The Princess’s Final Wish Before Her Time Runs Out - Chapter 68

Rashid rushed out immediately after the banquet had been dismissed.

But he saw no one.

They were already gone.

The garden—where Tericia often wandered and once called beautiful—was now silent and cold. The stillness hung heavy in the air.

The Lady had vanished—without a trace.

No one had seen her since she left the banquet hall.

Rashid regretted it deeply. He realized now how carelessly he had treated the situation.

He had always ensured that the three most skilled knights of the Black Order guarded Tericia. So even if she slipped away for a moment, he had assumed she would be found quickly.

That assumption had been his mistake.

“You’re saying there’s no sign of Tericia?”

He stood by the window, staring through the glass at the moonlight filtering through the empty garden. His voice was low.

Heinz, kneeling before him, bowed his head and begged forgiveness.

“No, Your Grace. We searched the mansion, the workshop, even the Lace Merchant House. But we’ve found no sign of Lady Tericia anywhere.”

“……”

“…We did not witness it ourselves, but…”

He hesitated, struggling to continue.

“The gatekeeper mentioned… he thought someone besides the Crown Prince was riding in the royal carriage when His Highness returned to the palace.”

Boom.

The tension in the room exploded like a thunderclap. Rashid’s killing aura spread through the air, thick and suffocating.

“Someone else was in the royal carriage?”

Even without saying it aloud, they all knew—it had to be Tericia.

The Crown Prince had taken her with him. The suspicion became certainty.

“Why didn’t you stop them?”

“…That would have been considered an act of treason against the Crown.”

Adler, standing nearby, stepped in carefully.

He knew his words might provoke Rashid further, but leaving Heinz alone under that crushing pressure would’ve been even worse.

Crash!

Rashid slammed his fist into the marble wall.

The impact shook the room—toppling the nearby console table and shattering the vase that stood atop it.

“What was the Order doing?!”

“They followed from a distance after she left the mansion. But when the royal guard appeared, they had to fall back.”

“The Black Order of Hespelt couldn’t even handle a few palace guards?”

“It wasn’t that, sir. It was… because the escort was from the Crown Prince’s own guard. Our knights couldn’t act recklessly. And His Highness… rushed the return to the palace.”

“Heinz.”

Rashid cut him off mid-sentence, his voice low and dangerous.

“Since when did Hespelt knights start making excuses? Didn’t they once prove their worth with their lives?”

“…Forgive me, Your Grace.”

Heinz remained kneeling, waiting for the judgment he was sure would come next.

Whether the Black Order had fought the guards, or if they had resisted and been injured—none of that mattered.

Even if intervening could’ve been seen as treason, even if they had risked everything to stop her departure—it no longer mattered.

The only thing that did matter… was that Tericia had ridden away in a royal carriage, and no one had stopped her.

Rashid looked down at Heinz and let out a sharp, quiet breath.

If the Crown Prince had truly made up his mind to take Tericia away, there was no one in the empire who could’ve stopped him—not even Rashid.

And he knew it.

He also knew his rage now was little more than lashing out—pointless fury.

“Find her,” he said at last. “We’ll talk about responsibility later.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

Heinz bowed once more and quickly left.

“…The cleric?” Rashid asked next.

He meant the one who had stood during the banquet and publicly supported Count Clu’s claim.

Adler answered promptly.

“No trace of him. The temple denies any association. They claim such a cleric never existed.”

“……”

Rashid offered no response, his golden eyes sweeping across the lavishly decorated room.

Her presence still lingered.

It felt as if Tericia’s voice might echo at any moment. As if she were just around the corner, smiling softly, whispering gently.

Everything in the room was just as it had always been—except she was gone.

And now, everything felt broken.

He could blame the banquet. He could blame the infiltrators. But he knew the truth.

It was his fault.

He had lost control of his emotions. Lost his reason. His rage had blinded him.

If she had chosen to leave on her own… I might not have been able to stop her either.

Adler, watching from a distance, could see the weight settling on Rashid’s shoulders.

He knew this wasn’t over. Once Rashid found her, his obsession would only grow. His hold would only tighten.

But right now, cleaning up the aftermath took priority.

“There is one more thing…”

Adler cleared his throat and hesitated slightly. Every word was heavy.

“It seems… Count Clu didn’t verify the family registry himself.”

“…He didn’t?”

House Hespelt’s underground prison had two levels.

The first was for those who committed relatively minor crimes. It was located on the first basement level, where guards kept watch, meals were served, and a small barred window let in a sliver of daylight—just enough to sense time and life still moving outside.

Prisoners there, though confined, retained some connection to the world beyond.

But the second type was something else entirely.

A deeper, hidden level—so far underground that no one really knew how far down it went.

This prison was meant for those never meant to leave. The ones deemed beyond redemption. This was where Leah had been interrogated after Tericia had been poisoned.

There were no visible guards.

That didn’t mean no one was watching—just that no one was seen.

The terror came not from confinement, but from abandonment. From being left alone in total silence.

Even if someone screamed, no one entered without direct permission. And no one came out untouched by it—if they came out at all.

Count Clu regained consciousness half a day after being thrown into the cell.

“This… this is the underground prison?”

He never imagined he would end up here.

He was a direct descendant of House Hespelt. The previous Duke’s own brother. A favored son of the noble line.

How could he be imprisoned like this?

Since the banquet, Rashid hadn’t harmed him—hadn’t even raised his voice. He had simply ordered him confined, in a dark room without a single window.

Not even the knights stationed to watch him had shown their faces.

Clu had no idea he’d been locked in the hidden underground prison. He just assumed he’d been dumped somewhere forgotten. Somewhere that didn’t suit a man like him.

“Is anyone out there?!”

The wooden door had a small, barred hatch—his only connection to the outside world.

Clu clutched it and screamed.

“I am Count Clu! A rightful blood heir of House Hespelt! Is anyone out there?!”

His voice echoed uselessly off the cold stone.

“Let me out! I was trying to save Hespelt! You don’t lock away a man who tried to protect his family! I don’t belong here!”

He pounded on the door. Kicked it. Slammed his fists against it again and again—but no one came.

“Rashid! Are you out there?! That woman’s deceived you! She’s tricked you!”

But the door remained shut. Not a single word came back.

When he had been dragged down here, the knights had said nothing. They’d simply thrown him in and walked away.

“Anyone! Rashid!”

Silence.

It was all falling apart.

The glory of House Hespelt was right in front of him—and it had all slipped through his fingers.

Where had it gone wrong?

No. He hadn’t done anything wrong. This was just temporary. Rashid would come to his senses. He would recognize Clu’s value.

“This doesn’t make sense…”

He clutched his head, muttering.

Then, he slumped down against the door. Slowly, he slid to the floor, defeated.

Someone would come.

Someone had to come.

I won’t be broken in a place like this. I’m not the kind of man who falls here.

But where had everyone gone?

Where were the followers who pledged loyalty to him?

Where was the priest who swore his testimony would change everything?

Where was Sheffer? The one who whispered so many promises? Where was he now?

“This… this can’t be right. I wasn’t wrong… Hespelt is mine…”

He had been completely cast aside.

And that was his punishment.

He could scream, plead, declare his innocence—but no one listened. No one cared.

And perhaps even when death finally came for him… no one would be there then either.

It’s her. It’s all her fault. That woman. Tericia.

His body sagged, worn from shouting and fury.

The only light in the room, one lone torch mounted on the far wall , flickered and crackled softly, burning lower… and lower.

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