57 - The Bride of the Great Lord is a Warrior from Hell
Alisha frantically touched Reikart's hands and face, desperately hoping to see his furrowed brow relax.
Unlike in Tessen, where holding his hand alone improved his breathing, the effect wasn't immediate in Baden.
Knowing there was no one to turn to for help, Alisha calmly stroked his frozen body.
"Your Highness, can you hear me?"
As if suffering from some kind of agony, Reikart's hair was instantly soaked with sweat.
But thanks to Alisha's constant caresses, he faintly opened his eyes.
"...Alisha..."
"It's not time yet, is it?"
"I must return."
Reikart spoke as if whispering.
It wasn't so much a whisper as it was that the pain was too great for him to make a sound.
Alisha understood the whisper, which seemed to only move his lips.
"Do we need to go to Tessen?"
Alisha said, supporting Reikart as he tried to rise.
"To the Grand Duke's Residence first."
Royalty could command thousands with a single finger from their designated position.
But if they recklessly strayed from that place, they could be beheaded at any moment.
"Damn it."
Alisha muttered a curse without realizing it.
Reikart leaned on Alisha, suppressing his pain, and chuckled softly, his throat rumbling.
He opened and closed his eyes deeply, then stood alone without leaning on Alisha.
Just looking at him as he opened the terrace door, he seemed like a cold-blooded man who wouldn't bleed a drop if stabbed.
The only difference between Reikart and his usual self was that he was holding his fiancée's hand tightly with his left hand.
As she stepped outside, gazes poured onto Alisha's face.
Curiosity, wonder, unidentified jeers, inexplicable anger, even glances that tried to ignore her.
All sorts of gazes stabbed at her face, but Alisha pretended not to notice.
As if she didn't see the gazes directed at her at all, she feigned ignorance.
More than those gazes, she placed her other hand over the hand she was holding with Reikart, hoping to alleviate his pain even a little.
Alisha guided Reikart, who might lose his way, with the hand she held.
Reikart headed towards the entrance of the Grand Theater with an expressionless face.
When he saw people smiling and trying to talk to him or Alisha, he ignored them as if they were invisible.
The size of the Grand Theater where the party was being held was immense.
The two had to come from the terrace near the dance hall, so they had to pass through a huge crowd.
Alisha continued to guide him with the hand she held, only moving her eyes to find Juan.
Juan was chatting with a middle-aged man in a quiet corner.
Juan, who had been laughing at the words of the middle-aged man with a strong jaw and a seemingly strong personality, passed the wine glass he was holding to the other person the moment he met Alisha's eyes.
As Juan approached immediately, Alisha glanced towards the outside.
Juan nodded and turned back, running towards the entrance.
Heading outside, Juan looked for Roderick, who was surrounded by noble ladies, spreading laughter.
"Roderick!"
Roderick, who had been making the noble ladies and ladies laugh, smoothly passed the wine glass he was holding to the person next to him with the word "Excuse me," and left the party.
"It's ready at the very front."
Roderick said, as if he knew what Juan was looking for.
Juan walked as if running, heading to the carriage prepared at the very front of the carriage procession.
The servants and coachmen who had been taking a break quickly moved at Juan's words.
Confirming Juan's movements, Roderick approached Reikart, who had stopped for a moment to suppress his pain.
"I have prepared the carriage at the very front. We can depart immediately."
Reikart only nodded at Roderick's words.
"We have to go as we are."
Alisha said to Roderick in a lowered voice.
"Leave it to me."
The carriage prepared in front of the Grand Theater was provided by the Imperial Family.
Nobles attending the party had to get out of their personal carriages in front of the Imperial Palace and transfer to the carriages provided by the Imperial Family before entering the Imperial Palace.
The same rule applied when leaving.
They had to get out of the carriages provided by the Imperial Family in front of the Imperial Palace and transfer to their personal carriages that were waiting.
Preparing the carriage was not easy, and getting in and out of the carriage was not easy either.
"Please, get in."
Juan stood by Alisha and Reikart, who were approaching the carriage with Roderick's assistance.
Since both were well-built knights, most of Reikart's faltering steps were hidden as he was surrounded by the two.
Reikart collapsed as soon as he got into the carriage.
While Juan stood in front of the door, blocking the view, Roderick immediately closed the carriage door.
"Depart."
Alisha said calmly, struggling to help Reikart, who had collapsed, kneeling on the floor instead of sitting on the seat.
It was difficult to find composure, but there were watchful eyes densely spread throughout the Imperial Palace.
Fortunately, the carriage windows were curtained.
If she could just get Reikart to sit up, the immediate difficulty would be resolved.
"Ugh."
Reikart, crouching down, groaned in pain.
"Your Highness."
Alisha lifted him up and laid him lengthwise on the seat.
The carriage provided by the Imperial Family for short distances was small, too small for the tall Reikart, but this was not the time to worry about such things.
Reikart lay down, contorting his body, and swallowed his weak sounds.
"I'm sorry..."
He looked for Alisha with his eyes and apologized in a faint voice.
That seemed to be the limit.
Unlike his ice-cold hands, Reikart's head and face were as hot as fire.
Consumed by pain, he let out a labored sound.
"Your Highness."
