'Something feels unnatural.'
The footprints that were left there as if by chance were an eyesore to him.
He felt like he was missing something very important.
Carsis struggled to find the cause of his discomfort.
And then some time passed.
'No way.'
A small realization suddenly flashed through his mind.
“What will happen to the remaining security personnel in Aiasis?”
“Yes? For now, I’ve posted two guards. In the first place, no one other than Lord Carsis can enter Aiasis...”
“No.”
Carsis cut Jason off.
“There’s one more person. Someone who can get in there.”
“Huh?...No way.”
"Shit."
Carsis, swearing softly, kicked open the door and ran across the palace.
An ominous feeling began to crawl up the back of his neck.
'Please.'
Carsis kept mumbling to himself.
Please, please. Let her stay where she is...
Hoping that all of this is for his own good.
“Ugh.”
Meanwhile, my moans in Aiasis became even louder.
I desperately tried to grab Ernest's wrist, but his hand wouldn't let go.
'Why doesn't the power work?'
Perhaps there was another limitation to my power that I was unaware of?
Or not.
'No way. Because they're royal family?'
The founding myth flashed through my mind.
Originally, the power of the five ducal families was to become the shield of the royal family, Clepius.
So there may have been limitations to prevent such power from becoming a sword aimed at the imperial family.
'Shit...'
It was my own mistake.
By using my power for no reason, I ended up provoking Ernest even more.
If I hadn't used my powers, I could have made up a plausible excuse to buy time until Carsis arrived.
“Ugh...”
But even if I regret it, it's already too late.
Because my breathing was getting blocked, I was gradually losing my mind.
'I might really die...'
That's when my vision became blurry.
Ernest's grip loosened, and he pushed me away as if he was throwing me away.
“Cough, cough.”
My breathing was ragged as I exhaled the air I had been holding in me.
I who had been holding my neck with a heavy heart, looked at Ernest's.
Then, as he came in, his knight escort, Cullen, was standing next to him.
Cullen looked at me, my gown half-naked, with a puzzled look.
“Now is not the time to be doing this. We need to find Reventia and get out quickly. They will be here any minute!”
The ruined palace they had deliberately left traces of was one of the farthest places from Sollerian.
If Carsis happened to sense something strange there, he could buy time to escape.
Ernest responded to Cullen's urgent words in a cold voice.
“I’ve already found Riventia.”
Then he approached the statue in the center of the bathtub.
He was caressing the head of a statue modeled after Helios from the founding myth, and without hesitation, he cut off the statue's head with the hilt of the sword he had at his waist.
Then the head of the fallen stone statue and the small wooden box inside it splashed into the water.
“This is...”
A small necklace fell out of a box pulled from the water.
Necklace with red ruby pendant.
That was the Riventia that Ernest had been searching for for so long.
Cullen's expression lightened when he discovered the necklace.
“Then let’s hurry now! We must leave the capital before the gates are sealed!”
“Yeah. But before that...”
But unlike Cullen, who was urging him on, Ernest looked down at me, who was sprawled on the floor, with slow movements.
“Ellie.”
Ernest then knelt down in line with my gaze and whispered softly.
“I won’t leave you here.”
Then he struck my nape hard with the blade of his hand.
With that voice, my vision went dark.
Slap.
Carsis's footsteps were heavy as he walked on the wet floor.
“Ca, Lord Carsis..."
Jason, who had belatedly followed Carsis, also seemed to have grasped the situation and trailed off.
By the time Carsis arrived, it was already too late.
Because what greeted him was not Ellie, but an empty bathtub filled with white steam.
He shifted his gaze and looked around.
A broken statue in the middle of the bathtub and her clothes strewn across the floor.
It was showing what happened here.
“...Ernest.”
Carsis growled the intruder's name.
Even though he wasn't there, he could picture in his mind what had happened in that room.
“First, I will order the Imperial Palace and the capital to be closed.”
Jason, who had read Carsis' unusual aura, quickly proposed a plan.
He made no reply to Jason's words.
Instead, he picked up Ellie's clothes, now soaking wet and a mess.
Ernest.
He took Ellie away using a secret passage.
