The Abandoned Villainess Decides to Take It All Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Marquis Somnis Acts

Marquis Somnis hurried to find a secluded corner within the Imperial Palace.

He needed privacy to use his ability.

I must hurry.

The pressure from Empress Lovellia Tarandia Perniès de Favil had left him extremely uneasy.

Closing his eyes and concentrating, the thread of mind he had secretly connected to the Duke of Baltazar long ago appeared before him.

Send a nightmare to the Duke of Baltazar.

The duke already harbored deep hatred toward the First Prince.

Somnis simply forced him to repeatedly relive the day he hated the prince the most.

So far, it had worked.

He had already succeeded in driving the duke away from imperial politics.

But—

That’s not enough.

The duke needed to cause something bigger.

Something far more extreme.

Something that would strike directly at the First Prince’s side.

After pushing his ability to its limit, the marquis quickly departed from the Imperial Palace.

On the Road to the Eastern District

Along the road leading from the palace to the eastern district of the capital—

Figures hidden in the darkness exchanged glances as they heard the approaching carriage.

Among the men dressed in black uniforms, Elias Baltazar spoke first.

“…My lady was right.”

Marquis Somnis had indeed contacted the Second Empress.

If they had never suspected him, they never would have managed to plant a spy near him.

But thanks to Lillian Tillard’s warning, they had noticed the suspicious movement.

“It will look like an ordinary audience,” Elias continued quietly. “But the Empress summoned him to pressure him.”

Her goal was clear.

To completely push House Baltazar aside.

Too many lives were tied to this situation.

Including the life of Ebren Tarandia, the First Prince.

“The Empress avoided acting directly against the duke,” Elias said. “Poison leaves evidence. Nightmares are far more convenient.”

She had predicted everything perfectly.

Normally, every noble house kept the details of their abilities strictly hidden.

Yet—

“The marquis is connected to the duke. We must ensure the duke isn’t harmed carelessly.”

“Then how do we cut that connection?” one of the Shadows asked.

“Normally, only the marquis’s Guide could release it. But—”

Even the solution had been flawless.

Lillian possessed astonishing knowledge about the abilities of other houses.

At first, they had suspected her.

But by now, Elias and the other members of the Shadows simply accepted it.

How much must she have studied while being neglected in House Tillard?

The Shadows murmured quietly among themselves.

“…What would we have done without her?”

“If the duke were to die…”

Not only their lives—

The entire faction of the First Prince would collapse.

Even if the relationship between the prince and the duke was terrible.

Elias abruptly silenced them.

“Quiet.”

Then he stepped forward.

The carriage was approaching.

Suddenly, the dirt road in front of the horses rose like a small hill.

Within seconds, the carriage lost control and lurched violently in the middle of the road.

The Shadows moved instantly.

They subdued the marquis’s knights in moments.

Elias stepped forward and opened the carriage door.

Inside, Marquis Somnis, who had just left his audience with the Empress, trembled in fear.

“W-Who are you people!?”

There was no time to gather evidence.

No time to persuade him.

No time to negotiate.

Elias spoke calmly.

“Marquis. From this moment on, you are being kidnapped.”

The solution was simple.

Kidnapping.

The Interrogation

Marquis Somnis was dragged away with a blindfold covering his eyes.

“W-What is the meaning of this!? This is—!”

“If you remain calm, you will not be harmed.”

“You’ve already dragged me here like this!”

What was the point of the blindfold?

Once he heard their voices long enough, he would recognize them anyway!

Those insane relatives of that mad prince…!

Perhaps the truly terrifying bloodline wasn’t Tarandia after all.

Perhaps it was Baltazar.

Just then, a woman’s voice spoke.

“There’s a poor little lamb here who was fooled by the Empress.”

“…?”

“Oh. Perhaps ‘little’ isn’t the right word for someone your age.”

Who was that?

But the marquis immediately raised his voice angrily.

The Baltazars might be terrifying—

But he certainly didn’t need to fear some thin-voiced woman.

“H-How dare you! I don’t know who you are, but—!”

“The Empress is very persuasive, isn’t she?”

The woman continued calmly.

“She makes it sound as if everything you want will come true.”

“…?”

“She probably promised that if you quietly brought down this family, all of House Somnis’s debts would disappear. That your house would rise again.”

The marquis’s mouth instantly went dry.

How does she know that?

“I know it better than anyone,” the woman said lightly. “I learned from her how to throw jerky to lure people in.”

Jerky…?

“So what will you do?” she continued. “If things keep going like this, the Empress will simply cut you off as a scapegoat.”

“Hah… what nonsense!”

Most importantly—

My ability can only be broken by someone compatible with me.

Could they really find such a person so quickly?

They’ll never be able to break it.

“You bastards—just wait until tomorrow morning! Even if you belong to one of the Five Sacred Houses—ghk!?”

Suddenly, an intense pressure crushed the center of his head.

It felt as if two thumbs were digging directly into his skull.

Lillian tilted her head slightly.

“Oh. You sounded relieved. Why are you relieved?”

She asked sincerely.

She genuinely didn’t understand.

It even stung her pride a little.

I’ve been through quite a lot myself, you know…

Lillian glanced at Jeanne Baltazar.

“Knight. Am I not very scary?”

“How could that be?”

If Margaret Rubelli were here, she would have answered immediately that Lillian was terrifying.

But Jeanne raised both thumbs with a bright smile.

“To us, my lady is the most frightening person in the world!”

She meant it sincerely.

If you replaced “most frightening” with most powerful, most amazing, or most capable, the meaning wouldn’t change much.

Either way—

It was praise.

Lillian flushed slightly with embarrassment.

Then she turned her attention back to the marquis.

Abilities usually manifest in the body part used most frequently.

In this marquis’s case—

It was his head.

Lillian placed both thumbs firmly on the crown of his head.

The marquis writhed under the unexpected torture.

“Ghh—who… who are—!”

“Stay still. I’m cutting the connection.”

“Uuuugh!”

“Honestly. Just stay still.”

When Lillian’s patience ran thin, the Shadows quickly restrained the marquis’s arms.

“Ghk—!?”

The marquis’s eyes widened.

What is happening!?

Snap.

Snap… snap…

Though only he could hear it, something seemed to break beside his ears.

Invisible threads.

The mental threads he had tied to the Duke of Baltazar.

The threads he used to send nightmares.

And now—

One by one—

They were snapping.

Carefully.

Delicately.

Without harming the duke at all.

Wait… if that happens… what about me!?

“L-Let go! Let me go—!”

“Please be quiet.”

“AAAAH!”

The marquis thrashed wildly.

But it made no difference.