Episode 105
Translator: RaidenTL
Episode 105
Perhaps because she was in a dark room despite it being daytime, the lover before her suddenly felt like a stranger. As if mesmerized by his handsome face, which looked like it had been sculpted with a sharp knife, Elysia raised a hand. She slowly leaned in to press her lips against his, but quickly came to her senses with a look that said, I’ve been had.
She wrapped her arms around the neck of a fretfully frowning Evan and grumbled.
“It feels like we’re just making out every time we see each other…”
Stubbornly leaning down, he pecked her nose and cheek before speaking.
“Do this every time you’re about to go somewhere.”
“Ah, that’s too much…”
“What will you do if I tear the house apart out of separation anxiety?”
“You can’t do that. You, who organizes every single thing at a perfect angle.”
“Hurry.”
Giggling, Elysia clung to his neck and opened her lips. She was inwardly flustered as he pressed into her so intensely it was hard to breathe. Their hot breaths warmed each other’s bodies.
His hand, which had at first been wrapped around her waist, began to trace the place where curve met curve. She froze when she realized his hand was trembling.
Ah, you… you’re scared right now.
Evan, who had been clinging to her so tenderly, pulled away as if to restrain himself. Catching her breath, Elysia took his trembling fingertips in her hand and declared.
“Senior, I’ll be sure to win. I won’t die. I’ll make you think, ‘Of course she’ll be fine today, too.’”
“Don’t get hurt, either.”
Elysia mumbled, vaguely avoiding his gaze.
“That might be difficult…”
“And don’t get sick.”
“…”
Elysia remained silent. She had made a confident promise, but she knew the truth. There was no way she could give him that certainty. Not when she was constantly getting involved in dangerous situations and running all over the place.
This wasn’t a problem that could be solved just by her getting stronger. Having someone who cared for her safety meant she had to bear this kind of burden as well. A dull ache started in her head.
“I’m going to get some air.”
“Together…”
Evan, who had urgently tried to grab her, seemed to realize something and glanced at the scenery outside. It was broad daylight, the sun shining brightly. Being overprotective only wears a person out. He knew that, but… it wasn’t easy. With a haggard look, he lowered his head and hesitated before speaking.
“I trust you.”
“I know. If you don’t trust me, who would?”
“But I can’t trust that the world will be kind to you.”
She couldn’t bring herself to give him the reassurance that it wouldn’t be like that, not when he was trying so hard to smile to hide his anxiety. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand his fear. How could anyone be at ease watching someone they love willingly jump into a pit of fire?
“I’ll be back.”
“Come back safe.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“You’d better.”
It was a short reply, but it was a plea laced with worry. Giving him a smile that said he had nothing to worry about, Elysia quietly closed the door and stepped outside. Leaning her back against the closed door, she scratched her cheek and muttered with determination.
“I have to avoid getting hurt.”
There was someone who hurt when she got hurt. It was different from the past when she was all alone…. That fact alone was enough to restore her composure. Elysia took a light breath and fell into thought.
“Maybe I should retreat sometimes…”
From now on, she would be a little more careful, keeping the person who cared for her in mind and her head cool, but she would not compromise with injustice…. But she wouldn’t stop. She had no intention of giving up who she was, and she knew Evan wouldn’t want that either.
She lightly rolled her arms to loosen her shoulder muscles and mumbled.
“…But can I do it?”
The first thing she did was circle Zenia’s house. It might seem simple and foolish, but the start of any investigation is always grueling work. Scouring the scene was the most reliable method.
If the letter hadn’t come from a mail carrier, the sender had likely visited in person. Besides, the letter had arrived two days ago. The weather had been clear for those two days, so there was a good chance something was left behind.
No matter how thorough a person was, they were bound to leave a trace. From conspicuous marks like footprints to microscopic debris that could only be seen with a magnifying glass.
`SYSTEM: Active Skill ‘Observation’ has been activated. (Duration: 15 minutes)`
Her field of vision widened. Elysia first did a full circle around the house. Casually dismissing the trivial information the system was analyzing, she whipped her head around as if she had sensed something. It felt like one particular direction was pulling her in.
