Chapter 100
Fiorette watched the mine explode from a distance as a gust of wind swept past her.
The wind blew toward the collapsed cave.
Just a moment ago, it had served as an exit.
Now, it was completely blocked off.
With the path shut off from deep within the tunnel, no one could escape.
Not even the so-called monster, Duke Rippleton.
And not even Brilloxen’s young lady, who had been facing Bellieta.
As Fiorette gazed at the ruined cave, she slowly approached it.
The weakened ground felt like it could cave in at any moment.
In such a situation, Fiorette moved toward the exit.
Clatter.
A small rock tumbled down from the rubble at the cave’s entrance.
The stone rolled to her feet and fell limply, having lost its support.
Watching this quietly, Fiorette slowly reached out her hand toward the rock.
“This must be the answer. This has to be right.”
Having been born as a Bairon and tied to Bozbourne, this was the only answer.
There was no need to worry about anything complicated.
All she had to do was dedicate herself to Bozbourne and be loyal to Bellieta.
So, there was no need to be swayed by these feelings.
But even with that resolve, the face rising from the depths of her being revealed her true self.
Maybe that person was the only one.
The one who looked at her not with envy or pity, but with understanding.
Though the words might be a bit harsh and twisted, Fiorette couldn’t deny that the voice had pierced her soul dozens of times.
‘Is living like that fun?’
The voice echoed again.
“No. It’s not fun at all.”
For the first time, she confronted her own truth, her sincerity, and her true feelings.
“Having to do anything under someone’s name is hell for me.”
She had been trapped in a dark room since childhood.
That room had neither an exit nor an entrance.
No one tended to her wounds.
Unhealed scars and pain.
She knew that the first person to touch those marks was the one trapped inside here.
That’s why she felt shaken.
And because she was shaken, she had to kill her.
Because if she didn’t, she would ultimately be the one in pain.
“I wanted to ask. How did you know about such things? How could you escape? And….”
Could you save me?
“I wasn’t brave enough to walk the path you showed me. The light was always a pain, and it never brought hope.”
If I had trusted you if I had mustered even a little courage…
Could it have meant that I didn’t have to kill you?
Could you have shown me that light could be hope and not pain?
It felt like she had made a terrible mistake.
‘Are you okay?’
Fiorette thought back to Sierra’s shoulder when she had thrown herself to save her.
Only then did she realize.
What she had done.
Swallowing the deep despair that slipped between her tightly pressed lips, Fiorette reached into her pocket and pulled out the last remaining bomb.
She took one last bomb, shoved it into the rubble to clear the rocks, and stepped back.
Holding the detonator in her hand, she closed her eyes.
She knew it was a stupid and dangerous thing to do, but there was no other way.
All she could do was hope it would clear a path.
Fiorette pressed the detonator.
But unlike before, there was no explosion.
“Why…?”
Fiorette pressed the detonator again.
Still no response.
Muttering in disbelief at the unexpected result, she pulled her hand away from the detonator.
In that instant, the bomb began to react.
And it was coming from her own pocket.
Oh no, in a split second, the heat surged.
As Fiorette froze in shock, someone rushed over, grabbed the pouch at her waist, and tossed it to the other side.
“Get down!”
The pouch glowing red flew away, and Fiorette was pushed to the ground.
At that moment—
Boom—!
The bomb exploded, and the shockwave hit her.
Lying flat on the ground, Fiorette could clearly see the person who had saved her.
A face and hair covered in dirt.
Torn clothes and a distorted expression.
“How did you…?”
The person Bellieta had desperately wanted to kill and yet save.
“It’s not too late.”
Sierra stood before her.
***
Belieta wasn’t that merciful, nor was she particularly understanding.
She was greedy enough to choose to destroy rather than let anyone take her things.
What Belieta was most sensitive to was having something taken from her.
Another thing was having something she believed was hers taken away.
And the only person who fit into both categories was ultimately Fiorette.
“Things are a mess.”
I brushed off the sand and stones that had fallen behind me and reached out my hand.
Fiorette, sitting on the ground and looking up at me, slowly turned her gaze to my hand.
I nodded my head as if to say, “Grab my hand,” and she bit her lip with a strange expression.
She looked like she was holding something back, so I sighed and reached down to pull her up.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Surprised to see me here?”
