66 - The Crown I Will Take From You
66
‘The Minister’s bedroom is on the third floor, facing east.’
The Minister’s mansion, with its gaudy taste, was so dazzling that it hurt the eyes.
Gilded walls, candlesticks, and bizarre paintings that could hardly be called art appeared every ten steps.
When Medeia heard the voices of passing servants, she pressed herself against the wall.
Darkness concealed her figure.
“Still no contact with the master?”
“Yeah, they say the butler was kicked out of the palace right away. The Madam wants all the mansion and land deeds brought in, preparing for the worst. Even the small bribes.”
“Instead of trying to save her son, she’s thinking about saving herself, huh… Like mother, like son, I guess. By the way, shouldn’t we be looking for another place to go soon?”
The chattering voices faded away. Medeia held her breath and moved again.
The maze at the far end of the backyard was connected to the mansion.
Because the garden lights didn’t reach it, it was dark all around.
Tap, tap.
Medeia melted into the silent hallway.
The third floor of the mansion, where the study was located. She succeeded in entering without a sound.
The study was empty.
It was past midnight, a time when everyone except a few servants was fast asleep.
Medeia examined the interior of the study.
‘The Magic circle is in front of the third bookshelf, right?’
She passed the grotesque couch that revealed Etienne’s poor taste and found the third bookshelf behind the marble desk.
Medeia was about to take a step toward the Magic circle.
The moonlight, which had been subtly revealing itself, shone through the window and illuminated the interior.
The moment a long shadow fell under the curtain by the window, Medeia froze.
There was someone else in this room.
The realization was instantaneous. Medeia quietly adjusted the weapon under her sleeve.
“……”
A few seconds of silence as she inhaled.
The person hiding behind the curtain lunged.
Medeia also stepped on the couch as a support and leaped toward the window.
It was to gain the momentum to stab the opponent’s neck from top to bottom. In her hand was a thin Dagger.
But the opponent was faster than Medeia.
“Kuh.”
Medeia, kicked in the waist, was thrown against the wall.
Her right shoulder and back, which collided violently with a dull thud, felt numb.
As a black hand snatched at her neck, Medeia quickly kicked his leg with her foot.
Then, she escaped from his grasp by stabbing the Dagger into the opponent’s shoulder.
No, she was trying to escape.
Even though the thin Dagger was deeply embedded, with only the handle visible, the opponent didn’t even flinch and snatched at Medeia’s neck again.
The masked man had overwhelming physique and power. The outcome was obvious.
But Medeia, who had faced countless opponents bigger and stronger than herself in her past life, raised her head instead of despairing.
‘The third bookshelf.’
Her green eyes, gauging the distance, gleamed.
She twisted her body and kicked the shoulder she had attacked earlier. While the opponent faltered, she threw herself toward the side where the Magic circle was drawn.
‘If I can just get to the Magic circle-!’
She could escape from this person.
But the opponent blocked her retreat as if he had read her direction and didn’t let Medeia go.
The fugitive and the pursuer rolled on the floor in a tangled mess.
And at that moment, the Magic circle was activated.
Lines flashing with blue light soared up like a sphere and enveloped the two.
\ \ *
Duke Claudio’s Residence.
“What do you mean, transferred!”
Duke Claudio slammed the table violently.
It was because the fact that Etienne had been isolated was belatedly conveyed to the Duke’s Residence.
“Yes, Your Excellency. It seems he was sent to the Special Prison where Class A prisoners are held.”
“Not only is visitation impossible, but they say that anyone who approaches the prison where the Minister is, regardless of status, is searched. Father, we can’t secretly send a Communication device like before, so we can’t even read the Minister’s intentions now.”
“Damn it, Ciseo is finally trying to turn against me…!”
“Your Excellency, no, it is said that this was ordered by the Queen Dowager, not the Prime Minister.”
The Duke’s neck stiffened at his subordinate’s report.
Wasn’t giving him humiliation in front of the palace gate enough?
“Mother, really! Am I not a child born from the same womb as this Claudio? Why are you so harsh only to me!”
The Duke was frustrated by the reality that his powerful ally was about to be executed, and his mother was not helping his grand plan but rather trying to bind and oppress him more.
“Your Excellency, as of yesterday, the Minister has also been stripped of his position. They say the proceedings will go straight to execution without trial.”
The fact that the execution date had been set meant that the outline of this incident that had ousted Minister Etienne had been clearly established.
Why? What did Ciseo find out?
Then, Samon voiced the suspicion that had been bothering him.
“Father. Etienne may have betrayed us.”
What else could be the reason for the sudden change in the situation? Something must have changed in the incident.
“Nonsense. You don’t know Lark Etienne. Do you think that greedy man would just collapse like this?”
The Regent Duke immediately denied it.
“Yes, I don’t. But he’s in prison now. We can’t know who he’s meeting or what he’s saying.”
Samon pointed out.
“Father, don’t forget that he has the Sealed letter in his hands, right? The moment that’s revealed, we’re finished. If he even opens his mouth….”
“……”
“So we have to do something.”
“Are you saying we should kill him?”
The Duke hesitated.
“The results haven’t even come out yet. Things might work out and he might be released as is. Killing him is out of the question.”
He shook his head.
“Do you think it’s that easy to find someone who can properly control their mind and greed? And what about his forces?”
His father’s attitude was quite firm. Samon stepped back.
“If that’s your will, Father, we must at least secure the Sealed letter.”
The Duke agreed with his son’s point, but he faced another problem.
“…But how can we enter that space and retrieve the Sealed letter without Etienne?”
It was a problem that the Sealed letter was hidden too well.
He had chosen an excessively dangerous place to eliminate the possibility of intrusion.
“If we can’t retrieve it, we have to get rid of it. If the Count's Residence burns down, the Magic circle connected to the Sealed letter will naturally disappear.”
“What?”
“It’s an abandoned mansion. We don’t know when it will be breached. We have to burn the source of the trouble.”
“Will the Minister agree? If he finds out about this later….”
“He’ll eventually understand. We can’t leave any traces. We can’t throw away our lifelines just to please the Minister. If the Sealed letter is discovered, we’re all dead.”
Samon’s words could not be denied. He couldn’t hesitate any longer.
The Regent Duke, frowning, rubbed his temples and nodded.
“…Ha, I understand.”
He seemed reluctant, but he had given his permission anyway.
“Young Duke.”
When Samon returned to his office, a shadow that had been waiting greeted him.
“Father has given his permission.”
“That’s a relief. So, do we just set the fire?”
“No, we have to get rid of all the embers inside. Kill them all. Leave no one alive.”
The subordinate hesitated.
“…Even the family members?”
“Yes. Burn them all. The fire will erase the signs.”
Samon, he was a man who overlooked favors but never forgot grudges.
“I have to make that dirty trash pay the price for the shit he threw at me.”
He gritted his teeth at the thought of the Minister lewdly harassing him at the last banquet.
At that time, he couldn’t even utter a word of resentment because he was watching the Minister, who was making a fuss over Birna.
Now that the Minister had been ousted, there was no way Samon would miss the opportunity to vent his anger.
