* * *
“L-Let go of me!”
“Hm? I thought the sedative worked well. How did you know there was a teleportation circle? Duchess?”
‘If the Marquis enjoyed you, then I figured I should get a taste too.’
The man grinned and licked Sylvian’s cheek with his tongue.
“Eek! Get away from me!”
Sylvian tried to kick him, but the man casually grabbed his ankle.
“Let go of me, you bastard!”
“Oof!”
Sylvian smashed his head into the man’s face as he leaned in.
Blood gushed from his nose.
The driver showed no reaction despite the commotion inside.
It was clear he was in on it.
“So you’re the one who kidnapped me.”
“Hahaha. Figured it out, huh?”
The man, wearing Timothy’s face, looked over the trembling Duchess with a dangerous glint in his eye.
Sylvian’s slender body was pinned beneath him, unable to move.
As he started to grind his hips down against Sylvian’s, the latter’s face went pale in an instant.
“Ever done it in a carriage before? I bet this is a first for you. It’s different. Fun. Want to try?”
‘There’s no way Zeroth the pervert hasn’t done this before!’
Sylvian shook his head furiously and squirmed.
Riiip!
“No! Stop! Let me go!”
This one wasn’t like Karl. He was just a lunatic.
As his clothes were torn away with ease, Sylvian twisted his body in panic.
He struggled to escape the man’s grasp, but the difference in strength was overwhelming.
“Ah, so you prefer it rough? Is that how you seduced the Marquis too?”
The man laughed as he licked his lips, eyes roving over Sylvian’s pale body.
He had used an artifact to appear younger and smaller, which only seemed to excite the man further.
He was still an adult underneath, after all.
The smooth chest and pink buds glistened as though begging to be touched.
“Ah! No!”
Sylvian cried out when the man’s tongue touched his chest.
His small frame trembled violently.
“No, stop! Ugh! Aaah!”
He wanted to headbutt him again, but there was no stopping the man from moving lower.
Sylvian pushed with all his might, arms shaking, but the man wouldn’t budge.
Pain radiated from his nipple where the man bit down.
“No! No more!”
He felt utterly pathetic.
Even after taking potions and exercising, his body was still so weak.
Frustration surged.
Click.
The man’s hand unbuckled his pants.
“Ze—Zeroth! Zeroth!!”
Holding his breath, Sylvian screamed the name as loud as he could.
‘Where the hell are you, you idiot?!’
BANG!
CRASH!
SCREECH!
The carriage jolted with a violent noise and came to a sudden stop.
BANG!
Before the man could react, the door burst open—and there they were.
Those vivid red eyes he had so desperately longed for.
“Found you.”
Hearing that voice, Sylvian broke down in tears.
Seeing Sylvian trembling, crying without saying a word, Zeroth clenched his teeth hard.
“You bastard!”
With a furious roar, the Duke swung his sword.
The man holding Sylvian leapt out through the opposite window, clutching a small figure in his arms.
“You’ve got some nerve, stealing what’s mine.”
“Nothing here belongs to you. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The man, wearing Timothy’s face, yanked hard on a handful of pink hair.
“Hhkk…”
‘Shit. Where the hell did I slip up?’
He thought the carriage was shaking because of the rough road—but in reality, the duke’s knights had caught up, and he hadn’t noticed while he was busy enjoying the duke’s consort.
“Hrk.”
As the blade pressed close to Sylvian’s neck, a thin sob escaped him.
Those sky-blue eyes, brimming with tears, couldn’t tear themselves away from Zeroth.
He was the one Sylvian had waited for so desperately.
“I didn’t realize the Duke was such a piece of trash.”
“…Kuh.”
Julian, watching the scene unfold, muttered without meaning to.
One of the knights, tense just moments before, had to stifle a laugh at his sarcastic tone.
The duke’s consort, already petite and young-looking, now seemed even younger.
“Shut up.”
Zeroth narrowed his eyes at Sylvian, whose trousers were undone.
He couldn’t drag this out.
Sylvian’s trembling in fear made the blade nick his skin, and blood trickled down.
The blood dripping from the kidnapper’s knife filled Zeroth with regret—and his grip tightened around his sword.
“If you let me go, I’ll release the hostage after a hundred paces.”
He had to follow the marquis’s orders, but he didn’t want to die. So he proposed a deal.
“To think you’re making that face—as if you’re the victim. Shall I add that to your list of crimes?”
Timothy’s mocking tone only made him more unbearable.
Not a single strand of Sylvian’s hair could be harmed.
Zeroth took a sharp breath and stepped forward.
With a single step, he closed half the distance.
On the second, he was already behind the kidnapper.
“Shit! Are you trying to kill me?!”
He had heard of the duke’s prowess, but he didn’t expect him to move so recklessly with a hostage in tow.
He panicked, trying to stab Sylvian and fling his body backward—
Clang!
“Sylvi, are you alright?”
Sylvian had squeezed his eyes shut, tears flowing, thinking he was going to die at the hands of some bastard—not even the duke himself.
But the gentle voice that reached him made him flinch.
‘Am I… dead?’
But the pain never came.
When he regained his senses, he was in a strong, familiar embrace.
He couldn’t bring himself to open his eyes.
…This is bad.
“Take him away like that. Keep him alive—barely.”
Zeroth’s voice came from above.
“Yes, sir!”
The knights, having witnessed the duke’s power, straightened their backs and responded in unison.
Before the kidnapper could run, the duke sliced off both arms that had held the consort.
“My lord, now we must go after the marquis.”
“The consort goes home.”
“But if he’s not present, the marquis won’t—”
Julian stopped mid-plan when he saw the duke’s eyes—utterly unhinged—and the trembling consort in his arms.
Click.
As Zeroth removed the earring from Sylvian’s ear, the tangled mess of soft pink hair shimmered and turned into bright blonde.
He had grown slightly taller, his body slim and delicate.
Julian silently went, Oh…—impressed.
Compared to the baby-faced cuteness from before, this was far more attractive.
“Julian.”
“Yes.”
“You’re going to disguise yourself.”
…What?
“Hrk—”
The knights had to suppress their laughter again when the duke threw the artifact at the squad leader.
The thought of their giant commander turning into the tiny, cute figure from earlier was enough to make them choke.
“Anyone who laughed just now—double training in the next drill.”
“Cut the chatter and get ready.”
Zeroth snapped coldly at Julian but couldn’t bring himself to let go of Sylvian.
The fear of losing him again made his grip around the boy tighten.
“Sylvian, are you alright?”
Despite the question, Sylvian just trembled, unable to open his eyes.
Zeroth’s mind froze.
What on earth had been done to him?
* * *
