“It’s time to go in! Everyone, grab your tools!”

When the guard shouted in Selina’s direction, her heart nearly stopped.

However, the whistle had not been blown because he had sensed something was wrong; it was simply to signal the end of the labor period.

Relieving the tension, Selina let out a slow breath and rubbed her chest where her heart had lurched. She then followed the other prisoners.

Before entering the prison, they were made to line up and were fitted with restraints. Selina was no exception, but fortunately, she had already hidden the key inside her sleeve.

“Hurry up and get inside, you useless lot!”

The guards apparently did not even bother to treat the prisoners as people; they lashed at them with whips and herded them inside.

When Selina saw the person in front of her being hit and their clothes tearing under the blows, a long-forgotten fear welled up inside her.

‘I thought I’d never come back here again.’

Unbidden, memories of her childhood in Holchester Prison surfaced.

Even just seeing narrow, dark spaces had once made her feel suffocated—yet now she was stepping into this place of her own accord.

‘Focus. This is to save Alter.’

Steeling herself, she stepped inside.

The moment she crossed the threshold, she was hit by a damp, moldy stench. A prison for the most heinous criminals was hardly likely to be well maintained.

“Everyone, return to your positions! Move!”

The guards barked orders at the prisoners while waving clubs studded with sharp iron spikes — tools designed more for intimidation than for practical use.

Even without such threats, the prisoners moved like corpses, as though all will had been drained from them.

Led by a guard at the front, they shuffled forward with their heads bowed low. At the rear, another guard stood rigid and unyielding, ensuring that any attempt to break formation would be impossible.

Selina kept her head lowered like the others, moving with the line until she reached a blind spot beyond the guards’ line of sight.

‘Now’s my chance.’

Upon reaching the blind spot, she slipped quietly out of the line and headed toward a dimly lit staircase.

Relying on the faint light leaking through the gaps in the stairs, she unlocked her restraints.

Thankfully, the key fit, and her hands were freed in an instant.

‘Now I just need to get to the fourth floor, where Alter is.’

Unlike most prisons, which were built underground, this one was built upwards. Perhaps so much effort went into its exterior because it wasn’t originally intended to be a prison.

In any case, it was just as difficult to escape from. From the fourth floor, even if someone were spotted, there would be no chance of jumping down.

‘All right. First, I need to find the key.’

Selina was well aware of how Holchester Prison managed its inmates’ keys.

Each floor had a room where the guards stayed. Inside a small wooden box in each of these rooms, there was a bundle of keys that could open and close the cell doors on that particular floor.

‘The facilities don’t seem much different from what I saw as a child. If that’s the case, the keys should still be there.’

Of course, things might have changed over time, so searching for the keys in the guardroom was somewhat risky.

But even though she knew it was dangerous, there were some things she couldn’t turn away from.

For Selina, this was one of those moments.

She had promised Calix that she would return alive, but first she had to rescue Alter safely and buy enough time for the Grand Ducal Castle to be reclaimed.

‘Originally, I had steeled myself for death…’

That was why she had asked Calliope to deliver the letter, and why she had offered Calix a final farewell.

But when he told her to come back alive—

Her resolve to accept death wavered far too easily.

‘I want to return alive.’

That hope had grown in Selina’s heart.

She wanted to see Calix again once everything was over.

Perhaps then, the lingering discomfort between them might ease, if only slightly.

This hope made Selina all the more cautious.

She moved towards the guardroom on the fourth floor, holding her breath completely.

“Bored to death again today. When is this job ever going to end?”

Inside sat a single guard, chin propped on his hand, looking thoroughly annoyed.

Usually, guards were stationed in pairs—but for now, fortunately, there was only one.

‘I need to draw his attention to get him out of there.’

What could have drawn the guard outside?

After a moment’s thought, Selina picked up the handcuffs that had been fastened around her wrists just moments earlier. Glad that she hadn’t thrown them away, she threw the metal as far as she could, then quickly hid behind the wall.

Clang!

The restraints slammed against the iron bars, their sharp metallic sound ringing out.

In the quiet prison, the noise echoed unmistakably and inevitably caught the guard’s attention.

“Haa… Which bastard is causing trouble this time?!”

Assuming one of the prisoners was making a disturbance, he grabbed his club and headed toward the cellblock.

Taking advantage of the moment, Selina slipped into the guardroom.

