Chapter 86

Once again, Elise dreamed of Andrei.

“Sister, sister! Can you hear my voice?” Initially, it was a desperate plea, compelling Elise to strain against the enveloping darkness toward the source of the echoing voice.

“Can you hear me, Andrei? Don’t stop talking, I want to hear your voice…” Elise implored. She exerted every ounce of strength to navigate through the oppressive blackness. Eventually, the curtain of darkness lifted, allowing light to flood in. In this newfound clarity, Elise discovered her younger brother standing in an unfamiliar room, dragging his left ankle and appearing disoriented.

Andrei came to an abrupt halt, seemingly oblivious to Elise’s presence. His head lowered, and he struggled to contain his tears for an extended moment.

“Magic… you have to control the magic, Elise. I left a magic seal on your body to conceal your powers from him. Yet, it seems like your magic keeps seeping through…”

“What does that mean? Explain it more…!” Elise attempted to approach him, but darkness swiftly engulfed her once again.

Consciousness surged, as if caught in the tumultuous embrace of a roaring whirlwind. Elise blinked open her eyes, abruptly awakening to find herself on an unoccupied bed. She drew in a deep breath, her gaze sweeping the surroundings. The man who had shared the night with her had vanished, leaving behind a palpable void that hung in the air. Yet, an unexpected presence replaced his absence.

“This is…”

The aged and narrow bed found itself enveloped by luminous white lines. These lines meandered, twisted, and interwove over the bed’s pristine surface, gradually forming an expansive magic circle. It dawned on Elise that she was lying within the intricate pattern of that very magic circle.

Only then did comprehension dawn upon her. The unbridled energy that had surged forth was the unrestrained flow of her magical power.

“Did Rezette sense this…?” she pondered aloud. If so, perhaps Andrei’s cryptic words were a directive to contain her magic within, preventing it from being siphoned by Rezette any longer.

Summoning her strength, Elise struggled to rise, the blanket beneath her damp with her efforts. A translucent golden energy draped over her skin like a delicate veil, adorned with reddish stains. The lines composing the magic circle extended gently from the ethereal shroud of that magical power. Elise bit her lip and resolutely pressed her hand against her skin.

I don’t need Sameshita’s magic right now.

The sheet on the bedside remained immaculately dry, and uncertainty lingered about when Rezette might return.

As if sensing Elise’s reluctance, the graceful undulation of magic gradually permeated her body. The once-defined magic circle that adorned the bed began to blur and eventually dissipated entirely. Fortunately, it appeared manageable once Elise acknowledged her control over her magical power.

Only then did the tension dissipate. Exhausted, Elise allowed herself to collapse onto the sheet, disregarding her nakedness.

“He probably didn’t witness this scene, did he…?” she mused aloud, her gaze wandering to the curtain-covered window that bathed the room in soft sunlight. Elise clutched the cold blanket, drawing it around her as her posture shifted, revealing a trickle of warmth down the inside of her thigh.

It didn’t take long for Elise to recognize the unfamiliar, slippery substance. Her face flushed crimson with memories from the night before, accompanied by a strange sense of discomfort.

This… did it happen like this before…? Something felt distinctively different.

Rezette, in an unbroken pattern, refrained from immediately disengaging physically even after their relationship had concluded. Whether he relished lingering in the afterglow or harbored an aversion to wasting even a single vestige of their connection remained ambiguous.

Consistently, without deviation, he tenaciously attended to Elise. He meticulously cleansed her long after she succumbed to slumber and took his time adorning her, remaining steadfastly by her side until her reawakening. On days when residual sentiments lingered, he occasionally forwent his own ablutions, choosing to stay beside her as she slept.

Nevertheless, Rezette wasn’t one to abandon the vulnerable Elise to fulfill his obligations, unless an urgent matter demanded his immediate attention while she rested.

Just as Elise pondered this, a vigorous knock echoed through the closed door from the other side.

“My Lady!”

It was Ivetsa’s urgent voice. Elise hastily drew the blanket around herself just as Ivetsa burst into the room.

“What’s happening?”

“It’s not the time for this. Something significant has occurred.”

Ivetsa lifted Elise with a distressed expression, her hands trembling as she dressed Elise.

“You should come down. Outside, right now… His Grace, the Grand Duke…”

“What’s happened to Rezette?”

“He’s personally overseeing a public execution. Your Highness, it seems you should intervene.”

“Public execution? Who…?” The fear etched across Ivetsa’s face alerted Elise that something gravely amiss was unfolding. In an instant, sleep was banished from Elise’s senses. She hastily rose and flung open the window, inviting the biting morning air from the north to sting her face.

