I Was Tricked into This Fake Marriage!

Chapter 5

I strained to see through the cloud of dust. Struggling to regain my composure, I tucked my head back into the carriage, and then—

CRASH!

I heard an earth-shattering collision, and sounds of screaming erupted from the front of the caravan. The massive stagecoach from earlier hurtled through the air like a toy.

Next, from behind an inky shadow, I saw a glowing red figure emerge to weave in and out amongst the people and horses.

Sir Heiden reached over and flung the carriage curtains closed.

Startled by the thick red curtains suddenly blocking my vision, I had to stifle myself from screaming.

My handmaiden Ann cowered beside me, pushing herself back against the carriage seat, her eyes wide and stricken with fear.

We sat mute and frozen in terror, barely remembering to breathe. The deathly still quiet surrounding us was punctuated only by the sound of clashing arms and anguished bellows.

I heard a gruesome scream that seemed to grow closer and closer. It was an unbearable sound, more animal than human.

“H-help...!”

Thud.

I heard something soft yet heavy crumple to the ground in a heap.

I leapt out of the carriage, shrieking as if all my reason had been paralyzed by the terror that had taken hold over every inch of my body.

“Jen, no!”

CRRRUNCH.

A lethal mass of bloodstained steel tore into the side of the carriage, skewering its elegantly carved and painted paneling.

“Guh... Ack!”

Jen was making strange choking sounds, too stunned to move from the driver’s seat.

I stared blankly at the terrifying sword that had pierced the carriage, barely grazing Jen’s neck in the process. Then I saw the gloved hand grasping its hilt.

The glove was pitch black. It was soaked in a scarlet fluid that dripped down in rich, sanguineous red droplets. The sticky liquid seemed to permeate everything from the man’s gloves to his black sleeves and the rest of his similarly dark attire.

I stood next to the driver’s seat at an angle, transfixed by what I saw.

A crimson sword. Clothes as black as pitch. Inky red droplets trickling down a white cheek. Raven-black hair... He was lean, almost sinewy, reminiscent of a panther.

This man was like a shadowy monochromatic painting with splashes of sinister red, and he glanced at me with his glowering red eyes.

The moment our eyes met, I felt a sharp pain as if he had plunged his sword into my heart. A sense of complete hopelessness washed over me, like my life was over.

It was a sensation I had experienced once before. I was paralyzed.

So, I thought to myself, This is how I die in this life.

But those blood-red irises stared at me intently, then rummaged for something in his pockets with his spare hand.

A rolled smoke.

His fingers left red fingerprints all over the little white roll of paper.

After the man placed it in his mouth and flicked it with his fingers, it began to smolder. He took a deep drag, then exhaled a long plume of white toward the sky before pulling his sword from the side of the carriage.

The blade slipped out noiselessly, unlike when it had first impaled its target. I followed the sight of the blood-soaked blade with my eyes until it slid back into its pitch-black scabbard.

The man stepped down from the driver’s seat and turned his back to us as he puffed on his rolled smoke.

A sedative...

I didn’t know why I’d thought that, but the sense of paralyzing fear that had taken over my body started to melt away.

I forced my wobbly legs to move and approached the poor, shell-shocked squire who was blinking back tears. I waved my hand in front of his glassy eyes.

“Jen.”

But he showed no sign of regaining his senses.

The other knight was clutching at the reins for dear life, feeling around with fumbling fingers as if to make sure that his head was still connected to its neck. Sir Heiden was similarly petrified.

Even the horses that had been shocked still under the weight of their fear began to nicker and roll their hooves as they attempted to avoid the man in black.

That was when I realized something. That thing I had just felt when I thought I was about to die had been caused by his bloodlust.

I shut the door to the carriage and climbed into the driver’s seat. I had never driven a carriage before, but I had certainly ridden horses. I cracked the whip at the horses’ rears.

The steeds galloped off as if eager to escape from the area. But the brake was on, and the carriage heaved and lurched in place while the wheels crunched.

Still in a daze, the squire released the break with trembling hands. The carriage began to move.

