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Chapter 74 Part 1 – The Blazing Flames and Hearts That Scorch the Night

Rona ran through the town during the night.
Her chest felt like it’s about to explode.
She kept running at full speed.

‘Ronny!! It’s all a lie, right!? I can’t believe that you would accuse the town mayor and the others of being on the witches’ side!! Because you are the kindest boy of all!! You never wanted to hurt anyone!!’

Thinking of her younger brother, Rona’s little chest felt like it was being ripped apart.

She knew the horror of witch hunts.
It is said that if someone is caught by the Inquisition, they will never come back alive.

Rona recalled a horrifying memory and her entire body shuddered.

The little man that had bought Rona’s services and made her body be ruined on the inside while pretending to be an official from the Inquisition.
She will never forget that pain and horror.

If Wendell and the others had not picked her up, if Marielle had not treated her, Rona would have died.

But even that was only an imitation.
That would be nothing compared to the atrociousness of the torture done by a real Inquisition officer.

And yet, Marielle’s family is being targeted in the witch hunt because of her younger brother’s deeds ……!!
They have fallen into the hands of the Inquisition.

Rona burst into tears when she recalled the anxious gazes of the town mayor’s wife and child who had come to rely on Marielle and Marielle who was trying her best to cheer them up.

Even though Marielle is the town mayor’s mistress, she and the mayor’s wife and child were as close as family. Her own younger brother had destroyed their happiness. No, it was not only the mayor’s family. Many more families would be grieving over the sudden capture of their husbands or fathers.

She had no face to show to Wendell and the others, who had given her happiness when she was at rock bottom. And there was no way she could ask them for such a shameless request like helping her save her younger brother. That’s why Rona decided to carry everything by herself and rushed out of Marielle’s mansion.

…… This was the fork in the road that led to the tragedy of Rona losing her younger brothers.
Rona’s sincerity became her enemy.

If she had asked Wendell and the others for help from the beginning, even if it’s impossible to save Teddy, at least Ronny’s life could have been saved.

Because of this, Rona …… Countess Rosenthal later blamed herself and lived in anguish.

Even at this moment, Rona loved and believed in Ronny.

‘…… Ronny is not the kind of boy that would accuse other people!! There must be a reason for it!! Wait for me, I’ll go help you now!!’

She was driven by this feeling.

If that was the case, why didn’t she express that feeling to Wendell and the others?
Countess Rosenthal repeatedly ripped out her hair and wailed that she had cold-heartedly abandoned her younger brother Ronny because of her reluctance in not wanting to be hated by Wendell and the others.

But the truth was that at that moment, Rona had put everything she had into rescuing Ronny.

Even though she had long since reached the limit of her physical strength, she did not stop running.
She did not care about herself.
She just wanted to save her younger brother Ronny.
She wanted to tell him that she believed in him no matter what.

Rona jumped into a back alley with walls of houses closing in on both sides.
Because it was the shortest shortcut.
It was a dangerous route that she usually avoided at night.
The houses are all built in such an unplanned manner that they resemble a maze.
Even the locals get lost during the day.
But Rona was completely focused on saving Ronny and did not falter because of it.

Laundry of tattered clothes hung from ropes intersected like spider webs. The poorly drained road surface was wet and dank with sewage. The drainage grooves on both sides have long since become clogged with mud. But no one bothers to clean them.

This area is where the lowest prostitutes are located and it is not uncommon to find dead bodies lying around here. The area is deserted and there are many vacant houses, which makes it the perfect cover for crime.

However, once you pass through this area, you can quickly reach the riverside where the gallows are located.

The back alley was strangely noisy.
The residents here are no different from the rioters and reacted with excitement to the signs of the riot that covered the town.

「…… Hihihi, I can’t get enough of it. Wiggling your ass so desperately. Where do you want to go?」

「…… Bless us hungry people with your body, missy.」

Mocking obscenities rained down on the sweaty and breathless Rona from all over the place.
But those people are still the better ones. At least they make their presence known.

The truly dangerous people live further down the winding alleys. With a rough breathing, one hand after another silently reached out and tried to drag Rona into the darkness.

The beautiful Rona that was well-dressed and not dressed like a filthy pauper was very conspicuous. She was like an ornamental fish with a gorgeous tail fin who had jumped into the habitat of ferocious carnivorous fish.

Recklessness is foolish.
But sometimes it produces miracles.

Rona fearlessly plunged headfirst and dodged the thugs. Her feet splashed muddy water and accidentally blinded them temporarily, causing the thugs to flinch. Those ruffians were taken aback. Combined with the fact that she was wearing fine clothes, they misunderstood Rona’s bold actions as someone involved in the underworld. If so, it would be troublesome later on. Rona was able to run away when they hesitated to lay their hands on her.

If the three old warriors had seen it, they would have generously praised Rona for her bravery. If she had stopped in fear for even a moment, someone would have grabbed her by the hair and pushed her down in a flash. She would probably end up being found dead the next morning.

It was like walking a tightrope, but it was worth all the effort. Rona was able to save 20 minutes of time. The winding, tunnel-like alleyway opened up and became brightly lit. The gallows, an upside-down L-shaped structure made of cross beams and pillars, came into view. No one had been hanged there yet.

‘…… I made it in time!!’

But the elated Rona was about to be deeply disappointed.

Not a lot of people were around the gallows that she had struggled to arrive at.

「…… Ronny …… where is he ……!?」

Rona slumped down to the floor.
Tears welled up in her eyes.

At that moment, she heard the loud conversation of a group of fish-handling women wearing large aprons.

「…… I thought the kid that accused the town mayor and the others would be hanged here?」

「You see. An eerie-looking official from the Inquisition forcefully intervened. The official dragged him away and said that the witch’s family members must be purified by fire and killed. They are going to set him on fire in the plaza in the southern deserted alley. And so they all followed him.」

「He’s still a young child …… Don’t you think that’s a bit terrible? Everyone ganged up to throw stones at the child and shoved him around so hard that he looked tattered. Even if he did commit a terrible sin, I feel that that’s too much. I couldn’t bear to see him getting burned alive. That’s why we stayed behind.」

Rona screamed and nearly fainted.
The words of the mayor’s attendant that she had overheard have become reality.

「W-What’s wrong with you? You look really pale.」

Rona hurriedly asked the worried women that approached her.

「…… When did that child get taken away!?」

「Just a few minutes ago ……」

The women were taken aback but still answered her question.
Rona bowed her head to the group of women, wiped away her tears, and started running again.

‘It’s okay!! I’m sure I’ll be able to make it in time!!’

Neither crying nor collapsing on the ground would help Ronny. If she had the time to do so, she better use it to take as many steps as possible and go as fast as she could. Rona ran desperately.

Ironically, however, the decisive time-saving route turned out to become the decisive blow to the tragedy.
Rona had pulled away from Wendell that was following after her.
If she had continued on the normal path, the agile Wendell would have been able to catch up and join Rona.

…… Because of their father’s tyranny, Rona and her younger brothers huddled together and supported each other.

After their mother died, Rona sold herself and her body became severely wounded. She was tormented by the fear of death and yet she still tried her best to not let her younger brothers starve. In order to protect Rona and Teddy, Ronny accused the town mayor and the others and received the stigma of a great sinner. And Teddy thinks that the reason why the two had such a hard time was all because of him, who is a cripple and couldn’t move. He cried and asked the three old warriors to take care of them and died in a sad, tormented figure.

All three of them wished only for the happiness of their siblings.
They did not care about their own pain.

But the wheel of fate was cruel.
The strong love between the three siblings caused things to end up in tragedy.