‘The wooden box should be on the desk…’

Relying on her childhood memories, she searched the desk. But it was cluttered with disorganized piles of documents and various snacks—there was no sign of a wooden box.

“What? Restraints? Who took off their restraints, huh?!”

She could hear the guard shouting angrily after discovering the restraints she had thrown.

Her heart began to race.

Had the system changed since then? If so, where were the keys kept now?

As she scanned the room—

A wooden box, nailed to the middle of the wall, came into view.

‘Found it!’

She hurriedly opened the box and took out the bundle of keys inside.

All that remained was to leave, but the guard was returning far too quickly.

If she stepped out now, she would be spotted immediately.

So Selina hurriedly hid inside a cabinet.

It was packed with miscellaneous items, but fortunately it was just large enough to conceal a small adult woman.

“I’ll have to see which bastard thought it was funny to pull a stunt like this.”

But an even bigger problem was waiting

Striding inside, he headed straight for the wooden box where the bundle of keys had been kept.

‘No. I’ll be found out immediately.’

If he realized that the keys had disappeared while he was briefly away, he would naturally search this room first. And if that happened, the cabinet would be discovered at once.

Cold sweat ran down her back.

‘Please. Please. Please—just overlook it…’

Then, as if her desperate prayer had been answered—

“Hey!”

A sudden, unfamiliar voice rang out.

It was directed at the man who had just stepped into the guardroom to check the keys.

“Emergency! They say some lunatics have broken into this damned prison.”

“What? Why would anyone come to a place like this?”

“How should I know? Orders are to catch them and drag them in, so we do as we’re told.”

The two guards exchanged words and hurried outside.

Only after the guardroom door closed completely did Selina finally let out a breath she had been holding.

‘I survived…’

No. Not completely.

They had already realized there were intruders.

‘According to the original plan, even if we were discovered, it should have been after getting Alter out of here safely.’

The fact that things had not gone according to plan left a bitter taste in her mouth.

However, it was not a complete failure yet, and there was no time for discouragement.

Emerging carefully from the cupboard, Selina clutched the bundle of keys and ran towards Alter’s cell.

It was in the far corner of the fourth floor.

As she hurried down the corridor, the prisoners resembled wandering spirits — hollow and lifeless — lifting their vacant gazes towards her. The sight of faces devoid of even the faintest glimmer of hope sent a chill of unease through her.

She prayed that the foul air of the prison had not yet reached Alter.

“Alter.”

Reaching his cell, Selina quickly found the correct key from the bundle and opened the door.

Inside the dark, cold cell, Alter sat motionless.

“Alter. I’ve come to rescue you. Let’s get out of here together.”

Selina grasped his hand tightly and pulled him to his feet.

But then, an entirely unexpected problem arose.

“Why should I go with you?”

Alter looked at Selina with hollow eyes and asked.

“I—I came to save you. If you leave here now, you can survive.”

“…Do I have any reason to live?”

Had life in the infamous Holchester Prison worn him down even more?

His cheeks were sunken deeper than before, and scabs clung thickly to his unhealed skin.

Tears threatened to spill, but Selina clenched her teeth and pulled him towards her.

“Get up. Right now. I promised Calix. I promised I’d rescue you and come back alive.”

“Who did you… promise?”

“Calix Silas. Your lord, whom you served—”

At that moment, Alter suddenly sprang to his feet and grabbed Selina by the collar. His eyes rolled wildly as he muttered like a madman.

“How dare you speak His Highness’s name so carelessly with that mouth…? Because of you, His Highness died—and yet you dare—”

“C-Calix isn’t dead—”

“Shut up!”

Just as Alter shouted in fury—

“And here I was wondering which brat was making such a noise. It turns out it was you.”

A chilling blade was pressed to Alter’s throat.

The tip pricked his thin skin, and red blood seeped out.

But Sion paid it no mind. Grinning broadly at Alter, he said.

“Look at you. Thought a commoner like you was doing so well—never expected you’d end up rotting in here, whining.”

It seemed Alter recognized Sion. When he saw him, his expression changed.

“You bastard. How did you end up here—?”

As Alter faltered, unable to finish his sentence, Sion replied with a crooked grin.

“I came to rescue your sorry *ss.”

But in the instant his eyes curved into crescent moons, a chill spread through them.

“From the looks of it, you seem eager to die. So I’m thinking—why not just kill you right here?”