“Jared!”
Jared, who had collapsed weakly on the ground, heard the voice he most wanted to hear at that moment and pushed himself up.
“Olivier-sama?”
“Jared!”
He wasn’t mistaken. His beloved, older fiancée was calling his name.
He turned his face towards the direction of the voice and saw Olivier Alway, whom he would never forget, running towards him.
Following the emotions welling up in his chest, Jared couldn’t help but stand up and head towards her.
“Olivier-sama!”
“Jared!”
They crashed into each other and embraced, their arms tightening repeatedly as if to confirm each other’s safety.
“You’re safe. I didn’t know what to do when you weren’t in this mansion.”
“I’m here. Thank you for being alive. I’m so glad.”
Tears naturally welled up. He was truly grateful that the person he had been searching for was in his arms.
“Ah, ahem, well, what is it…”
“…Luzer. And Laurentz, and who is that?”
Still hugging his fiancée, Jared turned his gaze towards the person who coughed apologetically. It was his older brother, Luzer Fischer, waving a small hand. He wasn’t alone. His friend and close companion, Laurentz Herring, was also looking at them with a smile.
However, he didn’t recognize the third person, a slightly plump young man. Although he was crying with emotion, just like Luzer and Laurentz, Jared couldn’t recall anything about him.
“It’s my first time meeting you, Jared Murphy-dono. I am Jidock Rocco.”
“Jared, he’s someone my father brought as a potential fiancé before I met you. As usual, he’s a victim of my boredom relief, but he came to help me.”
“Oh, let me be clear, I have a wife… or rather, I have a queen… no, I have a wife, so please don’t misunderstand. Fufufu.”
“…Did you just say ‘queen’? Well, never mind, thank you. I can’t believe you all helped Olivier-sama. I’m truly eternally grateful.”
Reluctantly, Jared released Olivier from his embrace and expressed his gratitude to his friends.
“Don’t mention it. Laurentz and I, and even this pervert, acted because we wanted to help you both.”
“That’s right. Though he’s not here, Pfeil is also doing his best to help in another location. If our positions were reversed with Jared, we would be doing the same.”
“Fufufu, I was subtly called a pervert.”
Warm words from his companions brought tears to his eyes. He could never be grateful enough. He had incurred a debt too great to repay. No matter how much time it took, he wanted to pay it back. That’s how important Olivier had become to Jared.
“Speaking of which, how did you find this place?”
Luzer answered Jared’s question on behalf of the group.
“We searched everywhere. We looked for Olivier-sama, and from the information we gathered, we ended up here. They’re doing great work. I wonder how many people in the capital are even aware of this quiet rebellion.”
“Indeed. If things had gone differently, we would have been even further behind.”
Jared couldn’t tell if being caught up in this was good or bad, but the thought that they might have fallen further behind sent a shiver down his spine. He might never have been reunited with Olivier, or rather, he might have been permanently separated without anyone even noticing he’d been taken.
“By the way, Jared. What about Leonard Gallagher? This battle won’t end unless we take him down, will it?”
In response to Laurentz’s grim question, Jared looked awkwardly in the direction Leonard had gone. There lay the lower half of Avril Gallagher, Leonard’s daughter, petrified.
“Him…?”
“Whoa, what is this lower body! Hmm, based on its slenderness and well-cared-for appearance, it appears to be that of a woman…”
“Those legs belong to Avril Gallagher. I… killed her.”
She was a hated enemy. She had not only abducted Olivier but also attacked the mansion and controlled the Secretary Officer Ernesta with curse techniques. However, Avril, in the very end, sacrificed herself for her father, showing Jared a human side. That’s why he felt awkward.
“I see, that child… and her father?”
“No, I didn’t kill him. He seemed to have lost the will to fight after his daughter died. He went somewhere.”
“So Leonard Gallagher was a parent after all. Even though he caused us so much trouble, I can’t say ‘serves him right.’ Jared, are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine. I can still fight.”
“–Are you still planning to fight? Leonard is gone, so who are you planning to fight?”
Jared gave Olivier, who spoke with a reproachful tone, a bitter look and conveyed that there was still an enemy to defeat.
“It’s Leonard Gallagher’s father.”
“…His name was Lucas Gallagher, wasn’t it? We thought Duke Ewing was the mastermind, but is that not the case?”
“Probably. According to Leonard, his father is the source of all this. I suspect Duke Ewing is being manipulated.”
While it might not be proof, Duke Ewing’s daughter had shown concern for Jared as he was about to fight Leonard. If her father were the true culprit, her attitude might have been different.
Besides, would a daughter of the Ducal Family allow her father to permit her to become Jared’s wife solely for the purpose of bearing children with another clan’s daughter?
“So that’s how it is. In that case, let’s defeat the mastermind and end this. I’ll stay by your side until the end.”
“O-Olivier-sama?”
“Of course. I will never be separated from you again.”
Olivier’s words were both embarrassing and heartwarming.
That’s why…
“I feel the same way. I will never let you go.”
Jared was able to convey his sincere feelings to his beloved fiancée.
