I’m Just a Counselor

A marketplace after dark. Small lights are lit one by one, and lively exchanges continue into the late hours.

 

Bustle and laughter pierced the darkness, a joyous scene that Jeremiah sometimes watched from a distance.

 

But tonight, Jeremiah had no time for that, and he leapt from his horse and rushed into the guardhouse.

 “Esti!” 

As if in answer to his call, Estella looked up from her chair.

 

Her face contorted as she recognized the figure of her brother, who was hurrying toward her.

 “Brother…” “Are you hurt, are you okay?” 

Jeremiah’s worried question made Estella burst into tears again. Her pretty face was flushed red, as if she’d been crying for a long time.

 

Jeremiah sighed and covered his face with his hands.

 

I knew it. I knew this would happen to Estella.

 

‘For being so stupid as to fall for it.’

 

‘Why did Vanessa Assel’s words always sound so plausible?’

 

Jeremiah looked around, blaming himself for falling for her again. He was going to hold her accountable for putting Estella in this position.

 “……?” 

But Vanessa was nowhere in sight. She was supposed to be holding hands with Estella all day.

 

Jeremiah gritted his teeth slightly and turned to Estella.

 “Where is Miss Vanessa?” 

Estella began to cry louder and louder.

 

As Jeremiah pursed his lips in bewilderment, one of the guards who had been pacing beside him answered his question for Estella.

 “I’m afraid, Your Excellency, the Duke says… that this Vanessa of yours seems to have disappeared…” “What?” “Hic! Hic!  big brother, Vanessa, find my sister…! Hmph, I said, find my sister!” 

So Estella had been crying the whole time because Vanessa was gone?

 

Jeremiah blinked, unable to compose himself at this unexpected turn of events.

 

Estella sobbed and clung to Jeremiah’s arm.

 “Oh, human trafficking! They said there were people like that, but what if she were taken by them…!” “…….” “Oh, I can’t find her, oh, you can find her, Vanessa, can you find her? Big brother!” 

Estella’s eyes welled up with tears incessantly.

 

As Jeremiah wiped her tears away, he remembered what he had said to Vanessa the other day.

 

‘I’m trusting Miss Vanessa to take care of Estella for me, and I hope you won’t betray my expectations.’

 

He remembered what she said to that. My mind was all white, and my heart was not in the right place.

 

Human trafficking? I didn’t even consider that possibility. No, I hadn’t once considered what was happening to Vanessa.

 

Even then, all I could talk to her about was Estella. Worrying about her never crossed my mind.

 

‘And…’

 

‘I want to hear my worries come out of her mouth,’

he thought.

 “…….” 

Jeremiah bit his lip tightly, suddenly painfully aware of his selfishness and failure.

 

He can’t believe he’s still thinking about blaming her. He hasn’t changed since the last time he doubted her.

 

He felt a stab of disgust at himself for making a mistake once and not changing at all. Jeremiah was always vulnerable to this.

 

‘No, this is not the time for this.’

 

He had to find her and apologize properly once more. The white fog in his mind thawed and became clear.

 

Jeremiah put his arm around Estella’s shoulders and patted her back, promising his sister that he would find Vanessa as soon as he could. Only then did Estella calm down and stop crying.

 

Jeremiah straightened his knees and wiped her face. Then, in a cold voice, he called to the adjutant behind him.

 “Melvin.” “Yes, Your Excellency,”

the lieutenant replied in a serious voice, as if sensing Jeremiah’s mood.

 “I won’t make a long speech, find her.” “At your command, Duke.” 

At his command, the knights and others began to move stealthily.

 

* * *

 “Well, well, we’ll live!” “Ugh, my back.” 

My body rolled somewhere and I heard the thick voices of men.

 

Soon something covering my head was pulled off.

 

I was being loaded into a wagon, a dark, tented wagon with several other people sitting in the corner, looking frightened and shivering.

 

‘What is it?’

 

I felt strangely languid.

 

As I struggled to keep my eyes open, trying to assess the situation, one of the men shouted.

