CH 72

She Was The Only One

12. Gray Buchanan

When Kyrie carefully opened her eyes, she saw an unfamiliar ceiling. She blinked slowly, remembering what happened before she fell.

After leaving Sel Arellano, the wolf ran for a while.  And after crossing a few mountains, he returned to being a white doll as if he had run out of energy. Kyrie walked alone through her snow. It wasn’t cold, thanks to the leaves MarryAnne had put here and there on her clothes.

‘Then I fell down.’

Kyrie, who had come up to that point, quickly checked the veil. Fortunately, it didn’t come off thanks to the front flap. Kyrie was relieved and then looked around.

It was like a small cottage. A fireplace made of stacked stones warmed the surroundings. Looking at the objects in the room, it seemed to be the room of the mountain keeper. The moment she took her foot off the bed and put her foot on the floor, she felt a stabbing pain.

“Ugh….”

The soles of her feet were sore. Sitting clumsily on the edge of the bed, unable to do this or that, the door opened immediately.

“Are you awake?”

It was a deep voice. Kyrie looked up, and was silently surprised. The old man, who seemed to be the landlord, was distracted by how bundled up she was. On the contrary, the old man kicked his tongue at Kyrie.

“How did you think of leaving the road in that outfit, you… You almost died.”

The old man spoke in a hoarse voice and set the tin kettle above the fireplace.

“Ah, ah….”

Kyrie, who was about to say something, clenched her throat.

‘My voice won’t come out.’

She was perplexed, but soon accepted the situation. She had never heard of a problem with vocal cords due to the cold, so it was probably a mental problem.

‘Right.  I don’t want to speak.  I don’t want to associate with anyone anymore…….’

The old man looked at Kyrie, who sat blankly.

“Can’t you speak?”

Kyrie slowly nodded her head. The old man clicked his tongue and took a seat near the fireplace.

“Okay, go take a break.  I won’t ask how you fell into such a secluded place…….”

“Ah, ahah….”

As Kyrie mumbled while pointing at the wooden shutters, the old man’s eyes twitched sharply for his age.

“Weather? It is indeed crazy weather. It’s not snowing, but the lake is freezing enough to build a house on top.”

“…….”

“I don’t even know how you got here in that outfit, but if you’re going to kill yourself, find a better way.”

After talking, the old man naturally brought warm tea to the bed. Kyrie gazed at him, knowing it was rude.

‘Did MarryAnne’s plan really work?  Perhaps this old man was also prepared by Nathaniel……?’

When Kyrie hesitated and unwillingly received the cup, the old man grunted and shook the insides off his mouth.

“It seems like a strange situation, but I didn’t put anything in it. And I can’t even find poison in this cold.”

The old man poured the tea again. She received it this time, but she didn’t drink it either. Of course it could have been really unrelated to the old man. But Kyrie couldn’t trust anyone without any more doubt.

‘Maybe until death, forever, I’ll doubt and doubt. Maybe I’m on Nathaniel’s stage again…….’

Perhaps this was what he was aiming for. It made her tremble even if she laughed with her heart and wondered if Nathaniel was looking at her from somewhere. To eat her whole life, her soul, her body and her mind.

‘There must have been a better way….’

The tears she thought were dry flowed again. The old man shook his head and went to the sofa and lay down with a blanket.

“What kind of a young lady is she to die for, yawn… Anyway, this is the region of Lorraine Isra. Tell me where you live when the day is bright. If there’s a passing carriage, I’ll give you a ride.”

The old man said so and quickly fell asleep snoring. Kyrie quietly got out of the bed when he completely slept. Empty purple eyes looked down at the old mountain keeper.

‘Either it’s a meeting, or a play.’

She didn’t know. She didn’t have the courage to confirm it. Now, Kyrie only had the voices of people engraved like stigma. Survive, die, live again.

Careful not to wake the old man, Kyrie pulled out a lamp from the corner of the cabin and lit the fire. Fortunately, MarryAnne had a gold coin stitched inside her cape and socks, so she put it on the table.

The chill blew up when she opened the door. It was a frightening winter. She felt like she wanted to lean on anyone without realizing it.

‘But no more. I can’t get involved with anyone anymore. I can’t believe in anything….’

After Kyrie opened her cape, she walked out into the winter.

