94.

And then.

“Huh, Marquis?!”

The coachman’s shocked voice broke the silence.

“What’s the fuss about?”

Dante’s frown deepened, only briefly.

“T-The academy…!”

“What?!”

Dante jerked his head toward the window in alarm.

In the distance, the Rose Cross Academy was visible, engulfed in red flames that licked the sky.

“What is this!”

Dante’s eyes widened in disbelief.

* * *

Amidst the burning twilight, Lucian unleashed his powers.

Boom!

The sound of an explosion reverberated forcefully.

Contrary to the relic’s name, “Heart of Winter,” Lucian’s manifested ability was more akin to telekinesis.

Every elegant wave of his hand, like an orchestra conductor, caused:

Crash!

Windows shattered.

Clatter!

Various objects scattered on the floor.

Boom! Boom!

Explosions erupted throughout the academy.

At one point, a gas line was apparently disturbed, causing fierce red flames to shoot up.

The scene resembled a lavishly blooming vine of roses.

I watched with wide eyes as the flames voraciously consumed the cursed academy.

“Yes, this is what I wanted.”

As I faced the disarrayed academy, I felt my chest swell with exhilaration.

“Run!”

“Liam, where is Lord Liam?!”

“We need to inform the organization!”

The guards stationed at the academy’s entrance had long since fled.

All part of the plan.

“It’s alright, it won’t be dangerous.”

I thought calmly.

Although the servants were asleep, Benedict had promised to intervene if necessary.

By now, the security and fire brigades would have been dispatched to the academy.

“I asked them to be especially cautious to avoid casualties, so they should handle it well.”

Benedict was trustworthy when it came to handling such matters.

So…

I stared intently at the direction of the academy’s main entrance.

“I want to run away.”

Without any ties to the male protagonists.

Free from being the villain, the lover of the Marquis Oppenhauer, or the academy’s administrator.

If only I could live as just ‘Elze’…

“Lady Leferian.”

I snapped back to reality as if cold water had been thrown over me.

I turned to Lucian.

“Enough.”

Lucian gazed at me with a face full of elation.

“Such a grand commotion means the security forces will arrive soon.”

“…Lord Lucian.”

“And the Empire will no longer be able to ignore this damned academy!”

With that exclamation, Lucian grabbed my wrist.

“Come with me. I will protect you!”

But then.

Crisp.

A small cracking sound echoed as if something was splitting.

Lucian and I instinctively looked down.

The “Heart of Winter” ring on Lucian’s finger.

A large crack had formed on the sapphire stone.

“Oh no.”

I cursed inwardly.

The original purpose of the ring was to stabilize the Duke Kaleid family’s powers.

To help maintain rationality and prevent power surges.

But using it to awaken Lucian’s abilities…

“The strain on the magical artifact must have been too great.”

Still, I hadn’t anticipated it would break like this.

In other words.

“The Heart of Winter” could no longer function as a magical artifact.

‘Lucian will have a hard time using his powers from now on.’

I thought with a cool resolve.

In the original story, before the heroine returned the “Heart of Winter” to Lucian…

Lucian had experienced power surges multiple times.

“…Ugh.”

At the same moment, Lucian stumbled, holding his forehead.

The backlash of the powers, which the “Winter’s Heart” had been absorbing, was now manifesting.

If left unchecked, Lucian would lose control and his powers would rampage.

‘Then.’

I quickly swallowed a pill I had prepared earlier.

Grabbing Lucian’s collar, I stood on tiptoe.

Our lips met.

‘!’

Lucian’s eyes widened in shock.

With practiced ease, I slipped between Lucian’s slightly parted lips.

Startled, Lucian was unable to resist effectively.

I pushed the pill down his throat.

Swallow.

Lucian’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed the pill.

“What… what is this…?”

Lucian staggered and reached out for me.

But with Lucian’s powers surging and the sedative taking effect, I easily slipped out of his grasp.

“…What did you give me?”

Lucian looked at me with trembling eyes.

And then.

“Ugh.”

Lucian swayed again.

I reached out to steady him, carefully lowering him to the floor to prevent him from falling and getting hurt.

As I gently seated him on the floor, he asked in a confused voice.

“Lady, what’s…”

“You’ve really been through a lot.”

I spoke calmly.

Lucian froze.

“The fireworks, the park walks…”

“Lady.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t join you.”

I gently stroked Lucian’s cheek.

Lucian tried to say something, but the words didn’t come out.

Perhaps the effects of the sedative were starting to take hold.

“Forget everything that happened in this academy…”

In the midst of the harsh times at the academy, Lucian’s pure and innocent face had been a source of comfort for me.

“I hope you find happiness.”

Looking into his sky-blue, lovely eyes, so fresh like newly bloomed chrysanthemums.

I smiled softly.

“Goodbye.”

* * *

I quickly made my way out of the academy.

A short distance away, I saw a single carriage waiting.

Since the academy was in such a remote location, a carriage was always kept on standby for any of the staff who needed to go out.

That carriage was now my escape.

“Lady Elze! What’s going on?!”

The confused coachman looked at me.

“There’s been an issue at the academy.”

I replied with the most haughty expression I could muster.

“So I had to leave to seek outside help.”

“Oh, understood. Please, get in.”

I accepted the coachman’s assistance and climbed into the carriage.

As I settled into the plush seat, the tension in my body seemed to melt away.

I let out a small groan without realizing it.

“Ah… was completely detoxifying too much to hope for?”

Even though I had taken an antidote to neutralize the sedative before starting the operation.

My limbs felt numb, and my eyes were heavy.

I lightly tapped on the window towards the coachman.

“Let’s go. To the city.”

My plan was to get to the city and then switch to another carriage to escape further.

The carriage began to move.

I looked down at the bag I had brought with me.

Inside was a pair of low-heeled shoes.

I discarded my high heels and quickly changed into the flats.

“Ah…”

A sigh of relief escaped between my lips.

It felt like I had finally freed myself from the constraints of the original story.

‘Finally.’

A profound sense of satisfaction surged from head to toe.

‘Finally, I’ve escaped.’

My nose stung, and my eyes grew misty.

A life where I didn’t need to dress up to look beautiful for others, or torment my ankles with high heels.

A life where I didn’t have to worry about other people’s opinions or constantly reflect on my actions to avoid being disliked.

A life where I didn’t need to tread cautiously like walking on thin ice.

Such a life was now unfolding before me.

Even just this was enough to make me overwhelmingly happy…

‘But I haven’t fully escaped yet, so I must stay alert.’

I tried to steady myself.

However.

Drip.

Tears fell uncontrollably, soaking my lap.

I gazed blankly at the tear stains for a long time.

“…Ugh.”

I bit my lip and tried to hold back my sobs.

But no matter how much I took deep breaths to calm myself,

Once the tears had started, they showed no sign of stopping.

“…”

Thus, I sobbed silently, my shoulders heaving.