The Abandoned Princess, Yet She Is Loved - Chapter 90

“Are you ready?”

 

“Yeah… Let’s go, Alan.”

 

“Once we start, there’s no turning back. You have to follow the exact path I lead you on. I didn’t have time to memorize the route backwards, so there’s no other way.”

 

Alan gave Selena a quiet warning.

 

“Ah… okay.”

 

“It’s dark outside, but the moon is out, so it won’t be pitch black. Once we get out of this building, we’ll hide somewhere out of sight and move again when the sun rises.”

 

“Got it.”

 

Alan walked quietly down the hallway with Selena.

 

They tiptoed along the corridor, and before long, a staircase appeared.

 

“Let’s go down here.”

 

Alan whispered softly to Selena, then started down the stairs. After descending about two floors, the lobby hall came into view.

 

“If we go this way, we’ll reach the main entrance.”

 

Once they were out of the building, they’d find the courtyard. Since the courtyard was spacious, escaping from there would be easier than from inside the building. Alan’s heart pounded with hope for escape. At that moment, the sound of footsteps echoed through the hallway.

 

“Wait. Someone’s coming.”

 

“Mm… okay.”

 

Alan quickly grabbed Selena’s collar and pulled her back. They pressed themselves against the rear wall and held their breath, only slightly peeking out to watch.

 

A light appeared in the distance. Two unfamiliar men were walking toward them with lanterns in hand. They were both tall, adult men.

 

“Is the quantum extraction going well?”

 

“Yes. The yield’s been good lately. We do a preliminary test and extract blood first, then drain the kids who produce the most quantum.”

 

“How much can you get from one child?”

 

“If we drain all the blood from one, we get about a bottle. Like this.”

 

The man held up one hand, miming the size of the bottle between his thumb and forefinger.

 

‘They… drain all the blood?’

 

Alan’s heart pounded in horror.

 

‘So that’s what this is about… That’s why they locked us up and took our blood. If we don’t escape… they’ll drain every drop and kill us.’

 

He had suspected that the children who never returned might have died. But suspecting it and actually realizing the truth were two very different things.

 

“I’m sure the Lord will be pleased. But it seems like it’s been harder to get new children. Do you know why?”

 

“There aren’t that many orphans these days. The empire is more prosperous now—fewer parents are abandoning their kids… and there hasn’t been any war for a few years either.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

The man on the right let out a soft sigh.

 

“If we can’t keep up the supply, he’ll be very displeased.”

 

“I’ll try my best. Though it’s not easy to handle it all alone.”

 

“If we could get Armento, we’d get so much more. Working with ordinary kids just slows things down.”

 

“I still think it might be fine…”

 

Killing children just to extract blood? Alan clenched his fists tightly. Rage welled up inside him, but there was nothing he could do.

 

“Still, I think we’ve done quite well to get this far in such a short time.”

 

“That’s for the Lord to judge.”

 

The other man sighed deeply in response.

 

“If we had Armento, things might’ve gone even better. With their experience in handling this energy, we could’ve had more meaningful experimental results.”

 

“That wouldn’t be easy either. Did you hear what happened in Panbion?”

 

“You mean Armento died?”

 

“Yeah. He was promised a bright future, but he chose death because of his beliefs. A lot of those Armento types are overly rigid.”

 

As the men drew closer, they walked right past the wall where Alan and Selena were hiding. Alan and Selena didn’t even dare to breathe. A single sound, and it would be over.

 

“But the real question is… can the Lord really obtain power equivalent to a divine beast?”

 

“Quantum is the source of life, so if enough of it is extracted from life forms, it should be possible.”

 

‘Divine beast? What’s that supposed to mean?’

 

He was curious, but there was no way to find out.

 

Eventually, the men walked away. Alan and Selena stayed pressed against the wall for a while even after they had gone.

 

“…Let’s get out of here.”

 

Once they were sure the men were gone, they began walking down the corridor again toward the building’s entrance.

