Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 11 Part 6

“Is your shoulder alright?”

“I can bear it.”

“You keep recklessly throwing yourself like that. Don’t you think at all? Your body isn’t made of steel. Why do you do such reckless things?”

“It looked like the door handle was about to come off, but it was sturdier than I thought.”

Brianna glared at Eleanor, who had collapsed in exhaustion. “Let me see.”

“I’m fine.”

“Fine? It made a sound loud enough to break a bone.”

Eleanor had thrown herself against the door. However, unless she was a trained knight, such a crude action wouldn’t break the door. Brianna lightly pressed the area near Eleanor’s shoulder blade.

“…It hurts quite a bit there.”

“See? You need to get treated right away.” Brianna, who had been checking Eleanor’s body for any parts that might be constricted by her dress, spoke seriously as she noticed that one side was significantly swollen from repeatedly slamming into the door.

As Eleanor attempted to stand again, Brianna stopped her. “What are you trying to do now?”

“But I’m almost done. I saw through the gap that the lock was very loose.”

Just a little more, and it should be enough.

Brianna looked at Eleanor, who refused to give up, with an expression of disbelief. “Doesn’t it hurt? How can you be so stubborn?”

“You have to be tough to survive.”

“Still, this is too much.”

When Eleanor began walking towards the door again, Brianna jumped up in response. Seeing Eleanor struggling alone made her feel that she couldn’t just stand by.

Brianna grabbed Eleanor’s arm to stop her. “No, move aside. I’ll do it.”

“You will?” Eleanor asked incredulously, not intending to belittle her, but doubting whether a lady like Brianna, who had grown up sheltered, could handle such physical work.

Sensing Eleanor’s skepticism, Brianna bristled. “I can do this much! Just watch.”

With all her might, Brianna ran towards the door and raised her high heel.

Crack!

“……”

“……”

The heel broke off.

***

While the search team scoured the area around the abandoned carriage, Lennoch surveyed the surroundings.

‘Something’s not right.’

Sergei had escaped immediately after the attack and reached the palace. The Emperor’s party had then pursued the attackers to this location within half a day.

‘Could they really have moved four adults without being detected in that time?’

Did they have some other means of transportation? It wouldn’t have been easy to disappear without a trace.

On top of that, there were the knights. Although it was difficult to exert full strength while protecting Eleanor and Brianna, they were still elite Imperial knights. Surely, some of the enemies must have been injured.

Though requests for assistance had been sent to other cities around Kuhen, no suspicious activity had been detected so far.

“Your Majesty, why don’t we handle the rest of the investigation while you return to the city?” one of the knights suggested, approaching Lennoch. “It’s getting dark.”

“……”

Lennoch didn’t answer immediately, instead scanning the surroundings once more. He was reluctant to leave.

Where could Eleanor be?

A thousand thoughts raced through Lennoch’s mind. What if she had been hurt while resisting? Or worse, what if she was enduring some cruel ordeal? The thought of tears forming in her sharp, intelligent eyes…

“Your Majesty?”

The knight waiting for a response was startled by the look on Lennoch’s face, which was far from his usual calm demeanor.

In such moments, Lennoch felt a deep sense of disillusionment with his position—a sense of helplessness that seemed inappropriate for the ruler of the empire, which spanned the entire continent. But it was the only word that accurately described him.

As the Emperor, he had always been forced to give up the things most precious to him. He had never been able to protect what he cherished.

“…Let’s go.”

With a bitter sigh, Lennoch turned away. If they didn’t return to the city soon, he would be late for his evening appointment with Umar. He had planned to discuss the current situation with him in private.

But when Lennoch arrived in the city, he was slightly taken aback by the atmosphere.

“What’s going on here?”

“I’m not sure, Your Majesty.”

A crowd dressed in black had gathered in front of the city hall, weeping and mourning.

As Lennoch dismounted, Ernst, who had stepped outside for some fresh air, greeted him.

“Your Majesty, Mayor Umar has committed suicide.”

“……!”

“We are currently investigating the cause of death.”

“Was there a note?”

“No note was found.”

Ernst had only arrived shortly after receiving the news himself.

Following Ernst’s lead, Lennoch made his way to Umar’s quarters, listening to the rest of the report.

“He hanged himself. It appears he tied a rope to the chandelier. According to a maid, Umar hadn’t left his room all afternoon. He seemed to have been troubled, and witnesses say he appeared very anxious.”

“Hmm.”

“There are no signs of anyone else entering or leaving the room.”

“Was anything stolen?”

“We’re still checking.”

Without further comment, Lennoch entered the room where Umar had died. The knights who had arrived earlier greeted Lennoch with formal bows.

Lennoch followed Ernst’s gaze up to the ceiling. “How much does that chandelier weigh?”

“It’s difficult to say for certain since it’s hanging from the ceiling, but it’s estimated to be several dozen kilograms.”

