TSHNL 19

Chapter 19

A familiar voice echoed in my ears. Turning my head, I saw a masked middle-aged man.

Balding head, protruding belly, sweat dripping from his forehead—a man whose presence was always faint.

“…Osen?”

“You recognized me despite the mask? You’ve got sharp eyes.”

Osen walked out from the shadowy corner, holding me tightly by the scruff. Callista and Aramis immediately gathered aura on their palms and swords.

“Osen, how long have you been hiding there?”

“I’ve been here since earlier! No one ever notices me!”

He briefly snapped before clearing his throat, regaining composure.

“Well, anyway, even if I haven’t got the best hostage… throwing Harper out the window would still make things complicated for you, wouldn’t it, Lady Callista? You’d be accused of murdering your sister.”

“What?”

Callista asked, her expression turning utterly disgusted. Aramis’s face twisted as well.

“If you don’t want that to happen, release your aura. Honestly, I didn’t want things to end up like this either, but… I need to leave this place. I’ll kill this child and leave her somewhere you’ll find her, eventually—so if you want to find her first, don’t follow me.”

He spoke with an arrogant sneer similar to Ivan’s earlier. My body froze, forgetting even the pain.

Yet, amidst the fear, a tiny suspicion nagged at me.

Why does it feel like the same scene keeps repeating itself?

Every time these assassins thought they’d won, something would fly in to overturn the situation…

“Now, then. Lady Callista, Aramis—please clear the way…”

Swish— Thud!

Right on cue, the sharp sound of metal plunging deeply into flesh echoed through the room. Osen froze, unable to finish his sentence.

“Ugh! Wh—who…?”

His knees buckled as he fell to the ground, a dagger deeply lodged in the middle of his back.

He stared blankly at Callista and Aramis, neither of whom had moved an inch. Confused myself, I glanced around the room.

Thump—

Only after Osen collapsed fully did I see her clearly. It was Vittori, arm still outstretched in a dagger-throwing stance, calmly standing behind him.

“Y-you! How did you…?”

“I picked up the dagger from one of them. I just coated it with some Red-headed Bird poison I carry around.”

Vittori, who had been silent up until now, slowly approached. She wore her usual gentle smile, but something about her was cold and dangerous.

“You’re supposed to be just a healer!”

“I’m still the daughter of a knight family. Turning your back on me was foolish, Vice Chairman. Besides…”

Vittori extended her blood-splattered arm, pointing casually towards Aramis.

“I grew up competing against that madman since we were in the womb.”

“Ugh… you little…”

She smiled sweetly at Osen. Aramis nodded indifferently, clearly seeing no need to contradict her claim. Osen tried to speak further but could only tremble weakly.

I sat on the floor, blinking slowly.

Vittori, weren’t you supposed to be Callista’s symbol of kindness?

A woman dedicated to compassion, self-sacrifice, healing—yet you just threw a dagger into the back of a man old enough to be your father?

How casually do these people handle assassination?

Before the shiny droplets of sweat from Osen’s forehead could touch my clothes, I placed my hand on the floor, trying to stand.

Sway—

“Huh…?”

The spot where I’d been hit earlier hadn’t healed yet. My body wobbled, consciousness briefly fading as my vision blurred.

“Lady Harper!”

Vittori and Theon’s voices echoed simultaneously, just as cold fingers caught my shoulder, gently supporting me.

“Hmm…?”

I blinked repeatedly, trying to see who it was.

Strange.

It wasn’t Theon, nor Vittori.

As consciousness slipped further away, the last thing I saw was beautiful silver hair glowing gently like moonlight.

“Catch her!”

When I closed my eyes, I found myself running again through the corridors of Luferne mansion, thirteen years old once more, fleeing from assassins.

Swish—

Something sharp narrowly missed my back.

I needed to hide.

Running without direction, I found myself in an unfamiliar wing of the main mansion—somewhere I had never been.

Tap, tap, tap…

My breath grew ragged after sprinting through endless corridors. Pausing, I reached out a hand to steady myself against a wall.

Slide—

The solid wall vanished at my touch. In a blink, I was in an empty, furniture-less room.

Riley’s room. I had stumbled upon the entrance to the secret chamber. I collapsed onto the floor, breathing heavily.

“Haa… haa…”

But the respite was short-lived. After just a few minutes, another wall emitted a bluish glow, forming a doorway.

