Chapter 55

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Early in the morning, Ed headed toward the castle gates with a flutter in his heart. Today, Lucy was supposed to visit the castle.

Ed had been so excited since yesterday that he couldn’t sleep properly, but in the end, he couldn’t go to greet Lucy.

An emergency meeting had been called at the castle.

It was strange for an emergency meeting to be held in his father’s absence, but Ed attended the meeting with the vassals.

And there, he received shocking news.

His father had been captured by Lord Howard.

And Lord Howard had demanded the marriage of his son, Gulden, to Ellie as a condition for releasing his father.

The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy.

Some of the more aggressive knights suggested starting a war immediately, but with their father captured, war was impossible.

They had to find a way to save their father.

But they also couldn’t bring themselves to hand Ellie over.

Ellie was still too young to marry, and they didn’t even know what kind of person Gulden, Lord Howard’s son, was.

If Ellie were to be trapped in an unhappy life, could they bear the responsibility?

The meeting continued in heavy silence.

Some vassals racked their brains to find an alternative, and there was even talk of asking Ellie for her opinion.

For a moment, Ed thought of asking Lucy for help, but he quickly shook his head.

Last time, when they asked Lucy for help, their opponent was just one bishop. This time, it was a lord with an army.

No matter how powerful Lucy was as a witch, getting involved in this matter seemed too dangerous.

In the end, Ed let out a deep sigh and decided to give Ellie the chance to make her own choice.

“…”

Ellie, who had listened to Ed’s story, hung her head in silence.

In her arms was a basket filled with the bread she had made for her father.

“Ellie…”

Ed gently patted Ellie’s shoulder.

“You can refuse if you don’t want to. No one will force you. If you say no, we’ll find another way…”

“There is no other way.”

Ellie said.

If it were the usual Ellie, she would have burst into tears by now, but instead, she bit her lip and held back her tears.

“To save Father, I have to make this sacrifice. There’s no other way.”

“Ellie…”

“It’s okay.”

Ellie forced a smile.

“This is the only thing I can do. I want to save Father.”

“…”

Ed’s chest tightened.

It felt unbearably cruel to see his younger sister deciding to sacrifice herself.

“Ellie.”

Ed spoke softly.

“I’ll respect your decision. But if you feel scared or change your mind, tell me. No matter what choice you make, I’ll protect you.”

“Thank you, Brother. But don’t worry. I won’t change my mind.”

Ellie whispered softly and gently stroked the basket of bread in her arms.

As if the bread basket symbolized her resolve.

“…”

Beside them, Lucy listened quietly, her gaze lowered.

Ellie turned her head to look at Lucy.

“Lucy…”

Ellie’s voice trembled faintly.

“I’m sorry, you came to visit today, but… this happened… I don’t think I can play anymore today…”

“It’s okay.”

Lucy gently stroked Ellie’s head.

“We can play next time.”

“…”

Ellie couldn’t continue and bit her lip.

Her eyes were reddening.

On Lucy’s shoulder, Finn looked at Ellie with a worried expression.

“…I’ll come back again.”

With those words, Lucy turned and left.

After leaving Leyton Castle, Lucy headed into the forest and summoned her Death Mount.

Finn, perched on her shoulder, cautiously asked, “Are we going home?”

Lucy shook her head.

“We’re going to Howard’s territory.”

“Huh?”

Finn blinked.

“Why there?”

“To save Lord Leyton. If we save him, Ellie won’t have to marry against her will.”

“B-but… you’re going alone? Even if you can use powerful magic, this is…”

“I’m not alone.”

Lucy smiled faintly and poked Finn’s cheek.

“You’re here too.”

“N-no, but…”

Finn’s face turned red as her wings fluttered nervously.

“It’s too dangerous, Lucy. It’d be better to join forces with others…”

“That would just complicate things. It’s better for me to go alone and save Lord Leyton.”

If she brought others along, Lord Leyton’s life could be in even greater danger.

After all, he was currently being held as a hostage.

“Hmm.”

In the end, Finn shrugged and crawled into Lucy’s clothes, poking her head out.

“Well, I guess we have no choice. Let’s go save Lord Leyton!”

“Yeah.”

Lucy smiled and set off on her Death Mount.

She roughly knew where Howard’s territory was from looking at the map before.

It was to the east.

◈

Outside the window, darkness had fallen, and faint moonlight shone over the castle.

Lord Howard sat under the candlelight, reading a letter with a satisfied smile.

“Hoho.”

