At the moment, she was preoccupied with fifty thousand complex ideas.
Then the blunt man’s mouth opened, and a deep, trustworthy voice was heard.
“…… I don’t know what I should do if I still haven’t gone and am still here. You should have run away quickly.”
It was a voice that warned the couple who remained in the house, although it did not appear to be threatening them immediately.
“Well, that……”
“I was busy packing…… I also need travel expenses..….”
For some reason, the couple was desperately making excuses in front of a man they didn’t know. It seemed like it was the only way to survive.
“Travel expenses..….”
The man muttered, following Debbie’s words, and put his hands in his pockets.
Scott unintentionally concealed Debbie behind him, as if he were drawing a weapon. Of course, once Scott died, she would be next, but he still wanted to protect her, if only for a little while.
However, what came out of the man’s pocket was not a weapon but a pocket full of money.
He lightly threw the money bag at Scott, and although Scott was confused, he caught the money bag with both hands.
“That will be enough. Please go quickly before I change my mind. I don’t know what I’ll do if you don’t go.”
What he said was a harsh threat, but strangely enough, it did not sound like that to the couple’s ears.
They didn’t know who he was, but they thought that despite his scary appearance, he might be surprisingly kind and gentle on the inside.
“Okay, thank you.”
The couple looked at the man, walked past him, and went out of the cabin.
Cloud, who was waiting for them to leave with his eyes closed, added without even looking in their direction, “If possible, you should go to places with few people. Since you’ve lived in such a dark place, you have to take care of yourself…… There is a carriage parked on the road down there, so be careful not to get caught in there.”
It was a gentle farewell, even though it pretended not to be until the end.
As Cloud said, the couple killed their fear and went down the mountain. Indeed, there was a carriage parked on the main road, and they moved to avoid it.
And after a while…
Flames were seen rising from the direction of the hut that was their home. After they left, the man started the fire.
Scott watched in wonder as the home he had worked so hard to build turned to ashes. He could not feel it at all. He has lived in the same spot for the previous 20 years.
“We should go quickly; why are you looking so blankly?”
And then Debbie dragged him away.
“Okay, let’s go. I have to live first. Isn’t life more important than home?”
His physical strength was no longer what it used to be, but his knack for handling wood was still the same. As long as he was alive, he could rebuild his home.
They hurried their steps like that and soon disappeared into the dark forest.
* * *
Cloud went to the couple’s cabin and soon returned to the carriage.
There was a strong burning smell coming from the direction he was coming through, and intense flames were flickering as the wooden building burned.
“You must have handled it neatly, right?”
“..…. Yes.”
In response to Capella’s question, Cloud nodded.
And Ayla impatiently grabbed his arm.
“W-what do you mean? Processing it…… What did you do to the two of you? Did you kill them? Is that it?”
Half of it was an act to impress Capella, but the other half was not an act but sincerity.
It was still unknown what choice Cloud would have made.
And he slowly blinked his eyes and nodded. As if he assured her that he did as she ordered.
Strangely enough, the moment she saw his transparent eyes…… All of Ayla’s doubts about Cloud seemed to disappear in an instant.
“It was unavoidable for the master’s plan. You don’t mean to sound weak-hearted and say you have feelings for them, right?”
Capella asked sharply with her arms crossed, and Ayla lowered her face and shook her head with a downcast expression.
Of course, she only looked glum on the outside, but she was overflowing with joy.
Scott and Debbie were saved, the curse on her body would soon be lifted, and she could finally return to her biological parents.
However, the joy that had been crafting in her heart vanished like an illusion when she met Byron.
“My daughter. Just run to the village below and ask people for help. If you wear this necklace, they will mistake you for a princess and take you to their house. The lord who owns this area is famous for being just and caring for the people of the territory, so he will probably be more rambunctious than necessary.”
This was because he, who was waiting for Ayla to come from a nearby mountain hut, said this as soon as they met, without even having a chance to clear the air.
“Right now?”
