For Romantic Superpowers - Chapter 51 - Harshly, Cruelly

#51. Harshly, Cruelly

Paslak. He was startled by the sound of a rock rolling under his feet. His heart was pounding wildly. He had never been this tense in his entire life. He couldn’t understand why he was acting like this. He was trailing someone for the first time in his life. 

He happened to spot Kevin and Lia leaving the castle. He didn’t move out of thought afterward. Without even realizing it, he borrowed a black robe from someone in the castle. He flipped the robe to conceal his identity, but Kevin seemed to have caught on. 

“It’s the tantrum of a coward.”

His words almost made him leap out. But he couldn’t stop his steps because he was curious about where the two were going and what they were going to do. Fortunately, it wasn’t near the palace. No one would accidentally recognize him. As a foolish choice of his own, Perth had to continue watching the two walk together. They were intimate despite their official roles. At least to him, their professional relationship seemed unusually close. 

Lia chuckled every time Kevin said something. What could be so amusing? It was a smile she hadn’t shown him in a while. Of course, he was the one who made her angry, but even the trivial things hurt. The more he followed, the more he felt miserable. He wanted to stand proudly by her side. When Lia returned, he resolved to apologize sincerely without holding back. 

“Hey, kid!”

Kevin and Lia spotted a child. It seemed like her name was Shu-shu, the cause of Perth’s outburst. He made eye contact with the child who had been watching secretly from the alley. Her pitiful gaze seemed to pierce through his memory. He didn’t live like that. But there was a fundamental similarity. Being abandoned. Suddenly, anger surged within him. 

– Who gave birth to someone like that?

A harsh voice echoed in his mind. Unable to keep staring at the children, Perth turned away. A splitting headache struck him. 

“Oh, please… stop it…!”

It took him a while to regain his composure after taking a deep breath. Kevin and Lia had disappeared. They seemed to have gone somewhere with the child. He worried about where Lia had gone, but he had to stop trailing now. Above all, Perth himself was not in good condition. 

* * *

It was a long time before Perth arrived at Hiver Castle. The headache wouldn’t go away, so he had to walk very slowly to the castle. Finally, the silhouette of the castle came into view when his mind quieted down. 

“Mr. Perth.”

As he was about to return to his quarters, a familiar face approached him. He was in charge of the cold climate management department, who came with him from the palace. 

“Yes. What’s the matter?” 

“We can’t find Mr. Kevin Arkwood and Lady Lia Penelope, our greenhouse keepers.” 

“Weren’t they supposed to have gone to the village?” 

“How…?”

Since he was the one who trailed them, he couldn’t possibly say that. Perth pretended not to notice and replied.

“I saw them accidentally leaving the castle gate. Haven’t they come back yet?” 

It was soon time for Hiver Castle to close. Moreover, it was very dangerous to wander outside after sunset. Besides the cold, there were unknown dangers in the unsafe areas. Even if Lia didn’t know, Kevin surely did. 

“Yes. Moreover, the time for the researchers’ meeting has already passed. Mr. Kevin has never been late for an appointment, so I’m worried if something happened.” 

A foreboding feeling crept in. Kevin was a former knight and knew how to defend himself. For such a person not to return to the castle indicated something serious might have happened. He had to chase them again. As soon as he made the decision, Perth turned around and ran out of the castle. 

“Mr. Perth!” 

He didn’t have time to pay attention to the voice calling from behind. 

“I had to chase them to the end…!” 

He regretted it, but it was futile. Lia’s smile flashed before his eyes. What if something happened to her? He didn’t know what he would do to the perpetrator either. Perth ran without stopping until he reached the alley where he last saw them. 

Sweating and out of breath, he didn’t care. Looking around, he saw the children he had made eye contact with earlier. His head started to hurt again. But now was not the time to be weak and suffer from a headache. 

“Shu-shu, the kid… Hmph. Home, please… Let me know…!” 

He tried to speak but couldn’t properly due to panting. He took off one of his gloves while speaking. Now was not the time to hold back his abilities. He laid his hand on the child’s cheek. Though the child stuttered a response, he didn’t listen. Instead, he ‘saw’ the way to Shu-shu’s house. 

“Thank you.” 

The child remembered the scene of the two of them going to that house. Thanks to that, at least, Shu-shu entered the house on her own. But the emotions the small child felt as he recalled Shu-shu’s house bothered him. 

‘Frightened.’ 

What on earth could have made them disappear? Holding his breath, Perth headed to the dilapidated house he had seen earlier. It looked like it could collapse with just one plank removed. Nevertheless, he didn’t hesitate to throw aside the plank blocking the entrance. Inside, of course, no one was there. As he stepped inside, he saw a place that looked like a bed. When he touched it, he saw them in front of him, as they had been recently. 

– Father, where did sister go? 

– I told you. She went to help us. 

– Father, you won’t hurt her, will you…? 

The child clung to her father’s leg. But the father forcefully kicked the child clinging to her leg away. The child flew and hit the wall, but he didn’t seem to care at all. 

