A rabbit?

The moment Estella saw those unnaturally bright yellow eyes, she thought of the Long-Eared Rabbit. But there was no way a monster—especially one that lived near the Valley of Death—could be here. There was absolutely no possibility it had made it into the manor, bypassing its ironclad security.

And yet, for some reason, Estella felt a strange certainty that it was the same creature she had seen back then.

“Is there something over there?”

Luka, nestled in Estella’s arms, turned his head to look in the direction she was staring. His eyes widened, but after peering several times, he turned back toward Estella.

“I don’t see anything.”

“It’s nothing. Luka, stay here for a bit. Stay close to Mother—no, to Father.”

Estella stroked Luka’s round head. She felt a little sorry toward his stepmother, but if anything dangerous happened, it would be safer for Luka to stay near his father.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“I think I need to go meet someone.”

Luka wanted to follow her, but he had a feeling his sister would say no, so he held back and nodded. He wanted to be a good little brother who listened well to Sis.

Estella found Luka incredibly dear—so perceptive for his age, never throwing tantrums, and smart on top of that.

“Come on. Let’s go to Father.”

She gently took Luka’s hand and walked toward where the Marquis was standing, deep in conversation with his vassals. Though her steps kept quickening in urgency, Luka kept up with his short legs without falling behind.

“Father.”

“What is it, Estella?”

Cassian, standing with his vassals, glanced at Luka holding tightly to Estella’s hand. He had heard their relationship had improved recently, but it was his first time seeing the two side by side like this. For some reason, the sight warmed him, and the corners of his mouth lifted faintly.

Strangely enough, he hadn’t thought of Katrin lately, even though she had once occupied such a large part of his life. It wasn’t just because he had learned she wasn’t his biological child—he felt strangely indifferent, enough to make even himself feel cold-hearted.

“Father, could you watch Luka for a moment?”

Cassian’s eyebrows shot up like a gull’s wings at her request, as she gently held Luka’s arm out in offering. It was the first time in his life anyone had asked him to babysit.

“What?”

Cassian thought he had misheard. Luka had both Leonora and maids in the hall—why did she need to ask him?

“It’ll just be for a moment. Luka, tell Father all about your medal. I’m sure he’ll love it. Right, Father?”

Sensing his confusion, Estella didn’t give him the chance to refuse. She handed Luka off to him and hurried away.

Caught off guard, Cassian looked down at Luka, who stood silently, still wearing the medal Cassian had placed around his neck. He asked,

“You said you had something to tell me about the medal?”

Luka nodded nervously, then launched into a cheerful explanation.

“This medal, you see…”

The shy, hesitant boy from moments earlier vanished. Now, he spoke with such confidence he could’ve outsold a merchant prince. Not only Cassian, but even the nearby vassals found themselves smiling and focusing on his words.

“Did I imagine it?”

Estella pulled back each curtain on the balcony, searching for the owner of those yellow eyes—but the creature was nowhere to be seen. Ria, who had been standing with Dolan’s group, quickly approached her and asked,

“Miss, did you lose something?”

Ria scanned the floor as she asked, though she had no idea what Estella was looking for. Her heart dropped at the thought that perhaps it was a valuable gem. But then she remembered Estella wasn’t even wearing a dress today and felt relieved. Even without a fancy gown or expensive jewelry, Estella sparkled just by existing.

A surge of pride for her mistress made Ria smile unconsciously.

“It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

Estella waved it off, not wanting to worry Ria. She was sure she had seen it, yet no matter how she searched, she found no trace of it.

Well, it shouldn’t be here anyway.

Just as she was about to give up—

—Yoon Seo-yi.

The voice came from somewhere. Estella whipped her head around and frantically scanned the area for the source. Though the hall was filled with music and chatter, the voice had come through as clearly as if it were recorded and played right into her ears.

“Where are you? Who are you?”

“Miss, what’s wrong?”

Seeing Estella muttering while staring into empty space, Ria asked with a worried expression.

But Estella was too stunned to answer. That voice in her head—

Yoon Seo-yi!

It was someone who could see the soul inside her. Goosebumps raced over her skin. Estella felt both the urge to confront the being and the instinct to run from it.

She headed back onto the balcony and looked around. Then, on the far end of the opposite balcony, she spotted a black shadow. It had appeared so quickly that she thought she might be imagining it—but no, it was real.

