Chapter 37.
Does the One That Got Away Always Seem Bigger?
In the dead of night, heated breaths echoed relentlessly from the imperial bedchamber of the Empress Palace in the Haren Empire.
“Your Majesty…”
Haley’s sweet, seductive voice followed closely after.
Normally, the Emperor of Haren would stay less than an hour in Haley’s chambers before leaving. But tonight, he had not come out for quite some time. The sticky sounds of desire, heightened to arouse even those merely listening, continued all the way until dawn.
“Something’s different tonight.”
After a wave of passion had passed, the Emperor, holding Haley in his arms, gently stroked her hair as he spoke.
“I suppose I’ve finally gotten used to Your Majesty’s embrace. Earlier, I got a little too excited… Did I startle you?”
Blushing with embarrassment, Haley nuzzled her cheek against the Emperor’s chest. To him, even that was utterly endearing.
“I’ve never been as satisfied as I was tonight. To bring me such joy—well done. Tell me, my Empress, is there something you desire?”
“May I truly speak my wish?”
“I permit it.”
Expecting her to ask for jewels or money, like her greedy father might, the Emperor was caught off guard by her reply.
“I want to see my younger sister in Pritan.”
“Your sister? Why all of a sudden?”
“Despite how she looks, my sister’s very experienced. In fact, I tried something she taught me today, and since Your Majesty seemed so pleased… I thought I’d like to learn more from her.”
The Emperor, surprised, looked down at Haley.
“I find that hard to believe. I saw that quiet-looking child only once as a girl. Are you saying she’s even more skilled than you?”
“Oh, Your Majesty~ You shouldn’t judge people by appearances. Back in the capital, there wasn’t a single young nobleman who hadn’t been smitten by her.”
“Hah… what a surprising thing to hear.”
“If she had become your Empress instead, Your Majesty may have found even greater satisfaction. Forgive me for that.”
The Emperor looked contemplative at Haley’s whispered words.
“I haven’t seen it myself, of course,” she added, “but one man said this: ‘That girl makes you feel like you’re tasting heaven just before death.’”
The Emperor’s eyes sparkled with intrigue. Seeing that, Haley smiled with triumph.
‘Well? Doesn’t the one that got away seem so much bigger now?’
Mikrok, William, and ten knights of Pritan rode all night and arrived at a small village in the northeast.
This village had fewer than twenty households. Yet, for some reason, every home was in an uproar early in the morning.
William, reversing his cloak and hurrying over, grabbed a man who had just burst out of his house.
“Wait. What’s going on in the village?”
The man was startled by the armed knights but quickly grabbed William’s hand desperately.
“Sir Knight, please help us. The children—our children have disappeared!”
“What?!”
“They were sleeping quietly in their rooms last night, but come morning, they were all gone! Please, you must help us find them!”
As the man pleaded with William, more villagers gathered around Mikrok and the knights.
Voices crying for help erupted from all directions, prompting Mikrok to raise his hand to silence them.
“Who’s the village chief?”
“That would be me.”
An old man with wild white hair but fierce eyes stepped forward.
“How many children are missing?”
“Thirteen. All thirteen children of this village vanished at once.”
“Has anyone suspicious come to the village recently? Perhaps someone using the name Rudik Maon?”
“Rudik? Why are you asking about that young man?”
At the word “young man,” Mikrok and William exchanged glances.
“You know him?”
“He arrived ten days ago and begged to be hired for any odd jobs. We were wary at first since he’s not from around here, but he cracked the ice on the Darlon River and filled the communal water jars so quickly, we hired him as a laborer.”
“Where is he now?”
“He usually fetches water from the river around dawn, so he’s probably there now.”
As Mikrok pressed for more details about Rudik, the village chief asked with growing anxiety:
“Is he the one behind this?”
“We’ll find out soon enough.”
“And who exactly are you all?”
“This is His Excellency Mikrok, sovereign of Pritan.”
At William’s introduction, the village chief and the residents were shocked, immediately bowing in deep respect.
“Is there anyone among you who can guide us to the Darlon River?”
Two young men stepped forward without hesitation.
“We are going to rescue the children now. Rudik is extremely dangerous. If he appears, fall back behind the knights. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!”
With the two young guides in the lead, Mikrok and his knights rushed toward the Darlon River.
As the remaining villagers watched anxiously, a woman came running out of a house, clutching a five-year-old child in her arms.
This child, mute since birth, was dearly pitied by all in the village.
“Chief! I found my baby, Juni!”
“Where was Juni?”
