109 – Side Story. After That Conversation

Clack-clack—

The sound of heels echoed loudly.

The once lengthy corridor of the royal castle was now, before I knew it,

Filled with only that sound,

And that clacking showed no signs of stopping.

“Ah… seriously… searching for things like this is the worst…”

Thanks to the sun, which had already set long ago,

The interior of the royal castle was deeply submerged in darkness.

Beneath the chandelier’s glow,

a brilliance cleaving the darkness,

the heavy shadow of a woman always lingered.

Even in this gloom, the blush pink

of her hair refused to fade.

“…Should I have just assigned someone to her back then?”

The face of another woman surfaced in her thoughts.

The young lady of the Reinhardt house, with

dark hair fluttering ethereally,

burning crimson eyes.

The sight of her exposing all the shameful secrets

of her own family before everyone,

that dignified stance, remained etched in her mind,

stubbornly refusing to be forgotten.

Which is why she couldn’t imagine it, not for a moment.

That she would find herself in danger.

‘Well, it was my oversight too…

Even with the manpower shortage, I should have assigned someone.’

No matter that she was a Duke’s daughter,

having revealed her family’s secrets herself,

it was as good as her breaking free of her house.

And, she should have realized that a young sorceress of her caliber

was a prize coveted everywhere.

Sorcerers are worth money.

More precisely, not the sorcerers themselves, but the magic they wield.

She didn’t know how it used to be in the old days, but the magic in this era

is itself a source of energy, a measure of strength, and

a means of proving one’s level.

She should have understood that the sheer magnitude of the young sorceress’s magic

was enough for someone to covet her.

‘Well, it’s an added bonus… but her beauty is

objectively lovely, so there will be many who desire her.’

The beautiful black hair and

beauty, inherited from someone, flickered through her mind,

and the more that image surfaced,

the more impatient her heart grew.

‘…It’s not too late, is it?’

Because of her lingering memories, still deeply embedded,

her past memories.

*

The Charlotte Estate.

One of the Four Great Houses, and the name of the family who managed all the dark underbelly of the Empire.

“Your Excellency, a missive here…”

“Hmm? Bring it to me.”

One day, a letter arrived there.

A suspicious letter, with no return address marked.

“…”

“Your Excellency?”

“…It seems I must step out for a moment.”

As always, the contents held within the letter

were not exactly cheerful.

It was about a series of disappearance cases

that had been rocking the Empire of late.

So many women vanishing from every corner

of the Empire, and a plea to resolve the matter swiftly.

Naturally, the Charlotte House

had no choice in the matter.

They were nothing more than loyal hounds,

devoted solely to the Imperial Family.

“…Is everything prepared?”

“Yes, Clan Head. Nearly all of the hounds

await only your command.”

Commonly called Hounds.

Or, the shadow side of the sun.

The soldiers belonging to the Charlotte House

emerged from the shadows, revealing themselves.

To faithfully execute the order given by the Imperial Family.

“Papa…where are we going…?”

“…!”

“C…Clan Head?”

“…Let us depart.”

But something was different today.

Someone who should never be seen

was nestled amongst them.

Sino Charlotte,

the precious, only daughter of the Charlotte House.

She stood there, clutching the Clan Head’s hand tight,

and stifling a yawn.

“…Clan Head, are you truly alright with this?”

“Taking the young lady to a place like this…”

“…She’ll have to face this someday.

Better she witness it now, with me, and understand it beforehand.”

“…”

“What hangs in the balance at our hands.”

At that time, she was endlessly young –

Charlotte’s only daughter, Sino Charlotte.

As an heir of this family, she, too,

was destined to shoulder this burden one day,

but the family felt she was still too young

and raised her in the sun, not the shade.

However, her father believed that gaining experience beforehand wouldn’t be so bad,

and began to personally guide her,

“…The women’s identities, all confirmed.”

“…Grim.”

Finally, they arrived at a place where hell unfolded.

A hell filled with the stench of death

that was far too frightening for the young girl.

Finding the women didn’t take long.

Once the Charlotte family, possessing the Empire’s best intelligence network, began to hunt in earnest.

Perhaps it was only natural that they found their base so easily.

“…What is this?”

“…Presumed to be the victim’s arm.”

“…So withered and dried up?”

