Chapter 13
30 minutes.
That was the time at the end of which she was supposed to meet them.
But since more than 30 minutes had passed and she still hadn’t shown up, something was wrong.
“Master, I think…”
“Yes, it seems like something has happened.”
“Since someone was following her last time, it must be the Marquis’ doing, right?”
At Dante’s question, Theophanes put away his watch.
“That seems likely.”
“Should we head to the Marquis’ estate?”
“No, her energy isn’t coming from that direction.”
Theophanes took the lead, walking quickly, and Dante followed behind.
The place where they stopped was a pet shop.
“……”
Theophanes was staring at something.
A shopkeeper came out and quickly approached them. He was a bit startled by the two hooded figures but quickly composed himself and greeted them with a smile.
“Ah, welcome!”
“That bird.”
“Oh… that one has already been purchased. Someone paid for it, so it’s not for sale.”
“Then why is it still here?”
“Well… the buyer disappeared while I was wrapping it up. I thought they’d be back soon, so I waited.”
“Was the buyer a woman? With silver hair?”
“Oh, yes! That’s right.”
“It’s her.”
“Yes, I can feel her energy from the bird.”
As the two men talked, the shopkeeper rolled his eyes and cautiously asked,
“Is something wrong…?”
“There is a problem.”
“What?”
“That bird… is a divine beast.”
As soon as those words were spoken, the bird inside the cage flapped its wings wildly and let out a sharp cry.
A divine beast.
A sacred creature, a guardian of the land.
Divine beasts communicate the will of the gods and bring prosperity to humans.
They mainly protect people from threats beyond human understanding.
Though their numbers had decreased, they hadn’t gone completely extinct.
Screech!!!
According to imperial law, capturing or hunting a divine beast was a serious crime.
“D-Do you have proof?”
Theophanes silently stared at the birdcage.
“He’s asking if we have proof. What should we do?”
Screech!!!
The bird flapped furiously, trying to escape, but the cage held it back, and it slumped down, looking pitiful.
Seeing this, Theophanes smirked and turned his gaze to the shopkeeper.
“How about this? Come with us to the capital. We can verify at the palace whether this bird is a divine beast or not.”
“What?! No, no, that won’t be necessary….”
“What’s wrong? You wanted proof, didn’t you?”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t know! I thought it was just a normal bird! I only found out afterward that it came from a sacred area….”
“You stole a newborn, no less.”
The shopkeeper gasped in horror.
Poaching a young divine beast was an even greater crime.
Not only that but if the parents of the divine beast found out, the entire land could suffer their wrath.
The shopkeeper turned pale and started trembling.
Theophanes picked up the cage.
“How about this?”
“W-What?”
“I’ll take care of it instead.”
“O-Of course!”
The shopkeeper nodded furiously.
“We’ll be going, then.”
With that, Theophanes walked toward a nearby alleyway, carrying the birdcage.
“You know something, don’t you?”
At his words, the bird jumped up.
[I know! You mean Winter, right?!]
“Yes, the Transcendent of Winter. Where is she?”
[Some suspicious people took her away!]
“If you guide me to her, I’ll return you to your home.”
[I can go back by myself!]
“What if you get caught again?”
[…Fine, I’ll help! Just let me out of here!]
Theophanes nodded and opened the cage.
The bird hopped out, flapped its wings powerfully, and soared into the air.
[This way!]
–
Two men dragged Daphne into a building.
It was a familiar place.
They roughly pushed her onto a chair and stood beside her.
Through the door she had entered, another man appeared.
“As expected… I knew it was you, Father.”
“Oh, my dear daughter, where have you been?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I ran away for love.”
“Running away for love? How foolish.”
“Love makes people act like fools. Just like Baron Bruce, for example.”
“Love, huh.”
The Marquis chuckled as if he had heard a ridiculous joke.
“I never taught you anything about love.”
“Did you expect me to learn it from you?”
Daphne looked around the room.
A sense of déjà vu crept over her, and she furrowed her brows.
Then, suddenly, an old memory resurfaced.
As a child, she had once tried to escape from the cruel experiments she was subjected to.
She had thought she had finally escaped the mansion, only to be kidnapped and locked up for days.
And this was the place where she had been imprisoned.
‘Please… someone save me…!’
But a few days later, she had been returned to the mansion.
‘Oh, Daphne, don’t worry. You’re back home now. See? The outside world is dangerous.’
She had only remembered this now.
“So that was what you were doing back then, too.”
“I thought I had raised a smart daughter, but I see I failed.”
“You didn’t raise me. I grew up despite you.”
“Do you know how much I’ve provided for you?”
Daphne thought for a moment.
One day, would Jacquette say the same thing to her?
Her father wasn’t entirely wrong.
“That’s true.”
Her easy agreement made the Marquis’ eyebrow twitch.
“Are you playing games with me?”
“Of course not. I wouldn’t dare….”
Slap!
Her head snapped to the side as pain exploded in her cheek.
If the man beside her hadn’t caught her, she would have collapsed to the floor.
Her cheek throbbed and ached. It would bruise.
She kept her mouth shut, waiting for the pain to subside.
But to her father, it looked like she was scared.
The Marquis sneered, thinking he had won.
“Did you think you could escape?”
“Who wouldn’t want to run away from a hellhole like this?”
“You think some useless fool will save you?”
Daphne chuckled.
“Then how about this? Just hand over the child, and I’ll let you go.”
Lies.
All lies.
Did he still think she was a child who would believe him?
“What child are you talking about?”
“The one who will be your younger sibling.”
Her swollen face still hurt, but Daphne smiled.
“No. She’s my daughter. You seem to have forgotten, but I officially registered her under me. You have no rights over her.”
“You wretched girl!!”
The Marquis’ calm expression twisted into rage. His voice grew louder.
“You dare talk back to me?!”
He grabbed a cane from his servant’s hand and raised it high, ready to strike.
But before he could swing it, there was a commotion outside.
The door burst open, and Baron Bruce entered.
“Marquis, you need to come outside.”
“You’re lucky.”
The Marquis stormed out, leaving only his two men behind.
“Poncho, go check what’s happening. Find out who’s causing the commotion.”
“What? But, Boss…”
“If we know more, we can ask for more money later. You don’t want to settle for just this, do you?”
Daphne listened quietly.
Judging by their conversation, these men weren’t just henchmen. They were opportunists looking to squeeze more out of their employers.
“…Alright.”
Poncho hesitated but eventually left the room.
“So you plan to blackmail my father?”
The man remaining in the room dragged a chair over and sat down, blocking the door.
“Not in front of your daughter, of course.”
“She wouldn’t care.”
The man laughed.
“You’re interesting. I like you.”
“Sorry, but I’m married.”
“I don’t mind married women. Besides, what kind of husband doesn’t even give his wife a wedding ring? He must be pathetic.”
“He’s not pathetic—”
Before she could finish, Poncho ran back inside.
“Boss…! The Duke is here!”
“What?!”
“Duke Anaxi is outside looking for her!”
Both men turned to Daphne in shock.
“Oh, so my husband is a Duke, huh?”
“…You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I think the pathetic one here is you. Just look at how dependable my husband is.”
The man’s face twisted in frustration.
“But you know… what happens if I scream right now?”
Silence.
A cold tension filled the air.
Just as the two men exchanged glances—
“Stop her!”
“AH!!!!!!”
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