The horses carrying my two knights on their backs dutifully trailed behind the carriage, even without any command being given.

* * *

It would be hard to say what was going through my mind when we got out of there. I felt nauseous, but I felt fine for someone who had just seen a corpse. That was just the way I felt.

It took two hours before the squire was able to take over the reins. Twice he stuck his head out away from the driver’s seat to vomit.

The knights seemed to hang on out of sheer force of will. My handmaiden, who had presumably fainted when I jumped out of the carriage, was as quiet as a mouse.

So, despite having the most sheltered upbringing, I seemed to be the one who was dealing with things better than most.

This was the first time I had seen a corpse. I had, however, seen my own death.

While I feared the death that I would inevitably have to go through “again,” I knew that death was not the end.

That man had confronted me with my death.

He seemed to me a man who wouldn’t hesitate to tear even the smallest of creatures limb from limb. His glowering red eyes were like flashing warnings. He was not someone you could hope to reason with. Those weren’t the eyes of a human.

And that rolled smoke he’d started smoking—that was how he’d indicated that was the end to his slaughter.

I recognized that scent from somewhere. I remembered the Nine Nights agent telling me as clear as day that it was a sedative.

Those dark clothes, his inhuman movements. His strength.

I caught a glimpse of the stagecoach that had been ahead of us as we passed by the scene of the massacre. The driver’s seat was pulverized, reduced to smoldering ashes as if it had been crushed by a giant iron ball.

But there was nothing there that could’ve caused such devastating damage to the stagecoach. Nothing but that man. He must have caused the destruction.

Who could be capable of such a thing? I knew of only one person who was capable of such inhuman strength.

“Colliard...” I mumbled.

“...I reckon you’re right,” Sir Heiden responded in a subdued voice.

The killer of our king. His moniker as the Mad Murderer brought to mind the image of a deranged joker.

But he was no joker. He was pure evil. My stomach churned as I recalled his bloodstained visage.

It seemed more than a miracle to be alive.

* * *

I was in the office of the imperial chancellor, a young man with silvery-blue hair tied back neatly in a ponytail. He reached out and plucked the topmost document from a towering pile.

The pages caught on his long white middle finger, where a slight indent had been left behind from countless long hours of holding a pen.

Sopen had been the final nation to fall. The continent had at last been brought to its knees at the feet of Emperor Ashyer R. Delpice.

The young chancellor’s roving eyes quickly took in the latest news.

The document detailed the most recent whereabouts of Colliard, that unholy terror of the continent.

After dealing with the members of the Sopen royal family, Colliard had headed to Efran County in South Sopen.

Efran...

That was a place that the chancellor knew well. It was also a place he could never return to.

The chancellor tucked a sliver of light-colored hair behind his ear and carefully resumed reading the communications from Sopen Castle.

Something resided there that Colliard had to find at all costs. Something old and ancient. Something that had fallen from the sky long ago.

The star fragment.

It only existed in near-forgotten fairy tales, stories that had been passed down solely by word of mouth through the years. But if it truly did exist, then the only place it could be found was off the cliffs of Sear Coast in the Efrans’ territory.

It was the only thing that could potentially provide Colliard with the answer he was looking for.

More precisely, that was where the star fragment was most likely to be found, but its existence itself still had not entirely been confirmed.

But the emperor was fiercely unwilling to give Colliard even such a vague piece of information. He would only give it to Colliard after—and not before—he had succeeded in ravaging and conquering all of the kingdoms on the continent.

The emperor had issued a secret order. Colliard would only be given the information that the star fragment might be found along Sear Coast after all the loose ends in Sopen Castle had been tied up and dealt with.

Colliard had cut down the three Nine Nights Guild members who had delivered this information on the spot.

Had that simply been an extension of his bloodlust after slaughtering the members of the royal family? Or was it payback for withholding this information from him?

Regardless, he was a gruesome man.

But after killing all those people, he didn’t so much as even look in the direction of the coast. Instead, he was heading back to Delpice’s capital.

