Chapter 7 – Part 3

“Oh, My Lady.”

An indifferent voice that belied his earlier harshness stopped Lottie. When she turned her head, Marsden was smiling faintly.

“You seem confident you can become a Duchess, but don’t be mistaken. I have never once imagined that would happen.”

Lottie’s lips quivered as she hastily descended the lobby stairs. The knights tried to support her as she nearly stumbled several times, but she irritably brushed off their hands.

Marsden watched the scene calmly until the lobby door closed.

“Are you alright, Your Grace?”

When the lobby door closed, Ricardo cautiously approached Marsden. Marsden nodded nonchalantly.

“This is nothing. It wasn’t enough to make me collapse.”

Marsden sighed and muttered quietly.

“It was an embarrassing display, but… I suppose it’s fortunate that we could move things forward. Where’s Buddy?”

Marsden stuck his hands into the pockets of his impeccably tailored trousers. Despite deceiving a close acquaintance, he appeared remarkably composed.

“We’ve safely confined her in the underground tunnel. It’s a trap designed by a trustworthy person, so there should be no unexpected variables.”

Ricardo, aware of the importance of his report, seemed tense.

“We have acted entirely according to your orders. The Marchioness of Charbert will not escape from there.”

***

“Ah, Glenn! Haven’t you found it yet?”

“Marchioness, please understand that we are in a very unfamiliar underground tunnel…”

Glenn whimpered, responding to Olivia’s urgent prodding. They had been searching for an exit for three long hours.

“Don’t stray too far!”

“Yes, Sir Bay.”

Meanwhile, Bay was investigating a corpse abandoned in the tunnel. Even after relighting the torches, the darkness of the underground made the investigation difficult.

Bay, concerned, ensured that Glenn and Olivia didn’t wander too far. It would be madness to separate in such a place.

“Have you experienced any hallucinations or heard any strange sounds?”

“No, not at all.”

Strangely, the aura of the curse that had subtly lingered at the entrance of the tunnel had gradually dissipated over time. As a result, they weren’t tormented by hallucinations as they had been before.

Of course, it was frightening when the torches went out. However, with her dependable attendants, Olivia quickly regained her composure. Glenn immediately used a match to relight the torches.

Thanks to this, Bay was able to examine the corpse. Although he wasn’t a professional coroner, he could determine that the body was still warm and the blood had not fully coagulated, indicating it hadn’t been long since the person had died.

“He appears to be a sorcerer.”

“How can you tell?”

“Though the symptoms vary among sorcerers, this one has dozens of stab wounds all over his body.”

Hearing this, Olivia couldn’t react. Fortunately, Bay didn’t notice.

“He may have been attacked by someone, but the blackened fingertips suggest he was likely a sorcerer. It’s a common side effect among those addicted to magic.”

“So, it’s not necessarily a curse?”

“Yes? What kind of curse are you referring to?”

“Oh, nothing. It just slipped out.”

Olivia began to move away, but Bay’s next words stopped her.

“I’ve never heard of such a powerful curse.”

Recalling what had just happened, Olivia sighed involuntarily. Glenn looked at her with concern.

“Don’t worry, Marchioness. I don’t sense any presence or hostility. Although there are many other potential dangers.”

“That means it’s a dangerous situation.”

Glenn’s face turned awkward at Olivia’s blunt remark. He and Olivia continued to search for the exit.

As time passed, they were able to analyze the space more thoroughly. Initially, they had been disoriented by the shock of being trapped, but as experienced swordsmen, they eventually calmed down and examined their surroundings.

“There seemed to be signs of habitation, but only at the entrance. Now that we’re further in, there are no such traces.”

“Why is that? It’s too deep to be a temporary resting place, and yet…”

Olivia ran her hand along the oddly clean wall, a deep sense of déjà vu nagging at her.

“Is there something else bothering you?”

Olivia rubbed the wall with her palm, and a fine powder stuck to her hand.

A chill ran up her fingertips. This tunnel seemed newly made, not an old base where the sorcerer allied with Harry Palmer had stayed for long.

“This place is newly made.”

“What?”

“It’s been here for at most a week.”

The déjà vu quickly turned into certainty.

“This was made recently. This isn’t the sorcerer’s base.”

Olivia looked around incredulously.

“A recently made place wouldn’t be a strategic point. This… this was made specifically for me.”

***

“What do you mean? Are you saying this place is truly a trap?”

Glenn’s expression darkened quickly, his vigilance heightened, and his demeanor took on a determined seriousness. Olivia looked uncertain.

“Well, I’m very confused right now, but one thing is certain: if this were a trap set by the attackers or the sorcerers, it wouldn’t be this peaceful.”

