“I was taking care of Dana,” Carl answered, caressing the back of Dana’s hand. “Dana’s condition wasn’t good. She collapsed right after we left the lounge.”
“Collapsed? Dana, are you alright?” Rumie asked with concern, but before Dana could answer—
“She’s alright now.” Carl pressed her hand, speaking on her behalf. “So don’t worry, Rumie.”
“You should have told me. Being Dana’s escort today and not knowing makes me feel bad.”
“She’s fine, so go back and enjoy the party, Rumie. There’s no need to worry as long as I’m here.”
“No. I was already worried since Dana received a threatening letter, so I can’t just leave.”
“Threatening letter?”
“Yes. Dana received threatening letters recently, so—Ah.” Rumie stopped mid-sentence, his face showing surprise. “Don’t tell me you didn’t know, Father?” Then he smiled awkwardly as if he was in a difficult situation. “Sorry, Dana. Was that supposed to be a secret?”
“…”
Dana’s mind spun. The rapid exchange of words between the two men left her unable to find an opening to interject. Clutching to her throbbing head, she finally managed to speak.
“It wasn’t really a secret. I just hadn’t mentioned it to Uncle yet…”
Were these two always such fast talkers? Dana seized the opportunity to steer the conversation elsewhere.
“Let’s discuss this later. There’s something urgent right now.”
It wasn’t the time for idle chat. With Rumie here, it was even better.
“Listen carefully, both of you.” Dana recounted her vision of the future, slightly altering some details.
“Ignis is on this ship?” Carl’s smile vanished upon hearing the story.
“Yes. I overheard that a bomb was planted on the ship. He was talking with a woman crew member with silver hair. I overheard them.” Dana’s cheeks reddened a bit. “I must have fainted from the shock.”
Pretending to be this fragile was embarrassing. What if they didn’t believe her…
“It’s natural for someone as delicate as you to faint after hearing such a story.”
“I see. That could happen.”
“…”
Both Carl and Rumie nodded without a hint of doubt.
Dana felt a bit awkward. Who knew that being frequently sick and fainting would come in handy.
“So please, find Lord Ignis and his accomplice, the female crew member. She has silver hair tied high in a bun, is about shoulder height compared to Lord Ignis, and has moles on her nose and chin.”
“That should be enough.”
With those words, Rumie hurriedly left the room. Carl also seemed to be getting up to follow.
“Dana, you should rest here.”
“No. Uncle, we need to capture Lord Ignis.”
“What?”
“He’s after my wealth, so if I’m alone, he’ll definitely show up. I’ll be the bait.”
“No.” Carl firmly held her shoulder. “Stay here, Dana.” He was smiling, but his grip was firm. “You’re not feeling well, so what do you think you’re going to do? Just rest, Dana. We’ll handle it.”
Dana looked up at him. “Can you really capture Lord Ignis without using me as bait?”
“No. That would be difficult.”
“…”
“If that brat decides to hide, finding him won’t be easy.” Carl admitted honestly. “But we will prevent the bomb from exploding, so don’t worry.”
“Even if you stop it this time, Lord Ignis will attempt another attack.” Dana gripped his wrist tightly. “We need to catch him now, Uncle.”
Ignis’s hatred for the Windsor family and his obsession with her wealth was greater than she had imagined. He was more interested in my vault than I thought. Leaving him unchecked was too dangerous. Who knows when he might try to approach and kidnap her again before she leaves this world? So, she had to catch him while he was on this ship.
At that moment, Carl, who was staring intently at her, asked. “Is that really all?”
“What?”
“Or is that you want to see Ignis?”
What? Dana was dumbfounded. What the— Ah, come to think of it. She used to spout nonsense about liking Ignis, wanting to run away together, and such.
“It’s not like that, Uncle.”
“Of course. You’re not foolish enough to truly fall for such a dangerous man.” Yet, Carl’s grip on her shoulder remained unyielding. “Still, you can’t be the one to confront him, Dana. You could really die. Ignis is dangerous.”
“…”
‘No. You’re overestimating him, Uncle.’ Dana held back her words.
