Chapter 049
The interior of the Rel mansion was just as spacious as it appeared from the outside. The corridors were labyrinthine.
Viola, who was walking ahead, stopped in front of a large door. A young girl in a maid's uniform was dozing off in a corner outside the door.
Viola called out softly.
"Hey."
"Huh! L-Lady Viola! I'm so sorry! I dozed off for a second—?"
Drowsy sunlight seeped into the corridor. Viola smiled and patted the flustered maid's shoulder. She looked at the door.
"Is she still inside?"
"Yes. She's been here since early this morning. Except for taking care of personal needs, she doesn't budge."
The maid glanced at Ran out of the corner of her eye. Sensing the sharp gaze, Ran cleared his throat and looked away. Anyone could tell his attire did not suit the mansion.
Creeeak.
Viola opened the door.
Tall bookshelves were lined up densely inside the room.
Sunlight tinged with a yellowish hue spilled over dark brown wooden furniture, filling the air with the scent of old wood and a tranquil silence.
Ran entered quietly, feeling like an unwelcome guest.
Rustle.
The sound of someone turning pages echoed softly. Ran's gaze turned in that direction.
A girl with long, sleek hair sat there.
Viola, standing at a distance, spoke.
"May we borrow you for a moment?"
The girl only moved her eyes to glance this way. Ran swallowed nervously as their eyes met.
'Is that girl really the vessel?.'
When he first heard the story about the Apocalypse, he hadn't given it much thought. In all honesty, he'd considered it far-fetched.
There were far more immediate concerns—matters of life and death. His very first duty as a clergy took priority.
Thud.
The girl gently closed the book she'd been reading and stood up.
She approached slowly.
Perhaps due to her exotic appearance, she carried an air of mystery. It was hard to believe she was Emma's age.
The girl quietly looked up at Ran.
"And you are?"
Ran, lost in thought, belatedly let out an awkward sound.
"Me?"
Clergy Cyrano.
He was slightly taller than other apprentice clerics he'd studied theology with, never forgot anything he learned, and, bizarre as it seemed, wielded a sword with natural skill. Otherwise, he was simply a curious young man.
Apostle Ran.
He'd been secretly commanded to expose and root out the corruption and evil within the mainland church. To fight evil with greater evil, he had resolved to sully his own hands.
The Mad Dog Inquisitor, Ran.
Right now, he was looking down at the girl.
He sensed instinctively that the source of it all was right before his eyes.
Countless desires and lives had become entangled and vanished in vain.
The girl probably had no idea that she was at the eye of that storm.
"? Mercenary Ran."
He realized. The mission he bore was connected to the girl, and after countless twists of fate, they had at last crossed paths.
"Mercenary?"
The girl replied, her expression unchanged. Viola, who had no intention of interrupting, kept quiet, so Ran opened his mouth instead.
"And you?"
Only then did the girl's eyebrows twitch. She lifted her chin slightly.
"Iel von Igraine. Twelfth princess of Igraine. Did you come here on family orders, perhaps?"
Ran looked at Viola. He had no idea what to say. There had been no information given to him in advance. He was only used to resolving the tasks set before him.
Viola smiled sweetly.
"Well, now that introductions are done, you should rest from your journey, young mercenary."
* * *
Ran bathed in hot water. He found new scrapes and cuts all over his body, as though just now discovering the toll his fatigue had taken. Some of the darker, bloodied scars seemed like they might bleed again at any moment.
He left the bathroom with his body still damp.
"Wahh!!"
A sudden shriek from beside him made Ran step back in surprise.
The butler, Toby, was baring his canines intentionally to startle him. Looking embarrassed, he cleared his throat.
"Well, after what happened last time..."
He held out a change of clothes—a comfortable spare outfit.
"As you can see, there aren't many men in the mansion. I hurried out and bought these myself. I'm not sure if they'll fit."
Ran was taller and leaner than most men, but with a broad frame.
Recalling Ran's physique, Toby had scoured the marketplace, but had barely managed to find a robe oversized enough for him.
"Ah, thank you."
Ran casually shed the clothes he was wearing. Toby, startled, quickly turned his back. He couldn't help peeking; even to another man, Ran's lean, sculpted body was like that of a statue.
"Ahem. Uh, Ran?"
"Yes?"
"It's hard to believe, but... are you really the Mad Dog?"
"? Yes."
"And... was it really you who assassinated the crown prince?"
While enduring the grueling civil war, the common people had been too preoccupied with survival to care about affairs of state.
Toby was no different. He hadn't become a butler thanks to any particular skills. Politics was a blind spot for him. He questioned why he had to protect a wanted man against the emperor's decree, but he recognized it wasn't his place to ask.
Still, it was astonishing that the man said to have killed the emperor's son was standing before him.
Ran changed the topic quickly.
"How long has Iel been here?"
"Lady Iel? Hmm, it's been a while, I think. Not long after you left, one of Lady Viola's acquaintances brought her here."
Ran had been mentally organizing all the information he'd gathered about Iel since earlier.
'Iel von Igraine. It's surprising enough that she's a noble, but from House Igraine?'
If you were to list the most powerful and prestigious of the imperial noble houses, igraine would certainly top the list.
'At least, until the civil war broke out.'
Igraine had not participated in the civil war.
They didn't declare neutrality, nor did they. Instead, they all but barricaded their estates.
Ran recalled Bern once mentioning in passing that the emperor's next target would be House Igraine.
