“By imperial decree, the women of the Lancaster Dukedom are to be brought in as captives.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, two knights standing beside the man approached and lifted Edel.
Fortunately for her, they weren’t the sort to harass women.
“We would prefer to escort you with civility, madam, so please refrain from any unnecessary actions.”
Edel had no intention of futilely resisting. However, she couldn’t fathom the Emperor’s true intentions in ordering the women of the ducal family to be brought back alive, sending a chill down her spine.
It took a fortnight to travel from the Duchy of Lancaster to the capital, Terju. While it usually took a little over ten days by carriage, the escort of looted artworks, treasures, and captives had taken longer.
While being transported in a shabby carriage, Edel learned a few things.
First, and as expected, the Lancaster Dukedom had been annihilated. All men bearing the name Lancaster were dead, and the ducal territory was incorporated into the imperial domain.
Second, her paternal family, the Canyon Count family, had also suffered misfortune. However, it seemed they narrowly escaped annihilation because Count Canyon pleaded that he had been manipulated and provided crucial information. He also denied any relation to Edel and renounced all rights over her.
Third, the reason the Emperor had ordered the women of the Lancaster family to be brought back alive was as spoils of war. They were to be distributed to the meritorious individuals of this war.
Of these, the worst news was undoubtedly the last.
‘Spoils of war…’
Edel squeezed her eyes shut.
Those given as spoils of war were effectively slaves.
Though slavery had long since disappeared from the empire, no one would fail to think of slaves upon seeing them presented on a platform as spoils of war.
‘Something worse than death was to befall me.’
At that point, Edel ceased trying to discern the will of God. She felt nothing but resentment.
Was her simple plea for a clean death too extravagant a desire?
‘If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have lived so foolishly.’
She lamented a life that had never been lived according to her own will, not even for a single moment.
However, she did not cry. Or rather, she couldn’t. She wasn’t dead yet, and the situation where she had to remain dignified as a Duchess wasn’t over.
The way of life she had been forced to adopt since childhood bound her like shackles, but her stepdaughters, unaware of this, regarded Edel with disdain.
“Look at her, acting all high and mighty. Pretending to be so noble till the very end.”
It was Lauren, the Duke’s eldest daughter. Daria, the second daughter, glared and chimed in.
“She doesn’t seem to grasp reality. She’s been a bit out of her mind since she married. Coming here as a bride, yet acting as if she were the real Duchess.”
After days of weeping, they now seemed intent on blaming someone for their misfortune. Even though it wasn’t Edel’s fault that they were caught after fleeing and leaving her alone in the castle.
“Count Canyon confessed everything, didn’t he? We never should have brought that man’s daughter into the house in the first place!”
“That woman must have helped her father too. Who gave her the position of Duchess! An ungrateful wretch.”
Being looked down upon and mocked wasn’t new to Edel, but hearing such vulgar abuse was a first. Seeing them reveal their true selves, Lauren and Daria seemed to have given up on everything.
Edel calmly said to her stepdaughters, who glared at her with hollow eyes, “Why don’t you get some rest, Lauren? Daria, you too.”
Her indifferent response seemed to anger Lauren and Daria further, but Edel didn’t want to waste her energy on meaningless curses. She needed to save enough strength for suicide when the guards became careless.
‘The use of young female captives is ultimately as playthings. It’s better to die than to cling to life like this.’
Though suicide was a sin unforgivable by God, she no longer intended to follow a God who had never once looked upon her suffering.
But it was difficult for now. There was no suitable means to die.
‘There will surely be a victory banquet, and the spoils of war will be bestowed there. After that event, there will be a moment when surveillance is lax.’
Everyone would be drunk, and the guards would surely be complacent, thinking their duty was done. Every banquet had a similar atmosphere as it wound down.
Edel intended to seize that moment.
* * *
“Where are these women to be taken?”
“The North Prison! They are to be handed over tomorrow. The Emperor himself has given the order, so keep a close watch!”
Edel was jolted from her somber reminiscences by the guards’ conversation, which differed from her expectations.
