TISND Chapter 142

Chapter 142

Rumors spread throughout the capital—if one locked their doors, he would bring siege weapons; if that failed to stop him, he would even dig up graves. At this point, nobles would willingly open their gates the moment they saw Caligo standing outside with his cold, unyielding gaze.

No matter how much shock and horror surrounded him, Caligo remained silent, focused only on his mission. And in the end, he completed his task at an astonishing speed. In just three days, he had thoroughly searched the estates of the nobles and now handed a thick report to Crown Prince Raul.

‘He spent late nights scouring the capital, and yet he wrote all this in just one morning?’

Raul stared at the heavy stack of documents, utterly astounded.

“Did you get any sleep at all?”

“I took brief rests while traveling between locations.”

“So… you didn’t sleep at all, then.”

Caligo had been called many things—an eternal hero, a warrior. To Raul, he was a steadfast friend and a political ally. A man so flawlessly composed that he often seemed indifferent.

But now, that same friend looked dangerously unstable.

The almost obsessive neatness of his appearance was gone, his clothes disheveled, his face shadowed with exhaustion.

Just how much had he agonized, raged, and grieved to bear such a harrowing expression?

It was distressing to see Caligo—of all people—looking like this.

From what Raul had heard, his friend had not eaten, had not rested, and had spent every waking moment searching.

There had been times when Raul missed the old Caligo—the hot-blooded, impulsive young man who acted before he thought. Sometimes, he had felt guilty, as if he were the reason for the change in his friend.

There had even been days when he longed to see traces of that old recklessness again.

But not like this.

Not like this.

Swallowing his unease, Raul spoke gently.

“Take a break. If you keep pushing yourself like this, you’re going to collapse.”

“If I stop moving, I’ll go insane.”

Caligo’s voice was low, strained.

“That’s why I keep moving.”

Every word he spoke felt like agony. His head throbbed from lack of sleep, and his body was reaching its limit. But rest was impossible.

Physical pain was nothing compared to the torment clawing at his heart.

“If I don’t do something—anything—I’ll truly lose my mind…”

It didn’t matter how much his body screamed in protest.

What tormented him most wasn’t just pushing Helena away—it was the fact that he had hurt her.

She had fought so desperately to help him, while he had only judged her, rejected her, and cast her aside.

That memory alone made rest unbearable.

“So please, Your Highness… allow me to go. I will find Salizar Eskel myself.”

Even at this moment, Helena was rushing toward death.

No matter how much he had tried to push her away, he now realized—too late—that she could never truly be separated from his life.

And he was terrified that the last time he saw her would be as a corpse. Or worse, buried beneath the earth.

He couldn’t allow that to happen.

“…Very well. Go.”

At last, Raul granted his request.

Looking back, it had been far too long since he had given Caligo any sort of reprieve.

Then again, was there ever such a thing as a vacation for a noble?

Not for Caligo.

One day, he was on the battlefield. The next, he was standing by Raul’s side.

“I take my leave, Your Highness.”

Leaving behind those final words, Caligo departed from the crown prince’s palace.

—

As soon as he left, Caligo immediately set out to track down Salizar.

Of course, throughout the investigation, he had already gathered information through various guilds and informants.

The knights currently pursuing Salizar reported that tracking him down was no easy task.

Salizar wasn’t moving alone.

He had hired mercenaries and, it seemed, had even gained the secret backing of certain nobles. He was moving in the shadows, but his actions were undeniably dangerous.

“It appears that he has assembled a force since his escape. Witnesses claim he travels with five others.”

Ironically, Caligo and Salizar shared the same goal.

One sought to kill her.

The other, no matter what, was determined to keep her alive.

Salizar had not gone into hiding after his escape—he had built an army.

That meant he had already accepted that he would eventually be caught.

That was how desperate he was to capture Helena.

Unfortunately, Helena likely no longer had the strength to protect herself as she once did. The best she could do was flee upon hearing the news—but even that had its limits. There was a high chance she wouldn’t be able to escape far.

No matter how hard he tried, Caligo couldn’t erase thoughts of Helena from his mind.

He was worried about her to the point of madness.

He wanted to hear even the smallest update about her condition.

For someone poisoned by Asehimmo, the longest they could live was a year.

What if she was already dead…?

He couldn’t keep his emotions in check.

This was the time to think rationally and act.

No amount of dwelling on his past mistakes would undo what had already been done.

So, he had to move—now.

Suppressing a groan that threatened to escape his throat, he gave an order.

“Send Salizar’s movements to the newspapers. Inform the public of his escape route and warn them not to wander outside late at night.”

“Huh? Is there a reason to reveal his escape route? What if he actually goes into hiding…?”

“If he wanted to hide, he would’ve done it already. Right now, he has no intention of running or avoiding capture.”

The warning in the newspaper was for Helena.

There was a chance she might see it.

Salizar was following the exact same steps he had taken before Caligo was assigned as lead investigator.

He had gathered intelligence from various guilds to track Helena.

Had she purchased a house under her name? Had she left the empire?

So far, they had taken the same approach.

But even Salizar had failed to find an answer.

So what would he do next?

“…The people around her.”

“Sir?”

As they all knew, Helena had very few connections.

She hadn’t kept in touch with Aiden after he left the empire.

She had lost contact with Countess Enphirem after leaving the Frantor estate.

She was somewhat close to Emma and the butler, but they hadn’t maintained personal correspondence.

That meant there was only one person left.

“Pedro, what was Helena’s servant’s name?”

“I believe it was Jane.”

“Did you see her at the Eskel estate?”

“Yes, but only briefly.”

“What about her whereabouts?”

“It’s presumed she left with her mistress.”

“Then find out where Jane’s family is.”

After a moment of contemplation, Caligo added,

“And send men to them.”

“Sir?”

“They might be in danger.”

—

Jane’s family consisted of eight members.

Her father had retired from the city guard due to injuries sustained in war, her mother suffered from chronic illness, and Jane was responsible for her younger siblings.

A woman with such a heavy burden would never have left without a word.

As Caligo made his way to Walshkint, where Jane’s family was said to reside, he mulled over his thoughts.

Salizar was probably thinking the same way.

Was it his thirst for revenge that had sharpened his instincts?

The man, usually slow-witted and foolish, had been moving with remarkable stealth.

“Master! We’ve arrived in Walshkint, but there’s been an attack…!”

Walshkint. A peaceful, quiet village where Jane’s family supposedly lived.

As soon as they entered, the smell of burning filled the air.

Caligo quickly sent his men ahead, but what they found waiting for them was Salizar and his mercenaries.

The once-tranquil road where farmers and carts would have passed was now littered with corpses.

Mercenaries lay dead, their bodies strewn across the ground.

A deep sense of devastation washed over Caligo.

And beneath it—fear.

“…Did you capture Salizar?”

“I’m sorry, Master. He questioned someone, got his answer, and left immediately. He abandoned even his mercenaries in his haste, so we couldn’t track him. …I have no excuse.”

“What did he ask?”

“He asked where Jane had gone.”

Please.

Please let her be safe.

Please let me not be too late.

Seeing his master’s shaken expression, Pedro spoke with a grim face.

“Horion.

She went to Horion.”

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