If You Leave Without a Word - Chapter 241

‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.

Death would have been easier.

Happiness had never existed in Esther’s life. She had lived a misfortunate life, finally met the man she loved, and thought she could live like a proper human being once she found her bloodline.

But the happiness that had nearly touched her now vanished, slipping through her fingers.

If only she had never known happiness at all. The warmth of love, a gentle word—if she had never known it, it would have spared her heart this torment.

Even the security her family could have provided, she wished she had never known.

Her tears, long dried, now felt red and suffused with blood. She had no more tears to shed, only the sensation of bleeding.

“What a ridiculous thing: a lowly girl like this, and yet the last princess of a nation. How laughable, isn’t it?”

When Esther did not react, the Grand Duke quickly lost interest and turned to tease a nearby knight. His words were meant only to mock and ridicule Esther.

“This is why a country must have power. No matter if she is a princess—once a nation is lost, she becomes a worthless refugee. She likely spent her life spread out before men she never knew, living shamefully.”

His vulgar words continued to assail her, but they no longer left a mark on Esther’s heart. Perhaps her heart had already died when she witnessed the death of her husband, who had loved her wholly despite knowing everything about her.

Her body breathed, but her soul was dead.

“Look at her. Pretty enough, but so sullied.”

The Grand Duke leered at her, remembering that in the rush to secure Count Schuck’s silence, he had not held a woman in months.

“If she had been only a little less sullied, I could have at least pretended to hold her. Tsk.”

With the Grand Duke’s displeased words, silence fell in the carriage.

The only sound was the wheels of the carriage rolling relentlessly toward the capital.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Even though Lehman advised that it would be more practical to gather all the bodies in one place for cremation instead of burying them individually, Cain shook his head.

These were people who had never once lived a settled life, even as their country was taken from them. He could not bring himself to reduce such pitiable souls to a mere handful of ashes. Despite the effort it required, he ordered that each one be given a proper grave.

As they constructed this unexpected cemetery, time slipped away.

By then, Cain had managed to uncover only a rough idea of the perpetrator’s identity. After thoroughly searching every corner of Arta, he confirmed that there were no other survivors besides the boy.

However, the whereabouts of the Grand Duke and Esther, as well as the survival of the Kristin knights stationed in Arta, remained unknown.

Once he had finished recovering the last of the bodies and returned to the barracks, Cain immediately headed to the orphanage where Agatha was staying. The building, relatively intact, had been slightly repaired and now served as her residence.

“Agatha, how are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. It’s a little uncomfortable not being able to lie completely flat, but such hardship here in Arta hardly counts.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to return to the mansion in the capital?”

“There’s no choice. If we move, there’s a risk that something could go wrong on the way. Staying here is the safest option.”

Cain nodded, troubled. After all the struggles of traveling by ship and carriage, he could not risk moving Agatha again. If her water were to break on the road, there would be no way to prevent her from giving birth helplessly in the middle of the street. And if anyone attacked at that moment…

He could barely bear to imagine the tragedy. Cain blinked slowly, gathering his thoughts.

“I’ll reinforce the remaining troops as much as possible. I will protect you and the child, no matter what.”

The vow seemed less directed at Agatha than at himself.

Agatha slowly stroked her belly. From the way it had been giving sinking sensations these past few days, it was clear the time for childbirth was near.

It pained her that the child, who should be born into a world of blessings and happiness, would instead immediately encounter shadows of death and despair.

But there was nothing to be done—survival had to come first.

“By the way… do we know where Esther is?”

Since arriving in Arta, Esther’s name had become taboo in Cain’s presence.