Chapter 42

* * *

Walking through pitch black darkness is enough to make anyone uneasy.

Even more so when you are alone.

Reina, or perhaps Eugene, often found herself seized by memories whose owner she could not tell whenever she walked through darkness.

They were not good memories.

She was always trapped alone in a narrow space. The person in the memory seemed to know with painful certainty that no one would come looking for her, so she did not even cry out for help.

She held her breath alone, unable to step outside even when everything beyond was quiet.

Yes, the self in that memory knew. She knew that if she simply reached out, this small cramped box would open.

And yet, ‘I’ chose not to go out.

I trembled in fear, but that fear itself felt like comfort. If I stepped outside, even that fear would collapse helplessly, and the fragile reason I barely held onto felt like it would be swallowed whole.

And whenever those thoughts surfaced, the sound of footsteps followed.

Thud, thud.

The sound felt unfamiliar, yet not frightening.

Then the footsteps stopped right in front of me…

The door that had never opened while I kept myself locked away finally did, and dazzling light poured in.

That was where the memory ended.

Reina wondered if she was simply being seized by some nameless fear brought on by memories resurfacing in the dark.

‘I can feel the wind.’

As she moved forward, trying not to dwell on the memory, a chilly draft wrapped around her ankles.

It meant the exit was close.

Her hand pressed harder against the wall.

‘I don’t know where this leads but…’

Anywhere would be better than where she had been.

At last, Reina carefully pushed the door open.

“This is…”

Her eyes widened at the unexpected sight.

It was a place she had been before.

Not somewhere she visited often, but a place she could never forget.

It was Damian Winternight’s study.

Why did the passage lead here.

Reina glanced around, then let out a small breath.

‘I thought it was an emergency escape route. Was there another exit.’

Still, ending up in the study was a relief.

‘No one comes in here…’

Maybe staying put would be better.

Just as Reina thought that and tried to calm herself, hurried footsteps echoed from behind.

‘Did they notice the passage.’

Startled, Reina spun around.

There was no time to hesitate.

She quickly shut the door she had left open and dragged a chair over, wedging it in front of the door.

There were not many places to hide inside the study.

The chair was nothing more than a temporary measure.

In the end, this space was not safe either. The only option left was to go meet Damian directly as he was arriving at the estate.

‘Can I make it to the first floor without being noticed.’

Even more than being noticed, could she avoid being caught.

But she could not stay here.

Even if she remained in the study, she would surely be caught by whoever followed her through the secret passage.

‘I need to find Boni first.’

Reina had only one choice.

Leave the study, find Boni, and slip out of the estate.

Carrying her anxiety, she opened the door and stepped into the corridor. Fortunately, she did not run into anyone right away.

She moved down the hallway as fast as she could.

It was almost a sprint.

Hunger, and the way her body refused to cooperate because of it, no longer mattered.

Voices grew louder, but she could not stop.

“There she is!”

“Catch her!”

It was truly strange.

Reina, who had lived alongside everyone for years and even earned Estelle’s trust, had never been a difficult person.

There had been no one who openly showed hostility toward her. If anything, many pitied her.

Yet ever since Count Elbron arrived at the estate, people had suddenly begun turning their backs on her.

As if they had all been brainwashed by magic.

Reina’s disheveled pink hair flew wildly.

‘This is strange.’

Count Elbron’s shout rang out.

‘It’s like they all want me dead.’

Reina came to a halt when knights blocked her path.

There was no need to look back.

“…You’re Reina Botn, aren’t you?”

She stiffly turned to face the count. Wearing a relaxed smile, he spoke.

“How about joining hands with me, even now.”

Reina stared at him with open hostility and asked,

“Why are you doing this to me.”

“…”

“I’m just a maid.”

Honestly, it made no sense. There was no reason to go this far for her.

“Just a maid…”

The count let out a scoff.

“This is why putting scissors in the hands of fools is useless. What kind of maid meets privately with a duke and earns the trust of the duke’s daughter.”

“…”

He did not hide the arrogance in his gaze as he continued.

