Chapter 96: Ironically
- Reira ☾⋆⁺₊✧ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁
- Oct 8, 2025
- 8 min read
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“What is the meaning of this? I am a guest of His Highness, the Grand Duke! Let me out of here immediately!”
A sharp, scream-like cry echoed through the corridor.
Expressionless, Alicia silently moved toward the source of the sound.
“Are you really going to do this?”
“If you’re not going to lend me the sword, you may as well turn back.”
“No, that’s not what I meant. There’s no need for you to soil your hands unnecessarily, my lady.”
Fenrir’s gaze fell on Alicia’s hands.
Though slightly rough, her small, pale hands were ill-suited to metal.
“Then is it alright for your hands to get dirty?”
“As for me, I’m used to this sort of thing.”
"It’s the same for me, too."
“…It’s the same for you?”
Fenrir, who had been following Alicia, suddenly paused.
But just by looking at her back, he couldn’t tell what expression she wore.
She was simply moving forward.
Fenrir was about to speak, but seeing Alicia come to a stop, he grasped the sword at his waist.
He had come under the pretence of offering to hold the sword, but his true intention was different.
He intended to serve as Alicia’s sword himself.
“Alicia!”
Having spotted her, James ran toward her.
He was trapped inside the prison.
“Alicia, hurry and tell them! I’m your guest, not someone to be treated like this—”
“Let him out.”
"He is a suspicious person."
“It’s alright. Let him out. I’ll take responsibility.”
The soldier hesitated, then drew the keys.
Alicia stood there quietly, watching until James was released.
“Thanks, Alicia. It seems there was some kind of misunderstanding.”
James smiled awkwardly as he stepped out of the cell.
Alicia turned her gaze toward the suitcase lying on the floor.
“Where were you trying to go in such a hurry?”
“The Association sent an urgent message.”
“Was it really that urgent that you left without letting me know?”
“I had my reasons.”
James turned his head, noticed Fenrir, and furrowed his brow.
The tall blonde man, almost as imposing as Cabelenus, was strikingly noticeable.
Only after realising that fact did James notice his own dishevelled shirt.
Having been subdued by the soldiers and tossed around on the floor, it was obvious even without a mirror.
Right now, he must have looked like a complete mess.
“Is it something you can’t even tell me?”
“Sorry, it’s something important.”
James tried to wipe the stains off his shirt with his fingertips.
But that alone wasn’t enough to get the shirt completely clean.
He gave up trying to wipe it off and simply covered the stains with his hands.
Alicia watched him for a moment, then clasped her hands neatly together.
“James, have you seen Michael by any chance?”
“Why are you asking me about Michael?”
“You spent a lot of time together preparing for my birthday present.”
“That may be true, but not today. Like I said, I had to leave in a hurry after getting the Association’s message. I didn’t have the capacity to worry about anything else.”
“Is that so?”
“Sorry, but may I leave first? It’s really urgent.”
“If it’s urgent, then you should go.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
James grinned proudly as he lifted his suitcase.
He couldn’t even properly meet Alicia’s gaze.
Without a word, Alicia turned her body toward Fenrir.
Fenrir carefully drew the dagger he had kept tucked in his cloak.
“You’re not feeling well right now. Heavy things wouldn’t be good for you.”
He subtly covered the sword at his waist with his hand and offered only the dagger to Alicia.
“How thoughtful of you.”
“It’s my duty to protect you, my lady.”
Fenrir shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.
Alicia averted her gaze from the longsword at his waist and picked up the dagger.
It had been a long time since she’d held a blade, but the weight already felt fairly familiar.
She could not go to Rubertine as she had promised her mother.
“Could you step outside for a moment?”
Alicia glanced alternately between Fenrir and the soldier.
Fenrir furrowed his brows, flustered.
“You’re not planning to be alone with just the two of you, are you?”
“It’ll only take a moment.”
“But…”
“Don’t worry, it won’t take long at all.”
Fenrir hesitated, then reluctantly nodded.
No matter how much he tried to find an opening, Alicia showed not the slightest intention of backing down.
“If it takes too long, I’ll come in.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“Don’t push yourself too hard.”
Even after saying that, Fenrir lingered in place for quite a while before finally forcing himself to move.
After making sure Fenrir had left, Alicia turned around.
“James, let’s talk for a moment.”
“Talk? About what?”
James curled his lips into a smile.
Alicia stood in front of James, holding her head high.
“I have something to ask.”
“While pointing a dagger at me like that?”
“Depending on the situation, I could even hurt you with this.”
“Alicia.”
“Or I could even kill you.”
Alicia stared straight at James.
Flustered, James could only part his lips.
“…You… don’t trust me.”
“The James Nixon I know isn’t like this.”
“Alicia.”
“Tell me right now. Where’s Michael?”
Alicia’s eyes hardened.
“Why are you asking me about Michael?”
“Because Michael has disappeared.”
James instinctively stepped back.
Alicia’s grip tightened on the dagger.
“So, Michael disappeared, but why are you asking me?"
“The James I know would have worried first if he heard Michael was missing, but right now, you just seem desperate to make excuses.”
“That’s because you suddenly made an unreasonable assumption—”
“Is it really a misunderstanding?”
“...”
James’s eyes twitched.
Alicia let out a weary breath.
“I’ll ask again. Where’s Michael?”
“How would I know?”
“Is that so? Then let me ask you this. What did you say to Michael?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
James spoke firmly, but Alicia didn’t lower the dagger.
