Chapter 23
“You’re going to deal with it? Y-you mean… kill that thing?”
“I can’t just let it go, can I?”
“N-no! It’s too dangerous!”
Looney grabbed my hand, trembling.
“It’s strong. So strong… really… I saw it with my own eyes. With a single swipe of its claws, a boulder tore apart like paper. And, and…”
Her voice quivered badly.
She was gasping for breath, barely able to continue.
“My brother… my brother was a knight… and that thing just…”
She couldn’t finish. The thought of her dead brother stopped her words cold.
“I know you’re strong, but that thing is truly dangerous. I-I don’t care if it dies or not. I just want to break this curse, run away, and live quietly.”
Looney was probably the one who wanted it dead the most, yet she was saying it didn’t need to die.
Just how much had she suffered for the mere thought of it to fill her with this much fear?
“But no matter how strong it is, we have to catch it.”
I knew very well how someone turned into a magin.
“It’s not just a change in appearance.”
The Evil Dragon put a lot of effort into controlling the monsters he created and altered.
When he made his drug, he mixed in his own blood so the victim would obey his orders without question.
If he commanded it, they would smile in joy and even take their own lives.
Whoever was turning people into monsters couldn’t possibly be sane.
They were probably planning something absurd, like following the Evil Dragon’s example and using monsters and magin to bring ruin to the continent.
“That’s why we need to catch it and find out who’s behind it. You said it comes by from time to time, right? Do you know when it’s coming next?”
Looney glanced at the calendar hanging on the wall.
“Probably tomorrow. It comes at least once a week, and it hasn’t shown up yet this week.”
“Good. Then I’ll stay at the inn, and when it shows up, come and get me.”
“M-me?”
“Yes. I’d stay here if I could, but… I have my reasons.”
Looney nodded with a grim look.
“Alright… I’ll try.”
“Then I’ll be going.”
“Mhm.”
“Oh, right.”
I almost forgot.
“Don’t tell Duke Clasta about this. If he finds out, things might get complicated.”
If the Duke heard her story, he’d definitely be suspicious of how I knew so much about the Evil Dragon’s drug.
“Aren’t you the Duke’s daughter? I heard him call you that.”
For a moment, I recalled the Duke’s gentle smile as he called me “daughter.”
But that had just been one of his fleeting jokes.
The Duke and I had made an arrangement over the heir’s seat in the ducal house, but strictly speaking, it wasn’t really a contract.
A contract is only something made between equals.
If the Duke changed his mind, he could throw me out today without a second thought.
“I’m not his daughter. We’re just living together because of… circumstances.”
The next day, I’d expected the rain to keep falling, but the weather was annoyingly bright.
“Once breakfast is over, we’ll leave right away.”
I froze at the Duke’s words, toast with a fried egg halfway to my mouth.
No, that won’t do.
If we left now, I couldn’t help Looney, nor could I catch the one who made the Evil Dragon’s drug.
What do I do?
“I’ll tell the knights to pack right after breakfast,” Owen, the Duke’s aide, said.
“Good.”
From their conversation, it was clear I had no choice but to head for the capital.
I set my toast down, already trying to figure out how to slip away on my own.
“Not to your taste?”
The Duke must have finished speaking with Owen; he was now looking straight at me.
“No.”
“Then why stop eating? Are you sick?”
At his words, a thought flashed in my mind.
I’ll feign illness.
If I said I was too sick to ride in the carriage, maybe he’d leave me here and head to the capital first.
Of course, if it were Regan, he’d probably say ‘So what if you’re sick?’ and throw me in the carriage anyway, but the Duke doesn’t seem like that kind of man.
It felt like a good plan.
I slowly wrapped my arms around my stomach.
“Ow, ow… it hurts. It really hurts…”
I’m doomed.
I’d thought I was pretty good at lying, but…
Now that I thought about it, I’d never faked being sick before.
My voice trembled like a bleating goat—anyone could tell there was something fishy.
The Duke looked at me with a cold expression.
He’s going to scold me for messing around…
What if he drags me to the capital anyway?
While dozens of scenarios ran through my head, the Duke suddenly called for Owen in a loud, urgent voice.
It was the first time I’d heard him sound so sharp.
Why the aide? He’s not going to disown me over one little lie… right?
“Master! What is it?”
Even Owen seemed flustered, rushing over.
The Duke, face set like stone, gave the order.
“Bring every doctor in this city here. Now!”
This… isn’t what I meant.
I lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
What I’d pictured was the Duke saying, “Then you can come later once you’re better,” and leaving for the capital without me.
Then I could have stayed at Looney’s house, waiting for that bastard to show up.
“After examining her, there seems to be no serious issue. She also says she’s not in pain anymore.”
The tenth doctor’s words were met with the Duke’s firm reply.
“That’s impossible. She only ate one slice of toast this morning. She usually eats three.”
“Perhaps she’s just tired from yesterday’s long journey.”
“She ate fine last night.”
The Duke turned to the knights.
“Has the toast been tested for poison?”
“Yes, but nothing was found.”
“Maybe it’s a poison we couldn’t detect. Who’s targeting her? Could it be remnants of the Council?”
Shing—
The Duke’s sword pointed at the innkeeper’s throat.
“You. Tell me the truth. What did you put in that toast?”
“N-nothing! Just bread, milk, and eggs—”
The sword shifted, slicing the cabinet behind the man perfectly in half.
“Ahhhh!”
Pale with terror, the innkeeper babbled,
“S-sugar! I put sugar in it too! That’s all, I swear!”
“Master! Let me take him and wring the truth out of him! How dare he try to harm the young lady!”
“That’s right! To think he’d lay a hand on the future of House Clasta, the very light of our family! We’ll make him regret being born!”
The innkeeper looked like he might faint at the knights’ shouts.
All I did was fake being sick… how did it turn into this?
I had no idea what had gone wrong.
“Um.”
The moment I opened my mouth, the Duke’s head snapped toward me.
Amid the chaos of voices, he’d still heard me.
“What is it?”
As soon as he spoke, the room went still.
I felt sorry for the innkeeper, and honestly, there was only one way to fix this mess.
Face flushing, I muttered carefully,
“…I was faking.”
“…What?”
Even with his good hearing, he sounded like he couldn’t believe it.
“I was just pretending to be sick! I wasn’t hurt at all from the start!”
I was so embarrassed I wanted to bury my face in the blanket and die.
At a glance from the Duke, the knights herded the innkeeper and the doctors out in an instant.
Now it was just the two of us in the room.
“So it was fake.”
“Yes. I’m sorry.”
I hung my head, unable to meet his eyes.
I really didn’t think he’d make such a huge fuss…
I couldn’t understand what he was thinking.
But more than that, I was worried about how much trouble I was in.
This time he might actually get angry for being lied to.
The Duke’s large hand brushed my cheek.
It was a surprisingly gentle touch, but I couldn’t stop trembling—who knew when that hand might slap me instead.
No matter how used you are to pain, you still don’t like being hit.
“No pain at all?”
I slowly shook my head.
“Good. That’s all that matters.”
Then, with a surprisingly serious look, he ruffled my hair.
“Our dear daughter never admits to being hurt, so when you said you were, I thought it must be something serious. Guess I called the doctors for nothing.”
“I’m sorry.”
He tugged playfully at my nose.
“Mm…”
I scrunched my face, making him laugh.
“That’s your punishment for scaring me. Do you know how worried I was? Don’t pull stunts like this again.”
“Yes.”
I’d been expecting a slap or a scolding, so this reaction caught me completely off guard.
If the Duke suddenly announced he was disowning me, I wouldn’t have been as shocked as I was now.
My mind was a mess, so I just nodded. He patted my head again.
“You must have been startled today as well. Get some rest. We’ll leave for the capital tomorrow.”
As he rose from the bed, I blurted out,
“T-that’s it?”
Was it really over…? Even though he’d caught me lying?
“Ah, right.”
Here it comes…
“But if you ever do feel pain, tell me right away. Just… don’t fake it. Got it?”
And with that, he really left.
When he was gone, I pressed a hand over the heart branded by the Evil Dragon.
If it had been Regan, he’d have locked me in a box.
Made sure I’d never dare lie again.
He’d have watched me cry and beg.
But the Duke…
…I didn’t know how to describe the feeling.
Shaking my head, I got out of bed.
“Since things turned out this way, I might as well go to Looney’s place.”
Work was the best cure for a muddled mind.
But when I got there, the house was empty.
The door hadn’t been locked properly.
It looked like a struggle had taken place—curtains ripped, belongings shattered.
There were faint bloodstains, like someone had tried to resist.
I crouched down and brushed my fingers over a footprint on the floor.
“The soil’s still damp.”
They’d only just left.
“In that case… time to give chase.”
