CH 89

The night Carynne had collapsed in the Evans family’s mansion—

Dullan, who was dragged to this room by Raymond, spoke incredulously.

“D-Do you believe that?”

“Would there be anything else that I can’t believe?”

Raymond shrugged and looked down at Dullan. After he checked the sleeping Carynne’s condition once more time, Dullan stood up from his seat.

When he did, Raymond realized that the priest was taller than he thought. He tended to hunch over so he usually looked shorter, but he was quite tall now as he stood straight and looked back into Raymond’s eyes. If the priest had been his subordinate, he would have bent his back over to straighten it.

Raymond bowed once to Dullan, holding back the urge to meddle and try to convince the other man.

“Do pardon me for my actions, Reverend. Please understand that I couldn’t hold back my anxiety. I just wanted to save a person immediately.”

“…I un, derstand.”

Sure, but just before this, Raymond had dragged Dullan by the collar and quite literally shoved him straight to Carynne’s sickbed.

And contrary to the priest’s heartless proclamation that there’s nothing to be done if she’s already dead, Dullan nevertheless checked Carynne’s condition and gave her new medicine. She started breathing more easily after that. In response, Raymond also breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Reverend, it won’t take long now. And I wish to respect her. I hope you’ll do the same.”

Even while handcuffed, he’d treat her with courtesy. Raymond didn’t say anything more after this.

Carynne could have committed murder before. Perhaps Dullan was her accomplice, or perhaps he himself was the murderer.

Raymond recalled how Dullan’s attendant had been the first to cry out about the manor’s fire. And in the end, the cause of the fire had never been properly uncovered. The investigators concluded that the likeliest possibility is that it originated in the kitchen, but the fire had spread too fast to say for sure.

He wasn’t so sure about lumping together the two of them anymore. That’s how Raymond thought before, but then Dullan’s seemingly petty behavior now was weakening this theory of his. The priest was acting as if he loathed Carynne, who had broken off their engagement, thereby disgracing him. Even now, he was disgraced once again when Raymond dragged him here.

“Sir Raymond. You’re a good man.”

However, there was just too much emotion on his face as he reacted…

* * *

“Sir Raymond, I thought you’d finally be able to kick back and relax now, though I guess that’s not it. I was under the impression that you’d be enjoying your life with your famous fiancée right about now, sir. Guess you’re also destined to grow old and die as an old bachelor.”

“Sir Zion. Do be quiet.”

“Wow, even the way you talk is cool? Do you speak that calmly around women, too?”

“Shut it.”

“Gotcha.”

Zion grinned in his attempt to cheer up Raymond, with a tone albeit mixed with sarcasm.

“How long until we get there?” Raymond asked.

“It’ll take us six hours, sir. In the meantime, I’ll explain the infiltration detail then, so if you want to rest, now’s the time.”

“How long can I rest?”

“Ten minutes maybe? Just kidding. We don’t have time. We’re starting.”

Zion rummaged through the shelf and took some things out.

For a moment, Raymond closed his eyes. When he did, there was only darkness and silence. And, three seconds was enough. His apprehension sank down. His thoughts were wiped out. A soldier does not think. He will not form opinions. Right now, he had only one objective in mind. To accomplish his mission. Raymond opened his eyes.

“The blueprints?”

“Right here. Our route has been marked with a red line.”

Raymond frowned as he received the blueprints. There was something odd about the route.

“This is the Duke’s residence we’re talking about here, so I’m sure there’s still a lot of commoners in there. Do you have an estimate of how many? And the mercenaries, how many are there?”

“We don’t have that intel.”

“Do you at least know how many of the Duke’s soldiers are left?”

“We don’t have that intel either.”

Raymond stared pointedly at Zion’s expression, but it didn’t seem like he was joking about this. Uncharacteristically, he looked stiff. This was the reason why he was so testy from the beginning.

Looking down at the blueprints again, Raymond asked.

“Are you certain that the Duke is inside?”

“Yes, sir.”

Zion himself knew how impossible it was to fulfill this order. And he also knew how strange it was to assign this operation to someone like Raymond, who was about to be a member of the Assembly.

Still, the two men didn’t talk about it. What difference would it make to question it? Soldiers had no opinion. If ordered to die, they will die.

“…Alright. Then if we’re going through the waterways, how will we navigate? We also need a cross-section and a detailed map of the location.”

“The waterways?”

Zion asked as he worked through Raymond’s rapid-fire words. In response to the question, Raymond nodded.

“It’s impossible to infiltrate in this condition. We don’t know how many people there are. Or if we should kill all of them while going in. But then, there’s a limit to the bullets that I can carry alone. And as much as possible, I’d like to reduce the number of people I’d come across while I’m on my way to the Duke’s quarters. So, what about the waterways?”

