Chapter 31
31.
“You’re right. I am lonely.”
“……Pardon?”
“Lobelin, it’s just as you said.”
Ian’s words followed immediately, but Lobelin felt as though her mind had already ground to a halt.
She simply stared with wide eyes down at her arm, which he still held.
“I pretend I’m not, but the truth is, I was very lonely. I was a child who needed a mother’s embrace, after all. And since then, I haven’t even been able to face my only sibling with an open heart.”
“…….”
“Strange. This isn’t something I’ve even told Paula……. But with you, Lobelin, it comes out easily.”
Ian smiled and gently pulled her arm toward him.
There was a depth of emotion in the curve of his smiling eyes.
“Your Highness……?”
Lobelin helplessly sank down toward the ground.
They were even closer now than the distance that had flustered her moments ago, but Ian seemed to have no intention of letting go of her arm.
“So, since we’re both lonely people, let’s try to get along.”
“What? What do you mean by—”
“I wonder. What could it mean?”
Don’t push me away this time.
Ian’s face, wearing a low chuckle, slowly drew closer.
Every time the fireworks adorning the night sky exploded, they illuminated Ian’s face for a fleeting moment.
As she met his shimmering blue eyes, Lobelin felt as though time was slowing down.
‘What is with that expression……?’
Ian’s blonde hair fluttered softly in the cool spring night breeze.
As his slightly ragged breath brushed against her cheek, Lobelin flinched.
Yet, for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to push him away.
Instead, she gripped his sleeve a little tighter.
‘How… how am I supposed to push him away after hearing something like that?’
She began to justify why she was staying like this with Ian.
Perhaps even justifying what might happen next.
“Lobelin…….”
As the light from the most recent firework faded, Ian’s low voice echoed.
The sparks had died out, but his voice and emotions were vivid.
The distance between them was now close enough for their breaths to mingle.
It was then.
“Cough, hack! Gah !”
“Ah……!”
Suddenly, the sound of a man’s violent coughing erupted from behind Ian.
Their lips, which had almost touched, pulled apart in an instant.
“W-what’s going on?”
“Get behind me for now.”
Ian instinctively shielded Lobelin and looked back.
A man was staggering toward them with his head hanging low.
A harsh coughing fit followed, sounding as if he were spitting up blood.
When the man lifted his head, they saw a beard that looked like tangled clumps of seaweed.
“My goodness, it’s Duke Bolton!”
Lobelin let out a small shriek upon identifying the man.
However, had it not been for the beard, he was in such a state that she might not have recognized him; Bolton looked like a completely different person from the last banquet.
His once portly frame had withered away, his cheeks were sunken and gaunt, and the areas beneath his eyes had turned dark.
It was a transformation far too extreme to be attributed simply to the distress of recent events.
And looking at his wretched appearance, she felt a sense of déjà vu.
“……It’s the Devil of Fernin.”
Ian groaned the words through gritted teeth.
Lobelin was also remembering the woman she had encountered on 6th Street.
“Are you saying the Duke used the poisonous herb? But why?”
“He lost a great deal due to his own mistakes. He must have wanted to escape reality.”
Ian spoke with contempt.
Just as the woman on 6th Street had been obsessed with the herb, Bolton was clutching a pouch with greedy intensity.
One didn’t need to see inside to guess what it contained.
“Lobelin. We need to move Bolton to a safe place first.”
“Yes. That would be best.”
Ian hurried toward Bolton.
However, Bolton was so far gone that he didn’t even notice someone approaching him.
“Duke! Get a hold of yourself and come this way—”
“Ugh! Let go! I am a Duke, I tell you! I… I deserve to have hundreds, no, thousands of these! Don’t you dare lay a hand on me!”
Ian tried to grab his arm and pull, but Bolton resisted with superhuman strength.
He was so reckless and stubborn that even Ian found him difficult to manage.
‘Damn, his strength is like a monster’s. Is this also due to the addiction?’
Ian grit his teeth, finding it no easy task to handle Bolton.
But he couldn’t give up.
When he had ordered the investigation of 6th Street last time, the perpetrators had already made a swift retreat.