“There is no one in this estate on your side.”

Reina’s eyes shifted outward as she slowly moved toward the window.

“If you join hands with me, I promise you wealth and power no commoner could ever obtain.”

If Reina truly were nothing more than an ordinary commoner and maid, such an offer would never have existed, nor would this danger.

Even so, her existence held considerable value.

“I do have people on my side.”

Reina Botn.

A woman with no connections, raising her daughter alone without a husband.

Someone who received the protection of a noble house because she did not betray them even when her daughter was kidnapped.

Someone trusted by Estelle, the sole star of the Winternight ducal house.

She reached out toward the window.

‘This window is large, and if I undo the latch, it’ll open easily.’

She lifted her gaze to the latch. By sheer luck, it seemed the window had not been locked after being closed at dawn.

“If I truly had no one on my side in this estate, my daughter would’ve been caught long ago.”

Reina knew what she was about to do was insane.

“The reason you’re trying to win me over is because what you did wasn’t perfect.”

“…!”

The count’s eyes shook as if caught off guard by her words.

“Things didn’t go the way you planned, and you weren’t satisfied.”

Only now did she have the presence of mind to think.

‘I know who became the count’s eyes and hands.’

Reina placed her fingers against the window.

“And you thought I noticed your true nature.”

This was the answer.

Not that she noticed it, but rather that she had known from the beginning.

She glanced back at the count briefly.

‘The reason he isn’t crushing me outright is because he believes he can kill me here at any moment.’

For example, by pushing her out this window.

That was why he did not care that she was fiddling with it. If anything, he was probably delighted to see her approach it.

Taking a deep breath, Reina threw the window open and shouted,

“Mr. Damian!”

No one in this estate dared to call Damian by name.

At Reina’s sudden outburst, everyone froze, unable to stop her.

In the distance, a carriage had come to a halt, and a man stood beside it.

Locking her gaze onto him, Reina leapt out the window.

* * *

Inside the carriage, there was no movement.

As always, Damian sat with his arms crossed, eyes closed.

Peter, seated across from him, spoke.

“I’m not sure whether the sudden cancellation of the appointment ceremony is a good thing or a bad thing.”

“…”

“They say a new prophecy has been given, so the appointment will probably take place later, together with the prophecy’s announcement.”

Damian gave no response.

Peter was used to his master remaining silent in the carriage.

“We’re entering through the back gate, so we should arrive at the estate sooner than usual.”

“Alright.”

Damian’s reply was short and curt. His eyes remained closed, as if he had no interest in conversation.

Normally, his carriage would have entered proudly through the main gate, but approaching from the back left the gatekeeper visibly flustered.

“It seems rather noisy inside the estate.”

“Hm.”

Only then did Damian slowly open his eyes and look out the carriage window.

They had chosen the back gate to return quickly.

There was no reason for the servants to be that shaken just because of it.

Damian’s brow twitched with displeasure.

‘My instincts are usually right.’

Something had clearly happened inside the estate, and not in a way he wanted.

The carriage circled half the vast estate and stopped a short distance from the main gate.

Damian stepped out before the coachman could even open the door.

“We should summon Count Elbron immediately.”

“Is there a problem, Your Grace?”

“When things suddenly turn this chaotic, it’s usually because an unwanted stone has rolled in.”

“…I see.”

Just as Peter was about to say something, a sharp voice rang out from afar.

“Mr. Damian!”

In that instant, the servants, the coachman, and even Peter froze as if time itself had stopped.

Only Damian lifted his head to look toward the one who called his name.

“…Reina Botn?”

He could tell even from far away.

Her hair, usually tied as neatly as possible, though it always looked slightly messy, was now completely disheveled.

“What on earth…”

What kind of state was that.

In the few days he had been away, something had clearly happened to Reina, though he could not begin to imagine what.

Then, in the next moment, Reina jumped from the window.

Some servants screamed. Others likely stared in shock.

Damian looked mildly surprised, but his expression did not change much.

As if it were only natural, he lightly moved forward and caught Reina as she fell.

Reina’s face showed no fear at all.