A carriage stopped in front of the gate leading to the capital. The coachman, who was looking at the soldiers blocking the road with bewildered eyes, twitched his bushy-bearded lips and asked.
“Why are you blocking the road?”
The soldier in the front did not respond to the coachman's words, but instead carefully examined the stopped carriage. There was no family emblem or insignia to be seen, but judging by the sturdy axle and spokes made of ash wood and the high-quality iron-rimmed wheels, it was clear that it was not a cart for carrying turnips or potatoes. The gently sloping roof was covered with layers of cloth like a curtain, so no windows could be seen.
“It is His Majesty the King’s order. He wants everyone who enters or leaves the capital to be identified and recorded. Who is in the carriage?”
A look of confusion appeared clearly on the rough-looking coachman's face. He looked back at the door that was firmly shut and showed no sign of opening, then he put on a look of bewilderment and started to grip the reins.
“Our master is riding in the carriage. He is not feeling well and cannot face the cold wind, so please let him pass.”
“He doesn’t have to come out himself. Just tell us which family he is from, and we’ll open the door and check.”
“No, have you ever seen our master’s face? Where is he from? How can you possibly say that? If the master finds out about this, he will run wild!”
When pretending to be pitiful didn’t work, this time he tried to show his anger, but he couldn’t handle the soldiers guarding the capital gate. Strangely, they didn’t try to check inside the carriage themselves, even though they told the coachman their family name and urged him to open the door. It would have been much faster to tie up the coachman and open the door than to fight.
“Oh, well...! I heard that the young master is very unwell!”
At the very moment when the coachman, who had finally lost control of his temper, was about to roll up his sleeves and reveal his thick arms, the window, which had been closed as if there was no one there, opened with a click toward the outside. Then, soon after, a strangely white hand suddenly popped out from inside and dropped something on the floor.
It was a silk bag. The heavy, sagging lower part made a thud as it hit the ground. One of the soldiers who had been struggling to hold onto the coachman picked up the bag, frowning at his freckled nose, and blinked twice.
"Hey."
He opened the pocket toward his fellow soldiers. Inside were gold coins that were shining brightly. The soldier who poured the jingling gold coins into his palm suddenly changed his attitude, smiled broadly, and took a couple of steps back. Then he waved his arms in a circle toward the soldier who was blocking the gate.
“Identity confirmed. Get out of the way!”
The soldier in front of the gate was still young and was rather short. The helmet was too big for his head, and it was so askew that it was hard to even see his face. When he put away his spear and got out of the way, the coachman swung his thick lips with an arrogant expression and deliberately pulled down the reins hard. The moment the carriage passed the gate, there was a thud, the sound of the window being knocked on from inside the carriage.
“Your Grace, what is the matter?”
“Are you wasting time because you can’t even do something stupid yourself?”
“I’m sorry. I’m surprised that there has been such a checkpoint at the capital gate.”
The coachman's tone of voice, unlike a moment ago, was calm and refined. Before entering the downtown area, he checked the deserted road and grabbed the beard that had grown thickly around his chin with the hand that was holding the reins and ripped it off. With a thud, the fake beard was torn off and left in the grass.
Laetian, who had been watching him throw away his beard through the carriage window, turned his head away indifferently. Then as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he picked up his cane and tapped the empty seat opposite him.
“We have passed the gate, so come out now.”
Then, the seat that had been silent made a rattling sound and rose like a chest lid. Then, Libencia, whose hair was all messed up, sobbed loudly and took in heavy breaths.
“What took you so long! I almost suffocated to death!”
“If you suffocated to death after hiding that long, that would be surprising in its own right.”
“Why on earth did I have to hide in a place like this! The soldiers didn’t even open the carriage to check it?”
As she began to lose her temper, Laetian’s brow furrowed in annoyance. If Libencia had been a little more perceptive, she would have noticed that the staff he was holding in one hand was trembling, but unfortunately, she did not know how to assume that someone might get so angry that they hit their own head.
During the few days he spent on the way from the Grand Duchy to the capital, Laetian was on the verge of killing Libencia several times. He repeatedly emphasized that he would never give her any convenience, and Libencia agreed without a second thought, thinking that if she did not leave the Grand Duchy immediately, Saragan would come to strangle her. However, the only time she could keep her mouth shut was for an hour or two.
