Chapter 109

Avin smiled brightly and said.

“The ice power I use... it wasn’t created by King Argen’s magic. I made it with my power.”

“What?”

Made... a power with a power?

My eyes widened in shock.

“You idiot! Why are you talking about useless things when we need to escape right now?”

Tree shouted, his face turning red as if he was flustered.

This time, Avin properly helped him up before answering.

“King Argen will be executed anyway. Wouldn’t it be better to leave after having everything exposed?”

“What? How dare you speak about His Majesty like that!”

“If you eat a power crystal, you can use that power for several days. With information this valuable, I’ve paid my debt, right?”

Horrified, Tree reached out to grab Avin by the hair, but Avin quickly lowered his upper body to avoid him and waved his hand while giggling playfully.

“Then goodbye. See you later.”

“You idiot! I told you not to say anything else—!”

“Ah, I know, I know. Just put some strength into your legs, mister.”

The boy who had revealed extremely confidential information as casually as if he were chatting lifted Tree up and leisurely left the alleyway.

I tried to follow immediately, but there was nowhere to step because of the poison spread across the ground.

Lucas’s icicles melted and disappeared the moment he created them.

“Avin!”

The only thing I could do was call out his name as he moved farther away.

Why did the protagonist change like that?

Could it be... because I got rid of the villain, that child became the villain instead...?

“Princess Aisha! We must inform Duke Kreutz of this immediately!”

A large hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder while I was lost in confusion.

It was the knight commander.

“But Avin...!”

“Your father comes first.”

“......!”

I couldn’t leave Avin, who had become a villain because of me, like this.

I was about to pull away from the man with that thought when the word father made me stop.

My wrist was held by a white hand. A faint tremor could be felt from his fingertips.

“The status of House Kreutz, which has protected the north for this kingdom for decades, is about to collapse.”

Lucas’s voice, frighteningly lowered, rang beside my ear.

“Your father comes first, Aisha.”

“.......”

Only then did it feel like my mind returned.

This wasn’t the time to worry about Avin.

I didn’t know why I had been reincarnated, but right now, I wasn’t the reader of the novel.

I was Aisha, a child who had a precious father and brother in this world.

If you eat a power crystal, you can use the power. An ice crystal... a potion...!

I frowned and thought deeply, then my eyes widened as I remembered something.

A potion containing an ice crystal.

When I stole the madness intensifier from Perkus’s Bookshop, I clearly remembered taking a bottle with that name written on it as well.

“...I think we need to go to the Kreutz ducal castle.”

“What?”

At my words, which I muttered as if entranced, Lucas turned his head.

“Brother, we need to take the portal to the ducal castle!”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden? We need to go to Father...”

“There’s something I need to confirm.”

I grabbed his sleeve with certainty.

Then, as I pulled him along and started running, I explained.

“I have a potion I stole before. One of them seems to be a potion containing an ice crystal. It’s in the Kreutz ducal castle...”

“The portal is in the royal palace!”

Lucas shouted, and I stopped walking.

Come to think of it, that was true.

The destination we needed to reach was the same from the beginning.

But the problem was how we were supposed to get to the royal palace in an atmosphere like this, right before a war.

That was when.

“I will protect you until you reach the portal, even if it costs my life.”

The knight commander, who had silently listened to our conversation, spoke with grim determination.

The three of us were silent for a moment, then looked at one another and nodded firmly.

***

A short while later.

The forest near the royal palace.

Rustle, rustle—

“Is this really the right thing to do, Aisha?”

“Of course! I’m a former spy—no, anyway, crawling across the ground is better than climbing the castle wall.”

Going through the castle gates would have been the most ideal option, but the gates were currently blocked by a physical clash between House Schletz and the royal knights, making it impossible to approach easily.

So we circled around to the opposite side of the gates.

“I’ll climb the wall and check what’s inside.”

At first, we considered climbing over the wall according to the knight commander’s suggestion.

But there was a possibility that an Argen-aligned knight could be right on the other side.

In situations like this, digging a hole and sneaking underneath is better.

Scritch, scritch—

The three of us were diligently digging a hole when—

“...Huh.”

A small opening came into view while I was crouched down.

“There are several bricks missing from the wall here.”

I whispered while looking around cautiously, and the two men who had been digging the dirt looked where I pointed.

“You’re right. It’s big enough for a cat or a small animal to go in and out. Why hasn’t this been repaired?”

“It seems people failed to notice because it is near the ground.”

I lowered my upper body and tried to look through the hole, but the wall was thicker than expected, so I couldn’t see what was happening on the other side.

