Chapter 43: CH 41

With Nice leading the way, the group makes their way inside the excavation site with the prisoners casting suspicious gaze on them.

Usually, the areas where the prisoners are working are off-limits so it is rare for them to see outsiders even though they are being accompanied by the guards.

“Everyone, excuse the interruption.”

Each and every time Olivia’s eyes would meet with the prisoners’, she would apologize for interrupting their work.

“You don’t have to say that every time, My Lady.”

Nice said that but it was still awkward for her to just walk silently past them.

When they arrived at site No. 8 with Nice who was holding his head all the way here, Olivia took a short look around the narrow excavation site and let out a sigh of admiration.

The place is covered with fragments of broken walls and dug-out soils. When she started to reach out to something that looked like a broken shard from a jar, Cyrus grabbed Olivia’s hand and tightly squeezed it.

“Olivia, I told you not to wander off right?”

“I, I’m sorry…..it’s just…”

“Seriously. Cyrus, just hold her hand like that. Who knows when she will wander off if we take our eyes off. It would be a headache if we have to send out a search party for her too after all.”

That’s too far. Olivia thought so but since Cyrus doesn’t seem to have any intention of letting go of her hand, it seems that he shares his brother’s opinion.

With no other choice, Olivia gave up on investigating the place for ancient artifacts and started comparing the place with the map she brought with her.

“Hmmm, so this way would lead us to the center of the White Rose Palace……?”

The royal quarter located at the center of the White Rose Palace originally should not be able to be accessed from this place but a part of the wall on their right is broken, creating a route where they can bypass the original structure. That being said, there’s a rope barring the hole in the broken wall and it seems that it was forbidden to go past it.

“Why is that rope there?”

When Olivia asked so, Nice pointed to an area in the map in Olivia’s hand before answering.

“From this point onward the ruins’ structure has become quite fragile so there’s a risk that the wall might collapse down on the prisoners during the excavation. That’s why we don’t let them go further beyond here.”

“Come to think of it, I was told that the underground pathway has already collapsed in the middle too, correct?”

“Yes. We believe that it collapsed during the construction of the wall at the border. It seems they dug up a lot of soil and cut a lot of stone in the area when they built that after all.”

Olivia peeked beyond the hole where the rope is obstructing the way. The rope is certainly in the way since it’s hanging in the middle but you can easily get past it. It seems that since there’s no way out in there, the prisoners also don’t want to try using it to escape either.

(I don’t know what it is but it’s strange……….)

Tina was stripped of her status and is no longer an aristocrat. Immediately after she became Prince Alan’s fiancee and became the center of attention from the high society, she was sentenced to this place. Even if she finished serving her time here and is taken in by her relatives and managed to return to being an aristocrat, she probably would not be able to lead the glamorous life she used to. In the first place, with how high Tiana’s pride is, she won’t accept a status quo where her standing is lower than someone who she used to ridicule. In other words, even if she’s done with the labor here, as long as she lives in this country, she still would have to live in shame.

If that’s the case, one has to wonder where she plans to go in this country after she escaped. Her relatives would never shelter an escaped convict and they would know full well when her sentence is supposed to be over. Besides, Tiana cares very much about how others look at her so it’s unthinkable that she would struggle through the dirt and try to live on her own.

(Even if she runs away, there’s no merit at all for Tiana right……..)

On the other hand, it is possible that she chose to escape because she thinks she found her way to a better life. But if that’s how it is then what might that be?

As Olivia was pondering on that, two men arrived with one of the guards. They were the prisoners who were working in the same area as Tiana.

When Olivia greeted them, the two men looked at each other before making a puzzled expression.

“Umm……the one who called us here is……?”

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“Ah, yes, that would be me.”

When Olivia answered so, the two men looked even more puzzled.

During that exchange, Cyrus and Alan stepped forward to shield Olivia but the atmosphere of the two men was so calm that it made them wonder if they were really prisoners. Perhaps it’s because Nice picked them out, the two men don’t even rudely stare at them.

“I’m sorry that I made you two came all this way here. Umm, I’d like to ask you two about Tiana…….No, No.214, if that is alright with you?”

“Ahh, that young lady.”

Perhaps because they were sharing the same work area, the two realized who Olivia was talking about immediately.

“I’d like to know what No.214-san was doing yesterday. Umm….like during the afternoon break.”

“The break? Ahh, come to think of it, that girl didn’t come with us yesterday huh.”

“Eh?”

“We invited her to get some water together but she said that she wanted to keep digging here. She always gets in a bad mood and complains about how digging made her all dirty so we also thought that it was strange of her too. Maybe she found something interesting when she was digging?”

“Even if she did find something good, she wouldn’t be allowed to take it back home though.”

“She used to tell us that everything in this country was supposed to be hers and some exaggerated stories about herself too. That young lady certainly has a dream, doesn’t she.”

Apparently, the two don’t know that Tiana was in fact a former young lady from a count house and how she was once engaged to Alan.

With an awkward smile on her face, Olivia continued.

“Was No.214-san here when you two came back from the break?”

“Hmm? …….actually, thinking of it now, I don’t think I’ve seen her when I came back huh…….did you see her?”

“Nope, I didn’t see her either.”

“What?”

Nice raised an eyebrow.

“Wasn’t No.214 supposed to be at site No.8 yesterday?”

“We weren’t really looking for her so we can’t say it for sure but, I don’t remember seeing her after the break.”

“…..in other words, she disappeared during the break? No, but…….”

It’s no wonder that Nice is confused. Even during the break, there were guards stationed at the entrance. The outside area is also littered with many prisoners and guards. It’s impossible for her to escape unseen.

(……don’t tell me.)

Olivia thought so and looked at the hole in the wall.

The portable oil lamp was missing from Tiana’s room. Tiana was nowhere to be seen after the break. The guards never left their post at the entrance. Tiana has nowhere to go even if she escaped…..if so then what would Tiana do?

Olivia looked up.

“I think I might know where Tiana went.”

TLN: Into the Ruins?

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