James frowned as he noticed the veins bulging on the back of Alicia’s hand.
“I know you think Michael is special. But this is going too far. Who threatens someone with a dagger just because a child cried a little?”
“If you made Michael cry, then you must have hurt him.”
“Michael is like my own child as well. I would never do such a thing.”
“You say you would never?”
“Yeah. I would never, aaaaaah—!”
The moment James reached out his hand, red blood splattered everywhere.
Alicia strode forward, paying no mind to the blood that had splashed on her skirt hem.
James gripped his wounded hand tight and ground his teeth.
“What are you doing?! Did you seriously attack me?”
“Today I realised something. Every time you lie, the left corner of your mouth twitches.”
“What?”
“Tell me right now what you did to Michael.”
“Alicia, calm down and listen to me. I was just—”
“Tell me.”
Alicia growled and pointed the dagger.
Drops of blood dripped from the tip of the blade.
“Don’t act tough. I know you can’t even swing it properly.”
“Then don’t dodge.”
Alicia swung her dagger without a care.
James narrowly avoided the blade and grimaced.
“What are you doing?!”
“Why dodge if you know I can’t swing it properly?”
“Alicia!”
“I was grateful to you. It’s true that you’ve helped me all this time. That’s why I held back and tried to think positively about it.”
If only he hadn’t touched Michael.
Alicia’s eyes flashed.
James instinctively took a step back.
The woman before him was clearly Alicia, yet she didn’t seem like her.
“Go on, tell me. What did you do to my child?”
“A-Alicia, I just…”
“No need to make excuses. That’s not what I want to hear.”
“I didn’t say anything out of the ordinary!”
“Then what did you say?”
Alicia stepped forward, and James backed away.
The sharp blade gleamed under the light.
"Michael found out who his biological father was! It wasn’t because of me — he was shocked to learn that his father is the Grand Duke of Schwarhan!"
“You’re saying it’s because of him?”
Alicia let out a short breath.
James seized the moment and spoke urgently.
“Yes, because of him! It’s been that way from the start!”
“...”
“If the Grand Duke hadn’t come looking for us in the first place, none of this would have happened!”
“...”
“It’s entirely that man’s fault! That’s why, if he just disappeared—”
“No. Even if that man wasn't here, we would've ended up like this.”
Alicia’s lips twisted.
Just by peeling away a layer of the bond they had shared, many things suddenly looked different.
There had been more than a few things she had forced herself to ignore just to remain friends with James.
“I always thought I wasn’t normal. So I tried, whenever I could, to follow your standards. To me, you were the measure of normalcy.”
“...”
“But now that I think about it, there was no need. Everyone has different standards, so how can we decide what’s normal and what isn’t?”
“You — what are you even saying right now?”
“You told me before that I was strange, right? But by my standards, you’re the strange one.”
“…I’m strange? By your standards?”
James sneered and glared at Alicia.
“Yes. You’re strange.”
Alicia let out a harsh breath, her expression contorting.
“You might be able to dress up the lie about him being married, and even erasing my traces so he couldn’t find me, as something done for my sake, but the rest wasn’t really like that.”
“What on earth did I do to deserve this?”
“You hurt Michael. You always blame others for everything. And above all, you always justify everything only for yourself.”
“I haven’t done anything wrong. I’ve always acted for you and Michael’s sake—”
“No. That wasn’t for us.”
James’s eyes hardened as Alicia shook her head firmly.
“Did the Grand Duke tell you to say that?”
“No. I decided that myself.”
‘You — the left corner of your mouth keeps twitching.’
Alicia adjusted her grip on the dagger.
・・・・・
Clang—.
The bloodstained dagger skidded across the floor.
Fenrir quickly helped Alicia to her feet.
“Are you alright?”
“Don’t come closer. Your clothes will get dirty.”
"Clothes aren’t the issue right now."
Fenrir didn’t hesitate and once again supported her.
This time, Alicia didn’t refuse his hand.
“For now, I’ll escort you to your room, my lady.”
Fenrir pulled her close and briefly lowered his gaze.
On the floor lay the unconscious James, blood soaking the area around his shoulder.
Contrary to his worries, the woman was more adept with a blade than he had imagined.
It wasn't at a professional level, but it was clear she had swung the dagger more than once or twice.
“Don’t take me to my room; take me to His Highness.”
“To His Highness?”
“That’s more important right now.”
“...”
“I know it’s inconvenient, but I’d appreciate your help. My legs occasionally go weak, even when I feel okay.”
Alicia let out a small smile.
Fenrir pressed his lips tightly together.
Ironically, though covered in blood, she looked almost pitiable when she smiled.
She hardly looked like someone capable of hurting anyone.
Had he not seen James lying on the ground, he might not have believed it.
“You should probably clean up a bit first. His Highness would be shocked to see you like this.”
“Then I’ll clean it on the way. It’s urgent, you see.”
Alicia wiped her wet hands with the handkerchief Fenrir handed her.
The once-pristine cloth quickly turned crimson.
“I’ll replace the handkerchief for you.”
“You don’t need to worry about the handkerchief. My lady, it's not the handkerchief right now…”
“Not the handkerchief?”
Alicia instinctively raised her head.
At their locked gaze, Fenrir’s Adam’s apple bobbed reflexively.
He tried to act like nothing was wrong, but his mouth suddenly went dry.
Even though she was splattered with blood, she carried a faint scent of fresh grass.
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