Chapter 94

Chapter 94

“You…!”

Then, of course, Seth grabbed her wrist.

As she resolutely pushed Seth’s hand away and slowly walked in front of Oliver, Min-ha gazed up at him with a dignified expression before opening her mouth.

“I’ll go. That’s all you need, right?”

“Yes. If you obediently cooperate, I’ll also respectfully escort you to the Imperial Palace.”

“Wait, what are you talking about? Where are you going?! Why would you be going…!”

Seth screamed out loud at her words. At that voice, Min-ha lowered her head with a sad expression and turned to Oliver.

“…Did you say you’re Captain Oliver? Can you please wait a moment?”

“I can’t give you that much time.”

“I understand.”

Nodding at his words, she answered and turned around, walking back to Seth’s side.

When the distance between them narrowed, he threw away his sword and hugged her tightly. Min-ha called out his name in a hoarse voice as he pulled her into his arms with such force that it seemed as if he would never let go.

“Seth…”

“No, don’t say anything.”

“I’ll go… I have to go. I can’t let two people die like this. And if I’m going to reveal the truth, shouldn’t I go myself?”

“I can save both of them even if you don’t go. And to reveal the truth… what are you going to do? He called you a witch, and do you know what that means? It means that as soon as you are taken away, you will face a witch trial right away!”

The more he spoke, the more her heart ached as if someone was squeezing it. Still, Seth continued his words with a painful expression as if he were trying to convince her.

“If you are accused of being a witch at that trial, no one could defend you and you’ll only be able to argue against those who accuse you of being a witch, which means that your chances of winning the trial are extremely slim. I have never seen an accused witch come out of a trial unscathed… so how can I let you go?!”

After Seth finished talking, Min-ha took a deep breath and rubbed his back while replying with as much feigned composure as she could muster.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be the first one.”

“You, really…!”

Her adamant attitude led Seth to plead and shout. Nonetheless, she firmly shook her head. If it was unavoidable, it was right to confront it, no matter what the consequences may be.

As she pulled herself slightly away from Seth, he closed the distance between them again and whispered in a voice only she could hear.

“…If they call you a witch now, it means that they know your secret or have noticed it to some extent. Don’t you see?”

“….”

“If they knew your secret and proved it in court, you’d be accused of being a witch. Are you still going to go?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure it’s hidden.”

“Min-ha, please…”

“Trust me. Just as no one has ever found out, they won’t find out about my secret easily.”

“….”

“Seth… we’re running out of time, and I don’t want to lose Sir Gareth and Sir Bediviel.”

“That goes for me, too.”

“If that’s the case, let me go… please.”

At her plea, Seth’s grip on her loosened, and Min-ha slowly pushed his arm around her. She could barely manage to turn her back to him before walking toward Oliver with a stumbling step.

With each step she took, Min-ha was torn between wanting to change her mind at a moment’s notice and hide behind Seth to avoid the situation, and wanting to be as arrogantly confident as ‘Minase Persen’ in any situation that would arise from now on.

However, the moment she faced Oliver, who was watching the situation with a leisurely smile, only a few steps away, she felt her desire to run away completely disappear.

Glaring at Oliver, who looked down at her like a cat that had driven a mouse into a corner, she uttered.

“Okay, let’s go.”

“Before we do that, I need to restrain the Duchess’s hands and feet a bit, if you don’t mind.”

“Bind my hands or feet as you please, but before you do, I want you to heal Sir Gareth and Bediviel right now, for if anything goes wrong with them, I won’t leave you alone.”

“Such a thing… are you threatening me?”

“There is nothing I can’t do. Why, are you scared? There will be more scary things in the future. If I’m found innocent and set free, me and my husband are going to make you pay for the rude behavior you committed to the Persen Knights. You’d better be prepared.”

“Yes, yes. That would be the case when he was proven innocent. At that time, I’ll apologize very sincerely.”

“….”

“So, for now, please follow me quietly. What are you doing, bind this witch! Take her to the carriage parked at the gate!”

“Yes!”

