Chapter 69
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: Frozen Blood (2)
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We carefully made our way down to the lower floor to find Clemence.
The castle was incredibly vast, with family knights scattered here and there—one or two at a time—on patrol.
Most of them were leisurely strolling the corridors or gazing out windows, lamenting their fates.
"Why don't we just strip this guy and wear his clothes? It'd make moving around way easier."
After knocking out the fourth knight we encountered and dragging him to a secluded corner, Wedin said with a weary face.
"Who'd fall for a fifteen-year-old prancing around in knight's armor? We'd look ridiculous."
I looked toward the wide hall.
It was a spacious area that must have been used as a banquet hall.
A large chandelier lay fallen in the center, and the ornate pillars meant to support the hall were rolling across the floor.
The corridor to the right of the hall was brighter than the other areas. There seemed to be a lit room at the end.
"Where the hell is Clemence...?"
"Shh."
I quietly hushed Wedin's lament.
Two knights were approaching from the brightly lit right corridor.
We crouched low in the shadows.
"How long do we have to stay here? The knights are getting anxious."
The knight walking half a step behind protested with a dissatisfied expression.
"It won't be long. Have some patience. Cut the ghost talk."
The leading knight looked like a senior knight. His cloak and leather armor bore more intricate and ornate emblems.
"Ha, but some people say they've actually seen it. That skinny court mage keeps babbling nonsense too."
Court mage? Could Barkus be here too?
I leaned in to hear better, only to jolt back when the senior knight abruptly stopped.
He whipped around to face his subordinate.
"Tell him not to talk after interrogation. Reroute the patrols. And never mention silly ghost stories again. Especially for a mercenary-turned-knight."
"...Understood."
With that, the senior knight strode away quickly, while the remaining knight glanced around anxiously before heading downstairs.
Now the path to the right corridor was clear.
"Let's go."
We crossed the hall carefully, without making a sound, but as quickly as we could.
The right corridor of the hall was more intact than anywhere we'd seen so far.
The floor, walls, and ceiling were pristine, without a single break or crack.
Pictures hung on the walls, and ornate statues stood every three steps.
At the end stood a large door, one side slightly ajar.
Bright light leaked through the gap, accompanied by voices.
"...No need to worry too much. Everyone will be fine."
It was a man's voice I'd never heard before.
"Fine? After dragging us all the way here, that's what you say?"
And Clemence's sharp voice.
Wedin gasped. I signaled him to stay quiet.
We leaned close to the door to peer inside.
Through the crack, I saw a middle-aged man perched on the dining table.
Silver hair and a short beard—he looked to be in his forties.
He wore knight's attire similar to the family knights', but his build was smaller and leaner.
It didn't take long to realize who he was.
"Trust me a little, Clemence."
The man spoke plaintively, laced with a sigh.
Clemence stood near the entrance, facing him down.
Fortunately, she appeared unharmed. Furious, but intact.
Her face wasn't fully visible from our angle, but I knew her voice anywhere.
"If you want my trust, send me and my friends back to Flavia right now, Father."
Clemence's father. The son of the White Guard Knight and Duke Lesis.
Duke Ozric Lesis—the man I'd only heard of in passing—was right there.
He sighed repeatedly with a weary expression, facing his daughter who was sharply rebelling against him.
"Just a bit more patience. Everything will be fine."
"You're just using us! Requesting the delegation from Prius, promising to build a knight academy...!
It was all to recruit skilled soldiers drawn by Prius's name, wasn't it?"
Duke Lesis touched his mouth, a flicker of surprise crossing his face.
"My daughter. You've gotten so sharp while you were away. Good thing I left you with your grandfather."
"What...!?"
Clemence's fury surged like a suffocating wave.
How could I help her? There had to be knights inside the room too.
"Lib."
Wedin tugged at my clothes. This wasn't the time for idle chatter.
"Why..."
I couldn't finish the word before holding my breath.
Pale-faced Wedin pointed to his own neck.
A gleaming blade tip pressed against it.
A fierce-looking knight held the sword to Wedin's throat, glaring murderously at us.
It was the senior knight from the hall earlier.
"Get in."
We offered no resistance as we were shoved into the room in an instant.
The senior knight closed the door, keeping his blade trained on us.
"Lib! Wedin!"
Clemence covered her mouth in shock upon seeing us. Surprise and relief mingled on her face.
I managed a wry smile and waved.
"Clemence. Glad you're safe."
I tried to sound casual with my greeting, but two more knights guarding the duke were in the dining room.
They immediately moved to surround us.
One of them frisked me and confiscated the dagger from my waist—still in its sheath.
"I was worried."
Ignoring the knights encircling us, Clemence drew close and pulled us into a shoulder hug.
Her deep sigh made it clear she had truly been concerned.
Wedin gently patted her shoulder.
"We're always fine, you know."
It had to be some fumbling attempt at comfort, words thrown out in uncertainty.
As she released her arms and stepped back, Clemence wore a faint smile.
"Seeing you smile makes it a little better. Maybe I should've brought your friends sooner."
