* * *

I pressed further.

“How long has this been happening? How many times for you to be this familiar with it?”

As I advanced toward Hernan, nearly grabbing him by the collar in frustration, Irina quickly stepped in between us.

“Please calm yourself. You should rest in another room first.”

Hah.

Of course, a bodyguard’s duty was to protect their master. Irina was simply doing her job, yet irritation surged within me.

I released my grip on Hernan’s sleeve and stepped back, glaring at him as if demanding an explanation. But what I received instead was unexpected.

“It’s late. Allow me to escort you to a safer room where you can rest. We’ll prepare for departure to the capital early tomorrow morning.”

The detached response made my anger boil over.

I growled through clenched teeth, “Late? We’re set to leave for the capital tomorrow morning and have preparations to make. How is it ‘too late’ for explanations?”

After the last incident—the shipwreck—I had been assured that all servants were thoroughly vetted, soldiers recalled from the frontlines to bolster security.

I had naively believed the matter was settled, that there was nothing more beneath the surface.

Foolishly, I had continued preparing for my social debut while oblivious to the dangers.

How laughable I must have seemed to them.

My face burned with shame.

“……”

Even now, despite the chaos, I could not cancel my plans.

Hernan seemed to notice this internal conflict, remaining silent instead of answering.

Eyes were everywhere.

Soldiers, likely concluding that no further delays were acceptable, lifted the intruder’s body onto a stretcher and carried it away.

I had no idea where they would take it.

The chilling silence that followed was unbearable.

Someone had just tried to kill me, yet now I was treated like an inconvenience—mocked by their secretive attitudes, and by Hernan’s refusal to explain.

“Escort the Baron to a secure room,” Hernan ordered, turning away from me to leave with the soldiers.

An older maid approached to guide me. I wanted to shake her off, to declare I didn’t need help, but my legs buckled beneath me.

Including my modern life, this was the first time I had seen someone die before my eyes.

Though I hadn’t killed them myself, I had thrown the burning lamp that ultimately set them aflame.

The memory of their agonized screams as fire consumed them hit me like a blow.

“Urgh….”

The nausea returned, draining what little strength I had left.

I was practically dragged into a quiet room.

To say I was “escorted” would have been a stretch.

“Urgh…”

The gazes of Hernando, Irina, and the other soldiers, as if accustomed to such sights, sent chills down my spine.

Did the person who dealt with my corpse feel a similar disgust?

Who had lifted my lifeless, cold body from the chair and laid it in a coffin?

Amidst the swirl of chaotic thoughts, I found myself consumed with anger at my own helplessness.

I wanted to stop thinking, but I couldn’t.

If everything that happened was my fault for overstepping my boundaries back in Haptis…

If the perpetrator of the recent abduction truly kidnapped that child, and if something went wrong for that child, the responsibility would rest solely on me.

All because of the insignificant sense of justice that led me to act so recklessly…

The night deepened even as my mind remained unsettled, and I greeted dawn without closing my eyes for a single moment.

The servants occasionally entered to check on me and implored me to get some rest, but sleep wouldn’t come. What had the soldiers done with the corpse?

If the man had been alive, would they have tortured him for interrogation?

Even when I closed my eyes, sleep eluded me.

After some time, sunlight began to seep through the thin curtains over the window.

I leaned my head against the pillow and closed my eyes for a moment, and Hawthorn, perhaps thinking I had fallen asleep, gently woke me.

“Um… My lord, it’s about time to prepare if we’re to meet the carriage schedule.”

His voice was laced with worry and apprehension, as though he were tending to a particularly sensitive adolescent noble.

There was no point in snapping at him—it would just be taking my frustration out on someone else.

“Yes… I’ll get ready right away.”

I staggered to my feet and looked down at the ceremonial attire neatly folded in a box.

If I had failed to protect myself last night, this wouldn’t have been an outfit for attending a lavish party. It would have been my burial shroud.

“……”

That thought left me no time to wallow in despair.

If I did nothing, I would die.

To sit idly and do nothing would only prove that the threats of those who wanted me dead had worked perfectly.

Do you think I’ll just follow along with your plans?

With Hawthorn’s help, I donned the ceremonial attire and headed to the lobby without delay.

Hernan, who had been waiting with the escort, guided me into the carriage.

