Chapter 36

Dylan had said there was an expert he wanted to introduce.

“My lord told me to bring only the most exceptional people, so I chose with perfect objectivity!”

Pavel smiled brightly as he introduced four knights, including himself.

One appeared to hold a fairly high rank, while two of them looked younger and lower in position than Pavel.

Agnes already knew that every one of them was an elite knight of the Vasteron Order. If they ever decided to kill her, she would die without even realizing how.

That these knights possessed such peculiar skills made her doubt Dylan’s decision for the first time.

Dylan folded one arm behind his back and gestured toward his knights with the other.

“They are unbelievably good at finding secret passages.”

His face was hard to read. He looked proud, exasperated, and quietly amused all at once.

Pavel and the others, Bram, Erion, and Daren, looked equally unimpressed by the strange compliment.

Unlike the disciplined knights Agnes had imagined, they seemed mischievous and playful.

“That’s unfair, my lord.”

“You’re the ones who discovered a hidden passage just to sneak out of training and drink.”

“But if we hadn’t found that tunnel during the Battle of Draven Valley, we would all be dead.”

“Even the commander praised us for that!”

Agnes stared at them in awe.

The heroes of the Battle of Draven Valley were right in front of her, bickering like children. Dylan, who was called “commander,” spoke to them casually as if they were longtime friends.

He sighed, unaware of her curious gaze.

“In any case, they are good at finding hidden routes. If you describe the layout of the Overhen townhouse in detail, they should be able to locate it.”

“Ah, um, y-yes, I think so. It would be easier if I had some paper.”

Dylan narrowed his eyes slightly, but Agnes ignored it.

Telling him he seemed different in this setting would only make him deny it again, just like before.

She had once told him he looked more at ease around his family, but he immediately rejected the idea.

‘Does he really not notice it? Or does he just refuse to admit it?’

Either way, it was unexpected and strangely interesting.

‘Would he show another side of himself if I grew closer to him?’

Agnes quickly pushed that thought away. Dylan was simply a courteous and responsible man. That was all.

Before she could dwell on it further, Pavel returned with a large sheet of paper and spread it across the table.

“My lady, this is the floor plan of the Overhen townhouse.”

“The floor plan?”

She had expected to draw it herself, but what he handed her was remarkably detailed.

It even showed several private areas that guests would never see.

“How did you get this?”

“You remember I mentioned we planted someone inside.”

Dylan spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The knights did not even blink.

‘Well, they are soldiers who have fought in real wars. Something like this must be ordinary to them.’

Agnes steadied her voice and examined the map. Her pale hands moved quickly over the paper as she explained.

“Here, there’s an underground section beneath the wine cellar.”

“Do you remember the direction?”

“The direction… let me think.”

She pictured herself standing in the wine cellar. She had not been there many times, but the unusual structure had stuck clearly in her memory.

“The entrance was here, on the east side. Inside was a wide empty space. I once asked Count Overhen why he did not store more wine there, and he told me that area was for something else.”

“We should check it. Any other locations?”

“There’s also a secret passage in the master bedroom. If you move the bed, it appears.”

“Ah, that design was popular for a while. It has a long ladder, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, that’s right. They said it was built as an escape route.”

At that, the youngest knight, Daren, let out a laugh.

“Even dropping a sword in that kind of tunnel could get someone injured. There’s no way anyone could actually escape through it. Nobles really don’t understand real danger.”

“Even if we don’t crawl through holes like you do, any decent knight can find a hidden passage in minutes. If someone wanted to hide something, behind or under furniture would be best. Anyone who can’t figure that out shouldn’t call himself a knight.”

“You two, mind your manners.”

When Erion joined in, Bram, who had been listening seriously, chopped both of their heads with his hand.

The loud smack made Agnes flinch. For a moment, she worried he had split their skulls open.

“My lady, ignore these foolish ones and continue. I will punish them properly later.”

He already looked like he had done plenty of punishing.

Despite her concern, Daren and Erion only rubbed their heads with teary eyes. Then, both bowed deeply to her.

“We’re sorry!”

“Our apologies, my lady!”

Agnes did not know whether to laugh or sigh, but she continued.

“I believe there’s also a secret passage in the office. There’s a bookshelf on this wall, and sometimes I could hear the sound of wind coming through.”

“I see. The outer and inner structures are different.”

“Yes. There were times when Count Overhen was inside the office but didn’t answer when I called. When I entered later, the air never felt like it had been closed off for long. Even when the room was warm, there was a chill in the air.”

“Then it must lead outside rather than to another secret room.”

“And besides that…”

Agnes went on to explain the details of the Overhen townhouse for quite some time. The knights, who had started off playful, gradually grew serious.

Contrary to her worries, they truly were experts. Their methods of gaining such expertise might have been questionable, but their skill was real.

Eventually, the knights became so absorbed in their discussion that they forgot she was there.

They argued about which kind of structure might be used, which direction it might lead, or whether certain routes were blocked because of a nearby temple.

Agnes could hardly follow their technical talk. Naturally, her eyes drifted to Dylan instead.

He said nothing, simply watching them with calm focus. Occasionally, he pressed his fingers against his temple as if the noise bothered him.

Even that faint expression of irritation looked dignified. Dylan truly seemed like someone born to stand above others.

Even if he had not been born into nobility, even if he had never learned royal manners, he would still have possessed that same natural authority.

But as Agnes watched him longer, she began to notice what others might have missed.

The faint shadows under his eyes, the way he clenched and uncurled his hands as if to ease the numbness in his fingers, and how he occasionally rubbed his temple as though fighting exhaustion.

All of it pointed to fatigue and declining strength.

Agnes found herself wondering about his feeding schedule.

‘It has only been four days.’