Sinclair clearly remembered how things looked before she escaped from the cathedral.

The prince and Baron Stanford were safely evacuated, surrounded by soldiers.

Although she had managed to shoot a few nobles, none of the wounds appeared fatal.

Non-lethal injuries would only serve to highlight their bravery. It was truly the worst outcome for Lensk.

Far from eliminating them, today’s failed terror attack would only unite Albion more strongly.

And they would now certainly recognize Lensk, with whom they had maintained reasonable relations until now, as an enemy nation and point their guns at them.

That wasn’t the only bitter pill to swallow.

‘Weak traitors!’

She recalled those pathetic individuals who threw down their guns and raised their hands at the promise that surrendering would spare their lives.

‘Those who complained more than anyone else, constantly criticizing the Albion royal family!’

Those young masters from lower noble families, who had boasted they would sacrifice their lives and souls, discarded their loudly proclaimed ideologies like old shoes and begged for their lives when faced with gun barrels.

She hadn’t expected much from them from the beginning, but she had at least thought their anger toward the system was genuine.

In the end, even that anger had been completely false.

‘They say they’ll only spare your life, but what good is living like that!’

Their families would strip them of their names and not give them a penny. Philip would reduce their sentences as promised, but they would still go to prison, and afterward, no one would extend a helping hand to them.

But having surrendered, they could no longer seek asylum in Lensk.

‘With such a life, they might as well die and be of some use.’

Sinclair gritted her teeth and continued to ride her horse roughly.

Since everything had failed, should she turn tail and run?

‘I can’t do that.’

She needed to inflict at least one definite blow.

And now, the only option left was to kill Ryan Wilgrave, who was escaping with her dagger.

With the number of people she had, that seemed possible.

So Sinclair, refusing to give up, continued to pursue Ryan and Eloise.

The road ahead grew narrower.

Some of the horses that had come out of the cathedral turned their heads, saying they would head to the port.

But about half still followed behind Sinclair.

It wasn’t because they were as angry as Sinclair and wanted to kill Ryan.

Most of them simply didn’t know what to do or how to act without Sinclair’s orders.

She couldn’t abandon them.

Until now, most of Lensk’s covert operations in Albion had been controlled by Sinclair, who held all the information and merely gave orders to others.

And she hadn’t said a word about what to do if today’s attack failed.

As if there could be no outcome other than success.

That’s why the remaining members just followed Sinclair like ducklings following their mother.

As the road narrowed and the alleys continued, Sinclair lost sight of Eloise and Ryan, who had been getting closer.

But she didn’t panic.

‘I know this place!’

A shabby road on the outskirts of the capital.

But just a little further up was an area filled with mansions where lower nobles used to live long ago.

‘Eloise inherited a house there, didn’t she?’

When she had pretended to be friendly with Eloise for a week, offering to help.

She had seen the address of that house and identified its location.

Hadn’t she deliberately sent someone to examine that house?

Eloise was certainly heading toward that house.

If so, this would be easier.

When she had told Eloise she would look at the house, hadn’t she also had the simple interior structure investigated, claiming she would send someone to help with repairs?

It was an utterly empty mansion.

If she could corner them there…

‘They’re not even mice in a trap.’

And a moment later, she saw the horse that the two had ridden on escape, standing alone and then galloping away down an alley.

And she could see that the front door of the house Eloise had inherited was broken and open.

“Everyone dismount and reload your guns!”

People who had been peering out curiously at the sudden commotion of approaching horses all let out small screams when they saw Sinclair and her subordinates, and fled to their homes.

Then they locked their doors and drew their curtains as much as possible.

They knew well that getting involved in such matters would inevitably lead to trouble.

Sinclair told everyone to be careful and then entered through the open front door.

She had heard it was little more than a dusty hole, but the inside of the mansion looked cleaner than expected.

It seemed Eloise had been coming here and cleaning quite diligently.

Following the marks left on the floor, Sinclair clicked her tongue irritably.

It was impossible to tell whether they had gone upstairs or downstairs.

‘But that doesn’t make much difference.’

By monitoring the doors leading outside and searching the mansion, they would eventually find them.

She stationed one subordinate at the entrance and checked all the doors, locking them securely.

Sinclair headed to the basement first with the men.

“People usually hide in darker places.”

That’s why people often foolishly cornered themselves in dead ends without even windows.

Going down to the basement, the characteristic cool, moldy smell of an old mansion washed over them.

When someone lit a lamp, the basement came into full view.

There was clutter here and there, but nothing large enough for a person to hide behind.

Still, just in case, they searched through old furniture and many cloths, but there was no sign of Eloise and Ryan, let alone the two themselves.

Sinclair quickly sent her subordinates back upstairs.

Returning to the first floor, she asked those who had been guarding, but they said they hadn’t heard anyone coming down, not even a footstep.

“Alright. Only the upper floors remain. Focus on searching places like storerooms.”

Saying this, Sinclair immediately went up to the third floor.

And she fired her gun toward where the attic was located.

A bullet hole appeared beneath the attic, which could only be reached by placing a ladder and climbing up.

But there was no scream from above, nor any sign of blood.

“They’re not up there.”

Having confirmed that the two hadn’t gone up to the attic, she began checking the rooms starting from the third floor, rubbing the end of her pistol.

If so, catching the two was now just a matter of time.

But shortly after.

“They’re nowhere to be found!”

“They’ve completely disappeared!”

Her subordinates shouted in confused voices.

“They’re nowhere to be found!”

Hearing the voices of the men who had come with Sinclair, Eloise bit her lip.

She could hear the men’s voices very clearly, yet the men couldn’t see her, nor did they even realize she was nearby.

“That’s understandable.”

Eloise carefully moved her hand to feel the wall of the space she was in.

The characteristic texture of old wooden walls was felt on her palm.

Moving a little more, she also touched something warm, firm, yet slightly soft, unlike the wooden wall.

She knew well that it was Ryan’s body.

“Then where on earth did they disappear to!”

At Sinclair’s sharp voice coming from beyond the wall, Eloise swallowed hard.

The place where she and Ryan were now hiding.

It was a secret space between walls that had been mentioned in her godmother’s book.