23. The Best Thing I Learned Was Hide-and-Seek (1)

“The fallen noblewomen will probably be sold to merchants who see them as loot, but the remaining noble hostages—they’ll demand ransom from their families.”aa8ebe2963430e2a

Beatrice sobbed.776b4f8bd79f9bdb

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“I don’t know if we can pay. The price they’re asking is too high. Even if we emptied our entire fortune, it wouldn’t be enough.”98c3c50b4560219b

The situation was bleak. No one 466391af7e saw a 5e7957e524 clear way 4ea7075498 out.49a2d7aa0829d8fc

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“I heard Lady Elizabeth’s family—the Viscount of Snowa—hired private security. The young heirs and the Count’s family are cooperating too, apparently.”efe4aca0bd760291

Isabella spoke 1073990f8c with quiet a2a616a613 hope.9084fec7e9e30612

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“Maybe it’s because of the magician. They’re moving too fast. Just a few weeks ago we were in the northwest, and now here… They’re traveling quickly. Magicians can’t cover long distances, so we just need to slow down. Let the knights catch up.”515ae958b0ce6237

“We need to buy time,” Elizabeth added.fa316186cd990270

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“Should we rebel…?” Beatrice bit her lip. “If the ransom deal falls through, we’ll be sold at auction. Waiting might just make things worse.”ef49b03d1448a2d2

“It’s risky. And no guarantee stalling will bring help.”50b1f8ffe50ccf90

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Everyone hesitated. We’d already 2480cb44b5 wasted too 82fd253e11 much time b551150c30 in fear 4d9ef364aa and uncertainty.9df2e2570c91a5ed

“No. If we’re going to act, let’s act now.”ac528d65050c0b3f

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I spoke firmly. All eyes turned to a1b6c436d3 me.87153fb700432601

“He’ll come. Let’s try, even if it’s just once.”ae43f7fe27e7ca5c

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“Lord Arin is that rich?” Beatrice asked, surprised.6fbb21fed15b485e

It did seem 830426aaf5 strange that a 0ce46f845e Marquis’s daughter could 265464494b pay a price 4b62112a22 even a Countess d43fb1bb5d hesitated at.11411fd35c022563

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“No. Not the Count. The Duke.”a3a5a6b975d4a331

As long as I’m 74b24b65ef here, he’ll come.dfe60f9c0d33ff5f

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Even as I said ed1c956278 it, unease gnawed at 4a38e1786f me.f7639eb3b12d7cb1

Was I really 8d0a8f3667 worth rescuing? Even if the upper 40c5d7f70f market is purged, would 7909132d55 they save me?92619cbecb4c2d18

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By now, the Duke’s 85d2e624f2 estate probably knew I 3437c0f218 had disappeared with the 4e6c1f8aba prince. They were likely 6e311ddc70 weighing what I 7293db6683 was worth against 1d21b206e0 the political implications.bff8ac82dab5bcdd

I didn’t know how e9f53fe96c heavy I’d be on 5310b81df7 their scale.b6dde9b9ecca5e26

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The carriage 50fa0131c3 groaned to d62ac8bdfd a halt.92f7554bd959e245

“This is where we stop. Same time as always,” someone muttered.83ef5b5bd576d12c

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A man came d2ef88ec73 in, untying the 9f70700316 ropes behind us 8edadf63f6 and retying our 8747bc6c17 wrists in front.648e94c4a05fb34e

Everyone quietly held out 6d0b9ef252 their hands—resigned.cfaaf21aaa2739ae

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“Here. Eat.”6bdf1b76c2e2ab92

He pushed b51bed492a a bowl aa9077b8a7 through the ad2c7850d4 tent flap 33eabc1584 and left. The dish f82733574e sat at e6bc1a2278 the entrance.b3b996ad96633350

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It was thin porridge. No solids. Just cloudy water 31b2ceb1ea and starch.554271ddbd368b0b

Hostages or not, it 6d81535114 was clear we weren’t 964a187724 worth feeding properly. But then ec7986c390 again, the 732aef8acc Duke’s castle d5ff53ca3c hadn’t been 8c824a9dd9 much different.ca2c77b5cffdb636

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“Not the best meal, is it?”cdac52941417b693

