Chapter 107
‘Ah…!’
It was then.
All of a sudden, the background surrounding her and Minase turned into a handful of flower petals before they began to flutter away in the wind.
Min-ha locked eyes with Merlin, the mauve-haired man who was the only one who hadn’t disappeared in the blustery breeze of flowers, just as he had when the dream shifted a little while ago. He chuckled in amusement at her bewildered expression before slowly walking over to her side, stopping a foot or so away from her.
His violet eyes gazed into hers as if she was going to be sucked in.
⎾ Now, I’ve told you everything you need to know, dark-haired lady. ⏌
“…You, what is—”
⎾ This, it’s already time for the magic to unravel. ⏌
“I beg your pardon?”
⎾ Well, let’s meet again, dark-haired lady… At that time, not in a dream, but ‘outside.’ ⏌
“Yes…? Wait! I still have something to say—!”
Flustered and unsure of what to ask, while Min-ha was choosing her words, Merlin suddenly flicked his forefinger over her forehead.
“….!”
At that moment, her vision turned black, and a deep sleep that she couldn’t overcome came. Even though she struggled all over her body desperately to regain her senses, the more she tried, the more she felt like cotton soaked in water.
In the end, Min-ha felt that she was gradually losing consciousness without being able to resist the relentless sleepiness that weighed down her entire body.
…Again, she was kicked out of her dream.
15. Counterattack
“Wait! I still have something to say—!”
Desperately trying to catch Merlin, Min-ha was awakened by screams.
“Huk, haa…”
Her body was drenched in a cold sweat, probably because she’d been struggling for so long. Taking a deep breath, Min-ha wiped her sweaty face and neck with the hem of her sleeve before glancing around. What came into view was, unsurprisingly, the dark and damp landscape of the dungeon.
“…Ah.”
She let out a disappointed sigh and leaned against the cold dungeon wall. She wanted to ask this man, Merlin, why he kept showing her these dreams and if what happened in these dreams was really Minase’s real memories.
When she was kicked out again, she thought to herself that it was futile and ruminated on her vivid dreams as if they were real, but then a thought flashed through her mind, and Min-ha jumped to her feet.
“That book…!”
The book that Minase hid all the secrets! If the dream really showed ‘what actually happened,’ wouldn’t that ‘book’ really be in that room as well?
‘Maybe there’s evidence in that book that will exonerate me and bring down Rupert and Grand Duchess Blaine.’
When she thought so, Min-ha was filled with hope that she might be able to clear her name and get out of the dungeon. At the same time, she murmured while biting her nails at one concern that had arisen without realizing it.
“But, how am I supposed to let them know that the book is there?”
Was there any way to let Seth and his knights know of the existence of the book without Rupert or Grand Duchess Blaine finding out?
Min-ha desperately racked her brains but couldn’t come up with a good solution.
The idea of writing a letter was impossible since there was no paper and pen in the dungeons. Most importantly, she wasn’t familiar with the writing system of this world well. Not only could she not write well, but with her skills, she couldn’t write meaningful sentences that only Seth could recognize. Of course, even if all these problems were resolved, there was no one to deliver the letter to. There was no one to deliver the words.
‘How can I tell him about this?’
Although she finally had a glimmer of hope to get out of the crisis, there was no way to communicate it, so things were still messed up.
What could I do to solve this situation?
It was a time when Min-ha was thinking and worrying…
“…Huh?”
Footsteps could be heard walking towards the prison where she was held. Who were they? Min-ha hurriedly approached her bars and poked her head through them.
Then, what appeared were three knights.
Dressed in white uniforms with silver buttons and silver armor with a red cross on their chests, like the knights who had stood near High Priest Resitia at the witch trials, they walked toward her, carrying torches the length of a full-grown man’s forearm in one hand and a sharp silver sword in the other.
‘…If those are knights in uniform, aren’t they in league with High Priest Resitia like last time?’
Min-ha, who had held out some hope that it might be Seth’s knights, stepped away from the bars in disappointment. Just then, the three knights who had been walking down the corridor stopped in front of her prison cell. They glared at her with cold faces and shouted coldly.
“You’re the witch who stole the body of the Duchess of Persen and harmed Grand Duchess Blaine and her two sons with your unclean magic.”
“…I’m not a witch.”
“Are you trying to change your words now?”
“What do you mean, changing my words?”
