Chapter 46
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 46
Zabaniya searched his memories. Though their conversation had been brief, the impression she left was deeply etched in his mind.
“If I may be so bold, she resembles a goddess.”
“Goddess Rachel? She resembles Rachel… I suppose that explains why the Knight Commander is so infatuated with her.”
Marik did not rebuke the sacrilegious remark. Instead, she issued an order to Zabaniya.
“However, first impressions can be deceiving. Since you think of the Knight Commander as your own son, Bishop, I share your concern. Shouldn’t we investigate Lady Rohanson’s character with a parent’s diligence?”
“I will see to it at once.”
Marik patted Zabaniya’s shoulder, a gesture of trust in his resolve. Zabaniya would surely do his best not to disappoint her.
*
In the basement from which Marik and Zabaniya had vanished, Gabriel waited until all signs of their presence had faded before entering Merai’s solitary cell.
A haggard woman, looking as if the very life had been siphoned from her, lifted her head at the sound of the door opening.
Her complexion was as pallid as a corpse. She had lived in the basement while keeping the children locked away, but being confined there alone seemed to be a far greater struggle.
Merai’s suffering stemmed from childhood traumas clawing their way back to the surface. Before she had caught the Director’s eye, Merai herself had likely been nothing more than a tool to entertain demons, just like the other children.
“Have you eaten?”
The question was so mundane for a dungeon greeting that Merai let out a hollow laugh.
“For a meal from the Grand Temple, it was pathetic.”
A loaf of bread and a bowl of soup. In truth, she knew it was more than someone about to die deserved, yet the sarcasm spilled out of her regardless.
“For one meal, at least, you will be able to eat your fill of whatever you desire.”
At those words, Merai understood what that “one meal” signified. He was talking about the final meal given to a death row inmate before their execution. She accepted her fate calmly.
“So, it’s the death penalty.”
“Yes. You will be handed over to the guards at daybreak.”
There was less turmoil than she had expected. With the date of her death now set, Merai felt herself becoming strangely composed.
“Lady Rohanson has decided to bring back the children you sold.”
“Buying them back? She’s no different from me, then.”
“She is nothing like you.”
News of Merai and the priest’s arrest had spread so quickly that dozens of messages had already arrived. Some pleaded with them not to report the matter to the Imperial Family, while others offered to return both the money and the children.
Buying people was a distasteful affair, but Evangeline readily paid the price to take the children back.
Of course, far more feigned ignorance. They would likely excuse themselves by claiming it wasn't a purchase but a form of employment for which they had merely paid an introduction fee.
Those who had dealt with Merai long ago, or those notorious for their cruelty, remained silent. Their silence implied the children were either already dead or in a state too horrific to be seen.
When Gabriel delivered this news, Daisy had burst into tears.
“Stop crying. You haven’t forgotten what you asked of me, have you?”
“No. I asked you to find the children.”
“Right. I promised to find them all in exchange for having you.”
Evangeline Rohanson acted unlike herself, yet it was obvious how much comfort those blunt words brought Daisy.
The girl fell to her knees and begged, offering her thanks. She didn't care that Gabriel was watching.
The person who had once been paralyzed with fear, denouncing Evangeline as a demon, was gone. In her place was a girl who submitted with all her heart. The sight was reminiscent of a believer praying before a statue of Rachel.
The difference was that, unlike Rachel, Evangeline Rohanson was a being who could answer her follower’s prayers.
A white hand came to rest atop Daisy’s head. Perhaps because she was a being who had never offered comfort—nor had ever needed to—the act of stroking the girl's hair was incredibly awkward.
Gabriel could not take his eyes off that clumsy gesture. Was the hand comforting Daisy still cold?
He cleared his thoughts and focused once more on Merai.
Evangeline had promised to bring back all the children. The ledger Merai had left behind was proving helpful in identifying them.
“The ledger you left behind will be of great help.”
And it would also ensure the severity of the punishments. Since no murder had been committed, the nobles couldn't be punished too harshly just for purchasing a commoner orphan. But the ledger—which detailed dates, amounts, transaction locations, methods, and intermediaries—provided undeniable proof of their crimes.
