How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 276

“You know….”

 

“No.”

 

But I was cut off before I could even begin speaking.

 

As I opened my eyes wide in surprise, Leonhard hugged me and spoke again.

 

“I can go out to fight at the front because the people I must protect are safe. You understand what I mean, don’t you, Nell?”

 

Leonhard’s hand lightly stroked my back. It was where Sesto’s symbol was.

 

He must have sensed that I was about to suggest using the power of the symbol to block the monsters myself.

 

“Did anything happen at this mansion?”

 

Leonhard changed the subject, as if he were leaving me no room to negotiate on this matter.

 

I hesitated, considering whether to speak up again, then finally shook my head.

 

“Not really… Ah, although I guess you could call this a thing.”

 

I leaned in and spoke in a whisper, seeing the puzzled expression on Leonhard’s face.

 

“Last night, Rake said something completely out of the blue.”

 

“Something out of the blue?”

 

“Rake said there might be a friend who lives as long as she does, and that she was going to go meet them.”

 

“A friend who lives as long as she does…? Who is that?”

 

“I don’t know either. Things were chaotic, so I told her we’d go later. But she got upset… and when I woke up this morning, she was gone. I have no idea where she went.”

 

She may look like a small, round bird on the outside, but she’s still a dragon, so I wasn’t worried she would get into real danger.

 

Still, I was concerned Rake might be sulking somewhere all alone.

 

‘Honestly… she never considers how worried people get.’

 

I sighed deeply and then belatedly discovered Leonhard, who seemed to have remembered something.

 

“Leon?”

 

“No… it couldn’t be…”

 

Covering his mouth with his hand, Leonhard furrowed his brow and stared at the floor.

 

I tugged on his sleeve and asked,

 

“Do you know something?”

 

“I’m not sure… but—where’s Felix?”

 

“He’s with Noah in the study. He’s teaching the magic tools class instead of Maryln, I think.”

 

“I see. I’ll go talk to Felix for a moment.”

 

“What’s going on? I’ll come with you.”

 

Leonhard took me to Noah’s study room as if he didn’t care if I knew.

 

The guards assigned to protect me were given a short break.

 

The two of us knocked on the door and entered the study room.

 

Noah, who had been staring intently at a magic stone with a serious face, got down from his chair in surprise.

 

“Father, when did you come back?”

 

“A little while ago. Were you having fun in class?”

 

“It was a bit hard, so I was struggling.”

 

Noah could now say things like “I don’t know” or “It’s hard” without hesitation.

 

Proud of him for that, I was about to reassure him by saying all studying is tough, but Felix frowned and waved his hand as if something was bothering him.

 

“Class isn’t over yet, so if you’re not here for a reason, don’t interrupt.”

 

“Oh, but we do have a reason.”

 

‘Well, Leonhard does, anyway.’

 

As I looked at Leonhard with that thought in mind, he asked Felix a question.

 

“Do you have the teleport stone?”

 

“Why do you ask?”

 

Felix is I showed it to Leonhard.

 

Even as he responded with a question of his own, Felix took the teleportation stone out of subspace and showed it to Leonhard.

 

Apparently, Leonhard had only wanted to check its whereabouts—he sighed in relief once he saw it.

But just then—

 

– Found it!

 

With a pop!, Rake suddenly appeared mid-air and dove toward the teleportation stone in Felix’s hand.

 

At that moment, the scene of Rake flying toward the dragon heart at the Silver Frost Tower flashed through my mind.

 

“No!”

The only thought in my head was that I had to stop her before she did something reckless.

 

I rushed forward and snatched the teleportation stone from Felix’s hand.

 

My hand barely reached it before Rake’s body did.

 

“Nell!”

 

“Mother!”

 

Strong arms wrapped around my waist. And in the same moment, a burst of light exploded before my eyes.

 

As I instinctively squeezed my eyes shut, I felt myself lift off the ground—weightless.

 

Terrified, I clung with all my strength to the arms holding me, thinking I might die if I let go.

 

* * *

 

The light that burst from the half-broken magic stone enveloped Raenel and Leonhard, who was embracing her.

 

Moments later, both of them vanished with the light, leaving no trace behind.

 

Felix, who had instinctively grabbed Noah and stepped back, sighed as he looked at Rake flapping her wings in the air.

 

“In the end, those two….”

 

“Mother! Father!”

 

Noah struggled to break free from Felix’s arms and ran to where the two were standing.

 

However, not only was there no trace of the two people, but even the magic stone that was split in half had disappeared.

