MTLNOVEL Chapter 26
“Ah, that… that…”
Embarrassment appeared on April’s face.
Liam, who had been silently looking down at her, gave a crooked smile.
‘It’s better to act like it’s a coincidence and grab her now.’
He had intentionally scattered everyone near the Duke’s room and had instructed the servants to lead the wizards trying to come here to take a detour. This was all for moments like this.
A maid’s uniform, a ridiculous mask?
He looked at April, who seemed to be sweating coldly in such suspicious attire, and spoke again.
“Sigh, no matter how many eccentrics there are in the magic tower, if you’re walking around like this, aren’t you practically advertising yourself as a suspicious person?”
“Ah, th-that…”
“And that hammer you’re holding looks like something you could use to strike someone’s head with.”
Upon Liam’s comment, April awkwardly tried to hide the hammer behind her back.
“Ah, hahahaha. This is just… my self-defense weapon. I always carry it with me, but I didn’t know what kind of place this was.”
But Liam immediately recognized it.
The hammer that April was holding was one of the luxury items presented to Duke Kaian years ago.
A masterfully crafted Partanium hammer.
However, due to the nature of Partanium, it was less durable for its intended use compared to other materials, and since the Duke never used the hammer himself, it had been left in storage.
But why would April Salt have that?
‘Self-defense, huh?’
Was she planning on smashing the heads of the envoy from Salt if needed?
For a moment, Liam’s mind wandered to the face of Bonita, who had boundless affection for April.
Even though it was worrying to send April alone to the tower, giving her such a weapon as a self-defense item…
It made her suspicious appearance feel like that of a hammer-wielding murderer hunting for prey.
“…Given that you don’t know the situation of the magic tower, I suggest you be more cautious with your appearance.”
“I… I was worried I’d be noticed by the remaining envoy from the Salt Kingdom.”
“They finished their audience this morning and left immediately, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Ah! Hahaha… I see now. Yeah…”
Hearing the awkwardly broken voice, Liam recalled the way Duke Kaian had seemed to predict this situation.
“If we press her too much, she’ll just shrink back, so let’s maintain a moderate level of surveillance and intervene only when it’s critical.”
Not even a day later, facing April in such a strange outfit, Liam couldn’t help but feel Kaian’s foresight was almost prophetic.
‘As expected, the most intelligent, sharp, and wise Duke of the Kletan Empire has foresight.’
Heartwarming!
He placed his hand over his heart for a moment before turning to look at April, who was now giving him a very odd look.
“Well then, you should return now. If you continue like this…”
As his words trailed off, April nodded, as if she understood without needing to hear more.
…The first infiltration, which had started with grand intentions, ended in failure, weak and inconspicuous.
* * *
“How embarrassing…”
After being led back to the room by Liam, I buried my face in the bed and squirmed in late embarrassment.
Honestly, I thought it would work.
I predicted that when the Duke went to meet the tower lord, his group would naturally gather over there, but then came the variable of Liam.
I still don’t understand why he didn’t accompany the Duke to meet the tower lord.
Now it was a matter of no return.
‘I have to break the core, no matter what.’
Despite the setbacks, I couldn’t give up.
What had initially felt like a vague sense of duty now seemed like a mission.
For the sake of the ‘independence’ I had been putting off, I had to gain the cooperation of the tower.
Thinking deeply on my own, I came to a compromise with common sense.
‘I’m just part of the Duke’s group anyway, right?’
A light bulb went off.
At that moment, my head, buried in the bed, lifted.
‘Do people know I’m the Princess of Salt?’
No.
‘Then, the envoy from Salt, who could prove that I’m the princess or someone related?’
Liam had said they’d left.
If time continued to pass, the tower would collapse.
The only advice from the original story, to break the core that Lemeia had given, was the key to resolving this situation.
And Duke Blaire…
‘As long as the result is good, he won’t kill me, right?’
Maybe he’d keep me alive to use me as a slave?
Deep down, a fear flickered that he might throw me to the mages as a test subject or let me die while he watched in enjoyment.
‘No, surely he wouldn’t go that far.’
Even though ‘surely’ was often what caused problems, I suppressed my worry and slowly began to prepare myself mentally.
.
.
. . .
“Princess.”
“…Yes?”
“Why are you trembling like that?”
On the way to the core of the tower, following the Duke.
At the question that broke the silence, I wiped my sweaty palms on my skirt.
Having been granted permission to approach the core under the pretense of curiosity, I was now on the verge of panicking.
“I… I caught a cold.”
“I remember you’ve been locked up in your room since the first day, though.”
“Maybe it’s because I left the window open. C-cough, cough, cough!”
The excuse was clearly unbelievable, but I couldn’t care less at that moment.
This time, the cold hammer head, which had been firmly secured on my thigh, made contact with my bare skin, raising a cold tension.
Soon, we would reach the central hall where the core was kept.
I was planning to take the hammer out and smash the core right in front of the other mages gathered there.
…A crazy thought, but it was the conclusion I had come to after several days of pondering.
“Still trembling too much. If you’re not feeling well, you should return first.”
“Y-yes…”
Hearing the Duke’s words but not really listening, I finally noticed that we had entered the hall guarded by the gatekeeper.
The floor, so smooth I couldn’t even guess the material, was engraved with a pattern of light forming from an egg cracking.
‘There was a hint right nearby.’
I couldn’t hide my regret.
The mages, who were likely distracted by the imminent threat of the core, probably hadn’t noticed it.
“Duke Blaire, that crack is the root of the problem.”
An elderly mage, presumably the tower lord, approached and started talking to the Duke.
After that, they seemed to be conversing, but I didn’t hear a word.
Thump, thump.
My gaze was fixed on the distant platform, where the bluish core hovered in the air.
A massive core, far larger than the magic stones circulating in the market.
And the crack, which looked like spider webs etched across its originally smooth surface.
As soon as the Duke’s attention was diverted, I began to slowly move forward.
“Princess?”
By the time he realized something was wrong, I had already gained enough distance.
Swoosh.
Bending down, I freed the hammer from my thigh and began running without hesitation.
“Huh?”
“Huhh? What’s she doing all of a sudden…!”
The nearby mages froze, unable to react to the sudden situation.
They couldn’t use magic recklessly, as they knew I was a guest accompanying the Duke.
With a full sprint, I reached the core, which was leaking violet mana, and raised the hammer high.
“Stop her!”
‘Too late.’
BAM!
The head of the Partanium hammer flew straight toward the core’s center.
At that moment, I felt a thrilling sensation in my hands as something shattered with a satisfying explosion of sound.
‘If things go wrong, my head might be smashed like this too, right?’
With my duty fulfilled, I shut my eyes tightly, still gripped by the overwhelming fear of the aftermath.