The Seventh Prince Runs Away from Awkward Situations Chapter 78

Too much time was delayed in putting back the arm Jack had pulled out.

Although it was pulled out cleanly, he resented his own weakness and lack of stamina, hating pain terribly.

Tollin ignored the feeling that his thighs and calves were tearing apart and continued to move his steps.

“Hey, if you go up, please, please save the children!”

He didn't forget to shout at the black-haired young man who had gone up the stairs first while climbing.

It was quite a ridiculous sight to scream at the top of his lungs when he didn't even know if the other person was listening, but he was desperate.

However, there was no answer returning until his polite honorifics changed to ‘Please help me, you bastard!’.

Trying hard to ignore the strong premonition that the man had ignored him rather than not hearing him, Tollin organized his thoughts.

Although they couldn't share any conversation, thinking about the priest sprawled out near the entrance made one thing certain.

That he would not be a hindrance to saving the Little Duke.

Whether they were on the same side or not, he was at least someone who had the same enemy.

Tollin, who had been climbing the stairs shouting unconditionally whether it could be heard or not, suddenly stopped shouting as he felt ridiculous for entrusting the Little Duke to someone whose face he hadn't even properly seen.

Because his own plight of asking for help from someone he met for the first time today, while the comrade he had been with for a long time abandoned him, was funny.

There is no one in the Empire who disobeys those bearing the name of Abalan.

Even he himself felt anger rising against them, but didn't feel like he could possibly oppose and win against them.

Standing against the Imperial Family was similar to blocking the rising moon from ascending any higher.

Standing before them brought a sense of powerlessness, and even if anger surged, he naturally harbored guilt for daring to have such emotions.

Wouldn't Jack and Pale be similar?

That's why they probably couldn't even think of daring to oppose them.

Boom!

A roar rang out as if something huge was collapsing from above.

“Oh, shit.”

Thanks to that, Tollin, who briefly escaped his agony, continued to move his trembling legs.

Perhaps because he had sweated while riding a horse and running around the Capital, his entire body was shaking little by little along with his legs.

The fact that he hadn't properly distributed his stamina while chasing Ratel when first climbing the stairs played a big part.

It also felt like his head was spinning, perhaps because he climbed the spiraling stairs.

Anxiety dug into him again as he weakened.

What if it's too late.

If everything is already over when I arrive?

The reality that the opponent he had to face was too huge but he had to stand alone.

-You do not suit the Crisa family. You don't need to come out starting tomorrow.

-With you being that weak, protecting your own body would be the limit.

-Watch the Little Duke, Tollin.

Through the tinnitus, the cold and unlucky voices of the Crisa family people mixed in.

“I know too, you damn bastards.”

Tollin, who muttered, climbed the last stairs he had reached before he knew it.

***

The reason his sense of smell reacted before his vision was because of the unpleasant burning smell digging into his nose.

Different from wood or objects burning, the smell of a human body burning…….

“Little Duke! Little Duke!”

As soon as he recognized the identity of the smell, he shouted while dragging his trembling legs inside, but no answer returned.

Thud!

A not-so-small dull sound was heard from the inside.

Tollin groped the floor and moved forward to avoid falling.

Then he was only able to stop in his tracks after almost tripping over something sprawled on the floor.

Tollin, who looked down without realizing it, held his breath.

It was clothes covered in blood.

Tollin wasn't a fool who couldn't remember even this much.

The memory of watching while hoping the Little Duke wouldn't touch those dirty clothes was vivid, and he was the one who had wandered around looking for the Little Duke wearing these clothes for several hours.

I didn't even see him pass away this time.

It was the limit.

“Heuh…….”

Once the sound burst out of his mouth, it could no longer be controlled.

“Hng, waaaaah! Sob……!”

He knew it was an unsightly crying sound for a middle-aged man in his 30s to let out, but he couldn't stop it at all.

As the last anchor supporting him barely disappeared, despair crushed him.

He fell endlessly downwards.

“Waaaaah, now, now what do I…….”

Now, thoughts like who was around him didn't even come to mind.

If the Little Duke had passed away, he didn't want to care anymore.

It felt like it wouldn't matter even if he died like this.

If I die, will I see the Duke and the Little Duke again?

Then with what face do I see the two of them?

As emotions surged again, tears came out ceaselessly, and Tollin cried while choking up.

“Tollin……!”

Let's organize everything and kill myself.

That would be the way to apologize to the two of them.

“Tollin!”

Tollin, who was drowning in self-loathing, suddenly raised his head at the familiar voice calling him.

But because he had shed too many tears and his eyes were stinging from the smoke, he couldn't see well.

I thought I heard the Duke's voice?

“Tollin, what are you doing here?!”

It was Agoni Piteos's voice.

I must be crazy.

Tollin, who had an ambiguous reason for remaining, thought so.

I lost my mind because I was so sorry.

In the desperate situation, tears began to flow uncontrollably.

He wanted to apologize even if it was a hallucination or auditory hallucination.

He raised his voice further and started to cry.

“Duuuke!! I am sorry! I, I! Waaaaah!!”

Even that didn't go as he pleased because of the breath continuing to pass through his throat.

His boss, who had fallen from the cliff with a pale face, was looking down at him.

“I will forgive everything, so please snap out of it. You'll die if you stay dazed like that.”

Tollin, who nodded with difficulty and took the hand he reached out, stared blankly upwards.

