Cloud, who had never disobeyed orders, had recently begun to question them.
Aila, he felt doubly bad as he remembered how he had tried to dissuade her from teaching toxicology to that stupid woman.
“Yeah. That was the original goal.”
Interfering with what his nephew was doing. He was not ready yet, so he was going to end it there. But...
“We must hurry. If we kill him here as an example, those cowardly old men who hesitate to join me will have no choice but to trust me and follow me.”
Cowards who are desperate to save their own lives.
Byron poured the remaining alcohol in his glass into his mouth in one go with a displeased expression.
Needless to say, it was unpleasant to have to join hands with such people to reclaim the place that was his since birth.
“...Is it because of Yung Lady Hailing?”
Cloud asked cautiously. There couldn't be any other reason for Byron's sudden change in attitude.
He's quick-witted, you know. Byron lowered his head slightly and smiled wickedly. The shadow cast on his face made him look even more sinister.
“That’s right. I thought my Ophelia would always be there waiting for me. But this time I realized that she might not be able to do that.”
He was anxious. He felt like Ophelia would run away forever, out of his reach.
He had to get everything back quickly and hold her in his arms, otherwise everything would lose its meaning.
“So, stop talking nonsense and get moving now? If not now, then when will I be able to kill that bastard? I trust you, Cloud.”
If you do that, your family will also be able to wash away its dishonor.
Byron filled his empty glass again and gestured with his chin to Cloud to leave.
"...Yes, my lord.”
And Cloud, as always, had no choice but to follow his master's orders.
It was the moment she had been waiting for.
Aila lay in bed, glancing around to check on Laura's movements.
Tonight, it was Laura's turn to stay by her side, and Aila put a small amount of sleeping pills in Laura's glass of water to put her to sleep.
It was a specially concentrated potion that would keep Laura soundly asleep until the next morning with just one or two drops.
Now, since Laura only had to drink the water, he had no choice but to keep checking Laura's expression.
“...Why are you like that, Miss?”
Laura opened her eyes wide and asked, “Why are you staring blankly at me instead of sleeping?”
It seemed that she did not like the idea of having to watch her enemy's daughter sleep soundly without being able to sleep.
"...No."
Aila turned to the wall so as not to look at Laura, as any more suspicion would ruin things.
But her hearing was completely focused on Laura, so as not to miss even the slightest rustling of Laura's clothes.
And after quite some time had passed.
Gulp, gulp. Aila could hear Laura drinking water.
'It's done now.'
The effects of the medicine would soon take effect, and young Laura would be unable to fight off the sleepiness that was creeping up on her and would sleep soundly until the next morning.
Aila waited with a pounding heart for Laura to fall asleep.
“...It’s not working. Why am I so sleepy?”
Laura could be heard futilely resisting the oncoming tide. But soon, even breathing began to be heard.
Laura had finally fallen asleep.
“Laura?”
Aila got up from the bed and tried poking and shaking Laura.
But the sleeping pill she made had such a huge effect. No matter how many times she tried to wake Laura, she fell into a deep sleep and couldn't wake up.
She wore a black robe hanging on the coat rack over her clothes, as walking around in a white one-piece nightgown would have attracted too much attention.
She was completely dark, even with her hat pulled down. Although it was a little brighter because of the streetlights that humans had put out, the darkness of the night was enough to hide her.
She opened the window and looked outside. With perfect timing, the door to the tavern opened, and someone came out.
'Cloud?'
It was hard to tell who he was because he was wearing a black hood like hers, but judging by his tall stature and muscular build, it was definitely Cloud.
‘...Where are you going?’
Cloud's main job was to protect Byron. In this dangerous city where people were everywhere, at this time of night. The fact that Cloud was moving around without guarding Byron's side must have meant that the work was important.
'I have to chase after them.'
She couldn't tell exactly what was going on, but if she chased Cloud, she would definitely be able to get some information.
She looked out the window at the roof of the building next door, trying to gauge how far she could jump.
'It's quite possible.'
