Chapter 75

“Aaaah!”

Rodella screamed involuntarily in shock.

And then—

—CLATTER!

The carriage door, which she hadn’t even noticed had stopped, burst open.

Standing in the doorway, covered in dust, was a man wearing a dark gray robe.

It was clear he was the one with the bloodshot eyes.

“What the—someone’s awake?”

His voice treated her like cargo as he leaned his head into the carriage.

His eyes locked directly with Rodella’s.

It was far too late to pretend to be unconscious.

“Hmm.”

Suspicion colored his face.

“She’s not from the slums, that’s for sure.”

Even as he scanned her, Rodella couldn’t move—her body wouldn’t respond.

Suppressing a groan, she forced herself to sit up.

Her head spun, her vision blurry.

“You’ve got some mental fortitude. We used a strong dose of the incense.”

Their mouths and noses were wrapped in special fabric, likely treated to protect them from the sleep-inducing scent.

“And look at those clothes. She’s definitely not a slum girl.”

Suspicion deepened in their eyes.

No way…

“Is she trained?”

As expected, their guesses were heading toward the worst-case scenario.

Rodella could feel the situation deteriorating fast, though the fresh air outside was finally clearing her head a little.

“A knight, maybe?”

“A knight wouldn’t be in the slums.”

“Still, those clothes…”

“She’s clearly not a commoner.”

They whispered among themselves, unconcerned whether she heard or not.

But now, a cold murderous intent began to show in their eyes.

“Then there’s no point in keeping her alive.”

“Better to eliminate a variable than take the risk.”

—SHINK!

One of them drew a dagger from inside his robe.

Rodella bit her lip.

She couldn’t die here. Her trembling legs braced against the ground.

“Oh? Trying to run?”

Like hell she’d just sit and listen to them talk about killing her.

Even with her disoriented mind, every alarm in her brain was screaming at her to move.

—STEP.

But as soon as she took a step, the dizziness worsened.

She knew she had to run.

And she also knew, in this state, she couldn’t.

That was as far as her thinking could go.

The men snickered, clearly amused by her futile attempt, and followed her leisurely.

Then, once she was a few steps away from the carriage, one of them rushed in, dagger ready.

“…!”

If she tried to run, they’d catch her.

Then—maybe…

Her mind finally clicked into gear and forced her body to freeze.

And then—

—SWISH!

She grabbed one of the men’s arms while he was off guard.

“Whoa?!”

Caught off balance, he stumbled and fell.

Embarrassed by his wild swing, he flushed red and grit his teeth.

“What the…?”

Others began creeping closer.

Taking all of them on would be impossible. Could she at least break free and run?

If only they’d let their guard down more…

But they weren’t planning to give her another chance.

“Take her down before she recovers! She’s trained!”

Three or four of them charged at once.

Even in her foggy vision, the glint of blades in the sunset light was unmistakable.

“…!”

Ah.

There was no one else around.

An open carriage path.

If there were even bushes, she could try to hide, to survive—but here, it was open plains.

If she was stabbed here, no one would find her. No one would even know.

“…!”

Rodella bit her lip.

She hadn’t fought so desperately to survive just to die like this.

—WHOOSH!

She twisted her body, and a dagger swiped right past her face.

Chills crawled up her spine—it was a miracle she didn’t collapse.

Another dagger swung at her.

—SLASH!

Blood splattered.

“…!”

Rodella gasped.

A sharp pain surged from her barely-raised arm.

The fear of death hit her harder than the sight of blood.

—SWIPE!

Another dagger aimed straight at her face.

She awkwardly raised her arm and blocked it—barely.

Another deep cut opened on her arm.

“It’ll hurt less if you just die quickly.”

The man sneered, clearly enjoying himself.

A predator cornering its prey for fun, with lazy, confident eyes.

She was helpless. Nothing but prey.

She was going to die. For real.

Rodella bit her lip hard. She held back her sobs, but the tears came anyway.

She’d nearly died many times before.

Back at the academy, she’d had a flowerpot drop from above—accidents, incidents—too many to count.

She just didn’t like to remember them.

But why didn’t her heart tremble this violently back then?

Was it because it all happened so fast?

No—Rodella thought she knew the answer.

“Rodella!”

He had always been there for her in those moments.

Aivert.

With his unreal strength, he always protected her.

Maybe that’s why—she always believed she’d be safe as long as he was nearby.

She’d depended on him. Trusted him.

Only recently had she realized he could be hurt in her place.

As long as you’re next to me, I feel safe.

Even now—look.

All she could think about was Aivert.

She hated herself for it, but she couldn’t stop thinking about him.

Even though she’d seen him wounded in her place.

Even though she knew he was impossibly far away now.

‘I can’t stop thinking about you, Aivert.’

‘Not just the desperate look on your face when you reached for me—’

‘But your serious expressions. Your laughter when you looked at me.’

‘Every version of you fills my head.’

She wanted to cry her heart out.

The tears kept coming, and her body, dulled by the incense, refused to move sharply.

—SLASH!

Another wave of pain in her arm made the tears fall harder.

She needed to see and dodge—but her tears blinded her.

—WHOOSH!

She narrowly dodged a blade and stumbled back.

Her vision swirled chaotically.

“I told you—dying early hurts less, didn’t I?”

The man bared his teeth and slashed again.

He was done toying with her. Now he was closing in.

“Playtime’s over!”

“…!”

Rodella swallowed her scream and threw herself sideways.

Or at least, she tried to.

But the man was faster.

—SLICK.

A burning pain flared on her neck.

Something warm trickled down her collar, over her fingertips—it all happened in an instant.

Blood.

“Ah…”

The fire-like pain near her throat was unmistakable.

Even in her drugged state, the pain pierced through and stabbed her mind awake.

‘I’m going to die.’

Alone, abandoned here, where no one would ever find her.

And the one who’s searching for her—someday he might find her…

What kind of expression would he have?

Her dimming vision caught the flash of the blood-stained dagger.

The stench of blood, the burning pain—it drowned out everything else.

Rodella squeezed her eyes shut.