The Stepmother Has Left - Chapter 29

As she stepped outside, the darkness and the cool night energy overtook her. When the clouds obscured the moonlight, even the silhouette could be seen properly in the deep darkness. It covered her movements quite well than she expected.

 

While the knights were taking turns chatting with each other, Cassia began to move quickly. It was her first time experiencing such a thrilling experience, so her heart was beating like an explosion the whole time.

 

However, it was around the time when she was about to enter the road to the village of Liven bypassing the front of the gallery.

 

Just as she was about to enter the open road, the clouds that had obscured the moonlight moved away.

 

At the same time, the late-night moon shone brightly on her.

 

That was when…

 

“Who is there?”

 

A knight’s voice was heard.

 

Cassia looked back.

 

He was slowly approaching her. After hesitating for a moment to answer, the vigilant voice became ferocious.

 

“Who is there? Answer me.”

 

“…Ah.”

 

When she was perplexed as to what to do, her opponent got closer.

 

“Mrs Whidrian?”

 

He came closer and looked at her. Upon closer inspection, he was a sentry with the lowest rank.

[T/N: a soldier stationed to keep guard or to control access to a place.]

 

She was the one who knew Irwin first in Lawrencia, but she was also the Duchess, legally.

 

It will be difficult for her, as she is the wife of a high-ranking commander-in-chief. It’s worth trying to solve it with words. Cassia thought so, straightened her back and looked at him.

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

“Even though it was late at night, I couldn’t sleep, so I was walking around for a while.”

 

“…Ah.”

 

“Is there any problem?”

 

“No. However, it is very late now, so it seems a bit dangerous to go for a walk alone.”

 

She was being watched by the knights, and it seemed that he was terribly suspicious that she was out alone at 12 o’clock at night.

 

He looked at her with his eyes wide open and found a basket in her hand.

 

“What is that basket?”

 

“This…”

 

“Let’s open it. I know it’s rude, but I think I’ll have to look.”

 

He was a thorough and well-trained knight, to the point where she felt sorry she had downplayed him. He looked at her with a firm expression on his face, telling her to open the basket.

 

‘What should I do?’

 

Cassia had no choice but to slowly open the basket and roll her head inwardly. It was late at night, so the manpower seemed to have decreased a bit, and there were no other people nearby.

 

‘Wouldn’t it be possible to escape somehow if I turned around and ran quickly now?’

 

When she showed the basket and looked around with her eyes, she shook her head.

 

“Let me ask you something.”

 

The sentry and Cassia both turned around in surprise to the unfamiliar voice that came from the side.

 

A grandmother stood watching them with her back bent, wearing a black cloak and with her cane.

 

“Where is the village of Levin?”

 

“WHat?”

 

The sentry asked back.

 

Cassia looked at the old woman.

 

It seemed like she was asking the knight.

 

“I came all the way here to see my grandson, but it’s late at night, so what should I do? Take me to the village of Levin, please. Let’s see, where’s the address?

 

The sentry opened his eyes in bewilderment.

 

It was natural.

 

He was a knight from the Imperial Palace.

 

He was only guarding the place he was supposed to protect, but he didn’t really know the geography of Lawrencia and the name of the town.

 

“Grandma, I will guide you.”

 

To Cassia, the grandmother seemed like a saviour.

 

She took her by the shoulder and spoke, and the sentry stopped her.

 

“But it is dangerous, Madam. Leave this to me and go home and rest.”

 

“If you just cross this main road, it’s Liven Village, and I can’t even sleep.”

 

“But, then, come with me. We can go together and come back.”

 

She was reluctant, but getting out of this place was her urgent priority, so she accepted the old lady’s proposal.

 

Thanks to this, she was able to confidently walk the road to the village of Liven with an unfamiliar grandmother and the sentry.

 

Shortly after entering the village of Liven, it was time for the sentry to ask the grandmother.

 

“How many houses are you looking for…?”

 

He couldn’t keep up with his words. It was because the grandmother’s bent waist was gradually straightening.

 

Cassia, too, watched the grandmother change with a surprised expression.

 

Soon she looked behind her.

 

The face was not the face of the old woman she had just seen.

 

“…Irwin?”

 

His beautiful hair, shining even whiter in the moonlight, was revealed.

 

The moment she said his name in a whisper, the sentry’s eyes widened.

 

Irwin sprayed something on his face.

 

It was a perfume-like liquid.

 

Before he could say anything, the sentry met the unknown liquid and had a hazy expression on his face.

 

He stumbled and fell.

 

Startled, Cassia ran to the sentry to check his condition, but he was asleep.

 

“He is asleep. When he wakes up, he won’t even remember that he met us.”

 

Cassia looked at Irwin, who was explaining the situation with a normal expression, with a puzzled face. Irwin smiled as he looked at her face like that, and then he held out his hand to her.

