Free Web Novel“Just kidding. Truth is, I had a bad feeling! You were awfully kind to that dull-witted little princess—no wonder Harriet warmed right up to you. Not surprising she’d spill everything.”
“...”
Raul propped his chin on his knee and began to leer at Rishe.
“As you said, I’d already picked up the counterfeit story. Not just that—I knew what orders the Fabranian king, Walter, gave to Harriet’s knights.”
...So the Sigwell royal family did order the “Hunters” to investigate Fabrania.
And yet, in her fifth life she had never heard a word about counterfeits.
Raul must not have reported what he learned to the royal house.
“Of course those knights were ordered not to let anyone near Harriet. Brother Curtis is permitted because even if he learns of the counterfeits, he can’t move. Once a princess has been ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) handed over to Fabrania as a hostage, the Sigwell royal family has to keep its mouth shut.”
“You didn’t report the counterfeits because the Sigwell royal family could do nothing about them?”
“Who knows. ...There were a couple other amusing orders, too.”
Raul raised two fingers beside his face.
“First, keep watch to make sure Harriet actually uses the counterfeits. The ‘pretend you forgot them in your room’ trick—second time wouldn’t have slipped by.”
“...”
“And one more. This part matters more for what comes next.”
A sharp gleam flickered in those red eyes.
“If the existence of the counterfeits becomes known to Galkhein—then kill Harriet.”
“...!?”
At that, both Rishe and Oliver drew a breath.
“Why would they go so far as to kill Lady Harriet...?”
“It’s not just to shut her up. You volunteered to guard Harriet—can’t you imagine the other reason?”
Rishe knit her brows and voiced what she pictured.
“...If Lady Harriet is killed on Galkhein soil, naturally Galkhein will be held responsible.”
“Exactly! Poor King Walter, bereft of his beloved fiancée, will cry and wail and denounce Galkhein. ...As compensation he might demand an outrageous sum—or press them to offer up a substitute bride.”
Even if it came to that, neither the Emperor nor Arnold would accede.
“What a paltry scheme,” Oliver murmured, standing at Rishe’s side—mild, yet utterly cold. Raul chuckled in his throat, amused.
“Well, no matter how much I talk, all this is just tall tales from a ‘fake Curtis.’ Who in the international community would believe Fabrania’s royal house dreamed up a harebrained plot like that?”
“...Raul, you—”
Rishe started to speak, then slowly covered her mouth with her right hand.
“Lady Rishe?”
Oliver’s voice was tight.
Without answering him, Rishe pressed a hand to her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut.
“Oh? The medicine kicking in already?”
“...You cur. What did you make Lady Rishe drink?”
The killing intent Oliver loosed prickled like needles against her cheek.
“Sir Oliver.”
“!”
Rishe reached out and clenched a fistful of Oliver’s jacket.
She felt his surprise in the air.
“You’re about to black out. Your hands and feet should be going numb—any second now you won’t be able to speak properly.”
“...Raul, you...”
“Right about now Harriet’s being escorted out of the castle by Fabranian knights and Sigwell knights—my men, in other words.”
Rishe shot Raul a glare; he only lifted his shoulders lightly.
“I’m going to rescue Harriet? Overestimating me, aren’t you. I planned to take Harriet’s head as a gift and transfer my employment to Fabrania.”
“...”
“While you and I chatted, you had Sigwell knights watching to protect Harriet from the Fabranian knights, didn’t you? —Too bad. I’ve already betrayed Sigwell and I’m in league with Fabrania.”
Raul stood and stretched tall.
Rishe, breathing shallowly, chased him with words.
“So the ‘ghosts’ the maids saw...”
“My men. If intruders are sighted in the castle, the city’s patrols get pulled inside, right? Thanks to that, there are hardly any of your knights in Vinreese at the moment.”
“...”
Seeing Rishe curl in on herself, Raul let out a small breath.
“You look quite unwell. ...With this, maybe I can throw Arnold Hein’s movements into disarray.”
“Stop. I can’t allow you to leave this room.”
“Like I’ll listen.”
Raul stuck his tongue out again.
But he didn’t head for the corridor door. He went straight to the window, swung it open without hesitation, and planted a foot on the sill.
“It’s been fun, princess. If we meet again, show me that cute smile.”
“Raul...!”
“Later. Bye-bye.”
With that, Raul leapt out from the third-floor window.
“Damn—”
Clicking his tongue, Oliver dropped to one knee before the bowed Rishe.
“Lady Rishe. ...Lady Rishe, how are you—!”
“I’m perfectly fine!”
“!!”
Rishe snapped her head up and looked at him, bright-eyed and unruffled.
“Thank you for matching my act. As we arranged beforehand, we’ll let Raul run a little, then pursue.”
“B-but, Lady Rishe—”
Plainly bewildered, Oliver stared in disbelief.
“Are you truly unharmed? That man claimed he slipped you some kind of drug...”
“Yes. Expecting as much, I took an antidote in advance.”
Rishe smiled, rose, and flicked up the hem of her dress.
No malaise, no sign of abnormality—hopefully that conveyed it.
At times like this, I know exactly what tricks Raul is liable to use.
Not just the methods. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
The likely types of drugs, the doses. When to let the effects “show” to be convincing—and the kinds of traps.
Five years in my fifth life... I learned Raul’s ‘hunt’ closer than anyone.
She spoke to the dumbstruck Oliver.
“Since I played along as if it worked, Raul believes he has me suppressed. ...And for some reason, he also believes he’s thrown off His Highness Arnold’s movements.”
She had drunk the drugged tea on purpose, to close in while he let down his guard.
She drew a map from her small bag and took a bird’s-eye look at the port town of Vinreese.
“Sir Oliver. I left the disposition of the knights to you—may I hear the details?”
“Y-yes... Over the past few days, we’ve been dispersing the knights who were concentrated inside the castle. We have knights posted throughout Vinreese; if anything suspicious happens, signal smoke will report it. I’ll mark the points of origin.”
“As expected. With these numbers and placements, we’ll notice most anomalies.”
The current situation was different from the “prioritize the castle, leave the city thinly guarded” state Raul had described.
That was thanks to Oliver, who, acting in Arnold’s stead, had answered Rishe’s unreasonable request and redeployed the knights.
“Thank you for trusting me, Sir Oliver.”
When she bowed deeply, Oliver again looked surprised.
“...Lady Rishe. Before you spoke with that man Raul, you had already confirmed Her Highness Harriet was missing, hadn’t you?”
He was right.
In truth, the moment Rishe realized the counterfeit scheme, she had first gone to check Harriet’s room.
Approaching the door would draw suspicion, so she lowered herself on a rope from the window of her own quarters on the fourth floor.
Then she confirmed that there was no trace of Harriet in her third-floor room.
At that point, she switched from protection to rescue.
To find Harriet’s location, they needed Raul to bolt. Oliver, who had helped make that happen, now asked:
“Requesting that man to strengthen Her Highness’s guard—was that to feign ignorance of the abduction and make him careless?”
“Less a plan than a charm of sorts. More convenient to have them guarding an empty room than sitting with his subordinates.”
Rishe smiled.
“...You are...”
“Wh-what is it?”
When she blinked, Oliver’s expression softened into a gentle smile.
“...No, only that I find myself looking forward even more to your marriage with my lord.”
“!?”
How the conversation had turned that direction, she had no idea.
Flustered inwardly, Rishe kept her outward composure as if nothing were amiss.
