Chapter 9

Caisar, who was on the receiving end of Princess Daisy’s ardent gaze, continued to watch Melody closely. He observed her as she slowly moved along the wall, all the while studying the banquet hall. After a period of careful glances, she sneaked out of the hall.

“Um... Do you enjoy the opera, Captain?” Daisy asked.

“Not especially,” he answered bluntly.

“Oh... I see...” The princess’s golden eyes began to shimmer with tears. She bit her lip, looking up at him with shining eyes.

While others might have been flustered by her pitiful reaction, Caisar was actually getting somewhat annoyed. He couldn’t understand how his words had been enough to bring her to tears.

In the meantime, Melody had completely disappeared.

After a moment of contemplation, he politely addressed Daisy. “May I be excused for a moment, Your Highness?”

Her golden eyes widened and then began to water. It seemed that tears would likely fall at any moment.

She slowly nodded. “Yes... Please, go ahead.”

“Farewell, then,” he said curtly. He turned away from her with a decisively cold demeanor and approached his parents. “Father, Mother. You can depart without me. I’ll make my own way home.”

“Is something the matter?” asked the duke.

“I have to check on something.”

“Do as you wish, Caisar. When have you ever needed our permission?” Duchess Bethel then turned to her husband. “So, when are we going home?” she asked sharply.

Duke Bethel sunk into a troubled silence. He remained tight-lipped as their son left without exchanging any further pleasantries.

I would bet my entire fortune that those two are the most uninteresting men in the entire world, Eanne thought to herself. The heavens had blessed her husband and son with everything but charm and humor, the only two things that really mattered to her.

“So this is my fate. I wish I’d had at least one entertaining daughter...”

* * *

It was a moonless night. Melody walked alone on a dark and unlit path.

She had always found banquets to be boring. She had never experienced a moment of joy at such events. They had always made her feel insignificant, and that had been true since childhood.

Even worse, they had left her mother feeling miserable as well. Thanks to her sensitive ears, Melody often ended up overhearing others’ cruel whispers about herself and her mother. Because of this gossip, Gabrielle had been extremely reluctant to bring her daughter to the banquets with her.

Whenever the little girl was inevitably forced to participate, her mother would gently cover her ears. She would gaze at Melody tenderly with soft blue eyes. Even the younger Melody had always been able to sense the sadness within that gaze.

As she recalled these memories, Melody’s nose began to tingle and her eyes began to sting. She took a deep breath. I’m not going to cry. Today is supposed to be a happy day.

She suddenly hiked up her skirt and took off running. It was said that her ancestors, the clanspeople of the Avive Mountains, had always loved to run. Melody found that her mood improved whenever she sprinted with all her might, pushing her strong legs against the ground.

As she neared her residence, she noticed that the guards on the wall surrounding the Northern Gate numbered significantly fewer than usual. She took a moment to count the guards on top of the wall.

“That’s fewer than half the normal number... They must have concentrated the guards around Corbella Hall since there are so many important guests today,” she mumbled.

Another thought occurred to her. Caisar was in the banquet hall, which meant he wouldn’t be standing guard tonight. Her heart pounded with excitement. She desperately wanted more of her uncle’s cookies, and the last time she saw him they hardly had a chance to catch up.

She hurried back to her quarters. She had to get out of these uncomfortable clothes.

Unbeknownst to Melody, Caisar was at the Northern Gate, hiding in the shadows and keeping watch over her residence through a gap in the wall. He had changed from his formal banquet attire into more practical clothing.

It’s been nearly a month since the intruder was last seen, he thought. The increased security had likely been a strong deterrent, of course. But what was most suspicious was that this period without sightings coincided with Princess Melody’s confinement, while she was unable to move around freely. If she was the intruder, it made sense there had been no trespasses for the past month.

The intruder had scaled the wall with incredible ease, and there was evidence indicating they had a history of frequent entries and exits. It was clear that the intruder, highly likely to be the princess, had been making regular trips outside the palace.

Caisar predicted that the intruder would take advantage of the relaxed security and attempt to scale the Northern Wall again tonight. So many of his questions were still without answers. Who are they? Was it really Princess Melody? If so, why is she doing this? Is she truly an Oddity?

After waiting for quite some time, his sharp senses finally picked up on another person’s movements.

He watched carefully as a figure approached the wall. They lurked in the shadows and moved stealthily, wearing a heavy cloak that concealed their face and body. After glancing here and there to check for the presence of guards, they began ascending the stairs on the inner face of the wall.

