Chapter 105
Chapter 105
Translation: godsn
"Get up, Princess. In the end, a march is a battle of willpower. Do you understand?"
Thud.
By the time the dust raised from Medeia's fall had slowly settled, she finally opened her eyes.
"Haa......."
Swallowing a sigh—whether it was relief at surviving or lamentation at failing to land safely, she couldn't tell—she pushed herself up.
The moment the wolf lunged at her, Medeia had driven a poisoned dagger into the beast's throat.
And then, they had both tumbled over the cliff.
Fortunately, the dense trees growing near the cliff and the wolf itself had cushioned her fall, softening the impact.
By now, the hunting grounds must be in complete chaos. They've probably noticed I'm missing.
Medeia lifted her head.
Before her stretched the steep, towering precipice of the gorge she had fallen from.
To numb the pain creeping through her body from the shock of the fall, she chewed and swallowed several hidden painkillers.
The bitter taste, like unripe persimmons, jolted her fading consciousness awake.
Time isn't on my side. I need to move before the search party arrives.
The hollow wind, trapped in the steep gorge, only let out eerie, mournful howls.
Dense trees crowded both sides of the ravine.
In truth, Valdina was a rugged mountainous country renowned for its dense forests and remote wilderness.
As a land of pristine nature, there were countless places untouched by human hands or the traces of magic beasts.
The reason hunting was restricted to the royal hunting grounds was simple: managing the entire vast, overgrown mountain with limited resources was practically impossible.
Which makes this the perfect place to hide for a few days.
Medeia had anticipated that her uncle's faction would come after her.
Not only had she thwarted their ambitious schemes, but she had also become a hero to the people. There was no way the Regent would let that slide.
"Don't worry, Dea. Just trust your brother. I'll make sure you're safe."
"Safe? What kind of joke is that?"
Did he mean to kill her outright amidst the pack of wolves? Medeia scoffed.
"Claudio. Since you've prepared this gift for me, it's only right that I return the favor."
Her uncle's faction would be desperate to find her—if only to avoid suspicion of having assassinated the princess.
The niece they had tried to eliminate with their own hands would now be the one they fervently prayed was still alive.
Medeia had no intention of leaving these mountains until their blood ran dry.
The longer her safety remained uncertain, the deeper the Queen Dowager's and the Valdinans' suspicion and anger toward her uncle's faction would grow.
After erasing the traces of her fall, Medeia forced her heavy body to move.
Soon, her figure disappeared into the thick undergrowth.
The gorge fell silent again, as if nothing had ever happened.
District 2, Rose Mansion.
After obtaining the Queen Dowager's official pass, Facade could now come and go from the royal palace more frequently.
The silent Shadows scoured the palace in search of an antidote for their leader.
"But we still haven't found the Tears of Dawn. Moving discreetly to avoid surveillance has slowed us down."
Gallo let his eyebrows droop. Restless, he tugged at his own cheeks as he spoke.
"Would it be easier if the Regent staged a coup and turned the palace upside down...? But saying that makes me sound like a real piece of trash, huh?"
"......."
"Hey, why aren't either of you answering? It was a joke!"
Ignoring Gallo's pointless banter, Terence glanced sidelong at his friend.
Though Cesare still exuded an air of languid ease, Terence could see the vitality slowly draining from him.
The curse's episodes were becoming more frequent.
There really isn't much time left. If we don't find the Tears of Dawn, Cesare won't get another chance.
A thread of unease unfurled in everyone's hearts.
Yet no one voiced it aloud.
They knew that the moment they gave voice to their anxiety, an indescribable despair would crush them.
They focused solely on finding the Tears of Dawn—the one and only cure.
And so, another day slipped away, leaving them with even less time.
Then, Alpha entered with a letter, his steps uncharacteristically hurried.
"A message from Zeta. Princess Medeia has disappeared."
In the dim of night, Cesare stood beneath the towering tree where Samon had been found.
He turned his body toward the spot where the princess's dead horse had lain.
The still-vivid crimson bloodstains painted a clear picture of the desperate scene that had unfolded there.
"My lord. The royal investigation team found dead horses and wolves near the cliff. It seems the princess was chased and fell off the precipice..."
A cold sneer curled across his sculpted face beneath the mask.
"They say Her Highness's cape was found torn to shreds. If she was injured and plunged a thousand feet down the ravine... The prevailing opinion is there's no hope left."
"Impossible."
The low murmur echoed as if answering Alpha in his memory.
This easily? Of all people, Medeia—her?
Cesare refused to believe it.
The same Medeia who had been meticulously laying traps to corner the Regent—would she surrender herself so easily?
Knowing full well the precarious situation Valdina would fall into under the Regent's control if she died?
Yet his razor-sharp reason whispered that sometimes, human lives could flicker out with terrifying fragility.
That even those as unshakable as fortress walls, who withstood every storm, could make utterly uncharacteristic choices in a single moment.
"Cesare, you are not my son. You're the bastard seed of my husband and the late Empress. From the moment he threw you into my arms, I've never stopped hating you."
"Then you must live. You must watch me die with your own eyes, Your Majesty the Empress. Isn't that what you wanted?"
As if his proud, unshakable stepmother had surrendered her life in a single moment.
"Cesare, I can endure no longer."
"No."
The princess was different. She wasn't like his stepmother who withered away day by day like a lifeless doll.
Cesare murmured softly,
"She's not like Mother. She's the same as me."
He'd seen the undying flame in the princess's eyes. Until the azure inferno fully consumed its prey, she would never surrender.
Cesare was certain. Because neither would he.
So—
At that moment, something glinted faintly beneath the ancient tree. Cesare bent down.
"...A needle."
To be precise, it was hidden in the cat brooch he'd given Medeia.
When commissioning this piece, he'd instructed the artisan to mark even the needle so its owner could be identified.
Running his fingers along the needle's tip revealed faint, deliberate indentations.
'She's alive.'
Upon discovering this, Cesare exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. A shallow relief seeped through him unnoticed.
'Samon fell into the princess's trap.'
Cesare turned on his heel.
Beneath the moonlight in the black valley.
As Cesare stepped forward, a violent pang in his chest made him stagger, his face contorting.
Crimson blood vessels crept up from his fingertips, spreading along his forearm.
"...Damn it."
A primal curse slipped through his elegant lips.
Just as the blue-black discoloration had spread from his fingertips, the left side of his chest where his heart lay had long been marred by grotesque black stains.
But he couldn't stop. Cesare spat out a mouthful of blood and kept walking.
The trail led deeper into the forest.
Could a greenhouse-raised princess venture this deep? Could she survive days in these woods, evading wild beasts?
Were these tracks he followed truly hers?
His certainty that she lived began to waver.
How much farther had he walked when Cesare halted? The trail ended.
He looked up. Deep in the mountain range, a small cave—shelter from beasts and rain—came into view.
A thick carpet of fallen leaves lay before the entrance. Cesare stepped inside.
Signs of a campfire remained. But only ashes filled the pit, not a single ember left—he couldn't be sure.
Just as doubtful questions arose—
Whoosh! Cesare barely dodged the crossbow bolt grazing his nape, whirling toward the darkness.
"Show yourself."
The same voice as always. Still rosy cheeks. Round face. Petite frame.
There stood the green-eyed girl he'd searched for endlessly.
Aiming her crossbow at him.
Beside her lay a rabbit, likely hunted.
The princess hesitated upon recognizing Cesare's white half-mask.
"Acares? How did you—"
In that instant, his rationality shattered.
Facing the living, breathing princess, every shred of logic and reason evaporated from his mind.
"Medeia."
He strode forward.
Then crushed her in his embrace.