However, Liyakade was wrong this time.
The emotional fluctuation she saw in Vidar was not a sign of guilt.
To be honest, Vidar was indeed a bit nervous.
But as a noble who frequently dealt in Purple Thunder Herb, he had the mental fortitude for this.
As long as Liyakade didn’t show that terrifying side from yesterday, Vidar could maintain a calm facade.
Moreover, Vidar had anticipated Liyakade’s questioning.
On the drive back, he had already prepared his excuse and rehearsed it in his mind several times.
“Hmph! How laughable!”
Vidar snorted coldly, a look of disdain on his face.
He then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small glass bottle.
The bottle contained a clear, colorless liquid.
He opened his palm, displaying the bottle for everyone to see, and spoke.
“I took a portion of the poisoned water source before I disposed of it. This is so we can analyze the toxin once we reach the next town.”
Hearing Vidar’s explanation and seeing the small glass bottle, Liyakade was momentarily stunned.
She seemed to deflate a bit, as if caught off guard, and for a moment couldn’t think of how to continue her rebuttal.
She clearly hadn’t expected Vidar to have stored a sample of the poisoned water to analyze later.
“Then… then with no water for everyone, how will the caravan move forward?! You clearly want to trap everyone here, don’t you?!”
Even after being countered, Liyakade didn’t give up.
She began accusing Vidar from another angle, but this point had also been anticipated.
“Trap everyone here? Are you stupid, or am I? I’m not like you, speaking and acting without thinking. My people have always carried a private supply of water. After disposing of the poisoned water, I was going to bring out this supply to help the others in the caravan.”
“Even if it can’t get us all the way to the next town or water source, it would at least buy us considerable time. Time to wait for rescue from another caravan or to find a new water source!”
Vidar’s righteous words left Liyakade speechless.
From his series of explanations, Vidar appeared not only meticulous but also noble-hearted, caring for the people.
With their private water reserve, they could have done nothing during this crisis and survived on their own.
If they had hidden it, no one would have even known they had private water.
Yet, Vidar had taken the initiative, not only dealing with the poisoned water but also willingly offering his private water to the other travelers to help everyone through this difficulty.
What selfless spirit!
In contrast, Liyakade and Natalia’s malicious speculations seemed incredibly base.
But the reality was not as Vidar described.
While he did plan to share water with the other travelers, he wouldn’t give it all away.
He would only bring out a small amount, claiming that was all he had, never intending to share everything.
His reasons for sharing were more complex.
If the caravan lost its water, the fact that he had a private supply would eventually come out.
That would not only invite looting from others but also make him seem selfish, even suspicious of being the poisoner.
But if Vidar proactively offered a small portion, he could not only shut up Liyakade and her group but also hide more water for himself.
He could even earn the gratitude of the others, making it even less likely anyone would suspect him.
Seeing Liyakade was completely speechless and couldn’t think of a rebuttal, Vidar seized the opportunity to counterattack.
“How foolish. No wonder you’re just an attendant to Lady Feide. Do you think I, a noble, wouldn’t consider something so simple? If I didn’t keep a sample before disposing of it, how would we analyze the toxin? Isn’t that right, Lady Feide?”
Vidar disparaged Liyakade’s short-sightedness while subtly flattering Feide, seemingly trying to drive a wedge between them.
But Vidar had seriously misjudged the relationship between Liyakade and Feide.
If Liyakade were just an ordinary attendant, her earlier outburst might have indeed displeased Feide.
However, Liyakade was not just an ordinary attendant or servant.
She was Feide’s deeply respected and beloved partner.
Vidar’s mockery of Liyakade followed by fawning over Feide was like dancing on Feide’s last nerve.
“Vidar, I advise you to take back what you just said.”
Feide didn’t care about Vidar’s reasons at this moment.
Regardless of whether his actions with the water were justified, he had now insulted Liyakade.
He had insulted the person she loved most.
Therefore, Feide demanded an apology from Vidar.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t care what happened to the caravan afterward.
Taking a step back, given Feide’s status as a princess, even if she acted recklessly and killed Vidar, a fellow noble, right here, she would face no legal consequences.
She could even carry Vidar’s head and throw it at the caravan leader and the arrogant Walter, then remove her mask and charge Vidar with the crime of insulting royalty.
Even then, no one would, or dare to, criticize her.
Even Walter, who had been so arrogant in the camp, wouldn’t dare the slightest offense once Feide revealed her identity.
“W-what? Lady Feide, what did you just say?”
Hearing Feide’s words, Vidar felt a sense of strangeness.
He could hardly believe his ears.
As fellow nobles, if his own subordinate spoke to another noble like that without his permission and got reprimanded, he would feel his honor was slighted.
He would think his subordinate was a complete fool who needed severe punishment.
Losing a hand or foot would be a minor matter.
If the stupidity was too great, Vidar might even have the person executed.
But with Feide, it was a completely different story…
‘She’s just an attendant. Just a plaything. Why is she defending her so fiercely? She’s just a woman who isn’t even fully developed yet. What kind of charm does this woman have? How good must her body feel for Feide to defend her so blindly, right or wrong?’