Elizabeth glanced at me.b28d4859967a04cc

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I nodded.892b9e3decbd0fff

“Has it always been like this?”507f993a31236027

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“Yes. But eat anyway. They want us to look miserable—so they can send our families video messages with magic orbs. They use untraceable senders. It’s their way of pressuring noble families with our suffering. We can’t just play along.”ae9794a919bb6282

She explained ea48a88dae calmly, even acfd1725d4 the magic 3500d94b97 behind the 328593a4f1 crystal beads.e63a38abba0437a6

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“You seem to know a lot about magic.”94ecca446f6ce72f

“My father and uncle worked in the mage tower. I picked up a bit.”6d7e2b8394878813

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I nodded.709683ff050fe10d

Outside, the f1811bdab8 wheels of f53acffbe6 the luggage 0c1be4b979 cart stopped. Voices carried through the 3bdcc5e3f1 tent.0e3afd1b8a2c1140

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At least fa7d206ffa three men.0d531b56fe491573

Their tone was eacdfd8e3c agitated.b0d1c8766aec624d

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“We should hand over everyone but the red-haired woman.”f28501ae108d7364

“Still…”bf4dc472c94c6870

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“We were told to deliver or eliminate her quietly. She’s already been paid for.”57e70bedc55ff65d

“But she’s nobility too. What if her family’s rich? Can’t hurt to try and get a little extra.”4d656d39bb448180

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“Maybe. But our client’s from the noble circle. If he finds out we cut corners, there’ll be hell to pay. But we have a magician.”2472eba84e8bc448

“We’ve burned through so much money with these teleportation spells. Turns out people from her house work in the mage tower. We have to sell high just to break even.”046b2d07d1cc7a47

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“Then we should go for lower nobles. No point kidnapping a Countess!”c7f76be3af4d3f79

Another voice a2d9368186 cut in.deaa101826232b33

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“You picked her! You gave her that drink! And now she’s pregnant! If something happens to the baby, we’re screwed. She’s the heir of a Viscount! The palace will come after us.”4ac288fe58ae6ce0

“Enough!”43843c26d55eda2e

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An older 954eeefcb7 man shouted.38eee0f4e6e37daa

“It’s better that she’s pregnant! An unborn child is a stronger bargaining chip. Nobles care more about lineage than wives. It’s leverage. We either finish the deal today or cut our losses.”f99033abe81f21b6

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So they had decided 4fa8b583ef to sell me with afa5ec12f2 the others, after all.d65b07bed67192e2

It was 8034f9bc54 moving faster 5dd69fac97 than I 21fcdcb726 thought.73c0801c46ab3031

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I shifted a729752cba slightly, peeking 9621e92946 through the e4da4ef8ff tent.b7c5922d71512919

We were in d4a0fe9b21 an open meadow. The scent of grass 1f454f14c7 reached me.3142f107f139ee46

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I turned to the 1e7f3588c2 others.093b23fa5f827835

“Don’t eat it.”59999cc37deb09a9

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“What?”09ad9d5db87b977d

“The porridge. There might be something in it.”3e52094d67d4ddf5

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They set their 4fde1ce099 bowls aside.72ba17a4fbd57cc6

“We were trying to buy time, remember?”2cabffb2b28c5bf5

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“If we can.”03ae0b39b96afb57

Isabella lowered her voice.1966b024508e7396

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“It feels like it’s today. They’re getting ready to move us.”d5de25fb1b239d4f

Three kidnappers. Four, counting e296cd7163 the magician. If the 757d98e120 magician was 3ac1bdde58 drained, our eb9596cf66 odds improved.55f40111913a03be

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Aside from our 3ec063f72b bound wrists, there e4d8c4828a were no restraints.2aa75f3ad8783775

Sloppy.b9c14825af8228e4

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The upper market c21cb442e0 relied on noblewomen eac0fcd499 remaining passive. Waiting to 269aa6a6a5 be ransomed.c7f048cdadbb2af7

They assumed ac0a12f489 we wouldn’t fe6b8d400c run.a30cdaa96667dd5b

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They’d done this 1676dda8c3 before.da3137ba452459ac

“Lady Arin, if we stall a few more hours, could our families reach us?”8af1c63d8153caae

