Nightmare Came to The Place I Escaped - Chapter 105

“I will write an Imperial edict, while the lady will look for His Majesty’s seal.”

“Yes, Lord Harmond. Thank you very much.”

 

Rachel felt more at ease after Harmond stepped forward, and gave her a job of her own.

 

“His seal is probably in the third drawer.”

“Yes, I’ll look for it there.”

 

Rachel nodded and followed Harmond to Ian’s desk.

 

She hoped nothing had happened to him. She hurriedly moved her hands, so that when she saw Mike and Ian again they would be safe and unharmed.

 

***

 

“Mike, are you okay?”

 

The sky had calmed, and Ian belatedly looked back at Mike.

 

One of the arrows that rained down was lodged in his thigh. Mike swallowed his saliva in agony, but nodded that he was fine.

 

“Ugh, it’s fine. I can do this.”

 

Mike tried to smile as he wiped away the cold sweat. However, even standing up properly seemed to be painful, and was forced to lean heavily on his healthy leg.

 

Ian clicked his tongue slightly at the wound that was worse than he’d thought, then he helped Mike to move into the forest and off of the road.

 

“Sit down first.”

“Huuu.”

 

Ian sat Mike down as he tried hard to hold on. Mike let out an agonized moan that he couldn’t manage to swallow.

 

“Hold on for a moment. A doctor will be here soon.”

 

Ian looked at Mike’s bloodstained thigh, then bent down to carefully break the arrow in half that was stuck through his leg.

 

“Your Majesty, I’m fine, go after them. You have to chase them now if you want to catch them.”

 

The knights, who avoided the road, approached Ian and Mike. Mike checked their physical condition once, then clicked his tongue slightly.

 

Their strength was only seven, but four of them were wounded. In addition, the coachman was gagging and vomiting as if he was in shock.

 

All of their horses were also dead.

 

“If we let them all run away like this…”

 

It was possible the mercenaries who attacked them would be lost to them forever.

 

If Diane Avery was behind this attack. If that fact spread throughout the Empire that Diana Avery, who’d fled from the Imperial knights, attacked the Oates’ carriage and the Emperor was inside it.

 

The Empire would once again be on the verge of turmoil.

 

“Mike, I’ll worry about what’s going to happen, so you should rest first.”

 

Ian noticed Mike’s worried expression, and continued to talk as if he were cutting off his troubles.

 

“Some of the surviving mercenaries were injured. They couldn’t have escaped far, so we can catch them later.”

 

Ian calmed Mike down by saying that, even if he wasn’t really sure if they’d be able to catch them.

 

His thoughts were just as worried as Mike’s, perhaps more than his, but he never showed it.

 

Ian looked around at the knights and beckoned the two unharmed ones.

 

“You guys should go and bring a doctor.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

 

Rip Rip Rip

 

Ian tore some gold buttons off of his jacket, and handed them over to the knights.

 

“Be careful because it’s dark. You might run into some of the mercenaries that are running away, so don’t relax until the end.”

“Yes! We understand.”

 

Ian looked up at the sky hidden by the clouds.

 

The moon was covered by clouds, so he couldn’t even see the road nearby.

 

On a cloudy day, the horses would be unable to speed up. Even if the Oates’ knights were coming, it looked like they would take quite a long time to join them.

 

Then it would also be hard to catch the mercenaries who ran away.

 

“If you meet a mercenary, if it’s possible, bring him back alive.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

 

Ian suppressed his frustration and ordered the knights.

 

“Nevertheless, your priority is to bring the doctor back quickly.”

“We’ll keep that in mind.”

 

Ian watched the knights leave with their tired bodies, as they rushed off down the road. It seemed that they were trying to be stealthy, but they still had a distinctly heavy movement.

 

The horses were already dead, so the knights had to run to a nearby village.

 

If only he could have acted a little faster.

 

Neither Mike nor the other knights would have been hurt like this.

 

But blaming himself didn’t change anything. Ian shook his head lightly and approached Mike, who was slumped next to him.

 

“Huu….”

 

Contrary to his plan, things had gone wrong again.

 

***

 

A dark forest

 

Mike looked at the injured knights and Ian, then bit his lip.

 

“Your Majesty, I’m just causing trouble. Sorry.”

 

Mike hesitated for a while before opening his mouth with a gloomy look.

 

“No, what are you sorry about?”

 

Ian shook his head anxiously.

 

It was actually because of him that Mike was hurt. If only they hadn’t been attacked during the middle of the sun setting.

 

“More than that, Your Majesty, are you all right now?”

 

After hesitating for a moment, Mike cautiously opened his mouth.

