A faint light was visible beneath the curtains that had been drawn to block out sunlight.
I had a keen sense that it was now the time when the sun was high in the sky.
'I have to get up.'
Even though I thought that in my head, I couldn't get up.
The fatigue that had built up from the continuous insomnia eventually reached its limit, and my eyes kept closing.
Still, I slept better now than I did in the morning because the chill that penetrated my body during the day was much better.
Even then, I would wake up occasionally, shaking.
Then something warm entered my arms.
'...?'
I squinted my eyes in surprise and saw Lamia holding something in my arms and pulling the blanket tightly over me.
“Lamia...?”
“Oh, you’re awake?”
“What is this?”
When I gestured to the warm thing in my arms, Lamia answered with a worried expression.
“A water bottle filled with warm water. I thought you might be cold.”
“Oh, thank you...”
“What? Go ahead and sleep a little more. Ugh, I don’t know why you can’t sleep.”
I hugged the water bag tightly as I listened to the muttering.
Even though my body was very tired, I somehow found myself smiling.
“It’s warm...”
“I’ll be out, so get some rest. If you need anything, just call me anytime.”
Lamia pulled the blanket tightly back over me and headed for the door.
I wanted her to stay by my side, but I was so sleepy that I couldn't even speak, and I could only move my lips.
Thanks to the water bottle, I felt more sleepy than before.
It felt like I could finally sleep so comfortably for the first time in a long time.
But then, suddenly, someone shouted loudly, startling me and making me open my eyes wide.
“There you are, you thief!”
Vanessa bursts open the bedroom door and rushes in, grabbing Lamia by the hair without warning.
I was caught off guard when I heard a loud, sharp sound. My heart pounded, and I was suddenly woken from my sleep.
“Ahhh! What the hell is this?”
Lamia struggled, holding Vanessa's hand.
I threw off the covers, got up, and yelled at Vanessa.
“Vanessa! What’s all this fuss about?”
I was really angry.
I thought I could barely sleep well, but you disturbed my rest and made such a fuss in my personal space.
Above all, I couldn't just sit by and watch Lamia being treated so carelessly.
“Can’t you let go of that hand?”
Vanessa, who had just discovered me, smiled strangely with a fierce expression on her face and said:
“Your Hoghn! This bitch is the thief who stole the Empress’s jewels!”
It was a very excited voice. Vanessa's cheeks were flushed with excitement.
"I was wondering why our group suddenly grew so much, and then this sassy woman shamelessly pretended to be a maid and joined our party! We must report this to the palace immediately!"
Then she showed me a wanted poster with Lamia's face drawn on it.
'Ah, so you finally figured it out.'
I had that thought, but surprisingly, instead of feeling embarrassed, I felt calm.
I was so angry that all my emotions turned cold.
I had often imagined how I would react if something like this happened, so I said what I had in mind.
“Vanessa, as you know, my maids are personally selected by Her Majesty the Empress.”
“But at the end, Lamia suddenly...!”
“Who do you think you are to speak so loudly in front of?”
I shouted louder than Vanessa.
Vanessa was startled when she saw me like that for the first time.
When people are tired, they tend to lose patience and become irritable and angry.
I was so angry that I walked up to Vanessa and warned her.
“As you know, Lamia is a child I cherish. Let go of that hand right now.”
"But...!"
“If you have falsely accused Lamia, I will cut off your hand.”
I meant it. Vanessa saw my angry gaze and realized I wasn't just talking nonsense. Only then did she let go of her grip on Lamia's hair.
But as if she couldn't just back down, she stubbornly pushed the wanted poster in front of my eyes.
“Look carefully, Princess! It’s clearly Lamia! We can’t just leave that thief alone!”
I pretended to compare the picture on the wanted poster with Lamia's appearance, then shrugged calmly.
“Well, I don’t know.”
Lamia, who had been silently observing me while grumbling with her hair in a mess, rushed to Vanessa as soon as she realized that I was going to defend her to the end.
“Who are you treating as a thief!”
This time, Lamia grabbed Vanessa's hair.
At first glance, Vanessa might seem like a bit of a troublemaker, always irritated and grumpy, but in reality, Lamia's personality was even more unusual.
Lamia grabbed Vanessa's hair with one hand and began to beat her, swinging her fists wildly with the other.
