## Chapter 184 – 184. Amelia Clarisse Orsia (2)
#184. Amelia Clarisse Orsia (2)
Amelia Clarisse Orsia.
She was the only child of the Grand Duke who ruled the Duchy of Orsia, and the one and only heir to the Orsia Grand Ducal Family.
However, when the Grand Duke suddenly fell into a coma, her solid position began to falter.
The nobles, who had been suppressed by the Grand Duke, revolted, and the Duchy of Orsia was engulfed in a civil war that no one had expected.
For Amelia, who happened to be staying in Count Marville’s territory for recuperation, it was like a bolt from the blue.
With the castle on the verge of falling due to the rebels’ siege, she decided to gamble her fate.
‘Arca,’ a subordinate artifact inherited by the heir of the Orsia Grand Ducal Family.
On the surface, it was just a beautiful sapphire necklace, but it was clearly a top-tier artifact with multiple abilities.
After many twists and turns, Amelia was able to use Arca’s power to escape from the Marville territory.
However.
“…Where is this?”
The place she arrived at was not the Kingdom of Santala, a neighboring country, nor the Kingdom of Nivia, but somewhere in the Veilheaven Republic.
Amelia, who naturally expected to be transported to the ducal castle in the capital, couldn’t understand the situation at all.
After all, the ability she used was supposed to move the contractor to a safe place in a dangerous situation.
“…Let’s calm down for now. I need to find the cause somehow.”
After a moment of panic, Amelia calmly continued to think.
First of all, she decided to rule out the possibility that Arca had malfunctioned, as there had been no such cases historically.
Instead, she came up with the hypothesis that the ducal castle might not be a safe place for her.
Before her father ascended to the throne, the Duchy of Orsia was a place rife with corruption.
In order to save the already decaying country, a purge was inevitable.
The capital was stained with blood, and nobles revolted almost every day.
Nevertheless, the duchy eventually regained stability and entered its second golden age since its founding.
However, it was impossible to kill all the nobles who had committed corruption. They had to prevent the national affairs from being paralyzed.
Even though they had filtered and filtered again, could she guarantee that there was not a single person within the ducal castle who had joined the noble alliance?
After organizing her thoughts, Amelia looked at the city visible beyond the fields.
The city was brightly lit.
It was Arca’s second ability, the perception of light and darkness.
It was an ability that made things helpful to the contractor appear bright, and things that were dangerous appear dark.
Amelia walked towards the light.
She traveled throughout the Veilheaven Republic for three months.
It was a difficult journey, but fortunately, thanks to Arca’s ability, she had never been in danger.
However, Amelia was becoming increasingly mentally exhausted by the journey that seemed to never end.
Above all, the news of the rebels’ victories and the news of her father, who still hadn’t made an official appearance, made her even more tired.
What will be at the end of this light?
No, is there even an end?
Should I go back to the duchy now?
‘Can I even cross the border safely…?’
Amidst worries and concerns, Amelia was able to reach the city of Mayfield.
Certainly, it was one of the most prominent granaries in the southern part of the continent, so the streets were full of vitality.
But Amelia silently walked through the city, following the light as usual.
Keeping her head down, lest her hood be taken off.
How long had she been walking?
When she came to her senses, she was standing in the middle of a deserted alleyway.
“Haa… Not again…”
Perhaps because she had been under too much stress, she would occasionally lose her mind and wander the streets.
Fortunately, she hadn’t forgotten that she had to follow the light, so she had never been in a dangerous situation.
But this time was different.
She could feel people’s presence and gazes around her, and men were approaching her as if closing in on a siege.
Sensing something ominous, Amelia immediately ran towards the light.
“Catch her!”
“If we miss her, we’re all dead!”
“The net! Throw the net first!”
Her breath quickly reached her throat, but Amelia wasn’t worried.
She would be safe if she followed the light.
She safely escaped the alleyway and came out onto the main street, but Amelia didn’t go to the guardhouse, as if it were natural.
Because the light was pointing elsewhere.
She had been chased by the men for dozens of minutes.
‘How long do I have to be chased…?’
Amelia was getting more and more anxious.
