episode_0018

Squeak—

“… Umm.”

Hearing a distant noise in his sleep, the old butler woke up with half-closed eyes.

No matter what might happen at this late hour, as the manager of the mansion, he needed to react sensitively to even the slightest change.

The old deacon released his locked neck and took a step forward.

By the time I passed through the dark hallway and reached the entrance.

“… !”

A figure illuminated by the moonlight ran desperately out of the mansion.

Luna Winfred, the eldest daughter of this mansion and the young lady whom the old butler had taken care of all his life.

“Ah, lady!”

As if running barefoot on a stone road wasn’t enough, breathing the cool early morning air dressed like that.

What are you going to do if you catch a cold?

The old butler’s steps were filled with urgency.

“Lady Luna!”

Luna did not stop despite the old butler’s call.

Rather than accelerating and narrowing the distance, he became further and further away from Luna.

After a while.

“… What is this sound?”

In the quiet silence, a loud cry could be heard distantly beyond the gate.

It was the neighing of a horse.

Luna, who was running like crazy, gradually slowed down.

At that time, a shabby carriage speeding away with the sound of horses’ hooves passed by the old butler’s eyes.

Luna sat down in vain as she watched the carriage leaving.

Her bare skin, clearly exposed, hit the stone floor.

“Lady!!”

The old butler was scared and ran towards Luna, who was sitting down.

How could a young lady who never once lost her dignity act so carelessly?

The old deacon’s mind went blank.

The distance gradually narrowed, and the old butler arrived in front of Luna, who had already collapsed.

Her knees that touched the floor were red from scratches, the soles of her feet were bloody from rubbing against the stone, and her clothes were dragged on the floor.

“What on earth is this…? !”

The old butler’s eyes were filled with astonishment.

Luna looked devastated and couldn’t take her eyes off the direction the carriage had left.

“Lady! Are you okay?”

“Kyle… ”

“Kyle? You mean Master Kyle? Master is sleeping in his room right now… ”

“He really left… ?”

“Wounds… ! I will call my doctor right away.”

Kyle left the mansion.

Luna knew better than anyone else that this was not a simple outing.

Kyle, her precious little brother, probably left this place with no intention of ever returning.

That means Luna will no longer be able to see Kyle in this mansion from now on.

“… ”

My whole body was pounding, as if my heart had burst through my ribs.

Soon, blood flowed from the open wound.

“Ha… ha ha ha… ”

Luna burst into laughter a couple of times.

A quiet madness flashed in her emotionless eyes.

Crackling—

Luna stood up, shaking off the dust from her clothes.

Eventually, a hoarse voice escaped from between the teeth.

“… Butler.”

“Yes Miss.”

“Kyle left the mansion.”

“Then, the carriage from earlier… ?”

“Find it. Do whatever it takes.”

The old butler looked at Luna with a dumbfounded face.

“Can we find it and take separate action?”

“No, just find out the location and report it to me.”

“Just the location?”

Luna gently patted the old butler’s shoulder.

“Okay, just the location. ah! After reporting, just leave it to me. Because my father wouldn’t be interested anyway. We can roughly say that he was heartbroken over the breakup of his engagement and went on a vacation to some resort. It’s not difficult, right?”

“… … I can’t miss reporting to the Duke.”

“Stop.”

Luna’s stern voice dispersed in the air.

The old butler’s conversation grew cold at the sight of her sad gaze.

“It’s not difficult. Right?”

“… ”

“Nod if you understand.”

The old butler nodded with a pale face.

Soon Luna’s eyes rounded.

“Ah.”

Luna turned her back and stopped.

After a while, a much softer voice reached the old butler’s ears.

“I’ll go out at noon tomorrow, so get ready.”

“You mean going out?”

Luna lightly tucked her loose hair behind her ear.

“I have to go to Count Justia’s residence.”

“If it’s Justia, there’s Lady Isabel… ?”

“Yes, I know very well.”

Count Justia.

A familiar sound pierced the old butler’s mind.

Luna clicked her tongue as she looked at the soles of her feet, which were covered in blood.

“Tsk, it stings. Could you please call the doctor to my room?”