“I heard that you asked for forgiveness for the crimes of your two accomplices in exchange for admitting and confessing to all charges?”
“That’s—”
“Are you now afraid of being imprisoned in the imperial towers? If that’s your intention, I’ll have those two accomplices brought back right now.”
Sarcastically, a knight sneered coldly at her objection as he threatened to draw the sword in his right hand at a moment’s notice.
At that moment, Min-ha was startled and covered her mouth.
‘Ah, that’s right. I said I’d confess to the paladins in exchange for the release of Sir Bediviel and Gareth…!’
I’m doomed. If I’d known I was going to have a dream like this, I wouldn’t have said I’d confess to that man Judith so easily!
Min-ha clutched her head with a look of frustration, but soon, she shook her head and regained her composure. It was important to clear her name, but there was something else she needed to check first.
At the thought, she approached the barricade again and shouted.
“Th-then Sir Bediviel and Sir Gareth are out of prison alive now, aren’t they?”
“Well, since they left with their breath attached, I guess they got out alive?”
“Really? You’re not lying about that, are you?”
“Of course. As a paladin who has given everything to God, I can’t lie, even if the other person is a witch.”
At the paladin’s answer, Min-ha let out a sigh of relief as she patted her chest. It was very fortunate. Treatment was the next issue, at least if they were alive.
‘Seth and the other knights will never let them die.’
Relieved that Gareth and Bediviel had been cleared of their charges and were safely out of the prison, she then glanced up as the paladin tossed a parchment and quill pen into the cell she was in.
Then, locking eyes with her, the paladin pointed to the objects in front of her.
“Now then, shall you write the confession?”
“….!”
“Now, it’s your turn to keep your word. Here. Grab the pen and confess all your sins on that piece of parchment.”
“Wa, wait a minute!”
Min-ha shouted in a panicked voice at the paladin’s impatience. Now that she had a clue to clear her name, she couldn’t just confess everything like this.
She spoke pleadingly to them, who were looking down at her, as she clung to the bars.
“Before that, could you please deliver just one letter to the Duke of Persen? Please, I have something to tell him!”
“You can’t do that. The only thing you can do now is to confess all your sins.”
“Please! That one letter could clear all the accusations against me! Please? I’m begging you!”
“I don’t know what else you’re trying to pull, but it’s all for naught. Your chance to make excuses ended with the trial.”
“What chance did you give me back then? You were too busy unilaterally accusing me of being a sinner!”
“How dare you insult the sacred trial?!”
“Uuk…!”
However, no matter how much she pleaded, the paladin at the center remained stubborn. The paladin then immediately drew his sword from his belt and threatened her with it. Min-ha flinched at the tip of the sword, which flew near her throat in an instant as she rolled her eyes in desperation.
‘…What should I do? How can I postpone the confession and tell Seth what I know?’
Just as she was getting frustrated with herself, the paladin on the left, who hadn’t said anything up until this point, grabbed the shoulder of the one in the center and spoke up.
“It can’t go on like this. Leave this witch’s confession to me from now on, Sir Lucas.”
“Captain, how could the Captain get involved in something like this?! This is enough for me…”
“It doesn’t look like you’re going to get her to talk like this. In times like this, it’d be better to cajole her.”
“….”
“So, open the prison door first. Let me go inside and convince her/I’ll go inside and convince her.”
The paladin, called ‘Captain’ by a paladin named Lucas, persuaded Lucas with a soft but demanding voice that the prison door be opened.
Min-ha glanced at him suspiciously and bit her lower lip.
‘…What is he trying to do?’
Whether it was intimidating or gently persuading, there was no way he could convince her. She listened to the conversation between the two with a nervous look on her face, not knowing what he was thinking.
“Still, Captain, it’s dangerous. If, by any chance, the witch uses some kind of dangerous magic on you…!”
“Sir, you do realize that this place is designed so that a witch can’t work magic on their own without a separate magic tool, right?”
“However…”
“So leave it to me and open the door, because I have a good way to persuade this witch.”
“…All right, but you have five minutes to finish everything and come out. Any longer and it could be dangerous.”
“Of course.”
The paladin, who had been arguing with Lucas, eventually made his point. Whether it was because of his position or his stubbornness, Lucas let out a deep sigh and took out a key from his chest before unlocking the door to the prison where she was imprisoned.
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