At the fact that Ellie had been taken away so meaninglessly, Ellie's clothes in his hands were mercilessly crumpled.
Why are ominous feelings never wrong?
His eyes, which had been staring intently at Ellie's traces, glowed red.
“Find it, now.”
So Ellie was kidnapped by Ernest.
The smell of rotten wood planks tickled my nose and the cold air seeped into my thin gown.
I slowly opened my eyes as my consciousness gradually became clearer.
However.
'I can't see anything.'
Even though I opened my eyes, darkness still settled in my vision.
'What?'
Only then did I realize that there was something covering my eye and I tried to peel it off with my hands.
But as if he had anticipated my actions, my arms were tied behind me with rope, making it impossible for me to move my body.
"Ugh..."
Could it be because the rope was tied too tightly?
A groan escaped my lips as I felt a tingling sensation all over my body.
‘What the heck is this place...’
Moreover, I couldn't even speak properly because there was cloth in my mouth.
In a situation where I was completely trapped, I looked back on the past.
From Ernest strangling me in the bathroom to Cullen showing up in the middle of it all.
I swallowed my sigh as I traced the past one by one.
'I've been kidnapped.'
One can only guess that I am riding in a wagon by the rattling sound and the clattering of horse hooves.
I had no idea where I was going or where the carriage was going.
'I heard that security at the palace has become tighter since the Leila incident.'
How on earth did he manage to infiltrate Sollerian and escape the palace with me? After a brief moment of wondering, I began to think of a way to escape from this place.
'I can't use my powers in this state.'
Ernest is powerless.
And unfortunately, he knew more about power than I did, and he knew how to deal with me.
If Ernest had to continue in this state, it would not be easy for me to use my powers on others even if he let his guard down.
I cursed inwardly.
I didn't know where he was taking me, but one thing was certain.
That wherever this carriage stops will never be good for me.
It was while I was fidgeting to free the rope tied around my wrists that I was thinking that way.
The carriage slowed down and then stopped.
My body froze for a moment at the sudden change in situation.
Someone got into the carriage with a noise.
'Who is it?'
Is this what it means to be afraid of not being able to see ahead?
The footprints that were left there as if by chance were an eyesore to him.
He felt like he was missing something very important.
Carsis struggled to find the cause of his discomfort.
And then some time passed.
'No way.'
A small realization suddenly flashed through his mind.
“What will happen to the remaining security personnel in Aiasis?”
“Yes? For now, I’ve posted two guards. In the first place, no one other than Lord Carsis can enter Aiasis...”
“No.”
Carsis cut Jason off.
“There’s one more person. Someone who can get in there.”
“Huh?...No way.”
"Shit."
Carsis, swearing softly, kicked open the door and ran across the palace.
An ominous feeling began to crawl up the back of his neck.
'Please.'
Carsis kept mumbling to himself.
Please, please. Let her stay where she is...
Hoping that all of this is for his own good.
***
“Ugh.”
Meanwhile, my moans in Aiasis became even louder.
I desperately tried to grab Ernest's wrist, but his hand wouldn't let go.
'Why doesn't the power work?'
Perhaps there was another limitation to my power that I was unaware of?
Or not.
'No way. Because they're royal family?'
The founding myth flashed through my mind.
Originally, the power of the five ducal families was to become the shield of the royal family, Clepius.
So there may have been limitations to prevent such power from becoming a sword aimed at the imperial family.
'Shit...'
It was my own mistake.
By using my power for no reason, I ended up provoking Ernest even more.
If I hadn't used my powers, I could have made up a plausible excuse to buy time until Carsis arrived.
“Ugh...”
But even if I regret it, it's already too late.
Because my breathing was getting blocked, I was gradually losing my mind.
'I might really die...'
That's when my vision became blurry.
Ernest's grip loosened, and he pushed me away as if he was throwing me away.
“Cough, cough.”
My breathing was ragged as I exhaled the air I had been holding in me.
I who had been holding my neck with a heavy heart, looked at Ernest's.
Then, as he came in, his knight escort, Cullen, was standing next to him.
Cullen looked at me, my gown half-naked, with a puzzled look.
“Now is not the time to be doing this. We need to find Reventia and get out quickly. They will be here any minute!”