Hmm. It looks like I’ll only know if I go inside myself.

I narrowed my eyes while judging the size of the hole.

“...Should I go in?”

“Pardon?”

“Dandelion, what did you say?”

I never thought being five years old would be this useful.

I got down on my stomach and prepared to crawl, then tried to slip into the hole—

“Wait. You’re going in alone?”

Lucas grabbed my ankle in surprise.

“I’ll just look at what’s on the other side and come back. If it’s safe, then we can climb over the wall.”

“But...”

“Only I can fit through here.”

Lucas hesitated at my words, then I could feel him press his lips together.

Because I was right.

“...Okay. But you really only look your face out and come back.”

“Okay!”

With my brother’s permission, I carefully pushed my body through the hole in the wall.

After crawling for a while, I saw the shoes of knights.

Looking at the exterior of the castle spread out behind them, it seemed like this was where King Argen stayed.

Then these people must be knights close to Argen.

I should retreat for now.

I was about to back away and tell Lucas what I had seen when—

“...Oh.”

A woman’s voice suddenly rang out.

“......?”

It was a familiar voice I had heard many times before.

I wondered whether I should ignore it and leave, but when I cautiously raised my gaze—

“......?”

“?”

I met eyes with Grace, who had only lowered her gaze to look at me.

Why is Queen Grace here...?

The two of us stared at each other in silence for a while, blinking.

But her hands, held behind her back, were bound with rope.

What is happening here?

My mind went blank for a moment, but judging from the situation, it seemed Grace had been captured by Argen’s knights.

Then.

Run away.

She urgently mouthed the words.

I had just seen the Queen of this kingdom being held captive, and she was telling me to run away.

I shook my head.

I raised my eyebrows and shook my head firmly.

Grace seemed horrified by my loyalty toward her and narrowed her eyes before mouthing the words again.

Run away.

No.

Run away.

No.

Run... haah.

After silently arguing with me for a while, she sighed.

I lowered myself more carefully and mouthed my own question toward her.

Are you going to prison?

At my question, she subtly shook her head.

Then where?

I am hostage.

Hostage?

Grace nodded and continued speaking only with her lips.

Negotiation.

Negotiation?

I captured. Mistake. I hostage.

Ah.

As if trying to reassure me, Grace added another message.

It’s okay. I’ll win.

Seeing her calm expression, it didn’t seem like the situation was truly that serious.

Still, if she was currently being held hostage and negotiations were needed, that meant the other side—meaning my father—might come here.

Meet Father?

I mouthed the words with desperate hope.

But the moment she tried to open her lips, she froze.

‘.......’

Something was wrong.

Until just moments ago, she had seemed fine, but suddenly cold sweat appeared on her face and she frowned.

“Are you all right?”

When Grace staggered, a knight standing a little distance away hurried over and asked.

“...I-I’m fine.”

Her voice didn’t sound fine at all.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“No... I’m fine.”

The knight looked at her suspiciously, but Grace firmly shook her head.

After exchanging glances with his companion, the knight shrugged.

“Yes. Understood.”

Even though she was the Queen, it seemed they decided that since she was a prisoner, there was no need for further concern.

Wait...

Watching the scene secretly, my eyes narrowed.

Grace’s current condition.

It looked similar to when I had been affected by King Argen’s dark magic.

Could it be dark magic?

I mouthed the words toward her again as she lowered her head—

‘......!’

As if she understood me perfectly, Grace’s eyes widened.

Seeing that reaction, it seemed she really was under dark magic.

He had gone so far as to target his own wife.

Just how was this kingdom supposed to function?

Anger rose inside me, but first, I needed to meet Father quickly.

Only then could we use the portal and secure the evidence.

I raised my fierce triangular eyes and mouthed my next message.

If you meet Father, puppy. If you don’t, cat.

‘.......’

Grace narrowed her eyes as if thinking carefully.

It seemed she still wanted me to simply run away, so I stared back stubbornly, making it clear I would not back down.

In the end, after keeping her mouth shut for a while, Grace—

Woof.

She indirectly answered my question.

Gasp. Grace was meeting Father. This was a chance.

Your Majesty.

Why.

Can I hide inside your dress?

‘.......’

After making a dog sound and then receiving the absurd request to hide me under her dress, Grace’s mouth opened slightly.

However.

“...That will be difficult.”

She suddenly sighed and stepped backward, leaning against the wall.

Soon, right before my eyes, I saw the small shoes that had been hidden beneath her dress.