There was endless complaining and crying about not being able to change her torn and tattered clothes, not being able to wash properly, and even having to make do with a few pieces of bread and cheese in a shaking carriage.
In fact, it was true that Libencia was physically tired, as she had never been on a carriage trip that lasted for several days. It was natural since there was no one to take care of her, such as her tongue or her limbs.
Moreover, the Duke of Laetian did not even try to comfort her with a passing word. For Libencia, it was like experiencing humiliation and neglect for the first time in her life for several days.
Then, she thought she had finally arrived at the capital, but this time she was told to sit in a dirty seat and not move! She had endured a lot just by not opening the door and running out. Although the Duke of Laetian did not know that fact.
“This is the Place Michel, Your Grace.”
“Yes. Let’s go straight to the palace.”
At Duke Laetian's words, Libencia's eyes widened.
“Wait a minute, the palace! Let’s go to the Count’s House first! It’s not that far from Place Michel! I want you to drop me off at my house first!”
“There is no time for that. When we arrive at the palace, there will be so many carriages that they will overflow, so choose the one you want and ride.”
Before the Duke could even stop her, Libencia pulled off the black cloth covering the window and looked outside. It was a familiar street. When the bustling streets of the square came into view, she couldn’t bear it any longer.
“No! I can’t stand it anymore! Get me down here! I want you to let me down!”
“Are you going to get off in the middle of the square like that?”
“What’s your problem! If you don’t get down, I’ll break down the door!”
In reality, it didn’t matter whether Libencia had the power to break down the door or not. At that point, even the Duke of Laetian could no longer tolerate such absurd complaints. When he tapped the glass window on the coachman’s side with his thick silver-decorated cane, the carriage, which had been slowly slowing down, immediately stopped. Libencia, with a very angry expression on her face, grabbed the hem of her skirt and opened the door.
“Goodbye, Duke of Laetian.”
“I think it would be best if we never met again. The next time I see you, I might actually kill you.”
Libencia's face turned pale. While she was dumbfounded by the verbal abuse she had never heard before, Laetian roughly pushed Libencia, who still had one foot inside the carriage, out.
"Ah!"
As she fell to the floor, the door closed as if it had been waiting, and the carriage departed. She felt the glances of people passing by. Libencia, who got up, raised her face and grumbled.
“You damn punk! Do you think I want to see you again? You disgusting little punk!”
She stamped her feet as if she were going to die, and then she pretended to shake off the hem of her dirty skirt and looked around the square. The Count de Montfort was close to the square’s busy streets, so she could walk there. Although she didn’t feel like walking through the crowds like that, it would be much faster than having someone call the Count’s carriage.
“Ah, it’s annoying. My clothes are a mess, and I look like a mess. How surprised will my father be if I go back like this? My mother will be worried too. It’s all because of that woman who disappeared. Just wait and see, I’ll tell my father and he’ll never let it go...”
Bang!
Libencia, who had been walking endlessly, screamed in surprise at the sudden noise and shrugged her shoulders. Not far away, at an intersection where wagons and carts carrying luggage were weaving in and out, people were seen running around screaming and running around in confusion. Black smoke was rising from the middle of the road.
As everyone dispersed, Libencia could see the blazing flames. The flames flickered in the midday sunlight, burning the carriage she had been riding in just moments ago.
“What, what is that...”
Libencia's eyes were wide as if they were going to pop out. A man wearing a black hood suddenly emerged from the carriage engulfed in flames like a shadow. He was clearly the one who started the fire. He casually brushed away the fire from the cloth covering his shoulders and head, and leisurely disappeared into the crowd of people running around, screaming.
Libencia couldn't take her eyes off the long window that was inserted horizontally through the carriage window. From the sharp tip that entered on the right and jutted out on the left, a dark red liquid was dripping down. It was obvious who had been impaled by that window. There was no need to say what kind of state they would be in by now.
“Ahhh!”
Her screams were mixed in with the chaotic noise and could not be heard properly. When she saw people running towards her with buckets of sand and water, Libencia turned around and started running. However, before she could take a few steps, she heard a thud. Libencia’s eyes went dark. Her consciousness ended there.
