SWRD 20

Chapter 20

‘I didn’t hear that wrong.’

There was definitely a sound.

A suspicious, unsettling sound. It was like…

‘A kidnapping?’

Yeah, it sounded like someone being forcefully dragged away.

‘That way?’

I looked in the direction the sound had come from and hesitated for a moment.

But the hesitation didn’t last long.

‘If I ignore this, I’ll have nightmares for sure.’

Of course, I wasn’t planning to heroically dive into danger and stop a crime.

All I had right now was Bella’s body, which had slightly below-average physical strength.

How could I possibly stop a criminal bold enough to commit a kidnapping at this hour?

‘And it’d be a disaster if my identity gets exposed…’

Tightening the cloth over my hair again, I headed toward the alley the sound had come from.

‘Let’s just memorize the kidnapper’s face.’

I’ll observe secretly, memorize everything, and report it anonymously.

“…Mm! Mmmph!”

“Haah. I really need to change the method. Every time, this…”

I must’ve gotten close to the crime scene, as I could now hear the kidnapper speaking. Just around the corner now.

I pressed myself against the alley wall and cautiously peeked my head out.

And in that moment—I saw it.

A woman being dragged away, her mouth covered by some man.

…No, no.

That can’t be Mom. No way.

It must be someone who just looks like her.

Someone who happens to resemble Mom in age and appearance—

“Mom!”

My body acted before my mind could catch up. Too late—I realized I messed up.

But even knowing it was a reckless move, I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing the kidnapper.

“What the—?! How did…?!”

“Run! Run away, now!”

I grabbed the kidnapper’s arm with all my weight, shouting at the top of my lungs as he was forced to let go of the woman.

“Tch. Looks like you really have no clue…”

Even with me clinging to his arm, the guy seemed oddly calm. But when the woman truly got far enough to escape, his face hardened.

“…Damn it, what the hell?”

What do you mean, “what the hell”? You failed your kidnapping, that’s what.

Serves you right—ugh!

I swallowed a scream as I was flung to the ground. Bella’s body was too frail to withstand the force of an adult man shaking her off.

‘Wow, I’m really weak…’

The impact was worse than I expected—I couldn’t move right away. Meanwhile, the kidnapper approached me.

“What the hell are you?”

“Ugh…”

“You don’t seem to have any special powers. Hah, are you broken? Why now of all times…?”

I heard some muttered words I couldn’t understand, and then—

“Gah!”

A blow to my side sent me rolling on the ground. That’s when I realized—I’d just been kicked.

This bastard. Piece of trash. The kind of guy who brags “I hit women” but probably only hits women…

“Cough cough!”

“You ruined everything. Damn it, what now…”

“Turn… cough! yourself in.”

“What?”

“Go—go to the guards and turn yourself in…”

You criminal scum.

Before I could even finish, he kicked me again—so hard that my body jerked upward.

God, that hurt. Thankfully, I was used to enduring pain.

“Should I just drag you away instead? Though you’re probably useless… Huh?”

The man muttering as he looked down at me suddenly froze. His gaze landed on my face.

That’s when I realized—my headscarf had come off.

“Silver hair? No way—urk!”

The man, seemingly about to say something after seeing my hair, suddenly let out a scream.

Then his body collapsed. I blinked as I heard a loud thud.

What just happened?

Why did he suddenly…?

‘High blood pressure?’

…Seriously?

Just as I started suspecting the kidnapper’s health, my eyes caught something on the ground—a gold coin.

Wait a minute, that coin… was that always there?

Maybe he didn’t collapse from high blood pressure—maybe someone hit him in the head with a coin…

But then—who threw the coin?

At that moment, a shadow fell over me.

I looked up to see a figure blocking the newly brightened morning sky.

No way…

“Are you seriously… stalking me or something?”

I didn’t get an answer. Before he could open his mouth, I lost consciousness.

✧✧✧

“Aghassi!”

I opened my eyes to Enfi’s voice.

Oh wow, this is really bad.

“Are you awake? Please stay put. I’ll call the others.”

Enfi darted away before I could stop him.

I blinked and slowly tried to—

‘Ack!’

—get up, but my whole body screamed in pain. Damn it.

Muscle pain, huh? Probably.

I gave up trying to sit and just stared at the ceiling.

I’d already realized from Enfi’s voice, but yep—this is my bedroom.

Oddly enough, it didn’t feel strange calling it my bedroom anymore. I didn’t even have time to feel sad about that.

Because something way more important was consuming all my mental energy:

‘How do I explain sneaking out of Baron Carmel’s estate?’

Early morning, outside the estate, found unconscious in some alley—I had no good excuse.

I bit my lip, unable to think of a perfect lie for the Duke of Croft.

‘I guess there’s no choice… I’ll say I drank too much at the party and blacked out.’

In reality, all I had was two glasses of what was more like sparkling juice than alcohol—but there’s no one who could prove otherwise.

Yeah. Let’s blame it on being drunk.

Just then, the bedroom door burst open.

Enfi, Doctor Sarah, two maids, Duke Croft, and Ethan all entered.

‘Killid.’

I briefly glanced at Killid, the last to enter, but it was Ethan who spoke first as he approached the bed.

“Ellie.”

Okay, stay calm. Don’t panic. I was just drunk last night and blacked out. Drunk and blacked out…

“Why did you do it?”

“Well…”

“You shouldn’t have gotten involved.”

“I drank… Wait, what?”

What is he talking about?

I shouldn’t have gotten involved?

‘Is he talking about the kidnapping?’

But something felt off. It seemed like there was more going on—something I didn’t know.

“Enough.”

“Father.”

“Ellie only acted for us—perhaps even for the kingdom. If you must blame someone…”

The Duke’s eyes shifted to the two maids, who looked as guilty as criminals.

“Blame those who couldn’t keep their mouths shut.”

“W-we’re sorry.”

“We did overhear something we shouldn’t have. But we had no intention of telling the young lady, really!”

“That’s right. We just thought she was asleep and were talking among ourselves…”

“Silence. Did I ask for excuses?”

The two maids instantly fell quiet.

I shut my mouth, too, trying to read the room.

‘I have no idea what’s going on.’

Judging by the mood, a whole story had been crafted while I was unconscious.

Better to stay quiet. That seems safest. Since this “story” already explains all my actions.

“You will both await punishment.”

“…Yes, sir.”

“Ellie, you—”

The Duke called me, but hesitated. I quietly waited, though I didn’t have anything to say anyway. I couldn’t speak up when I didn’t know anything.

The Duke didn’t speak right away. Then—

Knock knock.

A soldier’s voice came from outside the room.

“I’ll get it,” Enfi said.

He half-opened the door, spoke briefly with the soldier, then turned to us.

“A doctor has arrived.”

“A doctor?” Doctor Sarah sharply reacted. I glanced at her involuntarily.

“He says he was summoned by Young Master Ethan…”

All eyes turned to Ethan. The Duke spoke.

“Let him in.”

And then the “doctor” entered the room—a thin man of average height.