Ryan held Eloise in the narrow gap, remaining alert for any signs of movement.

Though he wanted to pull her close and duck down, it was impossible in the cramped space where even turning around was difficult.

He looked up. Light was coming through a newly formed hole in the wall above. It was a hole created when Sinclair had fired her gun moments ago.

‘She must have noticed it.’

But with the simultaneous sounds from outside, she had gone downstairs.

Ryan moved sideways little by little to get closer to the gap in the wall.

Though his view was obscured by dried ivy vines, he could at least tell that dozens of Albion soldiers had arrived at the mansion.

Meanwhile, someone outside was commanding the soldiers to quickly surround the mansion.

“Shoot immediately anyone who doesn’t surrender and drop their weapons!”

“Do you hear that, Maria Sinclair? You’re surrounded!”

Ryan gave a bitter smile at the terrifying voices that kept calling for Sinclair.

Those voices belonged to Richard and Philip. It seemed both had led troops from the cathedral and followed him directly.

“Shoot! Shoot them!”

“This way!”

Perhaps realizing there was no mercy in Richard and Philip’s voices, Sinclair’s subordinates attempted to escape by climbing over the wall connecting to the neighboring house. As they did, they aimed their guns at the Albion soldiers who were targeting them.

But before they could shoot, the Albion soldiers’ guns fired first.

“Fire!”

They had already been told it was fine to kill. Moreover, the attempted terror attack at the cathedral had further enraged the soldiers.

Fortunately, because the plan had leaked in advance, greater damage had been prevented, but that didn’t mean there were no casualties.

The soldiers were all venting their anger as they watched their comrades fall amid gunfire erupting everywhere.

Bang!

“Argghhh!”

Screams of wounded Lensk people could be heard from all directions.

Perhaps realizing they would either be captured alive or suffer non-fatal gunshot wounds, or perhaps due to some final sense of duty.

A bleeding Lensk person pulled something out from inside their clothes.

The Albion soldiers immediately recognized what it was.

A bomb!

The same things the Lensk people had tried to detonate at the cathedral. Those who realized this quickly took cover behind nearby objects.

Bang!

With a loud explosion, the mansion where they were hiding shook violently, with sounds of cracking down to its foundation.

Birds in nearby trees flew away in fright, and curious onlookers all screamed and ran into their homes.

Some people could be seen grabbing their children’s hands and running inside.

Ryan quickly embraced Eloise.

The space was so narrow that even this movement made their bones creak as if grinding against each other, but now was not the time to worry about such things.

Boom!

The explosions didn’t end with just one.

Perhaps sensing this was their final stand, the Lensk people seemed determined to use every method available to them, setting off all the bombs they had one after another.

Screams and explosions echoed in their ears like a battlefield.

“Cough! Cough!”

Sand and dust fell from above due to the explosions. This triggered Eloise’s cough, which had barely subsided.

Startled by the sound, she desperately covered her mouth, but once started, the cough couldn’t be stopped.

In fact, the more she tried to suppress it, the more violently it rose up in spasms.

Then Ryan saw something red coming out between her coughs.

“Eloise?”

As he whispered in alarm, Eloise grabbed his hand, indicating it was nothing.

“At Sinclair’s house…… cold…… I’m fine…… sorry!”

Though she only managed to string together a few words, Ryan immediately understood the situation.

What Mr. Surberton had said in Blissbury before flashed through Ryan’s mind.

When Mr. Surberton was still staying in Feltham, he had guided Ryan around Blissbury and told him:

“If I’m absent, you can ask Eloise about anything related to Blissbury. From spring to autumn, she’ll be scurrying around Feltham and Blissbury like a squirrel, so you won’t even need to look for her.”

“Does Miss Eloise leave during winter?”

At his question, Mr. Surberton’s expression darkened.

“She’s fine now, but Eloise suffered from a serious illness when she was young. Because of that, her health still deteriorates in winter. She’s relatively okay inside the house with roaring fireplaces, all kinds of preserves, and stacks of pastries, but as soon as she’s exposed to even a little cold air, she starts coughing.”

He continued with a concerned voice:

“Once the coughing starts, she can barely move for the rest of the winter. Of course, she recovers when spring comes… but sometimes seeing her cough up blood breaks my heart. Even as they get older, children still drive daggers into their parents’ hearts.”

Watching Mr. Surberton’s genuine concern as he spoke, Ryan had only felt awkwardness at the time.

It seemed ironic that Mr. Surberton, who worried so much about his daughter’s cough, could be categorized under the same word “father” as Earl Wallace.

So he had simply thought how different fathers could be and moved on, but now, holding her as she carefully tried to suppress her cough in his arms, all the things Eloise must have gone through flashed through his mind.

Simultaneously, anger rose within him—both at himself and at Sinclair.

‘Indeed, I should kill her.’

While he would continue to bow his head to Eloise, begging forgiveness for his lies, he wanted to end Sinclair with his own hands.

Meanwhile, the explosions subsided. No more screams or groans could be heard.

‘Is it over?’

If so, the Albion army would soon enter the mansion. When Richard or Philip found them, he would need to kick down this stuffy wall and immediately take Eloise to a hospital.

‘Let them handle the cleanup.’

Normally, he would never leave a mission until it was completely finished, but right now, Ryan’s mind was filled only with the thought of stopping Eloise’s cough.

Just as Ryan was thinking about pushing the wall:

“…?”

Something warm rushed in from outside. Simultaneously, Eloise began to cough harshly again.

“Cough! Hack!”

As she coughed more painfully than before, Ryan smelled the acrid scent mixed in the air coming from outside.

“D*mn it!”

He immediately covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve.

At the same time, he understood why Sinclair, despite knowing where they were hiding, hadn’t come back up.

Sinclair had set fire to the mansion.

Upon realizing this, Ryan didn’t hesitate any longer.

Eloise was already weakened. If she remained trapped here inhaling smoke, she might truly not be able to hold on.

‘Sinclair must still be downstairs!’

But his deliberation ended there.

Bang!

With Eloise in his arms, Ryan kicked the wall where they had been hiding with all his might.