He silently climbed into the seat opposite mine, as though aware that canceling my attendance after last night’s events was not an option.

“……”

I didn’t bother greeting him, not even with a hint of a smile.

Hernan seemed to sense my mood and avoided my gaze, staring silently out the window.

Moments later, once everything was ready, the carriage began to move slowly.

“……”

In the cold, stifling silence, a snowstorm raged outside.

While it wasn’t enough to halt our progress, the falling snow steadily piled up along the windowsill.

I stared down at my feet, then finally broke the silence with a short remark.

“There will be much to discuss once we return.”

For now, there were more urgent matters at hand, so I would let things slide—but after the party, I saw no reason to hold back any longer.

Hernan responded with a slow nod instead of words.

Soon, when we reached the capital by train, we would face at least ten hours of navigating through an overwhelming crowd. This wasn’t the time to expose any weaknesses.

As the grand duke’s manor faded into the distance, I allowed myself to close my eyes briefly.

Before boarding the carriage, Hernan had draped a cape over my shoulders.

Its warmth against the cold of Velon helped me fall asleep, even if only for a short while.

---

“How can anyone confuse the eastern and western stations?”

I snapped irritably, unable to hide my frustration, and Hernan bowed his head in shame.

“My apologies. This is my first time visiting, and I didn’t realize the stations were divided into east and west.”

To make matters worse, the knights who accompanied us as guards had also never been to the capital before, which led to this minor yet critical mishap.

It was an easy mistake, one that others might often make, but the problem was the consequences of that mistake.

“Sigh… I should’ve double-checked. What was I thinking?”

What else?

Distracted by everything that happened last night, I’d assumed it would all be taken care of.

The northern gateway city of Kartik had two train stations: the Kartik Central Station, also known as the Western Station, and Kartik Northern Station, also called the Eastern Station.

Due to discrepancies between their official names and colloquial nicknames, confusion often arose.

The Western and Eastern Stations were named based on their locations within Kartik, while Kartik Central served as the starting point for the midline and southern routes, and Kartik Northern for local lines heading to Velon and other northern areas.

We had arrived at Kartik Northern Station via a northern local line.

To transfer, we needed to head to Kartik Central Station.

Having confidently claimed the transfer was at the Eastern Station, I briefly wondered if a new route had been established.

But when I checked the signage at the transfer point, I saw no mention of a line heading to the capital.

This can’t be right.

A quick check of the tickets, 30 minutes before departure, confirmed my suspicions.

Sure enough, we had to scramble to find a carriage to get us to the Western Station in time.

Have you never encountered civilization before?

Never ridden a train?

I asked, incredulous, as Hernan fumbled for an explanation and Anton responded shamelessly.

“Never!”

Indeed, Anton confessed to being a product of the northern countryside, where sled dogs were more common than trains.

Hernan wasn’t much different—he’d always traveled by carriage and had never used the railways.

Am I really dragging these country bumpkins into a den of hyenas?

There was no more time to dwell on last night’s shock.

If we weren’t careful, this could spiral into a serious crisis.

I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.

Slipping the coachman a generous tip, I asked him to get us to the Western Station as quickly as possible.

For a moment, he froze, perhaps struck by Hernan’s elegant appearance and striking beauty, before nodding in agreement.

Panting heavily, we arrived at the Western Station just in time to meet the visibly distressed station attendant.

A VIP ticket holder for first-class had yet to arrive until just before departure.

The attendant, nearly in tears, ushered us into the VIP car, and I turned to glare at Hernan, trying to catch my breath.

This man… I didn’t even have the time to wage a cold war with him.

With every mishap, it became increasingly clear that safely escorting him back to Velon would be a far more challenging task than I’d anticipated.

Fortunately, while schemes and power struggles weren’t my specialty, once the train reached the capital station and the carriage brought us to Garnet Palace, it would essentially become my battleground.

Let’s see you try to make any more mistakes—I’ll make sure you can’t.

Grinding my teeth, I ordered a drink from the attendant to soothe my nerves.

The tab would go to Velon, of course, but even a hefty bill wouldn’t put a dent in Hernan’s snow-like fortune.

The thought made me even angrier, so I ordered snacks to go with the drink and stuffed them down my throat.

If nothing else, I had to regain my strength. I’d need every bit of it to make it through tonight.

* * *