“I heard faint crying from the attic. When I went up, he was in a basket, sobbing. The goddess must have watched over him. Oh, thank you, dear goddess!”
Overcome with emotion, the mother smothered the child with kisses.
‘Why was one child left behind among the thirteen?’
The village chief couldn’t shake his ominous feeling.
“Tom? Tom, where are you?”
“Here, Chief!”
“Run to His Excellency Mikrok right now. Tell him—only twelve children are missing, not thirteen.”
Though the Darlon River wasn’t very large, it was a vital water source for many northeastern villages. Recently, the rapidly dropping temperatures had frozen it solid—even at the center.
“To haul that much water from a frozen river like this… no one but a fire-wielding demon could manage it,” William muttered, frowning.
“Look! Over there!”
One of the guides pointed toward the far edge of the river. A large wooden wagon appeared to be precariously teetering on something, swaying dangerously back and forth.
Straining their ears, the knights could hear the cries of children coming from inside.
“There’s a waterfall at the river’s end. It’s frozen now, but if we don’t act fast, that wagon will fall and be smashed to pieces.”
At the guide’s urgent plea, the knights dismounted and cautiously stepped onto the frozen river, making their way toward the wagon. The crying grew louder.
When they were about five meters away, William called out loudly:
“Children! Are you okay?”
The crying suddenly stopped, and a small face appeared in the wagon window.
“Please help us! Save us!!”
“Is everyone alright? How many are in there?”
“Thirteen of us! We’re all tied up!”
Mikrok and William carefully peered inside. The children were tightly bound to wooden posts in pairs. At the very back of the wagon, a young girl held her little sibling tightly in her arms.
Seeing the two men through the window, the children burst into sobs of relief.
“I’ll go in and bring them out,” William said, drawing his dagger.
“No. Judging by how the posts are arranged, someone calculated the weight distribution precisely. If we’re careless, the wagon will fall over the cliff. First, let’s anchor it with ropes.”
Suddenly, one child began screaming hysterically. Mikrok and William saw flames near one of the children’s feet.
“We don’t have time to tie ropes now!”
“Everyone, grab the end of the wagon and hold it steady!”
Without giving William a chance to object, Mikrok jumped into the wagon.
As he did, it lurched violently toward the cliff.
The knights rushed to grab the opposite side, just managing to balance it.
Inside, Mikrok quickly removed the burning child’s shoe and tossed it out.
“Where did the fire come from?”
“I don’t know. My foot got hot, and suddenly my shoe was on fire.”
“Don’t be afraid. I’ll save every one of you—but you must stay calm and do as I say.”
“Okay…”
Outside, the knights struggled to tie ropes to stabilize the wagon, but its heavy weight made it difficult.
“Will, take the wagon door off. I’ll hold the balance while I pass them to you, one by one.”
“Please be careful!”
As the knights tugged on the ropes to keep the wagon steady, William carefully removed the door.
Mikrok cut the children free with his dagger, then passed them one by one to William, who handed them off to the guides. Each time a child emerged safely, the guides cried tears of joy and hugged them tightly.
After rescuing eleven children, Mikrok shifted his weight backward and extended his arm toward the girl holding her baby sibling.
“Don’t be afraid. Can you pass your brother to me first?”
The girl bit her lip and slowly offered the baby.
Mikrok handed the baby to William—then turned back to the girl—and his eyes narrowed in alarm.
He had spotted a cross-shaped scar on her cheek.
Without hesitation, he threw his dagger at her.
The girl ducked, and in the same moment, a second longsword flew and pinned her shoulder to the wagon floor like a nail.
“!!!”
Just as Mikrok drew another blade to pierce her heart, William, watching from outside, began to jump in.
“Will, stand back. That’s an order!”
At that instant, flames erupted from the wagon floor, engulfing Mikrok.
Then came a massive explosion. The wagon—and Rudik Maon, who had been transforming into the girl—blew apart in a fiery blast.
I had trouble sleeping because of my worries about Robby and was just drifting off when I woke to shouting outside my room.
“Where did you hear such nonsense?!”
“……”
“It’s all lies! I swear on my life—it’s absolutely not true!”
Though I didn’t know who she was arguing with, it was clearly Millie—her voice fierce, as if she would stake her life on it.
I got out of bed and pulled the bell rope. Millie rushed into the room.
“What’s going on, Millie?”
“A few maids from the West Palace brought in some ridiculous rumors and I… got a little too worked up.”
“What rumors?”
Millie scowled and lowered her voice.
“They’re saying… that Young Master Robby is Her Majesty the Queen’s secret lover.”
“What??”
