Chapter 79
The Advisor left the tent, leaving behind the dumbfounded Second Prince.
The knights standing guard outside didn’t even glance at the Advisor, yawning as if they were unaware of his very existence.
With unhesitating steps, the Advisor melted into the darkness.
His destination was a tent at the far opposite end.
Sitting on a tree, he frowned in pain as he gazed at the particularly large tent.
A gust of wind blew, flipping back his robe.
Black hair and vivid red eyes, gleaming in the pitch-black night, were revealed.
[For the past few days, the Duke’s lover has been wandering outside.]
“Lover…”
The man’s hands turned deathly white from anger.
“Luna, wait for me. I’m coming to take you back.”
His voice disappeared into the wind as it blew past once more.
* * *
The days passed without any trouble.
Helen and the black panther never left the wagon, and no one ever left me alone.
When Kaiman disappeared, Miguel appeared. When Miguel was gone, Nana appeared.
Even though Gruel was always near me, invisible or not, the others never left me unattended.
As soon as Miguel left, Dana approached, and I patted Geumdong’s head.
“Wouldn’t it just be better if I stayed in the wagon, Geumdong?”
“No, that’s dangerous. What if the wagon gets attacked like last time?”
Hearing my mutter, Dana shook her head firmly.
“We only got lucky then, Lady Luna. If that wreckage had struck your lungs or heart, it could have been fatal. It’s actually safer for you to be outside. And you’re not a burden at all, so please don’t worry.”
“Thanks, Dana. Don’t go to the Second Prince’s tent anymore. Stay with me.”
I clung tightly to Dana’s arm.
A small laugh escaped her lips.
“Yes, I’ll stay. Besides, tomorrow we’ll reach the heart of the Sacred Ground. Everything will finally be over.”
After that, all we had to do was retrace our steps on the way back.
Once the Holy Stone was found, the monsters still within the Sacred Ground would naturally perish, meaning there’d be no need for further hunting.
Her words eased the tension in me.
Though I still occasionally heard the voice calling my name, nothing actually happened.
“Looks like today’s over.”
When I turned my head at Dana’s words, I saw Wishid approaching—covered in even more blood than yesterday.
He accepted the towel and clothes Dana handed him.
“I’ll wash up quickly.”
“Ah, is the lake wide? I’d like to wash too.”
“I’ll help you, Lady Luna.”
Dana ducked into the wagon and came out with fresh clothes and a towel for me.
“Wishid, was today harder than yesterday?”
“Similar, but different.”
We chatted briefly as we walked, and soon the lake came into view.
Fortunately, there were two lakes. Dana and I chose the smaller, shallower one.
A dense cluster of trees separated the two lakes, but even running, the distance was no more than three minutes.
“See you in a bit!”
Just as I waved to Wishid, he suddenly stopped walking.
He thrust his hand into the bushes and yanked something out—a reeking Gruel.
“You’re supposed to follow me. Where do you think you’re going?”
“I was going to follow you!”
With a pitiful expression, Gruel was dragged off by the scruff of his neck.
Dana and I giggled as we reached the lake.
“No one’s here.”
After scanning the surroundings and finding no sign of people, Dana gave her approval. I immediately stripped off my clothes.
The weather was hot, the sun at its strongest, so the water felt perfectly cool.
I even scrubbed Geumdong down. He didn’t really need it, but since he seemed to enjoy it, I let him be.
Even though the forest looked peaceful, anything could happen, so I finished washing quickly.
‘How nice it would be to soak in hot water…’
Smacking my lips in regret, I climbed out of the lake.
Before my naked body could be exposed to the air, Dana wrapped me tightly in a large towel.
Then she pulled me into her arms.
“Dana.”
The sudden voice of the Second Prince rang out.
As if she had already sensed his presence, Dana replied without surprise.
“What is the meaning of this rudeness, Your Highness?”
“So here you are. You wouldn’t look at me, wouldn’t see me—so of course I came myself.”
“Can’t you see the Lady is here? Leave at once!”
Dana clung to me with all her strength to keep the towel from slipping.
“And to think you serve her like a Lady when she isn’t even noble… Do your parents know you act like this? Hmph. Dana, are you really going to keep this up? All this fuss just because I touched her body once…”
“Geumdong, bite him.”
My words were muffled against Dana’s chest, but Geumdong understood.
“Aaaargh!”
In an instant, Geumdong vanished from around my neck, followed by a scream.
When I turned, the Second Prince was collapsed, clutching his groin. Only after he foamed at the mouth and fainted did Geumdong calmly return, licking his lips.
I stroked him coldly, eyes on the fallen prince.
“Good job, Geumdong.”
“……Thank you for stepping in first, Lady Luna. Otherwise, I might have killed him.”
Dana approached calmly and adjusted the towel that had slipped slightly from my shoulder.
“Wishid.”
At her call, I turned my head and saw him—barely clothed from the waist down, breathing heavily.
His face hardened as he quickly grasped the situation.
“Wishid.”
I called him, but he ignored me, striding past.
He raised his foot above the fainted prince’s face.
“Wishid! Don’t!”
His foot halted just before impact.
“If I kill him now, things get complicated. Right?”
Wishid turned back toward me.
“Did you see or not?”
“I didn’t.”
Dana answered in my stead.
“Good. If those filthy eyes had seen Luna’s body, I would’ve gouged them out.”
With a deep sigh, Wishid continued,
“Dana. Twist his right foot. Make sure he’s stuck in the wagon for days.”
Dana’s eyes gleamed.
She nodded, looking more delighted than I’d ever seen her.
“I’ll make it look completely natural.”
The crack of bone echoed. I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them again.
Ah, how satisfying.
* * *
The Second Prince went alone into the forest and didn’t return for a long time.
Later, he was found at the bottom of a cliff.
Fortunately, the cliff wasn’t too high. He suffered only a fracture in his right ankle.
But the treatment was delayed.
Even if he recovered, he would forever limp—though the prince, with his pale face, remained unconscious and unaware of this fate.
By then, it was the next day, and we were nearly at the very heart of the Sacred Ground.
“Second Prince… that was you, wasn’t it?”
Amid the cries of monsters, Cain asked Wishid.
“It was.”
Wishid had never planned to lie, so he answered flatly.
“And you can speak so nonchalantly? Doing something so far off plan—”
Whoosh.
The sound of a blade of wind brushed Cain’s ear.
Wishid, having casually thrown a dagger into a monster behind Cain, fixed him with a stare.
“So what?”
“……”
“Go whine to your master. What use is a so-called advisor who’s no help at all?”