He couldn’t afford to lose the evidence and the witness this time.
“Listen, Bolton. Who did you get that herb from? Answer me if you want to live!”
“ Gurgle , cough …….”
“This way! He went this way!”
“You damn little thief! Come out right now!”
“Your Highness! Other people are coming!”
Unfortunately, there were people pursuing Bolton.
The sound of multiple footsteps reached them.
“Damn it. Lobelin, get out of here first!”
But before Ian could get Lobelin to safety, the thugs burst into the alleyway.
The one who appeared to be their leader spat and spoke threateningly.
“This bastard. You dare steal something so precious? You’re going to die right here today……, oh? Who might you be? Are you part of this rat’s gang?”
The man, who had been confidently moving to seize Bolton, faltered upon spotting Ian.
He seemed to be the leader of the thugs.
Another man, who looked shifty, shouted from the side as if treading on his heels.
“Boss! Those two looked like they recognized this rat!”
“Oh? Is that so? So you were trying to sell what you stole from us to these people?”
The man approached slowly, wearing an expression that said he had caught them red-handed.
Ian kept a wary eye on the thugs while hiding Lobelin closely behind his back.
He could feel Lobelin’s fingers trembling slightly as she gripped his arm.
Feeling this, Ian bit his lip.
‘I have to get Lobelin to safety somehow.’
Ian steadied his voice and spoke calmly.
“Listen, why don’t we talk this over slowly?”
Ian glanced around his surroundings as if seeking the thugs’ agreement.
At that moment, several long wooden poles lying scattered on the ground caught his eye.
After carefully noting their positions, Ian turned his gaze back to the leader.
“The woman has nothing to do with this, so let her go and then we’ll talk.”
“Kee-hee-hee. Hey, this guy is trying to negotiate with us?”
“He’s got some nerve, doesn’t he!”
The thugs burst into laughter at Ian’s request to let Lobelin go.
But soon, their eyes turned cold and sharp.
“Enough with the nonsense.”
The thugs immediately drew their swords.
The chilling sound of unsheathing blades echoed through the air.
“Alright, let’s kill the man here and take the girl to sell her on another street.”
“……What did you say?”
Ian’s brow twitched at the thug’s words.
However, the men, certain of their victory due to their superior numbers, snickered and added more.
“Hey, Boss. The girl’s got a pretty face, it’s a waste to just sell her! Let’s have a go first…… ugh !”
The man who had been chattering incessantly next to the leader suddenly collapsed backward, losing consciousness.
While the thugs were dazed by the sudden turn of events, a sharp crack! rang out from another side followed by a scream.
Ian moved relentlessly among the fallen men, a wooden pole in his hand.
His hands were so fast it was difficult to follow them with the eye.
“Argh!”
The men who were flung onto the cold, hard ground didn’t even twitch.
Despite their numerical advantage and their swords, the thugs fell like autumn leaves beneath the wooden pole Ian wielded.
“Y-you idiots! You call yourselves mercenaries! All he has is a wooden stick!”
The leader grit his teeth and roared, but he couldn’t overcome the overwhelming gap in skill.
When even his last subordinate fell helplessly, the man gnashed his teeth and lunged at Ian.
“You bastard! You dare mess with us! I’ll really kill you!”
The man swung his sword with a crazed expression.
His eyes were bloodshot with rage.
The blade, swung indiscriminately, grazed Ian’s right arm.
‘Ugh!’
Ian winced at the sharp pain in his arm.
The leader was indeed the leader; he was clearly different from the small fry so far.
His attacks were crude, but he was nonetheless quite skilled.
Ian began to be pushed back slowly.
‘……Damn it, this won’t do.’
Ian, who had been blocking the man’s attacks relentlessly with one arm, steadied his breathing.
His body was becoming heavy from the continuous fighting, and the stinging pain in his arm wouldn’t stop.
The man’s eyes began to gleam ferociously as he caught Ian’s slowed movements.
“Next is your neck!”
“Your High……!”
As Ian sank toward the ground, the man’s blade flashed eerily under the moonlight.
The startled Lobelin couldn’t even let out a scream.
It was a moment of life and death.