Raymond wondered how different this job was going to be. Before this, he had been given the role of an ordinary knight, then a sniper, and now he was tasked to infiltrate and assassinate someone. It hasn’t even been more than a few years since he received his role as a sniper and got used to it.

With a fleeting thought, Raymond supposed that it’s a good thing that he came alone after leaving Xenon tied to the stables. Rather than be of help to him, Xenon would just have been a burden if he came along. The fewer people working this operation, the better.

“…Yes. Going that way would require you to hold your breath for about ten minutes. Even so, it’s been raining in the area for a while now, so the risk of being caught there will be low. Please wait a moment, I’ll redraw the route. And Sir Raymond, please take this.”

Zion handed Raymond a new gun. The weight of it laid pressure upon his hand.

“It seems like His Majesty wishes to test out a new weapon.”

Clearly, Carynne knew very little. And her assertions were all evidently just naïve delusions.

Raymond tried to repress his thoughts as they came to mind.

* * *

“So you’re Sir Raymond Saytes’ fiancée. Thank you for coming all the way here. It’s delightful to meet you.”

“It is also a great honor for me to meet you, Prince Lewis.”

Carynne slightly lifted the hem of her dress and bowed down. Then, when Prince Lewis motioned for her to be at ease, she straightened up again.

As she saw his face, it was as Lady Lianne said.

‘Handsome, huh.’

His hair was light brown, while his eyes were dark brown. Although he was still young, his features were distinct. It’s obvious that he’d grow up into a considerably handsome man, for as long as God wouldn’t play a few tricks while he’d go through puberty.

All of the young noble ladies of the prince’s age were focused on Carynne and Lewis. They were all showing such favorability towards him already. It’s quite likely that the prince will make many women cry in the future, just like his father.

“I didn’t expect to meet Your Highness so soon. It is a great honor for me.”

Since I was called, I thought I’d meet your dad instead.

Carynne thought this as she watched the boy take a glance at her chest. He certainly looked attractive to his peers, but since he was too young for her, he was of no interest.

At best, the kind of interest she had in him was limited to picturing what might possibly happen if this boy’s head were to suddenly be lopped off. This kind of imagination had already become Carynne’s habit. But Carynne found that this turn of events might just be pretty fun, so it was difficult to shake off the temptation.

Even if I’d just had a hand in the deaths of one maid, one rapist—oh, it’s so exciting. How interesting would the world become if the crown prince’s firstborn son were to die! If only I didn’t make any promises and could choose another option here! I think this loop has been lost already anyway. If I kill this kid, I’d definitely get the death penalty. If only I can be sure that they’d kill me immediately without torturing me, I’d strangle this kid’s neck right here, right now.

No, no. In the end, this is nothing but a passing delusion. Let’s focus on reality.

“Oh.”

Prince Lewis tilted his head to the side, a questioning look in his eyes as he glanced up at Carynne.

“Yes?”

“Sir Raymond didn’t come with you?”

As she had been in the middle of imagining cruel things to do to the boy, Carynne snapped out of it when Prince Lewis talked to her, and she replied a bit belatedly. Why was he asking though?

“I apologize, Your Highness, but Sir Raymond has work today.”

“Really? That’s too bad. What kind of work is it? Is it more important than a summons from the Royal Family?”

This prince’s precociousness seemed to include exercising his power appropriately. But then Carynne wondered why the prince said this in the first place—it’s clear that he’s disappointed that Raymond didn’t come. Then why didn’t the invitation include him, too?

“Did you want to meet Sir Raymond?”

“Yes, I do want to meet him. I don’t know if my father will give me permission though. What a shame.”

But only my name was on the invitation. And it’s your father—or perhaps your grandfather—who sent Raymond to a place where he’s forced to wield his gun again. Not here, in this gathering of young nobles.

Carynne lowered her gaze. It seemed like Raymond’s hunch was right.

“Ah, still though, I’m not all too disappointed since you’re here. I’m so glad that I’m able to see your beauty with my own eyes. I even want to ask you to dance right away.”

“Oh my.”

Carynne immediately felt the gazes around her sharpen.

Oh, spare me. He’s ten years old. Ladies, ladies, can’t you see that the prince is just saying this out of courtesy?

She smiled bitterly. And as though he noticed the change in atmosphere, the young prince laughed.

“Is it too soon for me to say that?”

“Your Highness is still young. I’ll be much, much older once you make your debut.”

“Twenty-four isn’t that old.”

“That’s already very old for a woman. And Your Highness, it isn’t’ good to have your first dance with a woman who’s already betrothed. Wouldn’t it be better for you to look forward to Miss Carynne’s daughter instead of Miss Carynne herself?”

Countess Elva stepped into the conversation.