Chapter 29

Angelina's POV

Of course, he would show up to gloat. It took him longer to make an appearance than I was expecting. I was beginning to think I got lucky and he wouldn't come here.

"You foolish girl. If you had conducted yourself as a proper member of my family, none of this would be happening now,"

My grandfather is getting cautious around me. A pair of knights wearing over-the-top golden armour and even a mage are present as he speaks to me. I guess the time I nearly caused him to fall out of the school must have made an impact on him. Still, it isn't enough. If I intended to kill him, my grandfather would die before his guards could even move an inch. Lucky for him, I am nothing like the person Angelina was meant to be.

"My friends are upset you turned down their children's invitations. If only you had gone, they could have been allies to you now instead of calling for your head,"

They don't sound like the type of people I would want as my allies in the first place. Anyone who wants to see an innocent person's death is not the kind of person I would have liked to get to know. As soon as Bozzair gets here, they will have no choice but to let me go.

"If you listen to me, I could help you," He says, offering me a cup of tea. "Work with me, and I will get you out of this mess. You are still a valuable asset to me. Your marriage to the prince is very beneficial in multiple ways."

Liar. But it is a smart move on his part. He isn't taken any chances, but my grandfather is a fool if he thinks I hadn't noticed he spiked the tea. I saw a glimpse of those pale herbs just before he filled my cup.

I had taken down a slavery ring while I was secretly leaving the house to be an adventurer. The gang used the same herbs to control the people they kidnapped. I have to give credit where credit is due. Those herbs are tasteless and dissolve in warm water. Just a single drop and the person who drinks it will struggle to think for themselves.

In the game, my grandfather was the mastermind behind the slave ring, and I would have helped him. He was the one who provided the herbs to that gang, but I couldn't prove it. Ever since I started to disobey him, I have had to keep a careful eye out for those herbs, or I could have become his slave.

But there is one problem with those herbs. If the person is aware of them, their effects are easy to remove. I drink the tea pretending not to notice the victorious look on my grandfather's face. It was too easy to secretly cast a cure-all spell on my tongue, naturalising the herb's effects. I have to force myself not to smile when I see my grandfather's confused look as I put down my glass. He should know not to underestimate me by now.

"W… well, I shall take my leave… I'll see you at your trial,"

"Have a good day, grandfather, and thank you for the wonderful tea,"

I politely smile as he leaves but immediately rush to wince my mouth clean as soon as he's gone. That black herb may have been tasteless, but that tea was so awful I could barely drink it. Saying it tasted wonderful was the biggest lie of my life. I have eaten such disgusting things since coming to this world, but nothing tasted as bad as that tea. He should be put on trial for that. It must be a crime to serve something so foul.

"Sister!" At least some company arrives that I don't want to kick out of the door. "Are you here? You haven't tried to escape, right?"

"Why should I run when I have done nothing wrong?" I return from the bathroom to find Noah, Marshall and Zeno. "What's wrong? I'm the one locked up, not you, so why do you all look so worried?"

"Told you she hasn't heard?"

"Heard what?"

I get a terrible feeling in my gut. The kind I used to get right before an ambush was sprung on me.

"Sister, grandfather is making sure the people judging you are all under his thumb,"

"It's shameful that our kingdom is powerless to stop him," Marshal shakes his head. "But even my father is struggling against his influence and wealth. It is nearly impossible to find someone who isn't being bribed or threatened by your grandfather these days."

"I had my father make a formal protects about your false imprisonment, but…." Zeno sighs. "You already know your people prefer to exploit mine rather than listen to them."

"We will do everything we can to help you, but… it is looking like a losing battle," We all jump when Marshal punches the wall. Even the knight outside my room came in to see what had happened. "I hate this! I refuse to let our kingdom continue to act like this. Bribes, threats, secret agendas. None of those things should influence our land on the scale they do!"

"Don't worry. Things will get better," I gently tell him.

"She's right, my prince," Arial, Marshal's personal maid and secret lover, steps forward from where she was waiting quietly with my own maid. "You will have the power to change things for the better once you are king."

"You're right," Marshall softens and smiles at Arial. "I will make things better. I'm sorry. We should be helping you, Angelina. I shouldn't have made it about myself."

"It's fine," I assure everyone. "Once Bozzair arrives, he will prove my innocence, and not even my grandfather will be able to stop me from walking out of here."

"Yeah, about that…."

Why does Zeno look so worried?

"Sister, no one has seen Bozzair since you were arrested,"

"What? Did someone take him?"

"We don't know what happened, but I have people looking into… wait! Don't go jumping out of that window!"

"Let me go!"

"Not until you calm down!"

They need to let me go. If someone can capture or harm Bozzair, they must be dealt with. If anything had that kind of power, no one could stand against them. No, I just need to get out of their grasp and find them. I'm starting to think teaching them how to use body-strengthening magic was a mistake.

