Chapter 55: Two options
As we slowly made our way down the long, narrow, dimly lit secret passage leading straight to the base of the sinister organization, my thoughts kept returning to Serpens’ story.
The dim light of the lantern he held in his hand cast long shadows on the damp stone walls, creating an atmosphere of tense anticipation. Each step echoed eerily.
His words still rang in my head, evoking mixed feelings — from surprise to inner indignation.
In addition to the woman who, driven by a thirst for revenge for her husband’s betrayal, decided to attempt an assassination, there was another person whose involvement in this case truly stunned me. I still couldn’t believe that he was somehow involved in this story.
Count Creek. I could barely contain my inner indignation when I uttered that name in my thoughts. Who would have thought that this man would reappear after such a long time? Was he capable of holding a grudge for decades? Well, who would have known that this man could be so vindictive?
We walked on, Serpens slightly ahead, lighting the way with a lantern, its light reflecting off the cold walls of the narrow corridor.
The air was heavy and saturated with the smell of dampness and old dust.The silence around us seemed almost palpable, and my every movement was accompanied by inner tension.
"Madam," he began, his voice steady and confident, "as you instructed me, I continue to teach this boy the craft of our organization. And I must tell you that you were not mistaken about him. He is talented and quick to learn!"
I involuntarily raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised by such a high assessment.
"Oh, really?"
"Yes!" Serpens replied enthusiastically. "Not long ago, Lionel made significant progress in studying poisons and is now able to create some of them on his own, as well as antidotes for them."
I shook my head slightly. In any other situation, it would seem strange that such a young person already possessed such skills. But nevertheless, in our current situation, it seemed like something we simply had to accept and come to terms with.
"I see..." I muttered, lost in my own thoughts.
"In addition," Serpens continued, "when we began studying techniques for covertly eliminating targets, Lionel showed extraordinary ability with threads. If he continues his training in the same vein, I am confident that he will be able to eliminate targets unnoticed, leaving behind a minimum of traces. This makes him an excellent shadow agent."
I listened to all this, and conflicting thoughts swirled in my head. It was like a parent’s pride in their child’s achievements — but in our case, it wasn’t about chess or music, but about killing skills. Sometimes I wondered if it was really the best decision for Lionel to come to me instead of Count Ferber...
In the end, I just sighed heavily as Serpens continued to tell his enthusiastic stories, and I tried to focus on the task at hand.
Finally, we reached the organization’s lair — a huge basement that somehow fit under a gun shop. The entrance was carefully hidden, and only a few people knew about its existence.
My eyes scanned the familiar walls. Despite my familiarity with this place, I still felt a mixture of tension and slight excitement inside.
I hardly noticed the soldiers standing in line, my gaze completely fixed on Serpens. And then he uttered the words that instantly made my heart race:
"These people are here."
I looked where he was pointing and froze. There were indeed two people standing there — on their knees, with bags over their heads and their hands tied. My heart stopped, and my breathing became uneven. The soldiers yanked the bags off them, and before me appeared the faces of those who had tried to take my life.
The woman looked exhausted and frightened, her eyes shining with tears and fear. She was clearly aware of the gravity of her situation.The second was Count Walter Creek himself. His appearance and manners had repulsed me from the very first time we met. He looked stunned, his face pale when he unexpectedly saw me there. Apparently, he did not expect to meet me in such a place and in such a position.
I narrowed my eyes, carefully assessing their behavior, trying to predict how they would react to my appearance.
All sorts of thoughts swirled in my head — how best to deal with these people in order to achieve justice without losing control of the situation.
I tried to weigh all the possible options, to foresee the consequences of each decision, but all this only increased my inner tension.
However, all my thoughts were suddenly interrupted when Serpens, as if sensing my confusion, was the first to address me with an insistent request:
"Madam, please. You must punish these scoundrels who dared to attempt on your life."
His voice sounded so decisive that I involuntarily shuddered. At that moment, I was almost shocked when he suddenly placed a real knife in my hand.
I looked at him in astonishment, needing no words to understand his purpose.
Three options instantly appeared before me:
(Kill them.)
(Let them go.)
(Order Serpens to kill them.)
I felt a chill run down my spine. At that moment, I found myself at a crossroads.
The options before me were not encouraging. In any case, I had only two choices left: kill or spare.
I didn’t expect the game to ever put me in such a situation. After all, it was just a romantic otome game with an age restriction. So why was it now forcing me to make decisions about life and death? Was that part of the rating too?
I took a deep breath, trying to calm the emotions raging in my soul. It felt like my heart was about to burst from the tension. I remembered all the moments that had led me here and all the trials I had gone through before. And I realized one thing: I couldn’t allow myself to become a murderer, even if it was just a game. I didn’t want to lose myself.
Killing them meant taking on the role of executioner, becoming judge and executioner in one person. Giving Serpens the order meant relieving myself of responsibility, but at the same time becoming an accomplice to cruelty. None of these options seemed particularly suitable to me.
Thus, deep down, I had already made my decision.
Although I burned with a desire for justice, my heart told me otherwise.I didn’t want to kill a woman who was probably acting out of desperation and pain. Her eyes, full of fear and regret, spoke louder than any words.
As for Count Creek, I felt no pity for him, but I had no desire to kill him either. In the end, I simply didn’t want to become an executioner, regardless of whether it was a game or reality.
Besides, I didn’t think such an incident could happen again.
"Let them go," I decided.
This decision came to me naturally, without hesitation. I lowered the knife and returned it to Serpens, meeting his puzzled gaze with calm confidence.
"I’m not going to kill them," I said. "If we want justice, it’s better to go to the police."
"What?" Serpens exclaimed in surprise.
"But ma’am...!"
"I’ve said everything," my voice was unwavering. "I’m not interested in taking their lives. Let them spend half their lives behind bars — that will be justice. I want them to pay properly by spending many years in a prison cell."
Since I still had to play the villain, I couldn’t just say that I was letting them go because I didn’t want to kill them. So I had to come up with an excuse, which Serpens took in his own way.
"Madam, so you want these people to suffer for as long as possible?" he asked with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes.
"Um, yes..."
"In that case, I can arrange it myself," said the man with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes. "We don’t have to go to the police for that."
I cleared my throat, trying to remain calm and not reveal my true feelings.
"No need," I said in a cold, almost icy tone, trying not to let a single note of doubt slip into my voice. "Just do as I said."
Serpens, standing opposite me, frowned slightly. His hands, usually calm and confident, were now nervously clasped behind his back.
In the dim light of the dungeon, his figure seemed even more gloomy and reserved.
"My lady, but... perhaps you should at least..."
"No need," I interrupted sharply, not letting him finish. "I hope you have more important things to do than waste your time on these... useless trifles."
Serpens stared at me silently for a few seconds — his gray eyes flashed with something like reproach, but at the same time there was understanding there. He probably realized that arguing now was useless.
"Yes, mistress," he finally said quietly, lowering his head. "As you wish."
I made my final verdict and soon left the place. Deep down, I felt relieved: the case had been solved, the threat had been eliminated, and now I could finally breathe easy.
However, the next day I received more unexpected news. Walter Creek and Hayley Rothberg, whom we had previously detained on charges of attempting to assassinate me, were suddenly found dead.