Duke Lesis said, looking at Clemence.
A family knight handed him the sheath of the dagger he'd taken from me.
My dagger...
I rarely used it, but being completely disarmed felt awful.
"I don't know how you made it here, but it probably wasn't too hard..."
The duke fiddled with my dagger, eyeing Wedin and me steadily.
"Ozric Lesis. I've heard plenty about you two. A shame our first meeting is like this."
He smirked, though he didn't seem pleased.
I felt the same.
"I thought you were in the capital."
"I planned to be, but circumstances changed."
"Because Prince Raymond was named crown prince?"
Wedin cut straight to it, and Duke Lesis gave a wry smile.
He seemed to mutter something like, you already know everything.
He lightly hopped down from the table where he'd been perched.
His short silver hair, thick eyebrows, and sharp jawline now showed a clear resemblance to the White Guard Knight.
"Yes, because Prince Raymond now holds the hilt. I tried to persuade the king somehow, but..."
Duke Lesis drew the dagger from its sheath. He gazed at the sharply honed blade and let out a sigh.
"The prince killed one of my attendants. Right in front of me. That's when I realized he holds the real hilt."
"Killed an attendant?"
Shocked, Clemence drew in a sharp breath.
The duke slid the dagger back into its sheath.
"Yes, Clemence. So try to understand what I'm doing here. Compared to what's happening in the capital, this is far safer."
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
I asked, and the duke chuckled softly.
"To be precise, it's already underway..."
Mid-sentence, a loud thud echoed from below as something collapsed.
The room shook unsteadily, and the pictures on the walls creaked as they tilted.
The precarious trembling continued for a moment, like an earthquake.
"Looks like we chose the wrong rendezvous spot."
The duke, gripping the table, straightened up once the shaking subsided.
He looked at Clemence, then at me and Wedin in turn.
"Clemence, now that you've confirmed your friends are safe, you can relax. As for you two—no more adventures, behave yourselves, and you won't get hurt."
He glanced at the knight beside him, and they began to move.
"Wait! Why are you..."
My question went unfinished as the knights approached threateningly.
I tried to evade, but it was futile—they seized my arms and neck.
Wedin was grabbed by the knight behind him.
"Duke!"
At that moment, the floor trembled slightly, and one knight burst through the door in a hurry.
It was the one who'd been scolded by the senior knight in the hall earlier.
Without properly assessing the room, he rushed straight to the duke.
"We have a problem. Magical beasts have appeared on the lower floor."
"Magical beasts? What is this nonsense?"
The flustered duke demanded, and the knight floundered just as anxiously.
"G-Gatra. There must be a hole underground connecting to the outside."
"What a fantastic rendezvous spot. Deploy the knights to deal with it. Send the kids somewhere safe and..."
The floor shook again.
The violent jolt threw off the balance of the knight holding me.
I twisted free in the gap, and Wedin bit the wrist of his captor the moment he let his guard down.
"Argh!"
Wedin triumphantly broke loose and slapped the floor for support—just as a massive crack spiderwebbed across it.
Crack!
A splitting sound rose from below, and the floor beneath us finally shattered into two pieces.
"Duke!"
As the duke staggered from the impact, the knights holding us rushed to his side.
Boom!
In that instant, the section of floor we were on collapsed, and our bodies slid helplessly downward.
I grabbed the tilting floor and barely halted my fall. Wedin did the same.
Amid the choking cloud of stone dust and crumbling debris, the duke—surrounded by knights—reached out toward Clemence.
"Clemence, come here!"
Clemence clung tightly to the wall, her face filled with fear.
She glanced up once at Duke Lesis, her father, then down at us clinging desperately to the slanted floor.
Clemence?
What are you thinking at a time like this? Grab your father's hand now...
She didn't.
Instead, she stepped onto the cracked floor to reach for us—and collapsed along with it.
Rumble...
"Clemence... ugh!"
I grabbed her hand and pulled her close while my body battered against fragments of floor, ceiling, and pillars.
I had no idea how many rolls or floors we tumbled down.
Bumping and tumbling every which way, I hugged her head protectively.
Clemence clutched at my clothes with trembling hands.
After seconds that felt like hours...
We lay sprawled on a solid floor amid rising clouds of stone dust.
We'd clearly fallen to a level with no more floors below to give way.
"You...!"
The moment I opened my mouth, dust triggered a harsh coughing fit.
Clemence looked up at me from below.
Fortunately, her face was unharmed, but anger surged within me more than relief.
"You, what were you thinking! Why'd you come this way?! You should've gone to your father!"
Clemence let out an ahaha laugh.
"You guys are here because of me."
Her words left me momentarily speechless.
She was shouldering the blame for our presence here.
"No, Clemence. It's not your fault."
"It's our parents' fault. That's why I'll take responsibility and get you two back safely."
Clemence smiled brightly and reached out to brush the stone dust from my hair.
At that moment, a broad slab of stone to our right twitched.
Startled, I turned to see an utterly exhausted Wedin buried under it, looking up at us.
"You two, if you're not busy, mind rescuing me...?"