On the small road south of Havenlight, a carriage sped along at full gallop.
The surroundings were exceedingly open, the nearby land desolate, with not another soul in sight. Yet even so, the coachman kept lashing the horses with his whip, accelerating through the howling wind as though terrified someone might catch up from behind.
"Can... can we really get away?"
Inside the carriage, six nobles including Duke Colin and several mages were crammed together, all wearing nervous expressions. One of the nobles held a sleeping little girl in his arms. He could not help glancing out the window before turning back and speaking.
Even now, their emotions had not fully settled.
As nobles of no small standing, they had seen their share of the world and could remain calm when trouble arose. But an hour ago, they had abducted the princess from the Royal Palace, then rushed to the city gate and, under the protection of several mages, forced their way through it and fled the Royal Capital... This series of actions had completely crossed every line they had once held.
Though the operation had gone smoothly and they had escaped alive, once their initial adrenaline faded, the thought of The Church made the nobles' hands tremble again.
—From this day onward, they would no longer be nobles of the Hori Kingdom.
They would be hunted by The Church to the ends of the earth.
Fear and doubt inevitably surfaced in their hearts. Everything had gone smoothly so far, but once The Church turned its attention back to them, could they truly escape?
"We can." Duke Colin nodded, speaking as though trying to convince himself. "We've already shaken off the pursuers. The Church has no idea where we are."
The nobles silently nodded as well. The carriage fell quiet,