It seemed like she had learned martial arts somewhere.
“Ah! Aah! This is it!”
“What is this! What is this!”
Vanessa struggled violently, but Lamia never let go of her hair, dodging all of Vanessa's hands and beating her with her fists.
'Hah, what's all this fuss about?'
Maids fighting in front of the royal family, pulling each other's hair.
'I've seen this kind of thing before.'
It was truly absurd and shocking, but I secretly felt relieved watching Lamia beat up Vanessa.
So I watched for a while until the guards heard the commotion and came running, and then pretended to stop Lamia later.
“Lamia, can’t you stop too?”
I saw the guards running towards me in a panic, asking what was going on, and I gave them an order.
“If these two don’t separate right now, take them away and lock them in the dungeon.”
Only then did Lamia let go of Vanessa.
Compared to Lamia, who was relatively unharmed, Vanessa had a nosebleed all over her face.
I spoke calmly to Vanessa, who was grumbling.
"Anyway, I'll contact the palace and ask them to investigate this matter, so just stay still. I'll take a closer look, so give me the wanted poster."
I snatched it from Vanessa, who was still stubbornly holding onto the wanted poster.
Then I gave orders to the guards, as if to avoid looking too suspicious.
“Keep Lamia confined to an empty room until the investigation is complete.”
Lamia didn't rebel, perhaps because it was my order, but she was dragged reluctantly into the hands of the guards like an ox being led to the slaughterhouse.
I whispered to her like that.
“Trust me.”
I wanted to tell her that I would help her until the end, but I didn't have time to whisper it at length without anyone knowing.
So Lamia was imprisoned.
Vanessa seemed to have a lot to say.
I waved my hand at her without hiding my annoyance.
"I've done what you wanted, so you can go now. I have a headache from all the chaos, so I need to rest for a while."
“Your Highness, this matter is very serious...!”
“Don’t you hear me telling you to go out? Wouldn’t it be better to be dragged out?”
Vanessa pouted, as if she was dying from the injustice she felt at my cold command, and left the room. Her nose was still covered in blood.
After Vanessa left, I sat on the bed and stared at the wanted poster.
'Where on earth did this wanted poster come from?'
At that moment, Kavala was sitting upright on the sofa with her eyes closed, as if meditating.
The pupils were moving rapidly behind the covered eyelids.
Then, at some point, she frowned and opened her eyes wide.
Her brown eyes were shining red.
She blinked a few times, and the red light quickly disappeared.
“Phew.”
She pressed her fingers around her eyes as if they were sore.
“Have you seen the gypsy woman?”
Dnieper asked cautiously.
Kavala was casting a shared vision spell on a wandering merchant who claimed to have received the dragon's eye from the butler of Ronheim Castle.
The merchant, who had been dragged into the Dnieper's hands, cried and pleaded that he had never seen the woman in the wanted poster, but Kavala did not believe him.
So, in the end, he sent a merchant to Ronheim Castle to check the people's faces, saying he would check it himself.
But because it was such a difficult spell, Kavala's face was covered with fatigue.
“That stupid peddler was loitering around in the kitchen. He must be dying.”
This type of magic, which requires delicate techniques, was difficult to maintain for a long time.
So, she had a hard time because the sharing was interrupted every now and then, and she was gritting her teeth at the fact that she didn't get the return on her efforts.
“Useless guy.”
Dnieper gently soothed such Kavala.
"I don't know how it ended up in the butler's hands, but if there was a gypsy woman there, my sister's errand boy would have definitely reported it. Let's wait and see."
“Everyone is frustrated, everyone!”
Kavala glared and cursed.
A red light flashed in her eyes once again.
At the same time, a merchant who was drinking tea in the kitchen of Ronheim Castle and examining the faces of as many employees as possible suddenly screamed and collapsed.
“Ah!”
“Why are you like that?”
A maid came running in a hurry.
“My eyes! My eyes!”
The merchant rolled on the ground, rubbing his eyes roughly.
“Ahhh! Ugh!”
The maid saw smoke coming out of his eyes and shouted to the others.
“Someone give me a wet towel! This guy’s eyes are burning!”
That day, the atmosphere in Ronheim Castle was ominous.
This was because a horrifying incident occurred where a wandering merchant visiting the castle suddenly lost his sight, and a maid brought by the landlady was found dead.
