Chapter 6

“Don’t make bets about something like that.”

Lersen’s voice was full of contempt as he spoke to Alex.

But Alex didn’t back down at all.

Instead, he provoked him.

“You’re just saying that because you don’t think you’ll win.”

“As if.”

“You’re lying.”

Alex chuckled.

As usual, Lersen took the bait.

For some reason, Alex’s laugh always got under his skin.

“If that’s the case, then I’ll bet two gold coins that they’ll last a month.”

That was enough to get everyone involved.

“I say two weeks and two more days. I don’t think they’ll make it to a month.”

“No way. They’ve already lasted two weeks. They might actually be someone impressive.”

A person who secretly follows someone is impressive?

For a brief moment, someone questioned that logic.

Then they remembered who the target was.

The Mad Dog.

Kite, commander of the Grasias Knights.

In many ways, he was an irresistible person to investigate.

The betting became more and more lively.

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together.

The knights would have strongly denied it if anyone had said so.

But deep down, they weren’t all that different from Kite.

The only relatively normal one among them was Vice-Captain Seren.

Seeing the others getting carried away, Seren angrily tried to stop them.

But Kite casually waved his hand.

“Leave them.”

“But Commander!”

“They need something to enjoy.”

“We’re supposed to be knights.”

“Knights can enjoy themselves too.”

“Stop being so stiff for once.”

With that, Kite stood up and walked over to the window.

The gaze watching him was still there today.

Beyond the row of trees in the distance…

He could sense someone’s presence.

For a moment, he considered rushing over and chasing them.

But there was no guarantee he would catch them.

His stalker behaved like a frightened rabbit.

“Tch.”

It annoyed him.

Very much.

Still…

The person didn’t seem to be a professional.

Nor had they done anything harmful yet.

People called Kite the Mad Dog because of his violent reputation.

But even the Mad Dog had his own standards.

He didn’t beat people up without a reason.

***

Evelyn placed a hand over her pounding heart.

I feel like our eyes met…

But that couldn’t be true.

She was far enough away from the mansion that even someone with excellent eyesight shouldn’t have been able to see her.

The distance was far too great for proper surveillance.

But considering who she was watching…

She couldn’t afford to be careless.

After all…

She had seen what happened to the people who crossed the Grand Duke.

The best example was that information broker.

The man who had opened his mouth and shown her his missing teeth the first time they met.

I don’t want my teeth pulled out.

Evelyn had lived a peaceful life as a poor noblewoman from the frontier.

She had faced hardships before.

But she had never suffered any serious injuries.

And she had no desire to start now.

Taking a deep breath, she cautiously peeked out from behind the tree again.

This time…

She felt no one watching her.

Maybe I imagined it.

What a relief.

She sighed deeply and placed a hand over her chest.

Only after the lights inside the Grand Duke’s mansion finally went out did she leave her hiding place.

Now…

It was time to prepare something else.

She had spent a long time observing the Grand Duke.

Eventually, she reached one conclusion.

Sending warning letters was completely useless.

The Grand Duke received an enormous amount of mail every day.

Any letters sent by strangers were thrown away by the servants before they ever reached him.

No matter how many letters Evelyn sent…

It wouldn’t make any difference.

She couldn’t simply visit him in person either.

The guards at the gate would throw her out immediately.

But… I don’t want to give up.

This had been her grandfather’s heartfelt wish.

So she refused to stop searching for a way.

Danger was approaching the Grand Duke.

Yet she had no way to warn him.

And even if she somehow did…

There was almost no chance he would believe her.

So what should I do?

Evelyn decided to organize the facts she knew by saying them aloud.

She raised one finger.

“I know exactly when the Grand Duke will be in danger.”

The Emperor’s birthday.

After seeing the same dream again and again, she was certain.

“The problem is…”

“I don’t know anything else.”

Who the attackers were.

Why they were attacking him.

Or what ultimately happened to the Grand Duke afterward.