***

Meanwhile, in the capital city, in Sel that had become a mess, Maria and Laura were gathered together. Although the outer cause was to heal them, but in reality, they were hostages to the Legendary Lord

Laura laid down in bed and mumbled.

“Did Kyrie…. run away well?”

She had a weak paralysis on her extremities, perhaps because she had encountered Nathaniel’s presence too head-on. She lost her mind halfway. It hadn’t been long since she came to her senses. Fortunately, the bone in her left wrist was broken so neatly that it would become stronger after being reattached. 

(TL/N: how can it become stronger?)

“She didn’t get caught on the way, did she? It’s cold as well…….”

In the meantime, she was worried about her old friend and felt uncomfortable. Maria, who recovered earlier than Laura, sat by the bed and said,

“I told you she’d be fine, so you have to believe that.”

Laura grinned helplessly, her cheeks moving up and down.

“Darn it, that, that son of a bitch……. What is he, so scary…?”

Maria also smiled bitterly. It was a night she was afraid to even recall.

“I was scared, too. I’ve never seen anything like it before……. How did Kyrie endure such a thing?

Her body was getting better, but the fear given by the Legendary Lord did not disappear easily.

He didn’t exactly show great hostility to Laura and Maria. But there was such a thing in the world. It was just that it was so strong that it was suffocating just by being there and making her feel as if she was thrown into space.

Laura, who recalled that time again, trembled.

“I….. thought he liked Kyrie, but it was bullshit…. He doesn’t like her, she is just a toy.”

“Is that really true?”

“Hm?”

Maria quietly turned her head out of the window.

“Laura, I’m rather convinced by this.”

“What?”

“I don’t know if you’ve heard…….”

Maria squinted and recalled a vague memory. As she collapsed out of her mind, the Legendary Lord clearly gestured to approach them both. Even in her state of collapse, Maria could see that he was eager to kill them.

But he stopped halfway, muttered.

“He whispered, ‘If I kill them, she’ll never…….’ That person.”

Laura’s eyes got bigger.

“He is saying she will never see him again. He’s using us as hostages, using my father and the Duke.”

“There are many other ways to use nobles besides as hostages. And if it was really for taking advantage of us, the person who shouldn’t be alive is still alive.”

“……The kid.” 

“Yes, Kyrie’s maid.”

Laura’s eyes became serious.

“Yes, if it was for taking advantage of us, he didn’t have to keep her alive…….”

“Yes.”

The silence had passed for a while. Maria opened her mouth quietly.

“What do you think would happen if someone killed me or Kyrie?”

“Why are you asking that?”

Laura’s expression turned ugly, as if it were terrible just imagining it.

“I will kill them. Even with all my might. I’ll never forgive them.”

It was a harsh word, but Maria smiled.

“I would probably do the same. I’m sure it’s the same for Kyrie. She will never forgive them…….”

Laura, who had a puzzled look on her face for a moment, soon frowned with disapproval.

“Wait, that’s very…… sounds like he doesn’t want to be hated by Kyrie. You don’t think he didn’t kill us because he didn’t want to be hated by Kyrie?”

Maria nodded calmly.

“I think so. Of course there is no confirmation. Because the opponent is not a normal person.”

“You’ve never been wrong.”

“That’s right, though.”

“No, one thing is wrong.”

Suddenly, a sharp voice intervened in the conversation between the two. Maria rose from her seat in an instant.

“Miss Rubinia Casner?”

“Yes, yes, it’s me?”

Rubinia replied cheerfully. Dressed in colorful floral decorations that didn’t suit the winter, she strode into the room without permission, looking down at Laura insolently and arrogantly.

“Oh? What the hell is that look? You were confident that you’d make it.”

“I’ll give you a slap when I get up, so look forward to it.”

“You say you will do that when you get up. I have no idea how intimidating you think a patient’s intimidation can be.”

“This woman really……!”

Instead of Laura, who blushed and flinched, Maria quickly intercepted the two of them.

“What’s going on here?”

“Well, someone has to take care of you and watch over you at the same time. I’m the one in charge.”

“I didn’t know that the message wasn’t delivered to you yet .”

At Maria’s words, Rubinia laughed like a spring flower.

“Well, usually we growl a little too much, right?”

Then she suddenly turned into a gloomy and ferocious face, and raised her head.

“She hasn’t been caught.  Are you curious about that?”

“Really?”

“Oh! I’m glad……. I was worried about us, and I was wondering if she’d come back!”

