Chapter 30
“Just a little more!”
Carl shouted in a small voice.
“Oh, to hell with it! Since we’ve made noise anyway, let’s just push! At this point, let’s go for speed over stealth.”
Carl, who was about to lift the frame again, changed tactics. Thinking that might be better, Sian hurriedly went to Carl’s side and grasped the bed.
—Screeeeeech.
Just how heavy was this damned bed? Despite the thick carpet underneath, it made a spine-chilling sound as it was pushed.
Aaaagh, Sian and Carl, united as one, let out a sound wrapped in emotion that could have been either dismay or resignation.
Nevertheless, thanks to their desperate strength that had abandoned all pretense of silence, the bed was able to move a greater distance than Carl had managed to push alone so far.
“This should be enough!”
Just as Carl, drenched in sweat, shouted to Sian, faint footsteps could be heard.
Sian and Carl, without anyone taking the lead, widened their eyes and clamped their mouths shut. It wasn’t an illusion. The heavy footsteps coming from outside the door. The sound mixed with a slight metallic clinking was clearly that of a soldier’s steps.
‘Hide for now!’
‘Where?!’
Carl and Sian, growing urgent, communicated only with lip movements. The two quickly scanned their surroundings, but in a situation where they had completely lost their composure, calm judgment was impossible.
‘There, there! Turn off the light!’
Sian urgently pointed to the space under the bed. There was barely enough room for one person to fit under the posts supporting the bed.
Carl didn’t even answer before grabbing Sian’s hand. It was a quick movement that left Sian no time to react.
Pulled by Carl’s strong grip, Sian was dragged in, and the light that had dimly illuminated their surroundings vanished without even leaving a trace of smoke. Because their eyes had somewhat adjusted to the light, suddenly everything became pitch black and completely invisible.
If Carl hadn’t grasped her hand and pulled her, Sian would have been fumbling around, not knowing where the bottom of the bed was. Just as Sian barely managed to burrow under the bed following Carl…
The approaching footsteps that had been getting closer stopped abruptly in front of the door.
Sian took a deep breath and covered her mouth with both hands.
Even with her eyes open, her vision was completely dark. Only the sound of rough breathing, whose it was unclear, hung thick like fog in the narrow space under the bed.
The soldier’s footsteps had stopped, but the door didn’t open immediately. After a tense silence and an agonizing wait, there was a faint sign of movement outside the door.
The sound of the door opening wasn’t heard. Only a faint light penetrated under the bed. The soldier seemed to be holding a lamp, as a faint smell of oil and burnt material could be detected simultaneously.
It wasn’t from exertion, but purely from tension that her breath was caught and cold sweat formed on her back.
She could hear the sound of her own heart pounding in her ears. It was the sensation of being immersed in extreme tension. Experiencing this sense of crisis for the first time in a while, Sian was watching the situation outside the bed that was faintly visible.
The sound of footsteps drew closer. Sian unknowingly furrowed her brow and rolled her eyes.
The light from the lamp the soldier was holding reached under the bed, revealing the dim scene beneath.
Soon, Sian almost let out a loud sound inadvertently. The only reason she didn’t cry out like an amateur was because she already had both hands covering her mouth.
Carl’s furrowed brow was faintly visible in the distant darkness.
Somehow, the rough breathing seemed very close. When Sian turned her head, Carl’s face, looking in the direction she had been watching, was right in front of her, truly so close that their lips would touch if they moved just a little.
It felt like her heart dropped.
Carl, seeing Sian’s expression as she discovered him, moved only his finger to cover his lips. At the gesture to be quiet, Sian bit her innocent lips.
She could feel Carl’s breath tickling the back of her hand covering her mouth. The slight movement of air that hadn’t been so noticeable when she was unaware became unbearably intense once she realized its source.
A faint smell of sweat. The warm breath rising and falling on the back of her hand. The distance close enough to feel his body heat…
Carl’s lowered eyes were directed towards her. Though it seemed like he was looking outside the bed, somehow Sian could tell. That he was focusing more on her than on the situation outside the bed.
Her scalp tingled with some emotion stronger than the tension of the crisis. It wasn’t fear, bewilderment, or displeasure.
…What is this feeling?
While she couldn’t identify it, her heart just kept pounding wildly.
In front, the man’s breath rose and fell, and behind, the soldier’s footsteps drew closer.
It felt like her heart would burst out. Please, just leave.
Sian squeezed her eyes shut and fervently wished. If they were discovered here, things would obviously escalate.
