What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 776

If You Could Look Inside the Seed of Time (2)

Herarda Valentine’s carriage carried two children and one adult.

In the rear cargo hold were Yep’s kidnapper, the so-called ‘Ragged Girl,’ and her bundle.

The coachman, having securely locked the cargo hold, hurried to the window.

“Lady Herarda, word has come that our vigilantes are dealing with the Fallen [monsters or corrupted beings] on Cain Avenue. For the safety of young Miss Dorothea and young Master Yep today, I will take a side road.”

“Please do, I am very grateful.”

The carriage departed.

The coat of arms of the cadet family, engraved with a blue sky and iron ore, glittered gold in the sunlight.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

Although there wasn’t much time left until sunset, Herarda deliberately left the Pantheon [a temple or religious institution] with Yep and the ragged woman while the sun was still up.

She wanted to take her son, who had gone through a great ordeal, back to his cozy home as soon as possible.

She carefully checked Yep’s condition, a long sword slung at her side.

Thanks to the Lord’s boundless blessing, the child was not seriously injured.

His wrists and ankles, which had been tied with rope, were bruised, but fortunately not severely.

Of course, Yep had already undergone a comprehensive examination by the Pantheon priests.

He enjoyed the privilege of receiving healing aether [magical energy or essence] for nearly an hour to calm him down.

But a mother’s heart could not be at peace until she had examined every strand of her child’s hair herself.

Yep mumbled as he endured her relentless touch.

“Mom, the servant noona [Korean term for older sister used by younger males] isn’t a bad person.”

“That will all be revealed when she is brought to justice. Drink your tea, all of it. Give me your foot, too.”

“But. She tried to let me go.”

“She tried to let you go, but in the end, she didn’t. Or maybe she couldn’t. Goodness, your soles are swollen.”

“Isn’t it just chubby?”

Dorothea pointed out smartly. Her mother didn’t hear her.

“Yeah. The servant noona gave me a lot to eat, too.”

“It may have just been an act to keep you alive. Goodness, I shouldn’t have sent only you to the music store that day.”

Herarda, who was taking off his dirt-stained socks, briefly buried her face in her hands.

A moment of self-loathing washed over her, and she almost burst into tears in front of the children.

“God, thank you…”

She knew very well that being busy could not be an excuse for neglecting her children.

But she was truly alone.

Her mother, the head of the family, had left for the battlefield far away and could not even be reached, and her father had passed away a few years ago. She had been divorced from her husband for a long time.

His family consistently sent alimony, but the Valentine family had plenty of money.

The problem was absolute time.

Her ex-husband showed not an ounce of affection for the two children, and as soon as the divorce was finalized, he remarried his mistress.

Entrusting the care of her children to such a man, even for a moment, was out of the question.

She had a nanny and a tutor, but she could not leave the children’s care solely to them.

But Herarda only had one body.

That fact was… sometimes unbearably painful. Just like now.

“Mom, don’t cry.”

Yep reached out his arms, whimpering.

Herarda shook her head in surprise and smiled.

“Cry? How could your mom, such a strong knight, cry? Come here.”

“Sorry for disappearing alone…”

“Why is our son sorry? I’m sorry I wasn’t there then.”

The little boy wrapped his short, chubby arms around his mother’s neck.

Herarda sighed in relief at the warmth enveloping her heart, reached out her other hand to her daughter.

Holding both children in her arms until her arms were full, she kissed their little cheeks, fearing they would wear out, and patted their small backs with trembling hands.

Dorothea snuggled in her arms and mumbled.

“Our mom is having a hard time these days. Can’t she work with her boyfriend?”

“Huh?”

A pause.

“…Boyfriend? Thea, I don’t have anyone like that.”

Herarda, flustered, looked straight at her daughter.

The child’s eyes widened as if she had heard something very strange.

“Huh? Aren’t Mr. Rose and Mom boyfriend and girlfriend?”

“What…?”

The countess’s mouth slowly opened in surprise.

Then Yep, who was sniffing with red cheeks, nodded his head.

“The kids said. Sniff, Mr. Rose likes Mom.”

“…What… What is that… Who are the kids?”

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

Herarda was momentarily stunned, not knowing what to do, but then she realized that she shouldn’t react so strongly to such words and became serious.

“Oh, Mr. Rose is engaged. You shouldn’t say things like that carelessly.”

“Woo…”

“And he’s as busy as your mom. He’s the second son of Count Etzard Roseharder. Do you remember?”

“Hing…”

“He loads relief supplies and comes to the capital himself several times a week, and he takes vigilantes with serious injuries to the rose garden for treatment. What did I tell you to say when you meet him?”

“Hello, Prince Diederik Roseharder. Thank you for today.”

“Hello, Prince Diederik… Thank you for today.”

“That’s right. Always be polite.”

‘You have to think about Grandma’s honor.’ The countess, who had put the two children back in their seats, buttoned up Yep’s jacket and tidied up Dorothea’s stray hairs.

The round pigtails of the siblings, like oliebollen [Dutch doughnuts], were freshly tied by her every morning.

Herarda sighed and tried to focus on the current situation.

The ragged woman who had been with Yep. The gatehouse of the Sarhentini manor, which had been shattered by lightning. The accomplice who had fled from the scene. And…

‘The real culprit may be someone else, so if you want to root out the criminal group, I advise you to look into that.’

The mercenary’s voice echoed in her head like a revelation.