No, that wouldn’t be it. She hadn’t even performed the ritual to lift the curse yet, so there was no way she would be let into the dukedom like this.
“Okay, now. Why are you like that?”
Byron looked at Ayla with puzzled eyes, but she was in a situation where she should have been confused.
‘The curse… … ? Why aren’t they releasing me?’
They said that if she entered the dukedom like this, her mother, Ophelia, would notice and think it might be strange. But he was suddenly trying to send her away without breaking the curse.
And it seemed she wasn’t the only one perplexed by Byron’s command. Cloud also had a look of embarrassment on his face.
“Master…… !”
When Cloud called Byron in an urgent voice, he put his index finger to his mouth.
“Shh, we’ll talk about it later. I think I need to talk to my precious daughter first. Shouldn’t we go now, daughter?”
“…… No, that’s not it…… I’m sad because if I leave my father like this, I won’t be able to see him again for a long time.”
Ayla hid her surprise and came up with a plausible excuse.
“… … Oh dear. My daughter seems very disappointed. But even if you miss this father, just be patient. We will soon meet..… We will meet again at the most glorious moment.”
As expected, her excuse worked, and Byron answered with a grin.
“You go out, daughter. Should I go out and prepare? My parents were killed by bandits, and my house burned down, so I won’t show up looking so fine.”
He made a celebratory move with his chin, knowing it was time to get her out and speak to Cloud.
Ayla had no choice but to nod and go outside.
Capella came to her side, made scratch marks on her face and clothes with charcoal, and tore her clothes. Then she had scratches here and there.
While she was outside putting on realistic makeup, Cloud was asking Byron in a confused voice why he didn’t lift the curse.
“Master, why don’t you lift the curse?”
“Uhm, that’s it. While you were watching that kid, I heard some interesting news. My Ophelia…… They said she couldn’t use magic anymore.”
Byron grinned happily.
For some reason, he thought it was strange to have a child. It was said that it was difficult for the body of a child to enter Dukedom with its powerful magical power. He never thought something like that would happen.
“If there is no fear of being caught, is there any reason not to take off the shackles? That kid…… If you get out of your brainwashing, your thoughts may change.”
Byron rested his chin on the arm of his chair and smiled. It was a smile that seemed genuinely happy, which made it even more creepy.
“That…… Didn’t Laura decide to take good care of her by her side?”
“Yes, she did. Still, wouldn’t it be better to take out insurance rather than just trusting your nephew?”
In response to Byron’s answer, Cloud bit his lip nervously. It was an incredible story to learn that Ophelia was no longer able to use her magic.
“There is also Candace Epocher, my Lord. You must not forget that she remained in the duchy until not long ago.”
Cloud bought up the story of Candace to somehow persuade Byron. Even excluding the risk factor of Ophelia, there were quite a few variables in the dukedom.
“Ah, that prosaic, shabby, skinny girl. It’s not like she’s doing nothing but having fun. Do you think she’ll go there that often?”
Byron hadn’t thought about it either. Since Ophelia was from a country of wizards, there were many wizards around her.
Because it started with her best friend, Candace Epocher.
However, Candace was a person of quite high status in the Republic of Tamora. No matter how she managed to find time to come to the Duke’s house this time, he had no idea when she would have time for next.
Other than that, he investigated people with whom Ophelia was close. So Candace was the wizard who was good enough to detect the hidden curse.
Even Ophelia’s older brother, Isidore, unlike his younger sister, had little innate magic and was a loner who stayed confined to his studies.
As Byron was explaining this story, he frowned as he suddenly wondered why he was telling everything to his subordinates one by one.
“If I have planned it, I’m going to do it. Do you have any complaints?”
“……No, my Lord.”
Cloud hid his feelings and lowered his head.
If Byron had already decided to send her back without breaking the curse, there was no way he could help Ayla.
He attempted to wash away his remorse by securely returning her to her parents, but even that did not appear to work as he had hoped.
