Erhart looked calm, but inside he must have been shaken. He didn’t even realize the carriage was slowing down.
“An attack! Protect His Highness!”
Screams and the clashing of blades could be heard outside. Leah gripped Erhart’s hand tightly with a blue face.
“It must be bandits. The knights will protect you, so don’t worry too much.”
She told him to calm down and said nothing would happen, but she seemed uneasy. Bandits, that would be ridiculous. It wasn’t a proper procession because they were moving in a hurry, but there was the coat of arms of the Hesseles family. How could there be a fool, even if they weren’t a noble, couldn’t even recognize the crest of the imperial family?
“Your Highness. Can you hear me?”
In the midst of the fierce battle, he heard the sound of Royam searching for him.
“There are a lot of people and their skills are extraordinary. I’ll open the way for you, so go. I will block and cover. If you ride a horse and run, it’s a quick ride to Selence.”
Royam’s voice was full of defeat. Erhart guessed. If it was unreasonable to deal with the majority of them with their skills, so what about magic? Was it really right to reveal it now that he had decided to leave everything behind? But in fact, this was a non-issue. He had to do anything to live.
And if he shut up the mouths that knew the truth, it would be enough. Either appease or kill them.
Having made a decision, Erhart gathered the mana of the air and drew a magic circle in his head and calculated a formula. Before the blinking time had elapsed, the magic calculations to be operated were finished.
“…”
But the mana did not gather. The mana that always stayed by his side and rustled was scattered before it could gather. Something that had been as natural to him as breathing since the moment he became aware of it was not working as he wanted it to. For a moment, he panicked. Damn it. Erhart cursed.
It became clearer that it was not a bandit attack.
It was also clear that the Emperor had been meticulously preparing for his return, doubting his survival in so many ways.
“Your Highness. You have to go, hurry!”
Not knowing what he was about to do, Leah was busy urging him. Erhart had no choice but to hold on to the scabbard and follow the road opened by Royam.
When the door of the wagon opened, a bloody smell wafted out. Some of the knights were already in a state of incapacity and were lying around, and so were the other side. However, because the number of this side was thirteen, it gradually became a disadvantage. The hem of Royam’s clothes protecting him was also torn.
Unprepared for an attack, his pauldrons were exposed enough to be easily pierced by a sword.
“Your Highness. Go.”
Royam, who gave the horse’s reins to Erhart, looked exhausted.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Qf’ii yes alwf rbwftbk.”
“Xejgv.”
“… Zjs Xbv’r qgbafmalbc gfra eqbc Tbeg Llutcfrr.”
Lf rffwfv ab tjnf j uea offilcu bo vfjat, yea tf rtbkfv cb ofjg. Sgtjga cbvvfv tlr tfjv.
“G- Gjcufg…!”
Ofjt’r fsfr klvfcfv jr rtf raewyifv ab tfg offa, jcv yfobgf rtf mbeiv olclrt tfg rfcafcmf, rtf jqqfjgfv lc Sgtjga’r kjs. Uj. Ktf rbecv bo oifrt qlfgmlcu jcv atf rbecv bo rkjiibklcu ygfjat mbeiv yf mifjgis tfjgv fnfc lc atf wlvra bo atf mtjbalm wfiff.
“Leah!”
Flesh was ragged from the sharp point that pierced the wing tissue.
“… Ah.”
Leia, whose chest was pierced, staggered but did not move out of Erhart’s way. As if he was afraid that if she collapsed, a blind arrow would pierce Erhart again.
“G- Go. Your Highness.”
Leah gasped for breath and stammered. She coughed and blood gushed out and slid down her jawline, staining her dress, which was already a mess of gore.
“H- Hurry. Your Highness. I will be fine.”
Please. Leah pleaded, and Erhart had no choice but to remove his hand that was tightly gripping her shoulder. If he had been a little more sentimental, he would have shook his head, asking how he could leave her with death lurking just around the corner, but his reason moved him.
He shouldn’t die here.
For Leah. No, for anyone. It’s a life that has already put the sacrifice of many people. When Erhart mounted the horse, Leah looked at him and smile weaky.
“…”
The old image of Leah, who picked him up when he fell while walking and hugged him, and hummed about when the dear prince would grow up, formed a vivid yet old image on his retina and then faded away.
***
Was Olivia’s health a lie invented by the Emperor in order to summon him out without question? There was a possibility. Without proper preparation, he was forced to move quickly. If he had been thoroughly guarded, this would not have happened.
Erhart, who was gnashing his teeth at his lack of preparation and vigilance, and the loss he had to suffer, turned the direction while running on the path Royam had pointed out.
