IBDFSML Chapter 27

27

I opened my eyes wide.

Then quietly sat up in bed.

“……”

I glanced to the side—Sion was still fast asleep, his posture perfectly composed.

Gazing at his sleeping face for a moment, I whispered with satisfaction.

“Phew, just sleep soundly without worrying, Sion. I’ll take care of everything.”

Soon, assassins sent by the Grand Duchess would appear and attack Sion.

Their goal was to harm—or even kill—him, preventing him from attending his coming-of-age ceremony.

My mission was to eliminate those assassins before they could ever get near him.

But there was one major obstacle to this crucial plan.

“The original novel doesn’t provide much detail about this event.”

In other words, I had no clue who the assassins were or how exactly they were going to launch their attack on Sion.

All I knew was this: they’d infiltrated the annex in disguise ahead of time, and would make their move when the midnight bell rang.

That was my only lead.

“Alright. Then I’ll sweep through the annex and root out any unfamiliar maids or servants. If they look even the slightest bit suspicious... I’ll just take them out.”

After that, I’d find Genevia—who, according to the original plot, would be wandering somewhere in the annex—and stage her fateful reunion with Sion!

“Phew, it’s a flawless plan.”

…In theory, at least.

I admired my own strategy and decisiveness, then took one last look at Sion’s sleeping face.

His soft silver-gray hair lay gently across the bridge of his sharp nose, and his long lashes rested neatly, faintly glowing under the moonlight like they were seeing me off.

‘Yeah, yeah. I’ll be back soon, Sion.’

Like a hero setting off on a mission, I pulled the hood of my pajama robe deep over my head and declared boldly.

“Alright, time to go!”

“Go where?”

“…!?”

A sudden voice made me flinch and look to the side.

At some point, Sion had opened his eyes and was staring at me.

“Ah… huh? Haha, weren’t you asleep, Sion?”

I asked awkwardly, trying to laugh it off. Sion groggily sat up.

“I was going to sleep.”

“……”

“Normally, the moment your head hits the pillow you start snoring—but tonight you kept tossing and turning and sneaking glances at me. It was suspicious.”

“I-I snore? Me? I don’t really do that…”

“So, what is it this time?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

I blinked rapidly, putting on my best ‘I-have-no-idea-what-you’re-talking-about’ face.

Tonight, no matter what, I had no intention of letting Sion come with me.

‘In the original story, Sion got seriously injured fighting those guys tonight. That’s why I have to go alone.’

Sure, Sion was a strong knight and an aura-user, but this was the moment where the main storyline was truly about to begin. If I let my guard down, everything could easily follow the original plot.

“I just couldn’t sleep, that’s all. I was thinking of taking a walk. Why, Sion, do you want to come too? Ah, but you should sleep early for tomorrow, right?”

“‘Sweep through the annex and root out any unfamiliar servants. If they look even slightly suspicious, eliminate them!’—that’s what you said earlier, didn’t you?”

“…Guh.”

Apparently, Sion had heard everything I said to myself earlier.

Sion saw how stiff I had gone and calmly got out of bed. He walked to the wardrobe, threw on a dark cloak meant for stealth missions, and picked up his sword.

I rushed over to him and waved my hands frantically.

“No, no, Sion! There’s no need for you to come! I can totally handle this on my own, okay?”

“If something’s happening in this annex, then it’s my responsibility to deal with it—not yours.”

Sion spoke flatly as he slung the sword across his back and walked toward the door.

‘No way, I can’t let this happen!’

“Stop right there, Sion!”

I hurriedly jumped in front of him to block his path.

“Th-think about it again! Isn’t it better if one of us stays back to guard the room? Just in case, like, really weird assassins show up and wreak havoc or something…! I mean, not that assassins are actually coming!”

“Assassins, huh.”

Sion mulled over my words, then opened the door and stepped outside.

‘Ugh, seriously!’

I hurriedly flew to his left shoulder and landed there, pinching and tugging at his cheek in a desperate attempt to stop him.

“Go back, Sion! I don’t want to see you getting hurt over something pointless!”

Sion replied, seemingly unfazed.

“You must not know—this kind of thing has happened from time to time. Nothing to be scared of.”

“…What?”

“I figured something unpleasant might show up around now. There’s no way she would quietly sit back and let me safely attend the coming-of-age ceremony and inherit the Grand Duchy.”

