7. The Butterfly Dream (胡蝶之夢) - 02
7. The Butterfly Dream (胡蝶之夢) - 02
Rattle. Rattle.
The procession was returning to the Estel Ducal House. I had been lying down inside the luxurious carriage positioned at the center of the column, but the rough jostling forced my eyes open.
"Ngh..."
Turning my head, I glanced out the window. Beyond the glass, the deep darkness of night obscured nearly everything. When I strained my ears, I could just barely make out the faint chirping of distant insects.
I tilted my head up a little. In the middle of the pitch-black sky, a bright full moon hid its resplendent figure behind a veil of clouds. Countless stars surrounded it, as if paying homage to the Goddess of Night.
"...Mmm, Kain..."
Beside me, Aria was fast asleep with her head resting on my shoulder. Her mouth was slightly agape, and the sight was so endearing that I gently smoothed down her disheveled hair.
"...Hee hee, more please..."
I quietly watched Aria's sleeping face for a long moment, but at some point, another woman's face, entirely different from hers, began to overlap it. I let out a sigh before I even realized it. This was clearly bothering me more than I wanted to admit.
Bianca's expression from when I last saw her before leaving House Castana surfaced in my mind. The way she looked, on the verge of tears and utterly unlike anything I had ever seen from her, was the polar opposite of her usual confident and assertive self.
"...What the hell was that?"
I was confused, and it gnawed at me deeply. The Bianca del Castana I knew would never act like that. She wasn't the type to make that face in front of me, or to let herself look so broken.
The Bianca I knew was arrogant, scornful, and followed her whims regardless of the consequences. That's who she was—or perhaps, the only person she was allowed to be. Seeing her so disheveled, like a lost puppy abandoned in the rain, was completely unrecognizable.
...No. That had been the real Bianca del Castana all along. Because she was like that back then, too. Ten years ago, a little girl wore a cold smile that looked ready to crumble into tears at any moment. The image of her then matched the way she looked now perfectly.
"—Hey, about us. We're going to meet again next time, right? We can meet again, can't we?"
"—...Yeah, I know. But still..."
"—...It was nice. I might have gotten a little carried away. This was the first time I've ever talked like this and played with anyone. Everything... it was all nice."
"...Idiot. Those kinds of memories are useless, anyway."
A muttered excuse slipped out as my heart grew inexplicably troubled. A suffocating feeling, like a heavy weight sinking into my chest, began to creep in. To erase that emotion, I closed my eyes and desperately forced myself to sleep. It was a childish escape, hoping that if I slept, I could forget it all.
However—
Clatter!
Without any warning whatsoever, the carriage came to a sudden halt. Unable to overcome the inertia, the carriage itself lurched violently forward.
"Kyak!"
"Aria!"
Aria, who had been sleeping on my shoulder, was thrown forward by the recoil. I barely managed to catch her, resorting even to the Flowing Star technique. Fortunately, I wasn't too late, and I pulled her tightly into my arms.
"Are you okay, Aria?"
"Y-yes... I'm fine. I'm really okay, Kain..."
Perhaps because she was jolted awake so suddenly from a deep sleep, Aria's face had flushed bright red. I realized I was still holding her and quickly let her go.
"...Mm."
Aria looked a little sulky, as if she was slightly dissatisfied with my action, but her expression soon stiffened. Then, she whispered to me in a very low voice.
"...Kain. Have you noticed? The surroundings right now..."
"...Yeah. I know, Aria."
I knew exactly what Aria was implying. It was too quiet outside. This was the carriage of the esteemed Young Duke of House Estel. It was a serious accident when the carriage nearly tipped over, yet no one came to check on us. It was clearly abnormal.
...Most tellingly, it was *too* quiet. The neighing of the horses, the murmuring of people—even the chirping of the insects had vanished completely. Only an unsettling silence remained, as if we had fallen into a world where sound didn't exist, suffocating the air around us.
"..."
"..."
Aria and I looked at each other without a word. I swallowed hard. Then, steeling myself, I slowly opened the carriage door.
Creeeak—
The moment I stepped out and set foot on the ground, I knew something was terribly wrong.
"This is..."
Everyone in my escort corps was sprawled across the ground. From the simple coachman to the knights, and even the horses pulling the carriage—every last one of them had collapsed, without exception. There were no visible injuries or signs of a struggle. In a way, they simply looked like they were all deep asleep.
...This was an ominous sign. It meant that whoever did this had carried it out without leaving a single trace or forewarning, completely escaping both Aria's notice and my own.
'...Should we run?'
It was probably already too late, but I was debating whether I should at least try to fight back—
Step—
Suddenly, I heard footsteps from somewhere. They were light and quiet, but because the silence around us was so absolute, they sounded louder than thunderclaps to my ears.