 

“Phew…”

 

The moment they opened the front door and stepped outside, Alan let out the breath he had been holding. He had been so tense, he hadn’t even realized he wasn’t breathing properly.

 

“Let’s… go.”

 

Alan cautiously looked around with every step he took. He was constantly worried that someone might appear and discover them.

 

They crossed the courtyard, avoiding the center and heading along the side. The front gate was locked at night, so going that way was pointless, but Alan had found another route.

 

“There’s a hole over here, like a gap in the fence.”

 

In one corner of the yard, instead of a wall, there was a tangled mess of wires, creating a small hole just big enough for a dog to slip through.

 

“If you crawl through this, you can get out.”

 

Alan lowered his body and slipped into the hole. He pressed his stomach to the ground and slithered like a snake until he successfully made it out.

 

“Selena, just do what I did.”

 

Having made it through, he called to Selena. She also crouched and began crawling through the hole.

 

“Ugh…!”

 

Selena let out a small gasp as she was coming through. Her calf had scraped harshly against the wire. She could feel a sharp sting and the wetness of blood.

 

But Selena bit her lip and held back the cry. If she screamed now, they might be discovered. Then the guards would come and take them back.

 

They might even be killed for defiance.

 

“Just hang in there, Selena.”

 

“Mm…”

 

Alan was pained to see it, but there was nothing he could do. He waited until she had crawled all the way out, then held out his hand to help her up.

 

“You did great, Selena. Thank you.”

 

“I didn’t really do anything… why are you thanking me?”

 

Selena mumbled and lowered her head.

 

“I’m sorry you had to go through this because of me. And thank you.”

 

“Moving for your sake is the most natural thing in the world, Alan. You don’t need to be sorry for that.”

 

Alan looked into her eyes. They glimmered faintly under the weak moonlight, and it was beautiful.

 

“You’re all I have, Alan.”

 

“I’ll try to find somewhere nearby where we can stay until morning.”

 

“Okay, I understand.”

 

“Anyway… I’m just glad we made it to the courtyard.”

 

Holding hands, they walked into the night, guided only by the moonlight.

 

 

When they were told they had been chosen as the Crown Princess’s chief handmaids, Diana and Sarah thought it must be a dream.

 

“Hello, everyone. I’m happy to have you as my closest aides.”

 

Rayleigh greeted them with her usual bright and cheerful voice.

 

“Normally, there’s only one chief handmaid, but both of you were so outstanding, it was impossible to choose. So we hired you both.”

 

Lady Amelia Fenton, who had been the chief handmaid until now, added an explanation.

 

“Thank you, thank you so much!”

 

“We’ll do our best, Your Highness!”

 

They pledged their full loyalty to the princess. The princess simply smiled softly in response.

 

“I’ll explain everything about the tasks and procedures you need to know, Your Highness.”

 

“Yes, thank you. You’re always so thoughtful, Amelia.”

 

Rayleigh smiled warmly at Amelia.

 

“Please follow me.”

 

Diana and Sarah followed Amelia to a room near the Crown Princess’s quarters.

 

When Amelia opened the door, they saw a study filled with shelves and a desk stacked with file folders. Amelia went to the shelf closest to the entrance and pulled out a folder.

 

“Please, have a seat.”

 

She opened the folder after seating them on the sofa.

 

“One of the main responsibilities of the chief handmaid is managing the Crown Princess’s palace budget. Look here.”

 

“Yes.”

 

When they saw the annual budget, Diana and Sara’s eyes widened.

 

They had grown up comfortably in ducal households, but had never handled such a large sum of money before.

 

“Refer to last year’s figures and use what you need… and you can quietly pocket a bit of the surplus too.”

 

“Is that really allowed?”

 

“Yes. It’s okay to take a little… think of it as a kind of service fee.”

 

“Is it really okay? I’m just afraid we might get caught…”

 

Sarah asked Amelia cautiously.