Chapter 37
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Chapter 37
Besides, one location had been a dead end, and we'd obtained the skewered chicken without waiting, so we weren't far behind schedule.
Returning now risked ruining everything.
"Wait a moment. It's dangerous for you to wander alone. You could get lost. Why don't we go together instead?"
"I've lived in this neighborhood for five years. You don't need to worry."
Margaret hastily grabbed Vivian, who was trying to leave for Rachel.
"Then I'll go and come back. Wait here for me."
Margaret left Vivian behind and headed toward the Town Square where Rachel was waiting.
Upon arriving there, she hid herself behind a nearby building and searched for Rachel.
Rachel was still there, slightly apart from the crowd that had gathered to watch the play that had begun.
'Why aren't they kidnapping him already during this opportunity? What are they doing?'
As she watched anxiously, biting her lip, a shadow approached from behind Rachel.
It was an Assassin sent by the Inspector.
Seeing this, Margaret swallowed hard and turned away.
Relief washed over her, but it was immediately followed by guilt toward the child she had raised with her own hands.
'This is the only way for me and Sally to survive. There was no choice.'
As she rationalized this and turned to return to where Vivian was waiting.
"Rachel!"
Vivian's voice—someone who shouldn't be here—rang out urgently.
Margaret and the Assassin, as well as Rachel, all froze at that voice.
"Watch out!"
At Vivian's following cry, the Assassin, who had hesitated for a moment, lunged at Rachel in an attacking stance.
But Rachel, noticing this, quickly dodged and immediately began casting magic.
Margaret's expression twisted with fury at the sight.
'That girl, to the very end...!'
The play had reached its climax, and dazzling sound effects filled the Town Square, drawing everyone's attention there.
But once the climax passed, people would see this spectacle.
Before that happened, she had to decide whether to subdue and kidnap Rachel, or abandon the attempt and retreat.
At that moment, seeing Rachel and the Assassin in a standoff, Vivian dropped what she was holding and tried to run toward them.
"Rachel!"
But in that instant.
"...Mmph!"
Another Assassin suddenly appeared from the Alley and subdued Vivian, covering her mouth.
The more she struggled to break free, the more her consciousness grew hazy and her strength drained away.
"Vivian!"
The last thing Vivian saw was the three dolls Rachel had won from the dart game rolling across the ground before she lost consciousness.
* * *
Drip.
'Ugh... it's cold.'
I opened my eyes at the sensation of something small and cold brushing across my cheek.
A dark stone ceiling stretched across my vision.
'Where am I...?'
As I surveyed my surroundings, my final memory suddenly surfaced.
I had been waiting in line at the Cheese Potato Shop when I noticed the Nanny's suspicious behavior, seized by an ominous premonition, and followed her.
'There, I saw the Nanny turn away even as the Assassin prepared to strike Rachel.'
I quickly called out to Rachel and managed to save him, but....
'I've been kidnapped!'
The moment I grasped my reality, terror seized my heart, pounding wildly as my mind went blank.
'Calm down. If they meant to kill me, they would have done it already.'
I steeled myself with this reasoning, quieting my panic, and decided to assess my surroundings first.
The area was dim, but a faint light allowed me to make out the shapes of objects around me.
'Is this... a cave?'
Within this damp cavern lay an enormous cage—large enough to contain a beast.
And I was trapped inside it.
Then, as I finished surveying the space, something cold dripped onto my cheek once more.
A water droplet falling from the cave ceiling.
Only then did I recognize the cold sensation that had awakened me moments before.
'It's so damp....'
Just as I began to shift my body carefully to escape the dripping water.
I sensed a presence nearby. It seemed to be someone who had been guarding this place since before I regained consciousness.
Startled, I quickly closed my eyes and feigned sleep.
'Did he notice I was awake...?'
My heart raced rapidly.
After holding my breath for a moment, I cautiously cracked open my eyes.
Fortunately, the Guard seemed unaware that I had awakened, letting out a wide yawn.
I watched him carefully, piecing together the information I had gathered to deduce how the situation had unfolded.
'Those people were definitely trying to capture Rachel.'
When I intervened and they failed, they switched their target to me and took me hostage.
And their ultimate goal is likely Rachel, just as they originally intended.
'But Rachel safely becomes an adult and appears as a villain in the original work, so it should be fine―'
My thoughts halted abruptly.
'...Wait. Was there an episode in the original work where Rachel was nearly kidnapped?'
The original work takes place after the protagonists reach adulthood, and since Rachel is a villain rather than a protagonist, his past isn't detailed extensively.
But if he had experienced an episode involving kidnapping or assassination attempts, such a significant event would likely be mentioned as a catalyst for the villain's corruption—yet it wasn't.
Which meant....
'Perhaps this incident occurred as a consequence of me twisting the original narrative.'
After all, Rachel and I becoming friends was already a significant departure from the original story.
The thought of this possibility made my heart race with far greater anxiety than when I first realized I'd been kidnapped.
'Rachel could... truly be in danger.'
Because of me.
All because of me—I twisted the original story just to save myself.
I couldn't just leave things as they were.
'I need to escape from here.'
I examined the cage that held me first. As expected, a massive lock hung from the cage door.
'Does that man have the key?'
But there were limits to what I could discern with my eyes barely open.
'I wish that man would leave his post.'
And if he had the key, he'd set it down, of course.
As if someone had heard my desperate wish, footsteps approached, and another man appeared.
"The brat? Still hasn't come to?"
"Seems like it."
"Then come on. This isn't the time for this."
"What's going on all of a sudden? Don't tell me you're mobilizing everyone just because you can't handle one child."
"Not Princess Isella—word came that someone else is approaching from this direction."
"The Duke's knights?"
"Not them yet, but apparently some strange guy showed up. Go check it out."
"Do I really have to go just to deal with one thing?"
"How should I know? Just do what you're told. Don't try to slack off—get out here now."
The Guard cursed under his breath as he rose from his seat.
In that moment, something glinted at his waist.
'The key!'
He can't leave!
I was helplessly watching the key disappear when it happened.
In the darkness lit by a faint glow, something like a black shadow touched the key and knocked it loose.
'What... was that?'
While I blinked, wondering if I'd seen wrong, the men left.
And there, where the Guard had vanished, the key lay on the ground.
After the men's footsteps faded, I got up and tried pulling the bars.
'Ugh, they won't budge at all.'
Well, if the bars came loose, I wouldn't need a key anyway.
Unless my arms grew long like some manga protagonist I'd seen in my past life, there was no way with my current reach.
I tried pulling every bar and glanced around, but there was nothing that could help.
I pulled at the bars until blood beaded on my palms, and eventually my strength gave out and I collapsed.
'Rachel is in danger...'
Tears welled up inside me.
[It's not because you're strange. It's because you're special.]
More than the fear that I might die, the thought that Rachel might die because of me terrified me.
And above all else.
I was furious at my own helplessness—at being able to do nothing but cry in such a situation.
If this was what the protagonist of this novel was reduced to—waiting for a prince on a white horse—then...
'I hate protagonists like that!'
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org