“Lady Feide, wasn’t what I said clear enough? I was just trying to prevent others in the caravan from drinking the poisoned water. And I kept a sample to analyze the toxin. Is there something wrong with what I did? You still don’t believe me?”
Listening to Feide’s icy tone, Vidar widened his eyes in confusion, looking at Feide before him.
“Huh? Did I say I don’t believe you? I heard everything you said clearly. What you did seems fine, reasonable. You even considered toxin sample analysis.”
“Then why…”
Before Vidar could finish, Feide immediately cut him off.
“Why? Hmph!”
Feide snorted coldly, her gaze filled with contempt and disgust as she looked at Vidar.
“Whether your motives are reasonable or not is completely separate from what you just said to Liyakade.”
“Take back what you just said, and apologize to Liyakade!”
Yes, this was Feide’s current thought.
Whether Vidar was right or wrong and whether he had insulted Liyakade were two separate matters.
The issue of handling the water source without authorization, considering Vidar’s reasonable motive was just a misunderstanding, could be forgiven.
But insulting Liyakade touched Feide’s reverse scale.
Demanding an apology was already giving Vidar considerable face.
“Lady Feide!”
Hearing Feide’s domineering words, Vidar couldn’t hold back his anger.
He anxiously argued with Feide.
“What do you mean by this? For this woman, are you abandoning all sense of right and wrong?”
“Shut your filthy mouth!”
Vidar only saw a flash of silver light.
A slender sword gleaming with cold light was pressed against his neck.
With Feide’s slight pressure, Vidar felt a stinging, burning pain on his neck.
A trickle of crimson blood ran down his neck, over the blade of Feide’s sword, and dripped to the ground.
Along with the cold light came an incredibly intense killing intent.
That intent felt almost tangible, piercing straight to Vidar’s heart, freezing him in place.
It felt as if in the next second, Feide would truly disregard everything and cleanly sever his head.
“Lord Vidar!”
Seeing this, Vidar’s guards immediately panicked.
This was nothing like what Vidar had instructed and arranged for them!
The guards drew their swords, anxiously wanting to step forward and save Vidar.
“All of you, stay where you are.”
The guards were immediately suppressed by another, even more ferocious aura, unable to move.
The hands holding their swords even trembled slightly.
A few guards with less stable minds involuntarily dropped their swords and collapsed to the ground.
Liyakade didn’t roar at Vidar like Feide.
Instead, she calmly issued an order to everyone present.
Her calm, seemingly frail voice seemed to contain an irresistible force.
The guards were completely terrified into immobility by Liyakade.
To be honest, Liyakade was also very angry now.
Not because Vidar had insulted her, calling her foolish, or because he refused to apologize.
She was angry because Vidar had spoken disrespectfully to Feide, insulting Feide.
No, it wasn’t just Liyakade and Feide whose anger was rising.
Natalia nearby also looked like she wanted to tear Vidar apart.
Even Alice, usually the gentlest and kindest, was now glaring fiercely at Vidar.
Vidar didn’t understand why Feide had suddenly erupted in rage.
But right now, he had no mind to think about that.
The fear of death had taken over his brain.
He was terrified that in the next second, Feide’s blade would completely fall.
As for the reason for Feide’s sudden outburst, it was because Vidar had been insulting Liyakade and Alice.
He had even spoken disrespectfully to Natalia, the sister, with a dismissive attitude.
Toward Feide herself, he was praising her on the surface while belittling her secretly.
Finally, he compared women to goods, to be discarded after use.
Vidar said this because he thought Feide was currently disguised as a man, which coincidentally exposed his true inner thoughts.
His last sentence had clearly insulted all of them—Liyakade and the others.
“Mr. Vidar, you dare speak like this, so you must have no mother, right? And your father probably passed away before you were born, didn’t he?”
Feide said this playfully while slowly pressing the blade a bit deeper.
“N-no, please, Lady Feide! I was wrong! I shouldn’t have insulted your attendant! I apologize to you! I’ll apologize to her too!”
Feeling the deepening sting on his neck, Vidar now didn’t even dare to breathe heavily, afraid his throat might touch the blade and accidentally finish him off.
He ignored Feide’s insulting provocation and simply begged for mercy.
But Vidar’s pleas didn’t make Feide withdraw her sword.
Instead, they made her despise him even more.
“What a spineless thing. I preferred your defiant attitude from before. And listen carefully: Liyakade is not my attendant! Apologize to her now!”
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, Lady Feide! I shouldn’t have insulted your plaything…”
Slap!
“Are you out of your mind?!”
Feide was so angry she laughed.
She withdrew her sword and delivered a heavy slap across Vidar’s face.
The slap echoed through the sky.
Everyone in the woods heard it clearly.
Even outside the woods, the guards at the rear of the caravan heard the sound from the woods and looked in that direction simultaneously.
Vidar was now sprawled on the ground from the blow.
“Are you deliberately provoking me, or do you really think that way?”
Feide couldn’t tell if Vidar was intentionally provoking her, testing her limits, or if his pig brain truly believed that.