The ruined palace they had deliberately left traces of was one of the farthest places from Sollerian.
If Carsis happened to sense something strange there, he could buy time to escape.
Ernest responded to Cullen's urgent words in a cold voice.
“I’ve already found Riventia.”
Then he approached the statue in the center of the bathtub.
He was caressing the head of a statue modeled after Helios from the founding myth, and without hesitation, he cut off the statue's head with the hilt of the sword he had at his waist.
Then the head of the fallen stone statue and the small wooden box inside it splashed into the water.
“This is...”
A small necklace fell out of a box pulled from the water.
Necklace with red ruby pendant.
That was the Riventia that Ernest had been searching for for so long.
Cullen's expression lightened when he discovered the necklace.
“Then let’s hurry now! We must leave the capital before the gates are sealed!”
“Yeah. But before that...”
But unlike Cullen, who was urging him on, Ernest looked down at me, who was sprawled on the floor, with slow movements.
“Ellie.”
Ernest then knelt down in line with my gaze and whispered softly.
“I won’t leave you here.”
Then he struck my nape hard with the blade of his hand.
With that voice, my vision went dark.
***
Slap.
Carsis's footsteps were heavy as he walked on the wet floor.
“Ca, Lord Carsis..."
Jason, who had belatedly followed Carsis, also seemed to have grasped the situation and trailed off.
By the time Carsis arrived, it was already too late.
Because what greeted him was not Ellie, but an empty bathtub filled with white steam.
He shifted his gaze and looked around.
A broken statue in the middle of the bathtub and her clothes strewn across the floor.
It was showing what happened here.
“...Ernest.”
Carsis growled the intruder's name.
Even though he wasn't there, he could picture in his mind what had happened in that room.
“First, I will order the Imperial Palace and the capital to be closed.”
Jason, who had read Carsis' unusual aura, quickly proposed a plan.
He made no reply to Jason's words.
Instead, he picked up Ellie's clothes, now soaking wet and a mess.
Ernest.
He took Ellie away using a secret passage.
At the fact that Ellie had been taken away so meaninglessly, Ellie's clothes in his hands were mercilessly crumpled.
Why are ominous feelings never wrong?
His eyes, which had been staring intently at Ellie's traces, glowed red.
“Find it, now.”
So Ellie was kidnapped by Ernest.
***
The smell of rotten wood planks tickled my nose and the cold air seeped into my thin gown.
I slowly opened my eyes as my consciousness gradually became clearer.
However.
'I can't see anything.'
Even though I opened my eyes, darkness still settled in my vision.
'What?'
Only then did I realize that there was something covering my eye and I tried to peel it off with my hands.
But as if he had anticipated my actions, my arms were tied behind me with rope, making it impossible for me to move my body.
"Ugh..."
Could it be because the rope was tied too tightly?
A groan escaped my lips as I felt a tingling sensation all over my body.
‘What the heck is this place...’
Moreover, I couldn't even speak properly because there was cloth in my mouth.
In a situation where I was completely trapped, I looked back on the past.
From Ernest strangling me in the bathroom to Cullen showing up in the middle of it all.
I swallowed my sigh as I traced the past one by one.
'I've been kidnapped.'
One can only guess that I am riding in a wagon by the rattling sound and the clattering of horse hooves.
I had no idea where I was going or where the carriage was going.
'I heard that security at the palace has become tighter since the Leila incident.'
How on earth did he manage to infiltrate Sollerian and escape the palace with me? After a brief moment of wondering, I began to think of a way to escape from this place.
'I can't use my powers in this state.'
Ernest is powerless.
And unfortunately, he knew more about power than I did, and he knew how to deal with me.
If Ernest had to continue in this state, it would not be easy for me to use my powers on others even if he let his guard down.
I cursed inwardly.
I didn't know where he was taking me, but one thing was certain.
That wherever this carriage stops will never be good for me.
It was while I was fidgeting to free the rope tied around my wrists that I was thinking that way.
The carriage slowed down and then stopped.
My body froze for a moment at the sudden change in situation.
Someone got into the carriage with a noise.
'Who is it?'
Is this what it means to be afraid of not being able to see ahead?
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