‘The woman has been warning the people of the capital about the dangers of the Sneider family…’

‘There is intelligence that the accomplice at the gatehouse, which Yep witnessed, has a similar appearance to His Majesty Werner Fenetian.’

“…”

‘According to Yep and the Ragged Girl’s statements… that place is the main house of the kidnapper where terrible things are happening.’

If what he said was true, the Sneider manor…

Something must be happening there. Or it already happened.

“But, Mom, you know. The servant noona has evidence. Evidence that he’s a state affair.”

“‘State affairs’? You mean ‘Secretary of State’, you little rascal.”

“Don’t call me a rascal, you rascal.”

“Huh? Wait a minute, Yep. What did you just say?”

The countess blinked and stopped the two children. Right then.

-Neigh! Neigh!

-Clatter, clatter!

Suddenly, a horse’s cry rang out, and the carriage slowly stopped in the middle of the side road.

Herarda, her face hardened immediately, grabbed the hilt of her sword.

The quick-witted children flopped down on the floor of the carriage.

It was a time when the moon had not yet risen and they could not receive the Lord’s protection.

If they were to encounter the Fallen on such a narrow path…

-Knock knock

“Madam Valentine?”

“…”

The three family members blinked in unison at the familiar voice.

Herarda held her breath for a long time, then opened the door slightly with her sword drawn. ‘Click!’

“Good evening.”

A large, handsome man greeted her politely.

At the same time, the faces of the two children lit up.

“Mr. Rose!”

“It’s Mr. Rose who gives us pink bread!”

“…Goodness, hello.”

Like a griffin [mythical creature], speaking of the devil, what could it mean to meet Prince Diederik Roseharder on a day like this?

Herarda couldn’t hide her troubled face.

It was a bonus that the children’s home education was lacking and they gave a shameful greeting.

The prince very politely requested a ride to the outskirts of the capital, and the Valentine family (at least two of them) gladly accepted.

The man kissed Herarda’s hand and got into the carriage.

*

Meanwhile, in the cargo hold of the same carriage.

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

“…”

The Sarhentini servant, who had been caught in front of the gatehouse, was sitting in the corner, tightly bound with ropes.

Although she was being treated like a criminal, she was much calmer than when she was wandering alone in the Pantheon Square.

The voice floating in her head was as soft and gentle as cocoa.

The woman bit her lip and looked down at her bundle.

‘Ragged Girl, listen carefully to what I say.’

A narrow room in the Pantheon, amethyst-like sparkling purple eyes.

The sanctuary that poured out a dazzling golden light like the moon reflecting the sun.

She swore she had never seen such a sacred sight in her life.

It was a beauty that she had never witnessed even in the jewelry boxes of Lord Ahata Sarhentini or her husband.

‘We know that you were a servant of the Sarhentini manor. We also know that you fear the Sneider family, and that you were threatened by His Majesty Werner Fenetian a few hours ago.’

‘……’

‘You saw something at the Sneider manor. Right? Something too terrible to put into words, or very scary…’

The priest’s brown eyelashes fluttered down and then back up.

Like magic, their eyes met.

‘……Was there a secret room? A bio lab?’

‘Heok! H-how…!’

The servant, terrified, covered her mouth with both hands. ‘Shhh.’ Then the priest gently coaxed her and lowered his posture.

‘It’s okay. You are clearly a victim, and if you can defend yourself well, you will be released safely. Please understand that we cannot help you directly.’

‘……How, please help me, what should I do…’

The woman wept, tears streaming down her face.

The priest took her hands and smiled gently.

Looking at his beautiful face, the fear seemed to subside little by little.

The servant grabbed his hands.

‘P-Priest! I, our master. Our master was there… I remember him going down. Really! He went to the basement, but, but…!’

‘He couldn’t come back up.’

‘Heoeong…’

Her face contorted as she recalled that day.

The priest poured warm aether into her.

Then, closing his eyes…

‘-Fluttering! Flutter, flutter!’

‘Ah, good heavens…!’

He unfolded six large, pure white wings.

The servant was so surprised that she fell flat on the stone floor. The Lord’s archangel said this.

‘[If you act as I tell you, you will be protected as needed. I will tell Yep and Dorothea in advance.]’

‘T-the angel, how could the angel of heaven do such a thing for someone like me…!’

‘[Now, take this.]’

He handed her a small bundle. Inside was the wreckage of a blue cart.

‘[Suleini, with its mysterious power, will surely save you. Just say this to Countess Herarda.]’

‘……’

‘[His Majesty Werner will present this as a symbol of the Holy Royal Family…]’

“As a symbol of the Holy Royal Family… He threatened me and tried to hold Prince Yep captive. If you roll this wheel on the floor…”

-Clatter, clatter, clatter…

The servant constantly repeated the words the angel had given her.

In fact, it was the priest’s oracle, but to her, it was like the Lord’s lifeline.

“…Leaving a shining, shining trail, it will move on its own…”

*

That night.

A tavern in the capital was crowded with customers gathered like clouds.

“Hey, did you hear the news? Shouldn’t we leave the capital now too?”

“What’s new? Why, did dozens of the Fallen appear all at once again?”

“This person’s information is so late.”

“It’s not certain, so don’t spread rumors anywhere… Well, there was a rebellion in the royal palace!”

A woman with prey on her shoulder whispered.

Werner’s eyes, who was tilting a glass in the corner, narrowed like needles.