Chapter 91
-KABOOOM!
The mansion shook.
Leon, Renoa, and Bibi as well. The three of them ran with their backs to the mansion.
Given the situation, Renoa was slung over Leon’s shoulder.
“Sir Leon, what are you going to do?”
“We’re heading to the stables. We need to get out of the territory fast.”
Aither had betrayed them.
He knew Aither was cunning, but he never expected him to sell out even his father’s name.
Of course, they had played a big part in bringing the situation to this point, so he had no intention of resenting him.
As he ran, Leon glanced sideways at Renoa, slung over his shoulder like a bundle.
If she were the Renoa Leon knew, she would have flown into a rage at being treated like luggage.
But she was quiet now. Her expression was blank, as if her mind had wandered somewhere else.
‘...’
Renoa was still mulling over the words Cassius had spat at her as he threw her out.
You, a half-blood, are not Edelheid.
It was a blatant insult aimed at Renoa, the illegitimate child. She had heard it so many times she was sick of it.
She thought Cassius’s words were no different from what anyone else had said.
But then came the next line.
Therefore, a half-blood like you is not even a witch.
She had been pretending it didn’t bother her, but it was something Renoa had been concerned about deep down as well.
Witches were beings to be shunned. There was nothing good about being related by blood to such a witch.
He denied it.
Cassius of all people.
Even though he probably knew this mess had happened because of Renoa, he didn’t resent her at all.
It was different from the loyalty Leon showed. It was a realm beyond Renoa’s understanding.
She wanted to ask how he could do that, but unfortunately, there seemed to be no more chance.
“My lady. Ride with Bibi.”
After Leon put Renoa on a horse, he mounted another one himself.
He grabbed the reins and kicked the horse in the flank.
-Neigh!
The two horses carrying the three of them burst out of the mansion and raced toward the forest.
Behind them, explosions kept reverberating through the evening sky.
The once-splendid Edelheid manor was crumbling away with each passing moment.
Even as the horse rocked beneath her, Renoa kept her head turned and couldn’t look away.
The burning mansion.
Glory receding into the distance along with it.
Biting her lip until it bled, she could only quietly carve that horrific ending into her eyes.
Renoa soothed herself as if under hypnosis.
‘I’m still fine.’
Yeah.
I’m still fine.
Because she had Leon.
If she wanted to, she could always stand back up.
***
A forest path blanketed in darkness.
Only the rhythmic sound of hoofbeats cut through the chilly evening air.
Bibi, who was racing while holding the reins as if to shield Renoa, spoke first.
“Sir Leon. Do you have a destination in mind?”
“I’m planning to head to Belmarin.”
“You mean to leave the Empire?”
“If our pursuers are the Imperial family, it’s an unavoidable choice.”
Belmarin, a trading port located not far from the Edelheid duchy.
Leon intended to leave the Empire by ship.
If the Imperial family’s eyes could reach it, nowhere in the Empire was safe.
That was the safest choice.
‘How am I supposed to get money?’
They had rushed out so suddenly that he didn’t have a single coin on him.
There were three mouths to feed, and one of them was a rich young lady who had lived her whole life eating only the finest food.
Naturally, that meant Leon was the one who had to go earn the money.
‘So I’m the only one who’s going to be running myself ragged again.’
While Renoa and Bibi lounged around at home, he’d have to go out and work himself to the bone.
If they were grateful, maybe that would be one thing, but they’d definitely complain that he’d only brought back this much.
The future already looked bleak.
“...”
Just as Leon was worrying about the future...
A chill brushed across Leon’s senses, stretched to their limit.
The forest held its breath.
In an instant, something shot straight toward them from between the trees.
Leon clicked his tongue and spurred his horse forward.
He drew his sword like lightning and swung it in a short arc.
-CLANG!
Sparks flew out of the darkness with a metallic ring.
“Sir Leon?”
“We’ve got pursuers.”
Leon fixed his gaze on one spot in the forest.
Trampling through the undergrowth, dozens of figures appeared. They were the Imperial Knights in silver armor.
The one at the front, as expected, was Aither.
“You got here fast. What happened to Cassius?”
“I left him in the care of someone I can trust, so you don’t need to worry.”
“Are you going to kill me?”
“I don’t intend to yet.”
“Sounds to me like you’re saying you’ll kill me if need be.”
Aither answered with silence.
Leon narrowed his eyes and swept the area. Not only the knights in front of him, but assassins were hiding all throughout the forest.
Every single one of them gave off formidable pressure. It was obvious they had brought only the elite among the Imperial Knights.
He ran the calculations in his head.
‘Can I protect Renoa while holding all of them off? Or can I shake them off?’
There was no need to think about it.
Either way, it was impossible.
For a knight, victory wasn’t winning the battle but protecting his master. Slaves were no different.
Leon had only one choice.
“Bibi. Take the young lady with you.”
“What about you, Sir Leon?”
“I’m staying here to keep these guys from getting through.”
Leon couldn’t be sure whether he could win.
But he was confident he could buy enough time for the two of them to escape.
“...What?”
