I Don’t Trust My Twin Sister

Moreover, the purpose of a map was to reach a destination safely, but this map had no destination. In other words, there was a strong feeling that it was unfinished. It was said to be the tomb where the last heir of the former imperial family was buried, but there was no indication of where his body was buried.

“How on earth are we supposed to interpret this?”

The drawings, which seemed to have been painted exactly as desired, added to the confusion and lack of unity. Normally, I would have gotten rid of something like this, but I couldn’t miss something that could possibly be the hope of saving my grandfather. As he was gently biting his teeth and rolling his head, the carriage that was in full swing stopped. When I raised my dog ​​to see something, I heard a tapping sound on the carriage. He turned his head. His eyes widened at the familiar face he had planned to see in the capital. As I hurriedly opened the box and got out, a sweet voice penetrated me.

“Are you okay?”

When I saw Ian who was the first to comfort me, I bit my lip because I felt like I was crying for some reason. The foot hanging from my downward gaze slowly approached. I leaned my head on his shoulder without saying a word as the warmth enveloped me with a rustling sound.

I felt his scent and body heat helping me calm my confused and disorganized mind. He felt grateful that there was someone who ran for me and offered me his shoulder first. I wanted to vent out this frustrating and oppressive feeling right away. However, I had to hold back because I was worried that if I started crying, I would break down and not be able to find my grandfather. Ian quietly hugged me. I closed my eyes as Ian gently pulled my head and held me in his arms.

“I’m here.”

That one word was a comfort to me, and his presence was a space to rest.

* * *

Some of the men Ian had brought with him rode along behind us on horseback. I got on the carriage with Ian and calmed down a bit, slowly going over the situation I had figured out so far. Basically, we looked at the background of the bomb explosion, the status of the trapped people, and their power structure.

Ian tapped his chin and opened h mouth.

“The people of Alpensia looked very confused. Beralt and his lieutenants were like that… Wizards, people with the ability to remove stones, tools. “We were busy working hard to split hydrogen.”

“Then, as guessed, was it the work of a third force? What is the probability that the explosion occurred naturally?”

“You said you heard the sound of a bomb exploding inside, so we can’t rule out that possibility… but seeing that the entrance was hit exactly as if it was aimed at, it doesn’t seem very credible. If it exploded from the inside, it would be normal for the inside to become stuck or blocked, but the bomb exploded at the entrance.”

“Does that mean they were deliberately trying to seal the tomb?”

“I guess so.”

Ian’s words gave me more confidence in my guess, and I unfolded the map I had folded while organizing the situation. I looked to see if there were any signs related to bombs here. Ian came next to me and looked at the map I was looking at.

“Huh?”

“It was given to me by Duke Safeldrick, and it is said to be an item belonging to a corpse found in Budum. At first glance, it looks like a map, but it has no key elements and is not in order, so I don’t even know how to read it.”

Ian unfolded it and held it up so he could see it a little better. Ian stared at the map, narrowing his eyes. He looked at me with slightly expectant eyes, wondering if Ian, who had different knowledge than me, would see something a little different.

“Hmm.”

He groaned lowly, frowned, and his eyes swiveled to land on me. I looked at him wondering if anything, and Ian calmly shook his head.

“Not a clue. In the first place…”

Ian took the map from me and looked at it, turning it left and right and turning it upside down.

“Can this be called a map?”

“Actually, I think so too. There is no entrance, no exit, no sign of any kind. Even if it were a map modeled after a tomb, there should be a place where the body is buried, but there is no such thing.”

“Anyway, the most important thing is missing from the map.”

“Which one?”

Is there anything more important than that? When I asked in confusion, Ian put down the map and raised his eyebrows.

“Accumulation”

“Accumulation?”

“Yeah, and the direction is missing. It’s not clear whether the direction the arrow is drawn in is west or east, and I can’t tell what the distance is from here to here. It doesn’t look far on the map, but in reality, it could be very far. If it’s not there, the map is meaningless. I haven’t seen it yet, so I can’t estimate it…”

“Isn’t it because it’s a map made by grave robbers for grave robberies?”

Ian shook his head. He slightly twisted his lips.

“The more you do that, the more elaborate it will be. Even if you use your own symbols, you will draw direction and accumulation. This is especially true in places where your life is at risk if you make even the slightest mistake. But this is random, as if it were scribbled by a child. And there’s no context.”

His eyes were slightly tinged with disappointment as he sighed and waved the map.

“This isn’t a map or anything.”

“Duke Safeldrick also investigated for half a year, but he said he found nothing.”

“That guy must have brought in some experts and looked into it. But the fact that they couldn’t figure it out means that this map is a mess.”

