216 — Oblivion (10)

“…Then kill me. But if I approached because the Count ordered me to investigate, wouldn’t it be enough to quietly report it? Do you really think I would make a foolish move like giving myself a chance to escape while my life is being threatened right now? Baron, do I look that stupid to you?”

Siena looked directly into the Baron’s eyes.

“Who, who are you?”

“I’m just an ordinary maid. An ordinary maid who approached you knowing it was a death sentence.”

“Ordinary…you say?”

The Baron shook his head as if not understanding such nonsense. Siena shrugged and spoke her conclusion.

“I’ll help you.”

“What?”

“It’s standard for three maids to clean the office. But I can easily deceive the other two. What is it you’re looking for? It’s something only I can do, more than you, Baron.”

“It’s the Count’s seal and the Lord’s stamp. The seal proves that the Count has issued the order, and documents stamped with the seal signify the Count’s approval. The plan was to use that to distribute relief supplies. For some reason, now is the opportunity as we’re starting the hunting trip.”

“I see. Then, I’ll find those two items for you.”

As expected, there was nothing she could do alone.

Who would believe her if she stole the seal and stamp? If she tried to command soldiers with the seal, she would be caught immediately.

But the Baron was different.

He was a noble.

If the Baron held the Count’s seal and documents and issued orders, the soldiers would have no choice but to obey.

“But, as you said, this is a matter of death if we’re caught. No, it’s inevitable that we will be caught. So agreeing to this is the same as choosing death. Will you still do it?”

This action could save thousands of lives. The Baron took this step because of that, but he wasn’t sure what Siena thought, so he asked.

“It doesn’t matter. But if I’m caught again… I have one wish. Can you grant it?”

“What is it?”

“I want to escape to a city in the central Empire. Do you know of Greek City?”

“Hmmm, I think I’ve heard of it.”

“Actually, I was born and raised there. If I could return to my hometown just once before I die… That would be enough for me. Will you help me leave the manor? After that, I don’t care if I’m caught!”

Servants working at the manor couldn’t leave the estate without the Lord’s permission.

But with the Baron’s help and the documents, it would be possible. With that seal.

“Even though it’s obvious that you’ll eventually be caught by the pursuit team, your only wish is to visit your hometown?”

“Isn’t your wish to help the people, even if it costs your life, Baron?”

“That’s right.”

“I too just want to fulfill that wish, even if it means dying.”

The Baron and Siena stared at each other for a long time. The Baron, having made up his mind, finally nodded.

“All I can do is help you escape. Naturally, you’ll be caught soon.”

“Yes. I don’t mind.”

“How can I trust you?”

“How can I trust you, Baron?”

“That…”

“Aren’t we in the same boat? If you can’t kill me right here, right now.”

At those words, Baron Dink looked at Siena’s neck again, then looked at his own hands.

“The office door’s lock was very intricate. With such large doors, it’s only natural. So, it would be impossible to proceed without your help. That means, I have no choice but to gamble. If I survive tonight, then I suppose I can trust you.”

“That’s the same for me. If I’m not dragged off somewhere tonight, that means our intentions align, doesn’t it? Then, tomorrow, I’ll head to the office immediately.”

“Are we gambling with each other?”

“……”

Siena didn’t respond to the Baron’s words.

Then, suddenly, he searched through his coat and handed a key to Siena.

“I couldn’t open the office door’s lock, but this is the key to the office desk drawer that I got beforehand. The drawer is different from the massive doors. You should be able to open it with this.”

“I understand.”

Siena took the key and nodded.

The Baron thought Siena was a very strange woman. Prioritizing going back to her hometown over her life.

Isn’t that strange?

An extraordinary yet strange woman.

In fact, Siena had been extraordinary since she was young.

Ever since the day when she quietly solved the problem when Greek was wrongly accused of breaking the pottery.

The head servants, the head maids, and even the barons’ children. And beyond that, even the nobles.

For Greek, she always came up with various schemes. Of course, she had never schemed for her own benefit. Only when Greek was in a bad situation.

And those schemes always succeeded.

Of course, that night.

The event of Siena being captured didn’t occur. And she voluntarily offered to clean the office.

“When will I ever clean such a large office? Every time I come in, I sigh.”

“Yeah.”

“The Lord is going for inspections again today?”

“Yeah, they said he’ll be doing it all week.”

The other two maids, excluding Siena, began dusting while whispering to each other.

“Hey, Lira, Laura.”

“Yeah?”

Siena approached those two.

“You can take a break. There’s not much to clean anyway. I can do it on my own.”

Cleaning the office as a team of three also meant they had to watch each other to ensure nothing was tampered with.

“What? No way. Something bad could happen.”

Naturally, Lira and Laura waved their hands, wondering what she was saying. If they got caught, it wouldn’t just end with a beating.