Their faces brightened up. They were determined to let Kyrie escape, but now that she was not even dead, Kyrie just had to run away.

“What else, Miss Cassner? Anything else?”

“Don’t whine, it’s annoying. I’ll tell you when the time comes. I’m also distracted by Eden.”

“Ah….”

Maria and Laura exchanged their eyes. The prince had been in a separate palace since he had suffered humiliation by the Legendary Lord. Laura said with genuine regret.

“I’ll sympathize with you, even though it’s self-serving.…. Though it’s a matter of fact.”

“Oh, cut it out! Never mind. I’ll succeed on my own. To do that, I have to be separated from you all, but somehow I got involved…….”

“Come to think of it, Miss Cassner, what exactly made you close to Kyrie?”

“Who’s close to whom?”

“I heard the maids’ talks, so I think you are. Kyrie even smiled when she met you!”

“Oh, my God, with the seven noble families? It’s not even funny…….”

With that said, Rubinia’s face was slightly redolent.

“It’s just that I was caught in the Royal Library! I’m telling you, she’s such a big spender.”

“The Royal Library? Isn’t it a no-go zone.?”

“I know! I just went because it had a lot of books I wanted to read.”

Laura stared blankly at Rubinia and asked, 

“Do you like studying?”

Suddenly Rubinia’s eyes became sharp.

“Why, do I look like I don’t have a brain, too?”

“Ha?”

Laura snorted as if she was dumbfounded.

“If I’m being criticized for being an empty-headed woman, I’m not that bad. So do you know where the people who used to curse at me are? I am now trying to lick the soles of Fort Ducaine’s feet because everything I’ve touched became a success.

Rubinia paused. The fact that Marquis Fort Ducain soon outpaced the Duke of Edenhall thanks to the good eye of Laura Fort Ducaine was already a dark story in society.

When Rubinia said nothing, Laura giggled and grinned.

“Miss Rubinia. I still think you’re unlucky, but I’ll have to admit your ambition. Isn’t that right, Maria?”

Somehow Maria, who was watching the conversation with a happy smile, nodded.

“We were being watched, and thanks to Miss Rubinia, we were able to get Kyrie out. Thank you in the name of Maria Old Ciudad.”

“What, by the way, it’s not funny…….”

Rubinia fiddled with the hem of her dress, avoiding their gazes. Laura smirked and condescended.

“I’ll allow you to call me Laura.”

“That’s enough!”

“Oh, what’s wrong with you? How can this opportunity come easily…….”

“You look happy.”

It was then. The door opened, and they heard a strange voice.

“It sounds like a pretty interesting story.”

“……!”

“Y,Your Royal Majesty!”

“Your Majesty!”

Three people quickly offered examples and exchanged glances.

‘How much did she hear?’

Looking down at the nervous girls, Emperor Ginger O’Rewinbridge waved her hands without sincerity.

“Never mind. Well, more than that, I like productive stories…….”

A cruel smile came to the Emperor’s lips. The dark green eyes turned to Rubinia with an eerie glow. Rubinia trembled as she foretold the situation.

“Miss Rubinia Casner…… there’s a hole in the royal library?”

***

“There’s a man who saw a woman with light purple hair on Mount Mont in the region of Isra.”

[Drag him.]

The Duke of Old Ciudad reported and covered the documents. There was no usual languor in Nathaniel’s response.

Soon an old man with a shaggy beard was dragged into the room. Nathaniel sat cross-legged and stared at the old man.

[You saw Kyrie?]

The old man was briefly stunned by the beauty of Nathaniel. Either way, Nathaniel continued casually.

[Light purple hair. Her eyes are purple, about 5.3 feet tall, on the thin side…….]

Then he paused for a moment. He rarely conjured up the past, and then added.

[Her neck is thin.]

The old man, who came to his senses belatedly, replied.

“……I don’t know who Kyrie is, but I’ve seen a maiden of that look.”

[Looks like.]

Nathaniel commanded, the Duke of Old Ciudad blinked, and his servant took up a pen. The old man recalled.

“A white dress that looked like pajamas, and a blue cape embroidered with gold. And she was wearing a white veil…….”

[Veil?]

“She seemed very fond of it. She wouldn’t take it off.”

His blue eyes covered by black hair narrowed.

[Veil.]

Nathaniel muttered again.

[A family heirloom I guess. Did she bring what was kept by forest beasts beyond the continent?]