“What… is that?”

Estella narrowed her eyes. What she had taken for a shadow was actually someone in a black robe. Without hesitation, the figure stepped into the banquet hall. And just like that, the robe fell to the floor, empty.

An inexplicable dread crawled up Estella’s spine and spread through her body. She didn’t hesitate. She rushed back inside the hall and headed straight for the balcony where the figure had entered.

“Miss, what’s going on?!”

Ria’s voice called out behind her, but Estella didn’t look back. She picked up her pace.

“Lady Estella, congratulations!”

“To become Vice-Commander of the Black Lily Knights—how incredible!”

Everywhere she went, vassals stepped forward to offer congratulations. They had been waiting for a chance to speak to her, but Estella, her mind filled only with the black-robed figure, brushed past them in a hurry.

Then she realized—where she was headed, where the figure had entered, was where the Squirrel Mercenary Band and Dolan’s family were gathered.

Why didn’t they notice anything?

The Squirrel Mercenaries were the most skilled fighters in Wintfall. There was no way a stranger entering from the balcony would go unnoticed. Especially with both Gerard and Airi, a mage, among them.

Something’s wrong.

Estella’s urgency grew.

Ciel, chatting with the Squirrels, spotted Estella approaching at a quick pace and widened his eyes. Her gaze had been icy toward him since yesterday and today, but she hadn’t driven him away—so even that was something.

As Estella pushed through the crowd, she grabbed a tray from a nearby table and suddenly broke into a run. Ciel narrowed his eyes at her desperate expression.

“Why are you in such a—”

“Duck!”

Before he could finish the question, Estella slammed her hand down on his shoulder, forcing him down, and used the tray in her other hand to shield the back of his head.

Thwip!

A small arrow flew from somewhere and struck the edge of the tray with a sharp thunk.

Clatterrrrr.

Only then did the Squirrel Mercenaries realize someone had tried to assassinate Ciel. They moved in unison—but something was wrong. Their limbs felt heavy. Breathing became difficult. Their heads were foggy, as if stuffed with mud.

“It’s magic,” Airi whispered tensely.

The magic had been cast specifically on the Squirrel Mercenaries—no one else in the hall seemed to notice the commotion. Everyone else was still smiling, chatting, laughing.

Vrrrrrrm!

Airi quickly formed a magic circle over her palm, but it fizzled out like smoke. Gerard, noticing something was wrong, failed a few times before finally breaking the spell. The mercenaries dashed in the direction the intruder had fled.

But even then, they felt as if they were pushing through an invisible wall. Their hearing was muffled. Their legs were slow. Their vision blurred. This was no ordinary mage.

The assassin leapt off the balcony at full speed—but Gerard’s magic circle had already entangled him like a net. Bruno arrived at the balcony just in time and, furious, grabbed the man by the collar—only for him to vanish in a burst of flame.

The arrow embedded in the tray vanished as well. Though it had struck with enough force to shake the tray, now there was only a small hole left, and the arrow itself was gone without a trace.

It had to have been a magical arrow.

“Are you okay?”

Estella looked up at Ciel, who was still crouched. Her expression was tense.

“…You saved me.”

Ciel said it with a look of awe, and Estella let out a long sigh, scanning the area again. Ciel grabbed her arm just as she turned to head toward the balcony.

“Take responsibility.”

“What?”

Estella’s eyes narrowed dangerously at the sudden demand. Was this the classic case of “I saved you, and now you want compensation”?

“If you hadn’t saved me just now, I’d be dead. Killed by one of Aslan’s mages.”

“So?”

“So, now that you’ve saved me, I belong to you. As you can see, I’m a pitiful, wretched man abandoned by my family. And yet you’d pretend not to know me?”

Ciel wasn’t about to waste this chance. He made full use of his tragic appeal. As he watched Estella’s eyes flicker in real time, his heart swelled with hope.

If I’d known this would happen, maybe I should’ve let myself get hurt a little, he thought absurdly.

“So don’t go.”

“But Ciel—”

“Please, Estella. I want to stay by your side.”

“Why?”

“Because you need me, and I need you. More than anything… because I like you. So much.”

Ciel’s voice trembled as he spoke, one word at a time, eyes locked on Estella.

Chapter 131

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