The letter was from the Leyton family, agreeing to the marriage between Ellie and Gulden.

Lord Howard’s plan was falling perfectly into place.

Now, Lord Leyton would hand over his daughter in exchange for his life, and soon, the territory with the magic stones would also fall into Lord Howard’s hands.

“Things are going too smoothly.”

Lord Howard slowly brought his wine glass to his lips.

At that moment, a cold wind blew through the window, causing the candle flame to flicker.

“…?”

Lord Howard frowned.

It was nighttime, but the atmosphere felt eerier than usual.

“Strange weather.”

Just then.

Caw!

A flock of crows suddenly flew past the window.

The glass panes rattled ominously.

Then, the sound of footsteps running down the hallway could be heard.

Soon, the door opened, and a soldier rushed in, panting heavily.

“M-my Lord! Something terrible has happened!”

Lord Howard furrowed his brow.

“What’s all this commotion in the middle of the night?”

“A battle has broken out in the underground prison where the hostages are being held!”

“What?”

Lord Howard set down his glass.

“A battle? What are you talking about? Did Lord Leyton try to escape?”

“No. Someone… no, something came in from outside.”

“Something?”

“It… it wasn’t human. It was a monster that moved like a shadow…”

Crash—!

Just then, the sound of shattering glass echoed from afar.

Followed by a horrifying scream.

Lord Howard’s face stiffened.

“Gather the knights! Mobilize all the troops in the castle to stop that monster. Nothing must happen to Lord Leyton!”

“Understood!”

The soldier bowed and rushed off, while Lord Howard quickly prepared to head out.

‘Who dares to cause trouble in my castle…!’

Just then, footsteps were heard again.

This time, it was Lord Howard’s son, Gulden.

“F-father, what’s all this commotion in the castle…?”

“It seems some kind of monster has appeared. We’ll deal with it quickly, so don’t worry.”

“Understood. But, um, has the letter from the Leyton family arrived?”

Gulden’s eyes gleamed with desire.

Lord Howard pointed to the letter on the table.

“It just arrived. As expected, they’ve agreed to the marriage…”

Boom—!

A massive explosion sounded from downstairs.

“Damn it, what’s going on!”

Lord Howard stormed out into the hallway in frustration.

Just then, another soldier came running.

The soldier was limping.

“M-my Lord!”

“What’s happening?”

“Th-the underground prison has been destroyed… and Lord Leyton…”

“What about Lord Leyton?”

Lord Howard asked urgently.

“H-he’s gone. It seems he disappeared into the shadows.”

“What? What were the guards doing!”

“The guards…”

The soldier’s face turned pale.

“They’re all dead. Their heads… their heads were eaten…”

“Their heads?”

Lord Howard felt a chill run down his spine.

It seemed something extraordinary was happening in the underground prison.

“Seal the castle gates immediately. Under no circumstances should Lord Leyton escape the castle! Do you understand!”

As Lord Howard shouted, the soldier quickly bowed and ran toward the castle gates.

“Father…”

Gulden’s uneasy voice came from behind.

“Something’s wrong… If this continues, the marriage with Ellie…”

“Shut up and follow me!”

Lord Howard walked briskly toward the underground prison with a stern expression.

Gulden followed his father, trembling with anxiety.

The air in the castle grew heavier, and as they descended the stairs to the underground, the smell of dampness and blood assaulted their noses.

Soon, they reached the bottom of the stairs, and a gruesome scene came into view.

The hallway was littered with the bodies of soldiers, all of them missing their heads.

Blood pooled on the floor, forming large puddles, and the inner part of the underground prison was shrouded in black mist.

Lord Howard gritted his teeth.

“What the hell…”

Just then, a knight came running out of the black mist.

“M-my Lord!”

The knight’s face was twisted in terror.

“You must retreat! Undead are swarming in!”

“What?”

“There are at least a hundred of them. The soldiers and knights are holding them off, but this black mist… and among the undead, there’s an incredibly powerful knight…!”

Lord Howard frowned.

“Undead? What are you talking about?”

“F-father, we need to retreat.”

Gulden urgently tugged at Lord Howard’s sleeve.

“Damn it…”

Lord Howard wasn’t happy about it, but he decided to retreat for now.

They needed to regroup outside and deal with the situation.

Just as Lord Howard turned to leave.

Thud—

“…?”

A girl stood at the top of the stairs.

With white hair and red eyes.

She stared down at Lord Howard with an expressionless gaze.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
And to that she declared: ‘Crush his balls.’