Grey hair, grey eyes, a messy beard, and calloused hands.

Thinking for a moment that it was unfair that his senses were this vivid even when he lost his mind, the question of whether he was really crazy only then entered Tollin's head.

Maybe I'm dreaming, seeing how my ears are this muffled.

It was only because he cried too much, but Tollin's head didn't work well.

Right, actually I fainted on the stairs, and I'm dreaming right now.

The Little Duke hasn't passed away yet.

Then I had to wake up from the dream quickly.

Although the desire to talk with the Duke who appeared in his dream with an intact face after a long time was great, he had a Little Duke to save.

“Duke, it was very nice to meet you again.”

Tollin, who smiled faintly, tried to smash his forehead on the floor just like that.

It was to wake up from the dream.

If not for the rough hand snatching the back of his neck, his head would have hit the stone slab and broken.

“Ugh, hack! W, wait……!”

Instead, he almost died from choking this time.

At the feeling of tears welling up, Tollin flailed the arm he had forcibly put back in.

At the direct and intense pain, he snapped to his senses.

This wasn't pain one would experience in a dream.

“You, you've become much fiercer in the time I didn't see you.”

A muttering voice was heard, and the hand that snatched his neck began to drag Tollin.

At least as far as he knew, there was only one person who would use strength so ignorantly while knowing who he was.

***

Duke Piteos dragged the struggling Tollin and limped back against the wall.

Because those disaster-like people were smashing everything here and there, this was the only safe place.

He put Tollin down while gasping for breath and barely wiped his sweat.

Tollin, who suddenly opened the door and appeared, then suddenly started wailing, was shedding tears endlessly as if his tear ducts were broken.

How long has it been since I saw Tollin crying?

Tollin, who had many tears, cried less often as his body became sturdy.

As he fully matured, he developed a bit of a cheeky side and didn't sniffle much either.

So, seeing him crying his eyes out like this was really the first time except for his childhood days.

Duke Piteos, for whom it had been a series of shocks from the moment he arrived in the Capital, smiled faintly as he finally felt like he had returned to his hometown.

“A, are you alive?”

To him who stopped crying and sniffled as if he had calmed down a bit, the Duke answered awkwardly.

“I survived because I was lucky. I'm sorry I arrived too late. But…….”

Agoni Piteos trailed off and pointed to the blood-stained rag piece that Tollin hadn't been able to let go of while crying his eyes out.

“Why have you been holding that so preciously since earlier?”

Tollin's face clouded over briefly after looking down at the rag once, but soon he regained his senses and looked up at the Duke with a solemn face.

“Seeing that you are here, you came to save the Little Duke, right? Did Lord Flinn pass away?”

Agoni Piteos only then realized that Tollin had mistaken the owner of the blood on the rag for his son.

He snatched the rag from Tollin's hand and threw it far away.

“Flinn is alive. He must have safely exited the tower by now.”

At the miracle-like answer, strength drained from Tollin's legs and he slumped down.

Tears that had barely stopped from pain and surprise flowed from his eyes again.

“That's a relief. That's really a relief……!”

His shoulders heaved.

Without a word, the Duke patted his back, which must have been carrying a heavy burden.

***

Boom!

The touching reunion didn't last long.

At the massive noise and vibration ringing out once again, Tollin lifted his head sharply.

“What is this sound from earlier?”

The Duke opened his mouth while looking outside through the window of the shaking building.

“It is the sound of a god and a human fighting.”

“What on earth does that mean? Who is outside?”

“The 2nd Prince and my…….”

The Duke dragged his words while frowning briefly as if he couldn't find the right word.

“Comrade.”

Tollin, who frowned as he couldn't understand the answer given with a vague expression, tried to help the Duke up as if that didn't matter soon after.

“Whatever it is, we just need to get out of here, right. Unless your face was caught by the Prince, it will still be okay.”

The Duke, swallowing the words that since he not only showed his face but even attacked, it would be difficult to preserve his life anyway unless Dito Abalan died in this place, pulled his shoulder away from Tollin.

“You go first.”

Tollin frowned at his insane answer.

“It bothers me a bit that your leg hasn't healed yet, but if I roll the Duke down the stairs and go, it wouldn't be impossible…….”

“No, it's not that. I will confirm that Ratel, I mean that man, survives and follows behind.”

At the insane sound, Tollin felt the urge to strangle his neck that had barely survived again.

***

Avoiding the sword grazing the front of his neck, Dito stepped back one step.

However, Ratel continued his attacks without resting as if he didn't care about things like failure.

He couldn't use his strength properly against the sword movements that aimed for the neck obsessively.

His gaze stayed on Ratel's right clothes that were completely torn off from the shoulder.

Even when he set fire to the arm, the guy attacked without caring about the pain.

He was using the standard method of dealing with a person who uses Manis.

It was the same method as Duke Piteos, but the attacks were heavier and faster.

The attacks he spewed out to burn the guy in between couldn't lead to continuous attacks like before.

Dito couldn't stand the unpleasantness of having restrictions on his actions and being controlled.

He wasn't such an existence.

He was an existence that should be above anyone else.

He, who blocked Ratel's attack once again, stomped his foot hard.

The roof, which was barely maintaining its shape through several exchanges of blows, collapsed, and the two fell below.

When Dito and Ratel took their positions and stood, in Dito's hand, something dark red the size of two finger joints was held.

Dito smiled fishily and swallowed it down his throat.