IELNDMH - Chapter 144 < The Time Has Finally Come >



"...Lady!"

Lobelia's face became even more messed up at the old woman's sudden cry.

“Why are you suddenly screaming! My head is already pounding and I’m going crazy!”

Lobelia shouted irritably.

“I’m dying, my head hurts so bad... Do you know how loud it is in here?”

She cried, then screamed, and then repeated her sobbing.

A long sigh escaped the old woman's lips as she gazed pitifully at Lobelia.

For a moment, the old woman was overcome with anger and gritted her teeth, but then calmly took a breath, as if trying to calm down her emotions.

"Now... This is not the time. Come on, come here.”

Lobelia's face distorted once again.

“What on earth is this?”

She slowly approached the old woman's side, holding her head with both hands, her face scrunched up.

The old woman once again moved her hand over the crystal ball.

Then, fog rose inside it again, and then a familiar face began to appear.

“That... It’s my body, right?”

Only then did Lobelia's eyes slowly open wide.

What was clearly reflected in the crystal ball was Rebecca's face.

She, who had not been seen anywhere in the human world for the past few months, finally appeared.

“Yes, that’s right. It looks like Lady's body has finally returned to the Empire. I think the time has finally come.”

The old woman who said that looked unusually flushed.

Lobelia was also happy, as she trembled in pain, but the corners of her lips were slightly curved.

"Atlas... The time has finally come..."

She covered her lips with both hands and flipped her hair, not knowing what to do.

When the long-awaited moment finally arrived, the tension became extreme.

“What should I do first, what should I do first?”

Lobelia fluttered at the joy and pain that visited her.

The old woman's lips slowly opened as she stared at her.

“We must hurry to the tower and perform the ceremony, Lady.”

For a moment, the wrinkled corners of her mouth were torn and bent after she spoke as if she was muttering.

Soon, a creepy voice came out of those lips along with an unpleasant laugh.

“To do that, we first have to capture that body alive.”

***

I pulled myself together as quickly as I could with Cedric’s help.

Even so, I couldn't fully recover from the postpartum fatigue, but I headed straight to my mansion with my exhausted body.

A mansion in the northern city of the empire.

When I suddenly appeared, Mina was surprised, but could not hide her joy.

This was the same for the residents of my mansion and the foundation employees who came running after hearing the news.
"Your Highness, you’re finally back! When I heard the news, I immediately came running!”

“Are you okay? “Are you hurt anywhere?”

“You didn’t suffer any harm from that bad woman, right?”

As welcomes and questions poured in, I smiled softly at them.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

However, since my strength had not yet been recovered, my smile must have seemed weak to them.

People's faces became even more worried.

“You don’t look very good, Your Highness...”

“As expected, you’ve been through a lot of mental hardship, right?”

They had no idea that I was pregnant or that I had just given birth, so they seemed just worried about my disfigured face.

It was only for a moment, but their concern for me soon turned into resentment and anger toward Lobelia.

They exchanged words with each other and raised their eyes fiercely.

“You said Lobelia, right? The name of the woman who threatens our Lady Rebecca.”

"Yes, that's right. I saw that woman at Your Highness's mansion.”

"Me too. Who knew that when you look red, your insides are so dark?”

The Twins family and all the mixed-blood demons I worked with seemed to have found out everything that had happened while I was away from the mansion.

Mina watched them with a confused expression as they went about their business, and then she waved her hand wide.

"Now! Let’s get out now, everyone. Your Highness, you must be tired after coming a long way today!”

“Oh, that’s right! You need to rest, Your Highness!”

“Everyone go out, let’s go out!”

Everyone nodded with more enthusiasm than Mina.

Mina did not forget her last request to them.

“Everyone knows that today is a very important day, right? Don’t even go near this mansion!”

Everyone shook their heads at Mina's words, said goodbye to me, and immediately left the bedroom.

Then Mina, who was holding her waist with both hands and looking at them with disapproving eyes, immediately turned her head towards me.

“Are you tired? Go lie down and rest.”

Mina said as she placed the pillow closer behind me, who had been sitting on the bed until then.

Then, as if something suddenly occurred to me... She took out a small bottle from her pocket along with an elastic.

“His Royal Highness told me to give it to you. He says you should eat it...”

It was a medicine that helped my body recover quickly, and I had already drunk it once before leaving Norman Castle in the Demon World.

I opened the small cork and poured its contents into my mouth.

“Ugh...”

“Uh, it is bitter?”

Mina asked, crumpling her face after me.

"Very."

“Here’s some candy.”

"No. I'm going to lie down right now. I think it would be better to take the medicine and sleep right away to recover.”

When I immediately lay down, Mina nodded her head and covered me with a blanket.

“Then sleep well, Your Highness. Everything... It will be fine.”

“Yes, thank you, Mina."

Mina left the bedroom with a slight smile on her face, and I immediately closed my eyes.

As sleepiness gradually set in, my body began to feel drowsy.

So I began to fall into a deep sleep.

***

At the same time, the old woman was hiding in a narrow alley behind Rebecca's mansion, hiding herself with a long black cloak.