– I told you not to bother me!

Then he gulped down the alcohol on the table, bottle after bottle. Soon enough, the bottles were empty, and he threw the empty ones against the wall, his temper flaring. 

– Stop trembling in the corner and go fetch more alcohol!

The child trembled in fear, and as her father’s arm rose again as if to grab her, she fled from the dilapidated house. Her father, usually gentle, became a different person when he drank. After a while, the father, too, staggered to his feet. 

– I should check to see if she’s awake.

And then, he disappeared on the spot. He was a teleporter, so there was no way to know where he had gone. Searching for more clues, Perth touched every corner of the dilapidated house, pushing his memory further and further back. The more he used his abilities, the more cold sweat poured from his body. 

As he touched the fallen water cup on the floor, memories of when Lia disappeared came flooding back. When he saw Lia collapsing and closing her eyes, Perth bit his lip. Even losing her smile for a moment hurt deeply. They would pay a price for messing with such a being. 

“Wait for me, Lia…!”

* * *

Dropping water droplets woke her up. Continuously falling, the cold sensation cleared her mind. She desperately lifted her heavy eyelids. Through the blurred vision, she saw the silhouette of a man. 

“Lia, are you okay?” 

Fortunately, it was a familiar voice. Trying to reach out to respond to the concerned voice… 

Clank. 

But all she heard was the sound of chains. She tried pulling her arms several times out of confusion, but it was no use. Finally fully opening her eyes, she saw Kevin, with both his arms and legs bound in chains. It was a space that looked like a prison. Without a beam of sunlight, if not for the lit torch, she wouldn’t have recognized Kevin’s face. 

“What… is this?” 

Her voice sounded strained, perhaps from not using it for so long. But that wasn’t important. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t escape from the reality of being bound by chains. 

“It’s best not to move too much. You might get injured from the chains cutting into your skin if you move around recklessly.” 

Before Lia could grasp the situation, another voice spoke up. It was Shu-shu’s father. He had pretended to have a leg injury but was walking perfectly fine. They could see that they had been deceived. Only then did she remember the situation before she collapsed. 

“You! What did you give us to drink?” 

Kevin struggled so much that the chains on his arms and legs tightened. Lia was afraid he might hurt himself. 

“It’s nothing bad. Just a little sleeping potion.” 

He smiled gently, just like he did in the dilapidated house. But now, he didn’t look as harmless anymore. 

“Why did you drug us like this?” 

“Your precious missy has an interesting ability, you see. And she said she’d help us. So we’re giving her a chance to help. Is that so bad?” 

“Is it okay to imprison people like this?”

Lia was infuriated by his audacious attitude as well. Consciousness returned, and the bound arms and legs began to ache. 

“You say you can grow plants? That should help solve our food shortage. Let’s see your ability.” 

He placed a small flowerpot in front of Lia. But she had no intention of showcasing her ability. 

“Oh, is it because your hands are tied, you can’t use your ability?” 

“Do you think I’ll use my ability for you? No way!” 

Lia firmly replied. If her feet weren’t bound, she wanted to kick the flowerpot away. It was the first time she got so angry at seeing plants. 

“You seem unaware of the current situation.” 

The man picked up a thick piece of wood from the ground and approached Kevin, swinging it with force. 

“Ow!” 

Kevin suppressed a groan as painful sounds escaped from his mouth. The pain must have been unimaginable, judging by how the wood broke before inflicting it. 

“What are you doing!” 

“Missy keeps acting like she has a choice. Who is this person? Your lover?” 

“He’s not like that, please let him go!” 

“I can’t do that. Since the esteemed missy won’t use her ability, I have no choice but to hold him hostage instead.” 

He pointed at the flowerpot again. When Lia hesitated, he raised the broken piece of wood again. 

“Lia, I’m fine, don’t use your ability…” 

Blood began to trickle from the wound. Despite this, Kevin raised his head. He was frustrated that his ability was weak and not helpful in the current situation. He continued to exert force on the chains, but they showed no signs of breaking. 

“Why are you doing this… Please let us go. We came here to help everyone…” 

Lia was now pleading with tears in her eyes. But tears wouldn’t sway the kidnapper. He probably planned everything from the moment he heard Shu-shu’s story. Just involving a child in a kidnapping plan revealed his true character. The man smiled at Lia’s tears, then laughed as he struck Kevin’s abdomen with the broken wood. No matter how hard Kevin bit down, screams escaped him. 

“Aargh!” 

“Mr. Kevin!” 

No matter how much they cried, the situation didn’t improve. Lia blamed her foolishness. She shouldn’t have recklessly revealed her ability. Perth’s words came to her mind. Regretting bitterly was useless; the damage was already done. 

Even amidst the haze of pain, Kevin continued to contemplate escape. But at the moment, no sharp ideas came to mind. Now, all they could do was wait for reinforcements. The immature pursuer who had chased after them. He was determined to find Lia by any means necessary.