Chapter 62

Merry Christmas to all my readers! To celebrate, I’m treating you to extra chapter updates. Please enjoy this special release of four bonus chapters! °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

(Lurelia’s Christmas Bonus – Update 2/4 🎉)

♡ To all readers who purchased these chapters before Christmas: I can’t express this enough – Thank you for your support. (*ˊᗜˋ*)/ᵗᑋᵃᐢᵏ ᵞᵒᵘ*

 

That night.

Tomorrow was finally the day to set fire to the warehouse. I lay in bed earlier than usual to maintain good condition for the day of the plan.

But just as I was about to fall asleep, my surroundings became strangely bright.

‘Why is it so bright?’

I had turned off all the lights before sleeping, but oddly, my surroundings were illuminated. I got out of bed and pulled open the thick blackout curtains covering the window.

“Why is there such a large light?”

Beyond the dark garden, I could see a flickering crimson light.

‘That location seems familiar.’

It was where the warehouse Lucas had shown me on the map was located. It wasn’t the execution day yet, so why would there be light coming from there? With a vague intuition, I quickly gathered magical power.

When I temporarily enhanced my vision, I could see the warehouse burning fiercely. My prediction that this wasn’t an ordinary light based on the intensity of the fire proved correct.

I couldn’t make sense of the situation.

“Why is the warehouse already…?”

The raging fire that had engulfed the entire warehouse was about to spread to the forest. Judging by the scale of the fire, it was only a matter of time before the warehouse collapsed.

‘What’s going on?’

The only possibility I could imagine was that Tristan and Lucas had lied to me about the execution date.

Even if that were the case, a fire of this magnitude didn’t make sense. The fire we had planned was only meant to burn part of the warehouse.

Could a fire unrelated to our plan happen to occur today of all days?

Whatever the case, this was clearly related to those two.

“Little one. Don’t worry about anything today and get a good night’s sleep. Got it?”

“Yes. Like he said, it’s better for you to go to bed early today.”

“You need to sleep early so your tiny height can grow.”

I recalled how those two had been particularly insistent that I go to sleep early. What if, by some chance, this fire grew this large because something went wrong with their plan?

The two of them might be inside that burning warehouse right now.

‘Just like the day the library burned.’

No matter how thoroughly you prepare, things can go wrong unexpectedly.

Thinking about what might have happened to those two made me feel dizzy. Unless a skilled practitioner with wind attribute magic, like when I was Kashian arrived, this wasn’t a fire that could be easily suppressed.

I could question what happened later.

“I have to go!”

I opened the window wide and jumped out without thinking. I instinctively broke my fall, but landed awkwardly, spraining my ankle.

I bit my lip as I held my swollen, throbbing ankle. Could I make it in time with this leg?

“These idiots!”

I had brought Lucas in to prevent dangerous situations from happening.

‘If they’re hurt, I won’t let them off.’

Should I be thankful that the warehouse was in a secluded location? I infused my legs with a small amount of magical power and ran toward the light.

I hoped my suspicions were unfounded.

Fortunately, I had already figured out the shortcut to the warehouse. Sweat beaded on my forehead from the pain in my legs, forcibly infused with magical power.

***

The scene in front of the warehouse was chaotic.

Servants with disheveled appearances, probably having rushed out of bed, were carrying buckets of water to the warehouse. Judging by the small number of people, it seemed the news of the fire hadn’t spread widely yet.

Thanks to everyone being busy, no one noticed me.

“Be careful not to get caught in the flames! We need more people!”

“We’ve contacted the knights’ order, but there’s no news yet!”

“Someone report this situation to His Grace the Grand Duke!”

“We’re short on manpower. We need more people to extinguish the fire.”

I limped on my injured foot and hid in the darkness. The fire, seen up close, made the library fire pale in comparison.

Ashes and dust flying everywhere tickled my respiratory tract. If the fire wasn’t extinguished quickly, the nearby forest would also be in danger.

‘Where are Tristan and Lucas?’

I couldn’t see them among the people bustling about.

“Tristan? Are you there?”

I couldn’t call out loudly for fear someone might notice me.

Those two, who could find me wherever I was like ghosts, would hear me even if my voice was small. My hurried steps slowed as my energy ran out.

What trouble I was going through because of those two. Those two who sat in my room without permission were really annoying.

“Liat! That Tristan was saying you like him better.”

“Did I say anything wrong? Little one, you say something too.”

“I like quiet people.”

“Then brother is definitely out.”

There wasn’t a single quiet day because of those two bickering. They would bring snacks and compete over whose snacks were better.

But then they would work surprisingly well together on matters related to me.

“Can’t sleep? I’ll bring you some warm water to drink before bed.”