As she leaned out, only a minuscule front yard, scarcely larger than a palm, came into view. Six individuals knelt in a row before the fence. Two appeared young, while the remaining four seemed to be in their middle years. All were unfamiliar faces, their countenances subdued under the watchful gaze of ordinary knights.

They were mere peasants, rendered frail by the oppressive weight of the circumstances. Yet, a foreboding premonition enveloped Elise.

No way… 

It couldn’t be.

However, the fragile tendrils of hope shattered into pieces the moment Elise witnessed someone being forcibly dragged through the fence, ensnared in Ruben’s firm grasp.

Barnon…!

With an unceremonious toss, Ruben cast the young man with grayish hair, identified as Barnon, into the front yard. Already stumbling, Barnon found himself seated alongside those who were already kneeling. In an attempt to rise, a blood-red blade promptly pressed against his throat.

Elise instinctively covered her mouth with her hand. The mere presence of Barnon made it painfully clear who these captives were—they were the scouts of the Argan Army who had ventured into this region with him.

Standing before the captured individuals was Rezette Kyrstan. The dark energy emanating from his feet cast an ominous hue over the grassy ground. The magic power of the seven-branched dragon, divided into seven strands, permeated the shadows surrounding the captives and began to entwine their bodies.

No!

Before her mind could rationalize the situation, Elise slammed the door shut. Descending the stairs with an urgency that seemed to defy her protesting muscles, every step elicited a painful throb in her waist and the insides of her thighs—numbed by the relentless strain of the night.

“Your Grace, Your Grace! Please calm down!”

Ivetsa struggled to support Elise, who teetered on the brink of stumbling down the stairs. Gritting her teeth, Elise clutched her friend’s forearm and inquired with urgency.

“Since when? How long have they been like that?”

“It was around the time dawn broke not long ago. Lord Ruben and Sir Isaac brought them one by one. I heard they were individuals personally pointed out by His Grace…”

Elise had succumbed to exhaustion and fallen asleep just as the first light of dawn painted the sky. Vaguely recalling the sun hanging on the horizon before closing her eyes, it couldn’t have been more than a couple of hours since then.

If that were the case, Rezette had acted almost immediately after her slumber began. He must have sensed something amiss since the previous evening and possibly gathered evidence upon returning to the house yesterday. Otherwise, despite spending the entire night with her, he wouldn’t have swiftly apprehended Barnon.

When had the first seeds of suspicion taken root in Rezette’s mind? Was it during her conversation with Barnon by the river? Perhaps when she accidentally fell into the water? Or did it stem from last night when Barnon visited this house? Had he overheard their conversation?

No, I need to stay calm.

Elise sought refuge in Ivetsa’s embrace, burying her face and steadying her trembling breath. Uncertain of whether Rezette was absolutely convinced that these individuals were Argan spies, Elise grappled with the weight of uncertainty. Originally, Rezette’s investigation focused on finding the missing tribute from Rotiara, and apprehending those who aroused suspicion during the process was not an unusual course of action.

Maybe my overly sensitive reaction would be only fueling suspicion.

Fearing the consequences of acting recklessly and losing Barnon, Elise grappled with the realization that she wouldn’t have the face to meet Andrei even in death. The overwhelming fear surged through her like a storm.

“Ivetsa… Can you help me clear my head? Dress me properly. My hands are not steady.

Rezette harbored a disdain for Elise appearing disheveled, reserving such sights exclusively for himself. To avoid provoking him further, she swiftly set about tidying her appearance, erasing any elements that might trigger his displeasure. With a composed demeanor, she descended the few stairs. Sobeul, lingering on the first floor, noticed her and wore a puzzled expression.

“Your Highness, it’s still early. Why…”

“There’s a commotion downstairs. Where is the Grand Duke?”

“He’s in the front yard. He’ll be finishing soon and returning, so please wait a moment.”

“What is there to finish?”

Sobeul hesitated, swallowing hard as he relayed the message he’d been instructed to give the princess when she woke up.

“He will be dealing with the infiltrators who trespassed into Rotiara. His Grace said it won’t be a pleasant sight for you, so please stay inside.”

“Infiltrators? The ones who stole the tribute?”

“…Strictly speaking, they are not the ones.”

“Then?”

Sobeul lowered his gaze, hesitating. Elise, attempting to calm her eerily pounding heart, moved past him and swung the door wide open. The unfolding scene in the yard unfolded completely before her eyes.