 

“Would you like me to explain the situation in detail as we go together?”

 

Irwin’s secret and private space

 

It was starting to show up in front of her.

 

“Magic?”

 

On the way to 77, Irwin mentioned in the note, they had a few conversations as they walked.

 

Cassia learned that Irwin could disguise himself as a grandmother because he used a magical item that could transform.

 

The fact that Irwin had left a note in her house without being noticed by anyone, and that the sentry had just fallen asleep and went to sleep, was also the effect of the magic item.

 

“I didn’t know that Irwin owned a lot of magic items.”

 

“It cost a lot of money, and I went to the most famous wizard on the continent to buy things.”

 

“Thanks to that, I was able to wander around for a long time without being detected,” Irwin said sarcastically.

 

Cassia looked at Irwin and smiled bitterly at the sudden thought.

 

“Why are you smiling?”

 

“No, when I think about it, earlier… I remember Irwin’s transformation into an old woman.”

 

“…”

 

“It was great acting, Irwin.”

 

It made her laugh when she remembered Irwin, who would have transformed into an old grandmother, stood with her cane, and worked hard in front of the sentry.

 

“I worked hard. Was it funny?”

 

“It’s just that it’s cute when I think back on your hard work. I feel grateful.”

 

“Thank you. If you hadn’t appeared in that situation, I might have been taken back home.”

 

“For those of you who personally stepped up to this point, wouldn’t it make sense to help them get out of it?”

 

Irwin looked at her as he spoke with a smile, and then they smiled together.

 

It was pretty late at night.

 

As soon as they moved in between, houses with street numbers written on them and the nearest street began to appear in front of her eyes. But as she looked at them, she soon realized.

 

“No. 77 is missing.”

 

“Because it is invisible to ordinary people.”

 

“What?”

 

It was time to look back at him because she didn’t realize what it meant.

 

He pointed to an empty corner.

 

It was an empty space in the corner of the village where nothing but land existed under a tree.

 

As he beckoned her to look at it, Cassia turned her head to look at it.

 

“…Wow.”

 

A dazzling light leaked out before her, and slowly, as if hidden, a tent appeared before her.

 

Cassia stared blankly as the tent was fully revealed. The light that started small revealed the shape of the tent as it expanded its area, and when it was fully revealed, the light disappeared.

 

Suddenly, a tent stood tall in the darkness in front of her.

 

“This is magic, too. There is stealth magic that can hide things, so it is not visible to the general public. It’s also the house I’ve always been to.”

 

Cassia stared blankly at it with her mouth open.

 

Was this also magic?

 

Irwin grinned and opened the door on the tent, tilted it back and looked at her.

 

“Welcome, Cassia.”

 

“77 Levin Village, entering my precious space.”

 

***

 

Late at night, Nick was visiting Cassia’s house.

 

When Duke Whidrian came down to Lawrencia to find the Third Prince and stayed here, Nick stayed away from Cassia’s house for a while and lived with the Duke.

 

Nick was provisionally appointed as the next head of the Whidrian family, and he needed to learn about what his father was doing. Although the mission related to the Third Prince was close to the one personally requested by the current Emperor, who especially loved Duke Whidrian.

 

In fact, Nick saw it as an excellent opportunity to get out of Cassia’s house.

 

It’s because Nick wanted to keep some distance from his mother these days. Anyway, after leaving Cassia’s house for a while and spending time with his father, Nick was alone in organizing his thoughts.

 

Then he remembered that he had left one of his belongings at Cassia’s house, and it was late at night when he visited her house for a while.

 

“Madam is sleeping.”

 

“I’ll quietly go in alone and come out. I just stopped by because I left something behind.”

 

“All right.”

 

Two knights standing in front of the door let Nick in.

 

Nick opened the door and stepped inside.

 

It was when Nick, with his belongings left on the table, turned around and left the house.

 

Nick felt strange.

 

The house was exceptionally quiet.

 

Nick tilted his head and looked back.

 

Although he knew that his mother was clearly sleeping, the house was too quiet.

 

It was strange that he couldn’t even hear the sound of tossing, turning or breathing.

 

Nick turned back to just go.

 

But he soon stopped walking.

 

As he was about to leave, he was struck by the sight of his mother, whom he had seen during the day.

 

It was a very strange sight for his mother to come to the shop and ask his father for something.

 

He also felt like she was under a lot of stress.

 

Nick was worried about her for some reason.

 

He couldn’t just leave.

 

‘…I mean, I’m just checking and leaving. Is she sleeping well?’

 

Nick slowly approached the door where his mother was sleeping.

 

“…Mother?”

 

He opened the door slightly.

 

In the meantime, Nick’s eyes grew as he looked at the room.

 

He swung the door open.

 

There was no Cassia.

 

Only an empty bed, a slightly open window and a floating curtain caught Nick’s eye.