As I licked my lips, I took the paper handed to me and put it in my bag. Ian let out a sigh full of his disappointment and laid back in his chair, lowering his eyes slightly. For some reason, the atmosphere seemed a little saggy. Perhaps it was because I thought that Ian would be able to provide some answers, but I felt strangely weak. After the awkward atmosphere passed for a bit, Ian cleared his throat and opened his mouth softly.

“Have you found out anything from Princess Fervi?”

When her name was mentioned, she remembered the conversation she had with Fer Vi and her eyebrows furrowed. Ian clicked his tongue lowly as he watched my reaction. He shook his head as if he knew that and didn’t ask any more questions. I also sighed at Ian’s reaction, then gritted my teeth as I recalled Fervi’s gray eyes.

“That woman, I don’t think she’s out of her mind. Normally, if she were accused of being a criminal or being put on the receiving end of a suspect, she would either strongly deny it, be surprised, or show some kind of reaction. No matter how good a person is at crime, they tend to stiffen if you ask them a direct question. “But Princess Fervi didn’t react at all and even seemed interested.”

“Interesting…”

“Moreover, she looked at me as if I was rather amused for taking the risk of making a comment that put her charges against her, a member of her royal family. It was as if she was enjoying her situation.”

“Do you think Princess Fervi is the culprit?”

It wasn’t accurate. Time was running out and there were many things to keep in mind. She also had no evidence pointing to her. In other words, she just had a heart attack. In previous bomb incidents, there was some physical evidence to support the suspicion to some extent. Things like counterfeit currency discs and disappearing alchemists became the basis for speculation. But Fervi ruled out that possibility altogether. Just by talking to her, it seemed like she wasn’t the culprit. Her response was calm and monotonous, to the point where she even laughed and shook her head. Her leisureliness actually made me suspicious of her, but

“Seeing how she reacted leisurely, as if she knew I would come, it seems like she planned it… I’m not sure. Moreover, now that even the crown prince is imprisoned, Fervi, who is a member of the royal family, “I wouldn’t suspect it. Rather, other princes who are one step back from the line of succession to the throne should be pointed out. Fervi won’t be suspicious.”

“Anyway, right now it doesn’t matter who the culprit is. The life or death of the people inside is important, so we have to deal with that first.”

My grandfather… I bit my lip. I looked up at Ian.

“Is there a way?”

I have something in mind, but I think I’ll have to go and see the situation. I think we’ll arrive at our destination tomorrow morning, so it might be a good idea to get some rest. “It might be a long bottom.”

I brushed away my flowing bangs and collapsed against the wall of the carriage with a sigh. Then Ian’s hand came over and wrapped around my shoulder and pulled me to lean against him. As he raised his pupils, Ian gently raised the corner of his mouth.

“Lean back. If you’re tired, you can lie down.”

I glanced at Ian’s hand pointing to the wide chair and then nodded. His eyes rolled again and he looked at the map slightly sticking out of the bag. I didn’t know how to interpret it, and it seemed useless, but I couldn’t throw it away. She chewed her lips and closed her eyes.

“Grandpa will die soon…”

Without saying a word, I exhaled as I felt Ian move his head vertically.

* * *

Around noon the next day, I was able to pass the border of the Okstein region and reach the inside. A wide spread barren plateau, vaguely visible mountain ranges in the distance, and long dotted lines stretching below caught my eye. Ian pointed to the place and added, ‘That’s the Ochstein border.’ I have never been to this area before. There was no business value on these barren plateaus, so most people moved only westward. It was a place rich in resources and rich in industry. Ian closed his eyes slightly as he packed his bags and said he would arrive soon. It seemed like he was thinking about something, so I left him alone and opened the map again.

Dense symbols that were still unknown came into view. I tried spinning it around, turning it back and forth, and holding it upside down, but I couldn’t get a clue. A square space painted in dark maroon color. I think it’s this room… What do the long lines on both sides mean?

“A trap…?”

I tilted my head and covered the map, thinking that I would never dream of interpreting maps even after 10 years. Just then, a somewhat noisy noise came in. When I lowered the carriage window and looked outside, I saw several human beaks. Quite a number of people were stopping here and there as if they were camping. Judging by the different flags and banners attached to each carriage, it looks like they are nobles. What are they doing here?

“I think they are the families of the people trapped here.”

“Ah.”

Now that I think about it, it seemed like everyone was quite nervous. It seemed like they, too, rushed to see their precious family members like me trapped there. I closed the carriage and sighed.

“You said that about a dozen people were trapped, right?”

“We’ll have to find out the exact number.”

Ian answered briefly, then opened the window on the other side at an angle and whistled. At his call, a miraculous octopus bird flew in and sat lightly on the back of his hand. Ian took the letter hanging from the bird’s toe, read it slowly, and handed it to me. He rolled up the paper handed to him.

It was confirmed that a total of two people returned alive. Although there were no serious injuries, the psychological shock seemed significant. When my eyes widened, I heard Ian’s voice.

 

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