If the dreams were going to show me the future…

Couldn’t they at least show me everything?

She sighed in frustration.

Then suddenly…

A thought crossed her mind.

What if the Grand Duke simply stayed inside his mansion during the festival?

His mansion was heavily guarded.

It was probably the safest place he could be.

“No.”

At first it sounded like a good idea.

But it wouldn’t work.

Even if she sent a threatening letter with the exact date…

The Grand Duke wouldn’t quietly stay inside.

After all…

He probably received threatening letters all the time.

It would be better to kidnap him and lock him somewhere safe.

The moment that thought crossed her mind…

Evelyn blinked.

It was certainly an extreme idea.

But…

It didn’t actually seem like a bad one.

Her grandfather had always said that if you truly wanted to protect someone…

You sometimes had to give something up.

In this case…

The only thing she’d have to give up was obeying the law.

“…That’s actually a good idea.”

Much later…

Evelyn would look back on this moment and wonder why her thoughts had gone in that direction.

Perhaps it was because she had become exhausted after constantly following the Grand Duke and gathering information.

But the truly unbelievable part…

Was that she seriously considered carrying it out.

Maybe…

For just a moment…

Her grandfather’s spirit had possessed her.

***

Once Evelyn decided to imprison the Grand Duke, she became incredibly busy.

Since her target was someone extraordinary, her plan had to be flawless.

For the first time in her life…

She wished she had two bodies.

Whenever she wasn’t secretly following Kite around the city…

She spent every spare moment preparing for his imprisonment.

Choosing where to keep him wasn’t difficult.

Her grandfather’s basement already existed.

However…

Even that suspiciously well-equipped underground facility was still missing a few things.

If someone was going to live there comfortably…

It needed more preparation.

The caretaker had never gone down into the basement.

So the first thing she did was clean it.

She dusted everything.

She laid carpets over the cold stone floor.

Fortunately, there was already a bed.

She only needed to replace the bedding.

After that…

She prepared food.

There was an entire room filled with preserved supplies.

But…

He was the man who had once saved her grandfather.

She wanted to feed him delicious meals.

Most noble ladies never learned to cook.

Evelyn was different.

Her grandfather had taught her many things while taking her through the mountains.

Roasted quail wrapped in clay.

Stew made from grain flour and dried meat.

Roasting freshly caught animals whole.

Preparing mushrooms and wild fruits.

Making hot stew to keep warm during cold nights in the wilderness.

Sometimes I even cooked for Grandfather.

Whenever she did…

He would finish the meal and give her a big thumbs-up.

“You have a talent for cooking.”

Of course…

Perhaps he only said that because she was his beloved granddaughter.

Maybe he was simply encouraging her.

Still…

If someone praised her cooking…

Surely that meant it tasted at least decent.

Evelyn quietly cleared her throat.

Fortunately…

The markets in the capital sold every ingredient she needed.

Preparing meals wouldn’t be a problem.

The problem was something else.

Her grandfather had always said that people couldn’t live on food, clothing, and shelter alone.

“A person needs something enjoyable too.”

He was right.

Considering the Grand Duke’s personality…

If he became bored, who knew what he might do?

She decided she should prepare something to keep him occupied.

Games…

There probably weren’t many games someone could play alone.

She quickly gave up on that idea.

If the Grand Duke ever asked her to play together…

She wasn’t confident she could survive the experience.

Instead…

She decided to buy him some books.

…But I don’t even know what kind of books he likes.

After thinking about it for a while, Evelyn visited a bookstore.

Just in case someone might later trace her purchases…

She deliberately chose a small secondhand bookstore hidden in a back alley.

After observing it for a while, she reached several conclusions.

Compared to other bookstores, the books here were older.

There were fewer customers.

And because the elderly owner was getting forgetful…

He often forgot various things.

In other words…

It was a safe bookstore.

Jingle.

A small bell rang as Evelyn pushed open the door.

“Welcome.”

The elderly bookstore owner smiled warmly as he stood up from his chair.