Night of the Abandoned Duchess - Chapter 52

Chapter 52

“Kyle!”

As Rosalind screamed his name, he quickly turned to block the flying sword.

The opponent was a man with a grim appearance who had a rope tied around her body. The man presses Kyle with his whole body. The swords that collided did not move back at all, and they confronted each other tightly.

Turning his head to look at her while dealing with the man, he spoke.

“Listen to me.”

His voice was resolute and affectionate, so it sounded like a command or request — somewhere in between. Rosalind also looked into Kyle’s eyes. Even though it was a brief moment, it felt like an eternity.

“Go… Go and get the soldiers. That’s it.”

When he finished pleading and put strength in his arm, the man was pushed back in an instant. Kyle did not miss the gap and started pushing more. Once pushed, the man continued to step backwards like a cornered rat, showing a difficult look.

Rosalind, who was watching the scene, moved her footsteps along the way.

Looking around her, she found not only Albert and the man who had appeared to her but also six or seven others. Kyle, on the other hand, was far outnumbered, making it difficult for him to deal with multiple people at once.

“Don’t look ahead, run! The horse’s tied up not far away, so you just have to go there.”

“Kyle…”

“You must go, wife.”

While Kyle was distracted by the attacks from all sides of her, Dustin urged her. Rosalind looked at Dustin with a confused look, not sure what to do.

She eventually began to follow him in determination. However, she couldn’t take her eyes off Kyle. She didn’t doubt his abilities and believed that he would get out safely. Still, his opponents’ skills were so strong that he had to knock them over with his feet and hit them with his body because a sword alone was not enough.

“Run. Go on!”

At Dustin’s words, she started running.

Before she knew it, the hem of her dress was tattered, and the back of her hands were scratched and stained with blood. But, such suffering was no obstacle in the face of the threat of her life and death.

The anxiety and urgency caught her breath up to her chin. The metallic clash of swords and the screams of someone were clinging to her ankles and relentlessly followed.

Everything was just as terrifying as a nightmare.

“Over here!”

Dustin, who was running a few steps ahead, made his way through the grass. She saw what Kyle was talking about.

It was when Rosalind stepped on her feet even faster, right behind her that she heard a voice calling.

“Rosalind…!”

Looking back, she took a deep breath in surprise.

The tip of the sharp sword, which she did not know from which direction it was coming from, was charging towards her. As soon as she realized that, Kyle threw himself in front of her sword. In an instant, someone’s sword passed through Kyle’s arm, and red blood splashed in her vision.

A low moan escaped his mouth. Even as blood dripped from one of his arms, Kyle struck the man’s sword hard.

With a loud bang, the man fell backwards.

“Ugh…”

He took a deep breath and held his breath for a moment. Rosalind and Dustin, who didn’t even know that the sword was coming from behind, were so startled that they just kept their mouths shut.

“Kyle!”

His name came out of their mouths in unison.

“Are, are you okay?”

He got hurt while protecting her. On her behalf…

Rosalind asked in a trembling voice, but Dustin rushed again as if there was no time for this, “You must go! You have to go for Kyle. Leave the rest to him. This can lead to the death of even the Madam. You just have to trust Kyle and go!”

His words caught her, who had her eyes fixed on Kyle and couldn’t think of anything.

Rosalind left the injured Kyle behind and stood in front of the horse. Now, all she had to do was get on the horse and get out of the forest. She would then be able to live… At least, she would.

However…

In the end, she shook her head, saying she couldn’t go.

He may be able to survive his injury, but nothing was certain. Nonetheless, she couldn’t live in exchange for that. Just thinking that, it hurt so much that Rosalind felt like she was going crazy as if she had left something she should never leave behind.

“You call in the soldiers.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Dustin, who was already on the horseback, raised his voice as if it was nonsense.

“…I, I have to go back.”

“It’ll not help!”

“I can’t let him die for me!”

“What are you going to do when you go back? What can you do?”

She didn’t deny it though that didn’t mean she changed her decision. Her eyes staring at Dustin were sharp and clear.

“…Still, I still have to go to him.”

“No way!”

Ignoring his words, Rosalind turned her back and started running to where Kyle was.

* * *

The fight was still raging.