I had a keen sense that it was now the time when the sun was high in the sky.
'I have to get up.'
Even though I thought that in my head, I couldn't get up.
The fatigue that had built up from the continuous insomnia eventually reached its limit, and my eyes kept closing.
Still, I slept better now than I did in the morning because the chill that penetrated my body during the day was much better.
Even then, I would wake up occasionally, shaking.
Then something warm entered my arms.
'...?'
I squinted my eyes in surprise and saw Lamia holding something in my arms and pulling the blanket tightly over me.
“Lamia...?”
“Oh, you’re awake?”
“What is this?”
When I gestured to the warm thing in my arms, Lamia answered with a worried expression.
“A water bottle filled with warm water. I thought you might be cold.”
“Oh, thank you...”
“What? Go ahead and sleep a little more. Ugh, I don’t know why you can’t sleep.”
I hugged the water bag tightly as I listened to the muttering.
Even though my body was very tired, I somehow found myself smiling.
“It’s warm...”
“I’ll be out, so get some rest. If you need anything, just call me anytime.”
Lamia pulled the blanket tightly back over me and headed for the door.
I wanted her to stay by my side, but I was so sleepy that I couldn't even speak, and I could only move my lips.
Thanks to the water bottle, I felt more sleepy than before.
It felt like I could finally sleep so comfortably for the first time in a long time.
But then, suddenly, someone shouted loudly, startling me and making me open my eyes wide.
“There you are, you thief!”
Vanessa bursts open the bedroom door and rushes in, grabbing Lamia by the hair without warning.
I was caught off guard when I heard a loud, sharp sound. My heart pounded, and I was suddenly woken from my sleep.
“Ahhh! What the hell is this?”
Lamia struggled, holding Vanessa's hand.
I threw off the covers, got up, and yelled at Vanessa.
“Vanessa! What’s all this fuss about?”
I was really angry.
I thought I could barely sleep well, but you disturbed my rest and made such a fuss in my personal space.
Above all, I couldn't just sit by and watch Lamia being treated so carelessly.
“Can’t you let go of that hand?”
Vanessa, who had just discovered me, smiled strangely with a fierce expression on her face and said:
“Your Hoghn! This bitch is the thief who stole the Empress’s jewels!”
It was a very excited voice. Vanessa's cheeks were flushed with excitement.
"I was wondering why our group suddenly grew so much, and then this sassy woman shamelessly pretended to be a maid and joined our party! We must report this to the palace immediately!"
Then she showed me a wanted poster with Lamia's face drawn on it.
'Ah, so you finally figured it out.'
I had that thought, but surprisingly, instead of feeling embarrassed, I felt calm.
I was so angry that all my emotions turned cold.
I had often imagined how I would react if something like this happened, so I said what I had in mind.
“Vanessa, as you know, my maids are personally selected by Her Majesty the Empress.”
“But at the end, Lamia suddenly...!”
“Who do you think you are to speak so loudly in front of?”
I shouted louder than Vanessa.
Vanessa was startled when she saw me like that for the first time.
When people are tired, they tend to lose patience and become irritable and angry.
I was so angry that I walked up to Vanessa and warned her.
“As you know, Lamia is a child I cherish. Let go of that hand right now.”
"But...!"
“If you have falsely accused Lamia, I will cut off your hand.”
I meant it. Vanessa saw my angry gaze and realized I wasn't just talking nonsense. Only then did she let go of her grip on Lamia's hair.
But as if she couldn't just back down, she stubbornly pushed the wanted poster in front of my eyes.
“Look carefully, Princess! It’s clearly Lamia! We can’t just leave that thief alone!”
I pretended to compare the picture on the wanted poster with Lamia's appearance, then shrugged calmly.
“Well, I don’t know.”
Lamia, who had been silently observing me while grumbling with her hair in a mess, rushed to Vanessa as soon as she realized that I was going to defend her to the end.
“Who are you treating as a thief!”
This time, Lamia grabbed Vanessa's hair.
At first glance, Vanessa might seem like a bit of a troublemaker, always irritated and grumpy, but in reality, Lamia's personality was even more unusual.
Lamia grabbed Vanessa's hair with one hand and began to beat her, swinging her fists wildly with the other.
It seemed like she had learned martial arts somewhere.
