Chapter 74

"Then, we'll have to return to the Imperial Capital once, so please take care of things from here on out, okay? We'll definitely come back to check on you and His Highness again."

"Of course, I will."

"Um, I'll keep you updated, so please take care of yourself, Your Highness, and don't overexert yourself."

"…Thank you, Edgar. I'll be fine. I've also entrusted Hans with the task."

With that, after bidding farewell to the two, Lilith turned to Frederick.

"Mr. Hu, we'll depart the day after tomorrow, so please come back to the inn by tonight at the latest."

"Yes, yes, I understand."

Before returning to the Imperial Capital, Frederick, who wanted to take a closer look at the kiln, was left behind as Lilith and Rese got into the carriage and left the place.

Despite being her first attempt, the result was impeccable, and Lilith's heart was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

However, she had become so engrossed that she returned late, which was a mistake.

At this rate, it would be completely dark by the time they reached the inn.

Relying on the weak light left by the sun, which had disappeared behind the mountains, the carriage was making its way through the rough road.

"Tomorrow will be busy with preparations for our return to the Imperial Capital."

"That's right. Lady Lilith will probably be overwhelmed by the people in the town who will be sad to see you go."

"That... might happen..."

Lilith, who had been greeted with such enthusiasm on her first outing in a long time, had started to deny it but nodded.

Although her stay in Tuisen had been enjoyable, she felt a sense of sadness at the thought of leaving.

But there would be another opportunity to visit.

Thinking of this, Lilith's thoughts turned to Gesualdo.

"But, I still want to return to the Imperial Capital! What's going on?"

Suddenly, the carriage jolted violently and picked up speed.

Moreover, the angry shouts of the guard knights could be heard.

"Lady Lilith, please crouch down under the seat—"

Rese, who was uncharacteristically forceful, pulled Lilith down from the seat and moved toward the door, but her words were cut off as the carriage came to an abrupt stop.

Despite this, Rese quickly regained her composure, shielding Lilith with her back and glaring at the door.

Outside, the high-pitched sound of clashing swords made it clear that they were under attack.

Suddenly, the door was flung open, and without even confirming who it was, Rese thrust the knife she had been holding.

The intruder, who had opened the door without permission, was undoubtedly a lawless person. After dodging the knife, he grabbed Rese's arm and roughly pulled her down.

"Rese!"

Seeing Rese fall to the ground without a foothold, Lilith let out a scream.

A large, heavily armored man peered into the carriage and extended his thick arm toward Lilith.

Just then, one of the guard knights tackled the man and shouted.

"Run, Lady Lilith!"

The knight extended his arm again, and Lilith tried to grab it, but the knight was struck down by the man who had risen.

Seeing the blood spatter from the guard knight, Lilith desperately suppressed the rising scream.

(I can't make a commotion. I have to escape!)

She didn't know how to escape, but it was clear that she was the target, and Rese and the knights were injured while trying to protect her.

Thinking quickly, Lilith took advantage of the man's distraction with the knight and jumped out of the carriage.

The carriage was very high without a step, and her legs felt numb.

Nevertheless, Lilith started running, but she was quickly caught.

Powerless, she was carried like a piece of luggage and placed on a horse.

In a panic, Lilith couldn't even check on Rese or the knights.

For a while, she was violently jolted by the horse and struggled to suppress the rising nausea due to the tight grip.

However, as she gradually calmed down, Lilith began to observe her surroundings.

This group of lawless individuals was extremely well-organized.

There were at least a dozen of them, and it was no surprise that they had overwhelmed the seven guard knights who had been added as a precaution.

This was undoubtedly a planned attack, and the mastermind was probably Saul.

Since the report of their departure from the inn had been over ten days ago, Lilith had let her guard down.

During that time, Saul had patiently waited for Lilith to visit the kiln again and had made thorough preparations.

It was impossible for the powerless Lilith to escape in such a situation.

However, if Frederick had conveyed that she was as weak as rumored, the attackers would eventually let their guard down.

Until then, she just needed to stay quiet.

As a valuable hostage, Lilith would not be treated roughly. ——Although she was being treated quite roughly at the moment.

The group was riding through the forest, which was shrouded in twilight.

They had clearly scouted the area multiple times.

Noticing that Lilith was not struggling, the arm that had been tightly restraining her loosened.

Relieved, Lilith took a deep breath and began to seriously consider her situation.

Heading toward a faint light against the darkness meant they would likely emerge from the forest and onto the southern road.

She visualized the map of the area around Tuisen in her mind.

Although she didn't know exactly where they would emerge on the road, it would be completely dark by then, and even such a suspicious group would not attract attention.

Even if she were taken to Fontae, it wouldn't be in this state.

They would likely transfer her to a carriage at some point, and with a journey of several days, there would be opportunities to escape.

(If everyone comes to rescue me, I should leave some kind of mark...)

However, leaving a mark would be meaningless if it wasn't noticed.

While she was pondering what to do, the horse slowed down and eventually stopped.

They seemed to be just before the edge of the forest.

Lilith pretended to be terrified and unable to speak as she was carried down.

The man, who had been silent all along, was now handling her more gently.

As she was carried, Lilith suddenly saw an open space and blinked several times.

It was completely dark, but the road was brighter than the forest thanks to the nearly full moon.

Lilith was disheartened to see that the road ahead was a crossroads.

This would make it difficult for pursuers to determine which path they had taken.

However, Frederick would recognize this as the work of Fontae, so there would be two possible paths: southeast or southwest.

If they were in a hurry to reach the Kingdom of Fontae, they would likely take the southeast path, but to her surprise, the carriage was stopped on the northwest path.

Upon closer inspection, there seemed to be a problem with the wheel, and a person who appeared to be the driver was crouched beside the rear left wheel.

Two people who looked like the carriage's guards stood beside him.

They seemed to be stranded travelers.

If Lilith shouted, she could alert them to the situation, but she couldn't involve them.

Deciding this, Lilith remained silent, but when the driver stood up and turned around, he smiled.

"Ah, you're late. I thought I'd have to spend the night here."

Hearing the driver's words, Lilith was shocked.

She had thought he was just a traveler, but he was one of them.

Realizing this, Lilith's body began to tremble.

The man carried her even more gently and headed toward the door opened by the driver.

If they headed northwest, the pursuers might not realize it.

Lilith clutched her chest with both hands, took a shaky breath, and let go, allowing herself to be placed in the carriage.