CHAPTER 86………………………….
“Yeah. We were really lucky.”
‘Whew….’
Minerva let out a sigh of relief. She had been on edge, worried that Lloyd might accidentally mention the earrings.
Then she whispered so only he could hear.
“Thank you, Duke.”
“It’s nothing. We’ll talk about the earrings later.”
Minerva nodded, her face suddenly serious.
Just from that expression, Lloyd was certain—she had some idea of what was going on.
But for now, he had to pretend not to notice.
Lloyd turned to Pablo.
“Pablo. We must escort Her Highness back to the castle—bring a horse.”
“Me, sir?”
Minerva pointed at herself, as if to ask why she had to go back to the castle.
She had just come back from the brink of death.
Lloyd had too, but Minerva had even made it rain—she’d done more than enough.
Worried she might end up in danger again, Lloyd spoke gently, trying to persuade her.
“Your Highness, wouldn’t it be best for you to return now?”
As he said, she was worried about Aslan and the magical disturbance—she did want to go back.
But returning now would look suspiciously early, and she couldn’t ignore the disaster unfolding before her eyes.
“The more hands the better. At this rate, we’ll never clear all these rocks before nightfall. I’ll help until more people arrive. I’m strong, you know.”
Minerva dismissed the maid who was holding an umbrella over her and instead took a hair tie.
She tied her long hair up tightly and began assessing the damage.
Her attitude was so determined that Lloyd couldn’t even stop her—he just followed after her like a shadow.
The mine had completely collapsed.
The entrance was sealed shut, and it seemed hopeless to believe anyone inside could still be alive.
But at the very least, they had to recover the bodies and return them to their families.
Grinding her teeth, Minerva made a silent vow.
‘And I’ll destroy that bastard Archibald.’
Maybe she’d have him strung up in the square and let the grieving families stone him to death.
Minerva struck at the rocks with a sledgehammer, as if smashing Archibald himself.
Seeing her take the lead so fiercely, the knights hastily joined the rescue effort.
Lloyd did too.
The strong men smashed the boulders, and others carried away the debris.
Minerva worked so hard that it was impossible to tell whether the moisture running down her face was rain or sweat.
As Lloyd glanced at her from time to time, a thought crept into his mind.
‘How can she be like that?’
When he was young, Lloyd had hated Minerva.
She’d never wronged him—but he’d hated how she seemed so perfect, like she could live without anyone else.
It had been easier to hate Minerva than Priscilla.
But as their lives became intertwined, that hatred had turned into admiration.
Still, knowing she would soon return to being a princess, he thought she’d never be the same person he’d once liked.
And yet, even after nearly dying, Minerva had tried to help him—then jumped into the rescue work before anyone else.
Lloyd felt ashamed of himself.
How could she be like that?
Even Lloyd, confident in his stamina, was exhausted and wanted to rest.
Minerva must have been just as tired, yet she showed no sign of it.
She had always been an extraordinary person.
Her lack of warmth and empathy had once been her flaw—but now, even that seemed gone. She was more magnificent than ever.
Maybe… maybe that miracle earlier happened because Heaven protects her, a true princess…
He didn’t believe in miracles or gods.
But if one ever did happen for someone like Minerva, it wouldn’t surprise him.
Boom!
With enough people working together, the mine entrance was finally visible.
“We can get inside now!”
Just as the knights gathered to form a search team—
“Is anyone out there?!”
A faint voice echoed from within the mine.
Light seeped through the cracks, and the trapped miners were calling for help with the last of their strength.
“This is the Duke’s castle rescue team! Are there casualties?!”
“There are serious injuries, but everyone’s alive!”
Everyone froze—then stared at one another in disbelief.
All the miners were alive.
It was a miracle.
At once, the knights rushed in to pull the survivors out.
If they had all perished, Lloyd wouldn’t have had the face to release the Cat’s Eye into the world.
Strangely, everything went well whenever Minerva was involved.
From Ayla’s affair until now—it had always been that way.
Lloyd approached Minerva, who was sipping water.
