The Villainess is on a Quest - Chapter 9

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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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Chapter 9
“Thank goodness he’s still breathing.”
Seeing Wilhelm’s chest still rising and falling, Aine felt a wave of relief wash over her—but the ceiling continued crumbling around them.
She hoisted him onto her back without hesitation and whispered urgently.
“You cannot die here. Not like this. Do everything you can to survive, Your Highness.”
As long as she drew breath, she would not let him perish in this rubble.
Her words trailed into silence, but Aine was certain he had heard her.
At least, the wetness spreading across her back told her as much.
[SYSTEM: Data Modification in progress]
[Heroine Data modification in progress……]
[Progress: Processing]
[Quest Status: Standby]
Meanwhile, there was something Aine had failed to notice in her haste to escape.
[SYSTEM: Data Modification Complete]
[Modification Complete. Lacey Orion → Aine Klaine]
[Before Change: Lacey Orion]
[After Change: Aine Klaine]
[Quest Status: Update Complete]
‘Somehow, breathing feels easier.’
It was strange.
How could she breathe freely in air choked with smoke?
And that wasn’t all. The stamina draining from her body had returned completely.
She hadn’t witnessed it, but Aine was aware of the truth.
Something new was awakening within her—something different from before.
* * *
“Never do something so reckless again!”
“We beg you—give us orders instead!”
When Aine returned, she received the scolding she had anticipated from her subordinates.
In truth, from Aine’s perspective, she had done nothing deserving of reproach. Risking her life to rescue the future king was simply her duty as a knight.
“We were all terrified of losing you, Commander.”
“I apologize.”
“Still, we’re grateful you made it back.”
But for officers who had endured countless battlefields together, the safety of their comrades mattered more than knightly codes.
“Commander. Your hands…….”
Mane gasped, gesturing toward Aine’s hands, and all eyes turned in that direction.
Only now, free from the chaos of escaping the flames, did Aine look down at her own hands.
What had once been pristine was now horribly scorched.
The sight drained the color from Mane’s face, and she spoke urgently.
“You must apply Treatment Medicine at once! If we don’t treat this now, the wounds could become infected!”
At the mention of infection, the other soldiers urged immediate treatment, but Aine shook her head.
She made a fist. There was no pain—only a faint tickling sensation.
Something strange was unfolding, much like what she had felt during the escape. Of that much, she was certain.
She wanted to investigate immediately.
“We don’t have time for that now.”
“Commander!”
“We need to escape before the Imperial Guard breaches the building.”
There was no way to know how much longer the guards outside would simply wait.
If their people failed to emerge eventually, the guards would certainly grow suspicious and force their way inside.
Now that she had rescued Wilhelm, Aine knew they had to flee this place without delay.
“We can treat the wounds after we’ve left this place.”
“But—”
“The Commander is right.”
“Andrew? What are you doing here?”
Andrew, who should have been guarding the entrance, limped toward them.
He nearly collapsed, but another soldier caught him and helped him forward.
Andrew pressed on stubbornly until he stood directly before Aine.
“Commander. Report: the Imperial Guard has initiated a Forced Breakthrough.”
The guard was moving. As those words reached her ears, Aine envisioned what would unfold.
“The Main Building is still being held, but honestly, I cannot say how long we can maintain our position.”
Bloodshed had begun. There was no way of knowing how much longer those defending the Main Gate could endure.
“Head for the corridor Marco’s been holding.”
“…Yes, I understand.”
Mane, who had been insisting just moments before that Wilhelm needed immediate treatment, gave a reluctant nod.
Now was the time to escape this place.
* * *
Fortunately, Marco had not betrayed them.
He waited with a horse, as if he’d been expecting Aine and her group all along.
“Commander. I’m afraid we must part ways here.”
“They’ll likely discover this place soon enough.”
“We’ll buy you as much time as we can.”
Aine wanted to urge them all to flee together, but as they said, someone had to stay behind and create the space for the others to escape.
Otherwise, they’d all be captured.
“Three of you head to the Main Base and report what’s happened. Once Deputy Commander Mery hears, she’ll find a way.”
“Commander, you’re not heading to the Main Base?”
Aine gestured to Wilhelm on her back as she spoke.
“I’m going to find the Antidote for the prince and leave for the Empire.”
“The Imperial Army will never let you go!”