Alisha had been stroking Reikart's hands and face since getting into the carriage, but the effect was not as fast as before.
She touched his face, which was uttering groans, and called out to him, but there was no response.
The carriage had already left the Imperial Palace, and Alisha could hear Roderick, sitting in the driver's seat, talking to the captain of the guard.
"Sir Franz. The Grand Duke and his wife are on board, but it is very difficult for them to get off now. May I borrow the carriage for a moment? His Majesty will understand if it is for the Grand Duke's sake. And when the party is over, you will sympathize with my difficulties as well."
"Hey, Roderick."
Roderick uttered his smooth words politely.
Juan, who was listening to him, added an interjection like a shy young man.
"If the Grand Duke is on board, there is no problem at all. Go ahead. Drive carefully. The Grand Duke and his wife are on board!"
"I'll see you again, Sir Franz."
"You guys are going through a lot. See you soon."
The captain of the guard comforted Roderick and Juan with a chuckling voice, misunderstanding something.
Alisha felt a similar emotion to when she saw her lacking brothers, even though she understood the urgent situation.
Knock, knock.
The carriage wall connected to the driver's seat rang softly.
"We will head to the Grand Duke's Residence first."
Roderick's voice, conveying the message, was serious, as if it were a lie that he had been flirting with the captain of the guard just a moment ago.
Alisha didn't answer and knocked twice on the carriage wall.
Then the carriage began to run a little faster.
Roderick had handled things well.
Whether he had sent someone ahead or had prepared it in advance, the area around the Grand Duke's Residence was empty.
When the carriage appeared at the end of the street, the gate opened and headed straight inside.
When the carriage, which had raced to the front of the mansion, stopped, Henrik, who had come out in advance, personally opened the door and finished preparing to enter the house.
No one other than Henrik was visible around the mansion.
Roderick, Juan, and Henrik, who assisted Reikart from his side, moved quickly even in the midst of their confusion.
All three seemed to know to some extent about his illness, having spent a long time near the Grand Duke.
The huge mansion was desolate and quiet, with no sign of people.
It seemed that precautions had been taken because Reikart's condition had not been good recently.
Juan helped Reikart out of the carriage and carried him on Roderick's back.
Roderick quickly headed inside the opened mansion.
Juan stayed by his side, guiding Roderick, who had difficulty securing his vision because of Reikart.
Alisha grabbed Reikart's hand, who was being carried on Roderick's back, and ran.
The four became one and entered Reikart's bedroom on the second floor.
The Grand Duke's bedroom in Imperial Capital Baden was luxuriously decorated.
It was a luxury that even nobles famous for their extravagance could not imagine.
The huge bed, decorated with gold on the surface of the decorations, had a shape that was embarrassing to call a bed.
The silk that adorned the bedroom walls had a subtle luster, as if gold and silver threads had been used.
The patterns drawn on the layers of canopies hanging over the bed also had a shape that was hard to believe was made by human hands.
The Grand Duke's bedroom seemed to be in the Imperial style.
She had never seen the Imperial Palace bedroom, but it had a similar atmosphere to the decorations she had seen in the Imperial Palace.
Roderick, who had laid Reikart down on the luxurious bed, had a worried look on his face.
Juan's face was not much different.
Henrik was trying to kick people out, leaving only Reikart.
Henrik also seemed surprised, though he didn't say anything.
Reikart, lying on the bed, was sinking heavily like a lump of lead.
His face, weighed down by pain and trembling from time to time, made those who saw him freeze.
The breaths, filled with pain, that he occasionally let out made it seem as if his breath would stop at any moment.
Reikart's current appearance was like that of a dying man.
He gave the impression that his life force was slowly fading and turning into a corpse.
Reikart had always dismissed those around him during the Lua Cycle, so it seemed that none of the three had ever seen him in this state, even though they were close to him.
Alisha firmly grabbed Reikart's hand lying on the bed, then released it and pushed the three out of the room.
"Henrik, please keep a close watch on the surroundings. You must help me as you did in Tessen."
"I will prepare immediately."
Henrik forgot that he was trying to kick people out and went to do his job.
"Roderick, do whatever it takes to get His Majesty's permission so that we can go to Tessen whenever His Highness needs it."
"I will go to the Imperial Palace again."
The Emperor would not meet a mere knight after the party was over.
But Roderick assured her that he would go to the Imperial Palace, whatever his thoughts were.
After answering, he turned around and left without even properly bowing.
"Juan, go back to Ludern and ask Daisy to prepare the emergency kit. And tell her that the operation of Ludern will be as it was last month."
"Yes, I will. Will you be here, my Lady?"
"I'm going to nurse His Highness until he wakes up."
Juan, who knew that Reikart never kept people around him at times like this, gave her a cautious look.
In Tessen, Alisha had taken care of Reikart even when he was ill.
She had worried about whether it would be a problem at that time, but it had passed without incident.
"I will convey the message and return according to your orders. Please don't overdo it."
"I won't."
Alisha answered brightly, trying her best.
As Juan left, only silence and breaths weighed down by pain remained in the large, luxurious room.
Alisha, who had returned to the side of the splendid bed that was awe-inspiring just to look at, firmly held Reikart's struggling hand.
But his condition did not improve easily.
He had not regained consciousness since uttering his last words in the carriage.