“Why are you blocking the road?”
The soldier in the front did not respond to the coachman's words, but instead carefully examined the stopped carriage. There was no family emblem or insignia to be seen, but judging by the sturdy axle and spokes made of ash wood and the high-quality iron-rimmed wheels, it was clear that it was not a cart for carrying turnips or potatoes. The gently sloping roof was covered with layers of cloth like a curtain, so no windows could be seen.
“It is His Majesty the King’s order. He wants everyone who enters or leaves the capital to be identified and recorded. Who is in the carriage?”
A look of confusion appeared clearly on the rough-looking coachman's face. He looked back at the door that was firmly shut and showed no sign of opening, then he put on a look of bewilderment and started to grip the reins.
“Our master is riding in the carriage. He is not feeling well and cannot face the cold wind, so please let him pass.”
“He doesn’t have to come out himself. Just tell us which family he is from, and we’ll open the door and check.”
“No, have you ever seen our master’s face? Where is he from? How can you possibly say that? If the master finds out about this, he will run wild!”
When pretending to be pitiful didn’t work, this time he tried to show his anger, but he couldn’t handle the soldiers guarding the capital gate. Strangely, they didn’t try to check inside the carriage themselves, even though they told the coachman their family name and urged him to open the door. It would have been much faster to tie up the coachman and open the door than to fight.
“Oh, well...! I heard that the young master is very unwell!”
At the very moment when the coachman, who had finally lost control of his temper, was about to roll up his sleeves and reveal his thick arms, the window, which had been closed as if there was no one there, opened with a click toward the outside. Then, soon after, a strangely white hand suddenly popped out from inside and dropped something on the floor.
It was a silk bag. The heavy, sagging lower part made a thud as it hit the ground. One of the soldiers who had been struggling to hold onto the coachman picked up the bag, frowning at his freckled nose, and blinked twice.
"Hey."
He opened the pocket toward his fellow soldiers. Inside were gold coins that were shining brightly. The soldier who poured the jingling gold coins into his palm suddenly changed his attitude, smiled broadly, and took a couple of steps back. Then he waved his arms in a circle toward the soldier who was blocking the gate.
“Identity confirmed. Get out of the way!”
The soldier in front of the gate was still young and was rather short. The helmet was too big for his head, and it was so askew that it was hard to even see his face. When he put away his spear and got out of the way, the coachman swung his thick lips with an arrogant expression and deliberately pulled down the reins hard. The moment the carriage passed the gate, there was a thud, the sound of the window being knocked on from inside the carriage.
“Your Grace, what is the matter?”
“Are you wasting time because you can’t even do something stupid yourself?”
“I’m sorry. I’m surprised that there has been such a checkpoint at the capital gate.”
The coachman's tone of voice, unlike a moment ago, was calm and refined. Before entering the downtown area, he checked the deserted road and grabbed the beard that had grown thickly around his chin with the hand that was holding the reins and ripped it off. With a thud, the fake beard was torn off and left in the grass.
Laetian, who had been watching him throw away his beard through the carriage window, turned his head away indifferently. Then as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he picked up his cane and tapped the empty seat opposite him.
“We have passed the gate, so come out now.”
Then, the seat that had been silent made a rattling sound and rose like a chest lid. Then, Libencia, whose hair was all messed up, sobbed loudly and took in heavy breaths.
“What took you so long! I almost suffocated to death!”
“If you suffocated to death after hiding that long, that would be surprising in its own right.”
“Why on earth did I have to hide in a place like this! The soldiers didn’t even open the carriage to check it?”
As she began to lose her temper, Laetian’s brow furrowed in annoyance. If Libencia had been a little more perceptive, she would have noticed that the staff he was holding in one hand was trembling, but unfortunately, she did not know how to assume that someone might get so angry that they hit their own head.
During the few days he spent on the way from the Grand Duchy to the capital, Laetian was on the verge of killing Libencia several times. He repeatedly emphasized that he would never give her any convenience, and Libencia agreed without a second thought, thinking that if she did not leave the Grand Duchy immediately, Saragan would come to strangle her. However, the only time she could keep her mouth shut was for an hour or two.
