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chapter 6
Even if someone intended to harm me…
To imprison the lady of the house right under the eyes of the head of the family? Unless one had two lives… it was impossible.
I came to the conclusion that I couldn’t identify the kidnapper until they revealed themselves.
‘Ah, whatever. I guess I won’t die.’
I tried to calm my uneasy heart.
‘Trust the original story. Even if I die, it’ll be at Killian’s hands, not here in some random place.’
I didn’t know how long I had been unconscious, but by now the Seifried household must have been turned upside down. If anything happened to me, it would make the Grand Duchy of Kiev their enemy.
That alone was reason enough for Killian to come and rescue me.
‘I should at least find where the door is.’
After tripping over several scattered boxes and sacks, I finally found the wall.
I groped along it with one hand, crawling for a while.
Just as I was rejoicing at finding the seam of the door…
“…you… know…”
“…you did it first…”
A murmur came from somewhere beyond the door.
‘Two people!’
I picked up a broken wooden plank from the floor.
My heart was pounding as if it would burst.
‘If I smash their heads with the corner… can I knock them out…?’
I thought only games had stick-fighting options…
But there was no choice. This wasn’t a situation where I could press a reset button like a game.
This was my reality.
So it wasn’t a question of “can I knock them out?”—I had to knock them out, period!
‘Knock one out, push the other, and run.’
As I steeled myself, the faint sounds grew clearer.
“What if they’re dead?”
“Why would they be dead?”
I froze, plank raised in mid-air.
The voices of the perpetrators sounded… odd.
‘Did I hear wrong?’
They were far too cute.
“I just fainted because I was surprised to see you.”
“Oh, Irene didn’t do anything! Suddenly a shiny star flew at me…”
“Shh! Keep quiet. We have to put them back before they wake.”
“What if they’re already awake?”
“If they are…”
A boy whose voice hadn’t yet broken, and a girl about the same age.
“……”
“……”
After a brief silence, the boy declared resolutely,
“We have to run.”
My legs went weak, and I slid down the wall to the floor.
‘They’re really children…’
The unexpected situation made my mind go blank for a moment.
But I quickly regained my senses and gripped the wooden plank.
‘There might be adults following…’
Unaware of the scene behind the door, the children continued talking.
“Can’t we not run?”
“What happens if we don’t?”
The girl, who called herself Irene, asked.
“Can’t we play together with you and Erhi?”
“What?”
The boy called Erhi snapped in anger.
“Of course not!”
“Why not?”
But Irene didn’t give up easily.
“Earlier that lady told me to wait! She chased me even when I tried to run!”
Waited… and chased…?
Erhi snorted.
“Your eyesight must be bad. If you’d seen me clearly, you wouldn’t have chased me.”
Irene protested indignantly.
“What’s wrong with me!”
“Ha… are you stupid? How many times do I have to tell you?”
Erhi let out a deep sigh, speaking gloomily.
“People are scared of us. Because we look… gross.”
After a heavy silence, Irene weakly asked,
“Do you think I’m gross too, Erhi?”
He answered firmly.
“No.”
But he continued.
“But other people can’t see your real face.”
“But you can?”
“Yes.”
“No one else can see?”
“Nope.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
Trying to change the mood, Erhi raised his voice.
“See? So let’s put that person back in the garden and go back to our rooms. Got it?”
“Okay…”
Irene seemed to be convinced at last.
“One, two, three—we can lift them alone like we did earlier. I can’t help because I have to turn the clock.”
“You don’t need to help. I can lift them just fine myself.”
Huh? What did I just hear?
Turn the clock? Lift me…?
CRACK—
Startled, I flinched, and something under my feet broke.
“Shh!”
One of the two children sensed me.
If I didn’t act, they would run away soon.
‘I can’t let them escape.’
For some reason, I felt I’d regret it forever if I let them go.
“Erhi! Irene!”
I flung the door wide open.
“I’m Cielina.”
Two pairs of yellow eyes shone in the pitch-black darkness.
Led by Knight Commander Remphri Winter, three knights entered the estate.
“Your Grace, I’ve heard a rough outline from Sir Kramer.”
Killian nodded.