Taking advantage of Colliard’s change of heart, the emperor commanded him to seek out and eliminate the traitors who had recently been sniffed out.

Those orders seem to have been carried out, thankfully. But how long would his compliance last?

In truth, Colliard was not someone who could be controlled. He was a man who possessed powers that couldn’t (and shouldn’t) be a human’s in the first place. If he chose to disobey his orders, they had no way to compel him to do otherwise.

However, something had emerged that he needed from the emperor and the chancellor. That thing being information on the whereabouts of the so-called star fragment. This was thought to be the only reason for Colliard’s recent obedience.

So why is he still following orders now that the information is in his hands?

No. Perhaps Colliard had already been to the coast without anyone knowing.

Had he failed to find the star fragment there? Did he believe that they were still holding back information? And what would he do once he learned they had nothing more for him?

The chancellor rubbed his bleary eyes. He believed the chances of ever finding the star fragment were exceedingly low to begin with.

Not only did it seem unlikely for such a legendary object to actually exist, no chunk of rock—magical or otherwise—could ever provide respite to a monstrosity such as Colliard.

Regardless of what he believed in, the chancellor decided he would review the collection of local stories and folk tales gathered from around the continent with fresh eyes in the morning.

Perhaps he would find a missed clue about the star fragment. It was always possible.

Though he had enough trouble on his mind, it was much better to be a little tired than to worry about losing his head.

* * *

Upon arriving at the capital, I, the two knights, the squire, and my handmaiden barely had time to recover from the shock of our journey before we had to prepare for the ball.

I had to face reality. The burden of responsibility to protect my people weighed heavier than my fear of having faced the devil.

The luxury hotels were filled, so we were grateful for the two meager rooms we managed to secure at a cheaper establishment. They were uncomfortable but still better than sleeping inside a cramped carriage, so we took our rest however we could.

A week quickly passed from our arrival in the capital. I kept myself busy during that time, purchasing and altering a gown to wear at the ball and relearning the etiquette of the imperial court.

In the halls of the luxury hotels, daily lectures were being held to familiarize those seeking the emperor’s audience with the manners and mores of the empire.

This was to minimize the chance of any aristocrats being punished for unwittingly breaking etiquette in the emperor’s presence.

Oddly enough, the etiquette of the empire was similar to that of the Kingdom of Sopen in more ways than one. All I had to do was memorize a few more greetings and phrases.

The dances were similar too. I had two left feet, so it would have taken me months to learn them if the steps had been different.

Thank God.

But I still hadn’t received any information on prospective husbands. I sent an inquiry to Nine Nights every day, and every day I received the same response: that the candidates were coming to the capital, and to wait.

I pressed the guild to find out how many candidates would be coming and if I could receive the information in advance, but no. All they would tell me was to wait.

Four more days passed.

The ball was already underway at the palace. The offspring of the imperial aristocracy were making their social debut, and the streets were filled with all of the servants they had brought with them.

In four more days, I would have an audience with the emperor. Feeling fretful and anxious, I sent my squire to the guild for news twice daily. And still the answer was the same.

The next day, Sir Heiden brought a copy of the Declaration of Intent for Marital Contract Form from the imperial civil affairs office.

I was thrown by the long name of the form. I didn’t remember it being called something so complicated in Sopen.

Why so wordy? Why couldn’t they have just called it a marital registration form?

I looked at Sir Heiden’s stony face and let out a small sigh.

“Isn’t there still more time?”

“It appears that the office is processing an abnormal volume of civil cases at the moment. Some people haven’t been able to submit their forms even after waiting in line all day. Others, for several days.”

“Civil cases?”

“There have been large and small incidents around the city. The imperial citizens are so territorial that they lodge hundreds of disputes each day. My lady, we can’t afford to wait any longer. Even if we submit today, there’s no guarantee that your form will even be accepted until the day after tomorrow.”

I saw that both his and my personal information had already been filled out on the form. The seal of the Heiden Barony had already been stamped. All that was left was the seal of Efran County before it could be submitted.