Even a swordmaster like Caisar had hardly been able to notice their presence. The average knight likely would have remained completely unaware until the very end.

The mysterious figure was soon atop the wall. In contrast to their cautious ascent, they sprinted freely across the top of the rampart, then in one swift motion vaulted over the wall’s edge and leaped off.

It was an unexpectedly bold move. Caisar was reminded of the night that the intruder had escaped from Robel. But seeing something from afar and witnessing it up close were truly worlds apart.

He hurried to check the outer base of the wall. The figure landed gracefully and bolted away.

Glancing around, Caisar considered his options. If the intruder left through the main outer gate, he would lose track of them for sure. He carefully estimated the wall’s height, his palms turning cold. He had never attempted something like this before.

Even as he contemplated his next move, he never once tore his eyes from the figure. Delaying his pursuit any further would mean losing them for good.

Without another thought, Caisar began to climb. The wind swept across his entire body.

The dizzying height at the top of the wall made even Caisar’s battle-hardened heart skip a beat. Clenching his teeth, he focused his Oddness into his legs and leaped.

He was struck by the sensation of his organs floating upward as he plummeted toward the ground at a terrifying speed. Unlike the intruder, he landed with a loud and ungraceful thud, even rolling a couple of times. A sharp pain coursed through his body, drawing an involuntary groan. All the while, he persistently kept his focus on the retreating figure.

He quickly got up. After going to such lengths, he was determined not to lose his target. He forgot about his pain and ran.

Melody had successfully made her way to the Mercenary Guild, much to her uncle’s surprise.

He quickly scanned her face. “Are you hurt? I heard you were wounded across the back. Are you really all right, kid?”

“Of course. Would I have come if I weren’t?” Melody shot back.

Gerald closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He suddenly exploded in anger. “You reckless little idiot! How could you come back after being injured like that? If you leave the palace again, do it properly, not by scrambling over walls!”

“Oh, quit scolding, Uncle. Claire already gave me an earful for even thinking about leaving again.”

“She had every right to! I heard you lost a good deal of blood.”

His face was full of worry. Seeing her uncle so concerned, Melody felt a warmth fill the emptiness inside her.

“I’m hungry. Can I have some cookies?” She clutched her stomach as if truly famished, prompting Gerald to finally give in.

“I thought you just came from a banquet. You didn’t get enough to eat there?”

“I ate plenty. But I’m still hungry.”

Gerald placed an entire box of cookies and a glass of warm milk in front of her. She devoured five cookies in a flash.

“How did you even manage to slip out this evening? Will you be able to get back in?” Gerald asked.

“There’s a banquet going on. With so many distinguished guests at Corbella Hall, they’ve tightened the security there. That leaves the Northern Gate practically unguarded.” She smiled. “Pack me plenty of cookies, I can handle taking them with me.”

“All right, kid. I got it.”

Melody examined her uncle’s face with sadness in her eyes. “You have to take care of yourself, Uncle.”

Outside, Caisar stood on the bustling street and lifted his eyes to the sign reading “Mercenary Guild.” The intruder had definitely entered this building.

Gerald suddenly cracked open the window and felt the air. It smells damp.

He turned to Melody. “You should head back, kid. Seems like it’s going to rain soon.”

“Rain? Not now!” she cried.

She quickly tied the bag of cookies around her waist and threw on her cloak. “Bye, Uncle!” she called.

“Be careful!” he shouted back.

If her uncle said it was going to rain, it surely would. The slippery conditions would make ascending the wall impossible.

Anxiety churned in Melody’s heart. If she couldn’t make it back inside the palace, it would be a disaster.

She rushed through the streets, barely paying attention to what was in front of her. The pavement was unusually crowded today. Dodging through the swarms of people, she collided with someone head-on. It wasn’t that she had failed to evade them—rather, the other person had deliberately blocked her path.

Melody lifted her head in surprise to see Caisar.

He stepped toward her, and at that moment, the wind swept off her hood to reveal her tidy brown hair and clear blue eyes.

The pearl earrings she wore gleamed under the moonlight as she stared up at him in astonishment. Her eyes widened in surprise.

Caisar sensed an alarmingly quick movement from somewhere within the crowd. Before he could fully adopt a defensive stance, a cold blade was stealthily held against him.

Gerald, wearing a fierce expression, pressed the dagger closely against his abdomen. “Back off,” he growled.

The two men glared at each other.

Melody turned as pale as a ghost. Clutching her uncle’s arm, she exclaimed, “Stop! I know him!”