CHAPTER 02
I said that to Jade, but the truth was, I had an inseparable connection with the House of Elard.
If anything, it was closer to a bad one.
The Duke of Elard, known as the Sword of the Lakshuten Empire, was infamous enough to make even a crying child fall silent.
But I knew he wasn’t just scary because of rumors. He was truly terrifying.
Even after ten years, I still couldn’t forget his blade-like gaze and his decisions that held not a shred of mercy.
Thinking about the past wouldn’t change what I had to do tonight.
“So I just need to find out who the guest visiting the House of Elard tonight is, and what they discuss with the Duke?”
Looking at the massive main building with its blue roof and white outer walls, the smaller annexes beside it, and the tall, sturdy walls surrounding everything, I repeated my mission to myself.
My palms were sweating. I kept clenching and unclenching my fists before letting out a short breath.
I was nervous, but at the same time, I felt excited. My colleagues who always belittled my skills, and the Master who excluded me from difficult missions, had finally acknowledged me.
No matter what, I wanted to complete this mission perfectly and firmly prove my worth.
‘If I’m not recognized here, I feel like my heart will completely break…’
I didn’t want to experience being cast aside as useless ever again.
Forcing myself to ignore the desire rising from deep inside, I turned my head to observe the guards.
‘The entire Lexion Knight Order is out here? Just what kind of guest is this…?’
Even though I had already heard the information from Jade, I couldn’t help tilting my head.
There were fewer guards scattered around the estate than usual, but they weren’t ordinary knights. Every single one of them was from the Duke’s pride and joy—the Silver Wolves, the Lexion Knight Order.
‘Still, I’m confident.’
Without hesitation, I pulled my mask up to cover my face.
Then I moved the mana within my body, erasing my presence as if I were melting into the air itself, and slipped into the darkness.
In an instant, as if teleporting, I crossed over the estate wall. Passing through the vast maze garden, beyond the silver wolf statue—the symbol of the Elard family—and the large fountain, I hid myself near the main building.
Peering inside through a large arched window, I saw that the mansion was completely dark, as if swallowed by the night.
‘Why is it so quiet?’
Compared to a few months ago, when I infiltrated as a maid during Diana’s birthday party, it was unbelievably silent for a night with a guest.
If the guards hadn’t all been members of the Lexion Knight Order, I might have thought I came for nothing.
Just then, from the direction of the back gate, a black carriage with no markings entered the estate.
Two people stepped out of the carriage, both completely covered in black robes.
Judging by their tall builds, they were likely men, but their faces were hidden beneath their hoods.
I watched closely to identify them—and sucked in a breath.
‘I thought a butler or attendant would greet them!’
The one who opened the door and stepped out to receive them was the Duke of Elard himself.
There was no time to think further.
The mysterious guests, the Duke, and the butler and aide following behind quickly disappeared inside the mansion.
I immediately began tracking their movements from outside.
They moved quickly and discreetly—to the third floor of the main building, where the Duke’s office was.
‘Are they plotting treason or something?’
That was my first thought.
At the same time, I felt like I had stumbled upon something huge.
As expected, once inside the Duke’s office, they immediately drew the curtains and checked the room for security. But without being noticed, I slightly opened the window and peered through a small gap in the curtains.
Just as one of the robed men reached up to remove his hood—
“Who’s there.”
A sharp killing intent pressed against my back.
I was extremely sensitive to others’ presence because I was gifted at hiding my own.
And yet, someone had approached this close without me noticing.
“If you do not reveal your identity, I will kill you.”
At the low voice, my heart began pounding wildly.
‘No way.’
Determined not to be caught, I didn’t even turn my head. Instead, I leapt up onto the roof.
A moment later, the sound of a whistle echoed behind me, and powerful auras began moving all at once.
‘Damn it. He called the wolves.’
The Lexion Knight Order, filled with some of the Empire’s finest knights, had begun their pursuit.
Before they could even fully surround me, the person who had first spotted me from the tower seized me.
The cold sensation at my neck made me slowly drop to my knees.
He stepped in front of me, his sword forming a half circle as he aimed it at me.
As if by fate, the moonlight shifted at that very moment.
“…!”
Silver hair that gleamed brilliantly, and blue eyes visible through it.
Standing before me was the one person I absolutely did not want to face in this situation.
Lucio Elard, the Duke’s eldest son—an unrealistically beautiful man.
‘Why is he here?!’
