I whispered to Echo more sincerely than ever before.
“There won’t be any problems.”
Because I’ll make sure of it. Trust me.
Echo stared at me silently for a long time.
But I could tell she had made up her mind when I felt her grip tighten on my hand.
“Oh my.”
And it seems Lucian noticed it too.
“It looks like my darling has cast another spell. How did the situation turn out like this?”
I slowly stood up while holding Echo’s hand.
“The conclusion has been reached now.”
The bet was over according to Echo’s choice.
“Hmm. So you’re planning to leave like this?”
“You’re asking the obvious.”
So all that was left was to take Echo back to Count Ferial’s mansion.
“Is that so?”
But Lucian didn’t seem willing to let me go easily.
“Well, that’s a shame.”
Lucian, with an unreadable smile, whistled.
At the same time, the venomous snake hanging from the ceiling opened its jaws wide toward me.
I shouted with a shocked face.
“The bet is over! What are you doing!”
“Shh. Bear with the pain a little. I have the antidote, so don’t be too afraid.”
I backed away while hiding Echo behind me. However, the distance between the snake and me didn’t narrow at all.
“I wouldn’t k*ll you, darling.”
“You crazy…!”
“Teacher…!”
As I retreated to the window, I felt a cold breeze behind my back.
Wit…!
Just as I embraced Echo, the last image was the snake’s mouth approaching me.
Thwack-
There was a sound like something being pierced.
“……?”
As I slowly lifted my eyelids, I saw the snake’s head impaled by a sword and pinned to the floor.
Holding my breath, I raised my head and met eyes with Adriel, whose face had turned cold.
“Are you alright?”
He called out to me while exhaling roughly.
Although Adriel continued to speak to me with a serious face, I couldn’t hear anything through my dazed mind.
Soon tears welled up in my eyes.
Through blurry vision, I could see Adriel, who had initially frozen in shock, gradually contorting his face into a fierce expression.
“What’s wrong. Did that bastard do something….”
Before he could finish speaking.
I rushed with all my might and threw my arms around Adriel’s neck.
Adriel’s large hands, which had been hesitating with uncertainty about where to place them, soon touched my back.
Throughout the time I was embracing him, no other thoughts came to mind.
I just felt relieved that Adriel had returned safely.
“You don’t need to be afraid anymore. I’ll protect you….”
“You’re late!”
I exclaimed, pushing his shoulders slightly.
Seeing my face, he hastily replied.
“I’m sorry. There was a problem with my plan to find the item and return….”
“I thought you were dead!”
When I heard that strange talk about Adriel being dead, I really thought I was going to go crazy. I tried hard to act calm, but it was so difficult to keep strength in my legs that kept wanting to give out.
Once again, a sorrowful feeling washed over me, and I bit my lip firmly.
Adriel, who had been staring blankly at me, reached out toward my face. However, seeing the blood on his hand, he clenched his fist and pulled back again.
“Were you worried about me?”
“Of course…!”
Just as I was about to retort about asking such an obvious question.
“B-Brother Lucian…!”
Echo’s terrified scream was heard.
For a moment, thinking Lucian might have harmed Echo, I hurriedly turned my head to look for her.
But what I discovered was….
“Cough….”
The sight of Lucian, who had been pierced through the side by a sword and was spitting blood.
“…Come here, Echo.”
I first covered Echo’s eyes, who had frozen at the shocking scene.
And then, as I tried to raise my head again to check on Lucian, Adriel stood in front of me, blocking my view.
“Ahaha. That was close.”
Seeing him laugh casually despite being stabbed, it seemed he had barely avoided a vital spot.
“I see you still have strength left to talk.”
Adriel, who must have been the one to put Lucian in that state, pointed at Lucian with the sharp tip of his sword.
“Hmm. Judging by the amount of bleeding, he seems to be in a critical condition.”
But doesn’t that person feel pain?
Normally, if your stomach is pierced, shouldn’t you lack the strength to even speak, as Adriel said?
How can he smile and joke like that?
My question was answered by Lucian’s next words.
“Since there’s no pain, I can’t tell.”
No pain?
Come to think of it….
Before, he was smiling while holding his arm that had been torn apart during Adriel’s interrogation.
He seemed like someone who had lost his sense of pain, and it turns out that was true.
“Darling, why so serious? Are you worried I might die?”
…As if.
To be able to spout such nonsense while dying.
That person clearly hasn’t been beaten enough.
“That’s a relief. If you only worried about that dog, I might have gone crazy with jealousy.”
“How dare you mention anyone with that filthy mouth?”
At Lucian’s nonsense, Adriel muttered lowly in barely contained disgust. His voice sounded calm, but it was colder than ever before.
“T-Teacher… Brother Lucian….”
I hurriedly looked down to check on Echo.
The child was trembling, probably shocked by the scene she had just witnessed.
We need to get out of here first.
I urgently stopped Adriel, who looked like he might pounce on Lucian at any moment.
“Sir Knight, have you seen Wit? He went to look for you earlier.”
I wasn’t sure if they had missed each other and Wit was still searching for Adriel.
To my question, Adriel replied without lowering his guard against Lucian.
“He should be outside the Marquis’s mansion by now.”
“What? Wit went outside?”
Wit did? Why?
As I was looking at him with a dumbfounded face, Adriel glanced back slightly.
After checking on Echo and me, he put his sword back in its sheath and approached me.
“I’ll explain later.”
“What?”
Before I could respond.
Adriel easily picked up Echo and me and jumped out the window without hesitation. I tightly embraced Echo and squeezed my eyes shut.
“Y-Your Grace! Call a doctor, quickly!”
As Adriel carried us out of the Marquis’s mansion, I heard commotion from afar.
“It’s an attacker!”
“The intruder is escaping that way! Catch him immediately!”
I was anxious about what would happen if we were caught by the Marquis’s guards.
But Adriel skillfully avoided their encirclement, climbing a tree and standing on top of the wall.
“Master!”
As Adriel had said, Wit’s voice could be heard from outside the Marquis’s mansion.
Wit, who had been flying from afar, stopped when he saw Echo in my arms.
As soon as I was free from Adriel’s embrace, I checked on Echo.
“Are you okay, Echo?”
Even though we had landed safely, Echo wasn’t opening her eyes.
“Echo?!”
Hurriedly placing my ear close to her heart, I could hear a faint heartbeat. She seemed to have fainted from the shock of suddenly falling from a high place.
Only then could I breathe a sigh of relief.