"Aren't you leaving?"
Toby prodded. Ran awkwardly followed him.
As they approached the hall, delicious smells wafted toward them. Ran's nose twitched. His stomach, quiet until now, growled loudly.
"You must be quite hungry."
"Yes. I haven't eaten properly lately."
Toby frowned.
'How can he be hungry after what he's done? Is he right in the head? He really is the Mad Dog.'
Camus, Viola, and Iel had arrived already. The table was laden with food. Toby thought it was perhaps too much for a guest, but decided not to worry about it any more.
'I'm sure the lord and my lady have their reasons.'
It was the same during the previous commotion. In the end, Ran had saved Viola from the executioner Walter. Only later did Toby learn the true story.
'Phew, calm down. Calm down. Anyway, Ran is a guest of House Rel for now, right?'
Taking a quiet deep breath, Toby popped open a bottle of wine. He moved to fill Camus's glass first. At that moment, Toby's face wrinkled.
Ran was scarfing down food like a man who'd been starving for days.
'Ugh, geez. Eating that way in front of the ladies? Oh, I'm embarrassed for him.'
His cheeks never stopped puffing out; it looked like he might eat it all himself.
Camus and Iel stared at Ran, wide-eyed in shock.
"You can eat slowly."
Viola said, smiling fondly. Ran nodded up and down vigorously.
Camus tried to feign composure, but she was just as bewildered. It was hard to believe that this clean-cut young man, who had dropped his mask and all pretense right in front of her, was the same Mad Dog who'd conducted a witch hunt in the village square only days ago. On top of that, he had committed the grave crime of assassinating the crown prince.
'I have to trust my aunt.'
There was nothing to be done now. Camus took a bite of her small, sliced pie and chewed it slowly.
"Oh, it's a white wine."
Ran, distracted by eating, only now noticed his glass. He couldn't even recall when he'd last drunk white wine. Clerics from Quersa drink white wine, while those from the mainland drink red.
Ran took a big mouthful of white wine and rinsed his mouth with it.
"Have you ever tried white wine before?"
"? Ah, yes—traveling here and there, I've tasted it a few times by chance. You have elegant taste."
He wasn't speaking to anyone in particular. Ran set his glass down. Viola wore a bittersweet smile.
"Zima liked it. He came to mind today."
Ran's eyes flickered for an instant as he cleaned grape skins from between his teeth with a finger.
He acted composed again. Pretending to fold away his feelings and wear a mask as someone else had become second nature to him.
* * *
By the time the meal was over, it was late evening.
Ran and Viola stood side by side on the mansion terrace. The view of Rel spread out before them.
"Didn't we stand here and talk like this the other night, too?"
"Yes. Feels like it was ages ago."
All that time was filled with memories he'd rather not recall. Ran counted the number of people who had died at his side during that time, souls for whom he had prayed for salvation.
If he tried, he could erase everything from his mind—except for them. They remained with him.
Ran spoke with difficulty.
"May I ask what your relationship was with my father?"
"An interrogation?"
"I'm not an inquisitor anymore."
Viola laughed lightly. She gazed at the night sky for a while before replying.
"A friend."
"I see. Is there something you want to tell me?"
"Hm, let's see. Oh, have you found the answer to what you asked me last time?"
Ran was well aware of Viola's theological achievements within the mainland church. There was no priest more learned and devout than her, on par with even the renowned clerics of Quersa.
Yet Viola had turned her back on the Holy Church.
Ran believed her renunciation and the corruption within the mainland church were closely connected.
"Yes, I found it."
The Apocalypse.
Lord Asriel proclaimed doom to mankind.
Those who served the god learned the truth.
The emperor denied it. He declared himself a god and vowed to save humanity.
In the end, the mainland church sided with the emperor.
"The real purpose of the civil war must have been to cover up this chaos, even if only for a while."
War was the surest and most effective method for certain people.
The emperor eliminated everyone who opposed him. Those who knew the same secret and resisted him were branded as the cause of war, and one of the vessel's conditions, the demons, was blamed so they would pay for it with their lives. Without hesitation, he searched for the vessel.
Even taking into account the numerous sacrifices, the emperor believed himself justified. His ambition for the divine throne was conveniently legitimized.
"I'll have to confirm the Apocalypse myself. There must be another way to save the world."
"Another way?"
Ran understood why Viola was silent.
The greater the faith, the deeper the despair. Only those who have struggled desperately can throw everything away and give up. She must have endured unbearable agony.
Zima, too, was the same.
He agonized until the very end, then left the final decision to Ran without coming to a firm conclusion himself. He maintained his last conviction as clergy. Even if that path went against saving mankind.
'A crossroads of choices, not of right and wrong, but of desire.'
Ran stood at that crossroads. Desire shone brighter than ever.
"I don't believe you can trade a child's life for everything. I can't believe the merciful god would stoop to such pettiness."
Viola replied with only a faint smile.
* * *
"You're back late?"
Toby spoke as he pushed away from leaning against the door, his mouth wide in a yawn.
"Do you need anything else?"
Ran's eyes darted around. Toby looked at him oddly.
"What? Is something bothering you?"
Ran scratched the back of his head. After several awkward coughs, he finally spoke.
"Uh, don't get the wrong idea, okay?"
Toby listened to Ran's bashful story to the end.
Toby scowled in disbelief.
'Wow, this guy really is insane.'
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Ran can't sleep without having his head in a girl's thigh.
A very cultured young man.
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】