The magic stone was secretly purchased from the night market alley in Hoshi Square just before leaving the capital half a year ago.

Of course, there were many magical stones and such things in the treasure vault inside the mansion, but they were all kept under the butler’s strict supervision. Even as the owner of the mansion, if you wanted to take a magic stone, you had to write down its purpose and leave a record.

When I asked why they went to such lengths, they said it was because the Imperial Family had started cracking down on everything related to magic a few years ago.

Anyway, there was no good reason to leave a record of what I was taking on my escape disguised as a recuperation trip. Of course, the magic stones bought at the night market were, to put it bluntly, closer to counterfeits than genuine articles and were expensive to boot, but I thought they would be much better than having nothing.

“This binds the feet of people the caster wants when the properly set spell is recited.”

The explanation of the old woman selling magic stones with her hood pulled up to the top of her head was simple and clear. If you chant the spell, the magical power activates and can bind the feet of people within 10 yards of the magic stone?

The effect lasts at most 10 minutes, but in a crisis situation, 10 minutes is enough time to escape as much as you want, she explained, and I decided to purchase without hesitation.

So what was that spell again?

I remembered all of the old woman’s explanation, but strangely, I couldn’t remember the spell itself. It was a single short word, but what was it? It was clear in my memory until yesterday…

“…Count. Count?”

“Yes?”

“What are you thinking about so deeply? You didn’t even hear me calling.”

“Why did you call me?”

I didn’t even realize my name was being called as I was trying to recall the memory.

“We need a drop of the Count’s blood too.”

“Ah…”

So that’s why they put Valerie’s blood in two places. I obediently extended my arm to the approaching knight. It didn’t seem like resisting would work anyway.

“Ah.”

I remembered. The spell to activate the magic stone that the old woman taught me.

“Prolabor.”

“What did you say?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. Nothing at all.”

I don’t know what it means, but it’s probably just a meaningless string of sounds. Isn’t that how all spells are? Like bibbidi-bobbidi-boo.

Prolabor. Now that I remembered it, I felt a little more at ease. I just decided that if worse comes to worst, I’d activate the magic stone and escape from here with Hannah and Valerie. While I was cautiously looking around.

“Ouch.”

The knight’s blade lightly grazed the tip of my finger. I’m grateful he didn’t cut the back of my hand like a detective would.

“Uh…”

That’s when it happened.

The vial shook and tipped over to the side. Without anyone touching it.

“Just now…”

“An earthquake?”

“What?”

Looking closely, the table was shaking too. The fallen vial rolled across the table surface and fell to the floor, and the pocket watch Carl had set up also couldn’t withstand the vibration and fell forward.

“An earthquake?”

So suddenly? Out of nowhere? Of course, natural disasters don’t come with a warning, but this was too abrupt. Carl uncrossed his arms and moved quickly.

“I smell gunpowder.”

The vibrations were now starting to be felt underfoot. The knights, as if by agreement, quickly formed a circular formation with Carl in the center.

All I could do was hold the child in my arms as tightly as possible to prevent injury.

Fortunately or unfortunately, with the floor shaking and dust and sand falling from the ceiling, none of them paid attention to the vial on the floor.

One of the three potions is a brand new, unmixed one. I thought it might be useful someday if I kept it. As I was planning to secretly retrieve the vial while everyone’s attention was elsewhere,

Boom.

“Oh, mother!”

Just as a great impact hit the entire hut, a flash of light burst from behind the kitchen, followed by a tremendous roar.

Boom! Bang!

“It’s explosives! Take cover!”

The knight with the red medal shouted as he lunged towards Carl, seemingly trying to protect him.

His shout was soon drowned out by the sound of the explosion, and the room, which had been quiet enough to hear the ticking of the second hand just moments ago, turned into pandemonium.

The acrid smoke choked my breath. In the moment when everything before my eyes turned black, I quickly wrapped my whole body around the child’s face and body. It was an instinctive action, born from worry about inhaling the dust and explosive smoke.

Bang. Boom.

“Your Highness the Grand Duke!”

A shockwave incomparably larger than the previous two explosions was felt.

I couldn’t open my eyes due to the harsh explosive smoke. Every breath I took made me cough and sputter.

Someone seemed to be shouting something nearby, but perhaps because my eardrums had been shocked by the last explosion sound, it felt distantly muffled, as if speaking through a thick wall.

