Chapter 5: 5

 

'Oh, no.'

While hesitating at Anna's sudden appearance, the assassin quickly opened the door and took Anna as hostage.

It was said that superhuman strength came out just before death, and it was an agile speed.

"Don't come any closer. Then this girl will die."

The assassin hugging Anna from behind and thrust a knife around her neck.

'Oh, that's annoying.'

Instead of backing away, I stared at Anna.

"I'm sorry."

Anna furrowed her brows, drooping the tips of her eyebrows. The assassin, unable to check her expression, shouted with his triumphant face.

"Can't you hear me, back away, Duchess."

"What should I do?" Anna asked.

Her tranquil voice faltered, as if the assassin had sensed something strange. I didn't give him time to check Anna's face.

"I'm tired today, so let's take care of it quickly."

"What are you going to do... Ahhh!"

The assassin's body collapsed. It was because Anna lifted her leg and kicked the man's knee in the same position she was captured.

"Did you let your guard down?"

The man reflexively knelt after the kick, Anna stepped behind the man's back and kicked the knife that had fallen to the floor.

I grinned as I approached the assassin.

“Keuhk, wa, what……”

“There are so many stupid people who think that maids can’t do anything."

Anna untied the ribbon tied around her neck as if it was stuffy.

"Don't underestimate the maids who work next to me."

Not all the maids working in the castle were like Anna.

However, there were a few maids like Anna, who were accustomed to doing 'this kind of thing'.

'They are the maids raised by the previous Duke.'

Even with knights, the castle is so wide that there are days when an assassin crawls in like today.

Eloise's father, the Duke of Wayana, picked people with unusual backgrounds, like Anna, as maids to protect Eloise and raised them as escort.

'They are only loyal to Eloise.'

Standing behind the man's back with a quiet movement, Anna slowly bent one knee.

She then wraps her arm around the man's neck to keep the assassin from moving.

"Keuhk, keu..."

The assassin late to notice the presence of an arm around his neck.

"Your Highness. What shall we do?"

"Well..."

I don't think I'll get any meaningful information, because there are a lot of people who want to kill me.

"I'm so tired today that I don't even want to get information."

I muttered, picking up the assassin's knife that Anna had pushed.

"I'll take care of it."

I could see the strength Anna's hand pressing, but I shook my head.

"He's here to kill me, and I'll take care of him myself."

Then Anna quickly moved her arm toward the pale white man.

"Keuhk, Keu, Heuk......"

It didn't take long before he stopped breathing.

"Your Highness."

After confirming that the assassin had stopped breathing, Anna slowly raised her body.

"You don't have to deal with this bug yourself. Your Highness"

As expected, Anna continued to nagging me.

'That's why I wanted to keep it quiet.'

From the moment I stuck the assassin's head on the door, I expected someone to come.

But I didn't expect Anna to find out.

Anna was the only maid who dared to nag at me.

“From now on, call us, I know we'll come right away."

"Alright."

The 'we' that Anna mentioned were maids who could handle assassins like her.

'I could have handled it by myself.'

Not only Anna, but also the employees of my castle tended to treat me too preciously.

'It's nice, but...'

Sometimes, it felt excessive.

I was not an ordinary young girl, and she was worried about me even though I kill the monsters easily.

'Is it because of loyalty?'

It was also the reason why she was so anxious that she couldn't kill the assassins on my behalf.

"I'm going to get rid of the body," Anna said, looking down at the body as if she was used to it.

"No."

I want to rest because I'm tired, but I can't seem to shake off this uncomfortable feeling.

"I'd go with you."

"It's late. Your Highness, please rest."

Anna dissuaded me by lifting the limp body easily. But instead of heading to bed, I opened the door.

“It's alright, I think we should check the boundary stone.”

A subtle discomfort pricked my fingertips. It was the finger that bled to make a boundary stone. It seems that something is wrong with the boundary stone.
 

*****

The assassin corpse was wrapped in cloth and dumped at the border beyond the forest.

After a while, hungry low-level monsters would flock and devour the corpse.

'The North is very good at disposing of corpses. I like this because it's comfortable.'

“What should we do today?” Anna asked, grabbing the cloth that was wrapped around her body. Blood dripped from the cloth.

"Don't say anything." At my words, she pouted her lips.

'I just don't want you to tell others that the assassin has been hiding, but is it something to be so upset about?'

She didn't seem to like my order. I pretended not to know, and moved to find the boundary stone that had an abnormality.

'If the knights find out about what's going on today, it's annoying. Just thinking about it makes me tired.'

It was about who dared to touch the Duchess, or whether the spy had already been caught.

The castle was sure to be noisy. I hated the fuss.

"Everyone reacts too much."

"What do you mean too much, Your Highness?"

"Bugs who want to hurt you, they deserve to die." Said Anna.

"......"