“Good feeling.”
It’s that way. If you need a reason, let’s just call it my intuition.
She quickened her pace and arrived in front of a waist-high wall surrounding the backyard.
“Oho…”
This was also the wall where Zenia said she had found the letter. Did I miss something earlier? Elysia pondered for a moment before boldly pulling out a few large clumps of grass with her bare hands. Then, something came into view on the hardened mud right below the wall.
`Someone’s footprint: 281mm. Men’s dress shoe.`
A windfall. A shoe print. Elysia’s eyes gleamed. Although Zenia’s husband was one of the wealthier men in the village, he wasn’t the type to wear shoes with such sleek, sharp lines.
This is a trace left by the culprit.
Elysia quickly crouched in front of it and, for no particular reason, placed her hand next to the print. Staring intently at the large shoe print, which looked even bigger in contrast to her hand, she gently poked the indentation with her fingertip.
“A shoe size of 281mm…”
Barring any special cases, it had to be an adult male. With a foot this size, he would be tall, well over 180cm. The range of suspects narrowed in an instant. Just then, another analysis result popped up before her eyes.
`Shallow footprint indentation ➤ Time spent here was not long.`
Elysia lifted her head and stared at the wall, which came up to her chest. Taking three steps back, she checked for other footprints but shook her head. There were none.
So the culprit had placed the letter in that spot, as if it had been decided beforehand, and then disappeared. She nodded.
“Either a close acquaintance, or someone who did their research thoroughly…”
According to Zenia, the backyard was a narrow space connected to the kitchen, so she was practically the only one who used it. That meant the culprit had acted with a full understanding of not only her movements but her family’s as well…. As the thought settled, a shiver ran down her spine.
“Isn’t this a fucking stalker? How disgusting.”
Opening her notebook, Elysia jotted down what she’d found. For a moment, she thought the footprint looked quite familiar. But having seen thousands of different footprints, she couldn’t pinpoint which one it was.
Twirling her pen, she muttered.
“First, I need to preserve the evidence.”
I should have it with me, right? Placing the notebook on her knee, Elysia rummaged through her inventory.
`<Plaster>`
`Item Description: Allows you to preserve traces that might disappear.`
After picking out the ants and bugs rolling around in the footprint and tossing them into the bushes, Elysia poured the plaster to make a cast.
While waiting for the plaster to harden, she searched for other footprints. It was unlikely that a single print would just appear here out of nowhere. She had to find the connecting trail to figure out which direction the culprit had approached the house from.
Pacing the lawn with her eyes lit like a madwoman, Elysia soon found a spot where the grass had been trampled by a foot of a similar size to the print she’d just found.
Once she knew the direction, figuring out the path was instantaneous. Like a child in a fairy tale, Elysia followed the trail the culprit had left behind, walking on and on.
It was then that she felt a sense of déjà vu. Stopping in front of a vast, dense forest, Elysia frowned. This place…
This overlaps with the path I took.
The culprit’s route matched the one she had taken when she used the map function to drop into the middle of the forest.
Inside the forest, where the thick leaves blocked the sunlight, it was eerily quiet. An ominous feeling washed over her. Elysia instinctively stopped looking for footprints and retraced the path she had taken before.
A small clearing located deep within the forest. Elysia calmed her quickening breath and headed toward the center. The first thing she saw were the two sets of footprints she and Evan had left when they arrived a few days ago. And not far from them…
“What the…?”
`Someone’s footprint: 281mm. Men’s dress shoe.`
`! 100% match with the previously discovered footprint !`
There was another footprint, pressed into the ground as if it had fallen from the sky, with no connecting trail. Just like… just like the one she had left when she used the map function to arrive here.
Her heart began to pound. Was this excitement, or was it fear?
Stumbling forward, Elysia walked to the footprint and stood, as if facing someone who was standing there.
With bloodshot eyes, she stared into the empty air, trying to picture the face of the person who had stood in this very spot two days ago.
“Who… who the hell are you?”
Her mouth went dry, and a cold sweat slicked her palms.
There is someone else in this world who uses the system. Someone other than me.