Bellige’s memories not being erased and the chilling question from the man were enough to freeze Lena’s body cold.

“My, my throat hurts…”

It was clear to anyone that she was feigning a voice that seemed forcibly strained. Bellige’s eyebrows twitched as he approached her even closer.

“That voice didn’t seem like yours.”

Lena swallowed dry saliva unconsciously as the man, closing the distance between them, extended his hand towards her face. Her hands were suddenly damp with sweat.

‘What should I do?’

In the midst of her confusion, Bellige, who had come closer, reached out for Lena’s face.

“Your Excellency!”

A desperate voice calling for the duke was heard, and Lawrence, approaching urgently, appeared. The duke withdrew his hand, which was reaching out to Lena, and spoke.

“What’s going on?”

As Lawrence, who briefly glanced at Lena, approached, he whispered something to Bellige’s ear.

“Go immediately.”

Reacting to Lawrence’s words, Bellige, who had momentarily stiffened, turned on his heel. Watching the duke move away from her, Lena wiped her chest.

“His memory wasn’t erased. What on earth…”

Could it be that the same person couldn’t be affected by magic twice?

Lena bit her nails anxiously.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve never used memory erasing magic repeatedly on the same person.’

She hadn’t considered that magic might not work because she had never used memory erasing magic repeatedly on the same person.

“I guess it’s better to check it out.”

Since the incident with the Hyperion Tree, magic hadn’t been working as intended, causing frustration.

“There was a national library in Festivus that even commoners could use, right?”

Festivus, being a city open to magicians, had easy access to magical literature. That’s why she planned to go to the library as soon as she finished her work.

With that thought in mind, Lena hurriedly completed her tasks to go to the library as soon as possible.

“Is this it?”

“Yes, I found it on the carriage leaving for Balkan today.”

Following Lawrence into an empty shop, an old man looked at the duke with fearful eyes. The old man was the owner of the pawnshop where Lena had sold the pendant.

“Why, why are you like this? What did I do wrong…?”

The old man asked cautiously in a trembling voice. He couldn’t comprehend the current situation.

He had come to the capital only to auction the items he had bought as usual.

“Where did you get this bracelet?”

Bellige pushed the bracelet he had bought at the auction towards the old man.

“This, this is…”

Wearing his glasses, the duke sighed as he examined the bracelet given by the duke.

‘As expected, it was a stolen item!’

The man, who was exuding an unusual air, handed over the bracelet, an item he had put up for auction this time. And he vividly remembered the day he had bought this bracelet.
“Somehow, even with shabby attire, they managed to present quite valuable items.”

It seemed that the unpleasant premonition from back then wasn’t wrong. The old man spoke, swallowing his saliva.

“Uh, a certain lady came to sell her mother’s heirloom! I truly didn’t know it was stolen!”

“A lady…?”

“Yes! She was wearing a robe, so I couldn’t see her clearly, but she seemed like a young lady who had taken off her hat!”

Then Lawrence, who had been quietly listening, asked, “Any distinctive features?”

“Well, she was wearing the robe so tightly that… Oh! Gray hair! It was definitely gray hair!”

Thump [Dash].

In an instant, Bellige’s heart felt like it was plummeting into the ground. He barely opened his dry lips, wondering if he misheard.

“Gray hair?”

“Yes! It’s a hair color rarely seen in Balkan, so I remember it clearly!”

As soon as they heard the old man’s words, the atmosphere plunged into extreme coldness, except perhaps for the pawnshop owner. Everyone, except him, might be thinking the same thing: that the one who sold the bracelet was Lena herself.

“…”

There was a prolonged silence. When the old man, who seemed to be wondering if he had made a mistake, swallowed his saliva, Lawrence spoke.

“The injured part.”

“…Yes?”

“…Did that lady have any injuries?”

“Yes? Oh, yes… She seemed healthy, but…”

“All right, she seemed healthy…”

Whether the strange look in the man’s eyes as he spoke was indeed a misconception remained uncertain. As Bellige suddenly asked about the well-being of the woman, the old man looked at him oddly.

“Philip. Inform Skotos to stop the search immediately.”

“Your Excellency…”

“We no longer search for Lena.”

They couldn’t say anything to the duke. He knew all too well with what feelings he had been searching for Lena.

Lawrence looked at the duke with a worried expression. The duke had spent several days and nights searching for his fiancée, who might have died or fled. But now, it turned out that she hadn’t died or been injured; she had escaped. The sense of loss and betrayal he felt must be unimaginable.

“Your Excellency, there must be some circumstances…”

However, before Lawrence could finish his words, Bellige got up from his seat.