“I…”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve had no connections since I came here…so I prepared something to ask you to watch out for me. It’s a small thing, but…”

Siena handed a bundle of money to Lira and Laura. It was military funds she had gotten from Baron Dink.

Then, Lira and Laura smiled and spoke.

“What’s this?”

“Please, let me join that gathering!”

“Oh my, I thought you were so stiff…”

“Would you like to sit there and rest? I’ll do all the cleaning!”

“Really?”

“Yeah! That sofa over there looks so soft, doesn’t it?”

“Well, it does look comfy.”

Siena lured the two maids to the sofa, where the other side of the desk couldn’t be seen.

The maids took the bundle of money and, smiling, sat down on the sofa.

“We can’t let you join just like this. But we’ll keep an eye on you in the future.”

“Th-thank you.”

“We’ll see how it goes. We’ll see.”

“Rest while you can! I’ll clean quickly!”

Siena bowed very politely. Lira and Laura, looking pleased, started chatting on the sofa.

Seeing this as her moment, Siena pretended to wipe the desk and turned around. She took the drawer key the Baron had given her from her pocket.

“Cough cough.”

“Try to hold back your cough. Spitting in the Lord’s office is something you’ll get in huge trouble for.”

“Okay! I’ve covered my mouth! Don’t worry, I’m cleaning the floor now.”

“Yeah. Oh, and about yesterday, that person did something funny.”

“Really?”

Fortunately, Lira and Laura were so absorbed in their gossip that they barely paid attention to Siena. She exchanged her cough with the sound of the drawer opening and began rummaging inside.

And inside, she found something that looked like a seal.

‘Is this it?’

Inside, there was also something that looked like a stamp. It clearly seemed to be the seal the Baron mentioned.

She hid it on her person and calmly wiped her forehead as she stood up from the desk.

In front of Lira and Laura, she moved the mop busily and was soon able to finish cleaning without issue.

As a result, the Baron successfully ran to the storage. Using the seal, he moved the remaining defense troops without heading to the hunting grounds. He showed the forged documents to the soldiers.

“There’s no time to send people to verify! Because of the intelligence about the inspector arriving tomorrow, the order was to move the relief supplies urgently this morning. Are you hesitating, wanting to lose your head!”

“N-no, Baron!”

At the threat, the soldiers immediately lay down flat. Since the seal represented the Lord, the storage door was opened, and relief supplies were delivered throughout the city.

“Can you see it?”

“Yes.”

“The people will gather and start praising. Once that happens, we won’t be able to take away what we gave them. We can’t let them know that we hid supplies in the storage instead of distributing them.”

“That’s a relief.”

“It’s all thanks to you. Truly, I am grateful. Now, I will keep my promise. I’ve arranged for a carriage. If the pursuit team comes after you, the coachman will probably stop the carriage. From that point on, you’ll have to run on your own, but you have plenty of time before the Lord returns from the hunt, so you’ll have a good head start! The knights will chase, so you’ll be caught eventually, but…”

“I’m just grateful to be able to leave the city. From now on, you should worry about yourself, not me.”

“I’ve followed my family’s teachings, so I’m satisfied. That’s all that matters to me.”

Baron Dink said this as he walked forward. Thanks to the forged documents, Siena passed through the gate safely and was able to head toward Greek City.

Having achieved their mutual goals, Baron Dink was no longer in her thoughts. They had used each other. It was a very clean relationship.

After all, both of them were destined to die.

Worrying about each other held no meaning.

As she looked at the distant city of Lutyian, Siena bit her lip.

‘If oppa is still being oppressed by the Lord of Dedran… No, even if not, I cannot bring trouble to him…! I mustn’t reveal myself. Before I get caught, just once. One last time. I want to see oppa… Before I am caught by Count Lutyian and endure all the torment… I will die. Whether by drowning, or by biting my tongue, I will die. I must never bring trouble to oppa!’

She thought she would never meet him again in her lifetime.

But perhaps they could meet again. Fulfilling his ideals, confirming his safety, and then dying.

That was far more of a blessing for Siena than living another day.

And so, Siena fled.

As Baron Dink had said, the pursuit team soon followed.

By the time Siena escaped from the carriage, she was already in the central southern region of the Empire.

The place where she landed after recklessly jumping off the moving carriage was Greek Mountain.

Realizing this, Siena became even more desperate.

“Gasp. Gasp.”

But after running all day, her stamina began to run out, and as she wandered through the forest, she missed her step and fell off the cliff.

“Aaah!”

Siena’s body rolled and tumbled. She crashed into a large rock at the edge of the cliff.

Boom-!

It was Siena’s head that collided with the rock, and she soon collapsed, losing consciousness.