Chapter 403
Duke’s face turned grim, as if he found Victor’s words offensive.
“What do you mean?”
The only person next to a King was a Queen. Leon and Kushana already understood but did not bother to interject.
Victor pondered for a moment, then turned his attention to the sleeping Alicia.
“…I’m just kidding.”
Victor muttered with a huff and a snicker, but his expression was somewhat shrouded in sadness, and Duke didn’t look away from Victor, waiting for his next words.
“This kid’s not just a throw away… she’s an excellent pawn.”
“You can’t throw her away?”
“Because she’s worth using. I was going to make use of her for the rest of her life, but unfortunately, I have no intention of going to war with neighboring countries.”
Victor’s serious expression faded, and he returned to his usual tone.
“It’s not easy for a prince to be aware of his feelings and at the same time suppress them.”
Kushana’s monologue reached only Leon’s ears, and he nodded in agreement.
Duke held Alicia, who was sleeping in his arms, tightly, and grinned at Victor as if to provoke him.
“If you come to rob me of my possessions, I’ll do my best to take you on.”
“I won’t lose.”
“If you’re done talking, let’s head to the village as soon as possible. We don’t have much time, do we?”
Kushana began walking quickly, breaking the tension between the two powerful people.
Victor, Duke, and the others followed her, feeling the majesty of a Queen.
As Leon watched her, he wondered what Alicia would do now, and if she would be able to bear the fact that her loved ones were about to die in Duelkis Kingdom.
Praying that Alicia would not suffer further from being mentally trapped, Leon continued on his way.
***
…I could smell something delicious.
I slowly opened my eyes… It was an unfamiliar ceiling. The house was built entirely of wood. There were no gleaming ornaments, and it felt warm and homey.
As I sat up, I realized what kind of situation I was in, and my eyes met those of a woman standing in front of me, holding a tray.
She was slender and tall, with a well-defined face similar to Kushana’s. The only difference between her and Kushana’s was that Kushana was a little taller and that her eyes were orange instead of red.
I looked at the outfit she was wearing. It was a white one-piece dress embroidered with red thread. Was it some kind of ethnic dress?
I was puzzled by the sudden appearance of a stranger, but she smiled and said calmly, “Hi, I’m Sheena, Kushana’s sister”.
Their faces were identical, but their atmospheres were opposite. …Were they twins?
“We are twins.”
Perhaps reading my expression, Sheena verified what I was thinking about as she placed the tray next to me. She handed me a bowl of soup to drink.
It tastes like corn pottage. The warmth and deliciousness of the soup filled my stomach. After drinking the soup, I realized once again that I was extremely hungry.
Come to think of it, I had been moving so much that I didn’t have time to rest.
Oh, right! I should take the Maddie to Rio as soon as possible!
But it was the god’s flower in this village… Ah! Jeez! What should I do!
I unconsciously held my head as hard as I could. Sheena, who was looking at me, giggled.
“You’re so cute with your expression constantly changing.”
It was hard to believe that a woman with such a soft atmosphere would have a scythe-wielding sister.
But still, her martial arts, it was astounding. She clearly outclassed the others.
I didn’t have time to be this laid-back! There was still a lot of work to be done!
I gulped down the soup and tried to get up from where I was sitting. At that moment, Sheena stood in front of me. She was smiling calmly, but I felt tremendous pressure.
“I know you want to see Kushana, but you need to change first.”
She took a garment from the closet next to the bunk bed and handed it to me.
“When in another country, do as the locals do.”
I followed her words and started to change into the village attire.