Despite distributing flyers across the surrounding area and asking for help, not a single piece of news had come in, which only made the situation feel more unsettling.
“Is it possible for there to be no witnesses at all?”
“I know. It’s like they vanished into thin air...”
On top of that, there was barely any information about the man who lived with them, so the investigation showed no real progress.
“They couldn’t have already died...”
“Hey, don’t jump to conclusions just yet.”
“I’m sorry.”
The others quickly reproached the young guard for his careless remark.
Before long, their attention shifted back to Knox, who had already moved some distance away. Supported by a neighbor, his unsteady steps looked especially pitiful today.
“You should head inside now.”
“Yes... thank you for today.”
“They’ll find them, so try not to worry too much.”
“I will.”
Knox turned away with a bitter smile in response to the man’s reassurance.
However, as soon as he faced the other direction, a different kind of smile briefly surfaced on his lips before disappearing just as quickly.
Click.
“—!”
Bang!
“Knox? What’s wrong?”
His neighbor, who was watching him enter the house, frowned in confusion when Knox suddenly slammed the door shut and staggered backward.
His face had turned pale, as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have.
“Ah, no, it’s nothing. I just suddenly feel unwell. I think I need some fresh air, so you should head back first.”
“Tsk, you must be tired too. Go on and get some rest.”
“Yes.”
Knox nodded stiffly, then remained rooted to the spot until the man had completely disappeared from view.
“Haa... haa... what was that...?”
Only after he was alone did he finally release the breath he had been holding. He slowly turned back toward the house.
His eyes trembled as he stared at the firmly shut wooden door. It’s like his entire world was shaken.
“...I must have seen it wrong.”
Yes, it had to be a mistake. Lately, he had been so conscious of the gazes around him and so absorbed in keeping up appearances day and night. His nerves must have become overly sensitive.
After checking one last time to make sure no one was around, Knox reached for the doorknob with a trembling hand.
Click.
Creak.
“M-my God...!”
The moment he stepped inside, he quickly locked the door behind him, afraid someone might see.
The first thing that struck him was the thick and metallic stench of blood.
“H-how is this possible...?”
The entire house was soaked in blood. It was a familiar sight.
Dark pools spread across the floor, while splatters stained the walls. The door was marred with scratch marks, desperate signs left behind by someone clawing for their life.
Every last bit of it stood as proof of what he himself had done.
“But I cleaned it!”
He definitely had.
He had scrubbed every corner until he was on the verge of collapse. He used every chemical he could find to erase all traces.
“So why?!”
Was this a dream?
Yeah. It must be a dream.
Crawling, Knox dragged himself forward and reached out his trembling hand toward the pool of blood on the floor.
“Hiik!”
It was real.
Not an illusion. Not a dream.
After staring at his hand now slick with blood, Knox collapsed onto the floor.
“T-this... this can’t be.”
What was this?
What the hell was this?!
He shot to his feet.
His despair lasted only a moment. Whatever this situation was, there was only one thing he needed to do.
Erase it.
Like a madman, he began scrubbing at the blood. He wiped, and wiped again, dumping every last bit of chemical he had left onto it.
Time passed without him noticing.
He kept scrubbing, and scrubbing again.
“Mm...”
Knox fell asleep in a corner like he had collapsed there. In his hand, he still clutched a worn-out rag, clear evidence of how he had spent the entire night cleaning.
Sensing sunlight seeping in through the window after what must have been a long sleep, he groggily pushed himself upright.
“What time is it now...”
Thud.
“......”
The rag slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.
His ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) hollow eyes widened in an instant.
“Ah... ah... AAAAHH!”
A ragged scream tore out of his throat.
“Why... why...?!”
Didn’t he clean everything last night?
He scrubbed, and scrubbed, and scrubbed again until his hands were worn.
So why...?
Thud.
“......”
As if nothing had changed, the house was still filled with pools of blood.
Knox sank helplessly to the floor.
