Bam.
As soon as she heard the sound of the door closing, Seo-a let out the breath she had been holding. The sound of her rough breathing, scraping her throat, felt as loud as thunder. A profound silence flowed beyond the thunderous sound of her breathing.
It was quiet, as if no one were there. There were no sounds of conversation, nor any signs of movement.
It came to mean that the person who knocked to call out and the person who heard the knock and came out stood motionless together in front of the door, as if by prior agreement.
Why.
"The moment you reveal that the key is in your hands, your life will be as precarious as a candle in the wind."
Seo-a stood up, keeping her voice as low as possible as if a shadow were rising. Then, she calmly placed the key holder's identification and the key into her coat pocket. After locking the pocket to avoid losing them, she picked up her suitcase and tiptoed backward.
Reaching the customer door without even letting out a whisper, she slightly opened it to look outside. She could sense the presence of security guards outside, but they were no match for the beings currently watching this room.
Having confirmed that no one was in the hallway, she slipped through the open door like a snake. Then, flowing smoothly and quietly, like a shadow that was clearly present but had no substance, she made her way through the tight security of Felphe Bank.
If all these guards were determined to capture her... well, she would probably be caught. However, as long as she didn't become a target, she was confident she could erase her existence and slip away, leaving no trace of a person or the wind. Even the elite troops defending the castle might be able to hold back armed enemies, but surely they cannot stop a single rat burrowing through a crack in the stone wall, can they?
Having slipped out of Felphe Bank without being stopped by anyone, Seo-a hurried her steps to get further away from the bank.
Late at night, deserted roads, and an entirely unfamiliar city felt like violence in itself.
It was then that her mind went completely blank, not knowing where or how to go.
A pitch-black shadow suddenly emerged from the dim corner of the road, shrouded in faint moonlight.
Although she couldn't see his face clearly, she had a hunch that he was undoubtedly the one who had followed her the entire time on the train, the one she thought she had shaken off in the carriage. She saw his lips curl upward.
A mouse that has burrowed into a crack in the stone wall must walk stealthily to safely escape the castle. However, a mouse driven into a dead end will inevitably be caught if it walks stealthily.
Seo-a gritted her teeth and started running. Her heavy coat and suitcase dragged her down like a swamp, but she ran and ran desperately.
A vile and despicable laugh was heard from behind.
"Wow, that's super fast?"
In the darkness as cruel as violence, only the guy's snickering, his rough breathing, and the sound of his footsteps pounding the ground were loud.
Is no one around? I'm confident I can hide if there's even a place to hide... Please...
Just when it felt like her hair was turning white, a carriage appeared like a lie from a place she didn't know if it was a road or somewhere else.
"Excuse me! Excuse me!"
She called out to him at the top of her lungs, wanting to shake off this violent darkness.
Fortunately, the coachman stopped the horse at Seo-a's urgent shout. With his hood pulled up over his head, he clicked his tongue at Seo-a, who had run towards him looking as if she were being chased, and spoke to her as if scolding her.
"You can't be walking around alone as a woman at this hour. Get in quickly!"
She thought she should never ride in a carriage again, but money was not an issue right now. Seo-a quickly climbed into the carriage and closed the door, and the coachman immediately started the horse. The coachman asked in a loud voice to Seo-a, who was looking anxiously out the window.
"Where should I go?"
Seo-a pressed herself against the wall near the coachman's seat and whispered through the window.
“An inn.”
As Seo-a whispered, the coachman also lowered his voice.
"Inn?"
"Yes. Please take me to the inn with the most guests."
It is the inn with the most guests.
The coachman grinned as he slapped the horse's hindquarters with his whip. Yellow teeth gleamed beneath his hood pulled down low.
"I understand, young lady; do not worry."
The carriage carrying the unfamiliar stranger passed through the tree-lined road and began to run along the banks of the Daub River.
Seo-a clenched her hands tightly and stared only out the window. Soft lights were spilling out from the buildings lined up along the riverbank, and then the path rounded a massive and beautiful stone mansion. A black carriage, huge enough to be intimidating, stood at the entrance of the mansion.
