C73
Tara said,
"After finishing my work, I would like to formally thank you."
"It's okay. You did it before."
"No. I can't end it like this with the person who helped me so much to make my long-awaited wish come true. However, I haven't received any results yet, so it's a bit awkward to thank in advance, so I would like to prepare my own gift..."
Could this be a ritual that would put an end to Tara's long vengeance? Anyway, it seemed that she really wanted to thank me.
"It's not polite to refuse if you say that. Okay. I also want to congratulate Tara if she manages to get her revenge."
"Then I'll get in touch with you the same way as always!"
"I'll be waiting for good news."
We parted ways like that. Oddly, I wasn't worried about Tara. I had a feeling she would succeed in getting revenge even without Liena's help.
Three days later, I received a message from Tara. Moreover, that wasn't the only welcome contact.
"Today?"
"Yes. The Marquis, no, now I should say Prince. Anyway, His Highness suddenly said that he was free tonight and would like to see Ethel-nim if she's not busy."
Not long ago, Vinetta, who officially became a knight belonging to the imperial palace and could officially enter the imperial palace, delivered Terence's message.
"Oh, anytime is fine."
In fact, these days I lead a very quiet daily life. There was no special need to go out, but it was also because of Leandro.
"I don't see you often, so why do you keep coming? Isn't this being a stalker?"
It seemed that he no longer paid much attention to the public. Diana said that Leandro asked her to tell me that he had something he wanted to tell me.
The good thing was that when I wrote a letter to Duke Cassius to inquire about his son's behavior, he apologized and promised to send his eldest son back to Cassius's territory as soon as possible. Tara's letter had a postscript that his carriage had left the house the night before.
With a joyful heart, I re-read Tara's letter that I received this morning. She said she had achieved her goal and hoped to see me this afternoon.
"If I go to Tay after meeting Tara, the timing will be perfect. But can we meet in a restaurant or something?"
The meeting place she chose was a restaurant I had never seen before. Of course, I thought it was a secret villa, but it was a bit surprising.
"Oh, did you say you rented the entire restaurant?"
But it easily exceeded my expectations.
"This is a building owned by His Majesty. The imperial palace is not a good place for a secret meeting, so he did this this time."
"Does he also have a villa...?"
"As it is on the outskirts, transportation is inconvenient and it would take quite some time."
Is this really the spending of someone who has been rich since birth? It was on a completely different level than mine, who couldn't even use the allowance Leandro gave me because it made me uncomfortable.
"Indeed, if it's in the city center, you might be caught off guard more."
There's a saying that goes, "The trees should be hidden in the forest."
"What kind of clothes should I wear?"
I got excited about the good news, so I hummed and chose a dress.
It was a strange feeling. The moment I arrived at the meeting place where I had visited Tara twice recently, I tilted my head.
"What is this feeling?"
An unidentifiable discomfort clung to my neck. I looked around to see if anything had changed compared to last time, but everything was as I remembered.
"Why is he acting like that?"
Vinetta looked at me curiously. If there was a suspicious presence around, I could feel it, and there was no way Vinetta wouldn't know.
"Vinetta, I..."
Still, when I was about to ask out of doubts, she pointed to the other side of the forest.
"There she comes."
Tara was running. She smiled so brightly that I could recognize her even from a distance.
"Jaa ja. Am I late again?"
She asked breathlessly, as when she ran without stopping for a moment. It was obvious that she was worried about making me wait again.
"No, this time you arrived on time..."
When I heard Tara's breathless voice, similar to last time, I realized the identity of the uneasiness.
"It's a relief! In fact, I did it yesterday."
"Shh."
I raised my index finger and put it on Tara's mouth.
"Silence. Something is strange."
Interestingly, the sound of insects today was silent. The last time I was here, and also the last time, there was so much noise that conversations were drowned out by the crackling noise.
At that moment. Suddenly the ground rose. To be precise, a person who had been underground rose.
Chuk! Chuk! In an instant, Vinetta went into a fighting position and clashed swords with the mysterious man.
"Ethel-nim! Over here!"