"How dare they try to harm Your Highness. After finding its roots and tying up his limbs, little by little ......."

Anna speaks cruel words with her innocent face.

Leaving her alone, I continued my steps. I was already accustomed to being able to hear from one ear and let it flow through the other.

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"Wouldn't it be convenient for you to ride a horse?"

Anna noticed that I was looking for a boundary stone.

"No, it's around here. I think it's broken."

A boundary stone is a stone that separates the forest from the land beyond it as well.

Simply put, it could be said to be a magic device that prevents the invasion of the monsters.

And one of the main ingredients of the boundary stone was human blood.

'The power of monsters in the north is strong, so a strong bloodline is needed.'

In short, it was said that the boundary stone contains the blood of the Wayana family.

"Then I'll take the lead."

Anna passed me, cutting down the branches that stood in my way.

'This is what it feels like when there is something wrong with the boundary stone. That's interesting.'

If there is an abnormality in the boundary stone, the owner of the blood will find out on its own.

'It's a strange feeling, as well as the sensation in my fingers.'

It was difficult to pinpoint what to say, but it was a strange feeling.

It felt like knowing where the boundary stone was installed and what happened to that stone.

"Your Highness."

Anna, who was leading the way, pointed to one of the boundary stones and looked back.

"Also..."

As she approached the boundary stone, she saw a fragment.

Anna picks up the broken fragment that fell on the ground and hands it over to me.

When I held the broken piece in my hand, the purple fragment began to emit a subtle light.

"Your Highness, this is....."

"Sword marks."

I answered by rolling the fragment in my hand.

Looking at the clean cut shape, there was no way it was done by a monster.

'It wasn't broken because it couldn't withstand the invasion of monsters. If it did, it would have been completely destroyed.'

It was an obvious sword mark.

Someone must've broke the boundary stone with a sword and pass through.

"Anna."

"Yes."

"Can you scratch the boundary stone?"

"I can't."

"How many people do you think can scratch the boundary stone in the castle?"

"Isn't that the level of the Knight Commander?"

In response to Anna's answer, I got up and stretched out my hand holding the fragment in the air.

'I feel like this is going to be an annoying thing.'

The pieces sparkled and reflected in the blue moonlight.

"Then....."

Had only one meaning.

"It means that someone entered the forest through the border."
 

*****

I wandered through the woods with Anna to find the intruder.

I wanted to go alone, but it was obvious that if I sent Anna back, she would bring in the Knights.

"Your Highness. Leave this to us and go back to rest."

"Alright. I'll find it before the knights arrive."

Above all, the forest was bound to be noisy when the knights came forward.

'Those who broke into my forest should be dealt with quietly.'

I was thinking about how to catch and kill him, but something caught my sight.

"........?"

As I stared intently at one place, Anna also turned her head towards it.

It was obscured by the thick leaves, so it was impossible to identify it, but something shimmered inside the Black Forest.

As Anna waved her sword, the thick branches were cut cleanly.

"That....."

Someone was sitting leaning against an old tree. There were no other trees around, so the moonlight fell alone on it.

'Wow, it's like a painting.'

I couldn't see his face because he lowered his head, but it was a landscape that suited the cold dawn air so well.

"He looks like a child. How did he get into this forest?"

Anna, who swallowed her saliva as if possessed by the scene, whispered in a quiet voice.

"That's right. A child."

I don't know how old he was, but it was clear he was still young.

'Fifteen? Sixteen?'

I narrowed my brow and stepped toward the open space surrounding the trees.

I wondered what the shiny object was, and the thing in his hand was reflected by the moonlight.

'It's a sword?'

Anna raised her hand and stopped me from moving.

If he had scratched the boundary stone with a sword at that age, it was clear that he was not an ordinary person.

I slowly walked closer to the tree with a deadly presence.

It was only when I got closer that the color of his hair caught my eye.

It was a splendid silver hair that could not be seen in the north.

'It looks pretty from a distance.'

His silver hair shone because of the blue moonlight.

'Based on the circumstances, it is clear that this child broke the boundary stone.'

I couldn't see his face properly, but I could tell that he had long curled eyelashes.

The line from the forehead to the nose was smooth, and the skin felt the unique softness of the child.

'Oh, that's a surprise.'

I thought he was a Crown Prince for a moment. It's a relief that it's not blonde.

'Blonde means that you are from the Royal family.'

I breathed lightly after stopping for a while.

"What should we do?"

It was at the moment I was thinking about whether to wake up and interrogate him or take him to the castle.

"Ugh...."

The long lashes fluttered and the intruder slowly raised his head. The movement felt strangely slow.

For a moment, our eyes met.

'Oh my!'

The moment I looked at his face, my heart started racing like crazy.

"El...Eloise...?"

A still immature voice called my name.

'Crown prince!'

Why is the male lead here?

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