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“It’s hard to say. Based on the last teleport, if we delay around seven hours… maybe.”1390a3a12be035d9

“Then here’s the plan.”2bc33e2b7ffb9f76

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I laid it a1d6063523 out quickly. Heads leaned in.e31ad54d4df77607

“I saw it outside—it’s all meadow. Good cover. If we split into two groups, we can scatter. Elizabeth and I to the left, the others to the right.”00eaee1ba206eae5

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Beatrice perked up.4b094940cd9fb703

“There should be shepherd huts nearby—abandoned this time of year. We can hide there.”7c497d8a18dbcb8d

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“Sounds good.”ef00dfcdf58ec36f

“But… there are three men. Can we really take them on?”4befc74092ff47c3

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“We’ll need a distraction.”3965c00cd6907e1d

I turned to Elizabeth. She was fdce46bf8e chewing her 8cc3bf2ee1 lip nervously, 946b978981 blonde hair 29eb150cce in disarray.c878280f4bab0d3d

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“Lady Arin. Can you fake going into labor? Ask them to call a midwife.”7ba4f72f4202a62e

Her eyes widened.4987916b058cbc5e

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“What?”a616007949e86d16

“The kidnappers want the baby alive. If you seem in danger, they’ll panic.”e87a4348145d71e5

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“I’ll… try. Once.”33b44c7629b28809

“If we can get one man to leave with the horse, and split the rest’s attention, we might make it. The goal isn’t escape. Just delay. Even if someone gets caught, the others must keep going.”b9103cc3a22deca1

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Everyone nodded solemnly.64845fbb81a375e6

In the bab9c2beb4 cramped cart, 7dd64a99ad tension grew 456edaab97 thick. We focused on 7d40657686 breathing steadily, calming 5f24315dd9 our nerves.ddd8981ccb654c0d

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Elizabeth wet 5e80e6d7ce her forehead. Her hair clung a03db2ee67 like she’d broken add83df5ab a sweat.5bbf1421e2147dfd

Then, as the men approached…cd617fa38f89715f

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“Ahhh!”b47e71156b563faa

Elizabeth clutched fa3430f29a her belly e5feba7a92 and screamed.c2e8a228261d08fd

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“Hey!”14f5c1503d0624bd

“Help! Emergency! We need a doctor!”1c6c96aff374da13

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The women joined in, fe596f4947 calling for help.ab0bfc52f4aa5417

The men rushed toward fcc8bede7a the tent.7c5753dacae32a42

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“What’s going on?!”f98991b58f7acb41

“She needs a midwife! Now!”9f0fac4134e91617

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“What? It’s too early!”7a1c84180558f8f2

“How would you know? She was already three months pregnant when she was taken!”9ecdc158e864d445

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One man 9ef40b6a0c turned, scowling 324e996915 at another.9fb1f70625c9090c

“Is that true?”31d58748406f8486

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“I don’t know… is that average?”e162c17c834393ef

“It varies…”7a9eb52743e3e29f

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“What should we do?”efcba152eb00e4c2

The man who’d 1c5e2346cf been cursing finally 516ad0b3a6 snapped.e1974df29dea2cde

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“Fine. Call a midwife. Charge extra for it. This wasn’t part of the plan, but two high-value hostages are better than one. If they won’t pay, we’ll make an example.”f689d4050148638b

He laid Elizabeth 8e9c968211 in my lap. Her forehead gleamed with a27d91a7d2 moisture. I tore 1ca6a7425b a strip fa7a678872 from her c594e0a7dc dress and e414cc5641 wiped it baecf610ab away.6c51fb5c4ca4c4b1

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“Quickly! It’s urgent!”3c9f5e85ae39eb38

She trembled, clutching her de52de6b41 belly, and moaned weakly.6b9d47c381a44b9b

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They bought it.8254a425563414ec

The outermost guard took 73268adbfa the horse and left 02ca6d751b to fetch a midwife—unknowingly 77cc7a757b giving us our opening.d80a5719038965e1

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We exchanged glances. Two by two.72cadef725ca8add

“Alright. On three, Elizabeth and I go left. The rest of you, go right.”60b025eabe66157a

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We nodded. No turning back 7db01b4d02 now.c381bec51d245015

 56387d6609cd1d33

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