Chapter 88…………………………………………
At that moment, Priscilla was already half-sitting on her bed, muttering to herself like a madwoman.
“My goodness… I can’t believe they had a child together.”
“Even though there’s a child openly, they still took an heir… I guess they didn’t even know themselves?”
“There’s no scandal like this one. Isn’t that right, Sebastian? My goodness, how could Lloyd’s child do something like this?”
Sebastian didn’t answer.
More precisely, he couldn’t. After all, Priscilla had never truly thought she had raised her child poorly.
If anything, she was probably thinking for the first time that her child might actually be useful.
She was already excited, trying to gauge what advantages Lloyd and Minerva’s marriage could bring her.
She felt it was a waste to spend time recovering her strength in her old age.
“What’s the name again?”
“It’s Aslan, my lady.”
Priscilla repeated Aslan’s name to herself.
Aslan—lion. A good name.
She was now curious about Aslan, whom she had never even met.
Being Minerva and Lloyd’s daughter, the child’s lineage was perfect.
And since Minerva had raised her herself, she was certain the child would suit her tastes perfectly.
“Both the princess and Lloyd happen to be away… how lonely that must be. I think I’ll go see her myself.”
Priscilla swung her legs over the bed.
She meticulously arranged every strand of her hair and applied deep red lipstick with precision.
It was her usual perfect appearance.
But the moment she stepped outside, someone blocked her path as if waiting for her.
“I’m afraid you cannot go, Lady Priscilla.”
“Louisa.”
It was Minerva’s aide, Louisa.
Some of the princess’s attendants had also left with her five years ago.
Priscilla’s frown deepened.
“So the princess does not wish for me to approach her daughter.”
“It’s a delicate time. I hope you understand and are not offended.”
Even facing Priscilla, who struck fear into nobles, Louisa spoke calmly without bowing.
As the princess’s aide, she couldn’t just push her around…
Priscilla clicked her tongue in annoyance.
“Lady Louisa!”
A small child jumped down from the knights’ arms and ran toward them frantically.
“Miss Ayla, what are you doing here?!”
Ayla should have been at the Eastern Castle. Louisa’s face showed her confusion.
Aslan wasn’t there, and Ayla didn’t look well.
Priscilla frowned even more at the sight of a child running in without decorum.
‘Is that Ayla?’
She had some expectations based on Deborah’s reports, but this was more disappointing than she had imagined.
However, when Ayla shouted, Priscilla immediately understood why the child was behaving this way.
“Help! Aslan has been kidnapped!”
“……!”
The expressions of Louisa and the others twisted in shock.
What were Eckhart’s knights doing, anyway?!
Priscilla’s anger flared as well.
“They kidnapped the princess’s daughter from my castle.”
“……!”
Ayla’s shoulders twitched at the sight of her—like a raptor with claws out.
This was Lloyd’s mother, her foster grandmother, Priscilla Eckhart.
Even without explanation, it was easy to guess how terrifying she was.
Her presence alone was intimidating, and her face showed not a hint of mercy.
Priscilla habitually took out her smoking pipe and commanded Sebastian.
“I cannot allow a rat to ransack my castle. Lock the gates immediately.”
“I already did as I came here. All Eckhart knights are mobilized.”
But it wasn’t Sebastian who answered—it was Ayla.
Priscilla stared at her in surprise.
Ayla met Priscilla’s cold gaze head-on, and it was so terrifying that she felt frozen.
But there was no time to be afraid.
Ayla braced herself and spoke firmly.
“I need your help, Lady Priscilla. The kidnapper is probably hiding and waiting for a chance to escape. Please help me find where he might be hiding.”
“…….”
Priscilla looked down at Ayla with a surprised expression.
She had heard that Ayla was clever but timid and cautious, but Deborah had judged her completely wrong.
She liked this.
Priscilla relaxed her stern expression and spoke kindly to Ayla.
“We’ll greet properly later, Ayla. First, explain the situation in detail.”
Archibald’s escape went smoothly.
Thanks to the heavy rain across the Duchy of Eckhart, his footprints were quickly erased, making pursuit difficult.
“Phew… this is tough. The ducal castle really is huge.”
Archibald was hiding in a secret passage within the castle.
Carrying an unconscious child through the rain was no easy task for someone more used to using his brain than his body.
‘Let’s rest for a moment. The kid’s heavier than I thought.’
He set Aslan down and collapsed on the floor himself.
The lockdown wasn’t a problem.
While hidden here, everyone outside would assume he had already escaped and open the doors in their search.
He could then blend in naturally.
Archibald examined Aslan’s still-unconscious face carefully.
“She really looks like Minerva.”
It was like seeing Minerva in her childhood.
So much so that it wasn’t just a resemblance—it was uncanny.
“Who on earth did she get into trouble with?”
Minerva had gotten herself pregnant before marriage?
Was that why she had fallen for Mars’ schemes?
‘No… having a child would make her position stronger.’
Then the child couldn’t reveal her father.
That explained why she was confined and kept silent for five years.
In any case, this information would be very useful to Gabriel.
After confirming some time had passed, Archibald stood up.
He placed Aslan into a prepared large bag and walked down the passage.
The exit came into view.
‘Once I just get out of here…’
He put his hand on the door handle.
The hinges squeaked—it seemed the door hadn’t been used in a long time.
Peeking through the crack, he saw it was a secluded passage, no one passed by.
‘Good.’
Archibald smiled triumphantly as he fully stepped outside.
Thwack.
“Ah!”
A long stick struck Archibald’s head mercilessly.
“You’ve run like a rat, haven’t you?”
“L-Lady Priscilla?!”
Priscilla, hiding behind the door, wielded her long smoking pipe like a whip.
Archibald staggered back, realizing who had struck him.
Priscilla was a symbol of fear among nobles.
But she was old.
He could have easily shaken her off and escaped.
Yet like the other nobles, fear rooted him to the spot.
“How dare you…”
Her voice, from dark red lips, sounded like metal scraping.
Before Priscilla became duchess, the House of Eckhart had been merely a nominal family.
For hundreds of years, from the prince who gave up the throne to Priscilla’s previous generation, all had lived in silence, hiding on this vast land.
But Priscilla had never understood why she shouldn’t defy the royal family and had revitalized the House of Eckhart boldly.
Her attachment to the duchy was extraordinary—it was sheer obsession.
“How you knew about the castle’s secret passage is one thing…”
Priscilla’s gaze pierced Archibald’s bag.
The cloth covering it had shifted slightly, revealing Aslan’s hair.
Priscilla ground her teeth.
“Archibald Bright. Not only did you sneak into my castle, but you also dared to lay hands on my granddaughter?”
“My… granddaughter?!”
Archibald went pale.
Minerva’s daughter being Priscilla’s granddaughter meant…
Before Archibald could even comprehend, Priscilla extended her hand.
“Restrain him.”
The knights hiding in wait immediately jumped out and charged at Archibald.