***
“Lady Ceres, where have you been so early this morning?”
“A walk.”
“A walk?”
At this hour? Jay tilted her head in confusion.
Even though Ceres had left the estate earlier than Jay, she had only just arrived at the shop.
“I thought you’d already gone ahead to the shop.”
“I was going to, but the weather was too nice. On a day like this, staying inside would be a waste....”
“M-my lady! Your nose, your nose is bleeding!”
“...Tch.”
What’s wrong with this body?
A nosebleed just from using that much power? What kind of fragile body is this?
“H-here, a handkerchief! What should we do?!”
“It’s fine. It’s nothing serious.”
After calming the flustered Jay, Ceres casually wiped the blood away with the handkerchief. It had been a while since she’d had a nosebleed.
Jingle.
“Huh?”
At the sound of the shop door opening, Jay turned her head, her eyes widening in surprise.
She recognized the face of the person entering immediately. She had only seen him once, but the man’s striking appearance left a clear impression.
“Ah, I’m sorry, we’re not open yet—”
Jay hurriedly stepped forward to stop him, but Ceres, who had also turned to look, widened her eyes slightly.
“It’s fine, Jay.”
“...Pardon?”
“Go inside and finish tidying up the kitchen.”
“Ah, yes.”
Jay might not realize it since she wasn’t at the shop every day, but that man had been showing up quite often lately.
Are you that free?
Was it really fine for a Grand Duke to come by this often? Why did he keep coming? What was the reason?
It was downright embarrassing how worried she was about never seeing him again.
I thought that day would be the last.
Who would have guessed she would end up seeing him again every other day?
And why did he come so early this morning?
“You’re early.”
“You told me to.”
“Come early in the morning or late in the evening. You’re disturbing other people.”
...Don’t tell me he actually took that seriously?
The mercenaries would scatter the moment he showed up, so she had no choice but to tell him to come at specific times.
Ceres shook her head.
Geez, he had no sense of moderation.
“Sit over here.”
She gestured toward a seat and addressed Kainel, who was still standing.
“......”
Kainel’s gaze remained fixed on Ceres, who was holding her nose with one hand.
“You’d be better off staying still.”
At his casually tossed remark, a quiet laugh slipped out of her.
“Please just stay still, Grace.”
“Right! The bleeding won’t stop!”
“It’s fine. I won’t die from a little nosebleed.”
“You will! You’re losing blood, how can you not die?!”
“Grace, are you going to die? You’re not, right? Don’t die!”
“...Kai, he’s crying. Stop scaring him.”
The memory of those two, who would panic every time she had a nosebleed, came back to her.
...She’s smiling again.
Kainel’s eyes narrowed slightly.
That woman, who would occasionally look at him and smile for no apparent reason, was starting to grate on him.
No.
Perhaps it wasn’t her, but the fact that he found himself bothered at all that was the real issue.
What did it matter to him whether someone smiled or not?
“Do you want something to eat?”
“......”
That tone irritated him as well.
It wasn’t quite polite, yet not exactly casual either. Every time she spoke to him, her tone hovered in that awkward middle ground.
“The stew isn’t ready yet.”
“I’ll wait.”
Kainel sat down and leaned back comfortably like he had all the time in the world. Then he closed his eyes.
As he listened to the sound of Ceres heading into the kitchen, his thoughts drifted.
A recipe passed down through generations....
The first time he visited this shop, he had naturally asked what he was curious about.
Where did she learn to make this stew?
“It’s a recipe that’s been passed down in my family....”
He didn’t know how it was possible, but there was no doubt. This was the same stew Grace used to make.
Grace used to share her recipes with others from time to time.
Even so, the fact that the taste had remained exactly the same after three hundred years was astonishing.
Even with the recipe, how could there be no difference at all? After all that time, was something like that possible?
Thud.
“.....?”
Pulled from his thoughts by the sound of something being set down, Kainel opened his eyes.
A steaming omelet sat before him.
“Eat this while you wait.”
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