“Ah, I understand.”

“It’s cold. I would also like some warm tea.”

“I will send you out immediately.”

Luna smiled brightly.

“Thank you.”

*****

Finally succeeded.

He completely ended his relationship with Isabel, which would become an obstacle in the future, and escaped from the damn duke’s house with a big hit.

The shaking of the carriage felt pleasant.

As it was a hastily purchased carriage, the ride was uncomfortable, but my mind could not be more at ease.

There are two ways to leave the Northern Territory and reach the capital of the empire.

You can either go by land using a carriage, or you can transit at a station and take a train to the capital.

I plan to use only carriages as transportation to the imperial capital.

In terms of efficiency, the train may be the right choice, but it is also an option that should be avoided as the possibility of being tracked is high.

How do trains exist in the medieval worldview?

I do not know either. In the first place, wouldn’t it be strange to have a train in a world where magic exists?

I knew it before becoming possessed, but the background of the world in this game is medieval yet close to modern times.

A world where systematically developed engineering technology, alchemy, and divine power coexist.

This world is that kind of world.

‘There are good points too.’

What if the possessed world was a complete medieval world without any convenience elements?

What would it have been like if we lived in a world where people had to do their business on paper, the streets were stinky, and there was no proper air conditioning or heating?

I can guarantee that the quality of life would have been cut by more than 50%.

The biggest contributor to my ability to survive and maintain my sanity in this world is none other than the development of civilization.

Of course, this is also the exclusive property of the empire, but what does it matter?

After all, I am a citizen of the empire.

“… ”

I looked out the window blankly and suddenly asked Diana, who was sitting across from me.

“Isn’t it unfair?”

“What do you mean?”

“You became a fugitive in an instant. I’m asking if that’s unfair.”

“I don’t feel unfair.”

I looked at Diana blankly.

Now that I think about it, even when I mentioned that I had to leave the mansion without any explanation, I think Diana nodded with an expressionless face like now.

Were the knights originally this blind?

Suddenly, my first meeting with Diana from the previous episode flashed through my mind.

Diana, the Empire’s first born knight commander.

Her appearance, ready to go, still had the majestic beauty seen in the illustrations in the game.

Now it’s something you’ll never see again anywhere else.

Because Diana is no longer a knight of the Empire but has become the sword of Kyle Winfred.

Yes, in a way, I may have taken it away.

The future of an innocent person who has nothing to do with me, just to return to my world.

A strange feeling of guilt pricked my heart.

It was then.

“… !”

The carriage shook violently and my butt bounced.

As soon as the neatly maintained stone road ended, the carriage began to shake like crazy.

It’s so uncomfortable that I’m dying, but even the roads are a mess, so there’s no place that doesn’t ache, including my back, shoulders, and buttocks.

As I frowned and endured the discomfort, Diana’s soft voice came.

“If you relax your arms and lean your shoulders to the side, the discomfort will be greatly reduced.”

“The handle sticks out. Where should I lean?”

“You can lean on my shoulder.”

“… What?”

Did he really just ask me to rest my head on his shoulder?

As I blinked my eyes at a loss for words, Diana tilted her head as if it was nothing special.

“Isn’t there a long way to go?”

“… ”

“It will take one full day from now to reach the destination.”

That’s right.

But no matter what, you can’t just lean your head on the shoulder of a woman you don’t know for no reason.

I looked out the window in silence.

However, the carriage began to rattle violently as if it had just begun.

No matter how hastily you obtain a carriage, how low is its quality?

I felt dizzy and sick from the rattling that even reached my brain.

“… ”

Diana made eye contact.

It was as if his eyes were asking if he could continue holding on.

‘… … I’m really going to die if this continues.’

When I leaned my head against the window, the protruding handle caught me, and when I leaned back, there was no proper backrest.

I swallowed deeply.

It didn’t take long to make a decision.

“… ”

I carefully rested my head on Diana’s shoulder.

As she said, the discomfort was greatly reduced due to the comfortable height to lean on and the solid stability.

At that time, Diana’s quiet voice pierced my ears.

“Rest in peace.”

shit.

I should get a nicer carriage.