Please Kill Me - Chapter 113
At Yekaterina’s words, Vasily’s face grew more troubled. He had not wanted to come here. From the moment he heard Yekaterina was looking for him, he had felt uneasy.
“…Yes, I owe you a debt. I am truly grateful. But that doesn’t mean I can defy orders to help you.”
“Why not?”
“Because His Grace decided so. Isn’t that reason enough?”
“Isn’t it strange to think no more reason is needed? Would you still think that if Leonid decided to commit suicide and ordered you to go along with it?”
“Why would you say such a thing!”
Vasily stood up abruptly, clearly agitated, but Yekaterina remained calm.
“It’s just a metaphor. It means sending Leonid alone to the hunting event is dangerous.”
“It’s just a hunting event. What could be so dangerous?”
“You said the same thing a month ago when you went to hunt monsters.”
“…”
As Vasily fell silent, Yekaterina exhaled lightly.
“Moreover… you guys don’t really intend to just hunt quietly, do you?”
“…How did you know that?”
“Leonid told me. He said he intended to use me. I don’t know the details, but there must be some plan.”
If Yekaterina had wanted to find out what the plan was, she would have. But she didn’t need to. The important thing was something else.
“You’re meeting Offenbach there, and with weapons drawn. Do you really think there will be no trouble?”
As she delivered her final words, Vasily’s eyes widened with uncertainty.
It was just as she expected.
In fact, from the moment she first called Vasily, Yekaterina had a detailed plan on how to persuade him.
‘Vasily’s greatest strength is his loyalty.’
But his greatest weakness was also his loyalty.
He was someone who would do anything for Leonid. Even if Leonid hadn’t ordered it, if it would help his lord, Vasily would jump into the fire. He was a double-edged sword.
So first, she needed to use that loyalty to instill doubt.
“No one expected a high-level monster to appear in the hunting grounds. If it weren’t for me, someone among you would have been injured. Can you be sure that Leonid won’t find himself in a similar situation? If I’m there, I can ensure he’ll come back without any harm.”
Next, she invoked empathy by mentioning how she had once saved Vasily. Vasily hesitated, then responded.
“While that’s true, it might be a bit difficult.”
When she received this kind of response, she knew she was halfway there. All she needed to do next was present the pre-planned arguments with added realism.
“Smuggling me in shouldn’t be too hard. I’ve heard Leonid is going as a starting participant. Let me go as a backup. No one will notice.”
Sending starters involves selecting two members from each family, but backups have more flexibility and a larger number. Each family can send up to five members.
Including Yekaterina as one of them is not too hard.
Yekaterina had ample experience participating in the hunting events as a starter for Offenbach and understood the dynamics of such events well. Therefore, Vasily had no choice but to agree with her.
At this point, Yekaterina delivered the final blow.
“Before we leave, I’ll make it look like I escaped on my own. I’ll take down the guards outside the window, so even if they find I’m missing, no one will suspect you helped me. How does that sound?”
“……!”
“It’s all for Leonid’s safety.”
“For His Grace’s…safety…!”
As Vasily echoed her words, Yekaterina extended her hand. Their gazes met in the air, and Vasily, with a determined expression, clasped her hand firmly.
Thus, a covert plan was sealed.
This took place three days before the hunting event.
* * *
And now.
‘I did say it, but I didn’t actually expect this to happen.’
Leonid really was in danger, falling down the cliff. Yekaterina was once again reflecting on the simple truth that things rarely go as planned.
Around her were scattered rocks and debris, and something that wasn’t a rock lay motionless. In other words, she was now at the bottom of the cliff.
Naturally, since she had thrown herself down to catch a falling person.
Yekaterina dusted off the dirt from her clothes and hair, and glanced up the cliff.
‘It’s so high.’
When Dmitry caused the ground to collapse, the rocks were larger than a person. Now, most of them were no bigger than a fist. Considering the height from which they fell, this was no surprise.
From above, Yekaterina and the rocks likely vanished from sight long before they reached the ground. The cliff was that high.
The reason Yekaterina was unscathed despite falling from a cliff that shattered large boulders into fist-sized pieces was simple. She was protected by Offenbach’s magic.
