Chapter 149: Manupaltion [3]
Amelia knew.
She knew her words alone might not cut as deep as she hoped.
A clean lie could be dismissed, challenged, even disproven. But a lie laced with truth?
That was far more dangerous.
With just enough reality woven in, her story would become something no one could easily question.
And who would side with Julies Evans, of all people?
An outsider.
A servant.
The title of "Baron’s son" might have opened doors in some corners of the world, but here, in the cold north, it meant little without the right bloodlines and the right allegiances.
It was exactly why Amelia had decided to shadow him tonight — to find that sliver of truth she could bury inside her words.
The wind bit at her cheeks as she moved, her steps quiet against the frost-hardened ground. She’d been following him for nearly forty minutes now.
Yet she still had no idea where he was going.
Julies walked with the same measured pace he always did, not a trace of hesitation in his stride. He didn’t glance back, didn’t shift his shoulders, didn’t so much as twitch in a way that suggested he suspected her presence.
Was he truly unaware... or just playing the part?
Her gloved fingers tightened around her fan — pointless in the cold, but a comfort nonetheless. The night air was so still she could hear the faint crunch of his boots ahead, steady as a heartbeat.
She pressed her lips together, watching the line of his back in the dim moonlight.
’What are you hiding, Julies Evans?’
Because if she could find it... even the smallest thing... then Alice would have no reason to keep him close.
Amelia, a noblewoman from a powerful merchant family that monopolized the northern trade routes, knew these lands better than most.
The lay of the terrain, the hidden roads, even the smuggling trails — she could read it all like a map in her mind.
If they went much farther north, they’d be skirting the border with the Drazroth Empire.
"Could it be...?"
The thought struck her sharply, sending a rush of cold clarity through her.
Humans were far too easy to tempt.
The promise of a life of luxury in some foreign city, the lure of gold enough to drown in, or the insidious pull of a demon’s mind-twisting magic — all could turn loyalty into treachery.
She knew the history well. Collusion with the Drazroth Empire was nothing new.
It had happened countless times before, so often that the kingdom had been forced to implement harsh measures: execution, exile, punishments that made death look merciful.
Even so, such betrayals never disappeared entirely.
And now, Julies Evans — her carefully chosen target — was heading deeper into the north without explanation.
"What if... I caught him in the act?"
A bright, dangerous smile touched her lips.
Yes.
If he truly meant to consort with the enemy, then she wouldn’t need to merely drive him away. She could ruin him utterly. Make it so he could never face Alice again, never set foot in polite society.
Her hand brushed against the small velvet pouch at her hip.
Inside, a crystal ball glimmered faintly — an artifact capable of recording both sight and sound. She’d carried it ever since setting her sights on Julies.
If she could capture him speaking to a demon... her work would be done.
Time passed slowly as she followed him, snow crunching softly underfoot.
At last, Julies stopped.
She crouched low, peering past a line of wind-bent pines. The land before them was nothing but a wide, empty plain, white and unbroken.
Disappointment prickled. Was this all for nothing?
Then Julies knelt and began to dig.
BOOOOM—!!!!
A deep, resonant boom split the silence, the sound rolling through the ground like a muted earthquake. Amelia’s heart leapt — she almost lost her footing.
Had he noticed her?
Holding her breath, she stayed still until the rumble faded. Slowly, the snow parted, revealing a dark opening just wide enough for a single person to pass through.
An underground entrance.
Her pulse quickened. What was hidden down there? Contraband? Demonic relics? Or perhaps... someone waiting for him?
Without hesitation, Julies stepped inside and vanished from view.
Amelia’s fingers tightened around the crystal ball.
"...It should be safe enough," she murmured, though the whisper was more to herself than anything.
Fear coiled in her gut, but she set her jaw.
For Alice, there was nothing she wouldn’t do.
And so, she followed him into the dark.
The air changed the moment she stepped inside.
Gone was the clean, biting cold of the night. Here, the chill was heavier, damp, and stale — the kind that clung to her lungs with every breath. The narrow tunnel sloped downward, walls close enough that her skirts brushed the frost-bitten stone.
Julies’s footsteps echoed ahead, steady, unhurried.
Amelia kept to the shadows, holding the crystal ball close to her chest. A faint shimmer pulsed from within, already recording.
Her mind worked quickly, piecing together possibilities.
A hidden entrance. No guards. No obvious markings of ownership. Whatever this was, it wasn’t sanctioned by the local lords. That meant secrecy. And secrecy meant leverage.
If she could catch even a single whisper of treason, it would be more than enough.
They descended deeper, and a faint glow appeared ahead — not torchlight, but something colder, more unnatural. It painted the stone in pale blues and silvers, like moonlight caught underwater.
Julies came to an abrupt stop.
Amelia pressed herself against the cold stone wall, her pulse thudding in her ears. The corridor was quiet—until faint echoes began to reach her.
Two voices. One unmistakably belonged to Julies. The other... a woman’s voice, sharp and unfamiliar.
"I’ve told you a hundred times—stop breaking my barrier! Do you have any idea how much magic it takes to set one up?"
"Hey, that’s not on me," Julies replied, his tone light but defensive. "It’s freezing outside. I’d rather not wake up looking like a snowman, so I did what I had to."
"And what exactly is that? Ruining my work for the twelfth time? If you pull something like this again, you’ll be nothing more than a dead parasite."
"Alright, alright—calm down."
Amelia’s brows knit together. Parasite?
The word hit like a pebble dropped into still water, sending ripples through her thoughts. Why would anyone call Julies that? And more importantly—why did he let it pass without outrage?
Her curiosity outweighed her caution. Inch by inch, she leaned forward, peeking around the corner.
She only meant to catch a glimpse.
Just enough to put a face to the voice.
But the sight that met her eyes froze her in place.
...And she would later wish she’d never looked at all.