If she hesitated, she would surely lose Cloud. She jumped quickly and landed on the roof, looking like a nimble cat.
'Yes, there it is.'
After confirming Cloud's appearance, she followed him along the roof.
From roof to roof. And then to another roof. It was a quick but silent movement.
There were still quite a few people out and about on the city streets at night, but no one noticed Aila's presence.
Except for one cat who was sleeping soundly on the roof and got startled by the sudden appearance of a human and had its tail puffed up.
‘...Where did you go?’
She had been jumping over rooftops for a while, but when she saw that Cloud she had seen just a moment ago, was no longer there, she stopped and looked around.
Could she have missed it so easily? She lowered her body and looked around, and found Cloud hiding in an alley across the street, making no sound.
'Why did you suddenly hide yourself? Did you notice that I was following you?'
Aila swallowed dryly and hid calmly behind the roof.
No, that wouldn't be it. There was no way he would have noticed her presence. She knew very well the difference in skill between Cloud and her.
There was no way he could have noticed her presence, which he had not noticed the whole time, in that short moment.
Then why is that?
Is he hiding in that alley, waiting for something?
She decided to go down from the roof and take a closer look at Cloud. As she looked around to see which way to go, she noticed that there was no one in the alley behind the building. It was a narrow gap that was embarrassing to even call an alley.
Once again, making sure that there was no one in the alley, she quickly jumped down from the roof.
She must have checked several times before jumping, but the moment she landed lightly on the ground.
Suddenly, someone emerged from the darkness.
“Ugh!”
The young voice, which seemed to have just entered puberty, gasped in surprise when a person fell in front of him. Aila was also surprised.
'Damn it. Where did this guy come from?'
At the sight of the boy looking like he was about to scream, she quickly covered his mouth.
Because she moved quickly, her hood fell off, revealing her dazzling silver hair hidden beneath her robes in the moonlight.
The boy, whose mouth was suddenly shut by a girl smaller than him, looked blankly at Aila with a bewildered expression.
'Shhhh.'
She continued to cover the boy's mouth with her left hand and brought her right index finger to her lips. The boy, who realized what Aila was saying, nodded with a dumb expression.
Aila slowly removed her hand from the boy's mouth and examined his appearance. He was dressed suspiciously, wearing a black robe just like hers.
The skin that could be seen through the robes looked smooth and elastic. He looked well-nourished, suggesting that he was a well-fed and well-raised noble boy.
The golden eyes that shone even in the dark reminded her of Byron. The long eyelashes and the somewhat handsome face also resembled Byron, who had a smooth face like a parasitic brother.
She couldn't figure out why he had to resemble Byron, but the mere mention of him was enough to upset Aila.
'What kind of guy is he?'
She looked around, worried that he had suddenly appeared without any signs of presence, and she could vaguely see a light flickering from where the boy had suddenly appeared a moment ago. But it quickly disappeared into thin air.
It was a trace of magic that she occasionally remembered seeing when she was staying at the Duke's house.
It seemed like he had used a movement magic scroll. Movement magic is a high-level magic and is quite a valuable item. He seemed to be from a wealthier family than he looked.
Whether it was the luxurious clothing worn under the robe or anything else, he was not the type of person to be found in a back alley like this.
There was only one thing she could think of. It was clear that the noble young master had gone out secretly.
“Looking at the situation, it seems like you, too, would be in trouble if you came out secretly and got caught. Let’s pretend we never saw each other.”
Aila spoke coldly and in the quietest of voices. She couldn't waste time in a place like this. Couldn't it be that Cloud had disappeared in the meantime?
Leaving the boy behind, Aila walked quickly out of the alley.
"Wait for a sec...!"
But the boy persistently followed Aila, as if he had something to tell her. Although the boy had long legs for his young age, it seemed like he had a hard time keeping up with the agile Aila.
Aila stopped with an annoyed expression. If she went out of the alley with that annoying tail, there was a great risk that Cloud would find out about her existence.
"...What?"
Aila stood with her arms crossed and a look of annoyance on her face.
