Chapter 12
The first day off in Erdey was drawing to a close.
Time had flown by as they sat gathered around the fireplace, chatting casually with her parents, Rikiar, Damion, and Brenny. The fatigue she’d felt upon first arriving in Erdey had long since vanished.
As the conversation continued pleasantly, Aillie occasionally glanced out the window. It was already dark outside, yet her brothers still hadn’t returned. They’d said they’d be back soon.
“They’re late,” she said.
“They are. They said it wouldn’t take long.”
Her mother, clearly worried, had been pacing near the window for a while now.
A little earlier, Damion had gone out as far as the front gate to check, but there was no sign of her brothers—no passersby either, as if everyone had already gone home. It was the hour when shops would all be closing. They were far too late.
The Count of Erdey, stroking his chin as he pondered his sons’ whereabouts, finally spoke.
“I think it’s probably because the gift isn’t finished yet.”
“Not finished?”
“They rushed the order when they heard you were coming. Since it looks like it’ll take longer to complete, they said they’d go pick it up themselves instead of having it delivered to the manor.”
So the three big brothers were likely sitting together in some shop late at night, waiting for a gift whose completion time was uncertain.
Imagining that scene made the remaining worry quickly fade. They really must have wanted to surprise her badly. If only one of them had stopped by the manor to explain, there wouldn’t have been all this concern.
“Still… my lord, there’s something that worries me. May I speak?”
At that moment, the butler Damion spoke up. Concerned gazes turned toward him. The Count nodded, urging him to continue.
“A few months ago, there were several thefts within the territory, weren’t there?”
“Yes, that gave us quite a headache.”
“That group of thieves went quiet for a while, but lately they’ve been targeting shops. I’ve heard they wait for valuable commissioned items to be completed, then steal them right after, when the craftsmen let their guard down.”
“What?”
Could it be…?
Surely things hadn’t been delayed because of those thieves?
Uneasy looks crossed among those gathered. A tense silence fell, and then Aillie sprang to her feet.
“We should go look for them.”
If they were merely waiting for the gift to be finished, that was one thing. But if they were tangled up with thieves, she couldn’t just sit and wait.
Granted, knowing her brothers, they were probably charging around trying to capture every last thief in the territory rather than struggling helplessly.
Either way, it was too late. In a night this dark, any number of unforeseen dangers could be lurking.
“Where do you think they’d be, going out to look for them now?”
“I’ll start with the shopping district.”
“And if they’re not there?”
“Then I’ll check the surrounding area. At least I’ll know whether they’re nearby or not, so we can prepare in case something happens.”
“But still…”
Her mother trailed off, worry evident.
She wasn’t wrong. If the sons didn’t return by morning, they’d have to organize guards and request cooperation from neighboring lords. But the thought of her youngest daughter not returning as well seemed to make her hesitate.
“Then I’ll—”
Just as Brenny, eyes wide, was about to speak after some deliberation—
“I will.”
A low, confident voice cut in.
“Don’t worry, madam. I’ll go with her.”
Rikiar said this as he rose alongside Aillie. The Count of Erdey, who had been reaching for his jacket to go look for his sons himself, paused in surprise.
“You’ll do that?”
Rikiar nodded readily. Only then did her mother’s expression soften.
Still…
He must be tired—he only just returned from the academy.
Wouldn’t she be dragging him into trouble for nothing?
As if reading that worry plainly, Rikiar looked at Aillie with a confident grin and gave her a wink.
“You need someone to hold the torch, don’t you?”
With that, he strode out into the corridor. Aillie quickly grabbed her coat and followed after him.
“…I can hold a torch by myself.”
“Your Majesty, please don’t say scary things.”
“What’s scary about that?”
“If His Majesty the Emperor finds out that you wandered around the territory alone at night holding a torch while I was here in Erdey, what do you think would happen?”
How would he ever find out? Beinate wasn’t the type to pay that much attention to the Empress. Unless someone told him, he’d never know.
Even if he did find out by chance, he likely wouldn’t do anything special—probably just let it go in one ear and out the other, or ask indifferently what the problem was.
Aillie snorted softly and shook her head. At the same time, another thought surfaced.
If it had been the Beinate from the original story…
He would’ve summoned Rikiar and chewed him out thoroughly. Left him completely drained.
That was the kind of man he was. In the novel, he was so devoted he was practically called a fool in love—just like the title suggested, a man who trusted only the Empress.
But that Beinate didn’t exist in this world. Rikiar, who’d left early to study abroad, wouldn’t know that.
“Let’s go before it gets any later. This isn’t the time to stand around talking.”