Sneering at Min-ha’s venomous words like he was enjoying it, Oliver soon turned as if that had never happened and summoned an imperial knight from behind him.

The next moment, the knights, all of whom were more than a head taller than Min-ha, tied ropes to her hands and led her roughly. Before she could do anything to stop them, she fell to the ground from the strong power that pulled her.

“Damn it! Minase…!”

Seeing her collapse helplessly, Seth shouted in an angry voice and tried to approach them but she quickly turned and shook her head at him.

If he intervened now, the situation would be prolonged, and Gareth and Bediviel’s treatment would be delayed. Right now, saving their lives was the priority. Min-ha smiled silently at Seth, who was gazing at her with pained eyes.

‘Its okay, I’m fine.’

After that, Min-ha pushed herself to her feet and walked swiftly following the imperial knight, who held the rope that bound her, not wanting to be dragged along any further.

Just then, she could hear Seth’s voice calling out to her from behind.

“Minase, I’m going to be attending the court, so you just have to stay safe and wait for me! I’m going to get you out of this one way or another!”

The voice was as if he was holding her by the ankles, but she didn’t turn around. The sight of Seth’s face would make her weak again, and she only quickened her pace.

12. Witch Trials

The curtains that covered the darkened bedroom fluttered in the gusting wind.

In a dark bedroom where only a numbing scent remained, a man with long, mauve hair tied up in a flower and a long-haired woman in a nightgown were staring at each other.

And if anyone had seen the scene, all they could see was a lone figure gazing at the scene that could easily be mistaken for a young lovers’ rendezvous.

Senseless.

‘…Is this the dream again?’

Min-ha was able to recognize the scenery in the room and the two people in the room at once. It was because it was a dream so vivid as a reality that she could never forget it.

She looked around as if she had entered another world.

…Still, something was very strange.

Even if she had dreamed about it, there was no ‘Min-ha’ in the dream, but today she was there, just as an observer.

Fascinated, she soon walked over to a young man and woman who were talking about something— a man with light purple hair and ‘Minase Person.’ Then, little by little, she began to hear pieces of their conversation.

“…Okay. Finally, there is one more condition.”

“By condition, do you mean that you want to make another contract?”

“Yes.”

“There’s nothing I can’t do if you pay me the price properly.”

“Fine, I’ll pay whatever price you want.”

“….Then, we have a contract. Now, Duchess, why don’t you tell me what you want first?”

Another ‘contract’?

What contract was she talking about? Was there another contract besides the contract to exchange souls between him and Minase?

Min-ha leaned in closer to listen to their conversation with a curious expression on her face.

“…give ⎯⎯ to those who ⎯⎯. That’s the last thing I want.”

[ T/N: I’m sure it might be obvious, but just in case, I’d like to clarify that this is how it is in the raws as well~ Their conversations are cut out at certain parts, hence the ⎯⎯ ]

“It’s nothing difficult, I’ll listen. Then, you have to give me something in return for this contract, right?”

“What do you want in return?”

“Please give me ⎯⎯”

“…Does it have to be that?”

“Yes, it was obvious that the condition would be quite troublesome for me.”

“Okay, I’ll give you ⎯⎯”

But strangely, while listening to the story, Min-ha could only hear it sparsely, as if she had turned on a radio that wasn’t on the right frequency. It seemed that Minase Persen had entrusted the man with light purple hair with a very troublesome task, but she could hear what he was supposed to receive in return.

‘Why is it my dream, but I can’t hear it properly?’

It was when she got frustrated and tried to listen in on their conversation a little longer…

“….!”

Suddenly, the mauve-haired man who had been talking to Minase Persen turned his head toward where ‘Min-ha’ was standing.

Even though he wouldn’t have been able to see her, the man who spoke to her gazed straight at her, turned and brought his hand to her forehead. Then, with a snap of his fingers, as he lightly flicked the top of her head, her vision darkened the next moment.

She had been ‘driven out’ of her dream world.

__

Again, thank you so much for always supporting the novels I translate, even if you don’t buy me a coffee, I really do appreciate it a lot.