“What?”

[What else?]

“Uh…… well, it’s hard to ask someone who can’t speak, and her situation seems strange…….”

At the old man’s words, Nathaniel and the Duke of Old Ciudad’s eyes grew at the same time.

[She couldn’t talk?]

“Yes, so I just lay down, and she disappeared through the night…….”

[Are you sure she didn’t say anything?]

“She clenched her mouth and made gestures and feet, Maybe…..”

[She did?]

Nathaniel muttered quietly, at a glance.  The Duke of Old Ciudad looked carefully at him. It seemed that Kyrie Buchanan lost her ability to talk due to shock, it was in case that the Legendary Lord would show even a slight human reaction.

However, the smile that appeared on Nathaniel’s lips immediately afterward was very tender and affectionate.  There was not even a crumb of guilt anywhere.

[I see…]

“…….”

The duke swallowed his goosebumps. Even after hearing Kyrie Buchanan ‘lost her ability to talk’ he was afraid of the Legend who was just happy to confirm his superiority.

But as long as the daughter, the heir to the family, was held hostage, the duke cannot act frivolously. It was the same with Marquis Port Ducain. The duke recalled a conversation with Marquis Port Ducain.

‘Duke. What are you going to do?’

‘I have no choice but to cooperate.’

‘But isn’t Kyrie a child we’ve seen for a long time……is her most precious friend.’

“I don’t feel comfortable either. She was a clever girl, and I just hope she gets away well.”

“Haa …”

It was frustrating, but there was nothing he could do. They had no way of stopping the Legendary Lord. The Patriotic Lord sat on the sidelines, the Royal Family was busy gathering wizards in the palace to do something, the nobles trembled, and the commoners’ faith remained strong.

People seemed to believe that the end of time was approaching. The Second Lord (Legendary Lord) would burn those who were wicked to ashes, while the virtuous would be taken to heaven. Of course, some of the tales regarding these old legends must have contributed to the fame of this (Nathaniel) Lord. Not all were dissatisfied with his plan for world dominance, but it was only a very small minority.

‘Come to think of it, you don’t even want to take the risk by putting the child in danger because of that small minority….’

The Duke of Old Ciudad, who suddenly had such a thought, looked at the profile of the Legend.  Nathaniel said without even giving him a glance.

[I don’t like observing eyes.]

“……My apologies.”

[So what did you do?]

“Yes?”

The Legendary Lord again asked the old man.

[As far as I know, humans have strong desires.]

“What do you mean……?”

In response to the question as if he did not understand how to speak, Nathaniel smiled as beautifully as white snow.

[For example, your hand..]

The old man made a confused face.

Then, behind Nathaniel, the Duke of Old Ciudad shook his head with a serious expression.  The old man quickly fell flat on the floor.

“I never did that! She was lying on the road, so I took her, so I didn’t touch her, I just held her like a daughter, covered her with a blanket and went out to see the mountain again!”

Nathaniel looked down at the old man as if he understood the truth.  The air tightened in silence.  He looked at the old man for a long time, then motioned for him to go away.

After the old man left, the Duke of Old Ciudad opened his mouth as if he was a little surprised.

“Aren’t you going to kill him?”

Then Nathaniel saw the duke. His blue eyes, which seemed to sparkle more than gold, showed a strangely contemptuous sign.

[You always think so.]

“What?”

[If people do something, you kill them, if someone does it wrong, you kill them, and kill them for no reason.  Perhaps you only have the thought of killing someone in your head.]

‘……Who is he referring to?’

The duke was embarrassed and forgot his words. Nathaniel turned his head without much concern.

[There’s always a reason for everything. Kyrie was the only one who knew that.]

The Duke of Old Ciudad thought it was really ironic to see longing in his words, but he did not show it.

“……I’ll find her as soon as possible.”

[I’ll move, too.]

Nathaniel slowly rose from his seat. Before he knew it, Nathaniel had a black wand in his hand. The duke swallowed his saliva.

“But…….”

[Seeing that she has moved to the territory of Leschaux, it looks like she must have moved to the west or north to get on a ship, but she can’t do that.]

“You mean…?”

[You’ll know when you see it.]

In response, Nathaniel walked out with a straight, neat walk.

The next day, there was news that the sea surrounding Trevereum was all frozen.

***

Random facts:

A son of a bitch is soon going to appear, warning has been given, prepare yourselves readers