She couldnât hear what he was saying, and she couldnât even see the shape of his mouth because he had covered it with his hand. Still, Rosalind looked closely at Albertâs face, just in case. Every minute of his change, she couldnât miss it.
After whispering for a while, the man finally lifted his lips.
Albert turned to the man and ordered something.
Rosalind was anxious, not knowing what was going on, and blinked as Albert asked the man to go out. Eventually, he opened his mouth again only after the man who bowed his head lightly closed the door and left. His gaze filled with Rosalind shone sharply.
âSo, it wasnât a lie?â
âIt appears that you have received a report confirming the truth of what I said.â
âRight. But, how did you know⊠what did I do?â
âActually, I wasnât quite sure. So, I thought about it until the very end. Though you were a bit suspicious for me to pass on.â
âWhere did you see it?â
He asked as if he was genuinely suspicious.
ââŠI never once told you that your father died from multiple stabs. Not only me, although my mother didnât want the familyâs honor to be tarnished, so we never disclosed it. How do you know information that even my relatives donât know exactlyâŠâ
She thought it was strange and suspicious.
On the day Albert told Rosalind, âI want to help,â he asked her, âYou said that he was stabbed several times, right?â
âOh, did you? However, isnât that obvious? A knife is the most common way to kill people. Only with that?â
âYou lied to me.â
Once she got herself together, her words flowed without hesitation.
âThen, when I spilled my tea on you⊠at that time.â
Rosalind thought back at the vivid past with a trembling voice.
The day she visited Albertâs mansion, she spilled the tea on purpose. Albert obviously had something suspicious about him, and she needed a chance to check it out.
On the day of the incident, the clothes of the criminal who had a physical fight with his father were torn. She thought it must have caused a wound on his body. If it was a cut, it wouldnât heal easily, and since the wound wasnât too deep. Even if it has healed, she would be able to see the traces of it.
She entered his room as he was about to undress. Then, she saw the bandages wrapped around his arm. There were several layers of long, white fabric wrapped around very neatly. It was unbelievable if it was just tied.
âWho would tie such a cloth to a burn? Putting on an ice pack or rinsing with cold water to extinguish the heat is the first step. There was even no water, no ice, nothing in the room.â
As if she hadnât done anything like that in the first place.
âI have suffered from a burn recently, so I know better than anyone.â
He didnât deny it. Instead, he changed the direction of her words.
âIt could just be an injury from training.â
âRight, but you deceived me. You talked to me as if you had treated a burn wound.â
His gaze fell sharply on her. Rosalind struggled to suppress her fears and spoke to him, âIs it strange? A country noble, knowing what I didnât even tell you, has scars on his arm that he wants to hide and someone I canât identifyâŠâ
Albert, who had listened to her quietly, asked a question again.
âDo you have any evidence other than such clumsy speculation? There must be evidence.â
âThe evidence will come from your house. The clothes you were wearing at the time of the crime were torn, so finding them will provide solid evidence.â
âI would have thrown it away. If thereâs evidence.â
Wasnât that obvious?
She shook her head at his sneering voice.
âNo. Would you ever let it go? Itâs your motherâs legacy.â
The mockery was only fleeting. Hearing Rosalindâs following words, his expression sank down.
âYou donât wear brightly colored clothes if youâre going to harm someone. Wearing tear-prone and striking yellow clothes to kill people at nightâŠ? Itâs really absurd. People usually wrap themselves tightly in dark colors⊠So, obviously, I thought the clothes must have a reason.â
His eyes seemed to darken little by little.
âBy the way, I mean. At that timeâŠI remembered your mother was wearing similar colored clothes in the portrait I saw at your house. Among the colorfully dressed families, only one person in yellow caught my eye. As you said, right now, itâs just speculation, though wonât the physical evidence come out soon?â
Albert didnât answer for a while, then gazed into Rosalindâs face and burst into laughter. It was a big laugh.
âI thought you were a complete idiot⊠Youâre smarter than I think. Youâve been trying your best to guess.â
He slowly walked towards Rosalind as if intrigued.
