She's Not Our Daughter! Ch 110

How to Infiltrate Near the Villain

In the end, Sierra brought Hanael along. She looked down at the child chattering in her arms, her mind filling with complicated thoughts.

Why on earth did I bring her...... I must be out of my mind to bring her to this dangerous place!

However, regret always arrived too late. Sierra sighed inwardly, recalling the argument they had just shared. Hanael's stubbornness and whining were intense, instantly reminding Sierra of her old nickname back in Sufe Village: "Stubborn Hanael."

[Hanael] "I want to come too! I definitely won't do anything bad!"

[Sierra] "No, it is not that I think my baby will do something bad."

[Hanael] "You are trying to do something fun without me!"

[Sierra] "Now listen. A child shouldn't get involved in terrifying matters. This is not fun at all; it is highly dangerous."

Even when she glared, Hanael refused.

Watching Sierra merely object, unable to bring herself to say that the child might face harm, Hanael narrowed her eyes in response.

[Hanael] "I am highly powerful! So take me along too!"

[Sierra] "Cassius, help me stop her."

[Cassius] "Yes......"

Frustrated by her complete inability to stop Hanael alone, she stared at Cassius. At that moment, Hanael extended a hand proudly and pointed it out.

[Hanael] "Hmph! It looks to me like the stupid mister wants to go with me?"

[Cassius] "What nonsense...… Right. It might actually be better to go together."

[Sierra] "Wait, are you serious?"

[Cassius] "There is something she needs to do."

Sierra had no idea what grand plan Cassius was designing, but she refused to entrust any task to Hanael. When Sierra declined, he whispered to her carefully.

[Cassius] "I think there is a task only Hanael can accomplish. And... when she grows up, she will likely feel proud of today's events."

Sierra stood isolated in this situation. Therefore, she demanded to know exactly what task only Hanael could perform.

Cassius bit his lip and initiated a strategy meeting.

---

Wearing a bewildered expression, Sierra joined his strategy meeting. During the meeting, Cassius and Hanael worked as a team.

[Sierra] "What kind of strategy meeting is this? I absolutely can't let Hanael......"

[Cassius] "Inside the palace, the Crown Prince utilizes a hidden room. No one knows its location. If he hides there, finding him will be completely impossible."

[Sierra] "......So in the end, we have no choice but to go there and find out ourselves. We can't even locate it."

[Cassius] "I am certain we can find it immediately."

[Sierra] "How can you be so certain?"

He looked down quietly and gave a glance toward Hanael.

If we retain our memories, Hanael's memories must be alive too.

Cassius looked at Hanael with a pained expression. She rubbed her face sleepily and tilted her head. Then, the child smiled brightly at him. Her expression clearly showed she knew everything.

While Sierra stood flustered, Hanael, who had been dozing in Sierra's embrace, clenched her tiny fists tightly and shouted as if making a declaration.

[Hanael] "I know what the hidden room is! I visited it in a dream! It is underground! It is completely dark! There are many people! They are all tied up, and they died!"

[Sierra] "......Huh?"

[Hanael] "I saw it! In a dream!"

[Sierra] "A dream......?"

[Hanael] "I saw the place where the evil Crown Prince kills people!"

In stark contrast to the stuttering, flustered Sierra, Hanael finished her speech intelligently and firmly.

Was it the same memory I saw? Was she experiencing it too?

If so, why did she remain silent until now?

Yet there was no time to press Hanael. The small child quickly flashed a mischievous smile again, looking perfectly fine.

The moment Hanael buried her face in Sierra's arm, her gaze met Cassius'. Even without exchanging words, Sierra understood that he shared her exact thoughts.

What Hanael said must be true.

It was a conviction born of intuition. Sierra also thought it was illogical to rely on mere intuition in a situation that threatened their lives. Nevertheless, she stood up carefully and spoke.

[Sierra] "......Then for now, let us go together."

Following that decision, bringing Hanael along became unavoidable. If only she knew the truth about the hidden room, navigating the palace efficiently meant working together with the child.

Only by bringing her along can I rescue my sister as quickly as possible.

Both Hanael and Amille were precious to Sierra. She could abandon neither. Thus, after much deliberation, Hanael joined this battle. The only problem was......

[Hanael] "I will be quiet!"

......the child acted loudly. Sierra covered the chattering child's lips with her hand and whispered.

[Sierra] "You are already being loud. I told you this is a dangerous operation."

[Hanael] "Hmph."

Hanael pouted, her tiny lips tickling her palm.

Wearing a strict expression, Sierra pressed down firmly on her lips. Yet Hanael didn't stop, burying her face happily in her embrace.

[Hanael] "But I am entirely happy because we are together!"

Hanael quickly traded her pout for a bright smile, giggling. The small child looked thrilled to go outside after a long time.

This feels like a complete mess...…

Cassius didn't care, merely looking down with a smile. Left with no choice, Sierra stepped in to issue a warning.

[Sierra] "You must be quiet now, understand?"

[Hanael] "Okay!"

Hanael merely continued to smile brightly.

I am still worried.

