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Chapter 25.2

“My Lord!” One of the guards yelled as they caught up with him. They were all out of breath by the time they reached Claude, who was still staring at the coach as it disappeared into the night.

It was the first day of patrol with the Duke, at the request of the royal family, but as soon as they entered Louvre, they had all somehow gotten lost, and Claude said sarcastically, “You are late.”

“My apologies. But we were able to find our way to you, thanks to the marks you left,” one of the guards replied, looking quite embarrassed.

An attendant, wearing a uniform similar to Claude’s, was sweating as he took care of the others. There were seven volunteers taking part in the patrol, and they seemed to have unhindered respect for Claude, who had helped them make their way out of Louvre unharmed.

“But how did you find your way out? I was surprised that the markings were in very unexpected places. I never expected you to be in an area like that,” the attendant enquired.

“I had some help.”

“Help?”

“I believe I have found the perfect guide for this area.” Claude took off his black leather gloves and put them in his back pocket. His mind was still in a daze as if he was dreaming. Who was that girl?

Even in the darkness, he had been positive at first that he’d seen Canillian Vale. But the smell of roses, when he’d held her waist, and the skin that was soft as a plush doll, definitely couldn’t have been a man. And, the long hair that went down to her waist confirmed this. Unless Canillian had gone insane, he had no reason to wear a wig and pretend to be a lady.

After deep contemplation, he concluded that the person he’d nearly knocked over earlier was not Canillian Vale. Besides that, she was also mute. His now tired and hollow eyes deepened even more as he pondered about her. If his ears hadn’t fooled him, he was sure that he’d heard her talking to herself. It had been the sound of her voice that had made him turn around and then bump into her. And that’s when he’d seen the face that resembled Canillian’s. Now he wondered if she’d been lying to him from the beginning.

Shaking his head, he asked one of the soldiers, “Did you find any evidence?”

“There was a bloodstain at the east entrance that looked to be quite recent. But as crime is prevalent in Louvre, we couldn’t be sure. As you must know, that area is lawless,” the soldier replied.

“Are you saying that the people of Louvre are not from the empire’s nation?” Claude asked as if questioning himself, and he clenched his fists. “Ivan, I need you to do something for me. Please investigate the coach that crossed the bridge earlier. It should have arrived at the south side of the Leon River. It was a dark green landau with two dark-brown horses that looked to be quite young.”

“Is the investigation related to the guide you spoke of earlier?”

“Yes.”

“I will get to it right away.” Ivan saluted and headed off.

Claude walked along the river bank to a car that stood on the side of the road. His curiosity about the girl would not leave his mind.

Sighing deeply, he turned his head, and he saw the city square brightly lit up, only truly appreciating the light now, after the darkness he’d just experienced. Chuckling to himself, he thought about the girl who’d left the dark of the alley and then disappeared at the speed of light. I will find you, no matter what. I will keep you beside me, and in that way, I will not suspect Canillian Vale. His eyes became sharp once again as he stared back into the darkness.

***

The bright morning sunshine greeted an exhausted Lia who’d hardly had any sleep. Her body felt heavy, and her head ached, and she felt nothing like the bright new day. Looking down at the floor, she noticed her clothes that lay scattered, and next to them lay the wig that she’d removed as soon as she’d entered her bedroom the previous evening.

The large window was open, and she could hear the cheerful voices of merchants brightening up the day, and on the windowsill sat two birds happily chirping away. She didn’t know the name of the brown-feathered birds and was too tired to bother to think about it, so she just stared at them with a blank look on her face. It was the first time that she was experiencing such a miserable start to her day.

Whenever Lia closed her eyes last night, she saw Claude’s face, and whenever she’d dozed off, she could hear his voice shouting inside the house. Of course, these were all foolish hallucinations. He can’t have recognized me, right? If he’d even had an ounce of doubt, he would’ve pulled off her wig. With the fiery personality of a man, he would have tried to confirm her identity right there on the spot.

Lia subconsciously bit her nails. Just why? Why, why, why did the Duke have to appear at that moment? She silently screamed and rolled herself in her blanket while kicking her feet in utter frustration.

Interrupted from her tantrum, she heard loud, hurried footsteps coming down the corridor, followed by a frantic knocking on the door, and Pepe flung it open before Lia could even respond.

“Master, wake up! Quickly!”

“What’s wrong? Why?”

Lia peeked out from the blanket that covered her, and Pepe sighed in expectation, pulling the sheets away, “The Duke is here! Without a visitor’s card!”

“What?” Lia wasn’t sure that she’d heard correctly.

Pepe didn’t allow her time to waste, and she pulled her in front of the long mirror. Hastily, she brought water to wash her face and shoved a toothbrush in Lia’s mouth. Then, Pepe swiftly grabbed the clothes and wig off the floor and stashed them in the cupboard. As she grabbed some clothes for Lia, who stood still, looking dazed and confused, she firmly said, “Hurry up! Get dressed.”