READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 23
“I wish summer wouldn’t come.”
[Miss…]
“I’m joking, just joking.”
Camilla chuckled at the sight of the ghostly butler, Derin, looking distraught over her words as they walked past the lakeside.
“Do you really need to follow me all the way to the academy like this?”
[Lord Hershel is eagerly waiting for you, Miss.]
That made sense. For something he had been yearning for over such a long time, he must be desperate. Every day probably felt like a year to him.
I understand how he feels, but…
Could she really do it?
The cold water was one thing, but her swimming skills weren’t particularly great. The lake seemed quite deep, and she wasn’t even sure where the stone was located. Could she find and retrieve it safely?
[Don’t worry. As I mentioned before, I’ve already identified the approximate location of the divine beast’s egg in the water. Just follow me.]
“……”
Sensing her hesitation, Derin reassured her again.
I’ve never been scared of water before…
She’d done underwater shoots for commercials and movies multiple times.
Well, I’ll figure it out somehow.
Camilla avoided Derin’s eager gaze, which seemed to plead for her to retrieve the egg as soon as possible, and resumed walking.
“Let’s talk.”
“I have nothing to say.”
Hmm?
Just as she was about to exit the dense forest, Camilla paused at the sound of voices. A man and a woman were speaking, with the man holding onto the woman.
“Let’s have a cup of tea.”
Wow.
What kind of outdated pick-up line is that?
Even local thugs these days wouldn’t say something so cliché. Camilla felt secondhand embarrassment and shook her head. She decided to quietly sneak away, minimizing her footsteps.
Smack!
“I said I’m not interested.”
The woman shook off the man’s grip and shouted firmly. Meanwhile, Camilla continued to distance herself from them.
“Ha! Know your place.”
Pause.
Your place?
Why is that word coming up here?
Camilla stopped in her tracks.
She’d thought it was just a man pursuing a woman, but her gaze returned to the pair.
“A lowly family like yours dares to act so arrogant?”
The man grabbed the woman’s wrist again, his harsh words causing her to freeze momentarily in fear.
“Let me go!”
The woman resisted, but the man didn’t budge. Instead, he smirked, pulling her toward him.
“Ah!”
The woman stumbled and fell, unable to stand. She seemed to have twisted her ankle. Noticing this, the man’s lips curled into a sneer.
“Do you know what kind of family mine is? You should be grateful and follow me.”
“It’s not the family that’s the problem; it’s you.”
“……!”
The calm voice cut through the scene.
The man, Jude, quickly turned his head toward the source. He flinched when he saw who it was.
“Lady Camilla?”
“No need to thank me for being recognized.”
Jude glanced around nervously, but soon his expression shifted, regaining composure.
“Are you here alone?”
“So what if I am?”
A mocking smile spread across Jude’s face at her reply.
“The nerve… people like you don’t know their place.”
If no one was watching, Camilla wasn’t a threat. She was nothing but a troublesome figure barely tolerated within the ducal house.
“You still don’t know your situation? Stay out of this and leave.”
“My situation…”
Camilla chuckled softly.
“Don’t you think you should be more worried about your own?”
“What?”
“Jude Hebly, second son of Count Hebly. Age, twenty… Really twenty? You look much older. Born to a mistress, known for your wild behavior since childhood.”
“What nonsense are you spewing?”
Jude’s confident demeanor faltered, his face twisting. But Camilla continued without hesitation.
“March 15th, three years ago. You chased after the daughter of Viscount Sabley and were reported for assault. Your family spent a fortune to cover it up. July 3rd last year, you tried to abduct the second daughter of Baron Zylun with your friends and got caught. What a pitiful life you lead.”
“…Who are you?”
Jude’s eyes darted back and forth, unable to hide his confusion. How did she know?
All of those incidents had been buried at great cost by his family.
“How do you know about that?!”
“Good question.”
Camilla glanced at Derin beside her.
[That despicable man… Miss, the truth is…!]
Although Derin seemed calmer than before, his face was still grim.
Derin, what exactly are you?
Are all butlers this resourceful?
“I’m asking you!”
Wow, even this trash has a temper.
Jude glared at Camilla with a murderous look, but she only smiled faintly.
“Don’t you know your place?”
“What?”
