Can You Save Me Duke? - 22

The next morning. Lina, who had returned to her usual self, was on her way to the mansion. People were mingling in front of the bulletin board on one side of the square.

‘What’s going on?’

As Lina looked around, not knowing what was going on, two men began to stick unidentifiable pieces of paper on the wall.

They were guards from the Permanence Castle, and she had seen them a few times while running errands for Cullen.

‘Has something happened to the mansion?’

Lina, unable to control her curiosity, approached the paper to read what was written on it. She muttered as she read the notice posted on the wooden board.

‘No movement order… …?’

It was an announcement that the gates would be closed for the time being, and that no one was allowed to leave the territory until the no movement order was lifted.

And soon after, another guard came and started sticking up a new poster. The wanted notice had a portrait of a woman on it.

“Who is this woman?”

“She’s probably a criminal because she has a bounty on her head.”

“No, what did she do to deserve this?”

Dark gray hair, brown eyes. And a small stature.

“What the heck is this… …?”

Lina took a deep look at the wanted notice and stepped back with a thoughtful expression.

– Anyone who finds the person above will be awarded 20 gold coins.

The paper had Lina’s portrait and physical characteristics written on it. Along with a considerable amount of money.

“Look here! The bounty on her head is no joke!”

“If we just catch this woman, we won’t have to worry about making ends meet for a while!”

“That’s right! The bounty is a whopping 20 gold coins!”

One gold coin was enough for a typical family of four to live comfortably for a month. But 20 gold coins?

People started talking excitedly as if they had won the lottery at the high bounty on the young woman.

But as the surroundings became noisier, Lina’s expression hardened.

‘This man must be crazy.’

No matter how much you looked at the wanted notice, it was Lina’s face without a doubt. If she had been standing here without covering herself with a robe, everyone would have been desperate to catch her.

‘You’re asking for me? Why on earth?!’

Lina stood there, her mouth wide open. It hadn’t even been two days since she left the mansion. And yet, a wanted notice had been issued in the meantime.

People were talking about various crimes while looking at the portrait that looked a bit far-fetched to be a criminal with 20 gold coins hanging on it.

And Lina looked at them with a blank expression, denying reality.

She hadn’t stolen anything from the mansion and run away, just a maid had disappeared for a moment.

And yet, they were looking for her with such a huge bounty. It was a sight that was hard to believe even after seeing it with her own eyes.

Perhaps, the stay-at-home order was also her fault. Her mind was confused by the reality that had reached the worst situation.

“Can I go back… …?”

She thought it would be over with just a few words of apology. Lina, who had become anxious, muttered while biting her fingernails. Then she turned around and retraced her steps.

It seemed that she couldn’t return to the mansion right away.

* * *

Inside the Fermanense mansion.

In the kitchen, the maids were sitting huddled together, preparing a meal.

“The Duke, is acting a little strange, aren’t you?”

“Yeah. The room is a mess, and most of us are really scared.”

And the others nodded repeatedly as if they agreed with what they said.

“Oh, I’m really anxious for no reason. It’s like walking on thin ice.”

“Me too, me too! I can’t even go around carelessly in case I run into the Duke!”

It had been several days since Lina disappeared. However, her whereabouts were still unknown, and for some reason, the atmosphere in the mansion was getting darker and darker.

The maids in charge of cleaning the main building muttered with faces full of discontent.

“Is it because of Lina? The Duke is in such a bad mood.”

When Latte, who was preparing food, asked, everyone nodded and sighed.

“Yeah. Lina stole the brooch and ran away. Did you see the wanted notice? The bounty is 20 gold! 20 gold!”

“20 gold. What Lina stole must have been an incredibly important item!”

The maids counted how much 20 gold was on their fingers and held their breath.

“We don’t know. Anyway, the Duke must be in a bad mood because of that.”

“But didn’t you say Lina was the Duke’s mistress? If she wanted it so badly, why didn’t she just ask for it? Why would she steal it and run away?”

“I guess he didn’t give it to her even though she acted cute.”

Everyone burst into laughter at Latte’s words that seemed to mock Lina.

“I wish Lina would get caught soon so that this atmosphere would end quickly. The mansion has been so noisy for the past few days.”

“That’s right. The prince came in the middle of all this, so we have to be extra careful.”

The women helped prepare the ingredients and each spoke up. However, among the women, Roen was the only one who kept her mouth shut and was just cutting onions.

“But. Roen. Why are you so quiet?”

Normally, she should have been the one taking the lead and criticizing Lina by now. Latte asked, not understanding why she didn’t say anything.

“Huh, huh? What, what?”

Roen stuttered as if surprised by the sudden attention.