Considering that she had never been in danger for the past three months thanks to Arca’s ability, something was wrong with the current situation.
A sense of unease washed over her.
What if Arca wasn’t working properly for some reason?
What if being dropped in the middle of the republic instead of the ducal castle was a malfunction caused by Arca?
What if she hadn’t been in danger until now purely because of good luck?
“Haa, haa…!”
Her mouth was so dry that she could taste blood, but Amelia couldn’t stop, and she couldn’t go to the guardhouse now.
If she escaped from danger by doing so, it would be like admitting that Arca, which she had been using as a guide, had malfunctioned.
For Amelia, who had been relying on the artifact for the past three months, it was the worst possible situation that could not be compared to anything else.
She had no choice.
All she could do now was run away from the men chasing her.
Of course, there were dangerous moments, but she was able to shake off the pursuit for a while with magic.
But she wasn’t a proper circle mage yet.
She was using magic with Arca’s auxiliary ability, so the aftermath was bound to be even greater.
Amelia gritted her teeth at her legs, which were shaking precariously as if they were about to collapse.
However.
“…Dead end?”
A wall that appeared before long blocked her path.
She was embarrassed, but she could just brush it off.
There would definitely be another way.
But what really embarrassed Amelia was the completely disappeared light.
No matter how much she looked around, she couldn’t see the guidepost.
Amelia’s eyes trembled slightly.
But she soon clenched her fist tightly.
She couldn’t give up now. Above all, she was reminded of the faces of the people and vassals of the duchy who were trusting and enduring her.
‘…With Arca’s auxiliary ability, I can handle about four or five people.’
Even though her mana was running out, it wasn’t entirely impossible if she pushed herself a little.
Of course, she was worried about what would happen afterwards, but she didn’t have time for that.
“Hoo, we finally caught her.”
“She was running away without knowing she was being lured into a dead end. I guess not all wizards are smart.”
“Don’t let your guard down. If she uses magic, we’ll get holes in our heads.”
“What wizard? Can’t you tell she’s a newbie?”
Looking at the men who had gathered before she knew it, Amelia took a deep breath calmly.
‘Hoo…’
She decided not to cling to the guidepost that was no longer visible.
Her stamina was exhausted and her heart was pounding as if it would explode.
Her fragile mana circuits were screaming from the excessive use of magic.
But as the heir to the Orsia Grand Ducal Family, she had no intention of showing weakness in front of the reckless men.
“If you stay still, we’ll find you a good master soon.”
“Yeah, how gentle people-“
The moment she was about to squeeze out her last strength to use magic.
Thud!!
Something fell from the sky, and beyond the scattering dust, she saw something familiar.
“That master you’re talking about.”
For a moment, Amelia doubted her eyes.
“I’d like you to introduce me to him too.”
For the past three months, the guidepost that had never shown an end was staying next to a man as if it had reached its destination.
“Ki, kill him!!”
“What is that again!!”
“That bastard killed Rick!!”
“The vitals! Stab the vitals!!”
The swords and blunt weapons flying from all directions couldn’t even graze the man’s clothes.
Like a knight dealing with a child.
There was an overwhelming difference in skill between the man and the thugs that could never be bridged.
After blinking a few times, the thugs were rolling on the floor like dust.
‘Ah…’
Naturally, Amelia’s gaze turned to the man standing there as if nothing had happened.
His physique, reminiscent of a knight, and his somewhat fierce impression, were only momentarily of interest to her.
Amelia was certain of the faint streaks of light flowing from around the man’s body.
“Since you helped me, you don’t have to worry…”
That man was the hope she had been looking for.
Amelia’s consciousness was cut off there, but she firmly resolved herself several times until the moment she collapsed.
She would get his cooperation no matter what.
***
After dinner, I realized how the mailbox felt.
My room’s table was cluttered with letters brought by the employee.
For the record, it wasn’t a bill for what I had broken. I had already compensated more than enough with gold coins.
They were letters from nobles.
It wasn’t particularly strange. The accommodation we were staying in was a noble-only accommodation in the noble district.