Aillie cut off the conversation curtly. She’d finally escaped the imperial palace to come to Erdey—she didn’t want to waste time thinking about Beinate.
When they reached the front door, Vice Captain of the Imperial Knights, Liton, who had been sitting guard-like with a chair, stood up.
“Your Majesty, where are you going at this hour?”
“My brothers haven’t returned. I’m just going to check the area briefly.”
She was about to leave after that brief explanation when Liton added,
“Then I’ll accompany you.”
“There’s no need. I’m not going alone.”
“I’m a graduate of the Briss Swordsmanship Academy and a prospective instructor. I can protect Your Majesty well enough.”
Rikiar said this with a smile, showing the sword at his waist, but Liton shook his head as if unconvinced.
“No. These are His Majesty the Emperor’s orders. Whenever you’re outside the manor, I must attend the Empress.”
That left Aillie speechless. She nodded in reluctant agreement, but her mood soured.
It felt as though she were still in the palm of Beinate’s hand.
Late-night Erdey County was quiet and deserted.
It was so calm that it made one wonder whether any trouble had occurred at all. Rikiar reassured Aillie, saying that was a good sign. If nothing was wrong, they just needed to search the shopping district and find her brothers.
Rikiar led the way with the torch, Aillie followed closely behind, and Vice Captain Liton kept his distance, scanning their surroundings.
The three of them walked through the streets, checking for any shops that still had lights on.
They knocked on the doors of a few places where faint light leaked out, but mostly found craftsmen working through the night by the glow of small magic orbs. There was no sign of her brothers.
“We’ve checked the entire shopping district now, right?”
Rikiar said, ruffling his bright red hair in frustration.
“There’s been no sign of any disturbance nearby, Your Majesty.”
“…I see. Let’s circle the area once more, and if we still don’t find them, we should return to the manor.”
Aillie nodded with an uneasy expression.
If they weren’t in the shopping district, there were far too few clues. Where should they even begin searching?
Her pale pink eyes scanned the darkness restlessly.
It bothers me, but we don’t have time to check every alley in detail.
Even so, driven by a lingering hunch, her gaze naturally drifted toward an alley beside one of the shops.
An old, empty stall, scattered crates, fruit peels strewn messily across the ground. It was a filthy alley she didn’t want to step into.
And far in the back, beyond the broken window of a narrow, dilapidated abandoned house that had been left uninhabited for a long time…
“Aillie, let’s look somewhere else.”
Flash.
For a split second, she saw light leaking out.
A sudden intuition struck Aillie. Perhaps her brothers were in that abandoned house.
“Wait—!”
She quickly stopped Rikiar and spoke carefully.
“I saw a light coming from inside that alley. It might’ve been my imagination, but let’s check it just once.”
“That alley… there’s nothing back there but an abandoned house.”
“I know, but just in case. I want to take a quick look.”
Rikiar met her resolute pink gaze and, without hesitation, raised the torch.
“Very well. If that’s where Her Majesty leads, I suppose I’d have to follow even if there were a cliff ahead.”
“…Don’t joke.”
“Sir Knight, we’re going to take a short detour. Is that all right?”
“I have no objection.”
“Then let’s go.”
Rikiar led them into the ominous alley.
Up close, it was just as filthy as it had looked from afar. A musty smell assaulted their noses, and the dust made their throats itch.
It wasn’t just dirty—the atmosphere itself was unsettling.
Liton, who had been on guard the whole time, now surveyed their surroundings with an even sharper gaze.
“Is it further in?”
Rikiar whispered.
Aillie replayed the fleeting memory. It had probably been the abandoned house a little deeper inside. She nodded quietly.
They advanced slowly, careful even with their footsteps, until—
“Ah.”
Flash.
For an instant, light flickered again from the abandoned house deeper inside, then vanished.
This time, both Rikiar and Liton saw it as well, and all three quickened their pace.
Soon, they arrived at the most ominous-looking abandoned house in the alley—their destination.
“What could be inside…?”
Rikiar brought the torch closer to the broken window and peered in.
Aillie leaned in to look as well, but nothing stood out. It was an empty ruin, with only old junk scattered around.
She was sure she’d seen a light inside—had it been her imagination after all?
With a discouraged sigh, Aillie reached for the doorknob without much expectation. Strangely, despite how decrepit the house was, the door itself looked oddly new.
Clack.
The door wasn’t locked.
The moment the three of them stepped inside cautiously, it felt as though the space twisted—and an interior completely different from what they’d seen through the window unfolded before them.
Glittering piles of expensive-looking items stacked everywhere, gold coins and bundles of money of unknown origin scattered across the floor, countless footprints leading deeper inside.
And—
“…Brothers?”