Behind her, her three subordinate puppets were lined up.

The purpose was to kidnap Rebecca's body at once and quickly head to the tower.

She lifted her head and stared out the window of the mansion, recalling what she had heard from Lobelia.

‘Her bedroom was said to be in the middle of the second floor... Then you can go in through that window.'

The old woman looked around again.

The area around the mansion was still quiet.

It was fortunate for the old woman, but for some reason, she tasted it with a reluctant expression.

'It seems like everyone was anxious to protect her, but why do I see so few mixed-blood demon users, let alone knights guarding the mansion?'

The old woman clicked her tongue, lost in thoughts.

But her worries were short-lived.

Her desire to obtain Lillian's heart as soon as possible, and her desire to shake off the crazy Lobelia as soon as possible, paralyzed her caution.

“I think it’s that window. Hurry up and bring the body to the tower.”

The puppets slowly nodded their heads at her command.

“However, you must never injure the body. Then her consciousness will go in a strange direction.”

Even though she had already warned several times, the old woman repeated the same thing again.

Rebecca's unwounded body was so important to her consciousness.

The puppets, who were slowly nodding their heads towards the old woman, soon climbed up the wall behind the mansion.

It was a sight that would have immediately called for security if anyone saw it, but the area around Rebecca's mansion was extremely quiet that day.

Thanks to this, the situation went much easier than the original plan to invade the mansion by force.

The puppets finally reached Rebecca's bedroom window and entered without hesitation.

Inside the bedroom, Rebecca was lying on the bed, still asleep.

The puppets got close to her and clamped her mouth shut, tying her body tightly.

"Eww... Wha?"

Rebecca woke up and tried her best to scream.

However, she was stopped by the puppets' immense power, and as she struggled, she soon suffocated and fainted.

From then on, the puppets' work became easier.

One of them quickly lifted Rebecca's body and carried her on his back, while the other wrapped a cloth around her body and held her in place.

And after completing the work as planned, they immediately left the mansion through the window.

Rebecca's bedroom was suddenly empty.

The cool northern wind blew through the wide-open window that had been stolen from its owner, and the curtains fluttered wildly.

Mina's eyes sank low as she opened the bedroom door and saw the desolate scene.

“...”

After remaining silent for a while, Mina turned her head towards the knight of the Twins family standing next to her.

Her eyes became even fiercer.

“It happened just as Rebecca and His Highness said. Now, please convey this situation to His Highness the Grand Duke.”

***

The news was delivered straight to Cedric's office.

While listening to the story of how Rebecca was kidnapped by the knight, the tendons on Cedric's forehead bulged as if they were about to explode.

The aide who had been watching him with worried eyes the whole time finally spoke.

“There will be knights in ambush around the tower. As His Highness the Grand Duke said, I told them to bide their time, but..”

“...”

“...After all, wouldn’t it be better to give them another order to attack them as soon as they arrive at the tower and rescue Her Highness?”

The aide asked again, looking at Cedric's face burning red.

In fact, the aide had already asked the same question several times.

Cedric was so worried about Rebecca, but it was because he kept giving instructions that did not fit his attitude.

Wait until Rebecca is kidnapped. Do not attack those thugs even after Rebecca is finally kidnapped.

That was an instruction that was completely contrary to Cedric's current momentum, which seemed to tear the group apart at any moment.

Normally, he would have simply followed the Grand Duke's instructions calmly, no matter how incomprehensible they were, but what was the situation now?

Isn't this an extremely critical situation, as the Grand Duke's companion has been kidnapped?

'His Highness broke down so miserably during the three months she disappeared, but if something goes wrong with her...'

The aide's eyes darkened.

He even thought that the Twins family, which the mixed race demons could not help but respect, might disappear forever in this generation due to the family head losing his mind due to imprinting.

Cedric's affection for Rebecca was so extreme that such thoughts came naturally.

And now Cedric's affection for Rebecca was not just his.

Everyone within the Twins family respected and loved Rebecca.

The same was true for Cedric's aide, who could not calm down at all in the face of the news of Rebecca's kidnapping.

“Your Highness, I am very worried about Her Highness’s safety. She had just given birth, so it would have been better for you to order us to save Her Highness right away...”

So, je spoke directly to Cedric again, but he just shook his head like he did now.

"No."

Cedric's face, as he recited those words, was darkened with a deeper worry than that of a mere aide.

At this moment, it was Cedric who worried about Rebecca more than anyone else.

Of course, knights were ambushed in advance around the tower where the ceremony would be held, and a barrier was also prepared so that Rebecca could secretly escape in case of an emergency.

Still, Cedric couldn't help but feel anxious when he thought that his lover might be in danger.

But he had to grit his teeth and endure it.

It would be a big deal if the evil group got even the slightest hint of his plan.

He planted both fists on his desk, lowered his head, and let out a long, angry breath.

After a while, Cedric's eyes, which had become even harsher, slowly opened.

“You just have to wait until the right time comes.”

He gritted his teeth and a new, cool voice came out of his lips.

“Because now everything is going according to plan.”



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