“I brought the most reliable members of the Black Wolves still in the castle.”
The three knights behind Remphri removed their hoods and saluted.
“Valiant Wolf Gabriel Thomer, at your Grace’s service.”
“Valiant Wolf Zik Razier, at your Grace’s service.”
“Valiant Wolf Hakin Jensen, at your Grace’s service.”
The “Black Wolves” were the elite unit of the Schwarz Knights.
It had been three years since the last large-scale beast-slaying operation when they were summoned.
“Cielina… the lady of the Seifried house has been kidnapped by a beast.”
That was all Killian needed to say.
The knights’ eyes burned with hatred.
How many families, neighbors, and comrades had died at the teeth of beasts?
“Give us your orders.”
Remphri restrained them just in time, sensing they might rush out.
“Your Grace, according to Sir Kramer, the beast that kidnapped the Duchess is…”
“Yes. My nephews.”
The knights exchanged shocked glances.
“You heard correctly.”
Killian spoke in place of the hesitant Remphri.
“They are the beasts born using my sister-in-law’s womb. I should have dealt with them seven years ago, but I did not. To the outside world, they don’t exist, and they never will—unless a miracle happens.”
Killian’s eyes, once pale gold, turned a reddish carnelian, as if bleeding.
The knights looked down in unease.
“Your Grace, give the orders. I’ll follow your instructions.”
At Remphri’s urging, Killian commanded:
“The Knight Commander will check the annex. Perhaps the Gilot family woman who cares for the children knows something.”
Then Remphri gave orders to the three knights.
“Gabriel, search the western forest. Hakin, patrol the castle walls. Zik, strengthen the estate’s wards, coordinate the search, and report back to me.”
The knights left the estate swiftly.
“Your Grace, I should head to the annex as well…”
Just as Remphri turned to leave—
“Remphri.”
Killian called him back.
The tremor he hadn’t shown in front of the knights was clear to see.
Remphri understood that Killian’s long-standing trauma had resurfaced.
“Find them, no matter what. Please… I cannot let my wife go through something like that…”
“Of course.”
Remphri firmly held Killian’s collapsing shoulders.
“I will bring them back safely—all of them: the lady, the young master, and the young mistress.”
Leaving Killian behind, Remphri ran toward the annex, memories of that day vivid as ever.
It was seven years ago, when Killian was only fifteen.
CHANG—CHACHANG—
During sparring, idle chatter was forbidden—but that day was an exception. The Duchess’s labor had begun early in the morning.
A pleasant excitement filled the Seifried household.
Killian was also thrilled.
“If it’s a boy, the Black Wolf will teach him. My brother has no interest in swords.”
“Haha, you’re so excited about a nephew?”
“Of course.”
“And if it’s a girl?”
“If a girl… I’ll request to personally guard her. Whether she takes after my brother or my sister-in-law, she’ll surely grow to be the most beautiful woman in the Empire. Any fool who flirts without knowing their place will get a lesson.”
“I suppose we should pray for a boy then.”
“Why?”
“Because with the young master around, the young mistress might never marry otherwise.”
Having lost his parents early, Killian had looked up to his elder brother, the former Duke, and his sister-in-law as parents.
He was the happiest of all to hear the Duchess was pregnant.
“Impossible. I’ll personally find the best husband for her.”
“But first, the young master needs to marry!”
CHACHANG—
Killian’s sword flew far away.
“What the—so unfair!”
“Hahaha, you should have concentrated.”
Killian grumbled while picking up his sword.
“Young master! Sir Winter!”
“Hans…?”
“Sir Kramer…?”
The suddenly appearing steward dragged them insistently.
“Hurry! To the birthing chamber!”
It was a terrifying strength for someone so small.
“Run, young master!”
“Y-yes!”
Remphri sensed that something terrible had happened.
And as they ran down the corridor toward the birthing chamber, unease turned to certainty.
The corridor was filled with black mist and a stench that burned the nostrils.
‘How did a beast get inside the Seifried estate!’
Mist aside, no Schwarz Knight could mistake the foul odor—it was only emitted by beasts from the northern snowfields.
“Step back, young master!”
