Chapter 113
Raul lit his cigar with the lighter he had been handed and took a deep drag.
Then he stubbed the cigar out in the ashtray and unfolded a map.
“These are the places where Nick is currently hiding the bombs.”
With every word Raul spoke, Lionel’s gaze grew sharper.
The routes Nick used to transport the bombs, the codes shared only within Rebelt, and even the locations and timeframes of the next targets.
Every piece of information Raul provided was remarkably specific.
“Are you certain?”
“I am. No one knows Nick better than I do.”
Lionel gestured for Kalt, who had been standing by.
“Deploy troops to the locations marked here in advance. Make sure they stay out of sight.”
And that very night, a terrorist attack was attempted at the location Raul had identified.
This attack had been staged as though it had been carried out by the remaining members of Rebelt who had followed the already deceased Raul.
Under the pretense of carrying out Raul’s final wishes, it was actually Nick’s scheme to root out those within Rebelt who still followed Raul.
However, Nick’s plan was foiled by the Black Iron Knights, who had already been lying in ambush.
That night, the capital finally enjoyed a peaceful night for the first time in a long while.
The same happened afterward.
Thanks to Raul’s intelligence, the Black Iron Knights were always one step ahead of Nick.
As a result, no more innocent people lost their lives.
☆☆☆
“The next terrorist attack will occur near the outskirts of the capital.”
“You’ve probably noticed by now, but the center of the explosions has gradually been shifting farther away from the capital.”
“At this rate, Nick intends to divert the Imperial Army’s attention before escaping from the capital.”
“……”
At this point, there was no choice but to believe him.
Raul was more sincere about this situation than anyone else.
And another fact naturally became clear.
The person the homeless man at the shelter had mentioned—the one who had evacuated everyone during the first attack—had been Raul.
“When the first attack happened, were you the one who told the people in the shelter to evacuate?”
“I was.”
Just as I thought.
Raul nodded.
Lionel, who had been lightly tapping the red lines on the map with his index finger, tilted his head.
“Now that you’ve joined forces with me, you’ve truly betrayed your comrades.”
“Are you alright with that?”
“……I do not regret my choice.”
“You don’t regret it.”
Lionel quietly repeated Raul’s words as though savoring them.
For a long while, he said nothing.
Then, when he finally spoke again, the tone that left Lionel’s lips had noticeably changed.
“For the time being, you will officially remain dead.”
“……!”
There was neither condescension nor hostility in his voice.
Though dry, it carried the courtesy due to another person.
“You’ll stay here for now.”
“If you need anything, tell those men.”
Lionel raised his chin toward the knights standing guard outside the interrogation room.
“……Understood.”
Realizing from Lionel’s change in attitude that he was no longer regarded as an enemy, Raul let out a sigh of relief.
As if their business had concluded, Lionel gathered the map and rose from his seat.
Raul, who had just let out a relieved sigh and rubbed his face with both hands, unconsciously stopped Lionel in a hurry.
“Wait…!”
“Is there something else you wish to say?”
“Well… is the Duchess alright?”
“When I last saw her, she didn’t look well.”
“I’ve been worried whether she was seriously injured.”
Raul immediately realized his mistake.
No matter that he had joined forces with Lionel, it did not change the fact that he had once been a member of Rebelt.
If Agnes truly was his daughter, there was no way of knowing how Lionel would react.
With the possibility that his own past could become a burden to Agnes, asking such a question was inappropriate.
Raul’s voice gradually faded.
“It was an impertinent question.”
“The Duchess happens to share the same name I intended to give my own child.”
“I merely overstepped out of needless concern, so please pretend you never heard it.”
Raul belatedly fell silent, but there was no taking back words that had already been spoken.
Ever since meeting Leuceviten, his thoughts had been in turmoil, causing him to speak carelessly.
Besides… “Agnes.”
Yes, that name especially lingered in his mind.
In truth, he and Ilena had already decided on the name of their unborn child.
If it were a girl, they would call her Agnes.
