Cecily let out a small groan.
A rough, warm something was licking her cheek. The sensation was most familiar.
“Rolo?”
Upon opening her eyes, Cecily saw two marble-like eyes staring down at her.
Her head was pounding. Letting out another groan, Cecily looked around her.
She was on the floor of a place that looked like an abandoned shack. Letting out a number of small coughs due to the dust, she carefully took in her surroundings.
There were a number of everyday items that looked like they hadn’t been used for years. Although the shack didn’t have any windows, a gentle light that was tinged with the color of dusk filtered in through a number of cracks in the walls. It looked like it had been over half a day since she had left the royal capital.
I remember...hearing someone call out to me.
Then she had been struck, and couldn’t remember anything after that.
Have I been captured?
The blood drained from Cecily’s face.
But who would benefit from capturing her? The only reason she could think of was that someone wanted to use her for her magical abilities. According to Charlotte, even the king wanted a particular potion made by a witch, so it wasn’t out of the question.
Rolo meowed and licked at the back of Cecily’s hand. She noticed then that her ankles had been tied together. Her hands were tied in a similar fashion behind her back.
She couldn’t move. As panic began to settle in, she pleaded to Rolo, who was stretching lethargically. Her captors might be nearby, so she spoke in a quiet voice.
“Rolo, can you bite through these ropes?”
Rolo only let out a yawn in response. It seemed this was a tall order for a cat.
What do I do?
Cecily was unsure what she could do. She tried to force her arms and legs free, but the rope was too secure. As she writhed on the ground, trying to get free, she heard a number of footsteps.
The old door opened with a bang.
“It seems you’re up.”
From behind two burly men appeared...
“Nora.”
Wearing a luxurious dress that was at odds with the old shack, Nora smirked.
Suppressing her surprise, Cecily looked at the men who were now behind Nora. From what she could see, there were only two of them. Maybe they worked for Nora’s family.
The forest that lay behind them was dark. It looked like the same forest that Cecily lived in, but she couldn’t say for sure.
Turning back to Nora, she asked warily, “D-Did you abduct me, Nora?”
“Yes, indeed. Do you have a problem with that?”
Cecily tried to bow her head to Nora, who was smirking again. But as she was on the ground, all she could do was adjust the angle of her neck.
“I’m so sorry!”
“What? What are you talking about?”
It seemed that Nora hadn’t expected her hostage to suddenly apologize. She was completely taken aback.
“I mean...because of me, you’ve had to resort to such extreme measures.”
Thinking back on it now, it had been some time since Nora had asked her to break up with Zeke.
She probably thought I had zero intention of breaking up with him.
Cecily had been so focused on her own emotions that she hadn’t been able to give a single thought to how Nora had felt. Because of that, Nora had been pushed to commit the violent act of abducting Cecily. Because Cecily had been hemming and hawing about what to do, Nora had been forced to commit this crime.
Regret caused the words to fall from Cecily’s mouth.
“Nora, it’s as you say. I did make Zeke drink a love potion.”
The corner of Nora’s mouth curled upward. This was probably because she was happy that Cecily had fessed up to her wicked deed all by herself.
“I really am sorry. I know this isn’t something I can fix by apologizing. I’m currently looking for a recipe to craft an antidote. But my search hasn’t turned up anything, so I’m on my way to ask my mother in my hometown.”
Nora cut off Cecily’s desperate explanation.
“There’s a much quicker method than your roundabout one.”
“Huh?”
If Nora knew of such a method to put things right, Cecily wanted to know what it was. However, looking up with hope in her eyes, Cecily saw nothing but the bottom of Nora’s heeled shoe as it came crashing down on her head.
She could only let out a feeble cry, and Rolo hissed with his fur standing on end to see his master in such pain. However, as he leapt at Nora, Nora mercilessly threw her fan at him.
“Stay away from me, you mangy cat!”
Letting out a weak meow, Rolo shied away, hiding himself in darkness. Cecily was relieved that the fan hadn’t hit him, but in the next moment, Nora began stamping on her head again with increasing ferocity.
“You might put up a kind act now, but do you realize what you did was unforgivable?”
Under Nora’s assault, Cecily couldn’t even open her mouth, let alone answer. Maybe she was bleeding, for she felt an uncomfortable sensation trickling across her head. She held her breath and closed her eyes.