"...Oh? Kain. It's been a while. Ah, no, it's only been half a day, so maybe saying 'a while' sounds a bit strange. Then... what should I say? Good evening? Good early morning? I really don't know. Would you give me the answer, Kain?"
Beneath the brilliant moonlight, a woman I knew all too well was walking slowly toward me, giggling constantly. Seeing her there, bathed in the moon's glow, I unconsciously spoke her name.
"...Bianca."
Watching Bianca chuckle as she approached, I instinctively took a step back. She was far too dangerous right now. Every alarm in my head was blaring at full volume. I didn't know why, but that same aura I had once felt when facing the Winter Witch was radiating from Bianca now.
"What's this, Kain? Backing away from me? I came here to see you. I crossed this great distance in an instant just to see you, and all you can think about is getting away from me. All you can think about is running away from me, again. If you keep this up... I'll be sad."
Saying that, Bianca gave a sniffle and pretended to wipe away her tears. As I watched her, my legs began to tremble. It was like something inhuman was mimicking a human being, and an unfathomable terror gripped my heart, squeezing it tight.
But my instincts quickly warned me: if I lost my nerve, even for a moment, there would truly be no way out.
"...Bianca. Why exactly have you come here? And did you do this?"
I barely managed to suppress the creeping dread that felt like a thousand ants crawling over my limbs, and I managed to ask her. But I couldn't stop the slight tremor that crept into my voice.
"How disappointing, Kain. I came all this way, and all you can ask is why I'm here. But since it's you asking, I can't refuse an answer. Why did I come? To see you, obviously."
Giggle—
A chilly smile curled at the corners of Bianca's lips as she answered.
"Also, I wanted us to talk privately. I didn't want uninvited guests listening in on my conversation. After all, ladies can be rather shy, can't we?"
Bianca's gaze shifted to the 'uninvited guest' standing next to me, her brows furrowing as if she really hated what she saw.
"Well, well. I didn't expect that *thing* to still be standing there, staring at me with those wide eyes. It seems you've scraped back enough power to call yourself a mage now."
Saying that, Bianca took a step closer to me.
"But that's not really important. What matters is that you're thinking of abandoning me and running off to another woman."
I couldn't understand Bianca's words at all. Leaving aside the sudden claim that I was 'abandoning' her, I had no idea what she meant by me running off to another woman.
"...I'm abandoning you? Bianca, what on earth..."
...That was a mistake. I shouldn't have opened my mouth at all.
"...I hate it."
Suddenly, Bianca began messing up her own hair and started to mutter in a voice thick with bitterness.
"I hate it. I really, truly hate it now. I hate it so much. Being alone forever—I hate it. You leaving me behind, being left all alone... I just can't stand it anymore."
"Bianca, please, just listen to me..."
"Thirty years!"
Bianca cut me off abruptly, then began to recite something in a low voice.
"Thirty years. Thirty full years. I've been alone. Always, completely alone. How long do I have to keep living like this? How much longer do I have to be this miserable? I don't wish for anything. I don't want anything. I don't need anything. Is even that simple happiness, which everyone else takes for granted... a luxury I'm not allowed? Answer me, Kain."
As she spoke, a single tear clearly welled up in the corner of her eye.
"There hasn't been a single happy moment in my life since the day I was born. I wanted to die, every single day. Just once, I wanted someone to praise me. I wanted someone to love me. Was that such a terrible sin? Am I destined to be miserable my whole life? Is that... my fate?"
"...Bianca."
"But you were the one who showed me light. You were the one who taught me the warmth of a person, how to live my life, and the joy of being with someone, Kain."
"...And yet, you're leaving me again. Just like when we met once more, with that blank face having completely forgotten the promise we made as children... you are leaving me again."
"...You, don't tell me..."
Could Bianca actually remember me—?
"If you abandon me now, you'll be fine. You'll forget everything quickly. You'll abandon an ugly woman like me, find another woman, and fall in love all over again. But I won't. I can't. I'll be all alone again, wasting away in solitude. I'll have to endure another long, long winter. Kain, I'm so sick of it now. It's something I just can't get used to."
With a glint in her eye, Bianca was perfectly, utterly insane.
"So it's all your fault. It's your fault for discarding me and running after another woman. It's your fault for leaving me alone for so long and getting engaged to a wench like Sarah Sernad."
"...I can't take it anymore. I've endured it my whole life. I don't have the strength to endure a single thing more. That's all there is to it."
Step—
Bianca closed the distance between us by one more step. Then, raising her hand, she carefully caressed my cheek and murmured to me.
"So please, Kain. Call off your engagement and be with me. Marry me in the end. Stay by my side and make me happy. All I want now... is to be happy, just once..."