Ignis, the legendary top graduate of the military academy, the man who broke Carl Windsor’s academic records, the prodigy that the former Duke Windsor didn’t want to let go of—all those were his rumors. However,
He’s not a big deal. Taking him down was easier than swatting a mosquito. But, of course, she couldn’t say that.
“You’ll protect me, won’t you, Uncle?” Dana placed her hand on top of his. “I trust you, Uncle.” Hopefully, that would suffice as usual. But then…
“Really?” Carl’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “If you trusted me, why didn’t you tell me first about the threatening letters?”
“…”
“Why did I have to hear it from Rumie?”
Dana was flabbergasted. Really? Now, of all times, he chose to bring this up? With a bomb about to explode?
“I’m your guardian, Dana. I should be the first to know about such things.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“Let’s discuss this later. Now is not the time.”
Fortunately, Carl wasn’t completely foolish, his grip loosening as he smiled.
“Shall we go?”
A chill ran down Dana’s spine. Though she smiled back, inwardly she thought. What a temper… To hold a grudge over not being treated like a proper guardian… His temperament was truly extraordinary.
* * *
For Ignis, that moment felt as recent as yesterday.
“Can you take me away from here?”
Danae Windsor. When he was deceived by her words.
“I want to know more about you, Lord Ignis.”
When he had believed her fake, love-stricken gaze.
“But Lord Ignis, you should really understand your place. Isn’t it more ridiculous to think I would like you?”
The memories were so vivid it felt as though they had just happened.
Yes, how ridiculous of me to think she’d ever like me. Thanks to that experience, Ignis had become very good at understanding his place. Killing the woman who made a fool of him seemed like a fitting task. So, Ignis waited. Hidden beyond the ventilation shaft above Danae’s room hallway, calmly. Like a beast lying in wait, quietly, silently.
How long had he been hiding? Creak. Danae’s bedroom door opened, and Rumie came out first, walking down the hallway. Shortly after, Carl and Danae also emerged.
“I’ll head to the lounge now.”
“Yes, Uncle. I’ll get some fresh air on the deck before I join you.”
“Alright, but don’t stay out too long in the cold.”
“Yes.”
Finally, the opportunity arrived…
Danae and Carl parted ways at the end of the hallway, walking in opposite directions. Then, Ignis lightly landed in the hallway from the ventilation shaft. He dusted off his head, straightened his crooked bow tie, and went to find his accomplice—the silver-haired crew member.
“Get the lifeboat ready. I’m about to kidnap Danae Windsor.”
“Yes. You have 30 minutes, so hurry.”
He knew. The bomb would explode in 30 minutes. A fragile girl like Danae Windsor surely wouldn’t survive.
That won’t do. She couldn’t die so anticlimactic. He intended to personally strangle her and watch her gasp for air. Above all, he needed to seize her vault quickly before the bomb exploded.
Disguising himself as a crew member pushing a cleaning cart, Ignis headed for the deck. It was the first-class passengers’ deck. Almost all the passengers were at the dinner party, so on this cold night, the deck was… Empty except for you. Sure enough, Danae Windsor stood alone on the deck, gazing at the sky.
Hiding behind a pillar, Ignis’s heart raced. The moonlight seemed to highlight Danae’s white hair, which rippled in the darkness. He knew the feel of that hair. It was incredibly soft. Finally, he could touch it again. Ignis swallowed hard. Yes. Just grab that hair in one hand and… Strangle her to death. This time, for sure.
A fierce desire to kill consumed his entire being. Just as he was about to step out from behind the pillar,
“Hello, Ignis.”
A gentle voice greeted him from behind.
“Have you been well?”
There was no need to think further. Ignis immediately turned around. At that moment, a fierce gust brushed past his ear. Someone’s savage hand passed his face and slammed into the pillar.
“Oh, you dodged that?”
Haha, Carl Windsor let out a dry laugh as he pulled his hand out of the pillar.
“I thought your instincts were dead since you didn’t even sense me sneaking up behind you.” Carl clicked his tongue in disappointment. “You were so distracted, watching Dana. Ignis, get a grip. What are you going to do if you die like that?”
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