‘The Emperor personally ordered surveillance? Why?’
She couldn’t fathom the Emperor’s thoughts. She had believed they were merely a means to publicize the fall of the Lancaster Dukedom.
‘Didn’t our role end after we were auctioned off like slaves at the banquet just now? Then why issue a direct order for strict surveillance?’
However, there was no one to provide a clear answer to her questions.
The guards, invigorated by the Emperor’s command, led them to the North Prison without neglecting their vigilance.
The North Prison had decent facilities, as it was where nobles convicted of minor offenses were imprisoned.
Although fortunate, the reason they, who should have been classified as major offenders, were allowed to stay in a good prison was not pleasant.
‘It must be because our status changed from major offenders to gifts from the Emperor.’
As the words spoils of war and gifts implied, Edel and the Duke’s daughters were already beyond being treated as human beings.
But that was something that would happen tomorrow. For now, Edel decided to be grateful for the opportunity to rest in a clean and safe place after a long time.
Her entire body felt like its muscles were screaming due to extreme tension, and her mind wasn’t working well.
‘Let’s sleep. I’ll come up with a good idea after I sleep.’
As soon as she lay down on the hard bed, complete with a coarse blanket, Edel fell asleep as if she had fainted. It was a deep sleep, devoid of even dreams.
Yet, despite being so exhausted, she woke up at 6 AM the next day. The fear of habit.
As soon as she opened her eyes, the thought that she would be handed over to Laslo today made it impossible to sleep any longer.
‘When will he come?’
From now on, she had to keenly watch for an opportunity. An opportunity to take her own life.
Edel felt her mind becoming clearer and glanced at the situation outside her cell.
She was imprisoned with Lauren and Daria, and two guards stood beyond the bars.
‘The security here is too tight. Anything I attempt will be discovered quickly.’
No matter how she thought about it, it seemed impossible within the prison, so Edel decided to look for an opening after being released from the prison. With that decision made, time suddenly felt like it was dragging.
She leaned her back against the wall and quietly watched the color of the sky visible through the small window gradually change.
‘This must be the last morning I see alive.’
Perhaps because it was the last, the sky was truly beautiful.
The deep blue light gradually faded, and the clouds, which had seemed like gray smudges, revealed a rosy hue, and a pale orange light faintly colored the sky. And at some point, as if the sun had fully risen, the sky turned the color of aquatic hydrangeas.
‘I never knew the sky could change so much…’
As she felt a lump in her throat from that realization, a guard suddenly appeared, banging on the iron bars with a metal rod and shouting, “Mealtime!”
At the sound, Lauren and Daria startled and got up. They, who normally never woke before 10 AM, were probably having breakfast this early for the first time in their lives.
However, they were so hungry that they were grateful to be woken up at this early hour.
Moreover, the prison food was of better quality than they had anticipated. It was just white bread, cheese, a slice of ham, and a cup of water, but they had eaten far worse on their way to the imperial palace.
‘This is luxurious for a condemned prisoner’s last meal.’
Though sad, Edel chewed the bread slowly with a grateful heart.
Lauren and Daria also didn’t complain, finding the prison food somewhat edible. Instead, perhaps to suppress their anxiety, they began to spew curses at Edel.
“Serves the Duchess right.”
“This is it. Being handed over to some mercenary trash.”
“They’ll probably be a wreck in less than a month.”
“It’d be lucky if they’re only used as sex slaves. Mercenaries are so used to killing people, they treat torture and murder as a game.”
As they spoke, they tried to convince themselves that their own situation was better.
“His Majesty the Emperor at least considered our circumstances. Lord Anthes and Lord Caber are quite decent.”
“That’s right. At least they know chivalry. Their reputations aren’t that bad either.”
At their words, Edel tilted her head slightly.
‘Is that so? The way they were acting, trying to get young female slaves, didn’t seem all that gentlemanly.’
But she hoped their words were true. Even though they had treated her unkindly, she felt pity for them, having been reduced to slaves just as they were about to bloom in life.
‘Yes, I hope you all live comfortably without suffering any ill treatment.’