CH 116

When Leon heard that Dana had disappeared, he seemed as if he would run on a horse right away, and then he suddenly stopped.

“Your Highness?”

“There’s a place to stop by.”

Leon headed straight to the first floor of the Annex palace. He passed the lobby and headed towards the hallway where the accommodations were gathered. Soldiers were also stationed at the entrance to the hallway.

The soldiers who saw Leon paid silent tribute and asked why they came.

“Your Highness? What’s wrong?”

“Did Count Felice enter the room?”

“Oh, that’s… Haven’t seen him?”

When the soldier who was asked was embarrassed and asked his colleague, the fellow soldier shook his head.

“I didn’t see him go in either.”

He didn’t have a very good feeling. Rian had a history of targeting Dana’s life in the past, and even now, when he encountered her again, he kept a close eye on Dana.

If it was Rian, he might have known that Dana had left the capital.

If he was not in this castle now, maybe he would have followed her. Feeling anxious, Leon pressed the soldier again and asked.

“Do you have any idea where the Count went?”

“That’s…”

“I saw him going to the Dining hall.”

“Does that mean he’s still in the castle?”

An answer came from behind Leon.

“No, my son-in-law left this place a while ago, Your Grace.”

Looking back, the Duke of Hamilton was looking at them.

“Do you mean he just left?”

“That’s right, he left after getting permission from me because he had something urgent to do. Why are you looking for my son-in-law?”

Duke Hamilton sincerely asked, but Leon couldn’t afford to answer his questions.

However, he decided to say something because he would soon be asked for a crime against Rian Felice.

“Duke Hamilton, bringing the wrong people into your house can cause great dismay.”

At Leon’s sudden remark, Duke Hamilton only blinked, and Leon passed by him. He had a lot of work to do in the capital now.

That’s why he sent Dana out first. But now that Dana was gone, he couldn’t afford to remain calm.

* * *

“But you really don’t want to tell the Grand Duke?”

Dana could not readily answer Lisa’s question. She didn’t mean to worry him on purpose.

I wish Leon would trust me and help me…

She wanted to finish this herself. However, it was not that Leon didn’t understand how she felt.

“I want to send a letter to Tertius Castle.”

Dana raised herself slowly again. Instead of a dirty and torn dress, she now wore black clean clothes.

“Ah, thank you. For the clothes…”

“Sorry, I only have clothes like that. The idiots suddenly came in and asked me to look at a woman…”

“But why are you here?”

Lisa turned around and searched for a drawer, and put out a twisted piece of paper and pointed charcoal.

“I originally tried to kill him myself. But I was too ahead of myself and clumsy. I failed in a good way.”

Dana listened to Lisa, took the writing instrument, and spread the crumpled paper on a flat drawer.

“Come to think of it, if I just kill him without revealing his sin, I’ll just become a murderer.”

“Are you trying to resolve it legally?”

“No, I wanted to let the world know that I killed a man when I killed him. Still, I would have faced the death penalty, but at least I would be justified. But since I met you…”

Lisa blurred the end of her speech and directed her eyes to Dana, conveying the omitted intention. And that was what Dana also hoped for.

“Help me, Lisa. It’s hard for me alone too.”

“Why are you alone? You have the Grand Duke… I rather need help. This is a good opportunity.”

After saying that, Lisa got up from her seat. Then she went outside, saying she had something to do, perhaps to let Dana write a letter.

When Dana saw the door close, she sighed quietly and picked up the charcoal. Commoners rarely used to write, and even if they did, they would use this charcoal. It was not a familiar tool for Dana.

Moreover, because the end was blunt, it was unlikely that many letters could be written on a small piece of paper.

Dana, who hesitated a little, eventually decided to leave a short message.

「Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon. – Dana Deniz.」

It was ridiculously short to explain everything, but it seemed that he would come soon if she told him her location. And even if she didn’t write a letter like this, if he decided to find her, he would even mobilize the army to search.

If it went that way, the conclusion would be obvious.

“It’ll probably get ruined.”

And he would constantly hug and persuade her. What Dana was worried about was not only his actions but also herself being weak against him.

As soon as possible, find that and go back.

While folding the paper smoothly, she heard the voices of men buzzing outside. She was somehow used to it, so when she heard it, she thought it was the two men who saved her.

Dana thought she had to say hello to them, so she got up and went outside.

When she went out, Lisa was telling them something in a slightly annoyed voice.

“I can’t even handle this kind of stuff. What kind of place is the Deniz merchant, and I get this kind of low grade?”

“But Lisa, we’re not even professional herbalists, but this is great. You don’t need to sell it anyway. Why don’t you bring this?”

Dana stuck her head between them.

“What’s going on?”

“Oh, scared me.”

The man was surprised but pleased to see Dana.

“Oh, I guess you’re okay now.”

“Yes, thanks to you. Thank you for saving me. I’ll make sure to repay you later.”

“My my, what are you repaying me for? I did what I had to do.”