How to Be a Dark Hero’s Daughter

When I returned to the mansion, Kien came to the Duke’s house on the pretext of the data research I had requested.

With his sharp, piercing eyes, he silently looked at me and said:

“Well, I’m glad you’re safe.”

With just that, he turned around.

‘In a way, he’s someone with an innocent side.’

I guess that’s Kien’s conclusion. After all, I rejected his confession. To hold on and say something would just be giving false hope.

I murmured silently to myself, looking at the back of Kien’s head.

“Thank you, Kien,” I said softly.

The person who found the corpse trading route and allowed me to send messages through corpses. And the one who found a way to request the Doctor and let me send a secret message to Cedric.

Who could that be?

‘It must be the skill of Kien, the head of the Information Guild.’

I decided that I owe him my life. It’s a debt that I must repay someday.

‘Anyway…’

I stared intently at the waterway map placed on my lap, shaped like a western ship.

Three nearby locations. A reservoir and a river that runs through the middle.

Including three large forests, one with the royal castle.

The academy located at the tip of the ship, and the large castle in the center.

And below that, the Duke’s property located at the gate leading to the suburbs.

Besides that, there are small nearby villages.

‘Assuming I was kidnapped due to resentment against the Duke’s house, what method would Siebel use to retaliate against this country and the tower?’

I couldn’t extract that information from Siebel, no matter how hard I tried. Not to mention, it was a secret shared only between Nigel and Siebel.

‘Siebel, who told me everything, only hid that and often shared a conversation with Nigel alone.’

Whenever that happened, there was always a chessboard on Siebel’s desk.

‘He gave me a hint just once.’

A chessboard laid out like a waterway map.

The mystery of the chessboard was that there were three ‘Bishops’, and only one ‘Queen’.

‘Usually in chess, there are two Queens, one for each side, and four Bishops…’

What could that mean?

‘I have a rough guess, but what exactly… method is he planning to use?’

I bit my nails.

‘Moreover, the pawn, the lowest piece, was missing two.’

Also, Nigel wasn’t found in the collapsed castle that day.

‘It seemed that Nigel was in a position close to being Siebel’s accomplice.’

The disappearance of Nigel, who knew all of Siebel’s plans, was also ominous.

‘Siebel… wanted to die.’

At the same time, he wanted to retaliate. Siebel, who accepted death after losing to me.

‘But would he really have died so obediently without any conspiracy?’

Now, I understand Siebel too well.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that I understand him better than anyone else in the world.

‘I bet he has one more surprise in store for me.’

And if he came back to life, he’d probably say with a grin:

‘Dear Leticia, how did you like my last trick?’

The thought gave me goosebumps.

‘The lesson isn’t over yet, Leticia.’

Too loud.

I shouted at the Siebel in my head.

‘I want to get rid of this uneasy feeling.’

I sank into my chair, thinking, and before I knew it, the corners of my eyes had lifted and wouldn’t come down.

* * *

A few days later, I visited the tower.

Collen and Jade absolutely didn’t want to let me go.

However, when I said I would take Cedric as my escort, they reluctantly allowed it.

‘Really, they seemed ready to lock me up forever. I had to convince them by saying that after this outing, they can lock me up.’

Of course, I didn’t mean it, I just wanted to appease my Dad and brother for the time being.

‘Siebel said he was tortured and experimented on at the tower.’

The ancestors and the previous Duke are already dead.

But I didn’t know anything about the tower.

‘Cedric will investigate the royal family. And Collen doesn’t remember anything about the experiments he endured…’

At this point, it wasn’t about assigning meaning to the torture and experiments Siebel underwent. I just… wanted to know. If such an event really happened.