I tightly hugged Valerie as we walked through the darkness where I couldn’t see even a step ahead. A misstep could injure her.
Even if I asked where we were, Franz would likely give me no proper answer.
I cautiously placed one foot forward, hoping my eyes would quickly adjust to the darkness. But a voice from the dark made me stop in my tracks.
“Who, is Franz… here?”
Someone was inside. I hadn’t thought anyone would be present in such darkness. Startled, I froze as Franz stepped closely behind me.
The voice indicated the presence of a person. I furrowed my brow and squinted; it was said that squinting could help focus better. Upon closer inspection, it seemed something was moving in the dark.
“Yes, mother.”
Mother? I turned back in surprise to see Franz standing right behind me, gazing into the void.
What was he looking at? I followed his gaze, but it was still hard to identify what was where his eyes lingered.
However, from Franz calling her “mother,” I could infer who the voice belonged to.
Marina, Franz’s mother, known as an infamous beauty who entangled the emperor. It seemed she was here.
Was the person I’d only heard about truly present? I felt myself tense at this unexpected encounter in a place I hadn’t imagined.
“Who… came with you?”
Her heavy breathing sounded rough. Given just the voice, I wouldn’t have thought she was the subject of such tremendous rumors.
Her voice, hoarse and almost metallic, intermingled with gasps, made her seem like a very old crone.
It was said that she bore Franz through her relationship with the former emperor, his father. This meant that regardless of her age, she must be younger than Madame Pulcheria, the sister of the former emperor.
Yet the rough breaths from that voice made her seem much older than Pulcheria.
“It would be better for your mother to see it herself.”
Franz placed his hand on my back and pushed me forward. It meant I should move ahead instead of standing still. As I reluctantly took another step, one of Franz’s knights brought a lamp with a lit flame.
“Oh, who is this?”
Just as I was starting to adapt to the darkness, the suddenly lit lamp was blinding. When I momentarily closed my eyes and opened them again, something dimly white was close right in front of me, which I couldn’t see before.
“M-Mom?”
Surprised by the grotesque shape that didn’t look human, I instinctively stepped back, but Franz blocked my way, leaving me stuck.
The small figure that didn’t even seem to reach my waist was, upon closer inspection, bent at a 90-degree angle. It wasn’t that the person was short; they were just hunched over.
Holding my startled heart, I examined the person in front of me slowly. They had draped a large cloth over their head, making it difficult to see clearly, but this person up close was truly bizarre.
I thought I might smell something foul. If the lamp were a little brighter, this person would be more visible. Perhaps the light was intentionally dim, as it was very weak. I could barely see anything up close.
“It’s been a very, very long time, the girl from the Louisette family, child.”
Every word expelled came with heavy breaths. The person I was looking at seemed to be breathing heavily, and I shivered in response to the ominous sound.
“Do you… know me?”
“Of course, of course I do.”
If my assumptions based on the memories of Celeste, which I had seen in a dream, were true, then Celeste and Marina must certainly be acquainted.
After saving Celeste’s life through dark magic, they probably had various meetings under the pretext of the Louisette family’s allegiance. Therefore, it wouldn’t be surprising for Marina to recognize me.
For me, who had no memories of Celeste, this was a startling encounter.
“Bubuah.”
Fumbling. Marina’s hand, reaching out from the darkness, suddenly stopped right after Valeria in her arms babbled.
“Mom, mom.”
“What is that sound…?”
“Eek!”
The hand that had briefly paused shot out like a bullet, grabbing my arm. A startled scream escaped me from the unexpected force.
“Why, why are you doing this?”
How could such strength come from the frail old woman on the verge of falling apart? Marina’s hand tightened around my arm like a claw.
I tried to pull my wrist free, but it wouldn’t budge. My other arm, which was not held, was cradling Valerie, making it even harder to resist. With one arm trapped, my options were severely limited.
“Oh, it’s a child…!”
“Ahhh!”
The arm being held began to be pulled toward Marina, and suddenly a face wrapped in cloth lunged forward. It was too sudden, but my shock stemmed more from her appearance.
“Gasp…”
Is this a person? Is this Marina? The face fully illuminated by the light of the lamp was pure horror. No matter how I looked at it, she resembled a beast more than a human.
Her forehead had bones protruding like horns, eyebrows bent unnaturally high, a nose that appeared to have rotted away, and eyes that dripped downward…
I couldn’t bear to look any longer and turned my head away, yet Marina unhesitatingly pulled my arm harder toward her.
“Let go of this, please.”
Marina’s gaze was solely focused on Valerie. I turned my body away, but Marina’s grip was excessively strong.
A primal alarm signaled in me; I needed to avoid this woman. I had to protect Valerie.
But how? In front of me, Marina was approaching while holding me tight, and behind me, Franz stood like a mountain. There was no ally here to help me. Cold sweat began to trickle down my back.
“You were looking for Karl’s child, weren’t you?”
After a long silence, Franz finally spoke in a nonchalant tone.
“Oh, you’re looking for a child? Who? Why? What’s going on?”
I turned back, filled with desperation, knowing he wouldn’t help.
Why was this woman searching for Valerie? Fear quickly engulfed me. My heart pounded furiously.
“Stilikov.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Take the child and hand her over to Isaac.”
“Yes, understood.”
“What do you mean? Who are you giving Valerie to? No!”
My cries fell on deaf ears, scattering into the air. While Marina held one of my arms, Franz’s knight approached and snatched Valerie into his arms.
I instinctively grasped Valerie tightly, sensing that letting go would mean disaster, but it was futile.
“Mommy, wah!”
“Give me back my child!”
Valerie erupted into tears, similar to the cries during the carriage accident. The thought of him having a fit made me feel frantic and anxious.
Franz’s knight held the wailing Valerie tightly, as if finding him troublesome.
***
Laila’s confession that she informed Duke Toskur about the whereabouts of Duchess Albrecht caused a tremendous stir.
Karl, who had turned Franz’s residence upside down in search of his suddenly vanished wife, began to move without hesitation as his suspicions, which had only been gut feelings until now, grew into certainty.
With just two days left before the electors’ vote, he disregarded the bureaucrats’ warnings that an attack on the opponent might appear as an illegal seizure of the throne.
“Karl, I can fully empathize and understand your feelings. However, moving too hastily will bring you nothing good.”
Momentarily shocked by Laila’s confession, Pulcheria quickly called Karl to explain the relationship between Franz and Laila.
Though his nephew tugged at her heartstrings, everyone must take responsibility for their own mistakes. Even if she later asked for leniency regarding Laila’s transgressions, that was a matter for later.
Right now, locating the Duchess and Duke Toskur, whose whereabouts were unknown, was the top priority.
“Yes, Aunt. Thank you for your concern. However, there’s no time to waste. This is a matter of urgency. In the time we hesitate, we don’t know what might happen to Celeste and Valery.”
“It could just give them a reason to strike back. There are those who say you intend to use force to seize the throne out of fear of losing the electors’ vote.”
“I had already instructed an investigation from the guild in preparation for this. Aunt, I have obtained statements from Count Edward that serve as evidence of the numerous crimes that Franz and his associates have committed through the guild. This alone provides ample reason to arrest Franz.”
“I see. You’ll handle it well, knowing you, but this old aunt is worried.”
“Please don’t worry too much.”
“And…”
Pulcheria hesitated, seemingly about to speak of Laila. But Karl had no time to wait for her reluctance.
“Aunt, next time. First, after this situation is settled, I will come back to discuss Laila.”
Karl, reading Pulcheria’s hesitant expression, comforted her. For now, he needed to resolve the urgent matters first.