Aila, he felt doubly bad as he remembered how he had tried to dissuade her from teaching toxicology to that stupid woman.
“Yeah. That was the original goal.”
Interfering with what his nephew was doing. He was not ready yet, so he was going to end it there. But...
“We must hurry. If we kill him here as an example, those cowardly old men who hesitate to join me will have no choice but to trust me and follow me.”
Cowards who are desperate to save their own lives.
Byron poured the remaining alcohol in his glass into his mouth in one go with a displeased expression.
Needless to say, it was unpleasant to have to join hands with such people to reclaim the place that was his since birth.
“...Is it because of Yung Lady Hailing?”
Cloud asked cautiously. There couldn't be any other reason for Byron's sudden change in attitude.
He's quick-witted, you know. Byron lowered his head slightly and smiled wickedly. The shadow cast on his face made him look even more sinister.
“That’s right. I thought my Ophelia would always be there waiting for me. But this time I realized that she might not be able to do that.”
He was anxious. He felt like Ophelia would run away forever, out of his reach.
He had to get everything back quickly and hold her in his arms, otherwise everything would lose its meaning.
“So, stop talking nonsense and get moving now? If not now, then when will I be able to kill that bastard? I trust you, Cloud.”
If you do that, your family will also be able to wash away its dishonor.
Byron filled his empty glass again and gestured with his chin to Cloud to leave.
"...Yes, my lord.”
And Cloud, as always, had no choice but to follow his master's orders.
***
It was the moment she had been waiting for.
Aila lay in bed, glancing around to check on Laura's movements.
Tonight, it was Laura's turn to stay by her side, and Aila put a small amount of sleeping pills in Laura's glass of water to put her to sleep.
It was a specially concentrated potion that would keep Laura soundly asleep until the next morning with just one or two drops.
Now, since Laura only had to drink the water, he had no choice but to keep checking Laura's expression.
“...Why are you like that, Miss?”
Laura opened her eyes wide and asked, “Why are you staring blankly at me instead of sleeping?”
It seemed that she did not like the idea of having to watch her enemy's daughter sleep soundly without being able to sleep.
"...No."
Aila turned to the wall so as not to look at Laura, as any more suspicion would ruin things.
But her hearing was completely focused on Laura, so as not to miss even the slightest rustling of Laura's clothes.
And after quite some time had passed.
Gulp, gulp. Aila could hear Laura drinking water.
'It's done now.'
The effects of the medicine would soon take effect, and young Laura would be unable to fight off the sleepiness that was creeping up on her and would sleep soundly until the next morning.
Aila waited with a pounding heart for Laura to fall asleep.
“...It’s not working. Why am I so sleepy?”
Laura could be heard futilely resisting the oncoming tide. But soon, even breathing began to be heard.
Laura had finally fallen asleep.
“Laura?”
Aila got up from the bed and tried poking and shaking Laura.
But the sleeping pill she made had such a huge effect. No matter how many times she tried to wake Laura, she fell into a deep sleep and couldn't wake up.
She wore a black robe hanging on the coat rack over her clothes, as walking around in a white one-piece nightgown would have attracted too much attention.
She was completely dark, even with her hat pulled down. Although it was a little brighter because of the streetlights that humans had put out, the darkness of the night was enough to hide her.
She opened the window and looked outside. With perfect timing, the door to the tavern opened, and someone came out.
'Cloud?'
It was hard to tell who he was because he was wearing a black hood like hers, but judging by his tall stature and muscular build, it was definitely Cloud.
‘...Where are you going?’
Cloud's main job was to protect Byron. In this dangerous city where people were everywhere, at this time of night. The fact that Cloud was moving around without guarding Byron's side must have meant that the work was important.
'I have to chase after them.'
She couldn't tell exactly what was going on, but if she chased Cloud, she would definitely be able to get some information.
She looked out the window at the roof of the building next door, trying to gauge how far she could jump.
'It's quite possible.'
