Chapter 157
***
Eir and Abel diligently headed toward the nearest temple. Though Abel had never been pursued in his life, perhaps due to his resemblance to Rubel, he was quite capable in his actions.
Upon reaching the vicinity of the temple, he even demonstrated thoroughness by insisting on going alone, leaving Eir behind.
“Even though I’m disguised as a servant, I don’t usually bring servants around, and it’s obvious who I brought from home. People will naturally think you bewitched my brother and will try to execute you on sight rather than sending you to the Central Temple.”
Eir was surprised at her more dangerous situation than she had thought.
Or to be more honest, she was more surprised that she didn’t feel bothered at all while hearing these words.
There was a time when she had been anxious that even seeing Rubel’s face might disrupt her peaceful life. But looking back, perhaps that life, though peaceful, didn’t hold much meaning.
Through her bizarre entanglement with Rubel, Eir’s life had become incomparably richer than before, swelling with something ready to burst.
As she recalled how she couldn’t help but laugh continuously during her peaceful moments with him on the island, a strange feeling came over her.
She had only then discovered that she could be that kind of person. She’d always thought people who laughed carelessly and played pranks were simply born that way.
Even if it was only for a brief moment, she couldn’t stand by and watch Rubel walk into his grave when he had given her such feelings.
‘So this is what it feels like when someone else becomes more important than yourself.’
Eir calmly thought to herself as she lowered her gaze.
It makes you composed in the face of any danger.
“I understand. I’ll stay here quietly.”
After Eir answered, Abel gave her multiple warnings before hurrying away. Even from a distance, he seemed worried that she might run away, making Eir think he really had no trust at all.
“Why does he bother when I’ve already made a vow?”
Eir muttered as she watched Abel enter the temple.
But after muttering this, she suddenly felt troubled by that unseemly vow. At the time, she had only made it to quickly persuade the reluctant Abel, but now she wondered if it had been a mistake.
What if a swift witch really captured her? Then she would break her promise and receive severe divine punishment.
Just in case, she tightly gripped the horse’s reins, looking around warily, ready to mount quickly if any suspicious person appeared. At that moment, she noticed two tall men in the distance approaching her with cautious glances. Despite their ordinary clothes, their excessive muscles and serious expressions were out of place.
Their looks were clearly those of men on a mission, so Eir immediately realized what was happening and tried to climb onto the horse with a struggle. But that was her mistake.
The overly handled horse remained motionless while Eir wriggled like a caterpillar trying to mount it. Even after she got on and lightly kicked its belly with her leg while pulling on the reins, it didn’t budge.
“Are you crazy? What’s wrong with you?”
While a panicked Eir desperately shook the reins, the disguised knights approached her more quickly. Realizing they’d been discovered, they now ran straight toward her without bothering to hide.
Eir gave up on the horse and chose to run on foot instead, trying to dismount, but she fell awkwardly to the ground from the unexpected height.
The knights had certainly been ordered to abduct Eir, but they had prepared for the worst-case scenario of threatening a frightened woman to take her away. Now they were bewildered by the absurd scene unfolding before them.
“Are you alright?”
They unwittingly asked about the well-being of the woman they were supposed to kidnap. Eir quickly raised her head, with bright red blood dripping from her nose. Realizing this was her chance while these foolish people were asking if she was okay, she hurriedly got up and tried to escape.
“Ugh!”
But they weren’t like the riffraff Eir had dealt with before. It would have been more difficult for them not to catch a woman who was struggling to keep her balance like a newborn deer.
They smoothly struck the back of her neck to knock her out, as if they had never asked if she was alright. As people gathered around after Eir fell from the horse, they naturally carried her away, putting on a poorly acted show of “Miss! Are you alright?” to avoid suspicion.
Conveniently, Eir’s luxurious hair, hidden under her hat, flowed out as the hat came off, making people believe she was a naive young lady who had run away from home and was now being caught by her family’s knights.
Thanks to this, when Abel came out a while later and anxiously asked, “Have you seen the servant who was here?” in a desperate tone, people responded with strange misunderstandings: “No, someone who looks like a priest shouldn’t be doing this!”, “Aren’t you afraid of divine punishment?”, “Trying to run away with another woman!” and other unhelpful comments.
“What are you talking about?”
While a confused Abel tried to respond, the knights carrying Eir moved farther and farther away.
Finally realizing the truth beyond all the chatter—that someone had taken Eir away—Abel could only sink to the ground in confusion, holding his head in both hands.
He had brought out the criminal his brother Rubel cared about and lost her. How would he explain this to him?
“No. Get it together. If it were witches, there would have been a commotion, and since we’re right in front of the temple, people would have noticed if they used magic.”
The culprits must have subdued Eir by force and taken her away.
Did the witches smartly use force to take her first?
Abel hurried back into the temple to seek help. This was certainly the most dramatic day of his life.
Meanwhile, Eir regained consciousness not long after.
Surprisingly, she found herself sitting on a soft sofa. Having naturally assumed she’d been captured by witches, Eir couldn’t help but be bewildered by this unexpectedly elegant setting.
Moreover, her hands and feet weren’t bound, and nothing was stuffed in her mouth.
Is this how witches normally treat their captives after kidnapping them, with such courtesy?
This was a world of difference from Rubel, who had slammed her head against the wall, knocked her down, tied her hands behind her back, and immediately stuffed a handkerchief in her mouth the moment he suspected she might be a witch.
She carefully opened her eyes to calmly understand what situation had unfolded before her, when a leisurely but familiar voice sounded from in front.
“Why are you so frightened? I just called you here to talk.”
Eir shuddered.
Opening her eyes, she saw Magnus Shinote, the owner of the voice, smiling proudly as if celebrating the successful kidnapping.
Eir frowned and looked at the man.
She hadn’t expected Magnus Shinote to appear here at all. In fact, she had almost completely forgotten about his existence. After Rubel had said “My brother will be scared so I’ll drive you away,” Magnus had truly disappeared from the Shinote mansion, and simultaneously from Eir’s mind as well.
She quietly looked up at Magnus. She wasn’t afraid of him. This was true even when he had brought monstrous dogs to torture her.
From the moment he kept calling her “Witch!” in a strange and dramatic tone that somehow sounded ridiculous, she had well understood that he was shallow and had lived as a bundle of inferiority, unable to keep up with his brilliant brother Rubel.
Such people aren’t actually frightening. But Magnus Shinote was the eldest son of the Shinote family, and he was problematic because of the many things he could do.
“What do you want to talk about?”
Eir asked, trying to go along with him while looking at the man. The man’s smile disappeared, and with a seemingly anxious face, he asked:
“Where has Isabella disappeared to?”
“What?”
Eir raised an eyebrow at the unexpected question. Magnus stood up abruptly and shouted.
“Isabella, a witch like you. Don’t you know who she is?”
Discussion
0 CommentsReactions
No comments yet.