“What. Why are you so surprised? Is something wrong?”

“What, what’s going on? I’ll go first. “I forgot to clean the 2nd floor of the annex.”

Roen’s footsteps seemed urgent as she hurriedly left the kitchen.

The maids, who had been tilting their heads as they watched Roen, soon seemed to have lost interest and began to talk about other topics.

Meanwhile, Roen, who had left the kitchen and gone to the back of the mansion, looked around. After looking around for a while, Roen confirmed that no one was there and took out something she had hidden in her chest.

An old, worn-out brooch. It was the item that Lina had stolen and made a fuss about in the mansion.

‘Is it okay?’

Roen held it tightly in one hand and recalled the past.

Last night. As she left the room in the chaotic atmosphere of the mansion, the butler and Emma were having a serious conversation at the end of the hallway.

[Is Lina here yet?]

[It seems like she’s not in the mansion.]

[This… … .]

[Lina wouldn’t do that, but shouldn’t we check to see if there’s anything missing?]

[Yes. We should. As soon as the sun rises, let’s do a thorough inspection of the mansion.]

Roen, who accidentally found out that Lina had disappeared, realized that the mansion was in a strange state.

After that, Roen hesitated for a moment and took advantage of the confusion to enter the storage room in the gallery hall. Then she took out the box containing the brooch she had seen before.

‘Who caused Henry to be kicked out like that?’

Henry was kicked out of the mansion because of Lina. So she wanted to repay her in kind. But she never dreamed that a wanted notice would be issued for her.

‘What if it turns out that I took this… …?’

Roen swallowed without realizing it. And she thought of Susan being punished and kicked out of the mansion.

‘Then, like Susan, I… … .’

But soon she shook her head.

“No. It’ll be okay.”

Now that Lina was gone, everyone thought she had stolen the brooch and run away. Lina would be the only one to take all the blame. Roen’s hand holding the brooch tightened.

* * *

A damp, slimy feeling, an unpleasant smell piercing the tip of his nose.

The moment something unknown crawled up his body and strangled his neck, Belige’s eyes flashed open.

“Huh-!”

Belige suddenly jumped out of bed, shaking his shoulders and gasping for breath.

And the man, who had been looking around as if trying to recognize reality, soon covered his head with both hands.

His calloused, hard hands tore through his hair, which was soaked with sweat.

“Was it a dream… …?”

I don’t know how many days it’s been. The nightmare only gets worse with each passing day.

From the very day the maid left him, another terrible dream engulfed his whole body. And when he opened his eyes to escape the nightmare, a headache began.

“Ugh.”

The man groaned through his teeth as the pain began to gnaw at his head.

He had had headaches before he met Lina, but not to this extent. The headache that had felt like a needle being stabbed at first now felt like a knife being cut into his head.

It was an excruciating pain, as if everything he had suppressed was bursting out all at once.

Bellige, who was exhaling heavily, reached for the cup on the nightstand to drink water. And at that moment. The visions he had only seen in his dreams were coming up through the cup and onto his hand.

Clang-!

A strong crackling sound echoed through the dark bedroom.

He blinked, and his arm was clean as if nothing had happened.

“Ha.”

The man let out a short breath.

‘Am I really going crazy?’

In the room covered in thick darkness, the remnants of the visions he had seen in his dream still seemed to be aiming for his neck.

In that moment, in the anger that boiled up from him, he started throwing everything he could get his hands on.

The white pillow that had been soft had completely burst open, losing its shape, and the blue curtain that was half-torn and hanging on the window looked unsightly.

In an instant, the duke’s bedroom that had been so neat became a mess.

After the commotion ended, silence returned to the room. Belige, who had regained her senses, ran with trembling hands through his hair.

Isn’t this what an addict who has quit drugs looks like?

As if he was barely breathing in water with his toes barely touching the bottom. The man felt like he was playing a dangerous tug-of-war with death.

“That damn woman sent one person away properly.”

He snickered at himself, looking at his hands that were shaking in pain.

really

If it was true that the Empress had sent Lo Lina. That snake-like woman had won.

“This is really a shitty situation.”

Belige muttered as he collapsed on the floor. His voice, cracked and painful, seemed to be in pain.

Belige, who had given up on everything and was leaning against the bed, let out harsh curses that only mercenaries would use.

Then he slammed the sculpture that was rolling on the floor against the opposite wall. The fragments that bounced off the iron piece that had hit the wall helplessly scratched Belige’s cheek without mercy.

It was the fourth night since the maid had disappeared.

That’s how he had no choice but to admit it.

“My body can’t go back to how it was before I met you, Lina.”

Damn it.