“Where does a lowly family like yours get off?”
“……!”
Having his own words thrown back at him, Jude’s face turned beet red.
“You’re just an orphan living off a duke’s charity!”
Wow… so immature.
“Fine, I’ll tell on you.”
“Tell on me?!”
“To the generous man who took in this orphan you despise so much.”
The look on Jude’s face made it clear he feared the duke. He’d been confident that Camilla wouldn’t speak up, but now…
Well, too bad.
I’m not her.
When Camilla mentioned telling the duke, Jude flinched noticeably.
“Ha…”
But moments later, his expression grew smug again.
“If you know what I’ve done, you must also know this.”
Jude stepped closer, his grin twisted.
“I’ve never been punished for it, not even once. Why would this time be any different?”
Wow, I’ve never been impressed three times in a row. How is he this stupid?
A woman’s urgent voice called out from behind, but Camilla didn’t look back.
“This brat… What should I do with him?”
She was too busy deciding how to deal with this mess.
.
There’s no one around to see this.
And honestly, her reputation couldn’t sink any lower.
So, Camilla threw something.
“What?”
What she threw was her bracelet.
“…Huh? Whoa—what the?!”
The bracelet, which had fit snugly around her wrist, stretched and morphed into chains, wrapping tightly around Jude and immobilizing him.
Oh.
The bracelet, a gift from Ravi, was surprisingly effective. She had been skeptical after throwing it but was now thoroughly satisfied with the result.
“What the hell is this?! Let me go! Release me right now! Hey! Arghhh!”
Ugh, noisy.
“Ahhh! What are you doing?! Let me down!”
Raising her arm, Camilla lifted Jude’s bound body off the ground and suspended him from the nearest tree. Now dangling from the treetop, Jude let out pitiful cries.
“Let me go! Please!”
“If you keep being noisy, I’ll really let you go.”
“Let me go!”
“Are you sure? If I let you go from up there…”
“……!”
Jude quickly clamped his mouth shut, realizing her meaning.
“Ah, so you don’t want to die after all. But…”
Camilla glanced at the suspended Jude and muttered under her breath.
“How do I undo this?”
She’d been told how to activate the bracelet—transform it into chains, lift the target, and so on—but not how to release someone from it.
Oh, Ravi, you idiot. You should’ve explained properly.
Then again, who could’ve predicted she’d end up using it so soon?
Even as she felt a twinge of panic inside, Camilla maintained a calm expression, smiling smugly at Jude.
“Jude? What are you doing up there?”
“What’s taking you so long?”
“I thought you said you could handle this alone.”
Three more men appeared, walking into view. Seeing them, Jude’s face lit up with hope.
“Guys! Get her! Now!”
The newcomers quickly assessed the situation and surrounded Camilla.
Damn it…
Camilla cursed under her breath. She hadn’t anticipated that Jude would have reinforcements nearby. She also regretted not asking Ravi beforehand about the bracelet’s full functionality.
Once I get back, I’m going to make Ravi explain everything.
But first, she needed to get through this situation in one piece.
As the men approached, Camilla instinctively began backing away, her mind racing for a solution.
Can I outrun them?
With most classes finished, there weren’t many people left in the academy. Running for help seemed unlikely to work.
“Ugh!”
“Gah!”
“……?”
Camilla’s retreating steps slowed as she noticed something unusual. The three men, who had been closing in on her like predators cornering their prey, suddenly stopped.
Their faces stiffened as they exchanged nervous glances.
What’s going on with them?
“……?”
Puzzled, Camilla continued to edge backward, trying to put as much distance as possible between herself and the men.
Thud.
“……?!”
She bumped into something behind her.
Thinking it was a tree, Camilla turned her head—and her eyes widened in shock.
Standing right behind her was a completely unexpected figure.
“Brother?”
It was Ludeville.
“What are you doing here?”
That’s what I want to ask you!
“What brings you here?”
“Just passing through.”
Where could you possibly have been going to end up here?
Camilla stared at him in disbelief. But for once, she couldn’t have been happier to see him.
Without thinking, she grabbed his sleeve tightly.
Ludeville glanced at her hand on his sleeve before speaking in his usual composed tone.
“Are they the ones?”
“Huh?”
“The reason you were crying.”