Let the Whales Fight, This Shrimp is Leaving! - Chapter 45

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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45
Deyan’s brow furrowed.
He seemed to give a faint nod, but I had no intention of believing him until I checked for myself.
“Look at me.”
At my demand, Deyan barely slit his eyes open.
His face, utterly flushed with blood, looked ready to burst.
“You’re normal.”
Only after carefully inspecting his hazel eyes did I loosen the grip of my hands.
Of course, I hadn’t completely let him go.
I merely stopped strangling him.
“Cough, gasp! Were you trying to kill me?”
“Yes.”
When Deyan, frantically drawing in air, questioned me in an accusing tone, I replied nonchalantly.
“Because if I didn’t, you would have killed me. Why are you angry when you’re the one who attacked first?”
“I am sorry.”
“An apology isn’t enough. You killed my guard.”
“Ah…”
I firmly pressed the Pendant into Deyan’s palm as he stared blankly with his mouth agape.
“Keep it safe, since this is what calmed your rampage.”
“Where did you get this?”
“It was a gift. You’re heavy, so would you mind moving?”
“Ah, my apologies.”
Deyan hurriedly rolled over to the side.
As I stood up, I felt my clothes, drenched in a mixture of stagnant rainwater and blood, clinging to my body.
Following the trail of blood, the gruesome face of my dead guard came into view.
I had wondered how he cut off the man’s breath so instantly without a blade, but he had torn the man’s jaw apart with his bare hands.
“That’s brutal, Sir. I don’t think a wild bear could kill like this even if it tried.”
I knew Deyan hadn’t done it on purpose, but I couldn’t help resentment from bubbling up.
I pulled the cloth away from the mouth of the guard, who had been forced to live with his face hidden ever since swearing allegiance to me.
As his already mangled face was revealed, I saw the scars where he had branded his own tongue to seal his mouth.
Kneeling on the ground, I gently rested the dead guard’s head upon my lap.
Even if his life had already been extinguished, shouldn’t I offer a final word of gratitude?
Deyan lowered his head like a sinner.
“I am sorr—”
“His name is Sir Lyle.”
“Pardon?”
“That is this knight’s name. It’s Sir Lyle. Remember it. Because his is the life you took so meaninglessly.”
I gave a concrete shape to the guilt Deyan must be feeling.
It was a punishment I chose to inflict upon him, and a form of vengeance for the life that was lost.
“After my mother was horribly murdered, there were those who trained themselves rigorously and volunteered to protect the Grand Ducal House. They are the ones who promised to sacrifice themselves in the shadows before our lives could fade. Sir Lyle was one of them.”
They were people who branded their own tongues to signify their resolve never to utter a word under any torture, and carved the crest of the Grand Ducal House on their left breast to signify their loyalty to offer up their hearts.
They were the ones who abandoned any lingering attachment to their own lives first.
I hadn’t even found an answer on how to repay that willing devotion, yet once again, a precious life vanished right before my eyes.
“I wish it had been you who died instead.”
I looked up at Deyan without a shred of emotion.
I meant it.
If I had just killed you in that blaze earlier, my precious person wouldn’t have died.
I regret it.
Even though I know the emotion called regret only arises when something truly irreversible has already occurred.
Deyan’s fist, clutching the Pendant, trembled minutely.
I could see the faint emotion that had surfaced on his expressionless face being washed away by the rain.
“Let’s go back.”
Judging by Deyan’s current state, the spies he encountered on his way here were likely all dead.
Since I intended to tell the outside world that Deyan had amnesia, we would have to thoroughly search for any surviving spies to eliminate them and erase any witnesses, but…
‘For now, let’s just go back.’
I had thought earlier that it would be a long day, and sure enough, it was.
It felt as long as if time had ground to a halt.
A terrible wave of exhaustion washed over me.
“We agreed to rendezvous with the rest of the team in the east.”
I covered Sir Lyle’s face with a handkerchief, neatly recovered his body to one side, and walked ahead.
The sound of heavy footsteps followed behind me at a set distance.
Wading through the soggy path and exiting the narrow alleyway, familiar figures appeared at a slightly more open intersection.
“Sir Lyle has fallen in battle. Recover the body and eliminate any remaining spies in the area.”
