“Oh, wonderful, you are so clever,” the prince said, taking the bottle and pouring the red liquid into a cup.
“To victory.”
He lifted it slightly, then downed it in one gulp.
“Prince, give me some too,” Elizabeth approached, followed by Ekaterina and Princess Lu.
I wanted to tell the prince and the others not to drink too much, but that would be too ungracious to spoil their celebratory wine. And the amount probably wouldn’t get them dangerously drunk anyway.
“Romelia, will you drink too?” the prince lifted the bottle happily, seeming very glad to have wine after such a long time.
“No, I’m fine.”
I didn’t really like drinking. Elizabeth and the others passed around the one cup, their cheeks slightly flushed as they approached the prince.
When Elizabeth first joined us, I was a little jealous when I saw her touch the prince, but now I didn’t feel anything. Although the prince broke off our engagement, it was probably the right thing to do. The Prince and I no longer had the feelings we once shared.
“Does Lady Romelia dislike alcohol?” Thomas had a “that’s bad” look on his face at my refusal to drink.
“Ah, please don’t mind me.”
“No, let me get you something else to drink.”
Thomas was considerate and wanted to bring me something I liked. My preferences caused him unnecessary worry.
“Please wait, Thomas. Prince, let me have a sip too,” I said, taking the cup from the prince’s hand and holding it out to Thomas.
“Thank you for your kindness, Thomas.”
I drank the red liquid, feeling the alcohol burn my throat and sting a little. Although I still disliked drinking, I smiled and said it was very good without making a face.
Thomas looked relieved and exchanged glances with Michelle. Michelle looked sad for some reason. What was going on?
I wanted to ask her, but I was probably tipsy from not drinking for so long. My mind was a little fuzzy. It seemed that I was really tired.
We had been tense until we had killed the Demon King. Even though we were still behind enemy lines, with our long-held goal achieved, the tense nerves had snapped and the accumulated fatigue had set in.
“Excuse me, Prince, may I rest first?”
I asked the prince. To be on the safe side, we took turns sleeping. We usually drew lots for the order, but could I go first today?
“Ah, sure, I’ll take the first watch,” the prince gently agreed, continuing to drink his remaining wine.
“Lady Romelia, thank you very much,” Thomas thanked me again when I started to fall asleep.
“Truly, thank you very much.”
Michelle bowed her head in thanks as well. She and Thomas held hands. They seemed really close. I was envious. If only the prince and I could be like that.
“Sis, let’s play again tomorrow!”
Little Sela approached me. I was too sleepy to react properly. I held out my little finger and hooked hers, promising her.
I hooked Sela’s little finger and promised. What a sweet child. Would I have a child like that one day?
Just as I was too sleepy to keep my eyes open, I heard the sound of something collapsing. When I looked in that direction, the prince and Elizabeth had fallen to the ground.
I tried to wake the prince, but my body wouldn’t move.
“Prince Henry, good luck. You must defeat the Demon King’s army and avenge us.”
Thomas, standing in front of me, looked at the prince. Michelle was holding Sela’s hand, tears streaming down her face.
Why was she crying?
My questions were swept away by sleep as I fell into darkness.
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I was awakened from my dreamless sleep by the concerned voice of the prince.
“Romelia, wake up!”
When I heard that, I immediately snapped awake. Then I realized that we had been tricked.
We had been tricked!
I jumped up immediately.
One cup of wine shouldn’t have made me this drowsy. I must have been drugged with a sleeping potion or something.
Thomas and the others had tricked me!
No way, why?
Fear, a sense of crisis, and a host of questions flooded my mind. I prepared my stance and confirmed our situation.
Prince Henry looked worried in front of me. Behind him was a nervous Elizabeth, then Ekaterina , who seemed to be propping herself up with her wand from the drug. I saw Princess Lu holding her sword, watching the entrance above us.
None of us, including myself, were injured. There were no signs of enemies nearby. But the prince’s condition was strange. His usual sword and armor were gone.
“These three betrayed me and took my sword and armor. Damn those wretched slaves.”
Prince Henry lamented that his weapons had been stolen.
“We were drugged!” Ekaterina frowned.
“Just a slave after all. As expected, not to be trusted.” Princess Lu said contemptuously.
“To betray the Prince Hero and us is unforgivable!” Elizabeth looked angry, but something seemed wrong.
“Let’s escape now!” The prince said it was dangerous here and wanted to set up the ladder at the entrance of the hideout, but I stopped him.
