Chapter 50
Perhaps the biggest barrier was the fact that he would have to go into danger himself to rescue the princess without alerting the Kingdom of Lysa. It literally means risking his life.
Rosie had seen time and time again how cowardly men who claimed to be strong could be when their lives were threatened. Her brother had been, and so had her father, so there weren’t many men who would jump into a fire for a woman they weren’t even married to yet.
‘Then what brings him here?’
Rosie let her brother’s words pass through her ears as they walked, thinking about the Duke’s intentions in coming here. If he had any intention of saving the Princess, he should have come with an army, but instead he came here with only a few knights, and after drinking and flirting in the banquet hall all night, he called her to his room.
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking. If he wanted to play dumb, he wouldn’t have come here at all.
“Hey, can you hear me?”
At his raised voice, Rosie nodded quickly.
Fertan gave her a satisfied look. “You must keep this a secret from our father. He’s told me never to let you out of your room.”
No wonder, her father was terrified that she might reveal the news about Princess Rosetta to the Duke.
It was a good thing her brother was going to sell her sister to him himself. Anyway, I was planning to sneak into the Duke’s room tonight.
Actually, that was easier said than done. There was a secret passageway in the room where the honored guest stayed, just in case. But to use it, Rosie had to get out of her room first.
Her father had already posted soldiers outside the door to make sure she couldn’t leave. If it weren’t for Fertan, getting out of her room wouldn’t be easy. In the end, her stupid brother had made it easier.
“Sir Fertan.”
When they reached the Duke’s room, the two soldiers guarding the door saw them and saluted. Rosie wrapped her cloak tightly around her, making sure to hide her face.
“This lady is…”
“Ah, she is the lady who will be serving the Duke tonight.”
“In that case, we’ll have to do a face check first–”
“Hey!”
Fertan bellowed, kicking one of the soldiers in the knee and making him groan as he swallowed the pain.
“Who do you think you are to talk like that? What will become of her honor if the likes of you find out she’s been in the Duke’s chambers tonight? Does your head have nothing in it?”
“B- but the chieftain told me to make sure that anyone entering or leaving the Duke’s room should be identified…”
“I vouch for her. How dare you criticize my words?”
It had long been said that when Fertan was being stubborn, no one could beat him, especially when he was drunk. Any longer and he might break one of his arms or legs.
“Alright, go in.”
Finally, they pushed the door open.
As Rosie stared at the open doorway, Fertan whispered in her ear, “If you do well, it’s all thanks to me, so be sure to return the favor.”
A cynical sneer tugged at the corners of Rosie’s mouth.
The moment she stepped into the room and the door closed behind her, she was shoved straight into the wall by a hand. The cloak on her head was pulled off and fell to the floor. With the cloth blocking her vision gone, Rosie could finally see who was in front of her.
A man with striking silver hair, fair-skinned, and lean for a swordsman. The man’s shiny hair and red eyes were enough to make him look gorgeous, and he stared at Rosie without saying a word. The coldness of his gaze made Rosie’s body shiver.
This man is Iselle Scallion, Princess Rosetta’s fiancé?
Allen had told her many stories about the Duke over time. And the common thread in his stories was always that he was a kind and gentle man.
But the man standing before her now showed none of those traits. Instead, there was a coldness about him, an inexplicable cruelty. He wears a refined and elegant façade, but underneath it all, he is not a kind person at all.
How could anyone be fooled by this, when it’s so obvious?
Rosie cleared her throat. “I am Rosie, the daughter of the chieftain. I am not a maid, so please let go of me.”
He eyed her carefully, then slowly let go of his grip.
“Fertan, that fool brought the right person.”
“Sorry?”
“That means your brother did his job properly.”
Could he mean that he knew Fertan was going to put his sister in this room and had asked for it on purpose?
“You mean, you already knew my brother would bring me here?”
“Because the other ladies would have all gone home by now, so you would be the only lady of noble birth left in this castle.”
He took a step back, then turned to her with a direct question. “Did you send a letter to me?”
“What do you mean? Are you saying you didn’t get the letter I sent you?”
“So you are the one who sent it.”
At this point, Rosie had no idea what was going on, while he was already trying to figure it out for himself.
“If you didn’t receive my letter, how did you know that I was the one who sent it?”
“I was told that the dead messenger was close to you.”
Rosie took a deep breath. “Dead? You’re telling me that Carl is dead? Why?”
His brow furrowed a little, indicating he was tired. “I don’t have time for such trivia right now. You, how did you come to have that emerald bracelet?”
Carl had been by her side since she was a child. He was the one person she could trust with important tasks. Now he was dead, and this man was dismissing it as trivia.
Rosie realized once again that she wasn’t wrong. This man was never as good as he was rumored to be. For some reason, he was keeping his true self hidden and putting on an act.
“…Apparently, for some reason, my letter did not reach you.”
But Rosie decided to put all that aside for now. There was no time to talk about anything else right now.
“I’ll make it short: Princess Rosetta has been kidnapped, and I sent a letter to you asking for your help, and I included her bracelet in it, because I knew you would recognize it.”
His face instantly hardened into a grim line. “Kidnapped?”
“It happened while she was substituting as a bride for me.”
“Bride substitute? So where’s the Princess now?”
“I think it would be quicker to talk to Allen about this, he can explain this situation better than I can.”
Rosie walked over to where the fireplace was. She groped at the wall there and pushed in one place. The bricks moved, revealing a narrow passageway.
Rosie pulled out one of the torches hanging on the wall and held it in her hand. Pointing to a dark staircase in the passage, she said, “Come on, I’ll explain as we go.”
***
Rosetta was carried back into the room by Rashid. This time, she was completely unconscious. Thelma and Benny, who were waiting in the room for the banquet to end, jumped to their feet in alarm at the sight.
“What’s happened?”
“Rigaina?”
Rashid laid Rosetta down on the bed. She flopped onto the bed, her body still limp from earlier.
Thelma turned to him urgently. “Master Rashid, did something happen in the banquet hall?”
“Well…”
The doctor, who had arrived just in time, began to examine her. After checking her pulse and eyes, he soon nodded and said, “Don’t worry too much. There doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with her. She’s normally alcohol intolerant, it’s just that she had too much at once. She’ll be fine when she wakes up after a good night’s sleep.”
“……”
Thelma and Benny looked at Rosetta more closely, her face flushed and her body reeking of alcohol.
“…So she’s drunk.” Thelma coughed softly, trying to keep her face under control, and her fears that something untoward had happened in the banquet hall were allayed.
“Just be careful to keep her head on the side, because if she vomits in her sleep, it might block her airway.”
With those last words, the doctor left the room. Benny glared fiercely at Sika beside her.
[You just let Rigaina get drunk like this without stopping her?]
Sika scratched his head and muttered, [Well, she thought it was juice and drank the whole glass of wine in one gulp, so I didn’t have time to stop her.]
At the banquet, she passed out after drinking a glass of wine, causing a huge fuss in the hall. Eventually, the banquet ended and Rashid picked her up and carried her back to her room.
Sika looked up at Rashid this time and his shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry, Riga, you asked me to stay by Rigaina’s side and take care of her…”
Rashid sighed softly. “Never mind. It’s not your fault the juice changed.”
“I hope she’s okay. She said earlier that she shouldn’t have a sip of alcohol.”
“If the doctor says she’s okay, I’m sure she’ll be fine. I’ll take care of her now, so everyone please get out of here.”
At Rashid’s command, everyone in the room left. In the quiet of the room, Rashid looked back at Rosetta.