“Since you’ve confirmed I’m not infected, I’ll be going now. Remember to immediately send troops to take control of Loharin, or once the Plague spreads and the higher-ups start blaming someone, you’ll be the one in trouble.”
Kane rolled his eyes, not bothering to keep up the pointless banter with this woman who spouted nothing but nonsense.
But just as he stood up, Seth forcibly pressed him back down:
“You don’t have to worry about that. I’d already arranged to seal off Loharin long before you came to inform me.”
“Loharin is now a key protected zone of the Kingdom.”
“No one inside can get out, and no one outside can get in.”
That fast?!
Kane was genuinely surprised. As far as he knew, in the original story, it took a long time before they managed to successfully seal off the source at Loharin.
Is this another Butterfly Effect?
Did Aunt just get lucky, or did someone warn her in advance?
Kane opened his mouth, intending to ask, but before he could speak, Seth continued:
“Besides, I don’t think you need to rush back right now. Your little maid is no longer at home. She didn’t leave a single personal belonging behind.”
Kane: ?!
Kane hadn’t been worried at first. The Underground Chamber where Enya was hiding was extremely well-concealed—if not for his memories from the previous timeline, even given several more years, he wouldn’t have discovered it. But upon hearing the latter half of Seth’s words, he could no longer remain calm.
“…Why did you go into my house?”
Given the circumstances, Kane didn’t ask directly but probed indirectly.
“With the Plague going around, of course your dear Aunt has to be concerned for her nephew’s wellbeing.”
Seth gave a matter-of-fact answer, then let out a soft snort and grinned:
“If you want to ask about your little maid, just ask directly. No need to beat around the bush with your Aunt.”
“I told you, there’s a lot going on on my end too…”
Kane clicked his tongue. He wasn’t the type to trouble others, always preferring to handle things himself.
Back then, just to get himself successfully exiled to the border without implicating anyone related to the Duchal House, he had racked his brains and gone through a lot, only barely achieving his goal.
If it were the old him, he might have stubbornly kept denying it.
But after Taliya risked her life to save him… Kane sat back down and chose to face things head on:
“Tell me everything you know.”
“You really are as unlikable as ever. I just don’t get why so many women like you with such a lousy personality.” Seth spread her hands and teased.
Kane rolled his eyes and said, “Don’t make me sound like some playboy. Only Enya likes me, okay?”
Not to boast, but before he recalled his memories of his previous life, Kane really had been a complete scoundrel and a notorious bully at the academy—feared by all.
At the worst of times, there was even a ridiculous rumor going around the academy that anyone Kane glared at would get pregnant, regardless of gender.
Only Enya had the sharp eyes to fall for him (Taliya was an accident—she was just fooled by his voice), and up to now, the only person he truly shared mutual feelings with was Enya.
If that counts as being a playboy, then there probably never was such a thing as pure love in this world.
“You really think so?”
Seth gave him a strange look, as if she was looking at some incomprehensible creature.
“If you’re not going to talk, I’m leaving.”
Kane curled his lip in annoyance. This Aunt of his was almost fifty but could gossip better than any youngster—she was the ultimate busybody.
He’d been pestered by her plenty of times before.
“That can’t be right. Then why did Princess Vanessa go out of her way to ask about you…?” Seth muttered to herself with a strange look.
But in the end, Seth didn’t voice her thoughts, instead telling Kane what he wanted to know.
In short, after receiving news of the Plague early in the morning, Seth immediately arranged for Loharin to be completely sealed off, and for her nephew’s safety, planned to bring both Kane and Enya to her residence.
But as luck would have it, Kane had already left for the Black Market at that time and just missed her. As for Enya, just as Seth said, there was no sign of her anywhere, and all of her things had disappeared from the house.
As for the hidden Underground Chamber, Seth hadn’t found it at first either—it was only as she was about to leave that she noticed light leaking from the open door, but there was no one inside.
In other words, Enya had left not long after Kane.
Where did she go? She even took all her things with her? How did she escape? Was her target him? A barrage of questions flooded Kane’s mind.
There’s no way Enya would leave Loharin without a word.
Kane had no proof, but it was a fact—a tacit understanding that existed only between the two of them.
But now, Kane’s personal safety had become a real problem.
Now that everything was out in the open, any tricks Kane tried to use to keep Enya under control would basically be useless.
Not to mention, this was the full-blown yandere version of Enya.
Kane suddenly felt like his kidneys didn’t belong to him anymore.
He could almost hear his organs crying out by his ears—Little kidney’s about to die of happiness~.
“Hiss~.”
Kane shuddered, feeling like he was about to fall apart.
One problem wasn’t even over before another came—was the heavens really trying to play him to death?
Kane rubbed his forehead repeatedly and let out a heavy sigh.
Seth saw his expression and assumed he was worried about Enya’s safety, so she patted his shoulder in comfort:
“Don’t worry, I’ve already ordered the entire city on alert, and the search for Cultists of Truth is underway. Whether it’s Enya or any of the other villagers who were abducted, we’ll definitely get them back.”
“Other people are missing too?” Kane was startled and quickly looked up. “Who else?”
Seth replied, “Itou and his fiancée Ilena, as well as his adopted sister Aili. Counting Enya, that’s four people missing so far—maybe more, but we haven’t finished counting yet.”
So it was those few?
Kane was shocked.
According to Seth, while the villagers weren’t all accounted for yet, as of now, there hadn’t been any reports of missing villagers, so it was basically confirmed that the only ones unaccounted for were those four.
Kane didn’t know much about Itou and Aili, but over the past month, he’d often seen Enya chatting with Ilena.
Could Enya’s disappearance be related to Ilena?
“It’s probably just a coincidence.”
Those three were just ordinary villagers, and given their relationships, maybe they simply left the village together, which is why no one could find them.
Seth saw Kane’s expression relax a bit and continued:
“All right, now that the personal matters are done, let’s talk about official business.”
“Official business?” Kane snorted, spreading his hands self-deprecatingly. “I’m just a commoner now—what business could I possibly have to discuss with a noble?”
“If it’s about Taliya, she’s a good person. Please help me thank her. I owe her a great debt, and I’ll find a way to repay it someday.”
With those words, Kane stood up to leave.
But just as he reached for the door, Seth’s voice called out behind him:
“Hey? Didn’t your father tell you? Your exile is over. You’re once again the dashing son of the Duke. Your father will soon send someone to bring you back to the Capital.”
Kane: ?!
“What did you say?!”