What on earth is a place like this used for, and what kind of person is the owner of that carriage?
Meaningless thoughts evaporated the moment they brushed past the mansion. In the place where the thoughts had passed, anxiety welled up once again.
She doesn't have much money, so she needs to make sure she doesn't run out of funds for the carriage and the inn. What if that guy from earlier follows me again?
As anxiety followed anxiety by anxiety, the carriage's speed slowed significantly. Finally, when the carriage came to a complete stop, the coachman shouted from outside.
“We’ve arrived!”
Seo-a clutched her suitcase and coat collar tightly as she gazed out the window. Outside stood a mansion just as magnificent and beautiful as the stone mansion she had just passed.
***
"Have you not found the safe key yet?"
Oscar had no answer to that question.
He just smoked a cigarette, and just as the smoke he exhaled was fading transparently, he casually threw out a question.
"Do you have any news from the Felphe Bank?"
"Well then."
The Grand Duke inwardly rejoiced. How fortunate it was that he had news in his hands that would pique the interest of this shady fellow.
What a stroke of luck it is that such news has come at exactly this moment!
Instead of answering, the Grand Duke dragged on his cigarette and exhaled the smoke. It was at that moment, through the thick smoke, that the Grand Duke and Oscar's gazes met.
Knock, knock, knock, knock.
A strangely goosebump-inducing knock was heard.
The Grand Duke looked at the door, and Oscar asked the same question again.
"Is there any news regarding Felphe Bank?"
The Grand Duke's gaze, which had been fixed on the door, turned toward Oscar. The cigarette he was holding emitted hollow smoke.
"..."
"..."
Silence lasted for a few seconds; Oscar, nodding a couple of times as if deep in thought, slowly rose from his seat. As his shadow cast over the Grand Duke's head, it felt as though the world had gone dark.
"Marquis?"
Was it because he was dressed up alone, or because he was standing alone, or perhaps because he was being consumed by the shadow he had cast?
An intimidating aura loomed over him like darkness.
His picturesque features curved softly once again. The Grand Duke felt as if he were being strangled by that smile.
"I am curious because you said it was interesting."
"No, uh, I mean, that is..."
The Grand Duke stammered involuntarily, and Oscar had no intention of tolerating that idiotic manner of speaking. As the Grand Duke’s mouth closed at the hollow laugh that escaped him, Oscar nodded.
"I ask for your understanding for a moment."
Meanwhile, the moment Simon saw Oscar come out of the door, he instinctively knew his patience had run out. He quickly relayed the news that had just arrived, and Oscar, who had been standing there motionless like darkness, went back into the room without a word.
As Oscar returned and sat back down in his seat immediately after leaving, the Grand Duke's mouth grew parched. Oscar, still smiling, lit a cigarette and was enveloped in a hazy smoke. The smile vanished, leaving only his piercing blue eyes visible.
"Grand Duke Baden's demotion."
Cold sweat formed on the Grand Duke's forehead at the chilling voice coming from beyond the smoke. His shriveled penis dangled whenever his naked body twitched. The sight was so amusing that Oscar could not hide a burst of laughter.
The deep, low laughter that seemed to rise from the very bottom of the mine was colder than the wind rising through the underground tunnels.
The Grand Duke faced Oscar while holding the woman sitting beside him with all his might, as if she were his shield.
"Ack! Y-Your Highness...!"
Dogs bark, but wolves do not.
He simply kept a low profile in the silent forest of murderous intent and waited for the right moment. And when the lurking wolf finally revealed its true colors, the Grand Duke realized that he was standing alone in the middle of a forest filled with killing intent.
"Felphe Bank, what is there?"
Exactly the third.
As a hunch struck that there wouldn't be a fourth, the Grand Duke shifted his hips and hurriedly opened his mouth.
"They say that someone has appeared who possesses the key to vault number 5555 that you are looking for!"
"Really?"
"A woman, and, uh, so..."
"Then, when would I be able to open that vault?"
"..."
"Is it impossible?"
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