“But it could be the calm before the storm.”

Glenn furrowed his brow, glaring into the dark tunnel.

“As per your orders, if we don’t return to the marquisate within an hour after the expected arrival time, Illehan is to charge in with the knights. They should already be on their way. Do not worry.”

Glenn gently reassured Olivia and called for Bay.

“Bay, check if there are any explosive devices inside. Since it’s likely a trap, we need to continue inspecting for any potential dangers.”

“Yes, sir.”

Bay responded resolutely and began to inspect the interior swiftly.

“Is there anything more I can do, Machioness?”

Glenn stood firmly by Olivia’s side, ready to act. Olivia’s expression was complex.

“Don’t you find something odd, Glenn?”

“Everything is odd…”

“No, not that.”

Olivia turned to face the direction where the corpse was found.

“The discovery of the body and suddenly being trapped is shocking, but strangely, everything is organized and clean, almost as if…”

“As if…?”

“It feels like we’re pet hamsters.”

“What?”

Glenn’s voice jumped at the unfamiliar word ‘hamster’.

“I mean, it feels like we’re pet mice. It’s not a trap; it feels like we’re in a cage.”

Olivia ruffled her hair in frustration. Meanwhile, Bay returned.

“There are no explosives, Marchioness.”

“Could there be any on the surface?”

“We can’t completely rule it out, but there were none when we checked before entering.”

“Hmm…”

Olivia let out a deep breath. She turned her back on Bay and Glenn and started to piece her thoughts together.

The blueprints and coordinates were given by Ronae. If Ronae was involved, why would she participate in this trap? And what is the purpose of this trap?

Who designed this trap?

“Glenn, if Gael Abyss was involved in this and planned to bury me alive, would the situation be different?”

“Many things would be different. He would have placed assassins to disrupt your defenses, and we would have found bombs by now.”

Glenn began to understand Olivia’s sense of déjà vu as he carefully analyzed the situation.

“We would have smelled gunpowder or something similar before entering. So, as you said, Marchioness…”

Glenn’s eyes narrowed.

“This trap wasn’t meant to harm you. Specifically,”

“They wanted to keep me here.”

Ah. Olivia finally reached a conclusion.

“They didn’t want me to get hurt beyond their intentions… Haha…”

“Marchioness?”

Her initial feeling was one of futility. Then, frustration set in.

“Glenn, I have a favor to ask.”

“Anything, Marchioness.”

Glenn focused intently, ready to listen.

“If my guess is right, the door will open soon without a long wait.”

“What?”

“When it does, go out immediately and beat the person who opened it. And of course, find out where the person who set this up has gone. Just make sure the person can still talk enough for us to get the information. Because I’m going to deal with the person who caused this.”

Although Glenn didn’t fully understand her intention, he answered affirmatively like a loyal knight. Olivia grinned and murmured into the air with a chilling determination.

“You bastard Marsden. I won’t let you get away with this.”

***

“Buddy is probably cursing me out right now, isn’t she?”

“Unfortunately, she likely is.”

Ricardo, who accompanied Marsden on the covert mission, answered awkwardly.

“Of course, she would be furious. No matter how much it was to protect her, you locked her up in a strange place. It might be too late to say this, but it would have been best to just assist the Marchioness in resolving this.”

Marsden knew this. He knew, but his heart ignored his reason.

“But maybe if I catch and bring him, she’ll find it somewhat commendable.”

“Well…”

Ricardo avoided giving a direct answer, but Marsden didn’t press him.

In this situation, Olivia had every right to be furious with him. She was a woman who had waited for him to speak honestly about everything he knew. Betraying her trust left him with no excuses.

‘But I don’t ever want to see you bleeding again.’

Olivia was a border Marchioness. Her position was inherently dangerous. Marsden had seen her injured and almost dying many times.

Yes, she had been ‘almost’ killed.

“You’re selfish, Marsden. You’re really selfish.”

It was something Olivia had said to him once. She was right.

“There, Your Grace. That’s the place I mentioned.”

Marsden pushed his thoughts away and looked up at the small fortress. Before Olivia went to meet Gael alone, Marsden had already tasked Ricardo with investigating the area. As a result, they had narrowed down the location where the sorcerer was likely hiding.

“Upon investigation, the footprints were washed away by the rain, but there were traces of broken leaves in a certain direction. Although I was outside, I could feel someone’s presence.”

“And judging by this filthy and murky energy, it seems certain that there is a sorcerer here.”

In the Abyss territory, there were several small castles that were left abandoned, and this place was one of them. This happened because the landlords living under Gael Abyss could not endure the lord and fled.

“We need to take him alive. I have many questions to ask.”

“Yes, Duke.”