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Chapter 85
“Time to get up.”
The man tapped Emily’s leg. Too much time had passed, and pretending to still be asleep was no longer an option.
Emily blinked deliberately, as if she had just woken up.
The man, locking eyes with her, smiled broadly.
“So that’s why Laminis went completely mad.”
Emily’s expression hardened without her realizing it.
“Is he coming here?”
Her fearless attitude only made the man like her more and more.
He sighed in frustration.
“Yeah… If I had known you first, I would’ve taken that mission myself.”
“What mission…?”
“The boss handed you over to Laminis.”
The man ran his second finger along Emily’s jawline as he spoke.
“That means Laminis can do whatever he wants to you. It’s the best way to screw Kilian over.”
It was the same reason as in the original story.
“Damn it, Rex. Get your hand off me right now.”
Before Emily even realized, Laminis, who had arrived unnoticed, grabbed Rex by the collar and threw him into the corner.
“I’ve told you countless times. I don’t like it when someone messes with what’s mine.”
The man called Rex wiped his mouth in frustration and stood up. Being treated like this by someone with lower skill and reputation than himself was humiliating.
But no matter what, he was the boss’s nephew.
Rex reluctantly lowered his head in front of him.
“I’m sorry.”
“If you’re sorry, then leave. I have plenty to say to my lover, whom I haven’t seen in a long time.”
Emily let out a dry laugh at Laminis’s insane words.
He claimed to have been in a mental hospital, but clearly, instead of receiving treatment, he had become an even worse delusional patient.
Being alone in the same space with him was terrifying, but thanks to him handing off the other people, Emily could escape more easily.
Laminis still looked enchanted as he gazed at Emily’s beautiful figure.
“I missed you.”
He seemed afraid she might disappear like a mirage, so he didn’t dare approach recklessly.
“You have no idea how much I longed for you in that cramped room.”
Emily ignored his words and focused on the situation outside.
From the noise downstairs, it seemed the five men who had kidnapped her were drinking together on the first floor.
Emily first started loosening the ropes around her ankles hidden beneath her skirt. They were tied in such a way that simply spreading her legs would allow her to undo them without big movements.
Laminis, absorbed in his speech about how their fates were intertwined, didn’t notice Emily freeing herself.
She waited silently for him to approach. The lipstick-sized gun could only hold one magic bullet, so she had to fire precisely when her target was close.
“But why do you look so worn out, Emily?”
Finally, Laminis walked toward her.
“I’ll help you up.”
Thinking she was tied up and couldn’t rise, he grabbed her shoulders.
“Ugh!”
Emily spat in his eyes.
“You crazy bastard!”
Taking advantage of his momentary blindness, she quickly freed her wrists.
“That’s right, you lunatic. Let’s end our connection here.”
Emily pulled the gun from her sleeve and shot Laminis in the chest.
Even a small gun’s magical bullet power could not be ignored. Because her target was so close, the recoil caused Emily to stumble backward as well.
“Ggh…ugh.”
Laminis couldn’t even scream properly, coughing up blood as he collapsed forward.
Emily immediately searched his body, finding a sharp dagger as she expected.
“I’ll be taking this.”
The loud noise alerted the men downstairs, and footsteps rushed up the stairs.
Emily quickly locked the door and jumped out the window to buy herself time. Despite being an attic, the hut was only about two stories high, so a jump wouldn’t cause serious injury.
“Phew… alright. Let’s do this.”
She tore off the hem of her skirt with Laminis’s dagger to reduce weight.
Taking five steps back for momentum, she slid the dagger back into its sheath and also tucked the sword into her chest for safety.
Taking a deep breath, she recalled the fall techniques Sezanne had taught her and leaped outside the window with force.
Just as she jumped, the attic door splintered.
“Catch her, now!”
The Giuliano gang members broke in and ran toward the window, but Emily had already landed safely and was sprinting into the forest.
“Don’t let her escape!”
One of Rex’s men drew a gun and aimed at her.
Without looking back, Emily instinctively ducked and rolled sideways. The magical bullet lodged into a tree.
She barely had time to breathe, grit her teeth, and resumed running.
Now that she had vanished from sight, they would stop reloading and chase her.
At least they couldn’t track her footsteps here—it was the Forest of Recovery.
“Ugh.”
Emily winced after running for a while.
She hadn’t noticed before, but avoiding the magical bullets had caused her ankle to start throbbing.
“Hah…”
Once she became aware, the pain intensified and spread up her calf.
“Ugh!”
The slopes of Mount Pirata were steep. Exhausted, Emily tumbled down the mountain, colliding with rocks along the way.
‘Am I really going to die like in the original story?’
Just as she was about to give up, a blue light surged from her body, and she felt tremendous strength.
‘What… is this?’
Fear gripped her, but her survival instinct drove her to grab a tree root jutting from the ground.
Her endless fall finally stopped. She had no idea where this incredible strength came from.
Once steady, Emily stuck her sword into the ground and pulled herself up.
She grabbed the tree root and sat atop it, her body aching as if she’d been beaten. Cuts bled from various places.
‘But…’
Looking down, she realized she had almost fallen off a cliff.
‘I’m lucky it’s just this much.’
Looking up, she thought it best to stay hidden for now, as the Giuliano gang would surely be searching above.
‘I’ll move after sunset.’
Moving at night in this mountain terrain seemed risky, but it was her best option.
Emily checked her ankle—it hurt when she first noticed, but strangely, it didn’t hurt now.
‘Could it be related to the blue light?’
She had no idea what was happening.
In the Synope territory, Charles received news and rushed with the knights.
“Duke.”
The message came from none other than Grandmother Juliette.
“Please find Emily quickly. I beg you.”
The village festival had already been canceled due to Emily’s kidnapping, and the atmosphere was tense.
Meanwhile, the divorce papers from Staruga had arrived at the Synope mansion. The household staff no longer had anyone to trust.
“You’re here?”
Nox appeared with an annoyed expression, having heard Charles had arrived late.
He was torturing Chiron in the Synope mansion’s basement alongside Ivan.
Finding Emily took priority, so they had been allowed the rooms, but the locals didn’t look kindly at Nox.
Ignoring their gazes, Nox spoke with Charles.
“Tell me what’s going on immediately.”
Charles had come straight to Synope without sleep after hearing of Emily’s kidnapping.
Nox swallowed and replied,
“It’s the Giuliano gang.”
Hearing it was a mafia act, Charles closed his eyes to swallow his anger. Emily wouldn’t have faced this danger if she hadn’t rejected the mafia.
But he held back his words—there was no time to argue with Nox now.
“So which way did they go?”
“We’re searching Henne Village and Mount Pirata.”
Nox shared the information he received via the communication system. Even though Charles disliked Kilian, he needed every hand he could get.
Gathering the information, Charles mounted his horse and ordered his subordinates.
“We’ll split into two search teams. Follow me to the fourth row, and the other team search Henne Village.”
“Yes, sir!”
Spurring their horses, they quickly headed toward Mount Pirata.