If it were a boy, they would call him Adolf.
Yet the Duchess of Valheim was also named Agnes.
No matter how coincidental it seemed, this was too much to dismiss.
As one small possibility piled upon another, he had begun to wonder if Agnes might truly be his daughter…
For a moment, it seemed he had lost his reason.
“……”
Lionel, who had been slipping the map into his inner pocket, paused and looked up at the ceiling.
Then, with a scrape, he pulled the chair back and sat down again.
“What is it that you really want to ask?”
His probing gaze settled on Raul.
“Agnes’s condition.”
“I don’t think that’s the only thing you’re curious about.”
Raul remained silent for a long while.
Then, lowering his gentle eyes, he shook his head.
“……That is all.”
“What else could there possibly be?”
“What connection could someone like me possibly have with the Duchess?”
☆☆☆
Leaving Raul behind, Lionel exited the interrogation room and returned to the surface.
He looked up at the pitch-black night sky.
It felt as though it had still been daytime only a short while ago, yet somehow so much time had already passed.
Lionel reached into the inner pocket of the coat he was carrying and took out a fresh cigarillo.
“What connection could someone like me possibly have with the Duchess?”
Raul’s final answer had not addressed the heart of the question.
It was something that had not needed to be added.
What bothered Lionel was how unnecessarily cautious those words had sounded.
Could it be that Raul had also noticed something about Agnes?
One thing, however, was certain.
“……He’s different.”
“Different from that bastard Adrian Bardo.”
Lionel should have been relieved after confirming with his own eyes that Raul was not someone who would harm Agnes.
Yet he couldn’t bring himself to feel that way.
Instead, it felt as though the moment Agnes would abandon him was drawing ever closer.
As Lionel gloomily chewed on the end of his cigarillo, Kalt, who had followed him up from the interrogation room, approached.
“Colonel, Lady Agnes is asking to see you.”
“……Agnes is looking for me?”
Caught completely off guard, Lionel removed the cigarillo from his mouth.
“Why?”
“Did something happen to Agnes again?”
The sharpness in his unfiltered response slipped out before he realized it.
“It didn’t seem to be anything like that.”
“She simply asked me to tell you that she would like to have dinner with you.”
“Dinner…?”
Lionel slowly repeated Kalt’s words as though hearing a language he had never heard before.
His heart began pounding for no reason.
He felt happy.
Yet at the same time, an inexplicable anxiety settled over him, like a child about to be scolded.
Dinner.
Why would Agnes suddenly invite him?
As though sensing Lionel’s hesitation, Kalt gently urged him.
“Things have finally calmed down a bit.”
“Why don’t you return to the estate for a while?”
“Yes… I should.”
Before Kalt had even finished speaking, Lionel had already slipped his arms into his blue coat.
It had already been several days since the last terrorist attack.
Leaving his post for a short while would not cause any serious problems.
His long legs carried him swiftly through the cold night air.
With each step, Lionel’s footprints were left one after another in the snow that had piled upon the ground like scattered salt.
Consumed entirely by the thought that Agnes was waiting for him, Lionel failed to notice.
A pair of eyes was quietly following him from the direction of the interrogation room.
☆☆☆
As Lionel neared the estate, his longing and nervousness reached their peak.
In the end, he climbed out of the carriage and began running on foot.
The frigid night air rushed deep into his lungs.
His breathing soon grew ragged.
As Lionel passed through the front gate and stepped inside, he sensed a faint presence coming from the garden and slowed his pace.
Agnes was there.
Just as he was about to walk straight toward her, Lionel reached up and ran a hand through his hair.
Even without looking, he could tell that the snowstorm had left it hopelessly disheveled.
“Goodness.”
“I look like a complete mess.”
Lionel stopped for a moment and straightened his clothes.
His chilled hands were just about to brush the snowflakes from the coat and scarf he wore instead of his military uniform.
Then a gentle voice drifted into his ears.
Lionel’s eyes widened.
“You’re here, Lionel?”
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