“…est.”

And another explosion.

This final impact didn’t stop at just assaulting the senses of sight, smell, and hearing. The ground beneath my feet, which had been merely shaking until now, suddenly gave way, and darkness enveloped my vision.

It seemed as if the floor had collapsed, unable to withstand the successive bombardments. I braced myself, waiting for the impact that was about to hit me.

“Celeste!”

At that moment, it felt like someone was pulling my shoulder, but I couldn’t tell if I was really being grabbed by someone or if I had hit my shoulder against falling debris.

Am I going to die like this?

In the fleeting moment of falling, a montage flashed before my eyes, and thoughts like “So this is how far the life of the villainess Celeste goes” brought terrible despair.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine how painful it would be to be crushed under a collapsing house. I just held my breath, curled up as much as I could, and squeezed my eyes shut. At the very least, the child shouldn’t get hurt…

With that thought, how much time passed?

I regained consciousness when the child’s cry sharply cut through the air.

“Ugh…”

Whether I opened or closed my eyes, all I could see was darkness, and my whole body felt pressed down somewhere.

I thought I might have injured my eyes from the impact of the explosion, but fortunately, that wasn’t the case. The reason it was dark in front of my eyes was because someone was lying on top of me.

The hot weight I felt on my chest was familiar yet strange.

“Are you alright? Are you conscious?”

“…Nngh.”

The one who had been lying on top of my body was none other than Carl.

“I’m asking if you’re alright? Count!”

“Ugh, yes… I think I’m fine. So please don’t shout.”

Every time you shout, my head rings. Muttering the last part to myself, I tried moving my fingers and toes. They’re fine. At least my limbs haven’t been blown off.

Wait, Valerie!

I hurriedly looked down at the child in my arms. The child, nestled between me and Carl, was crying in a startled and pitiful way, but seemed to be unharmed anywhere.

Phew, thank goodness.

Come to think of it, I think this man called me by my name ‘Celeste’ just now. Did I hear wrong?

“Your Highness the Grand Duke! Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Check if there are any other injured first.”

“Other than Aron suffering minor injuries, there are no other casualties.”

I could hear the footsteps of people running nearby, and as Carl slightly raised his body, my dark vision cleared. As I emerged from the darkness, I first faced Carl’s frowning face.

“Your Highness, blood…!”

“It’s nothing. There’s no problem with my movement. More importantly, I’d like the debris cleared first.”

So it must have been Carl who grabbed my shoulder just before the ceiling collapsed.

Carl seemed to have protected us from the falling debris by lying down while embracing me and the child together. As a result, blood was dripping from his shoulder, likely pressed and torn by the debris.

“Are you really… alright, Count.”

Carl’s face was too close. As the knights rushed in and began to clear the wooden boards piled on his back, he bit his lip and endured the pain.

“…I think you should take care of yourself first rather than me.”

I meant it sincerely. Even a three-year-old child would know that blocking explosives and wooden debris with one’s body is a reckless act. Even with a robust physique.

“If you’re not hurt, that’s fine.”

When the largest board was removed, a groan escaped from Carl. Who’s worrying about whom, really? His uniform, as he slowly rose with the support of the knights, was a mess of blood stains and ash.

“Clovis, take the child.”

“Yes, Your Highness the Grand Duke.”

The blood that flowed down his shoulder as he took the child from me and handed it to the knight fell directly onto my body. The hot drops of blood, carrying his body heat, seemed to tell me that this wasn’t a dream.

“Can you stand up?”

Carl kept looking at me with a worried face. It was hard to believe it was the same man who had suspected me as a murder suspect and looked at me as if I were shameless until just before the explosion.

“Slowly.”

Although it didn’t seem like I was injured anywhere, my arms and legs wouldn’t move. I was frustrated with my body that wouldn’t move as I wanted. Inevitably, I entrusted my body to Carl’s support and slowly got up from my seat.

“Even if you don’t seem hurt on the outside, you might have some internal injuries. It could be dangerous if you move rashly.”

“…You speak as if you’ve experienced this kind of thing before.”

“Well, I’ve encountered explosives countless times in battle.”

The child, who had been crying as if about to have a seizure, was gradually calming down in the arms of the man called Clovis. He was the tall knight who had been quite skillfully comforting the child until just now. The knight also looked more disheveled than before, but didn’t seem to be injured.