“Yes.”

However, even that short time

must have felt like an eternity in hell for the victims.

The lifeless appearances of the women

were testament to that.

Each resembled a mummy –

the victims’ appearances.

All vitality seemed to have been

sucked out of their bodies,

causing a creeping revulsion to rise among those present.

“…Ugh, bleargh─”

“…Someone go pat the boy’s back.”

“Lord, even now, should we take the young lady outside…”

“It’s alright… the most stimulating things are already

‘It’s hidden with magic, you see.’

A brackish odor begins to rise.

From the stains scattered here and there.

A brackish scent that, in all likelihood, suggests the presence of blood,

yet judging by the white flecks scattered amongst them,

it didn’t seem as if these were all traces of blood.

Perhaps traces of congress.

Within this squalid and dim room,

images of the victims suffering terrible acts replay involuntarily in her mind.

‘Hh… hh… Haaah, Father… I’m scared…’

Back then, she was so young, so fragile,

she couldn’t suppress the bursting sobs.

The Clan Head gently gathers her up, as she pitifully cries and clutches at his trouser hem.

The words he spoke to her then,

she doesn’t remember everything, being so young.

But… one thing.

Just one thing remains vividly in her memory.

Even now.

‘It is our role to prevent outcomes like this, my daughter.’

And the expression on her father’s face, which seemed immensely sorrowful,

*

Perhaps it was the resurfacing of distant memories,

but her heart grew even more troubled.

*I shouldn’t be like this…* she thought,

yet she kept superimposing the horrors of that time onto the girl.

The one with the striking, deep black hair.

*’If it were someone… else, I wouldn’t care so much whether they lived or died…’*

Unfortunately, it couldn’t be that way.

Her brother wouldn’t stand for it.

Though she had assumed their relationship with the clan was strained,

his attitude this time was completely different.

She could even sense a burning determination to find her at any cost.

*’So they weren’t necessarily such enemies after all?’*

She snapped a finger once,

A sharp snap echoed.

In the long, empty hallway.

“You summoned us, Mademoiselle.”

“..You summoned us.”

Exactly as before, from behind her,

a dark sphere appeared, and from within it,

two figures emerged.

Wearing black masks with not a single

opening upon their faces,

their bodies draped in black cloaks,

two men of vastly differing physiques.

“Uncle Ren, I need you to find every trace

of the Reinhardt family’s young lady.”

“As you command, Mademoiselle.

What is the timeframe?”

“I wish for you to investigate at the

utmost speed you are capable of.”

Immediately, he nodded as her words finished,

and vanished from the spot.

Without pausing, she turned her gaze

to the other man standing beside her.

“Uncle Rem.”

“..Yes, Mademoiselle.”

“I want you to investigate all of those

specializing in human trafficking around here.”

“….”

“The criteria…preferably those who have

completed jobs based on recent activity.”

“..What is the deadline, Mademoiselle?”

“This…well, it’s a task that requires

considerable time, so if we were to be generous─”

A memory flashed through her mind in that instant.

The words she had shouted while grabbing the

black-haired boy, who only moments ago had been trying to bolt out.

‘If it’s not enough, I’ll use our family’s power

to find them, so just go inside for now!’

‘Ah, I get it…I’ll do my best.’

‘But…there’s also the possibility that they

might not be found…Ah, wait! Don’t you dare run out!!’

If he ran out now, what would become of tomorrow’s title succession ceremony?

His Imperial Majesty personally bestows the title.

Did he truly wish to be shamed before all the nobles?

I attempted to persuade him in countless ways,

yet his dark eyes remained unwavering.

As if such things were of no consequence to him at all,

those eyes, they seemed to say.

‘…’

How long his patience would last,

even she could not say for certain.

“…Forgive me, but do it as quickly as possible.

As much as you possibly can, sir.”

“…Understood, Mademoiselle.”

She had no choice but to issue the unreasonable order.

Knowing better than anyone how difficult it would be to fulfill.

For she did not wish to antagonize the boy

who had felled a monster that even the Knight Commander struggled with.

“…But I wonder, who on earth would dare to touch that child?”

*Unluckily*… she refrained from uttering.

Since she was not the one to decide his fate anyway.

‘…Well, so long as it isn’t our family!’

And nothing could be changed now, after all.