Tara was about to take me to another place to protect me when I heard a loud roar.
"Ooooh!"
When he shouted that, the man was clearly at a distance where I could barely see him. However, in the blink of an eye, he had approached us.
"Traitor!"
The man who struck Tara quickly deflected the dagger she had drawn with a sword and then restrained her limbs. He was someone I knew.
"Matisse."
It was Liena's escort and a sword genius, Matisse. He was the man who accompanied her and growled at me all the time when Liena arrived at the accommodation where I stayed with a bunch of gifts.
"Answer me! What kind of plot did you plan with this woman? How dare you betray our lady's favor!"
Several more knights appeared behind Matisse, who was scolding Tara. Given the circumstances, it seemed like they were all lurking somewhere quite distant, leaving only one person hidden on the ground.
"He must have been the most skilled at hiding in Cassius. He knew in advance that we would meet here."
The reason why the sound of insects was silent was probably that the knights had sprayed something or taken some measure in advance to listen attentively to our conversation. That's why it felt strange because I could only hear the sound of insects in the distance.
I felt very embarrassed, but I tried to stay calm and understand the situation. Only then could I see clearly what actions I should take next.
"Seeing that Matisse arrived, is this Liena's order? No, it's a bit odd. For Liena, her methods are subtly harsh."
Yes. It's not Liena, then....
At that moment, someone walked calmly with the sound of a grassy footstep.
"This is it. It seems that the prey has been caught in a nice trap."
A slight smile on his lips. Long light blue hair tied in a single piece. Thick silver-framed glasses.
I took my time, and I knew who this man who appeared last was.
"... Elliot Rudd."
"Well, you have a better memory than I thought. I thought you barely saw me in passing."
A rare genius that appears once every thousand years, the only double specialty in four disciplines in the history of the Imperial Academy, and Liena's wisdom package.
"It's been a while, little lady."
Elliot Rudd waved his fan and laughed bitterly.
The moment I saw Elliot, a question occupied my mind. Why is this person here now?
The genius Elliot Rudd was by far the person to pay the most attention to. Therefore, I knew in advance the information about him that reached Liena through Tara.
"I heard that guy was abroad."
It is said that Liena ordered him to return home because of my divorce, but when I convinced the duke to step forward, she withdrew her order. In the end, Elliot said he would stay abroad and fulfill his duties...
"Could it be that he acted on his own without even informing Liena?"
To know what he was thinking, I first asked him a simple question.
"What is this now?"
"It's just as you can see."
He looked disdainfully at Tara, who had been thrown to the ground by Matisse.
"There are cockroaches that dare to forget the favor they received from Lady Liena and communicate with the enemy, so we are exterminating them."
"Am I the enemy?"
Elliot openly laughed at my question and approached me, then folded his fan and lifted it.
"Well, it's not something you can call an enemy. At best, it's just a dirty rat that lived with Cassius."
The fan pressed against my head from above.
"This bastard."
It was one of the five most insulting words and actions I have experienced in my life, but I had to suppress my emotions.
Even the act of provoking an opponent is part of Elliot's calculation. To elicit an emotional response.
"Well, you could kill someone with your eyes."
Elliot smirked, raised his hands, and took a step back.
"That's very rude."
I looked around, pretending to smooth my windblown hair with my hand. Tara was completely subdued by Matisse.
"Don't move."
After defeating the man who was ambushed on the ground, Vinetta aimed her sword at the man's neck and threatened the other knights. However, the situation was unfavorable as we were completely surrounded by them.
"You can't be afraid."
I comforted myself. Fortunately, it seemed that they had no intention of harming us.
"It's an extreme assumption, but..."
If Elliot had planned to kill us and bury us, he wouldn't have come in person like this. It's easy for him to hide in a safe place and let the knights take care of everything.
Observing Elliot's personality depicted in the novel, that side seemed natural. Compared to his intelligence, his physical abilities were considerably inferior, and his pride was so strong that he sacrificed himself to that extent.
"So, since you spoke to me as if you were provoking me, you must have something else in mind."