The Self-Torture Strategy

And so, the matter was settled.

Ryan did not heed the advice.

If Morick couldn’t provide any reliable intelligence or suggestions and was simply worrying, he couldn’t change Ryan’s mind.

But Ryan didn’t think his strategy was perfect or brilliant.

In fact, every time he made a decision in the past, he had a sense of worry and fear that his judgment might be wrong.

However, rather than hesitating, he was more inclined to act first.

In this process, he actually relied quite a bit on Morick and his other advisors to offer plans and strategies.

Even if he didn’t adopt any of their suggestions, they could still give him a lot of inspiration, allowing him to discover previously unconsidered flaws.

But when it came to highly confidential matters, there were too few people he could consult.

Ryan knew this was because he didn’t trust anyone enough, but on this one matter, he had no intention of compromising.

The result was that after discussing it with Morick, he only gained more worry and not much help.

As for asking the old butler or Fater… their areas of expertise were different.

One was skilled in political maneuvering and situational analysis, the other… Ryan thought it was better to forget it.

The next day.

To make it easier for the enemy to strike, Ryan chose to set out at dusk.

But he did not hide his movements.

Instead, he rode his horse openly, with twelve guards flanking Stella’s carriage.

There were many intentions behind this.

After all, the enemy might not come, and if they did, they might hesitate.

In that case, he could act according to the situation.

On his way back, he could also roughly probe what role Stella played in all of this.

Last night, Ryan had falsely told Stella that he would send another twenty-four guards to follow from a distance.

But that was a lie.

He had actually mobilized seventy-two soldiers from a branch of the knight order.

They were only waiting for his signal to quickly deploy an encirclement…

With this level of preparation, Ryan truly wasn’t worried about his own safety.

Unless that old man finally decided to eliminate him and sent soldiers to do the dirty work… Though he was unwilling to admit it, this was an impossible scenario.

The night gradually thickened.

Ryan vigilantly scanned his surroundings with magic, checking the distance, but found nothing.

Of course, Ryan wouldn’t be foolish enough to just wait for the enemy to attack.

He had brought six shadow guards with him and had them scatter to scout the surroundings, but they still came up empty-handed.

Not only were there no signs of an ambush, but the scattered merchant caravans or traveling groups would immediately turn and flee upon seeing them.

They didn’t look like assassins in disguise at all.

‘Is it just simple fear?’

In the blink of an eye, the group arrived at Count Rose’s mansion.

As the men of the Blue Wolf Knights came out, Ryan couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief in his heart.

Although the journey back might still be dangerous, if the enemy was after him, they should understand that in this situation, it would be all too easy for him to escape.

‘Alright.’

Actually, back when he was in the east, he could have run too, but he ultimately chose the riskiest path.

But compared to the him of back then, he had far more ways to win.

At the very least, he could delay until reinforcements arrived.

All in all, the danger was mostly averted.

“Your Highness Ryan, thank you for escorting me all this way.”

The blue-haired girl stepped out of the carriage and gave Ryan a deep bow of gratitude.

“It was a small matter.”

Ryan said, neither warm nor cold.

“I’m very sorry. I’ve been causing Your Highness displeasure these past few days.”

This time, it was an apology.

“It’s fine.”

Ryan remained unmoved, but inwardly he was growing impatient.

He had no desire to waste his breath on this woman.

The blue-haired girl seemed to notice and gave another guilty curtsy.

“Your Highness, please be careful on your way back…”

Who would believe that he, of all people, would say such a thing in such a sincere tone?

No one.

But this was the effect Ryan wanted.

If it was that man, perhaps the target isn’t just me, but also…

This was a method he had just learned three days ago after careful reflection.

The blue-haired girl was startled, a flicker of worry in her eyes, yet she was also concerned that others might guess something.

It was also a better approach he had come up with after contemplation, superior to sarcasm and poking at sore spots.

She hesitated, wanting to say more but holding back.

‘She’s quite the actress… but to not forget to sling mud at that man even at a time like this… truly pathetic.’

If he had guessed wrong, and the blue-haired girl was genuinely worried for him, then this was just a normal expression of gratitude.

Ryan’s heart was filled with contempt, but on his face, he tried his best to show a slightly moved expression and nodded lightly.

If he was right, then this self-righteous, self-important bad woman who thought she was acting so realistically would think she had finally moved him.

She would let down her guard and then reveal more of her tells.

“I will be careful.”

Of course, this wasn’t something that would yield results immediately… but it was still meaningful to cast a long line to catch a big fish.

The blue-haired girl couldn’t help but show a look of relief.

It was no wonder.

Just then, a sound of something tearing through the air came from the distance.

“Your Highness, be careful!”

The blue-haired girl quickly shielded the unresponsive Ryan.

Fortunately, the arrow went wide, and neither of them was injured.

He, who was usually expressionless, stern-faced, and quick to notice everything, was now speaking in a tone full of malicious intent.

“Damn it, how dare they attack Miss Stella!”

“Go find them!”

“Protect Miss Stella and His Highness!”

This was the effect Ryan wanted.

The blue-haired knights were furious.

Some of them chased madly in the direction the arrow had come from.

This was a method he had just learned three days ago after careful reflection.

Others quickly formed a circle around Ryan and Stella.

Ryan, however, couldn’t help but frown.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t reacted; it was that he had predicted the arrow wouldn’t hit him, so he hadn’t made any unnecessary movements.

“Don’t move recklessly.”

Ryan pulled the blue-haired girl behind him.

Although she couldn’t even outsmart him with a simple self-harm ploy, he didn’t think she would be so stupid and malicious.

Moreover, he hadn’t felt any killing intent from that arrow… This meant the attacker was likely a top-tier expert skilled in concealing their aura.

Whatever their purpose, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

After a while, the shadow guards he had sent to investigate returned first.

“[Your Highness, we found no enemies, but we discovered a pre-set crossbow mechanism.]” the shadow guard reported via magical communication.

‘A mechanism?’

Ryan understood why he hadn’t sensed anything.

He could only sense malice attached to objects at close range.

But a new problem arose.

One couldn’t count on an arrow fired from a mechanism to hit its target accurately.

Unless an explosive spell was cast on the arrow, there was no guarantee that the one injured would be Ryan or the blue-haired young lady.

And the other party hadn’t done that.

They just fired one arrow, and then vanished… Could it be that they still planned to ambush him on the way back at this point?
Impossible.

“Your Highness Ryan, this is too dangerous. Why don’t you stay at my place tonight?”

At that moment, the blue-haired girl urged him anxiously.

‘Who would want to stay at your place for a night!’

Ryan thought, and was about to refuse, saying he had to go back, when he suddenly realized something.

He had been thinking that he or the blue-haired girl would be the target of the attack.

But what if the target wasn’t them at all?

“Not good! Everyone, back with me immediately!”