She probably thought I’d be dead or dying down there.
As I shook the dust off my shoulders, I tried to gauge her reaction.
Was she shocked? Happy? Or was it something else, like sadness?
Her face was a complicated mix of emotions.
Fiorette stiffened her lips and furrowed her brow a few times before asking, “Why did you save me?”
“Should I have just left you to die?”
I chuckled at the question that didn’t even deserve an answer.
“You tried to kill me, so you should be punished accordingly. Death wouldn’t even count as a punishment, you know. Of course, I need to dig up some information first.”
“…”
Her trembling lips gradually calmed down.
I watched her for a moment, then tossed the broken instrument to the ground and turned away.
Feeling her gaze on my back, I gathered my scattered personal belongings from the other side.
“Did you really think you could kill me with something like this?”
“…”
“That’s a bit disappointing. Did I really look that foolish?”
From the start, it was clear that Bellieta would target me.
I knew she would realize I was going to a distant mine and even entering it.
“The ranger you sent created a bit of confusion for a moment, but it didn’t matter much. It was too dumb to really be effective. Especially coming from you.”
There was no need to overthink it.
Fiorette couldn’t betray Bellieta.
Even if she had thought of betraying her and asking me for help, there was no need for me to risk my life to save her.
So I was left with only one option.
Bellieta wanted me dead.
And the method would be a mine collapse.
I thought that was the only possibility.
“But knowing that doesn’t explain why you’re here,” I said.
Instead of the expected answer, I pointed to the broken instruments and the torn blueprints.
Fiorette narrowed her eyes.
“I had thought from the start that I might get trapped in the mine. I had already devised an escape plan. I checked the blueprints to confirm a safe location until the end.”
The blueprints were never about gathering mine information; they were about preparing an escape route.
Plus, I had checked for the exit built on the weakest ground and planned a passage for me to escape nearby.
“However, I was a bit surprised that you used a bomb to blow open that entrance.”
Especially since it turned out to be a defective one.
I frowned as I looked at the side where the explosion had occurred.
Was it intentional?
Or…
“Then… did you know about all this and still drag me into it? Even knowing you might be in danger?”
“For a businessman, risks are always one of the elements that lead to big gains. I took that risk, and I got a catch like you.”
The young lady of the Bairon family, who was right next to Bellieta.
And at the same time, she had been a witness to all of Bellieta’s actions.
There couldn’t be a bigger catch than this.
At least, not until now.
“And I never thought I was going to die. I had set up a few safety nets, starting with that transportation device.”
Like an artifact that would teleport me to a designated location when things got dangerous, or a device that would protect me from being crushed by rocks.
Those were things I had asked Medea to prepare before departing from Brilloxen.
“Bellieta wanted me dead, but she couldn’t kill me with such old-fashioned methods. It was too obvious.”
When you go to the mountains, there are landslides; when you go to the river, there are floods; when you’re alone, there are assassins; and when you enter a mine, there’s a collapse.
Plus, there were even reports from Kestian about the cart carrying the prototypes being attacked and seized.
It was an answer built from accumulating evidence and circumstances.
Belieta must have thought I would figure it out.
So why did she go through with it?
No, more than that, it was so simple that it was hard to believe it was something Bellieta would do.
“Bellieta’s actions fall within the predictable range for me.”
Except for that defective bomb, of course.
Could the meticulous Belieta really have given a defective product to Fiorette? How was I supposed to take that?
A faint suspicion flickered through my mind.
In the meantime, I heard a noise coming from the other side.
Among the noise, I also recognized a familiar voice.
I glanced back over my shoulder and then turned back to Fiorette.
Faced with her still stiff expression, I spoke softly.
“Now, it’s your turn to decide.”
Her eyes wavered.
In those eyes were countless worries and struggles.
But unlike before, there was no hesitation.
“You almost killed me, and I captured you. I can hold you accountable for your crimes and punish you. So, I’ll ask you again.”
I stepped closer to Fiorette, looking into her trembling eyes as I spoke.
“I asked you before. Is living like that fun?”
“…”
“Will you continue living like that? Or will you move forward in a new way?”
The choice was up to Fiorette.
She could live and die as Bellieta’s servant until the end or she could reclaim her own name.
“It’s your decision.”
“Siérra!”
I smiled quietly at the voice coming from behind me.
