CH 100

For the first time since arriving here, Riett spent a few quiet days. 

Occasionally, she checked on the state of the assassins imprisoned in the basement and exchanged letters with His Majesty, confirming whether rumors about Perante had spread or not. 

That was all.

Today, while sipping her tea and thinking it was another peaceful morning, Evan approached.

“Riett, you seem to be talking in your sleep a lot these days. Is something bothering you, preventing you from sleeping well?”

“Uh…? Oh, I guess so.”

Riett tried her best not to sound awkward. She had been secretly practicing using the power of spirits until late at night with Mishann, so it seemed Evan had overheard her.

Still, she had warned him to be cautious, but this mansion was too old and shabby.

“Don’t worry too much.”

Perhaps misunderstanding Riett’s awkward response, Evan gave her a comforting look.

“Callis will do well. He also has urgent matters to attend to.”

“Yeah…”

In truth, Riett didn’t think Prince Callis would fail. 

The Callis she met this time seemed clever enough and reliable. She just felt a bit burdened by Evan’s excessive worry.

Just then, a grumpy voice came from behind.

“You two are too close since morning.”

Riett’s gaze turned to Lucas, who had suddenly appeared.

Lucas was carrying a lot of baggage as if he were moving away.

“You… Where are you going?”

“I have to go back now.”

With the sudden news of his departure, Riett’s eyes widened.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Riett approached Lucas and patted him on the back. He was carrying all the baggage he had brought.

“You should have told me in advance.”

“I was planning to leave in a few days, but seeing the heavy snowfall, I thought it would be better to leave now.”

Riett looked out the window. The weather wasn’t good, just as Lucas had worried. The skies in Parman were always quite gloomy, and it had been snowing heavily since yesterday.

She sneaked a peek at Lucas’ compass yesterday, suspecting it might be influenced by the spirit stone, but the needle didn’t move. 

According to the locals, heavy snowfall was common in Parman, so it didn’t seem to be an abnormal phenomenon.

“I should have left earlier, but I didn’t feel like leaving after spending time with you, Riett.”

Lucas smiled.

“If I go to the guild now, I’m sure I’ll meet a very angry father.”

Despite his joking tone, Riett became contemplative for a moment.

‘So this is where we part.’

Though they both lived in the capital, they knew they would run into each other again someday, but they had no intention of seeking each other out deliberately.

Riett looked at the transformed Lucas.

Their unexpected meeting in exile had been fortunate. Thanks to Lucas, she was able to defeat the assassins and gain information about the spirit stone.

‘If he had sold me the compass, it would have been better…’

But understanding Lucas’ situation, she had to give in to her greed.

The spirit stone compass is difficult to make, and it takes over a year just to create it.

Above all, Lucas is more sincere than anyone in finding the spirit stone. 

Looking at Lucas, who is kind and mischievous, it’s hard to imagine how ignorant and indifferent his father must be, but there must be a reason if he wants to escape from the guild and his father to such an extent. And to do that, he needs the spirit stone. 

‘Of course, if I obtain the spirit stone, I might be able to help Lucas…’

That, too, is another problem. There is a big difference for Lucas between relying on someone else’s power to escape from the guild and achieving freedom on his own. That’s why Riett decided to completely give up the spirit stone compass. 

“Evan, take care of Riett.” 

Lucas turned his head and said to Evan. 

“Finally leaving, huh?” 

Evan replied in a cold voice as if he didn’t consider it a final farewell. 

Even though Riett thought things might get better if they stayed in the same place, it wasn’t the case at all. They seemed to growl even more. 

Lucas laughed lightly at Evan’s cold response. 

“I’ve had a hard time seeing your face every day too.” 

“Then you should have left sooner.” 

Evan replied with an expressionless face. Veins bulged on Lucas’ forehead. How could he be like this until the end? 

“Stop it.” 

As always, Riett stepped forward to object, and Lucas finally turned his gaze away from Evan. “Anyway, I’m leaving now, Riett.” 

Lucas bid his final farewell as he walked to the entrance. 

And as he opened the front door… Whoosh! 

A strong wind blew with thick snowflakes. Riett looked at Lucas, sensing something unusual in the air. 

“…Are you sure you can go today?” 

“I have to leave now. If we wait a few more days and the snow piles up, we might be truly isolated, you know?” 

Lucas shrugged. It’s true that if it snowed for a few more days, they wouldn’t know how long they would have to stay here. 

Still, the fortunate thing was that the weather would improve significantly after riding for about an hour from here. However, there was one shaky bridge they had to cross on the way, and they heard that it could break if heavy snowfall occurred due to the shoddy wooden structure, making it dangerous. 

Riett thought she should warn Lucas about it in advance. 

“Lucas, you know there’s a shaky bridge before we leave Parman, right? Be careful when you cross it. They recently repaired it, but if a lot of snow piles up, it could break.” 

