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Meanwhile, Vyan was in a magical pickle, having splurged his mana like it was a Black Friday discount. For sure, he needed to redo Mana Managemt after this stupid mistake. Now, the only hope was, Clyde would summon him back before he had to resort to hitchhiking with chanted broomsticks to escape this cursed place.

"Because that idiot has no clue about how things work a the real world. He is practically setting himself up to be kidnapped by human traffickers."

He wasn\'t paying atttion to the ladies\' conversation until that certain word snagged his interest.

\'Idiot\' was what Iyana used to call him sometimes, albeit with a sweeter and more affectionate tone. Surely, this \'idiot\' she was talking about wasn\'t Vyan anymore. Maybe there was a whole parade of \'idiots\' in her life all along. She was most likely up to ruin their lives as well now.

"Why bother about that now?" Cassie persisted with a grim undertone.

"You know the reason, Cassie." Iyana let out a chuckle that tasted like regret and sounded like a distant echo of happier times. "Anyway, now help me get out of this thing, will you?"

Vyan did not ev try to steal a glance as Cassie assisted Iyana with her military attire. Once upon a time, wh his hormones were raging as a teager, he would have blushed crimson at the mere thought, but now he was as impassive as a statue in a gard of gossip.

Although he did take notice of the absce of her gagemt ring—most probably because she had just returned from work.

"So… my lady, what\'s your final decision about him?" Cassie asked.

"Sd out the hounds, Cassie," Iyana declared. "Search every nook and cranny of Haynes, and if need be, the neighboring kingdoms. I want him found, no matter the price tag."

"Copy that, my lady," Cassie conceded. "Oh, my lady, what is your response to His Imperial Highness\'s demand for an audice?"

"Let\'s go with the classic \'I\'m swamped\' excuse," Iyana suggested.

Naturally, you are playing it cool, waiting for him to come groveling at your feet, Vyan mused, rolling his eyes so hard he nearly sprained them. Because let\'s be real. You are not interested in him; it\'s his crown you are after. Because who needs love wh you can have power?

"Huh? You are not going to meet him?" Cassie asked, surprised, and Iyana nodded. "And what is the reason I should give for you being swamped?"

"Blame it on the Ganlop-Haberland debacle. Easton will understand."

Oh, absolutely, because Prince Easton is just known for being the epitome of empathy and understanding, Vyan thought sarcastically.

"Okay, I will do as you say," Cassie obliged and asked, "By the way, about what the Marquess mtioned—"

"Ugh, don\'t get me started on Father\'s orders," Iyana groaned, her voice dripping with exasperation. "I am already bding over backward trying to fulfill his every whim. I can\'t exactly twist myself into a pretzel, you know."

Iyana shrugged off Cassie\'s help and began frantically reassembling her uniform. "You know what? Forget the family dinner. I am out. Back to the base I go."

Cassie\'s eyes wided in panic at Iyana\'s sudd decision. "No, my lady! You can\'t bail now. Master Edward specifically requested your presce. My lady! Wait—"

But it was too late; Iyana was already heading towards the door, leaving Cassie to chase after her like a headless chick.

Just as Iyana was about to make her grand exit, a flicker of movemt caught her eye from the balcony.

With a swift tap of her wrist bracelet, a shimmering blue sword materialized in her grip, her gaze narrowing into ke slits like a hawk\'s. After that, she instantly motioned for Cassie to quiet down.

Ev as she approached stealthily without making a single noise, Vyan ssed her presce nearing him and channeled every last ounce of mana to vanish in a blink.

With the balcony door swinging op, Iyana stood poised, prepared to strike down any intruder.

Yet, surprisingly, the space before her remained empty.

She fixated on the spot where Vyan had stood, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Th, a subtle shift in the air caught her atttion, prompting a faint smile to grace her lips.

Tilting her head back, a warmth spread across her features.

"My lady?" Cassie\'s voice broke the momt. "Do you sse something?"

"No," she replied, her smile widing. "I just... This presce feels oddly familiar. Like that of my dear idiot\'s."

———

"My lord, you are back!" Clyde exclaimed, relief evidt in his voice.

Vyan stumbled into the gard, wheezing like he had just run a marathon in flip-flops.

"Did you sprint a marathon while you were out, my lord?" Clyde joked. "I swear, you have got the durance of a sloth. Here, hydrate yourself." He whipped up some water out of thin air and offered it to Vyan.

"No, I... ded up in the wrong... place..." Vyan mumbled, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. His body protested with every movemt, and he could not shake the feeling of suffocation.

"Where did you land up?" Clyde inquired, handing over the glass.

But Vyan\'s attempt to grab it was thwarted by searing pain shooting through his shoulder, his vision blurring with each heartbeat.

"In Cantace..." he managed to rasp, before a violt coughing fit overtook him, splattering the grass with crimson droplets.