 

Noah, who was looking around helplessly, asked Rake.

 

“Rake, you know? Where are they going—”

 

– I want to go too!

 

But before Noah could finish speaking, Rake disappeared with a pop!

 

Leonhard, Raenel, and now Rake too.

 

Noah’s face turned pale as he watched them all disappear.

 

Felix clicked his tongue briefly and placed a hand on Noah’s head.

 

“Don’t worry. Those two were just moved by the teleportation stone.”

 

“But that stone takes them to the bad wizards who’re after Mother. What if she’s in danger?”

 

“Your mother? Well….”

 

What kind of situation would it take for Marquis Ajas, who possesses the power of steel, and the symbol-bearer of Sesto protected by a dragon, to actually be in danger?

 

‘Besides, I even made that magic tool for the Marquis.’

 

“As long as you are safe here, none of those three will get hurt.”

 

“Still….”

 

Noah couldn’t hide his worried expression.

 

As he kept looking at the place where Leonhard and Raenel had disappeared, Felix sighed inwardly.

 

‘That’s why Raenel should be by this child’s side.’

 

Felix was wondering how to comfort Noah when—

 

—Tok Tok

 

“Captain! Urgent news! …Huh?”

 

Robert entered Noah’s study room and looked around the room with a puzzled expression.

 

“Young Master, isn’t the Captain here? Sage said he headed to the study with the Marquise…”

 

“Oh, that’s…..”

 

As Noah hesitated, as if he didn’t know how to explain, Felix stepped in and answered on his behalf.

 

“The Marquis left for a while with his wife. They’ll return once they’ve finished their business… though it won’t be soon. Wait here in the meantime.”

 

“For a while? But this is urgent…”

 

Robert scratched his head in frustration, clearly troubled.

 

Noah asked him.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

“They say the scouts on the wall rang the bell to warn of an enemy attack.”

 

“An attack?”

 

“Yes. A horde of monsters. Once the bell rang, the Red Lion Knights began evacuating civilians immediately, but…”

 

Even with the tall city walls, the deep moat, and the stationed guards, it was questionable whether they could truly hold back a horde of monsters.

 

Especially if even a single flying monster was among them—then the wall could easily be bypassed.

 

And in that case, the ones who would suffer would be the powerless civilians.

 

“By his command, aside from the mansion guards, the wizards and knights of Ajas have completed preparations to subdue the monsters. All they need now is the command to dispatch, and we’ll be ready to go out and subdue the monsters.”

 

In other words—they couldn’t move without Leonhard’s order.

 

“Young Master.”

 

Then Robert knelt down on one knee in front of Noah.

 

Robert spoke in a serious voice in front of Noah, whose eyes were wide open in surprise.

 

“The Captain often told me this: In his absence, we are to follow the orders of the Marquise first, and if she is also unavailable, then your instructions come next.”

 

With Leonhard gone and Raenel also missing, the only one left to give orders to Robert and the knights and wizards of Ajas was Noah.

 

“I… have to give the order?”

 

“Yes. Please give us your command.”

 

Speaking on behalf of the knights who served Ajas, Robert’s voice was firm and respectful.

 

“Whatever it may be, we will follow your command with the same loyalty we show the Captain.”

 

* * *

 

As I closed my eyes tightly, the feeling of floating disappeared and I felt my feet touch the ground.

 

But I couldn’t find the courage to open my eyes, so I just held on to the arm that was holding my waist tightly, and then I heard a voice whispering in my ear.

 

“Nell, are you okay?”

 

The fact that Leonhard was by my side was enough to put my mind at ease. That’s why I was able to open my eyes.

 

“I’m okay…. But where are we?”

 

The room was dark and windowless, with no light or fire, and was filled with the smell of old paper and an unidentifiable medicine, the kind you would find in an old library.

 

Still nestled in Leonhard’s arm, I clutched his sleeve and looked around the dim room, half-expecting a ghost to pop out at any moment.

 

‘Flasks… and beakers?’

 

In front of a dead fireplace, books of all shapes and sizes were stacked like towers.

 

A wide desk was littered with various laboratory tools, and parchment scrolls lay rolled up in disarray.

 

Perhaps this room is someone’s laboratory.

 

‘It’s not Paul Herbina, anyway.’

 

What I remembered was a teleportation stone that fell to the ground and split in half.

 

‘It wasn’t my intention, but I was the last one to hold it, and Leonhard hugged me.… So it looks like the two of us were moved here.’

 

To Onyx’s hideout.

 

* * *