“Ah! Aah! This is it!”
“What is this! What is this!”
Vanessa struggled violently, but Lamia never let go of her hair, dodging all of Vanessa's hands and beating her with her fists.
'Hah, what's all this fuss about?'
Maids fighting in front of the royal family, pulling each other's hair.
'I've seen this kind of thing before.'
It was truly absurd and shocking, but I secretly felt relieved watching Lamia beat up Vanessa.
So I watched for a while until the guards heard the commotion and came running, and then pretended to stop Lamia later.
“Lamia, can’t you stop too?”
I saw the guards running towards me in a panic, asking what was going on, and I gave them an order.
“If these two don’t separate right now, take them away and lock them in the dungeon.”
Only then did Lamia let go of Vanessa.
Compared to Lamia, who was relatively unharmed, Vanessa had a nosebleed all over her face.
I spoke calmly to Vanessa, who was grumbling.
"Anyway, I'll contact the palace and ask them to investigate this matter, so just stay still. I'll take a closer look, so give me the wanted poster."
I snatched it from Vanessa, who was still stubbornly holding onto the wanted poster.
Then I gave orders to the guards, as if to avoid looking too suspicious.
“Keep Lamia confined to an empty room until the investigation is complete.”
Lamia didn't rebel, perhaps because it was my order, but she was dragged reluctantly into the hands of the guards like an ox being led to the slaughterhouse.
I whispered to her like that.
“Trust me.”
I wanted to tell her that I would help her until the end, but I didn't have time to whisper it at length without anyone knowing.
So Lamia was imprisoned.
Vanessa seemed to have a lot to say.
I waved my hand at her without hiding my annoyance.
"I've done what you wanted, so you can go now. I have a headache from all the chaos, so I need to rest for a while."
“Your Highness, this matter is very serious...!”
“Don’t you hear me telling you to go out? Wouldn’t it be better to be dragged out?”
Vanessa pouted, as if she was dying from the injustice she felt at my cold command, and left the room. Her nose was still covered in blood.
After Vanessa left, I sat on the bed and stared at the wanted poster.
'Where on earth did this wanted poster come from?'
***
At that moment, Kavala was sitting upright on the sofa with her eyes closed, as if meditating.
The pupils were moving rapidly behind the covered eyelids.
Then, at some point, she frowned and opened her eyes wide.
Her brown eyes were shining red.
She blinked a few times, and the red light quickly disappeared.
“Phew.”
She pressed her fingers around her eyes as if they were sore.
“Have you seen the gypsy woman?”
Dnieper asked cautiously.
Kavala was casting a shared vision spell on a wandering merchant who claimed to have received the dragon's eye from the butler of Ronheim Castle.
The merchant, who had been dragged into the Dnieper's hands, cried and pleaded that he had never seen the woman in the wanted poster, but Kavala did not believe him.
So, in the end, he sent a merchant to Ronheim Castle to check the people's faces, saying he would check it himself.
But because it was such a difficult spell, Kavala's face was covered with fatigue.
“That stupid peddler was loitering around in the kitchen. He must be dying.”
This type of magic, which requires delicate techniques, was difficult to maintain for a long time.
So, she had a hard time because the sharing was interrupted every now and then, and she was gritting her teeth at the fact that she didn't get the return on her efforts.
“Useless guy.”
Dnieper gently soothed such Kavala.
"I don't know how it ended up in the butler's hands, but if there was a gypsy woman there, my sister's errand boy would have definitely reported it. Let's wait and see."
“Everyone is frustrated, everyone!”
Kavala glared and cursed.
A red light flashed in her eyes once again.
***
At the same time, a merchant who was drinking tea in the kitchen of Ronheim Castle and examining the faces of as many employees as possible suddenly screamed and collapsed.
“Ah!”
“Why are you like that?”
A maid came running in a hurry.
“My eyes! My eyes!”
The merchant rolled on the ground, rubbing his eyes roughly.
“Ahhh! Ugh!”
The maid saw smoke coming out of his eyes and shouted to the others.
“Someone give me a wet towel! This guy’s eyes are burning!”
***
That day, the atmosphere in Ronheim Castle was ominous.
This was because a horrifying incident occurred where a wandering merchant visiting the castle suddenly lost his sight, and a maid brought by the landlady was found dead.
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