Edele let out a small sigh and continued eating without a word, which seemed to break Lauren and Daria’s spirit as well.
And how much time passed.
“Lauren Lancaster! Come out!”
Before noon, Anthes came to take Lauren away.
After Lauren left, Daria, who had become noticeably anxious, also left the prison less than an hour later.
But even after that, a long time passed before Edele’s name was called. She spent that idle time contemplating how she would die.
‘It would be nice if I could get a sharp piece of metal or glass, but that’s probably impossible. It seems like jumping from the carriage is the best method.’
Her plan was to jump from the carriage and be hit by another one.
‘They must live in a street where many noble mansions are gathered, so there will be many carriages passing by. If I can secretly unlock the carriage door, I can be hit immediately after jumping out.’
If she was lucky, she would be hit by a four-horse carriage. Even if it wasn’t moving fast, the startled horses would easily shatter her ribs.
Dying instantly from her head being crushed would be the best outcome, but since God was never on her side, she didn’t even hope for instant death. She would be grateful if her shattered ribs pierced her heart.
‘I just hope it’s not a scenario where I’m rescued with only a piece of rib bone piercing my lung.’
How long, painful, and humiliating would such a death be?
Edele almost bit her dried, scabbed lips with her fingers but stopped herself and lowered her hand. It was a bad habit that surfaced whenever she was anxious.
Despite being whipped several times for this habit, her hand still rose to her lips unconsciously.
As the sky outside the window slowly turned crimson, the guard finally appeared.
“Edele Lancaster! Come out!”
Her heart sank, but Edele deliberately stood up slowly and lightly brushed off her crumpled skirt.
Even if she were to die, she would not lose her dignity until the very end. That was her last assignment.
“Thank you.”
Edele bowed her head slightly to the guard who held the door for her until she left and then followed the guard who had come to escort her out of the prison.
The sun was already setting in the western sky.
As she headed towards the carriage sent by the Krissus Count family, Edele hardened her resolve.
‘They must have sent a male servant. It would be better if they sent a maid, though…’
It would be best if they told her to walk, saying it was beneath her dignity to ride in a carriage.
If they rode in the carriage together, there was a high probability that the servant would pay attention to her. He would keep glancing at her, making it difficult to find an opening.
‘In that case, I should try to draw his attention outside the window by engaging in light conversation.’
It was essential to use a method to lightly warm up the atmosphere with someone you met for the first time in high society. And Edele was an excellent conversationalist who had never been criticized by anyone.
She still prayed that a clueless and naive servant, who had no interest in her, would come.
However, waiting outside the gate of the North Prison was none other than Count Laslo Krissus himself. He wore the same expression as when he discovered Edele hiding in the warehouse.
“Oh! Is the Captain of the Royal Guard here himself? You didn’t send a servant.”
“I can take her when I leave the palace, so there’s no need to mobilize anyone else.”
Laslo didn’t even glance at Edele. He seemed utterly annoyed by the situation.
“Take her.”
Laslo gestured towards the carriage next to him and spoke to the guard.
There was only one carriage. No other vehicles were visible.
Edele bit her lip.
‘This is bad.’
She had never imagined riding in a carriage alone with Laslo.
But she had no other choice.
Edele bowed slightly to the guard standing by the carriage to escort her.
“I can ride alone. Thank you for your consideration.”
“Ah, y-yes.”
She had said that out of concern that she might be scolded for still acting like a Duchess, but the guard bowed his head until she had fully boarded the carriage.
Laslo, who had been pestered with questions about Edele all day, found even the guard bowing to Edele bothersome, causing him to frown.
‘These guys and that one are all blinded by a woman’s face. Tsk.’
He was annoyed because he, of all people, had been saddled with spoils of war that he didn’t even want.
But it was useless to take his anger out on innocent people. Without a word, he got into the carriage and ordered it to start.
As the carriage began to move, Edele sat pressed against the carriage door, trying to calm her pounding heart.