Albert’s side was already injured, and it was difficult to fight. However, Albert alone was still fighting fiercely. It was unbelievable that he was a nobleman from the countryside, and his swordsmanship was outstanding.

Kyle, who suddenly felt a loss of strength in his shoulder, applied more force to his other hand to support the sword. Perhaps, it was because he had his arm cut, or because the fight continued, it was probably heavier than the first time.

“From murder to kidnapping, there are so many things.”

Should he just hope his arms hold up a little more…

Kyle endured the pain and put pressure on Albert. He could see that Albert, who was struggling under him, wrinkled his face little by little.

When he first investigated Albert, he could only find out that he was a nobleman from a humble family. But strangely, there was no history other than that, as though he had deliberately tried to hide it. It looked very suspicious, so as he dug deeper in various directions, his identity began to be revealed little by little.

And, after a while, Rosalind suddenly disappeared, leaving only a letter. The content of the letter was simple: she hated her ex-husband for hurting her father and wanted to run away with her true love, Albert, and start over.

Kyle thought it was nonsense. There was a lot of this and that, though above all, he knew Rosalind wasn’t the one to leave Leo. Although it was similar, it was strikingly different from her handwriting.

As soon as he saw the letter, he had a gut feeling that something had happened to her. He immediately sent people and started looking for people based on Rosalind’s impressions, which eventually led him to come here.

“You are no different from me. Blinded by a woman.”

Albert deliberately squeezed his injured arm and lifted his chin.

The throbbing pain pierced through, and he was relieved for a moment before their posture overturned. This time Kyle lay under him. Albert’s blade shone as if it would stab him at any moment, and Kyle was barely blocking his sword with his wounded arm.

“There is no difference.”

He twisted one corner of his mouth and smiled.

“I’m not like a murderer like you.”

Perhaps, stimulated by those words, Albert gave more strength. Kyle bit his teeth to bear the pain rising up his arm. Blood continued to ooze from the arm that was torn by the sharp knife, and because of that, his clothes were already wet.

A thick sweat was forming on Albert’s forehead due to the long fight. Similarly, sweat dripped down Kyle’s face as well. He could feel his arms gradually strain as the force of pressing down on him got even stronger, having no idea how much longer he could hold on.

When Albert noticed that Kyle was struggling, he pushed harder.

“Murderer…? Do you know why I had to do this?”

“I don’t want to know.”

Kyle’s breathing started to get worse. His mind was getting a little dazed, perhaps because of the piercing pain, and in the midst of that, Rosalind came to mind.

Did the little woman manage to get out of the woods? He hoped she was safe.

Even though he was thinking of her, even in the situation with the sword in front of him, he felt he was completely mad, he wanted to see her that much.

He had to survive, but he couldn’t stand it any longer…

A growing anxiety ran through his mind.

…No, he had to live. For her sake, he had to get out of here.

It was when he was forcing his eyes to grab hold of his mind that was trying to get dark. Suddenly, Albert’s face contorted grimly.

“Aackk!”

The next moment, he let out a painful scream and collapsed on the spot. When Kyle lifted his head to see what was going on, he could see Rosalind standing trembling behind Albert’s back.

Thud.

There was the sound of a large stone rolling bluntly to the floor. Rosalind had struck Albert with a stone in the back.

While he was momentarily unconscious, Kyle quickly turned his body to subdue him. As soon as he took the sword from his hand, he turned to look at her.

“…Rosalind?”

His eyes widened in disbelief. By now, she should have run out of the woods, but Rosalind…

“I can’t leave you behind…”

Rosalind’s face was stained with tears.

Kyle, who was gazing at her with an affectionate gaze, barely suppressed the unknown emotions that filled his throat and got his body up. His priority was to get out of here safely as soon as possible.

With the help of Rosalind, he tied Albert to a large tree with ropes and stood facing her only after examining the fallen one by one.

“Let’s wait for Dustin to call the soldiers.”

“…Yes.”

Rosalind nodded her head slightly.

The hem of her dress had already become rags, and there were scratches all over her body. As if Kyle couldn’t stand it when he saw it, he approached Albert. He stared at the man’s face, who hadn’t regained consciousness yet, and muttered while grinding his teeth.

“…I think it would be better to end it here before the soldiers arrive.”