~Chapter 118~
Thump, thump, thump.
My heart pounded in my temples.
The heat and the smell of gunpowder brushed past my nose.
For a moment, it felt like the world was moving in slow motion.
The Grand Duke was shaking monster blood off his greatsword.
And then— a gun was aimed, pointed exactly at him.
The eyeball’s pupil slowly widened…
All the nerves in my body stood on end.
I pulled out my musket and aimed.
I moved faster than I thought I ever could.
And then—
Bang!
Two gunshots rang out at the same time.
Thud!
“Ah, aaahhh!”
“…Your Grace, the Grand Duke!”
I didn’t even check if the shot to the Holy Knight’s arm had landed.
My eyes were fixed only on the Grand Duke.
‘He’s already sick as it is…!’
Beeeep. A deafening ringing filled my ears.
No way. It can’t be. No way…
“Your Grace! Protect him!”
“Move aside!”
“Who dares aim at His Grace…!”
“Wait, this is the Grand Duchess…”
Ignoring the soldiers shouting, I pushed through them.
I saw the Grand Duke, kneeling with one knee, clutching his head.
And on the ground, fragments of a broken mask.
Gasp.
I drew a sharp breath without meaning to.
‘Did it hit?’
I had shifted the trajectory. I thought I had…
I grabbed the Grand Duke’s shoulder.
“……”
“……”
Through the broken mask, our eyes met.
I released a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
‘He’s fine.’
Only the mask had shattered.
And then…
“….”
“…What?”
“Give me a cloak!”
I urged the bewildered soldiers.
One of them quickly pulled the cloak from his armor and handed it to me.
Tight.
I wrapped the Grand Duke’s face with it.
Under the cloth, I felt warmth.
Blood was flowing from his forehead where the fragments had cut him.
“Reform the lines! His Grace is safe!”
“But, Grand Duchess…”
“The monsters aren’t gone yet. As soldiers, protect the territory!”
The soldiers hesitated.
But then the Grand Duke slowly raised his arm.
He gave a hand signal—reform the lines, exterminate the enemy.
“…I’ll fetch a medic!”
“Everyone else, back to your positions!”
With that, the soldiers quickly scattered back into formation.
I pressed the cloak to stop the bleeding, holding the Grand Duke’s head tightly against my stomach.
My heart dropped, then rose again, my hands going hot then cold.
For a long time, silently, we only held on to each other’s warmth.
Grip.
The Grand Duke’s hand came up, clutching my waist tightly.
I opened my mouth, forcing myself to say only what was necessary.
“The situation is very serious.”
“….”
“The people will soon know.”
“….”
“Even with the Grand Duke here in Saint Portu, the monsters are coming without fear.”
“….”
“Your power doesn’t work right now, does it?”
As I spoke quietly, I felt his breath against my stomach.
“The impact will be great. We must find a way to handle this.”
“….”
“So the rest of the problems… for now, later.”
At those words, his hand around my waist pulled me so tightly it hurt.
I pressed his head harder against me with a bitter smile.
Kyaaaak!
A roar split the sky.
A flying monster, larger than any before, cast a dark shadow.
“That’s…”
I instinctively raised my musket.
But—
The Grand Duke’s hand came up, pressing my arm down.
Holding me close, he stood.
“Don’t move. Blood is in my eyes…”
Then suddenly, he grabbed something.
The eyeball.
Wink.
The moment he touched it, the eyeball winked strangely at me.
Then it began to glow.
The light grew so strong it was blinding.
“…!”
I shielded my eyes, and the Grand Duke pulled me tight.
I felt his entire body tense—preparing for something.
“Wait—!”
Before I could finish, something soft brushed against my forehead, then left.
Flaaash!
And then it happened.
Kyaaaak!
Kyaaaaaak!
“Ahh!”
From the body holding me, a power burst outward in every direction.
Ancient, overwhelming power.
“…Ugh!”
My skin burned and tingled, but I only clung to him tighter.
Kyaaaaak!
With piercing screams—
Boom, crash, boom!
The flying and charging monsters fell one by one, crashing down.
Blink.
The eyeball in the Grand Duke’s hand flickered and went out like a dead bulb.
I instinctively caught the snow globe as it slipped from his large hand.
“…Your Grace!”
“Grand Duke!”
The soldiers rushed in.
The Grand Duke collapsed against me, like a puppet with its strings cut.
Tick, tock. Tick, tock.
The second hand of the clock moved busily.
In the dead-silent room, it was the only sound.
Tick, tock, tick, tock.
I sat staring at the mirror across from me.
The woman in the dressing table mirror looked younger than expected, and dazed.
‘…No wonder no one said I looked manly.’
I looked so weak.
‘Who would ever think I looked like a man?’
People never thought of me as a woman either. Just not manly enough as a man.
‘Foolish.’
As I thought this, a pale small hand rested on my shoulder in the mirror.
Beth’s hand. The hand I had tried to protect from the filth of the back alleys.
“My lady.”
“…Beth.”
I turned, and saw Beth with reddened eyes step back.
Behind her, Jeremy entered with a heavy expression.
“How is it?”
“…As you said, I told the soldiers to keep His Grace’s presence here secret.”
“And the soldiers who shouted his title during the chaos?”
“Those nearby seem to have lost part of their memory when the power exploded. Those who remember think they misheard.”
“Good.”
Even with my face so exhausted, I had given such commands calmly when Jeremy rushed in.
I told him to hide that the Grand Duke was here.
So that people wouldn’t know his blood could no longer drive away monsters.
“Then… we’ll say the Grand Duke has just returned from the northern front.”
“Yes, understood.”
“And Captain Ista?”
“He agreed to keep it secret. Though I don’t know how much we can trust him…”
“He’ll keep quiet.”
“…Grand Duchess.”
“Not only because he’s trustworthy.”
But also because he felt guilty.
Some of the new recruits he brought had turned traitor.
That’s why he couldn’t even look me in the eye when we spoke.
“And the people? Reyna?”
“As you ordered, they’re all evacuated to the underground town.”
“And the rest of the preparations?”
“Clark and the head maid are handling as much as possible. Fortunately, during the power burst the walls were all restored…”
“And the Grand Duke?”
Jeremy sighed. After a pause, he spoke.
“…The physician’s treatment is finished.”
“Really?”
I stood immediately.
“Then I can go see him now, right?”