If she hesitated, she would surely lose Cloud. She jumped quickly and landed on the roof, looking like a nimble cat.
'Yes, there it is.'
After confirming Cloud's appearance, she followed him along the roof.
From roof to roof. And then to another roof. It was a quick but silent movement.
There were still quite a few people out and about on the city streets at night, but no one noticed Aila's presence.
Except for one cat who was sleeping soundly on the roof and got startled by the sudden appearance of a human and had its tail puffed up.
‘...Where did you go?’
She had been jumping over rooftops for a while, but when she saw that Cloud she had seen just a moment ago, was no longer there, she stopped and looked around.
Could she have missed it so easily? She lowered her body and looked around, and found Cloud hiding in an alley across the street, making no sound.
'Why did you suddenly hide yourself? Did you notice that I was following you?'
Aila swallowed dryly and hid calmly behind the roof.
No, that wouldn't be it. There was no way he would have noticed her presence. She knew very well the difference in skill between Cloud and her.
There was no way he could have noticed her presence, which he had not noticed the whole time, in that short moment.
Then why is that?
Is he hiding in that alley, waiting for something?
She decided to go down from the roof and take a closer look at Cloud. As she looked around to see which way to go, she noticed that there was no one in the alley behind the building. It was a narrow gap that was embarrassing to even call an alley.
Once again, making sure that there was no one in the alley, she quickly jumped down from the roof.
She must have checked several times before jumping, but the moment she landed lightly on the ground.
Suddenly, someone emerged from the darkness.
“Ugh!”
The young voice, which seemed to have just entered puberty, gasped in surprise when a person fell in front of him. Aila was also surprised.
'Damn it. Where did this guy come from?'
At the sight of the boy looking like he was about to scream, she quickly covered his mouth.
Because she moved quickly, her hood fell off, revealing her dazzling silver hair hidden beneath her robes in the moonlight.
The boy, whose mouth was suddenly shut by a girl smaller than him, looked blankly at Aila with a bewildered expression.
'Shhhh.'
She continued to cover the boy's mouth with her left hand and brought her right index finger to her lips. The boy, who realized what Aila was saying, nodded with a dumb expression.
Aila slowly removed her hand from the boy's mouth and examined his appearance. He was dressed suspiciously, wearing a black robe just like hers.
The skin that could be seen through the robes looked smooth and elastic. He looked well-nourished, suggesting that he was a well-fed and well-raised noble boy.
The golden eyes that shone even in the dark reminded her of Byron. The long eyelashes and the somewhat handsome face also resembled Byron, who had a smooth face like a parasitic brother.
She couldn't figure out why he had to resemble Byron, but the mere mention of him was enough to upset Aila.
'What kind of guy is he?'
She looked around, worried that he had suddenly appeared without any signs of presence, and she could vaguely see a light flickering from where the boy had suddenly appeared a moment ago. But it quickly disappeared into thin air.
It was a trace of magic that she occasionally remembered seeing when she was staying at the Duke's house.
It seemed like he had used a movement magic scroll. Movement magic is a high-level magic and is quite a valuable item. He seemed to be from a wealthier family than he looked.
Whether it was the luxurious clothing worn under the robe or anything else, he was not the type of person to be found in a back alley like this.
There was only one thing she could think of. It was clear that the noble young master had gone out secretly.
“Looking at the situation, it seems like you, too, would be in trouble if you came out secretly and got caught. Let’s pretend we never saw each other.”
Aila spoke coldly and in the quietest of voices. She couldn't waste time in a place like this. Couldn't it be that Cloud had disappeared in the meantime?
Leaving the boy behind, Aila walked quickly out of the alley.
"Wait for a sec...!"
But the boy persistently followed Aila, as if he had something to tell her. Although the boy had long legs for his young age, it seemed like he had a hard time keeping up with the agile Aila.
Aila stopped with an annoyed expression. If she went out of the alley with that annoying tail, there was a great risk that Cloud would find out about her existence.
"...What?"
Aila stood with her arms crossed and a look of annoyance on her face.
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