170 - Pieces of the Broken Glass Slipper
Shattered Glass Slipper Shards 170
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The man was attacked a bit far from the village. No, the village was just a small countryside place, so buying a gift for the Crown Prince was out of the question from the start.
However, I hadn't expected the first village I arrived at after parting ways with Sir Halberd to be so shabby.
"What should we do?"
One of the knights looked at me, seemingly at a loss. It was clear from his expression that there wouldn't be an inn where I could rest, as there wasn't a decent shop in sight.
As if he had forgotten that just a year ago, I would have been grateful even to sleep in a shabby inn, he treated me with great deference, as if I were a refined young lady of a count.
Well, if you combined my lives before returning, I was a perfect aristocratic lady to the bone.
In any case, there was no way that a delicately cared-for, frail body could endure dusty sheets and a rock-hard bed. It would be fortunate if the room, which I doubted had even been cleaned properly, was free of mites and fleas.
"Isn't there another village nearby?"
I asked the knight, but the innkeeper answered. The way he rolled his eyes as he spoke made it seem like he was trying to squeeze out every last penny. He was like a greedy pig.
"If you want a bigger village than this, just go straight down this road. You'll have to pass through a small forest, but it's still a long way from dark, so you should be fine."
"Shall we do that?"
"Yes. This place won't do. I'm sorry for the trouble, but let's go somewhere else."
"Yes, Lady."
I was about to get into the carriage with Seril's help when the owner kept glancing at me, his eyes gleaming. It wasn't admiration or fear of a noble, but a sticky, unpleasant gaze as if he were looking at a precious treasure. I almost got angry at the discomfort, but I thought it would be better to get out of there quickly, so I pretended not to notice.
If any of the knights were perceptive, or rather, if they thought of me as the Bishvarts Family's young lady, they would take care of it, so there was no need to worry.
A short scream was heard a moment later, and then the carriage started moving again. Seril, who had moved from the driver's seat into the carriage at my command, tilted her head as if puzzled.
"What on earth was that sound? Should I go out and take a look?"
"Don't worry about it."
"Yes."
Admirably, Seril didn't utter a single unnecessary word, even though I had parted ways with Sir Halberd's group along the way.
Marie would have been reckless and out of line, but she remained calm throughout. It made me think that I had made the right decision in bringing Seril.
No matter how you compared them, Seril was better than Marie in terms of actions and thoughts. In particular, she was the best among the maids around me at reading her master's mood and prostrating herself.
Ever since she swore perfect obedience, and after I instilled in her a sense of rivalry towards Marie, she only looked at me like a well-behaved dog, occasionally revealing her desire to become the head maid.
It was possible because the painful memories of the past were like an invisible leash holding onto her soul.
The loyalty she had once given to Roena had been transferred to me completely.
Even this trip, she couldn't hide her flushed expression, excited by the joy of being chosen. She hadn't expressed it before, but it seemed she was quite concerned about falling behind Marie.
Well, given that girl's personality, there was no way she would have stayed still. She must have been running wild, throwing her temper around after taking control of the maids.
She probably acted arrogantly, as if she were the head maid, and was even rude to the maids who served me.
She was obedient now, but considering Seril's personality before she was trapped in Capsa, it was surprising that she was so tolerant of Marie's tyranny.
Was she enduring it because she thought I was behind her? It was about time she showed her true colors. Even though they served the same master, she must have felt bad that only Marie was doing well.
"Seril."
"Yes?"
"Just keep being clever like this. Then you'll always be by my side."
"Yes, Lady."
Her head was bowed, but her face, which couldn't be completely hidden, was flushed red. Her shoulders, which were wide for a woman, were trembling, whether from emotion or not.
"The only reason Marie could have more than you was because you went into Capsa. But I think it's time to get out of that now. So let's just be a little more patient and watch Marie."
"……Lady."
"Yes. Something will change when this trip is over. No, it has to."
Otherwise, there would be no point in acting this way.
I smiled bitterly and turned my head.
I hated myself for arbitrarily deciding the fate of my adoptive father with such a strange conviction, but I comforted myself by saying that it was out of my hands from the beginning.
This was also why I set a line in advance by doing the best I could within the limits visible to others.
So, I hoped to grab as much as possible before the predetermined tragedy arrived. So that no one could easily touch my mother and me, who had no backing from my adoptive father.
The carriage, which had been rolling along at a moderate speed, suddenly stopped abruptly. I barely managed to move my body, which was about to be thrown forward, and took a breath, but loud shouts began to be heard from outside.
Seril looked at me with a terrified expression, then carefully opened a small window to check the situation outside.
Through the open window, I heard a shout, 'Drag the woman out of the carriage first.' At the same time, the sound of metal clashing and screams, whether from someone shouting or not, echoed chaotically.
Was it an attack? I was so surprised by the unexpected situation that I couldn't react, and Seril asked me in a tearful voice.
"L, Lady, wh, what should we do?"
At that moment, the door burst open, and a thug with rough breaths stuck his head in.
His face was crudely covered with a black cloth, and as soon as he met my eyes, he muttered, 'Found her,' and immediately reached out.
Why did he say he found me when he saw me? Was I the target? Why?
My body, frozen with fear, was unable to move a single finger.
Seril bravely spread her arms to shield me, but the man roughly pushed her away, and she collapsed with a groan.
"I don't want to be rough. So don't scream and get out quietly. Otherwise, I'll drag you out. What will you do?"