“Understood.”
The guard knight gave a brief reply and handed the horse’s reins over to me.
Since the carriage was likely unusable by now, I mounted the horse without a word.
The reins of the remaining horse were given to Deyan.
I considered warning him not to even think about escaping, but then I simply gave up.
I was too exhausted to even say the words.
Besides, Deyan didn’t seem particularly inclined to plot an escape anyway, so I just flicked the reins.
I could feel Deyan following at a consistent distance, just like before.
We walked without exchanging a single conversation or signal.
Just like the times we strolled together to put on a show for others.
The bloodstains that had dyed the fabric were fading, washed clean by the rain.
It was rather a relief.
The citizens, who were already sensitive due to the wartime situation, wouldn’t be frightened.
There were few people on the rainy street, the bloodstains were faint, and we were silent.
We merely passed through the path in tranquility.
“What do you think? Since there’s no one around, it feels like we’re the only ones left in the world, doesn’t it?”
“Sometimes, this kind of thing is romantic, isn’t it?”
Bracing my heart, which felt on the verge of growing desolate, I gripped the reins a bit tighter.
“How pitiful.”
My revenge was not wrong.
Simply telling myself that repeatedly, I headed toward the Grand Ducal Castle along the drawn-out path.
* * *
Joaquin rolled his bloodshot eyes, scanning the quiet Main Building where silence had settled.
“The Lady went out after inviting an honored guest? And you won’t even tell me the reason?”
“We have no obligation to report the Lady’s whereabouts to Your Highness. Please return to the Annex.”
The butler blocked Joaquin’s path.
Even the attendants who followed Joaquin seemed to realize this was going too far, looking restless.
However, Joaquin, who was acting strangely out of his mind today, could not possibly hear their voices.
‘Damn voice.’
Joaquin struck his own temples hard with his wrists like a madman, before finally beginning to climb the stairs of the Main Building.
“Move. It’s only natural that the Successor, who is busy with public affairs, is preoccupied. Even so, since I have visited like this, I cannot commit the discourtesy of failing to even greet the Grand Duke, can I?”
“Your Highness!”
“It would be quite nice to have a chat with the young master after such a long time!”
Giselle grabbed the shoulder of the butler, who was hurriedly trying to pursue Joaquin.
The butler turned back to look at her in dismay.
Giselle gave a brief nod, implying that it was fine.
“I will stop him.”
Speaking in her usual calm demeanor, she strode forward and caught up with Joaquin’s steps.
In the meantime, Joaquin, who had finished climbing the stairs, was now looking down the Corridor of the floor where the members of the Grand Ducal House stayed.
Near the middle of the Corridor was the room of young master Hubert, who had shut himself away in the darkness, and the end of the Corridor was the Grand Duke’s space.
Any further intrusion could not be permitted.
Giselle stood firmly facing Joaquin.
“Step back.”
“Get out of my way.”
“This is not a space permitted to Your Highness.”
“You dare grant me permission? A mere maid?”
“You ought to know that failing to back down right now is an act of disrespect toward the Grand Ducal House.”
“So what if it’s disrespectful? What do you think someone like you can do about it?”
Joaquin twisted his lips into a smirk.
Eventually, he went so far as to poke Giselle’s shoulder, insulting her.
“I asked what you’re going to do. Are you going to attack me? Do you think you can handle that? Aren’t you considering the Lady’s position?”
Giselle stared at Joaquin as he let out a murky sneer, her expression remaining completely calm.
Before anyone knew it, a sword was held in her hand, its tip poised as if ready to pierce Joaquin’s throat at any second.
“Aha. You want to kill me? I wonder if you’re allowed to do that.”
“I am simply executing my master’s orders.”
“And you think you can?”
Thud, thud, thud!
Joaquin, who had been sneering, suddenly struck his own head.
Soon, as if the noisy voice inside his mind had subsided, his bloodshot eyes stared intently at Giselle.
“She keeps a loyal maid. The Lady does.”
Letting out a cynical laugh, Joaquin drove the fist he had been using to strike his own head straight into Giselle’s face.
Giselle stood tall, blocking his path, and took the incoming fist directly.
There was not a single tremor in the lady knight who blocked the way to protect what she must.
“Step back. This is your final warning.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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