Renoa, who had been dazed ever since they left the mansion, suddenly came to her senses.
“Stay here? What do you mean by that?”
“We can’t escape like this anyway. The ones who can live should live.”
“What about you?”
Leon looked at Renoa and gave a light shrug.
“Well... somehow, it’ll work out.”
Renoa’s pupils trembled violently.
Just moments ago, Cassius had thrust himself into danger, declaring that he would shoulder the family’s burden alone.
It overlapped perfectly with the Leon before her.
Cassius was still the heir to the ducal house, so he would at least be able to survive.
On the other hand, Leon was a slave.
He had no value whatsoever to the Imperial family. It was obvious what would happen to him.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Do you think I’d allow that?”
The isolated days she had spent branded as a bastard by her family.
The miserable fate of spending her entire life shut away in a cramped cage, forced to hold her breath.
Leon was the one who had taken Renoa out of that cage.
In a world with no backing to boast of and no one entirely on her side, Leon was the only complete thing Renoa had ever been allowed to call her own.
Of course, it was also true that she had kept him by her side as a chess piece to help her rise above her station.
But beneath that, there was a feeling that could never be controlled by reason alone.
The person who had made her realize she wasn’t merely a doll, but a real person.
To Renoa, he was her one and all.
Losing Leon meant the collapse of her entire world.
She could never lose him. Only with him did she have a future.
“Stop talking nonsense and get on the horse...”
Renoa’s mouth, which had been about to dismiss Leon’s absurd claim, stopped all at once.
Even though her lips were moving, she couldn’t spit out the command that had been lingering on the tip of her tongue.
‘...?’
Her mind went blank.
The option of escaping with Leon started to crumble in Renoa’s mind.
It was no use trying to stop it.
It vanished without resistance, as if someone were forcibly carving away her thoughts.
Something that had been certain only moments ago had completely evaporated.
She couldn’t even remember what she had been about to say.
And so Renoa lost it.
The command she had meant to give Leon, the command she had to give.
An empty head.
In this situation, the commands Renoa could give were extremely limited.
Renoa’s lips twitched violently as they forced themselves open.
“Leon. S-stay here and...”
No.
She must not say it out loud.
Even though she knew deep down that she must not give that command as it was.
Even though her head was screaming and her heart was thrashing in rejection.
Renoa couldn’t think of any choice other than this.
“Stay here and... take care of everything. Make sure nobody can chase after us.”
Renoa’s green eyes trembled uncontrollably. She looked horrified at herself for saying such a thing.
She couldn’t understand why.
Because it was only natural for a slave to sacrifice himself for his master.
“And... you must. You must come back to my side alive. That’s an order. If you disobey it... I’ll never forgive you.”
Even with the unsettling feeling that her thoughts were being manipulated, Renoa added the command desperately, as if fighting back with everything she had.
It was a command given in a voice so miserable it seemed like it might run out of breath, so thin it seemed ready to break.
So much so that no one would think she was the heartless villainess she was supposed to be.
Leon smiled softly in response.
He murmured.
“Understood.”
Leon met Bibi’s eyes.
“Take care of the young lady. If you betray us again, you won’t get an easy death.”
“I will serve her with everything I have until this life goes out.”
Bibi bowed her head to Leon. She tightened her grip on the reins.
The horse let out a whinny and burst forward. Dust flew up in a harsh cloud.
Once the hoofbeats had completely faded beyond the forest and he confirmed their presence was gone.
Leon let out a sigh as if a great burden had been lifted.
‘Thankfully, it worked.’
Leon looked down at his hand.
What he held there was a blue ticket.
[Right to Refuse Orders]
You may refuse any command once. The same command cannot be forced again within 24 hours.
A reward he had received while carrying out one of Renoa’s commands.
He had left it sitting around because he couldn’t find a proper use for it, but he never expected he’d end up using it in a place like this, in a way like this.
Honestly, Leon was quite surprised.
He had thought Renoa would use a slave as a scapegoat without a second thought and leave him behind.
But on the other hand, it wasn’t exactly surprising either.
He had long since realized that the Renoa he saw on a screen and the Renoa before his eyes were completely different people.
Leon had even been thinking she might do something like this.
So much had changed.
Renoa too.
Leon too.
‘Now that I think about it, there was something like that, wasn’t there?’
The unique slave skill [Chivalry] he received after becoming Renoa’s escort knight.
A skill that increased physical abilities in proportion to one’s loyalty to one’s master.
For three years, no matter how hard he tried, his loyalty never rose above 50%.
I wonder what it’s at now.
Leon was curious, but he didn’t bother checking.
When he was offering himself as a slave for his master and even giving his life, did that number really matter?
One thing, however, was certain.
Since meeting Renoa, he was in the best condition he’d ever been in.
Leon turned his head.
Countless gazes were shooting at him. Taking them all on alone, he slowly curved his lips into a smile.
-SWISH!
Leon swung his sword.
The ground was gouged open, drawing a long line before him.
“I won’t touch you if you don’t cross this line. But...”
Then he declared, loud enough for everyone to hear.
“If you cross it, you’re dead.”