Chapter 45
The fact that all the knights and slave traders were stuck with Count Ridante was good news for Floria and Caspar.
Though the building was poorly soundproofed and all noises inside could be heard, the Count had been on the top floor—the fifth floor.
Caspar quickly blocked all the staircases with furniture, ensuring that no one could rush down after them.
Once outside, the two ran toward the solitary iron cages.
Floria used her keyring to unlock the padlocks and moved on to the next cage, while Caspar teleported those inside as soon as the doors opened.
It was as if they had some unspoken agreement—everything progressed smoothly and efficiently.
Before they knew it, they had reached the last cage.
Frantically unlocking the padlocks, Floria paused for a moment and asked, still focused on the lock:
“But… what about the shackles?”
“We can teleport the keyrings with them. My subordinates are waiting there,” Caspar replied.
Ah, so he hadn’t just teleported them somewhere randomly.
‘Of course. Everyone was brought here without knowing anything. If we just dumped them somewhere, how would they survive?’
Had he really thought this far ahead?
“…Done!”
Finally, the last padlock was opened, and Caspar stepped inside without hesitation. Floria watched his back.
“You’ll be moved to a safe place soon. No one will be forcibly taken again,” he said.
As Caspar lifted the glowing teleportation crystal, the eyes of those who had seemed lifeless just moments ago suddenly lit up.
One by one, as they left the area, it seemed hope returned to them—they realized they could survive.
“I can arrange work for you so you can earn a living. The choice is yours,” Caspar said.
The people in the cage nodded almost hypnotically. Caspar stayed quiet for a moment, then extended his hand to Floria.
“The keys.”
“Oh, yes!” Floria replied.
With that, the last cage’s occupants and the keyring disappeared from sight.
There were no more slaves left here.
“But… Your Grace,” Floria said, suddenly feeling anxious.
“Yes?” Caspar answered.
“We have a teleportation crystal to go back, right?”
“Yes.”
“But… what are you doing?”
They noticed the seriousness of the situation as Count Ridante and his subordinates emerged from the building.
Yet, Caspar gently brushed the cage one last time with a lingering, almost tender touch.
If he hadn’t been wearing a mask, his glistening eyes would have been visible.
“Your Grace, shouldn’t we leave quickly…?” Floria asked nervously.
Was it possible he had used up the crystal? Now wasn’t the time for lingering—they needed to escape immediately!
The Count drew closer, his face red with anger, running toward them so fiercely it was hard to watch.
Yet Caspar remained calm, glancing briefly at the yellow ring on Floria’s ring finger as he brushed the cage.
It was a split-second glance that Floria barely noticed.
Holding a teleportation crystal in one hand and extending the other, Caspar offered it to her. She breathed a sigh of relief and grabbed his hand, ready to teleport.
Just as they were about to activate the crystal—
“……Where do you think you’re going!”
The Count had somehow sprinted up and grabbed Floria’s collar, his eyes glaring.
But—
“This crazy bastard! Let go!”
Floria’s hands moved so fast that afterimages remained, yanking the Count’s hands away.
He retreated without resistance—not because it hurt, but because her shouted curses had hit his ears again.
Caspar laughed heartily and pulled Floria into his arms.
By the time her eyes had widened in surprise, the teleportation crystal was activated.
Floria landed safely on a soft cushion. Rather than relief, her mind was filled with a whirlwind of thoughts.
She stared at the man across from her with wide, alert eyes.
Clutching the ledger to her chest as if it were her lifeline.
‘Caspar just held me, didn’t he?’
It wasn’t an illusion. She still vividly felt the warmth of his broad chest.
Why had he held her instead of just letting go of her hand? And why was her heart racing…?
“….”
Her heart pounding?
She frowned slightly at the thought. Then she realized where they had landed—it was inside the carriage.
Jolt.
“Ah!”
They had landed inside the shabby carriage they had ridden in before, not somewhere far away as she had expected from teleportation.
Whether Caspar held her or not, keeping her balance was priority. Floria forced herself to ignore Caspar’s mischievous grin and held onto the door tightly.
By now, Caspar had removed his cumbersome mask, and the makeup covering his face had been cleaned off neatly.
Outside, the darkness slowly gave way to dawn. The faint morning light filtered through the window.
The bluish light reflected off the carriage interior, making Caspar’s deep black hair shimmer mysteriously.
And those persistent yellow eyes seemed to study her every expression, as if determined not to miss a single one.
‘Ah.’
Floria suddenly realized something.
She had realized it.
“….”
Before fully acknowledging it, she bit her lower lip and turned her gaze toward the window.
She had no intention of expressing or admitting what she had just realized.
Even turning her head couldn’t allow her to see the scenery outside clearly.
Caspar’s face reflected faintly in the transparent glass, making her even more unsettled.
His pumpkin-colored eyes still stared at her intently.
Floria forcibly looked away and changed the subject.
“We managed to get the ledger. But how did you know the High Priest had come here?”
His gaze remained fixed outside the window.
“My subordinate eavesdropped on the High Priest and Count Ridante at the temple. He’s very loyal,” Caspar explained.
A subordinate? Floria remembered that Caspar had never taken a bodyguard when visiting the annex.
So had a bodyguard been secretly moving through the temple all this time? Without anyone noticing?
“The first bodyguard we saw?” Floria asked.
“No. But I still remembered him,” Caspar replied, frowning slightly.
Floria, unable to see his expression, tried to deduce who the subordinate might be.
“So… who was it? It couldn’t be Shade, right?”
“Correct. It was Shade.” Caspar said.
“….”
It seemed Caspar still treated Shade like a mere toy.
Well, at least the information from Shade was reliable.
“But can this ledger alone bring down the High Priest?” Floria asked.
“It’ll help somewhat, but it won’t be enough,” Caspar replied.
Of course. Buying slaves illegally wouldn’t immediately topple him. Even with the law on their side, the High Priest could smile politely and continue as if nothing happened.
A minor incident, easily dismissed.
Then Floria noticed something on the edge of her vision.
‘Is that a wound?’
A red mark ran along the index finger of Caspar’s large hand resting on his knee.
It was long and thin, visible even as a faint silhouette against the window.
‘I need to check.’
Without realizing she had been staring at Caspar, Floria shifted her body and focused on his finger.
It was no illusion—the wound was deep and prominent.
“Oh, I got scratched by a jewel while finding a uniform in the Count’s room. It’s nothing,” Caspar said casually, noticing her gaze.
His expression didn’t change at all, and he seemed sincere.
But…
‘How has he lived so far that every wound seems trivial to him?’
It couldn’t be nothing. It had to hurt.
Seeing such a deep cut, Floria suppressed her feelings and gently lifted her hand to cover Caspar’s finger, eventually wrapping her palm around it.
Caspar’s eyes widened slightly. She had made contact so naturally that it surprised him more than what she intended to do.
