Two weeks.

Ophelia couldn’t believe those words.

After being kidnapped by Mahanas, she had not opened her eyes once until today.

And yet two weeks had passed.

In any case, if that much time had elapsed, it made sense why her body was in such poor condition. Mahanas would not have taken good care of her while she was unconscious.

Though it was confusing that she had been unconscious for two weeks, she decided to let it go for now. Perhaps she simply had no memory of it, and there were more important matters at hand.

During those two weeks, a rebellion had broken out in the neighboring country of Egelbamot. Rumors spread that the second prince had killed the emperor and crown prince, and declared himself emperor.

For Ophelia, this was hard to believe. She had dealt with Netepel personally. Ophelia remembered the man’s head being completely crushed.

But there were many who claimed to have seen Netepel alive.

Whether someone was impersonating him, or if the corpse had truly come back to life and was walking around.

Either way, it didn’t matter. The course of action was the same. Netepel and his group were of no use to her. Especially now that she had made the first move.

Still, it was hard to believe that corpses were walking around, but then again, hadn’t she and Idren traveled back in time? It didn’t seem impossible for the dead to come back to life.

Either way, this was an issue she wanted to discuss with Idren, so Ophelia asked the knight again.

“So when is His Majesty expected to arrive…?”

But Hazel hesitated to answer. Ophelia couldn’t understand why the knight who had clearly said Idren was nearby was now hesitating.

“Why don’t you answer?”

When asked again, the knight who had been hesitating for a while finally spoke. The truth was,

“His Majesty has disappeared.”

After saying that, Hazel observed the queen’s complexion. The woman’s face was still pale. There was not a hint of color, and her bones were protruding. To the point where it seemed fortunate the king couldn’t see her right now.

If he saw his wife, whom he had rushed to find putting everything else aside, in such a sickly state, his temperament would surely be severely twisted.

Still, it was fortunate that the queen did not collapse. Since those of noble birth sometimes fainted upon hearing shocking news, Hazel had been worried she might lose consciousness.

However, the woman did not lose consciousness. Instead, she blinked her blue eyes a few times and asked.

“Was he kidnapped?”

Though her voice trembled slightly, considering how bewildering the premise was, it was a remarkably calm question. Hazel answered.

“We’re not certain.”

What the knight who went to deliver news to the king saw was a scene of the entire royal knight order collapsed in an alley.

They were all alive, having been knocked unconscious by physical force. And the marks left on their bodies were…

“It seems His Majesty took action himself.”

Even if trained by the same master, each warrior had their own way of using their body. It was because their personal habits were incorporated.

And the royal knights all knew each other’s methods of using their bodies. This included the king’s as well.

After explaining this fact, the queen furrowed her brow.

“So you mean His Majesty personally subdued his own knights and disappeared?”

“Given the circumstances, that appears to be the case.”

“But why…?”

“I also found that questionable, so I interrogated the knights, but not a single one of them had any memory of what happened after entering the alley.”

All the knights, as if in collusion, had no memory of just that moment.

It was a situation where one couldn’t even suspect they had planned it among themselves beforehand. First of all, the knights were all unconscious when discovered, and it was the king himself who had decided to bring them to that alley in the first place.

The queen sighed and rubbed her face. She asked.

“What should be done in this situation?”

Ophelia was truly confused. Starting with being kidnapped.

But now Idren, the person she trusted and relied on most, was gone. Feeling anxious, Ophelia asked the knight.

“His Majesty isn’t in danger, is he?”

Given Idren’s personality, he wouldn’t leave her alone in this situation. Wasn’t he the type of man who would eliminate even unavoidable circumstances?

“For now, we’ve sent people out to search for traces of him.”

Then Hazel said,

“Your Majesty should return to the capital for now. Though it may be hard to believe after you were attacked in the royal palace, at the moment, that is the safest place.”

Hazel’s words made sense. The security that had been breached was said to have been reorganized by Idren, and whoever had instigated Mahanas to kidnap her would not likely attempt the same method again.

There was just one thing weighing on her mind.

“But we still don’t know where His Majesty has gone.”

However, Hazel was adamant.

“Forgive my presumption, but even if His Majesty were present, in this situation he would have ordered us to escort Your Majesty to the capital.”

She added,

“I will leave knights behind to investigate where His Majesty may have gone. So please, I hope you will follow my words.”

Her words, trying not to seem too forceful, were tinged with earnestness. Ophelia knew rationally that she should agree with her words.

But she didn’t want to move without knowing where Idren had gone. Leaning back against the headboard, she looked up at the ceiling.

Wracking her aching head, Ophelia recalled one fact.

“What happened to Mahanas?”

She seemed to remember raising her hand a bit too strongly in her inability to control her emotions, but couldn’t recall the exact situation.

