Before she knew it, his gaze was fixated on her reddened backhand.

“Why is your hand like this?”

It was the area where the stick thrown by the chased man had struck.

Knowing that Klaus would surely get angry if he found out that she had followed the man who came from the school grounds, Roselia, avoiding his gaze, nonchalantly replied.

“It’s just a slight bump.”

“Is this a slight bump? Did you, by any chance, go to the construction site?”

“…
Recognizing the ambiguous affirmation, Klaus released her wrist and roughly swept his bangs up.

“Ha… Antonio, please don’t do unnecessary things.”

“It’s not unnecessary…”

In response to Roselia’s rebuttal, Klaus coldly glared at her as if warning.

“I won’t listen to any more stories about the construction site. Your hand will be taken care of properly by the housekeeper, so make sure to get it treated.”

“…”

With a heart burning in frustration, Roselia glared at Klaus, feeling stifled.

It was frustrating because she wasn’t doing it for her own sake. Even if she did it for his sake, he never seemed to understand her words, making her feel more frustrated.

At this rate, Klaus alone would bear the stigma of the Imperial Family, just like in the original work.

Frustrated, Roselia glared at Klaus for a while, then turned and left the office.

Klaus, who returned to his desk and seemed to be checking documents, looked up at the door when Antonio left.

Seeing the wound on Antonio’s backhand, an odd sense of anger welled up unexpectedly.

Even if Antonio’s words were true, he didn’t want to involve him any further.

After seeing the wound on his backhand, that feeling became clearer.

He had warned him not to intervene on his behalf, but seeing Antonio storming out like that, Klaus felt frustrated.

Unable to focus on the documents, Klaus slowly rose from his seat and walked towards the window.

A deep sigh escaped from Klaus’s lips, who nervously swept his bangs to the side.

As the sun began to set, Roselia, hidden among construction materials on the school site, sharpened her eyes sharply.

In the end, driven by frustration, she had infiltrated the school site alone.

If Klaus didn’t believe her, she planned to find convincing evidence to show him.

With that in mind, Roselia, holding her breath, surveyed her surroundings.

That guy would surely show up again.

The culprit had to reappear at the scene.

Moreover, considering that there was an item hidden on the school site and the anxiety it caused her yesterday, he would undoubtedly come back to check.

After crouching like a cat for a while, she finally heard a strange noise.

A black shadow, more vigilant than yesterday, roamed the surroundings and entered the construction site.

Not missing that sight and quietly confirming it, Roselia followed him, stepping on his heels with her footsteps silenced.

Fortunately, perhaps due to the darkness around, the man didn’t easily notice her.

And soon, the man arrived at a certain point and began to dig the ground.

It was an overlooked place, as the construction site had already been extensively excavated.

The man, having dug the ground, confirmed the safety of the item and filled his pouch with the additional quantity he brought today before covering the soil again.
Having hidden and observed the scene until the end, she waited for the man to rise and leave the construction site.

Soon after the man’s figure disappeared, Roselia cautiously stood up and approached the spot where the man had dug.

Using a nearby shovel to dig into the ground, Roselia confirmed several pouches hidden beneath the soil. Opening one of the pouches and checking its contents, Roselia’s shoulders stiffened in surprise.

Belladonna… Indeed, it was belladonna.

As Roselia examined several pieces of belladonna, her gaze suddenly fell on a wooden pillar that came into view from the front of the excavated spot. The pillar had some small engravings on it, resembling a mark that could indicate the location.

While scrutinizing the pattern, a loud noise suddenly reached her ears.

Whoosh! Clatter, clatter!

Perplexed, Roselia raised her head in that instant.

Giant pillars, set up as a basic framework, were collapsing.

Looking towards the exit in panic, when she thought the man had disappeared, she saw him looking at this place.

Damn it, he knew about the belladonna, and it was evident he was trying to conceal the truth.

Just as she had such thoughts, the pillars had already collapsed.

With her eyes tightly closed, Roselia covered her head.

And at that moment, something solid embraced her and struck her.

Thud! Crash!

Amidst the tremendous noise, Roselia, who had collapsed, couldn’t regain her composure.

And when the noise subsided, Roselia, puzzled by the fact that she didn’t feel as much pain as expected, opened her eyes.

Only then did she realize she was being held in someone’s arms.

An astonished Roselia turned her head in bewilderment.

Underneath her, Klaus, who was embracing her protectively, was breathing heavily.

“Lord…?”

Klaus, with his temples twitching, warned her while holding her tightly.

“Don’t move, Antonio.”

Due to the pillars collapsing and interlocking, there was barely enough space for two people to lie down. If those pillars collapsed further, the situation could become even more dangerous.

Although she understood the situation intellectually, her tightly intertwined body made it difficult to think properly.

Because of entangled legs and a chest in contact, her own heartbeat seemed to echo in her ears.

Moreover, Klaus’s coarse breath was pouring directly onto her forehead.

Trying to avoid getting caught with a reddened face, Roselia made an effort to turn her head.

However, she unintentionally felt a moist sensation in the hand that was wrapped around his back.

With only the light seeping through the pillars, it was hard to distinguish the liquid she touched. But when a pungent odor reached her nose, Roselia easily identified the nature of the liquid.

“Blood…?”