“That’s right. They’re after your head alone, Commander—or haven’t you noticed?”
Aine had dealt the Empire humiliating defeats more than once.
Would they really let her slip away?
‘They won’t, if only because of all the people who died by my hand.’
Even if she requested asylum or defection, she might spend the rest of her life imprisoned.
“Please, return to the Main Base instead. Everyone there is on your side.”
“That’s true. If you speak your resolve, they’ll all lay down their lives for you.”
The soldiers spoke with one unified voice.
Return to the Main Base and plan for the future. But Aine laughed bitterly.
“Why do you think they took to the battlefield in the first place? Wasn’t it to protect their families waiting at home?”
“Commander.”
“Vinette will use them as hostages without hesitation. Can you abandon your families? Your parents at home? Your wives? Your children’s lives—can you cast them away?”
A blade pressed against the place where family dwelled.
Despite it all, they might yet follow her to fight Vinette to the bitter end.
But she had no wish to scar their hearts with wounds that would never fade.
If only they’d had a better choice—she could not bear to add more regrets they would carry forever.
“So the future I see lies elsewhere.”
To avoid such a fate, the future Aine envisioned centered on one person: Wilhelm.
If he survived and inherited the throne of the Kingdom of Orion, everything would return to normal.
“If the prince becomes king, he won’t let you rest, Commander.”
“Especially if it becomes known that you’ve defected to the Empire…”
“Don’t worry. Besides me, there’s Mery, and General Manila, the Second Commander. The moment they try to strip you of your rank, General Manila will find a way.”
The military had skilled officers beyond just Aine. She believed that while they remained, Vinette wouldn’t act recklessly.
Of course, there was no telling what Linus might attempt, but what Aine needed most was time.
‘At least until this child is old enough to claim the throne.’
With that fervent prayer, Aine mounted the horse.
“This may not be a final parting. We’ll meet again someday.”
“We believe that too, Commander.”
“Please, stay alive. Someday we’ll make it possible for you to return.”
They would meet again.
At least, she was certain this would not be their last encounter.
“As First Commander of the Kingdom Army, I give you my final order.”
Aine held her soldiers’ faces in her eyes.
Perhaps because of the word “final,” the eyes of these soldiers who had never once wept on the battlefield began to glisten red.
Though the moment of parting had come, looking at their faces made it hard to speak.
Yet time would not wait for her forever.
Aine forced the words out, though her heart rebelled.
“No matter what happens, never die.”
Goddess of war, watch over their lives.
With that prayer, Aine hurried from the Royal Palace with Wilhelm.
“We’ll wait for the day we see you again!”
The soldiers, watching Aine depart, beat their fists against their chests with trembling breath, steeling themselves with resolve.
“So please, Commander, you must not die either!”
Aine did not stop; she pressed forward.
She had no wish to show such a pathetic sight—tears streaming down her face.
* * *
“I thought the Commander would return in triumph, as a hero.”
“Only Brantfort remained. Once we took that, it would all be over.”
Blast it. So why does the Commander have to flee?”
Those left behind burned with indignation.
The thought that she had abandoned them never crossed their minds.
Their anger was directed at the nation they had sought to protect all along.
Was this all they had to show for risking their lives in service to their country?
What stoked their fury most was that the one they respected—their Commander—was now forced to flee.
“Mane, follow the Commander.”
“That’s right. The Commander can’t use one arm right now.”
“Treat her wounds for us. We’re counting on you.”
“Yes, understood. I’ll leave things here in your hands.”
Her remaining subordinates split into smaller groups.
As the last of them departed, a familiar figure appeared amid the thunder of countless footsteps.
Vinette Orion—the architect of this calamity.
Those who remained tightened their grips on their blades.
“Where is that wretched woman?”
They fixed him with eyes burning hate and resentment.
“Your Highness may search yourself. Perhaps she met her end in the flames over there.”
“Then you might clear a path for me to pass. After all, that woman won’t be in my way there.”
Vinette did not react to their insolence as Aine had.
If anything, he seemed bored, almost indifferent.
“Unfortunately, this is not a path fit for royalty to tread. Might Your Highness consider another route?”
At their stubborn resistance, Vinette let out a hollow laugh and turned to the Imperial Guard with an order.
“Suppress them and bring me Aine.”

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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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