Celeste entered the Count’s secret cavern while holding Valerie.
Suddenly, Stilikov, who had been assisting the criminal Franz outside the cavern, appeared. There was still no news from Celeste. Upon receiving this report, Karl immediately stood up, unable to sit idly while the operations of the palace continued. For him, the most important being in the world was in danger.
In truth, she might be safe inside the cavern, but he wouldn’t know that until he could confirm it.
Unverified safety was almost as dangerous as risk. Karl resolved not to delay further and to do everything he could.
He had refrained from using magic to restore the cave entrance, as it had to fit within the imperial budget for deploying the investigation team beginning from the Duke’s residence.
Instead, he planned to maximize the physical strength of the knights to reconstruct the cave entrance, which had collapsed due to an explosion.
But now, unaware of what Celeste was experiencing inside the cave, thoughts of the imperial budget and the strength of the investigation team were drowned out.
Karl opened the imperial warehouse and utilized necessary magic stones to break through the debris blocking the Duke’s cavern entrance.
Though physical efforts might take days or even months, an immense amount of magical power could achieve it in an instant.
He hesitated to do so despite the ability because it would require a quantity of magic stones equivalent to several years’ worth of the imperial budget, raising the question of whether it was worth it for just the collapsed underground cave entrance.
However, the situation had changed. His wife, Empress Celeste, was trapped in the cavern with his child.
The cave entrance, which could only be accessed by those bearing the blood of Louisette, was not an option. He had to find a way to break through from the opposite side.
To prepare for such unexpected circumstances, Karl and the royal investigation team had already transferred a significant amount of magic stones to the Duke’s underground cavern entrance.
Although they had hoped they wouldn’t need them, the world doesn’t flow as one wishes.
Acting without delay, the Emperor’s order prompted Team Beta of the royal investigation team to start breaking through the underground cavern entrance of the Duke.
Team Alpha, guarding the Empress, reported the current situation continuously via the Louisette transmitter.
“We captured Franz’s closest aide, but the actual main character was not there…”
Where could Franz have gone? And why did his subordinates suddenly appear at the Count’s? There were many questions to ask.
Karl ordered the immediate transport of the two criminals captured by Investigation Team Alpha to the royal palace.
“I will go as Duke Toskur.”
“Do you intend to go in person?”
“I had considered going as Count, but it’s better to go as Duke and enter the cave directly.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. I will prepare at once.”
Clovis understood the urgency of the situation and complied with Karl’s orders without question. Normally, he would have insisted, saying, “Your Majesty shouldn’t leave so easily” or “It would be unwise for the Emperor to be absent from the palace.”
This indicated how dire the situation was, especially with the Empress’s safety uncertain. They hurried their steps.
**”
They rushed to find the cabin. When they had flown here with Valerie over a year ago, there was a reason they had first set foot in the forest behind the cabin.
From a place with a magic stone to another with a magic stone. If they had moved this way, there likely were many magic stones hidden in the forest behind the cabin.
“In such a large and dense forest, it wouldn’t be strange to hide the magic stones anywhere.”
He caught his breath after running, sweat beginning to run down his forehead. Wiping his sweat with his sleeve, he glanced around.
But all he could see were the green leaves fluttering in the wind. There were no visible structures that looked like storage.
“I don’t see any kind of storage…”
If it’s not above ground, could it be hidden underground? Suddenly, he remembered that Franz had dug a cave under Duke Toskur’s estate and connected it to Count’s place.
All the magic stones hidden under Duke Toskur and those concealed under Count’s estate were stored in a secret underground vault.
Burying them underground was indeed safer than leaving them exposed to public view. He directed his gaze downward to inspect the ground beneath him.
However, examining the ground didn’t reveal anything suspicious. The forest floor was covered with all sorts of weeds and roots.
“But I can’t just dig up the ground everywhere, right?”
Equipment would be needed to dig.
Right now, there’s nowhere to go get a pickaxe or shovel, and even if I could find one, I couldn’t possibly dig through this vast forest alone. Even if I tried hard, verifying everything in half a day was impossible.
“…I’m feeling a bit deflated.”
Somehow, I felt empty. The passion that had flared up in front of such vast possibilities had dwindled.
How could I possibly find the storage here in half a day? I have no certainty that a storage exists underground in this forest.
“I can’t be stuck living here, can I?”
If I were to encounter my past self, that’d be the end. How could I evade my past self and my past Hana while searching underground in such a short time here? It felt hopeless.
The reality that I could do nothing on my own pressed down on my chest.
“God, please help me. What am I supposed to do?”
It was more of a lament than a question. Tears mixed with my complaints as I muttered to myself.
I had managed to run this far with a positive mindset, but I couldn’t think of a way to move to the next step alone. It was overwhelming, frustrating, and terrifying.
I sensed the curse of Marina and Franz lingering in my ears, saying that someone like you, who was born into a good family and lived your life as a noble lady, would never understand this sense of urgency and pain.
I was starting to fall into an absurd self-deprecation, wondering if I was truly someone who couldn’t do anything without someone to support me.
“…Huh?”
Didn’t they say that God helps those who help themselves? As I wiped away the bothersome tears that were clustering and ready to fall, something shiny caught my eye at the edge of my vision.
“What is that?”
Something was sparkling from a bush at the base of a large tree. I thought it might be the sunlight reflecting off my tears, but even after wiping my face, the same spot continued to shine.
It wasn’t a mistake. My heart began to race. Hope surged instantly in my previously despaired heart.
In this overgrown forest, which seemed untouched by human hands, there should be no such artificial gleam visible.
That must clearly be a reflection of something man-made. I stood up, brushed the dirt off my skirts, and ran toward the tree where the sparkle came from without hesitation.
“Sure enough…!”
It wasn’t a mistake! I was overwhelmed with emotion. As I suspected, the light reflecting in my eyes was sunlight bouncing off well-polished metal. The metal shaped like an animal looked just like a handle.
I cautiously placed my hand on the metal and applied pressure. Half a turn to the right—nothing happened. Then this time to the left…
Clink, rumble.
“Left was correct.”
Indeed, the metal was a handle. As I turned it, the door opened with a rumbling sound.
As I lifted the door, dirt fell down heavily. It seemed they had made a door on the ground and covered it with dirt and grass to hide it from view.
“A staircase.”
A stone staircase appeared below the open door. As I went further down, the darkening surroundings made me a bit fearful, but I had no time to hesitate.
Staying here was actually more frightening. I swallowed hard and took a slow step down.
“I wish there was a lamp.”
As I descended halfway down the stairs, the surroundings were completely shrouded in darkness. I looked up at the entrance above.
Aside from a beam of light pouring in from the open entrance, the basement was just dark. It felt like going further down would make it nearly impossible to see ahead.
Should I go down? Or not? My dilemma began again on the halfway-down stairs. Should I go out and find a lamp somewhere first? Or just bear it and keep going down? Surely, Franz wouldn’t be here, would he?
My mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts. As I pondered whether to go down or up for some time, I decided to suppress my fleeting fear and focus on achieving my goal.
“I won’t die.”
Surely, Franz couldn’t be inside this dark place. I moved my frozen legs again. Now, there were five steps left until I completely descended.