“Please wait. I agree that we should take action, but was anything else taken besides the weapons?”
I checked the items I had with me. It was obvious that the Prince’s weapons had been stolen, but Princess Lu’s sword and Ekaterina ‘s staff remained. The bucket with the Demon King’s salted head was also there. I immediately confirmed that it was still there. Otherwise, the items taken from the Demon King and our luggage were untouched. Only the prince’s sword and armor had been stolen.
“Why would Thomas and the others do that?” I muttered, tidying up the luggage. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t believe that Thomas and the others would betray us.
“After all, they’re slaves, not to be trusted. Weren’t you also wary of treachery? ” The prince expressed his anger at the betrayal. In fact, before killing the Demon King, I had been on guard against the possibility of Thomas’ family betraying us.
Because reporting those who tried to assassinate the Demon King would be a great achievement. I didn’t want to imagine that fellow humans would betray us, but humanity was easily stripped away under harsh conditions. I had seen so many betrayals in exchange for a pittance, for the peace of not being whipped today.
“But the reason for the betrayal is still unknown. Betrayal after defeating the Demon King makes no sense.”
If they had handed us over to the Demon King before the assassination, they might have gotten a reward or two. But why did they do it now?
Besides, although they stole the prince’s sword and armor, they left Princess Lu’s sword and Ekaterina ‘s staff untouched. This also bothered me. If it was treason, shouldn’t they have taken all the weapons? Why leave some behind?
“Anyway, let’s get out of here first. Ekaterina , use your colorless magic. Prince, take this short sword.”
I handed him the short sword that I carried with me for traveling. It was better than nothing.
Ekaterina used her colorless magic and shot silver light from her wand to surround us. Even though it looked like we kept our forms, we should be invisible to others now.
It was convenient magic, but there were a few points to note in its use. First, while our bodies became invisible, the sounds did not disappear, so we had to move without speaking or making footsteps. The effective range was also very narrow, so we basically had to move close to each other. It also consumed magic power quickly and could not be maintained for long. But it was very useful for infiltration and escape.
The two nodded, then Princess Lu with her sword in front, followed by the prince with the short sword. Ekaterina and Elisabeth followed with their wands, and I brought up the rear with the bucket.
Princess Lu climbed the ladder first, pushing up the ceiling boards a bit to check our surroundings. Signaling that no enemies were in sight, she removed the boards and climbed out. We followed, and I also climbed up the ladder with one hand holding the bucket.
Above ground, there were two horses and an ox in the stable, but no demons in sight. This was also suspicious. If they had betrayed us, this area should be surrounded by the Demon King’s soldiers.
I looked up at the sky. The sun was peeking over the mountains, and it was already bright. We must have been drugged a few hours after nightfall, and a whole night had passed. If Thomas had betrayed us, he would have had enough time to kill us a hundred times over.
The lprince estured for us to leave this place. We all nodded and moved close together.
We left the shed and walked down the alley. Still no soldiers. That was a small relief, but there were no more places to hide. The lord looked at me uneasily, and I didn’t know what to do either.
I looked at Ekaterina . If she was in top condition, the colorless magic could last three hours. She seemed to have some time left, but we had to get to safety quickly.
But we didn’t know anyone here except Thomas. To prevent betrayal and leakage, we had no contact with the other slaves. There was no one else we could rely on besides Thomas.
Princess Lu raised her blade and pointed to a nearby residence. She gestured that she intended to kill the demons living there and occupy the place.
That’s brave, but absolutely impossible. We didn’t know when anyone would come, and security was tight. They would certainly search the houses. If we killed them, it would be even harder to escape.
Perhaps it would be better to sneak into the magical ship and wait in the cargo hold until it left?
However, in the current high state of alert, ships that set sail would likely be thoroughly searched. The meticulous searches of the demon lord’s army, and whether Ekaterina’s magic alone could withstand them, would become a gamble.
Suddenly, a sharp whistle echoed in my ears.
The whistle made my whole body tense. It was the whistle used by the Demon King’s army to summon allies.
I quickly looked around, but saw no Demon King soldiers. The whistle wasn’t coming from here either, but from the main road.
Loud shouting and screaming echoed from the main street, telling me what was happening.
Was it dangerous to check out the commotion? Or necessary to understand the situation? I couldn’t judge, but the prince gestured for me to take a look. I followed the prince.
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