I barely moved my trembling lips and asked the thug.
"Who told you to bring me?"
"Do you think I'm stupid enough to tell you that? Just get out quietly when I tell you nicely. It's too much trouble to knock you out and take you, because the dresses you're wearing are damn heavy."
He sounded calm, but the man kept rolling his eyes and looking around. He kept twitching his shoulders nervously, and it seemed that the other thugs were being taken down one by one by the knights. So I slowly moved my body to the corner of the carriage and decided to hold out as long as possible.
But the thug's hand was faster. As if he couldn't stand it any longer, he reached out and grabbed my wrist painfully.
Seril, who had been crumpled in the corner as if she had fainted for a moment, jumped up and clung to his arm, hitting him wildly, but he didn't budge.
Rather, he cursed, 'You bitch, get out of here!' and slapped her cheek with his other hand. His rough, large hand struck with force, and her lip burst, splattering blood. A sharp scream that seemed to tear the ears followed.
"Damn it, get out quietly. Walk down on your own before I pull you out by the hair, you bitch. Will you be obedient if I slap you once?"
He seemed very angry that I was resisting with all my might, and he started swearing. At the same time, my arm was being pulled so hard that it felt like it would fall off, and it was so painful that tears welled up.
Still, I put strength in my feet and grabbed the chair with my other arm, which wasn't being held, and dragged myself along as much as I could.
Meanwhile, Seril, her cheeks swollen, desperately ran up and bit the thug's arm that was holding my arm.
The thug let out a shriek and shook off my hand. Then, he grabbed Seril's hair, who was clinging to his hand, took out a dagger from his chest, and stabbed it into her shoulder.
"Aaaagh!!"
"Seril!!!"
"You bitch, you want to die that badly."
The thug kicked Seril, who was screaming and crying, and this time grabbed my hair and dragged me out.
I grabbed his hand with both hands and tried to minimize the pain, but I fell helplessly to the ground, and the shock hit me. I couldn't breathe, so I instinctively flailed my legs and coughed, and curses poured down again.
"Damn it, you should have just stayed cooped up in the mansion. Why did you have to come all the way down here and cause trouble, huh? That's why you're in such a mess. Stop struggling, you bitch. Before you get hit."
Tears were falling in torrents from the pain. I blinked my eyes with effort and looked around, and I could see the knights struggling to fight against nearly dozens of thugs.
They seemed to have noticed me being dragged away, and they tried to push back the encroaching enemies and run towards me, but they couldn't easily shake off the dozens of people who were rushing at them like crazy, as if their duty was to grab the knights' ankles. Only the sound of 'Lady' was echoing chaotically.
"I'm not going to take you somewhere to sell you or kill you, so just stay still. Someone wants to meet you, so if you just come quietly, I'll guarantee your life."
I thought that three knights could withstand most threats. No, I thought it would be okay if I left the knights there and quietly slipped away. I was sure that the country would pay more attention to that side.
If there was something fishy, they would desperately prevent the knights from searching the place, and I thought they might find something if they did. I thought they would use a small number of elites to handle the matter secretly.
But was I wrong? Was I being punished for being arrogant and ignorant? Was it because I didn't hold Sir Halberd's hand that I brought this danger upon myself? Did they think it was more profitable to take me away than to interfere with the investigation of the attack site?
At first, pain washed over me. Then, shame came. Then, terror swept over me. Finally, regret for my foolish self surged up.
But there was nothing I could do. I twisted my body this way and that, trying to escape from his grasp, but I couldn't escape, only my shoes came off.
Instead, I got slapped. Sparks flew from my eyes, and at the same time, a bitter taste of blood filled my mouth. My burning cheeks throbbed and ached more than my scalp.
"Let go! I said let go!!"
"Won't you stay still?"
"Let go of this! Let go of this, you bastard!!!"
I dug my nails into the man's hand. Then he slapped me again. My lips were more torn, and blood was streaming down to my chin. Still, I didn't care and shouted fiercely, twisting my body more recklessly.
"You bastard? Ha, you're trying to die. A noble lady with such a foul mouth, huh?"
"I'm not going. I'm not going even if I die!! So let go of this hand. Let go before I kill you!!!"
Suddenly, great pain came from my stomach. It hurt so much that I couldn't breathe, as if I had been kicked hard. I tried to open my mouth to make a sound, but only a sigh mixed with empty air came out.
All the strength drained from my body, and my knees naturally bent towards my stomach. The hand that had been scratching the thug's flesh recklessly had long since fallen to the ground to cover my stomach.
"Now you're finally quiet. I should have done this sooner. What a waste of time. There was no order to bring you in gently, so it'll be okay. Anyway, noble bitches are all troublesome."
The thug started humming and dragging my body away. I could hear the sound of someone shouting Lady from afar, but it was now ringing in my ears like tinnitus. Hot tears were streaming down my swollen cheeks.
I said I would come back safe and sound. Mother will be waiting…….
Suddenly, the pain I had been feeling from my head disappeared. At the same time, something that sounded like a scream echoed nearby. Someone was carefully hugging me, who was lying limply on the ground.
"I'm sorry I'm late."
I heard a familiar voice. The man I had no doubt would follow me if the Crown Prince was involved was looking down at me with a fierce face I had never seen before.
"……Sir Aires."
Knight of Ice. Michael Ayres had appeared here.