The person stepping through it was Callista.

She must have known exactly where the entrance was. Sweat trickled down my back.

“You’ve run for quite some time, Harper. This ends now.”

Her voice was emotionless, firm.

“It’s not your fault. But I can’t afford to lose any more of my people.”

Blue aura formed in Callista’s palm.

Tears abruptly welled up in my eyes.

Not from fear—but because, for a fleeting moment, Callista’s cold expression wavered as she mentioned “my people,” as if recalling someone genuinely dear to her.

Yet, I had no one.

No one who would mourn if I was lost.

My knees buckled. Exhausted, I leaned against a side wall, ready to surrender.

Slide—

Just as Callista’s aura flashed dangerously, my body slipped right through the wall into the adjacent room.

“Mm…”

When I opened my eyes halfway, a blurry figure sat beside my bed. Long silver hair brushed against my forehead.

‘…Callista?’

Why would Callista be sitting by my bed? Soon, the answer came to me clearly.

‘Ah, another dream.’

The real Callista would never wear such a worried expression or gently stroke my hair.

“What happened to the Vice Chairman and Ivan Naitra?”

Callista asked as she stepped out of Harper’s bedroom.

“They’re still alive. However, even after torture, they refuse to reveal their backer.”

Theon replied calmly from his seat in the reception area.

“Everyone knows the mastermind is the Chairman.”

“But we have no concrete proof. Osen handled every detail personally.”

“Typical of that old fox.”

Callista openly showed her disdain.

“Though the captives’ loyalty isn’t convincing at all.”

“It’s probably due to magic or drugs. They weren’t simply refusing to speak—they experienced extreme pain whenever they tried.”

“What about Clarissa Evans? She seemed confident she’d remain untouched even if this plot failed.”

“It seems the Chairman still finds her useful. The captives refuse to speak about the Duchess.”

Theon’s voice remained dry.

“Clarissa’s maid might have information, but it’s insufficient to connect her to this incident.”

“…We’ll have to bury this for now.”

“If we push too hard without solid evidence, the council will strike back. Unless you’re ready to stake everything and mobilize military force—”

“I can’t. Not yet.”

“Then…”

“We’ll eliminate the Naitra family completely, but won’t pursue anyone else openly. As for Osen… just remove him. Since he supported the Chairman against his family’s objections, we’ll spare the rest of his household.”

Theon nodded.

Having given her judgment, Callista smiled coldly.

“That old man never runs out of tricks. He could’ve just sent someone to kill me directly.”

“Because it’s easier to plot these little tricks than threaten your life directly.”

Callista fell silent for a moment, then spoke again.

“That poison—or rather, the herb Harper gave Vittori seems to have cured her addiction, just as it cured your cough.”

“That surprised me as well. Vittori suspects constant exposure during research helped. It was sheer luck.”

Theon spoke, though he was uncertain if the word “luck” applied. Harper had found the herb, delivered it personally to Vittori, and even asked Theon to keep an eye on her.

“How exactly did she enter Riley’s room…?”

“…”

Theon couldn’t answer that. He himself wondered about it, realizing just how little he truly knew about Harper.

‘Go with Callista. If you know the location, you can enter easily.’

Harper had said only that before rushing off.

Neither had imagined she meant to enter first.

“You said she couldn’t have simply walked in, Lady Callista.”

“You saw for yourself. The room requires either deciphering a complicated magical formula or using an artifact. I took the former route; Naitra, the latter. Aramis… well, he cracked it open halfway and then just smashed through the wall.”

Even Callista looked puzzled.

“To enter ‘just like that’ would mean the room itself summoned her—or rather, her magical energy resonated with the magic sealing that room.”

“…”

“The magic within a room sealed tight with advanced spells.”

Theon frowned deeply. Such a feat was theoretically possible but unprecedented for a child with no magic training.

“Lady Harper herself seems convinced she possesses no magic.”

“Without magic, she couldn’t have seen Osen’s invisible aura. She spotted it even before me or Aramis.”

“…”

“That child… What made her believe I’d save her and Vittori at the risk of my own safety?”

Callista pondered, confusion deepening.

“Every time she sees me, I see fear in her eyes. She even witnessed me punishing Soyer severely the day I returned. Yet…”

She paused, then continued softly.

“…Why did she still try to protect me?”