Even though it was the middle of the night, it was terribly noisy.
Olivia sat quietly on the bed, thinking it must be because of the storm, one that didn’t fit the season. The rough wind rattled the window frames with a drdrdrdr sound, and flashes of lightning whitened the room at intervals.
'Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid… Everyone is enduring this because of me. Because of me…'
She clenched her fists until her hands turned white, trying desperately to calm the trembling.
The storm could even be a good thing. Not even the emperor’s army could move in such a storm. Ruttgard Castle would endure that much longer, and those who would die because of her might live that much longer.
But each time thunder struck, Olivia flinched as if another hole had been punched in her heart. Curling up, she buried her head between her knees.
Knock, knock.
Someone rapped on the door. Olivia answered in a weak voice.
“Come in.”
It was Count Theodore Ruttgard who opened the door.
The smell of wet dust and blood rushed in with him. His jet-black hair was drenched, and even his bold, handsome features were shadowed with exhaustion.
His once full, red lips had lost all color, pale and bloodless, and Olivia, startled, asked:
“Has something happened?”
“Your Highness, rise and put on your shoes. Whatever’s comfortable, quickly!”
He spoke firmly and fast as he yanked open her wardrobe.
Flustered, Olivia still obeyed. Slipping her feet into the boots at the side of the room, she felt Theodore run to her and throw a coat over her shoulders.
Then he divided several heavy pouches into the coat pockets and the pockets of her skirt. They seemed to be filled with money.
By now, Olivia could not fail to grasp the situation. Shaking like a trembling leaf, she asked him:
“Is the castle… falling?”
“It can hold a little longer.”
That was a lie. Olivia knew it now.
It was absurd to think the forces of Count Ruttgard alone could resist the imperial army. From the beginning, Theodore had helped her knowing defeat was inevitable.
Only out of duty.
The thought brought tears rushing to Olivia’s eyes. If he had not taken her in, nothing would have happened to Ruttgard. Theodore, as one of the Empire’s great border counts, would have lived well, enjoying treatment befitting his status and power.
But now, all that remained of Ruttgard was this small castle. His four other domains had been swept away in the war, his people scattered as refugees. Less than a third of his loyal army remained, most knights had lost their fighting power.
And now, even the last fortress would be lost.
Theodore seized her hand and pulled.
“Let’s go.”
Olivia followed him in haste. Already, enemies must have breached the outer walls—shouts of battle and screams rang out not far away.
When Theodore half-ran, Olivia had to run breathlessly to keep up. Still, he never once looked back or slowed his steps.
“Where are we going?”
The castle was surrounded; there could be no way out. Olivia asked, but Theodore only gripped a lantern in one hand and her hand in the other, spiraling down the steps toward the underground.
“Just hand me over to Ezekiel.”
Even as she followed him, Olivia pleaded earnestly.
“It’s all right. He won’t kill me.”
“Don’t speak nonsense. You are the sole threat to Princess Roella’s succession rights.”
“It’s better than everyone dying.”
“Even if I handed you over, everyone would die anyway.”
Yes. Ezekiel Schwaben, who commanded the imperial army, was not a man to spare those who resisted him. All the more so if it was Theodore who defied him—he would be sure to kill him.
Theodore stopped and turned back to Olivia.
“Do you want to live, Your Highness?”
The red light of the lantern reflected in his black eyes. They looked as though fire burned in them, or perhaps as though shadow had fallen to make them darker still.
Olivia shivered. It felt as if he were reproaching her for deciding to survive alone.
“Then do so.”
But that was all Theodore said, before tugging her hand again.
Before long they had reached the castle’s cellar. Setting the lantern on the floor, Theodore shoved aside a piece of furniture against the wall. Then, pushing hard at a corner, the stone moved, opening up a gaping hole.
He spoke quickly.
“It leads to the sewer. A kind of secret passage.”
“Th-Theodore…”
“I’d say Ruttgard has fulfilled its duty by now.”
To her, those words sounded horrific. As though he were saying, All of this is dying because of you.
It was true. If not for her, Ruttgard would not have perished.
If they had not taken her in, if she had not confessed who she was, if she had borne it alone, Ruttgard would not have died.
Olivia could no longer hold back her tears.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t cry.”
Theodore spoke quietly. Olivia knew it was no time for tears. She had no right to weep.
But the tears did not stop. As her shoulders heaved, Theodore gripped them tightly.
“I told you not to cry. I told you it wasn’t your fault.”
Like when she was a child, his voice pressed down on her, commanding. Olivia raised her blue eyes to look up at him, but through the blur of tears his face was indistinct.
“Go.”
“If… if someone must run…”
“I cannot run. The one responsible for Ruttgard is not you, but me.”
Forcing a key into her hand, Theodore said:
“Hold your breath and live. Forget who you are, hide yourself, survive. If you don’t want the deaths of those who saved you to be wasted, then live that much longer for all their lives combined.”
“Theodore, Theo…!”
Seizing her shoulders, Theodore pressed his lips hotly to hers once.
Olivia froze, unable to comprehend in that moment what had just happened. But without hesitation, he pushed her into the hole.
She screamed and struggled to resist, but she had no chance against Theodore’s strength.
The stone slid back into place, sealing the entrance. Olivia was left in pitch darkness.
“Theodore!”
She cried out, pounding the stone, but it would not budge. From the other side came the scrape of furniture being dragged back into place, thunderous in her ears.
Then all that remained were her own ragged breaths, and the clink of Theodore’s greaves as he turned away. Trembling, Olivia crouched there, tears streaming down her face.
Ruttgard had been her home. Her family.
The former Count Ruttgard had taken her in and raised her, and until she learned who she truly was, she had believed without question that she was a child of Ruttgard.
So when she realized she could not escape her destiny, the first person she turned to for help had been Theodore.
If she had known it would end like this, she never would have. She should not have.
Theodore had said the responsibility lay with him, not her—but it was she who had forced that unwanted responsibility upon him.
Her tears would not stop.
At last, gripping the key tightly, she began to crawl through the narrow passage.
Not because of Theodore’s command to survive. But because to start everything over again, she had to go there.
She crawled through the lightless, airless passage for who knew how long, until a stench rose and it joined to the sewer.
There she could at least straighten her back a little. Forgetting her tears, Olivia hurried along as fast as she could. Maybe she could save even one person. Please, let her save even one.
The sewer tunnel stretched endlessly. Above her, screams and thunder echoed without cease, but she could not tell whether the sounds were real or only in her head.
Kwa-rreung—!
A thunderclap so huge it shook her body roared through the passage. Then came the sound of rain. Olivia rushed toward it.
Flash—!
In the darkness, lightning lit the sewer yellow for a heartbeat. The exit was close.
She ran, unlocked the iron grate with Theodore’s key, and pushed it open.
The sewer ended at a stream a little way from the castle, clearly designed for use as a secret escape.
She crawled out into the torrent of rain, which drenched her, washing away filth and tears alike.
Kwa-rreung—!
The ground shuddered with a tremor. Olivia’s eyes widened.
This was no thunder. It was the sound of powder exploding.
Ruttgard Castle was collapsing.