Sierra narrowed her eyes at Cassius once more, conveying her intense doubt about the safety of this plan. However, he shrugged and spoke.

[Cassius] "There will be no issues, and it will not matter much."

[Sierra] "......I really have no idea if this is acceptable."

Sierra stopped talking after those words. Indeed, since they had already brought the child, there was no point in arguing further.

Still...…

I do not want to see her get hurt even a little.

The thought left her slightly displeased, but she couldn't help it. Since they brought her along, Sierra had to protect her with absolute safety.

She looked at Cassius, recalling the various potions tucked inside her pockets. Putting everything else aside, a single question remained.

[Sierra] "Where on earth...... are we?"

Meeting her determined gaze, Cassius gave a small nod. Sierra bit her lip with her front teeth and whispered.

[Sierra] "So this place is the Crown Prince's palace's......"

Hanael quickly cut in.

[Hanael] "Roof!"

Yes, it was the roof.

[Cassius] "As you know, magic doesn't function inside the imperial palace. I managed to breach it using a teleportation scroll, but setting the coordinates to this spot is our limit. The interior is impossible."

Sierra understood that obtaining a teleportation scroll must have been difficult, but this felt reckless. She sighed, looking at the roof that felt like a cliff.

[Cassius] "Don't worry about climbing down."

He gripped her hand firmly. He whispered near her ear, "I am here."

Sierra let out a soft laugh at those words.

This man really never gives me a moment to feel disappointed.

She admired the effects of the invisibility potion.

To think that those who drink the invisibility potion together can see each other, while others can't see us at all. I made it, but it is amazing.

Of course, the invisibility potion's effects didn't last long. Even Sierra, who took pride in being a genius, couldn't guarantee an effect lasting over thirty minutes.

After drinking the potion once more on the roof, they climbed down together. Holding Cassius' hand in one hand and Hanael's in the other, Sierra calculated carefully.

The remaining potions will only last another thirty minutes.

[Hanael] "I am as light as a bird!"

[Sierra] "Because you drank a weight-reducing potion."

Just in case, Sierra had administered an extra potion to Hanael. It was a weight-reducing magic potion to make it easy to carry the child if trouble arose.

Thrilled by the sensation, Hanael kept moving around excitedly.

[Hanael] "Hmph, you have absolutely no sense of romance!"

[Sierra] "Yes, I have none."

[Hanael] "Hmph!"

Hanael pouted. However, Sierra had no time to focus on Hanael's mood. She had to secure her protection thoroughly.

First, she needed to ensure Hanael remained connected to both of them. If they lost her, or if the Crown Prince intervened, they had to be fully prepared to find her anywhere.

I can't allow her to die like in the memory I witnessed that day.

If the palace guards, or the private soldiers and mercenaries the Crown Prince brought into the palace, discovered them along the way, a horrific disaster would unfold.

Naturally, Sierra trusted Cassius' martial strength. He could fight off a hundred men alone, but that remained a secondary matter. Even if they saved their lives immediately, everything would be ruined if the Crown Prince survived to hunt them down.

After all, they were currently risking the charge of treason by infiltrating the Crown Prince's palace.

If he catches us before we capture the Crown Prince alive, we will be branded as traitors.

[Sierra] "......So the plan is to capture him alive first, right?"

[Cassius] "Yes, we must slip into his palace cleanly. All the way to where he is located."

Sierra swallowed hard in her tension.

Holding Sierra's hand, Hanael held her breath completely. They paced quickly while under the effect of the invisibility potion.

What a disorganized rabble of a family. Wait, did I just think of us as a family?

Focus, Sierra. This is no time to indulge in such sentiment. I must scan our surroundings carefully.

They successfully entered the Crown Prince's palace. Surprisingly, stepping inside the palace proved easy. Although the potion's duration was short, their invisible bodies allowed them to slip inside quietly whenever the servants opened the doors.

[Servant] "Why is the door staying open so long today?"

A flash of panic struck her when a servant muttered to himself, but they avoided major suspicion anyway.

Sierra bit her lip, recalling the strategy meeting she had shared with Cassius earlier.

Yes, back then, they pondered over where the Crown Prince and Amille would be. He undoubtedly possessed a torture chamber similar to the hidden room at the ducal mansion. But where on earth could that place be?

Sierra quickened her pace, keeping her mind on Hanael, who had not spoken yet. Thus, the three of them entered the palace without spilling blood. They now needed to head straight down into the dungeon just as Hanael described.

Hiding her tension, Sierra scanned left and right. Cassius and Hanael must be tense too......

What is this? Am I the only one tense here?

They stood in the corridor on the first floor. While the area was not crowded with noisy crowds, it was by no means empty. A single mistake could lead to a collision with the servants, and the slightest exposure would instantly mobilize the Crown Prince's private soldiers.

Yet Hanael held Sierra's hand tightly, swaying her body casually. The child looked as if she were dancing with joy.

Even if other people can't see her body, how can she be this excited......!

Hanael was just a child, but Cassius, standing right beside her, was even worse. He looked remarkably relaxed, not even gripping his sword.

A faint sound of whistling filled the air.

Is this really an infiltration? We came here to eliminate a villain, right......?

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