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Chapter 35: S.O.S.

Raymond hoped—desperately—that a flare or signal might appear in his bag. But an item he'd never put there couldn't magically materialize.

What he found were the smoke bombs he'd used the day they were kidnapped, the glass marbles he'd thrown at the bodyguards' feet, snap-pistols, dust, a broken pen nib, and... "Ah, why is this here?"

There was also a stink bomb—a pea-sized balloon that emitted a foul odor. Aside from that, there were some unidentifiable stones, the coins he'd split with Janice from the warehouse, a necklace made from a troll's claw given to him by his uncle Peron, and a few dozen gold coins. There were also some hairpins that looked like Janice's, though he wasn't sure how they'd ended up in his bag.

Looking at the assortment of odds and ends, Raymond felt his own uselessness keenly. Everything was strange, odd, trivial, and utterly worthless—just like he felt.

Ugh, seriously!

He tore at his hair, engaging in self-criticism. But no amount of criticism would improve the situation. So instead, he focused on how to let his family know where they were.

"The only unusual thing is this claw..."

Raymond dangled the troll claw, muttering to himself. In the frontier, there was a saying that giving a troll's claw to a boy would make him a great warrior.

―Oh, that's just superstition!

―Hey! Just keep it. It's genuinely precious.

Despite his nephew's teasing, Peron had insisted on giving it to him. Most people wouldn't recognize it, but this wasn't an ordinary troll claw—it was from a giant troll. Fewer than ten people in the Empire could take down a giant troll.

"...Would anyone recognize this?"

Even if they recognized it as a giant troll's claw, they wouldn't know it belonged to Raymond. But still, he clung to that 0.0001% chance. After glancing around, he discreetly hung the troll claw on the windowsill, and attached one of Janice's hairpins to it—bent into the rescue signal shape the Emperor had taught him long ago.

Sorry, Janice. I'll buy you a new hairpin later.

He apologized silently and resolved to buy her a beautiful hairpin with a huge gem if they ever got home. But all of that depended on them actually making it back.

Raymond sighed, staring out the window, hoping desperately that someone—anyone—would recognize the troll claw and hairpin dangling from the sill.

That afternoon—

"Your Grace! A report has come in from the scout in Sector AP3."

It was the moment that 0.0001% chance turned into 100% hope.

---

An anomaly had been spotted at the house under surveillance in Sector AP3. The report was delivered urgently to Garren, the old Duke, and Peron, who were in the middle of a meeting.

"Ah! That's Raymond! That's his necklace!"

Peron, Raymond's uncle, immediately recognized the troll-claw necklace hanging from the windowsill.

After that, events moved quickly. The rescue operation, whose date had been undecided, was set for dawn the next day. Investigators from the special team, soldiers, and the Ducal residence's special bodyguards were rapidly deployed to Sector AP3.

The operation had stalled because they didn't know which location the children were in—but once they knew, everything changed. There was a suggestion that the necklace and hairpin might not have been left by Raymond and Janice, but that doubt vanished hours later when the scout's photo of the necklace arrived.

The hairpin on the windowsill was bent into a strange shape—

[S.O.S - 3]

"Rescue me. I am Raymond, third in line to the throne."

This Imperial cipher was renewed every six months, and its form varied slightly by user, making it nearly impossible to forge. After confirming the code, no one doubted that the children were in Sector AP3.

To be safe, Garren consolidated all forces from the other two locations into Sector AP3. Fully prepared, they waited for nightfall.

---

That night.

After finishing her "translation," Janice came to Raymond as usual and started chatting about trivial things.

"Hey, I learned something interesting today! Rahu and Pura are actually the same being, just written differently. An old white-haired lady brought a book, and when I translated that part, the Elder was really happy."

Sitting on the bed, Janice swung her legs and chattered.

'Rahu, Pura, the sun—they're all the same!'

But beneath her casual expression, Janice was carefully mouthing the key points of what she'd translated today, trying to pass knowledge to Raymond in case he escaped. She figured he'd have an easier time getting out than she would—so if he escaped, he had to stop the kidnappers from getting the "ruins" no matter what.

I'm cooperating with them for now because I have to, but once you're well enough to escape, I'll find a way to hold them back!

Janice was desperate to transfer her "knowledge" to Raymond.

Understanding her heart, Raymond had been more diligent than anyone in absorbing her "knowledge."

But today was different.

"...Raymond?"

"..."

"Hey! Are you listening to me?"

"..."

Raymond wasn't listening at all.

"Hey."

"..."

"Hey!"

"..."

"HEY!"

Janice shouted right into Raymond's ear.

"Aah! That scared me!"

He reacted—but far more weakly than she'd expected. The Raymond she knew would have gotten angry or annoyed, but he just said he was startled.

Something's suspicious...

In Janice's experience, Raymond only acted this way right before—or right after—pulling off something big. Whenever she saw that look, she'd run to the Grand Duchess and tattle:

"Your Grace, Raymond caused trouble again!"

But now was different. Neither of them could step outside the house—what kind of trouble could he possibly cause? Especially when he could barely walk!

Janice narrowed her eyes and glared at Raymond.

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