Chapter 38

Jizel eventually closed her eyes tightly and firmly tied the coin pouch, tucking it securely into her chest.

“There’s no choice. I can’t starve to death just to protect some useless conscience.”

The noblewoman might be hurt, but it wouldn’t cost her her life. On the other hand, Jizel was on the verge of starvation and could barely last another few days without food. Especially now, her one and only sister was gravely ill.

Although her sister was clumsy, she had always been physically strong. Yet, for some reason, she had been bedridden for days, unable to regain her strength.

‘Or maybe… I could…’

Could I have asked for help?

The noblewoman didn’t seem like the type to turn her back. She might have helped.

Even a stray cat wandering the streets could live a happy life if it found a kind owner to take it in. Jizel believed the same applied to herself and her sister, who relied on each other without anywhere else to go.

‘Ugh, snap out of it!’

The noblewoman’s gaze, which kept lingering in her mind, almost made her voice her weak thoughts aloud.

‘Why am I acting like an idiot?!’

Jizel rubbed her temples as hard as she could, trying to shake off her wavering emotions. Her resolve hardened.

The uncertain possibility of future help was far less important than the gold coins she had in her hands right now.

Soon, the child entered a dilapidated shack before her.

“Sister, I’m back.”

In the dark, unlit single room, a woman lying on a hard bed stirred slightly.

“Gi… Jizel…”

“Don’t get up. You don’t have the energy.”

The woman’s voice, calling out to the child, was faint, like a flickering candle about to go out.

Jizel approached the bed and firmly tucked the worn blanket over the woman’s chest, forcing her to lie back down. The child’s nimble fingers carried a mix of affection and worry for her sister.

“You know what, Sister? I made a lot of money today! I can buy your medicine, and—yeah, that’s right—we can even eat some meat until we’re full.”

Her cheerful voice was forced, but the woman managed a faint smile.

At that moment—

Thud, thud, thud!

The thin, worn-out door began to shake as vibrations and the sound of multiple footsteps approached rapidly.

‘Damn it! Did they catch me?’

Jizel’s smile, meant to reassure her sister, froze on her lips. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest, filling her with growing unease.

She thought she had chosen her target well today, but it seemed she had been completely wrong.

It was too late for regrets. Instead of panicking, the child acted quickly.

“Sister, I’m sorry. It looks like they’re here for me… You don’t need to come out. No, don’t come out. Promise me, okay?”

Leaving behind her composed warning, Jizel turned her back on her sister’s worried gaze and opened the front door.

The moment she stepped outside, her view darkened.

Several burly men surrounded Jizel in an instant.

They were dressed in various casual outfits. Though their attire wasn’t uniform, their stances were eerily coordinated, sending chills down her spine.

Jizel instantly recognized who they were. Despite their plain clothes that mimicked commoners, each man had a long sword strapped to his waist.

They were the private soldiers of the noblewoman whose coin pouch she had stolen.

Jizel bit her lower lip hard, her face filled with frustration.

‘Was she more important than I thought?’

She had assumed the woman was a moderately ranked noble based on her plain attire in the bustling marketplace.

In her eight years of survival as a pickpocket, Jizel had never encountered private soldiers of this caliber.

Even with her limited perspective as a child raised in the slums, she could tell these soldiers weren’t the kind that served mid-tier noble families.

The man standing in the center, who appeared to be their leader, exuded an overwhelming presence that was hard to ignore.

His blue eyes were filled with a predatory aura that seemed to ripple dangerously. Just looking at him made Jizel’s knees tremble, rendering her unable to move.

The child froze helplessly.

“You.”

As his lips moved—

“I’m sorry! Please, spare my life!”

Clink!

Thud!

Jizel threw the coin pouch toward the leader and prostrated herself flat on the ground.

“The noblewoman was eating the fruit skewers so deliciously that I got curious and… I saw her coin pouch and—without thinking—I got greedy and acted impulsively…”

Sweat poured down Jizel’s face as her tongue, pressured by the intense atmosphere, began to babble uncontrollably.

“And then, the man with her… He seemed unpleasant and made me angry, so I… I impulsively acted to spite him… Ugh, no, that’s not it! I’m sorry! I didn’t touch a single coin! Please forgive me…”

The man with the blue eyes, Eric, raised an eyebrow as he watched the half-dazed child ramble.

