"Now..."

Richard said triumphantly to the Marquis of Abedes.

"Kidnap Annabelle Rainfield on the way to the capital. Did you mobilize as many assassins as you said back then?"

"Yes. We hired assassins several times the number Elburn hired before."

Contrary to the cool answer, Marquis Abedes sighed anxiously.

"But Richard, you've spent a lot of money from the budget on this one. If we don't stop the bill, all the mines will go down at a bargain price..."

"Anyway, Annabelle Rainfield's ransom is the money you can ask for fromthe Duke of Wade."

Richard raised his eyebrows and replied as if nothing had happened.

"Now is the time to bet on everything. Fortunately, Annabelle Rainfield is not in very good shape now, so the kidnapping will not be difficult."

He said, pointing to a path on the map.

"Ambush them here and tell them to kidnap them. The detailed plans are as follows."

It was a plan on which the future of the family depended. Besides, Elburn had already been detained in the imperial prison.

The Marquis of Abedes had no choice but to obey Richard's advice.

"Tell them to succeed no matter what. No matter what happens."

"Ha, but with the possibility that something might go against our expectations..."

"Risk management is a luxury for us right now. Besides, how can you trust those hired with money? It is possible to back down saying 'there was an obstacle' without doing their best."

Richard declared with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Tell them to do their best to kidnap her under any circumstances."

~*~

After passing the last inn, the capital really came closer. I was still carefully riding the horse, pretending to have injured my ankle.

I even told the surgeon who belonged to the Imperial Knights to have a bandage wrapped around it.

Therefore, anyone could see that I was injured.

"You just have to be patient. We'll be at the capital soon."

One knight that didn't know how good I was at acting thought that I was so pitiful that he spoke to me.

Besides, I was experienced at acting as an injured person.

In the past, when I fought with Ian, I used the strategy of attacking from behind by pretending to be seriously injured during the match and making him turn around.

'Even thinking about it again, I'm sorry Ian.'

With that in mind, it was shameless to have a relationship like this with the real Ian.

But, well, Ian said it was okay to be a crazy guy if he wants to be my lover, but I also decided to just live as a careless kid.

"Yes. It will be soon."

I politely responded to the knight who spoke to me.

All the while, I accompanied the Imperial Knights, but they didn't really come close to me.

I was not a member of the Imperial Knights, so it was natural in a way.

Anyway, I wasn't lonely.

'Since I was 14, I haven't really been interested in anyone other than Ian Wade.'

Being alone was something I was used to from the beginning.

On the way to the Smaho forest, I was even more nervous, so I couldn't see anyone else, and on the way back to the capital now, Ian was always next to me if nothing happened.

"Ah... Miss Annabelle."

The knight, who I thought was going to leave after giving a word of moderate concern, hesitated and came a little closer as if she was showing great courage.

Seeing her determined expression, I thought with excitement.

'Hey, does she want to get to know me?'

"Where is Ian?"

'Well... Are you a fan of Ian? All swordsmen are like that, huh?'

I answered.

"Ah, considering the amount of last meal, he said it was time for me to be hungry and brought snacks... But he said he should check the quality of my snacks before anything else..."

Come to think of it, it seemed like I was bragging about useless information, so I blurted out.

"Well. He'll be here soon... "

"My name is Yuina Kerlin!"

"Huh?"

"That, that..."

When she suddenly said her name, I was taken aback for a moment and asked the question with a bewildered look on my face, not knowing what to say.

Yuina blinked her eyes for a moment as if she had noticed my embarrassment, and then she hurriedly added her words.

"Have you heard about Lagian?"

When the truth was revealed that Lagian was Ian's follower, I had already lost interest.

But I was curious in case there was something else.

"Lagian? What's going on?"

"The drug side effects appeared."

When I showed interest, Yuina was excited and started her explanation.

"Lagian just started screaming and making a fuss, and the doctor went to see him. But...the side effects of illegal drugs seem to have appeared. His sense of balance has deteriorated so much that I don't think he will be able to continue swordsmanship properly anymore."

"What? Are the side effects that severe?"

I asked in amazement. In the original version, the side effects were not so severe.

Since illegal drugs have not been formally verified by the magic tower, they are bound to have side effects in some way, so they were not consumed unless they were hoping for great luck.

However, as far as I could remember, the side effect of this illegal drug was simply a decrease in basic stamina.

"His body was already addicted to the illegal drugs used in the Duchy of Edison for a long time. It was a drug that made his muscles bigger."

It was shocking that his enormous muscles were also from the power of drugs. I didn't know anything else, but I thought his muscles were real...

"So the doctor said that the side effects were even bigger."

"Ah, that's right."

Even if he was given some kind of favor because he was a foreigner and an employee of Carlon, Lagian's life as a swordsman had been lost.

Seeing that he admired Ian so much, it seems that he truly loved the sword, but it is a bit sad... I just thought that those who prosper with drugs would perish from the drugs.

"Miss Annabelle."

While I was lost in my thoughts, Yuina said, blushing.

"Thank you for talking to me. A-actually, I wanted to get to know you..."

"Oh? Me?"

"Yes. It's impressive that you use your sword so well, and you train so consistently..."

I was dumbfounded and blinked my eyes. My expectations that she wanted to talk to because she wanted to get to know me earlier came true.

Actually, I haven't had any friends my age. Even those who use swords did not get along well with me.

It was because everyone thought of me as a cowardly idiot who was obsessed only with Ian, and a person who was always placed second in my age with no chivalry.

"After watching you closely, I think I can see why Ian is in love with you. Anyway, people who work really hard are cool."

I was not training these days in order to pretend I was injured, but it was true that I was training every day as usual from the time I left the capital until a few days ago.

"I didn't know you were working so hard... We all just did it behind the scenes, reflecting on ourselves."

Still, it felt a little different to be recognized by Leslie and to hear kind words from a knight my age.

"Is that so?"

I was not used to compliments like this. As I was noticeably shy, she added with a smile.

"It has been difficult for me to approach you for various reasons, but everyone wants to talk to Miss Annabelle. I want to talk about swordsmanship."

"Oh, then you should have told me..."

Even though I didn't have any friends, it was a very exciting approach.

Besides, it had been hard to approach me all this time, and I wasn't strange like Aaron, but everyone was normal.

"I'm a very easy-going person, so why are you only talking to me now?"

"After the forest incident, Sir Ian has always been with you, so I couldn't even talk to you. Sir Ian made it a little...difficult for us to make eye contact."

'That's why she asked where Ian was earlier!'

It wasn't because she was a fan of Ian, but because she wanted to get to know me, so my heart pounded.

'Is it true that you want to be friends with me now? I think my life is really starting to become a little more normal now.'

Yuina said shyly, pointing to the milestone that appeared on the side of the road.

"But it's only when we come to the capital that we can talk like this."

I swallowed dry saliva as I looked at the milestone. The capital was at the end of this road, and I was finally able to see my missing family.

Now I have done some really great things. I was able to go back to Rainfield Mansion with my family and live a normal life.

No more brainstorming, no huge enemies, no must-dos.

And I didn't know, maybe I could even have friends now. It was fantastic to have peers approaching me.

In the meantime, I thought about 'someone else's work' among the small happinesses.

'And... Before I entered the capital, Richard probably planned something.'

The capital was always crowded with people. In other words, there was little time left to kidnap me.

'I think this place is a bit lonely...'

Not long after, a girl rushed over.

The girl looked completely harmless, with her shabby cheeks and a basket of mushrooms on her side.

"Help! A monster has appeared over there and is trying to eat my sister!"