‘What if he speaks to me?’
Her earlier confidence that light conversation was easy now seemed foolish as her insides shriveled. Was it because of the strong impression Laslo made when he broke down the door at Lancaster Castle?
Moreover, he was glaring at her fiercely since getting into the carriage.
‘He must not like me. Well, considering he was the commander of the suppression force, it’s unlikely he’d see the Duchess favorably.’
She felt like her hands would tremble if she didn’t tense up.
Then, Laslo suddenly unbuckled the cloak he was wearing and dropped it onto Edele’s lap.
Edele was so surprised that she almost hiccuped.
“Wh-why are you giving me this…”
“Just stop trembling.”
Her eyes widened even further.
‘How did he know I was trembling? No, wait, did he give me the cloak because he thought I was cold? Why…?’
Edele had no idea of his intentions. She couldn’t gauge his reaction since Laslo turned his head to look out the window after giving her the cloak.
However, the cloak, still warm from Laslo’s body heat, was quite warm. She thought that if she threw this cloak towards Laslo as she jumped from the carriage, it might prevent him from catching her.
Having regained some composure, Edele subtly checked the lock on the carriage door.
‘It’s the simplest type of lock. I’m lucky.’
Given the loose state of the lock, it seemed like it would open with just a big jolt.
Come to think of it, the carriage Laslo had brought was quite small and rather shabby, not what one would expect from a Count’s carriage. It was strange, but she decided it wasn’t her concern as she was about to die soon.
Edele quietly took a breath and looked out the window, waiting for her moment.
It was fortunate that Laslo wasn’t paying her any more attention, but since the carriage wasn’t large, she would be caught if she was even a little slow.
‘Please let me succeed on the first try.’
Edele even had to pray to die, which was a pathetic situation. Still, surviving would be a more terrible fate, so she had no choice but to pray.
However, despite it being time for the roads to be busy, there were hardly any carriages passing by outside.
‘It’s the time when everyone is returning home, so there should be a lot of carriages…’
Moreover, this carriage was moving quite slowly.
At this speed, even if she jumped out of the carriage door, she would only get a few scratches.
Rattle, rattle.
The carriage moved slowly with a rattling sound, but it didn’t shake much, and her insides felt like they were drying up.
‘If this continues, we’ll reach the Krissus estate!’
Edele grew impatient.
Then, as if waiting for this moment, she saw a two-horse carriage approaching from the opposite direction.
It was moving quite fast, so if she could fall off the carriage properly, dying shouldn’t be difficult.
‘If I miss this chance, it’s over!’
She clenched her teeth and stealthily reached for the carriage’s lock. The cold touch of metal clung to her fingertips.
‘Okay. One, two…’
Just as she was about to count ‘three’.
“It would be best not to do that.”
Edele froze at the sudden, low, and chilling voice. Her mind went blank.
‘How did he know?’
Wasn’t Laslo looking out the opposite window…?
While Edele was in shock, the approaching carriage quickly passed them, and silence fell inside their carriage.
‘What do I do? He won’t let me go now.’
Edele swallowed dryly.
Laslo’s expression hadn’t changed at all. It was still the same weary, almost annoyed, indifferent expression.
But he had clearly realized what she was trying to do, and his current impassivity didn’t mean he wasn’t angry.
It couldn’t be helped.
There was no excuse she could offer, so Edel simply closed her eyes tightly.
‘My life is only getting worse.’
While she was lost in despair, the carriage diligently sped on and arrived at the Krissus Count’s estate.
Laslo, without any particular action, simply opened the door and got out of the carriage first, gruffly saying,
“Get out.”
This must be how a cow being led to the slaughterhouse feels.
Edel pushed herself up. However, her legs were stiff from the constant tension during the journey, and they didn’t move well.
Fearing a furious outburst if she dawdled, she forced her stiff legs to straighten and stepped onto the carriage’s footboard. The moment she did, she instinctively knew she was about to fall awkwardly.