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âI donât hate smart women, but I do when they know too much.â
The next moment, he pulled out a sword from the scabbard on his waist and held it high. Unlike the indifferent eyes, the sword that received the light shone brightly. The sword rushed at her in an instant.
âI donât want to hurt you.â
The knife stopped right in front of her neck, leaving no gap. As the sharp blade touched her delicate skin, a straight line was drawn little by little. The blood that flowed from that line was smeared on the silver sword.
Rosalind froze, unable to even breathe properly.
âDonât say anything that provokes me. All right?â
Sensing the danger from Albertâs voice, she bit the inside of her lip. Suddenly, there was another knock on the door from outside again.
Where was this? Could she escape if she went out that door?
âHow are Leo and mother doingâŠ?â
Thousands of thoughts run through her mind.
With tears in her eyes, Rosalind deliberately turned her gaze towards the door. The man he saw earlier came back inside. Albert, still holding a knife to her neck, said without looking at the man.
âLetâs talk there so she can hear everything.â
ââŠAll the soldiers were either dead or wounded. There will be no more pursuit. The way has been opened, so you can leave immediately.â
Albert smiled contentedly and withdrew the sword.
âDid you hear that? Let me think more about whether to kill you or not.â
As he blinked, a man came and forced Rosalind to her feet. He began to tie her tighter with the rope once more. Even as the stranger touched her, she was just immersed in thoughts with a bewildered face.
âŠAll the soldiers dead or wounded? They would never come after her.
Her only hope was for the soldiers to come to find her.
âŠBut, if the manâs words were trueâ
Rosalindâs eyes became distant. She couldnât see any other way. In her desperate reality, something she had been holding back seemed to rise. Still, she couldnât give up like this. She had a reason to get out of here, no matter what.
âMove!â
The manâs menacing force pushed her, checking the cords around her several times, and Rosalindâs feet began to move arbitrarily. She calmly assessed the situation in her mind.
There was a door. Were there other people guarding it when she walked out that door? How could she escape? Was now the time to take advantage and move�
However, the multi-layered ropes were tightening as if they were digging into her flesh, and the hand of the man who was dragging her was only harsh. Nonetheless, the moment she decided to try it, a sharp thing pierced her side.
âDonât even think about running away.â
Rosalind swallowed her breath as if he had read her head. She was only anxious as each step she took was like standing on a single wooden plank.
Creakâ
The door opened.
She didnât know because the room was in a tidy condition, but when she came out of the room, it was a completely abandoned house.
There was dust all over the house, and most of the furniture was broken or the only thing left was the old ones. The windows and all sorts of things were also messy. In addition, the sound of shards of glass shattered with every step on the stairs.
It was obvious that it had not been taken care of for a long time. Even though Rosalind was confident that this neighborhood was still quite familiar, she had no idea where she was or how far it was.
Taking her steps slowly, looking around, she seemed to have to go down the stairs and wait for the big door to open. Her heart was beating like crazy.
âWhy are you so slow!â
Then, the man yelled and pushed her on the back. The sudden shock tripped her foot, and she fell to the floor. Her hands were tied behind her back, so she couldnât focus, but she luckily did not hit her head.
A dull pain felt near her arm, but Rosalind swallowed the groan down her throat.
Thanks to her lavish dress, she didnât get cut by a piece of glass. Nevertheless, the pain didnât go away easily.
This time, Albert, not the stranger, lifted her up.
âGet up.â
But, the man who wrinkled his impression came back and grabbed her arm roughly. As she was dragged away by the man, she arrived at a large door, and as she walked through the door, she finally felt the wind.
It was a dense forest. The trees were so dense that she couldnât even get a sense of what was behind them.
How far was it from that market? Where is this forestâŠ? It wouldnât be very far from the fact that the soldiers had come close, though it didnât seem like it was very close either.
Dozens of questions came to her mind, but before she could answer them, she arrived at the carriage.