I Ended Up Saving the Duke Who Was Meant to Die - Chapter 6.3
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Severus had to face the attacking assassins before he could even leave the villa to go to the temple.
The Imperial Princess moved faster than expected. Perhaps due to letting his guard down too much, even Severus was struggling against their fierce resistance.
‘I didn’t know that the warning about regret would turn into such an outright death threat.’
No matter how willful the Imperial Princess was, she wouldn’t have undertaken such a serious matter alone. Sharp sounds echoed throughout the villa.
‘Is the Emperor moving to eliminate future troubles?’
Even while wielding his sword, he didn’t stop thinking. However, considering various situations, it didn’t make sense that the Imperial family would send assassins to eliminate Irene.
Since they didn’t even know about her abilities, it made more sense that these assassins were sent by the temple, not the Imperial family. A sharp sword swung fiercely, seemingly aiming for his neck. Severus clicked his tongue at the assassin who didn’t bother hiding their killing intent.
If not the Imperial family, there was only one person who would aim for his neck. Michaelo.
‘It seems the temple raises murderers rather than priests.’
He could clearly imagine how much training these young-looking individuals must have undergone to become like this.
“Die, you monster!”
He’s a monster, and his wife is a witch. Come to think of it, they matched well. As blood splattered before his eyes, Irene’s red hair came to mind. Who would have thought he’d be relieved that she hadn’t returned quickly from the temple?
If she had seen this scene, she would have stepped forward to protect him without hesitation. Severus intended to clean up this mess before she arrived.
“Urgh.”
Severus struggled to push back the assassins charging at him. Though the knights fought alongside him, there were too many enemies. Each person had to handle three or four opponents, causing fatigue to rapidly build up.
“Protect His Grace! No need to capture them alive – shoot to kill!”
The Knight Commander of the Duke’s household shouted. Severus smiled at the still-energetic knights. As expected of the Duke Blake’s knights.
The assassins, unable to break the knights’ momentum, were annihilated. Severus exhaled quietly as he looked at the assassins lying face-down on the floor.
Even those who were still alive committed suicide. In the end, the commotion ended without leaving a single piece of evidence. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand and looked at the devastated villa.
“Is the repair of the main residence complete?”
“It should be almost finished. You can move to another villa if you wish.”
“Irene will surely have something to say when she sees the ruined villa. For now, we head to the temple.”
“Is it alright to move immediately without waiting for the Madam?”
Albert, pulling out a sword embedded in an assassin’s body, asked Severus. Despite not being a knight, he looked natural wielding a sword against the assassins.
Those belonging to Duke Blake’s household had long faced numerous death threats, so they learned swordsmanship to protect their lives. Albert, having stayed at the Blake mansion with him for a long time, handled the sword quite skillfully.
“The inside has been taken care of as well. Should we clean up before Madam arrives?”
Eliza approached while dusting off her sword. Though her dress was torn and tattered, she seemed used to it and paid no attention.
“We should. We’ve waited long enough already. Let’s move quickly – they might be holding her at the temple against her will.”
“Yes, understood!”
Severus put his sword at his waist and headed toward the carriage. At that moment, Albert threw down his own sword and rushed over quickly.
“Your Grace…! You’re bleeding!”
With a pale face, he pulled out a handkerchief and pressed it firmly against his side. While saying they needed to stop the bleeding first, he turned to look at the devastated villa.
“We should call a doctor. The wound is deep and dangerous.”
“No need for such fuss. I won’t die from something like this.”
“If you were bleeding enough to die, you wouldn’t even be able to walk. But the injury is serious, so we should treat it before moving.”
Albert said while pressing firmly on the wound. A groan escaped involuntarily from the pain.
“It hurts when you press like that.”
“It’s a wound that would hurt plenty even without pressing.”
“I know you’re trying to prevent me from getting in the carriage, so stop. I’ll get treatment before going.”
“…Really?”
He looked at Severus with eyes full of doubt. He seemed determined to keep pressing until he got an affirmative answer.
“Yes.”
Only after Severus finally surrendered to Albert did the pressure on his side ease.
Severus watched the doctor treating him and asked. Time kept flowing, but everything seemed slow. Perhaps because he was used to Irene’s healing, the doctors’ treatment didn’t feel satisfactory.
“Is it still far from done?”
“It’s almost finished. But are you alright, Your Grace? Your complexion isn’t good.”
“It’s not bad enough to make such a fuss.”
“…Can you say that after seeing this?”
The doctor pointed to the blood-soaked gauze piled up beside the bed. He hadn’t noticed earlier, but the stab wound must have been deep. He could somewhat understand now why Albert had insisted on treatment before letting him leave. If he went to Irene in that state, she would be shocked.
“Did you give me some medicine? My vision is… getting blurry.”
“That’s because you’ve lost a lot of blood.”
His vision alternated between blurry and clear. The doctor nodded while checking Albert’s reaction.
“I don’t understand why you keep checking Albert’s reaction to my questions.”
“Well… you’ve been stabbed quite deeply and the situation isn’t good. If you move like this, the wound will worsen. You need to rest for several days.”
There must have been some kind of deal made. They must have conspired with Irene to prevent him from going out. Severus narrowed his eyes with a frown.
“I’m not someone who has the luxury to rest for days. Irene will be waiting for me… Ugh!”
Severus groaned in tremendous pain as he tried to get up.
“I asked for treatment, but did you make the wound worse instead?”
“You might have been fine earlier due to adrenaline, but now that you’re more relaxed, the pain will be worse. Do you know how many stitches you needed? The wound was so severe you couldn’t even feel the pain. I’ve given you painkillers, but they won’t last long.”
“There must be something stronger.”
“I absolutely cannot give you that. It would be terrible if you became addicted!”
Nothing to be done then. Severus looked at his bandaged body and slowly sat up. Then he told the maid to bring new clothes.
“Irene… ah, damn it.”
His vision spun. Before Severus collapsed, he looked at Albert, but he was deliberately avoiding eye contact. Only then did Severus realize he had been set up by Albert.