“…!”

Even though Sion had seemed calm and carefree ahead of the winter coming-of-age ceremony, deep down, he must have sensed the storm that was brewing.

At that point, I realized—there was no way I could talk him out of this.

“Alright, I get it, Sion.”

I quickly gave in and changed tactics.

At this point, there was only one option left.

“Let’s track down those assassins before they come for us.”

The principle of "strike first, win fast."

***

I fed Sion just enough information to avoid triggering a spoiler warning from the system.

“I have some clues about the assassins who are going to attack you tonight.”

“What kind of clues?”

“There’s a high chance they’ve already infiltrated the annex under false identities.”

Sion looked at me with thoughtful eyes, as if wondering—yet again—how I always seemed to come by this kind of knowledge.

But Sion was someone who understood priorities. Instead of pushing the question, he focused on the current threat.

“In that case, they’re probably not among the regular maids or servants with assigned duties.”

“Right.”

“And they definitely wouldn’t be among the royal guards, since their identities are strictly verified.”

“Exactly.”

Walking quietly through the darkened halls of the annex, Sion murmured.

“In a typical assassination, they'd usually bribe a tight-lipped servant or maid. But when it’s something more troublesome—when they don’t want to deal with the aftermath—they tend to use disposable one-time pawns.”

I nodded in agreement with Sion’s words.

According to the vast database of romance fantasy novels stored in my brain, the shadowy villains usually didn’t entrust risky and messy work to their close aides or henchmen. They’d rather hire some expendable outsider or random extra to do the job.

“Hmph, I’ve always thought there weren’t enough staff working in the annex… but times like these, it actually helps, huh?”

As I giggled at the sudden thought, Sion murmured, seemingly in agreement.

“You’re right about that.”

It was late at night, and the hallways and corridors were almost deserted.

The few servants or guards we did pass were all familiar faces—people we had often seen around.

Startled to see the young lord, who should’ve been in his chambers, silently wandering the darkness with a sharp and ominous presence, they quickly bowed and withdrew.

Yes, yes—go away if you're going to be in the way. 

Shoo.

After roaming the first floor for a while with hawk-like eyes, searching for anything suspicious, we eventually reached a garden connected to the outdoor corridor.

“Huh? I’ve never been here before.”

It was a modest space—not quite elaborate enough to be called a proper garden, but too dressed-up to be just a yard.

I had always passed by without much attention, but Sion suddenly stopped in his tracks in front of it.

“Sion?”

I tilted my head and looked at him curiously.

He nodded slightly, his gaze fixed on something.

Following his line of sight, I saw them—moving awkwardly between the snow-covered winter trees and bushes.

“…Oh.”

Looking more closely, I counted three people.

One was trimming the bare, leafless branches.

Another was swinging a large axe at a tree stump.

The last one was lazily clearing snow in the corner, clearly doing the bare minimum.

Even at a glance, the trio looked suspicious as hell.

As Sion slowly approached them, he spoke.

“Working hard this late at night, aren’t we?”

His tone sounded polite, but the underlying sarcasm was unmistakable. Hearing it, the three men—clearly assassins in disguise—froze in place.

“……”

“……”

“……”

After a moment, the one who seemed to be the leader smirked and replied.

“You’re just as sharp as the rumors say, young lord.”

“Did you really think I’d be so careless?”

Sion shot back, and the leader’s smirk vanished, replaced with a hardened expression.

“It’s cold out. Let’s end this quickly.”

With that, Sion reached behind him and smoothly drew his sword.

The assassins’ eyes gleamed with bloodlust as they responded:

“Fine. Just what we wanted.”

🍓; The use of "we" in the phrase "Working hard this late at night, aren’t we?" is an example of a rhetorical device known as the royal we or inclusive we. It’s used when a speaker wants to subtly include the listener or group in the statement, even if they are not part of the action. In this case, Sion, is not directly working hard with the assassins but is using "we" to imply shared involvement, perhaps mockingly or sarcastically, as if to subtly point out their actions in an almost patronizing manner.

The sarcasm here is essential. By using "we," Sion is acknowledging that the assassins are working late (which could imply something shady or sinister), but the use of "we" makes it sound like he's implying they're all in it together, even though he isn't one of them. This enhances the sarcastic tone, as it highlights the discrepancy between their actions and the politeness of the phrasing.