

From earlier, Carlos had been talking to me quite familiarly. It felt oddly irritating, even though I appreciated his help.

‘What does he think I think of his constant refusals?’

Both Liandro and Carlos seemed to have some curse that made them forget what I said. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be so easy for them to ignore my words like this.

‘Should I be more direct?’

I looked at the crown prince with a naive voice and asked.

“So, Your Highness, you’ve been stalking me?”

“…What?”

He stiffened at the unexpected words.

“I was just watching to see if you were doing well. Then I intervened to save you.”

“You’re a kind stalker?”

“I am quite…!”

Just then, the crown prince’s knights, who had been chasing the attackers, returned.

“Sorry, Your Highness. As soon as we entered the forest, we lost their trail, and couldn’t pursue further.”

“You lost their trail?”

“Yes. It seems they had prepared something in this forest. As soon as we entered, they disappeared, running away as if waiting for us.”

“They’re quite dangerous.”

Carlos nodded and looked at me.

“The situation has become complicated, so from now on, I will personally escort the Duchess.”

For a moment, I wondered if I had misheard. But Carlos, seeing my surprised face, smiled.

“Moving with those guards, we never know when another dangerous attack might happen. That’s why I want to protect you personally.”

“Are you saying you’ll escort me all the way to the palace?”

‘He’s probably planning to take me to the palace himself.’

But Carlos was much more reckless than I expected.

“Of course, I’ll take you to the palace.”

“Why to the palace…?”

“Didn’t Duchess Blanchet agree to stay at the royal palace during this summer festival? Since you’re going anyway, consider it an early arrival.”

Carlos reached out as if to escort me himself, clearly trying to persuade me to ride with him.

“Wouldn’t it be more reassuring to be with untrustworthy guards than with me?”

“I’m sorry, but that’s not the case at all.”

Carlos’s golden eyes darkened further. I didn’t back down, looking into his gaze and smiling.

“Thank you so much for rescuing me. I’ll tell my husband and reward you. But going to the palace under Your Highness’s escort is a different matter.”

“…”

“Above all, I dislike it. I hope you understand that much, at least.”

Carlos stared at me silently. His eyes flashed dangerously, then he casually kicked the corpse and lifted the attacker he had dealt with.

“Even after seeing this?”

Carlos unmasked the corpse’s face.

It was a face twisted as if burned.

‘Horrible.’

I didn’t know exactly, but I could tell that the one who ordered my kidnapping was a cruel person. Beneath that terrible face, I saw a dark hue.

‘Something’s moving?’

The black aura surrounding the masked face twitched. The crown prince shook the mask and scoffed.

“You really don’t need my protection—”

“Your Highness, wait…!”

The cursed corpse suddenly disintegrated into ash with a puff.

“What the—!”

Other corpses around also turned to ash instantly, disappearing. Then strange plant-like stems sprouted wildly over the bodies.

Kieeek—

The black stems pounded the ground with heavy thuds, whipping around and swallowing everything.

Wherever they touched, they turned black and crumbled into ash. It was a truly creepy sight.

“Where did such a monster come from now—!”

Carlos gritted his teeth and swung his sword.

But it wasn’t just one stem. As he fought a few, others kept sprouting from the ground.

“Madam. We need to get out of here.”

The knight tried to pull me back, but the black stems grew wildly, surrounding me.

“This is… what the heck…?”

The knights swallowed their distress, and I clenched my fists, trying to understand the situation.

‘Something’s wrong.’

As I watched the writhing, struggling black stems, a strange feeling crept over me.

‘It feels like it’s talking to me.’

Could it be that even these plants are trying to communicate?

-“Tree spirits! There’s this strange black vine-like stem appearing. Do you know what it is?”

-…A black vine?

-Yes. It seems to be talking to me.

The black stem stretched toward me.

“Madam! Run away!”

I kept my face as calm as possible as I addressed the plant.

-Hey! Can you hear me?

The black stem rushing toward me suddenly paused. A young man’s voice echoed in my mind.

—…What is this situation…?

-That’s what I want to explain.

My heart pounded.

-A fairy?

~·~·*· . ·**##^^##**· . ·*·~·~

Hey there, It’s Green Rose 😉

Since I human I might have make some mistakes while translating so please if you find them let me know here in the comments or in the Discord group so I can correct them and be careful in the future so they do not repeat.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

~~~Next Chapter~~~

Next chapter will be released Tomorrow.

See you then!!