When their eyes met, Uriel realized that while he was the one who tried to provoke her, the pressure of her gaze was too strong for him. He averted his eyes.
“Uriel.” Apollonia made him look at her again by holding his face like she did in Mt. Calt.
Her cold fingertips touched his cheeks, and his whole body seemed to awaken.
“I’ll change the order.”
“…What will it be, then?”
“Survive by my side to the end.”
Perhaps it was the night breeze that made him aware of a subtle scent wafting toward him. Her calm, dignified voice tickled his ears. It was difficult to look into those demanding eyes, but neither was it possible to look away.
“…As you wish.”
He was barely able to reply.
***
The True Lord
The next day, Apollonia instructed the three brothers, Ben, Tan and Lun to secretly visit Mt. Calt. Of course, since she couldn’t trust them yet, she sent Sid with them.
They returned with shocked faces after half a day. “It is true. It was definitely a diamond mine,” they reported, voices trembling.
“The mountain didn’t tremble when we went up. The monster was visible, but…”
“We found rubies and sapphires on the other peaks of Calt.”
The three brothers took out some gemstones from their pockets. One blue, one red, and one transparent.
Apollonia picked up the blood-red piece. “Is this ruby?”
“No, that piece came from the heart of Calt.” Ben gulped.
“Then?”
“It’s the first time we’ve seen it, but the only explanation is that it’s a red diamond…”
Even Apollonia, who had been calm, looked shocked. The red diamond was the most precious gem in the world. It was confirmed that they existed only a few hundred years ago, and only dozens of them have been discovered since then.
A legendary jewel that, if cut well, was worth a small city. They found it in half a day of exploring. That meant there weren’t just one or two of those gems in Mt. Calt.
“How does the mountain look?”
“Nothing has changed on the outside. It still conceals the treasure well,” Sid replied a little more calmly.
That was fortunate. It would take some time to execute Apollonia’s plan. In the meantime, if someone knew the value of the mine, a setback could occur.
“For now, don’t let the secret leak out.”
“Yes. Then, shall we kill these three?”
Sid’s expression didn’t even change. However, the three brothers paled even further.
“Never! I will never leak it out! Please spare me!”
“I mean, I didn’t steal it even if I saw the diamond! I’ll admit it was difficult not to, but please don’t kill me!”
“Shut up, idiot! No! I have never been greedy. Please believe me!”
Apollonia shook her head and sighed as she watched the three scream on top of each other.
“If you find a red diamond and you haven’t tried to steal it, then it’s fine.”
The three handsome men beamed, their charming smiles easy to fall in love with. Of course, Apollonia had other things to think about.
“Keeping it secret is another matter. If you see someone spreading something, even if they are from this house, then kill them immediately.”
★★★
After a brief discussion, Apollonia sighed. Her head was still crammed with disorganized ideas. In order to complete all the preparations without being noticed by the Emperor and Petra, careful planning was required. She was still sorting out her thoughts when a loud noise outside distracted her.
“Get out! It’s the Lord’s command!”
When they opened the door and went out, there was a mess outside. Several of the knights were struggling to knock down the furniture that had been left in the house.
“Where is the man who kidnapped Her Highness? Come out and speak!”
A hulking knight, who appeared to be the commander, threatened Tanya’s grandmother.
“I don’t know anyone like that! Scram!”
“Do not lie! If she’s not here, then has she risen to the sky?”
He pushed down the resisting old woman with one hand. Tan ran and helped her up. Both Sid and Uriel flinched, but did not move without Apollonia’s order. And before she could even react, a knight shouted out from the corner room.
“Commander! Look what I found here!”
“It hurts! Let go, it hurts!”
It was Tanya’s arm that he held firmly in his grasp. She tried hard to get out of the grip, but the more she did, the tighter the knight’s grip became. Apollonia grew nervous. Tanya had stayed hidden because she didn’t take any medicine in the morning.
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