Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: The Blue Butterfly
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A single blue butterfly fluttered around the room, scattering specks of light as it went.
The moment Lennox spotted Juliet's butterfly, he instantly grasped what had happened.
At the same time, his blood ran cold.
"Your Highness!"
The people who had belatedly chased after him gathered in front of the wide-open door.
Without a word, Lennox picked up the paper knife from the table.
Crack.
The thrown dagger pierced the wing of the butterfly fluttering around the vanity mirror in one strike.
The blue butterfly trembled its wings as if it were a living creature, then scattered into shimmering dust and vanished without a trace.
"What... what is this...?"
The servants who had hurried after him confirmed the empty room and still wore confused expressions.
"But, my lord, we clearly saw the lady return to the residence and get out of the carriage."
"Yes, and we saw her come back and head up to this room on the second floor..."
Ah.
The moment the butterfly dissolved, the servants snapped out of the illusion and finally grasped the situation, their faces turning pale.
They had indeed seen Juliet return home—but from the start, it had been the demon beast's illusion.
Lennox knew her abilities better than anyone.
The幻視 from summoning a demon beast from another realm to show to her chosen target.
It was a rare power that let her make others see illusions, but Juliet's skill still had limits when it came to freely controlling the beasts.
As far as he knew, she could cast illusions on only one or two targets at a time.
Juliet's ability was powerful enough to bewitch people, but it consumed too much mana to use in public places and came with many restrictions.
So fooling just the coachman would have been easy enough—but it shouldn't have been possible for her to deceive all the servants in this ducal residence at once.
Yet Juliet had succeeded and slipped away from him with ease.
The implication was clear. She had hidden the growth of her powers.
She had deceived him and smiled falsely. How long had she been planning her escape?
"She did not go to the House of Count Monad,"
the butler reported quietly, having apparently made contact in the meantime.
Lennox gazed down at the necklace lying neatly in its box on the vanity with emotionless eyes.
It was the one he had sent to Juliet that very morning.
The necklace left behind like that carried profound meaning.
The room was impeccably tidy, with all the jewelry and clothing he had gifted her over time still there.
To an outsider, it would look as if she had simply stepped out for a moment.
Suddenly, one question occurred to him.
The mansion's servants aside, he had assigned Kane, a swordmaster, as her bodyguard.
How had she fooled even Kane's eyes?
"Kane."
"...Yes."
"Did you consume something?"
"Pardon?"
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Kane soon understood the duke's implication and didn't know where to put himself.
"During the day, the lady gave me a drink..."
"She drugged it."
It was meant for her safety, not to keep her from running away.
Besides, the taciturn Kane wasn't the type to accept and drink something handed to him so easily.
"I have no excuse for such a blunder..."
Kane, having pieced together the situation, bowed his head.
But Lennox Carlyle's fury was directed solely at one person.
"She was fully committed, wasn't she?"
A scoff escaped through his gritted teeth.
He no longer cared why Juliet had gone to such lengths.
He couldn't even guess when or where she had begun plotting.
From secretly buying up the sylphium without telling him, to mastering the butterflies while hiding it—all of it fueled his rage.
No one dared lift their head in the face of Duke Carlyle's icy wrath.
Elliot, anxiously watching his master's expression, carefully spoke up.
"Shall I contact the capital guard?"
"No."
It would be pointless.
Just as Juliet knew him well, Lennox Carlyle knew Juliet Monad.
If she set her mind to it, she could hide anywhere.
He was certain she was still there.
In these chaotic times, it was easy to go into hiding, but the ways to slip out of the city were limited.
Still, it was only a matter of time before Juliet fled the capital.
He could deploy troops to block every road in and out of the city, but if he acted rashly and botched it, she would burrow even deeper.
If Juliet truly committed to hiding, he might lose her forever. She had the skill to erase every trace of herself perfectly if she wanted.
"What shall we do, Your Highness?"
Elliot asked cautiously.
Lennox Carlyle looked up.
"She hasn't left the capital yet."
Lennox clutched the necklace she had left behind.
Clink.
The diamonds clashed together in his hand, tinkling.
He smiled with just his lips.
"I'll hold you accountable later. First, find her."
He intended to let Juliet know one thing.
That he could be just as relentless as she was.
"Use any means necessary. Bring her back intact, down to the last strand of hair."
Hearing the commotion, the capital's vicar came rushing out in a panic.
"What is the meaning of this, Duke!"
The vicar, confronting the intruders head-on, shouted in outrage.
He had run so hastily that his headdress sat crooked on his head.
"How dare you bring weapons into this sacred precinct..."
"You're long-winded."
When the vicar burst in, the leader of these ruffians was irreverently lounging atop the altar.
He was Duke Carlyle, a man whose name needed no proof.
Incongruously calm amid the urgency, the duke perched on the plain marble altar made it look like a throne through sheer presence.
"I-I'll contact His Imperial Majesty at once..."
"You know that's pointless."
Ugh.
The vicar shut his mouth.
Of course, he knew. The imperial family was already tiptoeing around Duke Carlyle.
If the temple requested aid, the emperor would likely turn a blind eye.
The Carlyle ducal house had bad blood with the temple, unlike the other great nobles.
In truth, the temple had intense interest in the northern ducal house, which held the empire's largest territory.
Vast lands. And immense gold.
But the Carlyles and northerners in general were irreverent heretics.
They cared nothing for religion and couldn't comprehend building lavish temples or collecting massive tithes.
The relationship between the Carlyle ducal house and the temple had completely shattered in Lennox Carlyle's generation.
At a tender young age, he had slaughtered his uncles and taken the family head's seat, then promptly closed every temple in the North shortly after ascending to duke.
The temple had protested fiercely and excommunicated Duke Carlyle.
Excommunication from the temple meant he could not even marry under a proper priest's blessing.
On top of that, it was a threat to withhold the temple's blessing from any future heir of the ducal house.
Of course, Duke Carlyle had ignored it entirely. He wasn't one for marriage or debauchery in the first place.
When even the emperor, master of the empire, feared Duke Carlyle, what could the temple do?
Faced with such an unyielding foe, the vicar gave up protesting and cautiously asked his purpose.
"Fine. What do you want, Duke?"