No Entry Zone (Side Story)
"Did you hear? There's a ghost living in Yvonne Palace!"
Why is it that among all these blond-headed folk, there's not a single normal one?
Hiasen inwardly berated himself.
Unlike the girl excitedly sharing the rumor she'd heard, Hiasen didn't even glance up, responding with utter boredom.
"Pass. You're just trying to drag me along again, right?"
"Aww, come on, Hiasen, let's go together~!"
"Take Niobe instead of me."
"But Niobe's naptime right now!"
Josephine revealed she'd already checked Niobe's bedroom.
"Mother will be furious if she finds out."
"Me being here? So what? It's not like they get along anyway—why make a fuss?"
"That's not the point, Josephine."
"So you'll come with me? To Yvonne Palace?"
"Hah."
Hiasen finally closed the magic tome he'd been reading.
In truth, Prince Hiasen had never had a choice to begin with.
There were few in the imperial palace who could defy Josephine Floria Kaizen, sister of Crown Prince Jade.
Even as a child, Hiasen had felt the rigid hierarchy ingrained in his very bones from birth.
"They say especially at night, you can hear a baby crying?"
"Ridiculous nonsense."
"You're scared, aren't you? Admit it—doesn't it give you chills?"
"W-When did I ever say that?!"
Still, it was a relief it was broad daylight, Hiasen thought, stroking his chest.
If Josephine had tried dragging him there in the dead of night, hierarchy be damned—he'd have resisted fiercely.
Yet despite that, Hiasen couldn't let go of Josephine's hand, gripping it tightly.
Fear was a separate matter entirely.
"First time coming all the way to Yvonne Palace, huh? The vibe's so creepy—does anyone even live here?"
"No idea. If no one's around, let's just head back."
No gardeners tending the yard, no maids bustling about.
The absence of people who should have been busiest at this hour only made the scenery more desolate.
As they reached the main gate of Yvonne Palace, a guard greeted them.
"I greet the noble Second Imperial Princess Josephine Floria Kaizen. And the one beside you...?"
"Long time no see, Rupion! Working here now? This is Hiasen—he never goes out, so you wouldn't know his face."
"Forgive my rudeness!! I greet the noble Third Imperial Prince Hiasen Luminos Kaizen."
"Enough already. I have business here—mind if we go in?"
Josephine tried to pass through the gate casually, but the guard blocked her with his body.
"We have orders not to let anyone inside—my apologies!"
"Orders? From who? Important enough to block me without permission?"
Josephine's voice turned icy in an instant.
Hiasen found this side of her utterly terrifying.
She was usually a perfect little rascal, but when her eyes flashed like that, she revealed her unfiltered imperial pride, proving she was Kaizen through and through.
"I-I'm sorry. It was Steward Chief Bargot's directive..."
"Steward Chief Bargot..."
Josephine bit her lip hard.
Lower in rank than her, but always glued to Father's side.
His orders were practically the Emperor's own—he fulfilled the role of proxy flawlessly.
Technically, defying it wouldn't cause issues, but if discovered later, it would stir up a storm.
Still, her internal conflict lasted mere seconds.
"It's fine—just let us in. We'll only be a moment and leave right away."
"...Please exit as quickly as possible. If the steward chief finds out, he'll be greatly displeased."
"Then you keep quiet about us being here! Come on, Hiasen—let's go in."
Yvonne Palace lay on the northwestern outskirts of the imperial palace.
Its status as a "annex" rather than a full palace was evident from its size and appearance.
"It's so small. And looks pretty old too?"
The drab exterior was built in a Romanesque style from centuries past.
Josephine couldn't fathom why they hadn't demolished such a rundown building.
It seemed only three stories tall, with creaking floorboards echoing through the halls.
Despite circling the interior several times, Josephine and Hiasen found no trace of anyone.
"Ugh, this is boring!"
She'd even shaken off Jade, her minder.
Josephine huffed in frustration.
"Don't you and Brother Jade get along? You're siblings."
"And didn't you just fight with Niobe the other day?"
"W-Who said that?"
"Count Aria mentioned it?"
"Uncle... Niobe's only three. I'm not a kid—why would I fight her?"
"From where I'm standing, you two are just alike."
Ignoring Hiasen's protests, Josephine pressed on with her search.
"She ruined my one and only magic tome first!"
"As the big brother, you should forgive her generously. You're starting to take after Jade."
"Hey? There's a staircase here? Leads to the fourth floor, I bet!"
The building looked uniformly three stories from outside, yet here was a stairwell ascending further.
A few rays of sunlight filtered through window cracks, illuminating the unlit fourth-floor corridor.
Dust blanketed the floor; cobwebs draped the ceiling.
Yet no bugs had intruded—dead spiders littered the ground.
"Don't mess around, Josephine. Yelling like that isn't scary at all."
"Huh? What're you talking about? I didn't say anything."
"You made that weird crying sound!"
"No, I didn't. Why would I?"
"Definitely...!"
[Hweeeeeuuuugh...]
"...!"
"Did you hear that...?"
"Yeah. What was it?"
"No way—I'm not going."
"Sounded like it came from the end of the hall?"
"No, I said no!"
"Let's go! To meet the ghost of Yvonne Palace!"
"Gyaaaaah!"
Josephine yanked Hiasen's arm with brute force.
With each step, the unidentified sound grew louder.
"Sis, what if it really is a ghost...? It might eat us."
"You just said there are no ghosts. Quiet—something's in that room ahead."
At first, she'd thought it mere wind, but drawing nearer the source, Josephine realized it was the cry of a young girl.
"Door's locked!"
"You gonna break it down?"
"There's a baby crying inside. Hiasen, stand back!"
Josephine assumed position.
Lowering her center of gravity, she read the surrounding mana flows.
Her golden eyes—unique to the legitimate Kaizen imperial blood—gleamed and rippled.
Colorless mana swirled into gold, gathering in her right fist.
"Grand strike!"
A brutish, single punch.
But with aura coating a frail girl's arm...
It rivaled a siege ram.
KABOOM!!!
The door shattered into jagged metal shards, exploding outright.
Coughing through the dust, Hiasen groped forward, refusing to lose hold of Josephine.
The cries leaking from the gap now rang clear to both children.
As vision cleared, the first thing they beheld was a neatly kept bedroom.
But when they identified the anomalous object beside the bed, horror twisted their faces.
"It hurts..."
A cross the size of an adult man.
"It hurts... Save me..."
Enormous nails pierced the wrists and heels of a human form, nailed to the massive wooden cross.
"It hurts... It hurts... It hurts... Save me... It hurts... Save me..."
Josephine's legs gave out, and she collapsed on the spot.
"Urk...!"
Hiasen too succumbed to nausea, crumpling to the floor.
"It hurts... It hurts... It hurts... Save me..."
Flesh had rotted and burst, pus and blood mingling in a foul stench that choked the room.
Yet the prisoner hanging there was far too small for the cross's scale.
"Please... Kill me..."
They say faint cries of a three-year-old baby echo now and then from Yvonne Palace.
"Savior of the East—Asha. What an ominous name."
"The East... must mean beyond the demon realms, yes?"
"Somewhere past Raynless Ice Gorge and the Sierra Mountains."
"No regrets?"
"Regrets? Neither she nor I have affection for children. I have no intention of bending principles—now or ever."
"Understood."
The steward chief's communicator buzzed; he excused himself to answer.
"Mission status?"
"Well done. Send the rest in writing."
"Problem? Handle it yourself—I'm busy."
Did they even know who he was with right now?
Yet the voice on the communicator remained urgent.