There was endless complaining and crying about not being able to change her torn and tattered clothes, not being able to wash properly, and even having to make do with a few pieces of bread and cheese in a shaking carriage.
In fact, it was true that Libencia was physically tired, as she had never been on a carriage trip that lasted for several days. It was natural since there was no one to take care of her, such as her tongue or her limbs.
Moreover, the Duke of Laetian did not even try to comfort her with a passing word. For Libencia, it was like experiencing humiliation and neglect for the first time in her life for several days.
Then, she thought she had finally arrived at the capital, but this time she was told to sit in a dirty seat and not move! She had endured a lot just by not opening the door and running out. Although the Duke of Laetian did not know that fact.
“This is the Place Michel, Your Grace.”
“Yes. Let’s go straight to the palace.”
At Duke Laetian's words, Libencia's eyes widened.
“Wait a minute, the palace! Let’s go to the Count’s House first! It’s not that far from Place Michel! I want you to drop me off at my house first!”
“There is no time for that. When we arrive at the palace, there will be so many carriages that they will overflow, so choose the one you want and ride.”
Before the Duke could even stop her, Libencia pulled off the black cloth covering the window and looked outside. It was a familiar street. When the bustling streets of the square came into view, she couldn’t bear it any longer.
“No! I can’t stand it anymore! Get me down here! I want you to let me down!”
“Are you going to get off in the middle of the square like that?”
“What’s your problem! If you don’t get down, I’ll break down the door!”
In reality, it didn’t matter whether Libencia had the power to break down the door or not. At that point, even the Duke of Laetian could no longer tolerate such absurd complaints. When he tapped the glass window on the coachman’s side with his thick silver-decorated cane, the carriage, which had been slowly slowing down, immediately stopped. Libencia, with a very angry expression on her face, grabbed the hem of her skirt and opened the door.
“Goodbye, Duke of Laetian.”
“I think it would be best if we never met again. The next time I see you, I might actually kill you.”
Libencia's face turned pale. While she was dumbfounded by the verbal abuse she had never heard before, Laetian roughly pushed Libencia, who still had one foot inside the carriage, out.
"Ah!"
As she fell to the floor, the door closed as if it had been waiting, and the carriage departed. She felt the glances of people passing by. Libencia, who got up, raised her face and grumbled.
“You damn punk! Do you think I want to see you again? You disgusting little punk!”
She stamped her feet as if she were going to die, and then she pretended to shake off the hem of her dirty skirt and looked around the square. The Count de Montfort was close to the square’s busy streets, so she could walk there. Although she didn’t feel like walking through the crowds like that, it would be much faster than having someone call the Count’s carriage.
“Ah, it’s annoying. My clothes are a mess, and I look like a mess. How surprised will my father be if I go back like this? My mother will be worried too. It’s all because of that woman who disappeared. Just wait and see, I’ll tell my father and he’ll never let it go...”
Bang!
Libencia, who had been walking endlessly, screamed in surprise at the sudden noise and shrugged her shoulders. Not far away, at an intersection where wagons and carts carrying luggage were weaving in and out, people were seen running around screaming and running around in confusion. Black smoke was rising from the middle of the road.
As everyone dispersed, Libencia could see the blazing flames. The flames flickered in the midday sunlight, burning the carriage she had been riding in just moments ago.
“What, what is that...”
Libencia's eyes were wide as if they were going to pop out. A man wearing a black hood suddenly emerged from the carriage engulfed in flames like a shadow. He was clearly the one who started the fire. He casually brushed away the fire from the cloth covering his shoulders and head, and leisurely disappeared into the crowd of people running around, screaming.
Libencia couldn't take her eyes off the long window that was inserted horizontally through the carriage window. From the sharp tip that entered on the right and jutted out on the left, a dark red liquid was dripping down. It was obvious who had been impaled by that window. There was no need to say what kind of state they would be in by now.
“Ahhh!”
Her screams were mixed in with the chaotic noise and could not be heard properly. When she saw people running towards her with buckets of sand and water, Libencia turned around and started running. However, before she could take a few steps, she heard a thud. Libencia’s eyes went dark. Her consciousness ended there.
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