Home/I confined you, but I have no ill will/ch 109

109.

In the darkness, Unknown stared blankly at his own hands.

Pale and thin hands. Once small and soft, now stained with blood. For the sake of avenging his fallen comrades, he had killed countless people, including the innocent. He had laid traps to drive the Teyrin Empire to ruin. Hatred toward the Empire and Kailun was his only reason for living.

But why—

Why did a single woman's words make everything feel so hollow?

"You want to live an ordinary life."

Ibelin's voice lingered in his ears. Unknown twisted his brow, breathing raggedly. Pain rose from deep within his chest—a nausea he couldn't suppress.

I want to deny it.

He wanted to dismiss the sympathy that dared to claim knowledge of his hell.

"I want revenge."

He had to see Kailun die in agony. If Kailun had saved them back then, his friends wouldn't have died. And he wouldn't have become the Unknown he was now.

He repeated it like a mantra, hundreds of times. But what surfaced in his mind was the warmth Ibelin had shown him. Her eyes held neither fear nor contempt—only pure compassion for a lost, wounded soul.

No!

It couldn't be. Ibelin shared Kailun's blood. She could never be his salvation.

Unknown staggered, leaning against the wall. He could no longer understand his own heart. Would completing his revenge fill this terrible emptiness? He had never doubted it before—but now his resolve wavered. If only pain and death awaited at the end... if it would be no different from what he had endured all along...

Then what was the meaning of all the time he had suffered?

Confusion, pain, and a deep, stirring longing for life—all entangled, eating away at his reason. He felt suffocated. Even being in an enclosed room felt stifling.

He rose and left the room. Like a man possessed, he walked through the dark corridor.

---

Ibelin listened to the sounds in the corridor. Intermittent footsteps meant guards were posted. The window was firmly sealed—not glass, so breaking it silently would be difficult.

I'll have to go through the door.

But the door was locked. Normally, you lock from the inside—this room was the opposite. She knew how to pick a lock, but using a pin here would alert the guards outside.

She'd have to use another method. She touched the back of a chair in the corner—not to swing it, just to make noise.

Thud—

She pushed the chair over, letting it clatter loudly. Then she did what many hostages would: pretended to collapse. A hostage whose safety mattered little wouldn't get away with this, but she was a seer and had been proposed to by a prince. Until they had their answer, they'd want her unharmed.

In other words, she couldn't get hurt. She lay still on the floor and coughed a few times. After a long silence, she heard a rattling at the door.

"Should we go in?"

"If something's wrong, we have to check. We were told to treat her well."

"True."

One guard seemed hesitant, but they had to open the door to check on her.

The door opened, and one guard entered. He wore leather armor and carried a sword at his waist. At first glance he looked like a common mercenary, but his movements were controlled.

A knight.

She'd spent enough time around Kite to recognize one.

It's fine.

Even a knight didn't frighten her.

Seeing her fallen form, he gasped and rushed over—that was her chance. She grabbed his forearm and pulled. She couldn't overpower him with brute force, but since he was leaning down, she could push him off balance.

"Guh!"

As he lost his balance, she drew a short blade and pressed it to his throat. At the touch of cold steel, he froze. All she needed was a moment to knock him out.

She quickly subdued one knight, then the second—more alert, so a bit harder.

"Hoo."

Still—she was no ordinary woman! She was the lover of a Swordmaster!

She'd taken down two knights in an instant—without raising enough noise to summon backup.

She peeked through the gap in the door. The corridor was quiet. She slipped out and moved through the shadows.

After some distance, she saw people moving about—eight of them. Even with her skills, she couldn't take them all with most of her weapons confiscated. Their shifts were short, and they were all on high alert.

Troublesome.

She retreated carefully. She tore the cumbersome hem of her dress up to her thighs—costly though it was, escape mattered more. Lowering her profile, she crept into blind spots.

Her grandfather's harsh survival training had made her a skilled hunter—not just of forest animals, but of people. She finally understood the lessons that had once seemed pointless.

Without a sound, Ibelin moved like a shadow. Her goal was simple: escape—but she wasn't going to leave empty-handed. A prince being here meant there might be something important. She'd gather what she could before they noticed she was gone.

In the brief gap after a patrol passed, Ibelin turned a dark corner—

And saw an unexpected figure. Both were startled. As he opened his mouth, she quickly covered it, hooked his leg to unbalance him, and pulled him to the floor.

That was close!

She ended up on top of him, but that wasn't her concern. She held her breath and listened—luckily, the patrol hadn't noticed.

She looked down at the person she'd subdued.

Unknown.

What cruel twist of fate—meeting again so soon.

She raised a finger to her lips and shook the weapon in her hand. He showed no sign of alarm. What was he planning? As she tilted her head, someone shouted.

"Who's there! What was that noise?"

"Where? Where!"

"There!"

Torches flickered. Footsteps grew nearer. She hadn't made a sound—it was just bad luck. The old building had creaked.

It seemed she'd have to fight. She had no intention of being captured. As she moved to act, Unknown grabbed her.

She was about to strike him when she noticed where his other hand was pointing.

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