 

Ian immediately realized what Mike was talking about. He was probably referring to the pain in his chest from turning back time.

 

Mike saw his seizure in the carriage.

 

At Mike’s careful question, Ian nodded as if it were nothing at all.

 

“It’s just like a seizure. It was just unlucky that it happens only at certain times.”

 

If Mike and the knights had been able to exit the carriage, and were ready as soon as they received a signal that the attack had begun, neither Mike nor the knights would have been hurt like this.

 

No matter how many they were, they were mercenaries without professional training, and they were all fairly outstanding knights.

 

If he were the only one who moved without a hitch, everyone could have been unharmed. He wouldn’t have sat down like a fool, and just watched the mercenaries run away.

 

“What did your doctor say? I was confused because you were in so much pain. Are you taking any medicine?”

 

Mike lowered his voice when he asked, as if he was conscious of their surroundings.

 

Soon enough, he realized that the Emperor’s health was a secret even in the Imperial palace and shook his head lightly.

 

“There’s nothing to worry about. It’ll get better soon.”

 

However, Ian acted as if he didn’t care, and continued on. In reality, he couldn’t even tell Mike everything.

 

“I’m very healthy.”

 

Ian opened his mouth without much concern. He knew the reason Mike was asking about his health was because he was worried about Rachel.

 

“I’m sorry that I was a burden at such an important time.”

 

Ian glanced down at Mike’s legs.

 

“Because of me, both you and the knights were seriously injured.”

 

Perhaps the reason he was hit by an arrow was because he was confused to see him in pain.

 

“No, it was my mistake. Besides, with the rain of arrows, it was impossible to say that I wouldn’t have been seriously injured.”

“I promised Rachel that I would protect you from getting hurt.”

 

Ian frowned.

 

By now, he could vaguely guess how worried Rachel would be about them. He had to finish his work and go back to her.

 

Ian let out a deep sigh once again. The later he was, the more worried Rachel would be.

 

Ian rose from his seat in a fit of impatience. However, no matter how frustrated he was, the first thing he had to do was to take care of the injured people so that their body temperature didn’t drop.

 

***

 

Crackle Crackle

 

A small bonfire lit up the darkness of the late night.

 

Mike, the injured drivers, and the half-fainted coachman were resting by the fire, while Ian was waiting for the knights who’d gone to pick up the doctor.

 

It felt like a long time when he had to wait like this.

 

Ian hurriedly got up from his seat and went out to the side of the road with a piece of wood that he’d lit on fire.

 

Clip Clop

 

Soon, a faint lantern was seen in the distance, and the sound of horses was getting closer.

 

After seeing the torch Ian was holding, the knights rode fast.

 

“Your Majesty, we’ve brought you a doctor.”

 

The knights who went down to the village rode back with the doctor.

 

“Good, you did a great job.”

 

One of the knights handed Ian some waterskins and food.

 

Ian took the food he’d been handed, then hurriedly brought them to Mike and the knights.

 

“These two were hit in the legs with arrows, that one’s shoulder was grazed and those ones hurt their arms and legs. The person with the injured shoulder seems to have hurt his ankle too. The coachman doesn’t have any injuries, but please examine him, too.”

“I understand, Your Majesty, I will do my best.”

“Yes, please do.”

 

Ian showed Mike to the doctor, then handed the other knights a waterskin.

 

“You guys should sit down and rest. You did a great job.”

 

Ian took a deep breath, as if his heart was finally at ease.

 

“Ah, did anyone come to you to get treatment? Someone who said they were hit by an arrow.”

 

Ian, who was looking over the knights, asked the doctor from the village.

 

Some of the injured mercenaries were sure to visit a nearby clinic.

 

“No, no such person has come to me yet, but there are few doctors in town. I don’t know if they went to someone else.”

“Okay.”

 

Ian nodded slightly.

 

“Mike, since you’re being treated by the doctor.”

“What? Then Your Majesty…”

“It’s already very late, but shouldn’t I still try to follow behind them?”

 

Ian said as he held the sword that one of the knights placed in his hand.

 

“Let me borrow this sword for a moment.”

“Your Majesty, I will come with you.”

 

Ian shook his head slightly at the knight who said he would follow him.

 

The man had already done his job enough just by bringing the doctor here. In addition, there were only three horses, so it would be difficult for two people to move.

 

Also, he would be needed if the rest of the people here thought about moving, it was better for Ian to go alone.

 

“No, I will go alone. You can rest here and join the knights sent by the Duke.”

 

Ian hurriedly moved on. Time was running out to find Diana Avery and the runaway mercenaries.

 

***