***

While Euphrasia and Leopold were busy exploring the bustling marketplace, Eric had just returned to Ducal estate. Entering the dressing room, he hastily discarded the cumbersome ceremonial attire he had worn to meet the Emperor.

Next, he threw on casual clothes typically worn by commoners. The plain garments, made of coarse fabric, were modestly worn and slightly frayed.

Despite this, Eric managed to make even such simple attire look elegant, prompting Demian, who was attending him, to give a thumbs-up.

“This is a problem, Duke.”

Demian expressed his concern with admiration.

“Even when you dress modestly, you shine so brightly. It might be difficult to blend into the slums.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll go in quietly, complete my inspection, and leave.”

“Ah! Perhaps you should cover your face? Shall I fetch a wide-brimmed hat?”

“There’s no time for that.”

Eric shook his head firmly.

Changing his clothes made him feel physically freer, but his mood remained sour.

The lingering image of Isaac’s expression, which he had seen just before leaving the Imperial Palace, irritated him.

Isaac, biting his lower lip and looking at him with eyes filled with anger and injustice, had left a bad taste in Eric’s mouth.

As a member of the Count Olden family, Isaac was one of the people responsible for throwing Euphrasia into a hellish childhood.

And yet, he dared to act as though he truly cared for her.

‘Obviously. He’s probably trying to reestablish ties with the Count Olden family now that Euphrasia has become the Duchess.’

Hmph. Foolish dreams.

Eric scoffed.

The more he thought about it, the less it seemed worth considering.

Still, he felt he should inform Euphrasia of this development.

‘Euphrasia isn’t stupid.’

Although she sometimes displayed weakness and indecision, that didn’t mean she lacked awareness.

There was no way she wouldn’t see through the sudden kindness of the Count Olden family.

Ultimately, she might be hurt again.

“Where is Euphrasia? Is she with the young Duke?”

Eric decided to delay his trip to the slums slightly.

His question was met with silence in the dressing room. Demian, visibly uneasy, hesitated before replying softly.

“Madame is out.”

“Out? Where would Euphrasia go?”

Had someone from the Count Olden family already visited her? Had they succeeded in persuading her to return to the Count’s estate?

Eric’s face darkened as he quickly imagined the worst-case scenarios.

Noticing the Duke’s ominous demeanor, Demian waved his hands frantically.

“Oh, there’s nothing to worry about. She said she was going to explore the marketplace.”

Eric’s anger was somewhat expected.

Until recently, Eric had practically confined Euphrasia to her room, keeping her locked within the estate. Whatever his reasons, it was clear he wanted to keep her tightly bound to the Duke’s mansion.

Demian had assumed Eric was furious because Euphrasia had left the mansion without permission while he was away at the Imperial Palace.

“The marketplace? With whom? Alone?”

“She didn’t go alone. The Prince of Kettlin accompanied her. Additionally, we discreetly assigned enough guards to ensure her safety.”

Demian desperately tried to defend Euphrasia, but his explanation only backfired.

“What? Those two went out together? Oh, of course, the Prince must have insisted. But why would she agree so easily? How can she be so spineless? Doesn’t she realize that when I’m not around, she represents the Duchess of Herrington? Does she have no sense of responsibility?”

Eric’s furious outburst left Demian feeling he had severely misjudged the situation.

While he knew the Duke and the Prince of Kettlin didn’t particularly like each other, he hadn’t expected Eric’s reaction to be this extreme.

Even while the Prince stayed at the ducal estate, no significant problems arose between the two. Considering the personality of the Duke, whom Demian served, it was unlikely that he would allow someone he disliked to remain quietly at the estate for several days. If he wanted, he could think of several ways to expel them immediately, and the fact that the individual was a Prince from another kingdom wouldn’t pose much of an issue for Eric.

However, Eric left Leopold to his own devices, and Demian interpreted this as the Duke tacitly acknowledging the Prince of Kettlin as a ‘guest of the Duke’s estate.’

Thus, he didn’t think much of the fact that the Prince of Kettlin was accompanying their Madam on her outing.

But the old butler’s prediction was thoroughly mistaken.