Jade had clearly told me that Lucio had left for the ducal territory today and was not at the estate.
If I had known he was here, I would have prepared far more thoroughly before infiltrating.
‘Terenchium is famous for handling only accurate information. There’s no way it was wrong…’
Then a thought flashed through my mind.
‘They gave me false information on purpose.’
Shock and emptiness drained the strength from my body.
I knew Jade disliked me, but I never thought he would push me off a cliff like this.
We had been colleagues for eight years.
‘You heartless bastard.’
The faces of the executives, and then the Master, flashed through my mind.
All the time I struggled to be recognized.
The thin thread of belonging I had barely been holding onto snapped.
Lucio raised his sword and swung.
A light gust of wind passed, and my mask—barely resting on my nose—was sliced clean in half, revealing my face.
“…You.”
Lucio’s blue eyes widened, then began trembling slightly, as if shaken by the wind.
Seeing the intense turmoil in his gaze, I panicked.
‘Don’t tell me he recognized me?’
I had common brown hair and common brown eyes. There was no reason for him to remember me.
I had only ever seen Lucio from afar, and he hadn’t seen me in nearly ten years.
To him, I should have been nothing more than a pitiful beggar he once showed a moment of kindness to.
There was no way he recognized me.
“Why are you…?”
His voice was shaking.
I had never seen Lucio flustered before, and I couldn’t hide my own agitation.
The way he stared at me made it clear—he knew me.
The moment I realized that, tears nearly burst from my eyes.
Lucio was the only person who had shown me kindness when I was at my most miserable and worthless.
And I couldn’t bear for him to see me like this.
Hurriedly, I recited a summoning spell in my mind, and a handful of powder appeared in my palm.
‘If I scatter this special powder developed by Terenchium, it will block vision and all senses for a short time. I can escape—’
Thud!
Before I could even throw it, my body froze.
Slowly lowering my head, I saw the sword that had pierced me from behind.
I had only been focused on the person in front of me. I hadn’t even considered the Lexion Knight Order chasing from behind.
To knights skilled in reading mana and sensing intent, it must have looked like I was trying to attack the young lord when I summoned the powder.
Countless misjudgments, carelessness, and regrets flashed through my mind.
“Ugh.”
I clamped my mouth shut.
Blood dripped through my fingers.
“Ria…!”
Even as my vision blurred, Lucio’s voice calling my name sounded unfamiliar.
I had never once imagined hearing my name from his lips.
Then, with a faint cracking sound, an overwhelming surge of mana—stronger than anything I had ever felt—shook my entire body.
And shortly after—
As the world went black, I closed my eyes, remembering one final fact.
I had never told Lucio my name.
***
How much time had passed?
I felt my heart pounding violently in my chest.
‘At least I didn’t die.’
Even though I might face severe torture next, I was satisfied just to be alive.
I had no family and nothing to lose. For me, survival had always been the top priority.
But the betrayal of a colleague I had considered family was still hard to believe.
I wanted to think it was Jade acting alone. But who knew?
<Do you think others will acknowledge you just because you try like this?>
<I can never be a good person to you. So no matter what anyone says, don’t misunderstand.>
<Remember this, Ria. Never trust me.>
Why was I remembering the Master’s habitual words at a time like this?
He was the one who saved me when I was a dying beggar in the rain.
And he was also the one who pushed me to my limits with harsh words and brutal training.
But I had never once taken his words at face value.
I believed he only said those things to make me stronger.
‘But now… I’m not so sure.’
As a tear slid from my closed eyes and I felt lost about what to do next—
‘Wait. How did I even survive?’
I clearly saw my heart get pierced.
It wouldn’t have been strange to die instantly. No matter how lucky I was, surviving that made no sense.
More than that, there wasn’t even a trace of the unbearable pain I had felt when I was stabbed.
Trying to understand the situation, I quickly sat up—only to flinch at the creaking sound of metal.
It was the sound I hated most in the world.
I hated the cheap bed I used at the orphanage so much that the first thing I bought with my salary was a soft, comfortable bed.
“Gasp!”
The musty smell. The torn curtains. Dust scattered everywhere. The cracked, aging walls.
I covered my mouth at the sight of a place I could never forget.
Then I looked down at my hands—and froze again.
“W-what is this?!”
Small, thin hands streaked with grime.
For a long moment, I sat there in shock before finally speaking.
“Did I… come back again?”