"Sister, please calm down!"

"If you leave now, you will only make yourself look more guilty!"

"As much as I love holding you like this, I would much prefer it being under different circumstances,"

I suddenly feel like I need to punch an elf. It caused me to stop struggling for just a moment, but it was enough for my friends to pull me away.

"Sister, please just stay here,"

"Noah's right. You need to stay here and let us find Bozzair,"

"I could stay with you if you find yourself feeling lonely tonight,"

"How many times do I have to tell you she is my fiancee?"

"How many times do I have to remind you that you aren't married yet,"

They're at it again. At this rate, Bozzair will never be found, but I could slip away… or not. My father went overboard, keeping me on lockdown after discovering I was an adventurer. One of the measures was giving the servants magic scrolls to put barriers up in all the windows and doors if I showed any signs of sneaking out. I caught a glimpse of my maid just finishing placing a barrier on my room's window. I hope Bozzair is safe wherever he is.

<0>

Ellis's POV

It had to be them. It's not surprising I was suspicious of those three from the start. They were the ones who tried to attack my Angelina before she was arrested. If we hadn't arrived when we did, who knows what they would have tried to get her to admit to. They even made her cry. I don't see any reason to show them any mercy after what they have done.

But first I need to get everything ready. First, I take away their magical power. Second, I make sure everyone nearby decides to take a walk, and lastly, I grab certain game items. They won't know what hit them.

<0>

Daniella Allencourt's POV

This dragon really is a pain in the ass. Why can't he just sit still and keep quiet? I am starting to get tired of constantly repairing his barrier, and the dragon's constant whining is giving me a headache. No one is coming to save him, and his master is as good as dead. He should accept he has lost already.

"Let me out of here!"

"Just up for five minutes!"

"My human's mercy won't protect you from me!"

"She's as good as dead, so please just stop resisting! Her trial sound be beginning soon, and she will be executed in a few hours,"

"No, she won't! You will be the one who dies!"

"You poor little fool. Even after all this time, you still think you can get free and kill me,"

"I never said I would kill you,"

"Yeah, and who will that…."

"How dare you do this to my Angelina!"

<0>

Ellis's POV

"How dare you do this to my Angelina!"

I put every ounce of strength into my foot as I kicked the door in. The wooden door shatters into countless wooden shards that scatter across the room. Only one of them is here, but I can take care of the others later.

"Why are you here?!"

"Because you are threatening to take her away from me! I lost the last person I loved. I swore I would do whatever it took to not lose the next one,"

"So you are going to be her knight in shining armour? Bring me to justice and save that rich brat? Well, life isn't that fair. After watching you during training, I know this won't even be a close fight. I won't kill you, but this is still going to… to… to… why isn't it working?! What did you do?!"

"I didn't do anything," Bozzair glares at Daniella, who she wrongly concludes is the cause of her problems. "I warned you, didn't I? There is a person who has the power to change the very nature of our world. It looks like she has come for you."

Perfect. The fear in her eyes is just what she deserves. Now I just need to take care of her and ensure she is no longer a threat to my Angelina. She deserves a far worse fate than what I have planned for her, but this way will make Angelina safer.

"You are joking, right?"Oh, she's laughing now. That won't do. She needs to cry, beg and bleed for what she has done. "You realise she can barely keep up with the rest of us, right? Even without my magic, I can still…."

"Too slow,"

She must be a good fighter. Strong punch and perfect aim. Too bad she got me as an opponent. Anyone else would have been knocked out by that punch. Oh, she's trying to kick me now. Fast and strong, but it still misses the mark.

"Stay still!"

She tried to punch me with her left arm, then her right and then her left again before attempting another kick, but none of her attacks hit me. I was thinking of making her weaker and slower, but it looks likes I didn't need to in the first place.

"Just stop dodging and fight back!"

"With pleasure,"

I punch her straight in the gut, feeling something break and hearing a satisfying craking sound. Daniella flies across the room, hitting the opposite wall before slamming into the ground. I smile, seeing she is finally bleeding and hurting. It's what she deserves for going after my Angelina.

"How… how are you… so… strong…?"

"I was always this strong,"

I bend down and cuff her wrists together. I arranged for the guards to arrive shortly to take care of her. As much as I would have liked to kill her, I need Daniella alive so she can tell the guards all about the other people involved with framing my love.

"I just prefer everyone thinking I am weak,"

I would never have gotten so close to Lady Angelina if I had shown off my strength. Having her teach me alone in secret, being helped by her in class and protecting me from harm. I got to experience having a knight in shining armour saved me from one tough spot after another. But turning things around is nice every once in a while. Holding her as she was scared after I sealed her magic had my heart racing. I can probably get her to hug me again after I return Bozzair to her.

"Come on, Bozzair," I shatter the barrier and snap the restraining collar he is wearing. "Let's go save Lady Angelina. The guards will show up shortly to take care of the trash."