 “Hey, she’s not the princess! Don’t you know that the Princess of Oppenheim has silver hair?!” “Oh, who cares if she’s silver-haired or blonde when you never know when you’re going to get caught!” “You told me to bring a girl with a brooch, Captain!” 

…It looks like the original target was Estella, so maybe it’s a good thing I got caught instead.

 

I fidgeted with my hands as I surveyed the squirming people.

 

Their wrists and ankles were bound tightly with rope. Presumably the others were as well.

 “Are they drugged?” 

I wondered if I’d inhaled an anesthetic that made me feel weak and languid. Or maybe they’d used some kind of magic tool with a similar effect.

 

I bit my lip to keep myself awake. If I let my guard down, I was going to pass out again.

 “Uh-oh, you idiots.” 

The man who called himself the captain was a gruff-looking hulk with a bushy beard growing on his chin.

 

He punched each of the two men who had kidnapped me in the head, then turned to me.

 

I cowered under his vicious gaze, and then I realized.

 

These are the traffickers the merchant was talking about!

 

‘He said they only take women and children.’

 “Well, I suppose she’s worth enough of a prize, though not as much as the princess’s ransom…, which is already out of the question.” “…….” “Just be quiet like them, you’ll be going to a good place soon.” 

The big man smirked, and disappeared, dragging his men with him. Soon, the wagon began to move with a rumbling sound.

 “Ouch.” “Are you okay?” 

A woman asked gently as I lost my balance and fell to the side.

 

I looked up at them, shaking my head.

 

My head was relatively clear from the blow to the head, and I could make out their faces one by one.

 

Three women and two children. They must have been victims of theirs before I was captured.

 

Like me, their wrists and ankles were bound, and one of the women and one of the children were still drugged and groggy.

 

‘I wonder if Estella has found out about my kidnapping by now?’

 

If she had realized I was missing, she’d be looking for me at the police station by now.

 

Or maybe… Jeremiah is looking for me? Maybe if Estella asked him to.

 

‘Will he find me in time?’

 

I don’t know how far I’ve wandered, or where this wagon is going. I’m pretty sure we’re far from the market, for one thing…

 

I rolled my eyes and turned to the woman who had just spoken to me and asked.

 “I… how did you get caught?” “Well, I was just stopping by the market on an errand for my mother…” 

Tears burst from the woman’s eyes. She was kidnapped in the market, and from the sounds of it, so was another woman.

 

She said she was alone in the market and suddenly blacked out, and when she woke up, she was in this carriage.

 “And it seems that this carriage is enchanted with soundproofing, because no matter how much we scream, no one can find us…” 

The woman whispered, her face wet with tears. I wanted to wipe her face, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t loosen the ropes that bound her wrists, so I could only say.

 “Don’t cry.” 

At my words, she began to cry even louder, but the carriage’s speed didn’t change.

 

‘There must really be some kind of soundproofing enchantment.’

 

I sighed softly as I looked at the woman, thinking to myself.

 

Sadness and fear are contagious emotions. The woman’s sobs caused the others to start sobbing as well.

 

I stared at them awkwardly.

 

‘Is it because there’s a part of me that believes?’

 

I somehow managed to hold back the tears…

 

For some reason, I don’t even feel threatened by this situation. I think I was more scared of Jeremiah the first time I was alone with him.

 

I thought,

‘If Jeremiah steps up, we’ll all be rescued.’

 

Well… I don’t think it’s the right time to tell them that. Maybe I should wait until the others have stopped crying.

 

I rolled my eyes coolly and spotted a kid who looked just as thin as me.

 

‘Oh, come to think of it, she’s not crying.’

 

Children are the easiest to be swayed by emotions.

 

As my eyes locked with hers, I couldn’t help but panic.

 “Uh…?” 

My voice came out of my mouth in a completely stupid way. The child tilted his head, looked at me, and smiled sweetly.

 

Like the others, her wrists and ankles were bound with rope, but her face showed no sign of tension.