There was no way that the Emperor, who thoroughly defended against today’s attack to the extent of using magic control, would not have laid siege to the road to Selence. It would have been wiser to turn around a little and go to Arhen. After he confirmed Olivia’s news, he would leave somewhere with Rayan. To a place without the influence of the damn Emperor.
“Ha…”
Veins were visible on the back of his hand gripping the reins. If he didn’t do that, everything he was holding on to would be ruined. Bang! Suddenly there was the sound of a shell hitting the ground. The horse whined in pain and fell over. Erhart unwittingly fell off his horse.
He barely caught the ground with his hands and avoided breaking his neck. His horse was bleeding and trembling in his limbs. There seemed to be no hope of survival.
Erhart pierced his horse’s throat with his sword without hesitation. Only then did the painful shaking stop.
Withdrawing the deeply embedded blade, Erhart turned to look at the man following him, who held something unrecognizable in his hand. The hollow of something that was neither bow nor crossbow puffed white smoke.
“I missed because my skills aren’t that good yet. Tsk.”
That was a weapon he had never seen before. It looked like a scaled-down cannon he had seen before.
“… Is this the intention of the Emperor?”
“The crown prince met with an accident when he fell off a cliff on his way to the palace. Oops. Unfortunately, we were not able to find his body.”
The man grinned viciously, baring his teeth. And he pointed the weapon he was holding at Erhart.
“Ah…”
Bang! The birds flew away with a sharp and ferocious sound that seemed to rip through the air. Erhart lowered his gaze. Blood gushed from his side. He clamped his hand over it, but it leaked through the gap.
He couldn’t escape. He could see him pointing and moving his hand toward him. Something that was neither sword nor arrow caught his eye. It only pierced Erhart’s body with an ear-splitting sound.
“Oh. I’m really bad at it.”
It was clearly intended. But he didn’t have the energy to react to him. His vision was blurred by the sudden hemorrhage. The ground shook. Erhart blinked dazedly. It was as if life was draining out of the body bit by bit. The man aimed at Erhart, who was unable to move due to sudden panic.
Bang!
He pulled the clasp again.
“Am I getting a closer shot this time?”
Around his chest, fresh blood spread. Erhart couldn’t help but collapse. It felt like the ground was pulling him down.
The man approached Erhart, who was breathing heavily in a half-collapsed state. He put his one knee on the ground and made eye contact with Erhart. The man smiled and put the sword in Erhart’s hand. Erhart continued to stare at him with weak eyes.
“You don’t need the generosity of saving the life of insignificant creatures, do you.”
“…”
Erhart bit his lip to the point of tearing it. The senses that had been isolated were drawn into reality. And what should he do now.
“Who… knows.”
Every time he spoke, his blood gushed. It smelled fishy as he swallowed the rising lump.
“… I only know how to give back what I received.”
Before the man could react, Erhart caught his hand. The dagger pierced the man’s neck with precision. In an instant, he didn’t even have time to use the weapon he was holding in his hand.
“You should have been prepared to be bitten when you approached.”
Erhart, who muttered unreachable advice to the man who took his life in an instant, and his body completely collapsed. He knew that only this man would pursue him, so he had to get out of here, but his body didn’t move. His body was already out of control for a while now.
Ah.
What he recalled in his submerged consciousness were neither those he left behind nor Leah, who had sacrificed herself for him. Only Rayan occupied his mind.
He didn’t say goodbye and didn’t come, but what if he kept waiting for him? Then he might go to the castle like before. He might get hurt, wondering how he could leave him.
Erhart fiddled with the bracelet on his hand and slowly blinked as if he had gone blind. So he didn’t realize he was surrounded by light, or that he was in a cave when he closed his eyes and opened them. All his five senses had already been blunted to feel the salty smell and the sea breeze, and he thought it was just an illusion.
“… Rayan.”
Come to think of it, did he ever tell him that he loved him? It didn’t seem so. He hadn’t even told him that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with him. He should have understood Rayan’s heart a long time ago and put his anxiety to rest. He should have told him that he loved him and let him know how much joy and strength those words gave him.
It stuck like a lump in his chest.
“Rayan…”
I want to see your smiling face.
“…”
Even though I won’t be able to see it.
In his sinking consciousness, he hoped that the bracelet would not function as well as the old brooch.
… seriously…
hehehehe it’s starting
😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
»As if he was afraid that if she collapsed..« As if she
Baibai Leah, there goes the idea of letting her live a bit longer..
Okay, who saved him? What’s with the light? (Maybe just the teleportation magic?) And that guy with the gun had a serious problem. The way he treated Erhart, seems like he enjoyed it to make his prey suffer.
Thx for the ch ٩(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )و
😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
Ay no, me pregunto cómo se solucionará esto. 😭