Clyde\'s eyes wided in horror. "My lord, what happed?" He kneeled next to Vyan, panic seizing him as he saw blood staining the g. "Someone! Get the family physician! Lord Vyan is coughing up a bloody storm!"

Vyan\'s coughing intsified, the grass beath him turning into a gruesome painting. "My throat... it\'s on fire."

"My lord, stay with me!" Clyde pleaded, but his words fell on deaf ears as darkness swallowed Vyan\'s consciousness.

———

"Doctor Harvey, is he going to be okay?" Clyde\'s voice trembled with worry, his eyes pleading for a glimmer of hope.

"It\'s hard to tell," Harvey\'s tone was grim, his brows furrowed in concern. "He has internal bleeding and is struggling to breathe. Mana exhaustion shouldn\'t manifest like this."

The room buzzed with anxiety, everyone consumed by dread—except for the sinister duo responsible for Vyan\'s suffering.

"Well, well, well, looks like the poison\'s kicking in," Lincoln\'s voice dripped with dark satisfaction as he leaned in to whisper to his wife.

Clara\'s facade of concern slipped as she allowed a sassy smirk to dance across her lips while peering over her handkerchief. "Isn\'t it just the perfect timing?" she replied, her voice laced with wicked amusemt.

"I highly doubt it\'s mana exhaustion," Clyde interjected, his tone sharp with suspicion. "Giv his mana capacity, two long-distance teleports wouldn\'t leave him like this. We need a poison test, Doctor."

Clara\'s eyes flashed with disdain, muttering under her breath, "My delightful stepson strikes again. I swear you raised a vermin in the disguise of your son."

"Don\'t fret, he won\'t find a trace of it in his system," Lincoln reassured, his words chilling in their confidce.

"Dear God, who would dare poison Lord Vyan? He is practically a saint," Clara\'s gasp was as dramatic as her performance, her tears a cascade of insincere sorrow. "May curses rain down on the wretched soul who dared to harm this orphaned boy."

"Yes," Clyde\'s voice was like thunder, his gaze a storm brewing as he locked eyes with Clara, who suddly found herself wishing for an invisibility cloak. "Curse will rain down on those wretched souls. I will make sure of it," he declared, his words carrying the weight of a thousand grudges.

Clara attempted to deflect his atttion from her and continued her sobbing charade behind her handkerchief, though her sobs sounded suspiciously like stifled laughter at this point.

"I don\'t think it\'s poison, Lord Clyde," Harvey interjected, his voice tinged with uncertainty. "But I will run a test just to be on the safe side. Everyone else, out of the room!"

As the room emptied, leaving only Clyde, Bedict, and Harvey, Clyde turned his atttion to Vyan\'s loyal servant.

"Bedict, spill the tea. Did you or did you not swap out the chamomile for ceylon?"

Bedict\'s eyes wided in shock, th he quickly composed himself. "Yes, Lord Clyde. I did as you asked. Master Vyan has be sipping ceylon tea while thinking it\'s chamomile all this time."

Clyde sighed, shaking his head in disbelief. "And to think he has be praising my father\'s gift all along. If only he knew."

"It\'s alright, Lord Clyde. You had good inttions," Bedict reassured, patting Clyde\'s shoulder sympathetically.

"But now he is laid up in bed, suffering," Clyde lamted. "I just can\'t fathom what\'s afflicting him if not poison."

Harvey scratched his head, perplexed. "It\'s a real head-scratcher. His condition is not responding to treatmt like it should."

"Perhaps my dear old dad got creative with his methods?" Clyde suggested, a hint of bitterness creeping into his tone.

"Wait," Harvey exclaimed, his eyes widing dramatically, "until now, I have be as blind as a bat since I assumed that Lord Magnus poisoned him. What if it is something simple?" he deduced, a light bulb seemingly illuminating above his head.

"What do you mean?" Clyde\'s confusion deeped, his brow furrowing in bewildermt.

"Let me examine his symptoms again," Harvey said, diving back into his examination of Vyan\'s prone form with molecular magic. "He did mtion his throat was bothering him, right?"

"Yes," Clyde confirmed, his curiosity piqued. "But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Ah-ha!" Bedict exclaimed, his eyes widing in sudd understanding. "It all makes sse now! How did I miss this?"

"Don\'t worry anymore. He will be back to his old self in no time with the right treatmt now," Harvey assured.

"Finally, some good news," Clyde muttered, a mixture of frustration and relief coloring his voice. "But seriously, could someone please clue me in on what the heck is going on?"

Harvey let out an exasperated huff before launching into an explanation of Vyan\'s ailmt.

A sinister smirk crept onto Clyde\'s face as he listed.

"Well," Clyde chuckled, a devious glint in his eye. "Ev though it\'s not my dear old man\'s fault this time, I will take full advantage of this gold opportunity to give him a taste of his own medicine. Time to rain down curses upon him."