“Got it.” 

Lucas nodded calmly as if he didn’t find it particularly important, with a serene smile on his face. 

With their final farewell, Lucas left. 

Once Lucas was gone, there was a sense of emptiness in the corner of their hearts. Just one person had left, but the mansion felt quieter. Perhaps it was because they felt a tinge of bitterness in the last smile they saw from Lucas. 

As Riett was momentarily lost in thought, Natasha appeared with a disappointed look on her face. 

“It was so sudden.” 

Riett snapped out of her daze and playfully asked, 

“Still, it’s nice to have one less person in the household, isn’t it?”

“But still, it’s nice to have Lucas here. It feels like the house is more lively.” 

Riett somewhat agreed with that statement. 

Lucas emitted such bright energy that it was hard to believe he grew up in a ruthless guild. Although he had shown a dark side before, he had never displayed it here, at least not once.

Perhaps Lucas was also making an effort to overcome his dark thoughts.

“But I’m really worried. Even though he said he’s fine, with this much snow…”

Natasha muttered, her face wrapped up. 

Riett briefly glanced at the snowfall before averting her gaze. She tried to oppose it, but there was nothing she could do if he insisted he was okay. He would probably handle it well on his own.

However, she planned to have a conversation with Mishan later to discuss how much more snow was expected. 

It was convenient to have a contract with the spirits. It was just like having a dedicated weather forecaster.

Riett went up to her room to forget the uneasy feeling and opened a book she had been reading yesterday. After spending some time like that…

Knock, knock. Someone knocked on the door.

As Riett permitted to enter, Evan revealed himself.

“Riett.”

He held a letter in his hand. Riett asked, surprised, 

“A letter came in this weather?”

“It’ll probably be difficult from tomorrow.”

Evan was right. If this weather continued, it would be hard to go to the village for a while. 

She thought it was a good idea to have stocked up on provisions when she stopped by the village yesterday. It was possible thanks to Mishan’s suggestion.

“Who is the letter from?”

“Prince Callis of the Haren Empire.”

Riett’s eyes followed the words as she received the letter. As she read further, her expression brightened.

“What does it say?”

“Rumors about Perante are gradually spreading throughout the Haren Empire, centered around the palace. It seems people are becoming restless.”

“And?”

“Prince Callis has been spreading rumors that Perante is completely untrustworthy and likely a double spy.”

As expected, Prince Callis was doing an excellent job. By causing turmoil within the Haren Empire, this news would soon reach the Truto Empire as well.

With a satisfied expression, Riett folded the letter and placed it down, then lowered the teacup Evan was holding.

“It won’t be long before we return to the capital.”

It truly felt like the eagerly awaited day was approaching.

“What do you plan to do when we return?”

“Of course, we have to destroy Count Terrator first. There should be evidence that they attempted to assassinate me, and now that we have Mishan…”

“Mishan?”

As Evan looked at her, seemingly demanding an explanation, Riett realized her mistake.

“I mean, Mishan is…”

No matter how she tried to explain it, the name sounded too exotic.

As Riett was tongue-tied like a fish,

“My lady, could you come down for a moment?”

Natasha appeared at the perfect time. Riett silently thanked Natasha and casually asked her,

“Why?”

“Someone has arrived downstairs. I think you should meet him.”

When they got downstairs, in front of the entrance, there was a man who was completely covered in snow on his head and shoulders, standing with a pale face.

Evan asked cautiously, 

“Who are you?”

“Um… Do you know a person named Lucas?”

Riett stepped forward at the mention of Lucas, who had left here only a few hours ago.

“Yes, we know. But… why?”

Her intuition didn’t feel good. The man opened his mouth with an embarrassed expression.

“I happened to meet that guy named Lucas and traveled together. While crossing a bridge…”

“Did he break his leg or something?”

Riett asked with a serious expression. The man shook his head.

“No… it’s not that, but on the bridge that was shaking violently due to the strong wind, he panicked and lost his balance, falling.”

Riett pondered and asked, 

“What? If he fell from the bridge, he must have been seriously injured. Don’t tell me… something happened to Lucas…”

“No, no. It’s not like that. Just listen for a moment.”

The man interrupted Riett’s words with an expression as if her words were terrifying.

“He fell into a protrusion from the cliff, but fortunately, he doesn’t seem to be seriously injured due to the snow. However, he can’t climb up from below the cliff.”

Phew. Finally, Riett could breathe a sigh of relief.

‘No, I can’t be completely relieved.’

If someone stays under a cliff filled with snow in this weather, their body temperature could drop and become dangerous.

Riett hurriedly grabbed her coat to go where Lucas was. When she looked back, Evan was, as expected, putting on his coat with an annoyed face.

“Stupid guy.”

He didn’t forget to criticize sharply.