“…Prince Leden has passed away.”

“Ah.”

Though she hadn’t intended to kill him, it was a bit surprising that it had turned out that way.

“What did His Majesty say about how to handle him?”

“He said he would cut off his head and send it to Leden.”

For a man who had been disappointed in her previous life, saying Mahanas was her share, to say such a thing, he must have been quite angry.

Of all days, for such an incident to occur on the day he had prepared something, it was understandable for him to be very upset.

Suddenly, a question occurred to her.

“Was the head… intact enough to be sent to Leden?”

She seemed to remember raising her hand a bit roughly, and if it was badly damaged, it might interfere with Idren’s plans.

Hazel, for some reason, cleared his throat once before answering.

“The shape of the head isn’t important for the method, so it shouldn’t matter.”

“I see…”

Dares would surely be shocked upon receiving Mahanas’s head, but that wasn’t her concern. Swallowing up Leden was no big deal.

As she carefully retraced the events of that time, Ophelia recalled one more fact.

“There was a servant by Mahanas’s side. What happened to that servant?”

“He was captured and detained. We had planned for His Majesty to interrogate him when he arrived, but…”

The knight trailed off, but Ophelia knew what would have followed.

Idren, who was supposed to interrogate the servant, had disappeared.

Though the reason was still unknown, they couldn’t just sit idle when there was work to be done.

Adjusting the clothes the knight had draped over her shoulders, Ophelia said,

“Bring that servant here.”

The servant soon dragged into the room said his name was Shild. Originally from the Leden royal palace, he had joined her wedding procession to come to Aglante, but he didn’t seem particularly familiar.

Ophelia stared silently at the man brought before her, who kept his gaze fixed on the floor.

“How does His Majesty usually conduct interrogations?”

She had her own methods, but they weren’t particularly suitable to show Hazel, who knew her only as a princess raised in the palace. Gradually removing the right hand wasn’t exactly a method for someone conducting torture for the first time.

Fortunately, Idren didn’t seem too different from her.

“He starts by cutting off the fingers of the left hand.”

Hearing the knight’s answer, Ophelia thought to herself. They say couples grow alike. Though there were some unique aspects, it seemed their years of married life hadn’t been entirely in vain.

As Ophelia briefly pondered this common saying, Hazel spoke.

“I’m worried the interrogation process may be too harsh and harm your health. If it’s alright with you, I could separately…”

“No, it’s fine.”

She wasn’t particularly squeamish, and if she thought of it as work, she could endure to some extent. After all, who in this world gets to only do things they enjoy?

It was then that the trembling servant prostrated himself flat on the ground.

“I-I’ll tell you everything!”

So please, please, no torture…!

Ophelia looked with bewilderment at the servant who had burst into tears and prostrated himself without a single hair being touched. She muttered to herself without realizing it.

“How did he end up with someone like this…”

Rahelica walked on trembling legs towards the mountain range bordering Tesendot. A few steps ahead of her, Talia’s husband, Reshit Amaren, was walking. He was the only person left from their original group of four, besides herself.

A few days ago, they had been caught by the army sent by Netepel Runtalis. It happened just as they were on the verge of reaching Tesendot.

There were only two horses available for immediate use, but there were four people. At that moment, Talia had ordered.

“Serven and I will stay here. You go to Tesendot with Reshit.”

It was nonsense. Rahelica naturally refused.

“Don’t be ridiculous! You should go to Tesendot with Count Amaren!”

But Talia was adamant.

“Listen to me! Even if I’m captured, I won’t be killed right away, but do you think the same applies to you?”

So Rahelica turned to Reshit, Talia’s husband. Talia didn’t know, but Reshit had feelings for his wife. So naturally, he would prioritize Talia’s safety over hers.

But Reshit took Talia’s side.

“…My wife is right. As she is the princess consort of Tesendot, they will keep her as a hostage considering international relations. But as for the First Princess…”

Talia cut off her husband’s words before he could finish.

“See, even he understands.”

“Talia!”

But Talia casually excluded her from the conversation.

“Reshit Amaren, since you’ve agreed with your own mouth, I trust you’ll cooperate accordingly.”

“…As if I have a choice.”

Talia mocked her husband with her characteristic sneer before turning her back. That was the last image Rahelica saw of her sister. Because immediately after, Reshit Amaren had thrown her over his shoulder and put her on the horse.

“Stop whining and spur the horse.”

Though she followed the man’s harsh words in her confusion, Rahelica still couldn’t agree with this arrangement.

Even if Talia, with her personality of disliking being indebted, could act this way, Reshit Amaren shouldn’t have gone along with those words. What was the point of her placing that man by Talia’s side? This rendered it all useless.

Gritting her teeth, Rahelica finally came to a stop.

“Reshit Amaren, shouldn’t you have saved your wife?”