The Crown Prince, who was staggering as if he was about to fall, quickly regained his footing and strength.
The Duke's face was incredibly fierce. He seemed to have intense emotions, as if he might kill Rachel on the spot. With an energy that no one had ever felt before, the Crown Prince quickly ordered,
"What are you doing? Stop the Duke now!"
The Crown Prince knew that the guards did not want to confront the Duke, so he quickly shouted.
Only then did the hesitant, hesitant guards act as one, raising their spears towards the Duke. Maybe it was because they were nervous, but the tips of the spears seemed to be trembling slightly. The frightened knights formed a random line.
But Clint didn't bat an eyelid, focusing his attention on Rachel as if he intended to kill her.
“…”
The Duke had drawn his sword despite knowing that the Crown Prince was in the palace, and this situation was a threat to the Crown Prince. The situation was about to explode.
The guards surrounded the duke at a certain distance, and directed their spears at him. But they kept their bodies as far away as possible.
Between Rachel and Clint, the Crown Prince stood, and the Duke, pointing his sword at Rachel, was getting closer and closer.
As he moved, the knights maintained their encirclement, following him awkwardly with uncertain steps.
No one was willing to attack the Duke first, because it was obvious that he was not in his right mental state.
Clint walked carelessly, seemingly unaware that several knights were surrounding him, and finally approached Rachel. He held the tip of his sword under her chin, as if he was about to kill her.
Rachel seemed very surprised by his actions.
She didn't expect Clint to come out so strong.
The Duke had no way to restrain his movements, as Rachel had clearly admitted to knowing of his presence in the palace, and his drawn sword could have been interpreted as a threat to the Crown Prince. The situation was liable to explode at any moment.
The guards pointed their spears at the Duke, who approached Rachel, but their bodies remained as far away as possible.
It seemed that Clint was so focused on Rachel that he was capable of killing her at any moment.
"incredible."
Clint muttered unintentionally.
He was puzzled by this unbelievable situation.
He didn't seem to expect that Rachel would confess so easily.
Surrounded by guards, Alejandro drew his sword without hesitation. The sound of a sharp sword echoed in the tense atmosphere.
Alejandro approached the Duke to protect him, and tried to calm the situation.
“What are you doing? This is the palace where His Majesty resides. It is wise not to do any trivial business.”
The Crown Prince, Leighton, intervenes to warn the Duke, confirming the Emperor's presence.
But Clint, who was already in a different state, did not pay attention to words like “Emperor” or “His Majesty.”
“Rachel.”
Clint called to Rachel in a low voice, tightening his grip on the sword.
Clint thought that if he could kill her here, he might be able to find out if Rachel was really responsible for everything. This was the best he could think of, or rather, the last shred of patience he had.
“Your Highness! Don’t you hear what I’m saying?”
When Layton screamed again, Clint finally turned around. Alejandro answered briefly and quickly passed through the guards to exit the room. He had no doubt that protecting Psyche was of the utmost importance to the Duke.
The fate of Clint's life wasn't a big concern to him, he was more worried about the guards and the Crown Prince.
There was nothing Alejandro could do to stop Clint. He was well aware that no one was able to stop the Duke. Alejandro quickly left to bring Psyche before his master.
“Please stay safe ma’am!”
He expressed confidence that Psyche would resolve the situation for the benefit of everyone.
However, he wasn't sure that it would end peacefully, but Alejandro knew that this was their best chance.
“Please stay safe ma’am!”
However, Alejandro quickly moved away.
“It looks like you're going to die here...”
Clint muttered under his breath.
Rachel did not open her mouth out of fear. Clint had drawn his sword harder, ready to kill her at this moment.
As he was swinging his sword, a distant memory and a scene that he wanted to forget suddenly appeared in his mind.
When was that?
It was the day when the moonlight shattered into ripples on the surface of the Black Lake, and fell hard.
At the same time, he dived into the deep lake's abyss.
He felt a suffocating sensation around his neck, as if death was imminent, as if this was the abyss.
But almost immediately, he emerged from the water, as if this was not the time to die.
“Oh, cough, cough!”
In front of him, a girl stood at the edge of the lake, her arms crossed as if nothing had happened.
Because of the darkness, the red-haired girl looked like her clothes were soaked in blood.
Clint struggled to get back to the surface, and even a young boy, about seven years old, tried everything he could to pull him down. The current of the water was relentless, and no matter how much he struggled, Clint could not overcome the gravity of the lake.
Even as he tried to resist death, Rachel only laughed a little. With a calm smile, Rachel watched Clint struggle in the water.
Rachel watched Clint for a few more moments as he struggled desperately to stay afloat, and when he gave up, her lips finally opened.
Will you do as I say?
“Jack!”
To avoid death, Clint clenched his teeth. Although he could taste the metallic taste of blood, he could not regain his composure because of the lake water that filled his mouth. He clenched his teeth harder.
The face of the girl, who was only eleven years old, at that moment looked like a devil.
“If you want to stay here, you better do as I say.”
"Jack! Cough!"
Now that Clint was drained of his strength, he had nothing to do but cough. He could have easily escaped from this place if Rachel reached out and saved him, but he wanted to live on his terms, without her help.
However, leaving the lake without anyone's help seemed inappropriate.
And above all, it was Rachel who pushed him into the lake.
The eleven-year-old girl's face looked devilish.
“If you want to survive here, you better do as I say.”
"Jack! Oh!"
Now, Clint lost all his strength, so he dived under the water at times and then came to the surface at other times. The world was calm, but again and again it turned into turmoil. At that moment, he thought that maybe it would be better to die.
“Okay, I'll save you, but you have to do what I tell you. Understood?”
As if hearing a response, Rachel made a gesture, and one of the men who had been monitoring the situation stepped forward behind her. With his tall body and strong build, he effortlessly jumped into the lake to pull Clint out.
“Cough, cough.”
As Clint forcefully expelled the water, Rachel whispered from nearby.
“From today on, you are my fiancé. Understood?”
A shiver ran down his spine, and at the same time, Clint lost consciousness. When he woke up, he had already married Rachel.
Young Clint was plagued by the fear that if he defied her, he might die again, and it took a long time for him to muster the resolve to break free from her and end this fateful connection.
Clint shook off the remaining hesitation on his finger.
He should have done this from the beginning.
"no!"
Now, the smaller Rachel no longer intimidated him.
Rachel realized that Clint really intended to kill her, but she screamed in fear with her terrified eyes and stepped back.
“It should have been done a long time ago!”
If he has any regrets, this is the only one he has.
The raised blade sparkled coldly as it caught the light. Lower the blade.
"no!"
The Crown Prince intervened in front of Rachel. Although Clint managed to slightly change the direction of his strike thanks to his sharp reflexes, the distance between him and Rachel was very close, and Layton's action was incredibly sudden.
“Your Highness!”
The guards screamed in terror.
Clint's sword was pointed at the Crown Prince's throat.
“Your Highness!”
Rachel was surprised too.
The guards rushed towards Clint, raising their spears.
In an instant, chaos broke out.