“I’ve already prepared that, so brother, just sing a song.”

Lucas’s lullaby that followed was so sweet it could chase away sleep. I felt sorry that both Lucas and Tristan seemed to be treating me more comfortably than before.

Even if I couldn’t be the family they wanted, I thought I could at least play a role in smoothing things between them.

“Where is everyone?”

Quite some time had passed since I arrived here, but I still couldn’t find the two.

‘Did something really happen?’

What if Tristan was trapped inside that warehouse with his magic tangled, like last time? Unlike me, who could be reborn no matter how many times I died, those two would be gone forever.

I knew that people could die at any time.

When my anxiety reached its peak, I heard the voices of servants. I quickly hid behind a nearby tree.

Two servants who stopped right in front of me were talking to each other.

“Is it true that there’s someone inside that warehouse?”

“Someone witnessed a person going in. They said the person looked very fancy.”

“Then we should rescue them quickly!”

“With the fire spread like that, who would go in there? We need to put out the fire first before we can search inside.”

If it were someone who looked fancy, could it be…

Not everyone working in the mansion would know Tristan and Lucas’s faces. My thoughts were becoming increasingly extreme.

In my imagination, the two were trapped in the warehouse, crying. And Lucas was afraid of dark places.

I jumped out from behind the tree and ran toward the entrance of the warehouse.

“Ah! A child just ran toward the warehouse!”

“Stop her! It’s dangerous over there!”

“We can’t get close!”

The servants hesitated as they tried to run toward me.

The huge flames reached out as if to swallow me. I lowered my head, covered my nose, and entered the smoke without hesitation.

Boom. Crash.

No one would approach the entrance where burning timber was falling.

‘It’s still okay.’

There would still be some time before the warehouse completely collapsed.

After entering the warehouse using my small build, I looked around. The stairs leading to the upper floor of the warehouse still maintained their shape.

‘There’s someone upstairs.’

With my senses sharply focused, I detected a faint human presence. The upper floor housed high-end furniture that had been specially treated to be fire-resistant.

According to the original plan, that was where the fire should have started. If I sensed someone’s presence in such a place, the probability that it was those two was very high.

“Those two will be safe.”

Unless the entire warehouse collapsed, the fire wouldn’t spread there.

Relieved, I ran up the stairs toward the second floor. Luxurious furniture was arranged in the spacious room according to a certain pattern.

The situation was better than on the first floor, but this place was also filled with smoke.

“Tristan! Lucas!”

It was quiet except for the crackling sound of burning embers.

‘Where could they be?’

The human presence I had clearly felt from downstairs couldn’t be detected. Just as I was about to give up, a strange hand landed on my shoulder.

I swallowed a scream at the touch of the hand gently gripping my shoulder.

“…Who?”

“I understand you’re surprised, but there’s no need to be afraid.”

“Heishar?”

“Please call me teacher.”

When I turned my head, I saw Heishar with an unperturbed face. He made a somewhat disgusted expression as he looked at the blackened walls where sparks were flying.

He sighed as he tucked his disheveled hair behind his ear.

“I apologize, Grand Princess. I find it hard to tolerate dirt.”

His thin, slender fingers moved away from me. Heishar was wearing pristine white clothes without a single wrinkle.

His clothes, without a speck of dust even in the fire, combined with his golden hair, gave him a somewhat sacred appearance.

Heishar addressed me in a gentle voice.

“You must have known about the fire, so why did you come in?”

“Did you see me come in?”

“Yes. I can’t go down because the fire has spread, but the window here is large. You seemed to be looking for someone.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

The fact that Heishar was in this room meant that those two might have been here as well. The possibility that the fire was caused by those two increased.

I asked him if he had seen Lucas and Tristan. Heishar frowned slightly with an exasperated expression and asked.

“Are you saying you came all the way here to find those two?”

“Yes.”

“With that leg?”

My ankle, which was sprained and temporarily infused with magical power, was swollen hideously. By now, I couldn’t feel the pain anymore, so I could walk.

He looked at me with a bewildered expression and said.

“I thought the Grand Princess was trying to end her life.”

“No. I was planning to go back as soon as I found those two.”

“Then I guess this makes sense.”

Heishar handed me the object he was holding.

What he gave me was the fire-starting magical tool that Tristan had developed. For some reason, only the eye part that transmitted images was damaged.

“This device seemed to be related to the young masters or the Grand Princess.”

So those two did it!

This fire was indeed started after lying to me about the execution date.

‘What should I do?’

As I stood there, unable to decide what to do, I saw the ceiling swaying with flames. The support beams of the warehouse seemed to have reached their limit.

Heishar’s expression hardened as he saw the same thing.

“Hold on tight.”

He lifted me into his arms and ran toward the only window.