Escape from the evil lady

The farewell before leaving the northern region was on a chilly note.

Not wanting to linger in this 'ugly' place for even a moment, the Crown Princess was determined to return to her residence as soon as possible.

If it had been possible, she would have done so immediately. But since Camilla needed rest after what had happened, they had to linger in the ice castle for one more night.

And the next morning, as soon as the sun rose, they stood in front of the main gate of the castle. Kaena was waiting for her by the carriage while Camilla said goodbye to her friend.

— Take care of yourself.

— You too.

Jeremy nodded to her and they hesitantly hugged goodbye. He had to let the girl go as soon as possible, though, because behind him a pair of piercing golden eyes were watching him. The Baron's son swallowed and smiled crookedly at his friend.

— You know you can always come to me if you need help, ” he reminded her in a whisper. The guy's tone was quite serious.

— Yes, I know.

Camille smiled back at him unfunnily.

«Though I hope the moment for that never comes after all…»

As the brief farewell between them came to an end, the Duke's daughter got into the carriage and the wagon moved off.

Camilla stared out the window, watching the icy castle that was gradually shrinking in her eyes. She wondered how soon she and Jeremy would be able to meet again.

At least, she hoped she would at least live to see that moment.

As they sat across from each other, the carriage cabin remained silent for a long time. It suddenly seemed to the Duke's daughter that the Crown Princess was having trouble looking her in the eyes for some reason. Although it was usually the opposite. And she soon found out the reason for that.

— I'm sorry… — Kaena de Ronan stammered guiltily and looked away, ''If I had known that this could happen, I would never have left you there with that idiot.

Hearing something so unexpected, Camilla was surprised that the villain of the novel was actually acting this way because of it.

— I'm… it's okay! — she began to deny it, - It was an accident…

— No, it's all my fault, ” Kaena said firmly and suddenly squeezed her hand, «I promise that nothing like this will happen again.

When the Crown Princess said that so firmly, Camilla had no choice but to smile and shake her head. Well, since her hand was once again caught in the snares of the main villain, it was all she could do.

The return trip was going to take a few more days.

As they traveled in the carriage, the duke's daughter pretended to be engrossed in the view of the northern landscape outside the window, but in reality her thoughts were far away from here.

In fact, I couldn't stop thinking about yesterday's conversation with the second princess of this Empire.

Unexpectedly to myself, I had agreed to take part in this sudden and undoubtedly dangerous adventure. And there was only one reason for that. The person who made me this offer was none other than the protagonist of this novel. In other words, the girl who was the center of this world.

«You have nothing to fear as long as you stick close to the heroine.» Isn't that the key to the success of any hitman in a novel?

Even if a sudden earthquake caused the earth to split in half, a fifty meter radius around the protagonist is safe. These were the considerations that guided me when I finally said yes to Jerica de Ronan.

After all, who else in this world was capable of such a thing?

Only the protagonist could stand up to the main villain, and that was a well-known truth.

Despite everything, I still decided to risk breaking the vicious circle I was involuntarily involved in and gain my long-awaited freedom. «What if this really is my last chance?» So I just couldn't let it go.

Even if my plan A failed, but plan B would surely succeed.

So, our second backup rescue plan is called, «Let's team up with the main character against the main villain!»

Since we didn't have a lot of time to discuss it, Jerica de Ronan only gave me an outline of her plan. So, during this month, the Imperial Army's troops will be preparing intensely for the attack on the Hailos Residence. And when the time is right, my role in this will be to make the villainess let her guard down.

Especially for this purpose, the second princess has given me a vial of sleeping pills strong enough to render Kaena de Ronan unconscious for at least a few hours. However, this time would be enough time for the Imperial Army soldiers to occupy the castle and take the Crown Princess into custody.

«In other words, after a month..... all of this will finally be over.»

That nightmare that I had been living in lately and had unwittingly found myself in due to my own stupidity would be a thing of the past. There was still a chance to set things right and get the original plot of this world back to where it was supposed to be.

Thoughts of the upcoming operation to overthrow the villain sowed excitement and trepidation in my soul at the same time. After all, although my task sounded simple enough, it was also fraught with considerable risk. No one could guarantee in advance how everything would go. At least, I had to rely on the blessed aura of the protagonist and pray that everything would really work out.

At this moment, I turned away from the window for the first time in a long time because my neck was stiff, and accidentally ran into the Crown Princess' gaze. It was strange as usual and raised an inner alarm in me.

«She must be thinking right now about some horrible things she's going to do to me.» — I suggested, looking at the expression on her face.

— What is it? — The villain of the novel asked me with a smile as she noticed me looking at her.

— It's just… I'm glad we'll be back soon, ” I mumbled.

— Yes. There's nowhere better than home, ' the villainess agreed with me eagerly.

«That's for sure. Especially since you turned my house into a graveyard.» — I hummed ironically in my soul.

Even though I had no attachment to this place, I couldn't stop thinking about the people who had suffered in vain because of me. And how could I forget when I dreamt about them almost every night?

Oh, well.

«Retribution is just around the corner.»

Pretending to smile at the villain of the novel, I held an invisible knife behind my back, which I was soon going to plunge into her.