“And he hanged himself from that?” Lennoch’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Umar was still hanging from the chandelier, though it seemed barely able to hold his weight. It looked as if it could collapse at any moment.

In the corner, an imperial knight was meticulously sketching the layout of the room and the position of the items within it for the investigation report.

“Of all times, this happens right after Eleanor disappears.”

“……”

Ernst, who had been looking down, slightly raised his head. The way Lennoch casually referred to the Duchess of Mecklen by her first name didn’t go unnoticed. While others might not have caught on, Ernst found it rather unsettling.

Unaware of Ernst’s peculiar gaze, Lennoch sank deep into thought.

“Your Majesty!”

“What is it now?”

“There’s been suspicious activity.”

It was one of the knights who had been gathering reports in the square. He had rushed over, having heard that his superiors were at city hall.

Still out of breath, the knight continued his report, “There’s a woman who has been staying at an inn for a long time. She left as soon as it got dark. Suspecting something, I secretly followed her, but she noticed and tried to shake me off.”

“Are you tracking her now?”

“She seems to have left the city. We’re continuing the pursuit.”

“Then I’ll go myself.”

“Y-Your Majesty?”

The reporting knight looked to Ernst in alarm.

Ernst quickly moved to dissuade the Emperor. “I’ll go instead.”

“No, I want you to stay here and investigate Umar’s death. Something doesn’t smell right, and I think you’d be better suited for the task.”

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

It was difficult to refuse when the Emperor spoke with such resolve. Though Ernst felt an odd emotion growing within him, he decided to set it aside for now.

Lennoch urged the knights to move, and they left the room together. “I’ll join the pursuit.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Umar’s death was a significant incident, but as soon as Lennoch heard the knight’s report, all suspicions about the murderer evaporated from his mind.

He didn’t know when he might be forced to return to the palace. Although he had impulsively brought the knights with him, he couldn’t leave the palace for long. For now, Eger was assisting, but there were limits to what an aide could do. And asking the Empress Dowager to act as a proxy was out of the question.

Though the situation was far from ideal, Lennoch planned to stay as long as it took to find Eleanor. If there was even the slightest clue…

I want to find it.

Suppressing the urgency within him, Lennoch walked on, keeping his composure.

***

Panting heavily, Becky pushed her way through the underbrush. The lack of moonlight made the path dark, but in a way, that was fortunate. It made it harder for her pursuers to track her.

“M-Milo…! Huff, huff.”

“I’m sorry. Was I too fast?” Milo, who had been ahead, returned to help Becky. “Take my hand.”

“Thank you.” Becky grasped Milo’s hand, his rough, calloused palm feeling surprisingly warm and comforting.

“Milo,” Becky began.

“Yes?”

“How did you know where Madam is being held?”

She had been curious ever since Milo had explained the plan. Given that he had left the organization some time ago, it wouldn’t have been easy to get such information. How did he know?

Milo slowed his pace as he responded, “It’s a very old story. It happened long before Hadum became the slum it is today, back when Kuhen was much larger.”

“So, it’s quite an old story.”

“Yes, almost something you’d find in a history book. At that time, merchants built houses along the back roads of Hadum—oh, we called the area outside the city that connects to Hadum the ‘back road.’”

“It must have been a wealthy area back then.”

Now, it was a road that had disappeared without a trace. In contrast, the sturdy road on the other side was where the Duchess’s carriage had been heading toward the palace.

“One of the merchants was said to have made an enormous fortune. His mansion was practically a small palace.”

“Wow, really?”

“I heard it was several times larger than the current city hall. He even had a private prison built in the basement.”

“A p-private prison…?”

“He used it to imprison servants and maids who made mistakes. Some say he even tortured them, though I can’t confirm that.”

Becky, who had been listening with great interest, suddenly paled. Milo, focused on the path ahead, didn’t notice Becky’s reaction.

“But then, a plague struck the city.”

“Oh…”

“To prevent the plague from spreading, the city was forcibly closed off, and many people died. The merchant, despite his wealth, couldn’t find a doctor willing to risk their life to treat him.”

Though the plague eventually passed, Kuhen became a city of death. In an effort to cleanse the ruined city, uninhabited houses were demolished, and the bodies were burned.

“The houses were all burned, leaving no trace… but the basement remained.”

“Don’t tell me…”

“That’s where the early members of the organization and I found the underground prison.”

At the time, it felt like discovering a hidden treasure trove. It was a secret hideout that no one else knew about.

But as time went on, the underground prison proved useless. After all, how often did they need to imprison someone? Moreover, it was far from Hadum, and the surrounding rocky terrain made it inconvenient to travel back and forth.

“I’m sure that’s where they’re hiding the noblewomen. It’s too complicated to kidnap someone and drag them into the slums, and there’s no suitable hiding place there.”

Milo was certain.

“I just hope Madam is safe.”

***