Carl watched as Sian, unable to overcome her tension, covered her mouth and even averted her gaze. He too maintained silence, desperately hoping the soldier would turn and leave, but things don’t always go as one wishes.
The soldier was slowly crossing the room, shining his light, looking for anything unusual.
Suddenly, Carl’s eyes, directed towards the floor, caught sight of the crumpled carpet. It had become a mess while moving the bed. Carl’s brow furrowed instinctively as he realized the situation.
He hoped the soldier wouldn’t notice anything amiss, but given that he had already come investigating strange noises, the chances of that wish coming true seemed slim. After briefly racking his brain, Carl chewed on his lips. Then he narrowed his eyes.
“…Huh?”
The voice of an unfamiliar man was heard. The voice he was hearing for the first time was clearly that of the soldier.
Sian opened her eyes. Carl’s face, which she had been averting her gaze from, now had eyes that gleamed a vivid golden color. Sian widened her eyes and looked outside the bed.
“…Uh…?”
Something strange was definitely happening outside. Along with the soldier’s surprised voice, boots could be seen taking steps backward.
‘Where is the Prince…’
A low reverberation filled the dimly lit room. Sian quickly grasped the situation and barely managed to suppress a smile that was about to form unconsciously.
The eerily echoing voice was familiar. It was Idelin, whom Carl had shown in a silvery form.
The bizarre silver figure with indistinct facial features would appear as nothing but a ghost to those unfamiliar with dragons. Sian could immediately tell that Carl was using his wits by commanding Idelin.
‘Give me back the Prince… Give me back my legs!’
“Aaaagh! Ghost, it’s a ghost!”
The soldier screamed. Chasing after the soldier’s boots hastily retreating, long silvery hair and the hem of a long tunic smoothly followed.
‘My leeegs…’
“Aaaaaaah—!”
It was unclear why the ghost, after asking for the Prince, suddenly started demanding legs. Despite the ghost’s imploring cries that lacked coherence, the soldier threw away even his lamp and fled.
‘…I think it’s safe to come out now.
Idelin, who had been crying out for his legs, spoke after observing the situation. Phew, Sian and Carl simultaneously let out long sighs of relief.
They had been so close together that their exhaled breaths touched each other’s cheeks. Sian, startled by the warm breath, swallowed hard. Carl too, seemingly flustered, could be seen widening his eyes that had turned golden.
“S-sorry!”
Uttering words of apology for reasons unknown even to herself, Sian rolled out from under the bed with practiced ease. Carl followed, wriggling and crawling out behind her.
“By the way, why did you suddenly start looking for legs?”
Carl, standing up and dusting off his clothes, looked at Idelin.
‘Ghosts looking for legs is an old tradition from a distant land. Wasn’t it scary?’
“What a pointless tradition.”
Carl lightly snorted at Idelin’s answer, tinged with laughter.
“This isn’t the time for casual conversation. I really want to get out of here quickly now. Where is the treasure… I mean, Your Highness’s private property?”
The feeling of her heart pounding still lingered. Sian frowned, looking at Carl and Idelin chatting, and urged them on.
Carl blinked for a moment. Idelin disappeared, and Carl’s glowing eyes returned to their normal turquoise color.
“This way.”
Carl, having sent Idelin back, grabbed the edge of the carpet and lifted it up high. Gleaming, well-polished marble tiles were revealed.
From the outside, it was impossible to tell where the secret vault’s door was. But when Carl placed his hand on the floor and gently infused it with magic, just as with all the doors they had passed through so far, a clicking sound of a lock disengaging came from somewhere inside the floor.
It was as if he had adhesive on his palm. As Carl, with his hand on the floor, raised his arm, what had appeared to be merely a long seam between tiles twisted and opened.
About eight tiles together formed the entire door. Even knowing it was the door to the secret vault, it seemed impossible for an ordinary person to open it.
The security is really thorough.
Sian looked with a seriously furrowed brow at the secret passage engulfed in darkness even blacker than the room. Only the edge of the stairs leading down was barely visible.
“I’ll follow behind, so you lead the way, Lady.”
Sian nodded lightly and headed for the stairs. The magical light that had been extinguished due to the soldier’s appearance reappeared, illuminating below.
Thanks to this, Sian was able to descend without the risk of missteping on the stairs.
The spiral staircase seemed quite long. Sian tensed up at the considerable height. There wasn’t even a handrail on the side of the stairs. One wrong step and she would fall straight down into the darkness below.
Remaining tense, Sian descended step by step towards the treasure—no, Carl’s private property.