“Your Highness, truly, thank you. Everyone owes their lives to you.”
“It wasn’t me. Heaven helped us.”
Minerva modestly deflected Lloyd’s gratitude.
But in her words, Lloyd felt a wall between them.
It wasn’t the kind of wary distance born from circumstances—it felt personal, as though she were wary of him as a person.
And perhaps even… angry.
Not just because he’d hidden his title as Duke.
Lloyd hesitated, then finally spoke, gathering his courage.
“I truly wish to remain on good terms with Your Highness.”
“…Thank you?”
“So please—”
When Lloyd bowed deeply, Minerva jumped in surprise.
“What are you doing, Duke!”
“If you tell me what I’ve done wrong, I’ll do whatever it takes to make amends.”
Minerva looked at his bowed head, his faintly trembling shoulders—and wondered if she’d been too harsh.
But she couldn’t bring herself to say she wasn’t angry.
“Duke, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Even though the events of the original story hadn’t actually happened, the moment she learned he was a duke, something deep within her—betrayal, anger—rose up.
She was grateful he’d taken in the orphaned child.
But in the end, that child had been driven to death.
Even if the current Lloyd wasn’t the same man, her heart couldn’t simply accept it.
So she chose avoidance.
“And right now, there are more pressing matters, aren’t there?”
With that, Minerva turned to check on the rescued miners.
Lloyd watched her retreating figure through the drizzle, his heart heavy.
The rain felt like it stung.
If only she would speak to him as she had when she helped expose Ayla’s abuser—if only she’d just tell him what he’d done wrong.
But instead, she stayed silent, pretending not to care, while secretly resenting and distrusting him.
He prided himself on being sensitive to emotions, and he could feel it clearly now.
Sensing something was wrong, a nearby knight approached.
“Your Grace, are you all right? Your eyes are red.”
“…My eyes?”
“Yes, sir. Doesn’t look like burns…”
Lloyd touched his face beneath the mask.
Indeed, his eyelids felt hot—no, his eyes themselves did.
Ah… He shouldn’t have hated Princess Minerva back then.
Perhaps now, he was receiving all the hatred he’d once given her.
Meanwhile, at the Duke’s Castle—
News arrived that Minerva and Lloyd were safe.
Overjoyed, Ayla darted out from behind the curtains and returned with an armful of neatly arranged dolls from her bed.
“Here, let’s hold these and wait quietly, okay?”
“They look weak.”
Dogs, rabbits, baby bears—all of Ayla’s dolls had gentle faces, the kind that couldn’t possibly fight.
Aslan preferred dolls that looked strong.
“Don’t you have anything else? Like a lion.”
“No…”
Ayla trailed off, glancing awkwardly behind her with a troubled expression.
Aslan’s shoulders drooped.
Sensing a chance to earn favor, one of the kinder-looking knights stepped forward.
“Do you need anything, Your Highness?”
“…My lion.”
Aslan’s curt, wary tone stung, but the knight swallowed his feelings and asked,
“Your lion?”
Ayla answered for him.
“He means his lion doll. He must’ve left it in the annex.”
“I’ll fetch it right away.”
The knight replied eagerly, hoping to impress Aslan—
But before he could move, Aslan suddenly leapt out from behind the curtains, soaring high enough to clear the knight’s head.
When the knight spun around, Aslan was already blocking the doorway.
How did he get there so fast?
The knight gaped, wondering if he was seeing things.
Aslan spread his short arms wide and shouted fiercely,
“No! You can’t go into my and Mommy’s house!”
Grrrrr…
He growled low, like a wild beast.
Between his physical prowess and strange powers, Aslan was no ordinary child.
The knight stammered, flustered.
“B-but you said you needed your lion doll…?”
“I’ll go get it myself!”
“Ugh…!”
The tiny boy’s voice was so loud and resonant that the knights winced and covered their ears.
That piercing tone, that vibration—
Behind Aslan, the phantom of a back-alley boss cat seemed to shimmer into view, fur bristling and tail lashing.