The nobles had witnessed the commotion in the restaurant a little while ago, and it was natural for rumors to spread through their mouths.
Maybe a rumor had spread that a wandering knight who handled aura had appeared.
But even considering that, the speed at which the letters were coming was too fast. It had only been two hours at most.
“The refreshing petals are dancing in the wind… What is he talking about.”
As expected of a noble, about 90% of the letter was useless rhetoric.
But all of them had the same point.
To summarize roughly, it was ‘I’ll give you money, and if you want, I’ll give you my daughter, so won’t you be a knight for my family?’
Of course, I threw the letters into the trash as soon as I read them.
“They should at least enclose a picture.”
Even a hedgehog thinks its own baby is pretty.
These shameless guys are trying to lure me with their daughters, who they don’t even know how they look in other people’s eyes.
“Trying to get something for nothing.”
I replied by crumpling the letters.
As I was reading the letters for fun, I couldn’t help but be surprised by the name ‘Clifford Lensing Gaile’ written on the sender.
For the record, the place we are in is the Marquisate of Gaile.
I didn’t expect the Marquis himself to send a letter.
“He put in the same rhetoric… He didn’t say he would give me his daughter.”
Well, a Marquis would have several knights.
Above all, he wouldn’t want to marry his precious daughter to a knight whose pedigree he doesn’t even know.
Above all, unlike the letters from other nobles who seemed desperate, I could feel that he wrote the letter with the feeling of trying once and giving up if it didn’t work.
“Um, eliminated.”
In the end, none of the nobles sent a picture of their daughter with them.
Of course, they may not have a picture, but then they should send a portrait.
The trash can was already full of letters from nobles.
The employees who clean the room will be surprised when I check out tomorrow, but it’s not my business.
“By the way, where did Sylvia go?”
I went up to my room after dinner, but Sylvia was nowhere to be seen.
I guess she’s determined to hide.
Nothing will be solved by avoiding it like that.
Knock-knock-
Just as I was thinking about what I should make Sylvia do with the video as an excuse, someone knocked on the door.
-…Hyunwoo-nim.
It was Amelia.
I opened the door with the feeling that what was coming had finally come, and Amelia, wearing a hood, was standing in front of the door.
“What’s wrong?”
“I… I have something to tell you, so could you spare me some time…?”
She couldn’t make eye contact with me and only looked at the floor, and she seemed very uneasy.
After thinking for a moment, I nodded.
“Yes, come in.”
Amelia came into the room and took off her hood and sat demurely on the sofa.
As expected, high-ranking nobles are different, and I could feel the elegance in her small actions, like Iris and Sylvia.
“What’s that…?”
Amelia looked at the letters that filled the trash can and were still left over.
“Ah, it’s nothing… They’re letters from nobles.”
I handed Amelia a letter that hadn’t been crumpled yet.
“They say they’ll give me a lot of wealth, or marry me to their daughter, and ask me to become a knight of their family… But they’re all similar, so I was disposing of them appropriately.”
“Ah…”
Amelia lowered her head and fidgeted with her fingers.
“…Are you and Iris married?”
“Huh? Well… I guess so?”
“Then, would it be okay to ask what your relationship with Sylvia is…?”
I was wondering why she was asking this suddenly, but there was nothing I couldn’t tell her, so I told her the truth.
“Second wife to be?”
“Pardon?”
Of course, Sylvia would freak out if she heard that.
“Um… Were you a noble?”
“That’s also planned. I’m going to become a noble soon.”
To be exact, I’m not a noble, but a royal.
The royalty of Pellegia.
Amelia hesitated to answer as if she didn’t know what I was talking about.
“So, what brings you here?”
I changed the subject because the atmosphere seemed to be getting strange.
But as soon as I finished speaking, Amelia seemed even more nervous, sweating profusely.
“…Actually, I was wondering if you could reconsider the request I mentioned?”
It was as I expected.
“Of course, I don’t have anything to give you right now… But if you just take me to my destination, I’ll grant you anything you want!”
Amelia seemed desperate.
But my thoughts are the same as before.
“I’m sorry, but…”
“W-what about me!”
“……?”