Thanks to that concrete evidence, the priest who had been one of the buyers wasn't merely dismissed; he was exiled to a foreign country currently at war. It was a sentence to die there, as he would never be able to return.
“Why did you leave the ledger?” Gabriel asked. It was the act of someone who still held some lingering attachment.
“I thought it might come in handy later. People tend to listen when you make a request while brandishing something like that.”
That seemed unlikely, given that the buyers had acted as if they were completely unaware of its existence until now.
“I see.”
Gabriel did not press for the truth. If that was her story, he had no reason to deny it. Even if Merai had left the ledger out of a faint sense of guilt, it wouldn't erase her crimes or overturn her sentence.
“There will be an interrogation tomorrow.”
Instead, Gabriel revealed the purpose of his visit.
“The investigator will ask you about Lady Rohanson.”
He told Merai exactly what to say—that Evangeline Rohanson was someone who occasionally came to the orphanage to volunteer. He also instructed her to avoid mentioning Daisy, as the girl needed to be kept as far away from this incident as possible.
Merai let out another hollow laugh. Not only did she have to protect the angel who had pushed her into this abyss, but she also had to claim she’d received support from a noble?
The only nobles who visited the orphanage were there to buy children. If there had truly been someone who supported them out of goodwill, Merai would never have needed to sell the children in the first place.
“Are you threatening me to give false testimony? For a knight, you’ve got some damn nerve.”
Despite Merai’s sarcasm, Gabriel didn't flinch. Unlike his reputation for being devout and righteous, he did not consider himself so innocent. Her sharp words didn't wound him.
“And you think I’ll do as you say?”
“Yes. If you remember what Miss Daisy said.”
At those words, Merai’s body stiffened. When was it? Right. Gabriel had been considerate enough to give Daisy a moment to speak with her one last time.
In her memory, Daisy was saying something.
“Director. I could never bring myself to think of you as a mother.”
Of course. Merai wasn't Daisy’s mother.
Daisy hadn't been a particularly important child to Merai, either. She vaguely recalled some reproaches from her son and the other children, but it was Daisy’s voice that stuck in her memory.
“For a time, I truly did love you.”
Unable to let go of her lingering affection, Daisy had hugged Merai. And while holding her tight, she had whispered in her ear.
“The Young Lady has decided to take us in. So, you must never speak of the Young Lady and the demon. If you have even a shred of guilt toward us, if you ever cared for us even a tiny bit, then you will never speak of it.”
Merai felt no guilt whatsoever, so Daisy’s words should have been useless.
“You heard that?”
“I have good hearing.”
Merai fell silent. She didn't say she would testify as Gabriel instructed, but he left the cell as if his business was done.
*
The next day, just as Gabriel had said, Merai was transported to the execution ground.
Death row inmates whose execution dates were set would stay there until the day arrived. As she had been told, there was an interrogation. After finishing his questions, the investigator flipped through some papers.
“Anything you want to eat before you die?”
A final meal.
“Don’t know why the hell we feed you bastards. I’d rather they give me the money as a bonus… Just hurry up and say something.”
When Merai didn't answer immediately, the investigator pressed her.
“I want soup. Soup made with mashed potatoes.”
“Potato soup? Humble, aren’t you? Well, fine.”
The investigator scribbled something messily in ink. She couldn't see what he wrote, but it was obvious: ‘Merai - Potato Soup.’
And so, before the execution, while the other prisoners gnawed on meat and drank wine, Merai ate potato soup alone.
Potato soup was the dish served most frequently at the orphanage. Once, a child who was about to be adopted said they would miss her cooking and asked for it. After that, Merai always fed the children soup before selling them off. She never knew why.
“Enjoy your last meal?”
After finishing, Merai was led away by a guard. A cloth was placed over her head, and she was forced into a seat. From somewhere nearby, she heard the sound of a blade being sharpened.
Merai closed her eyes.
It was a truly, damnably tasteless meal.
*
“The weather is lovely.”
“It really is. The breeze is so cool, it feels like it’s carrying the scent of flowers right inside.”
At Evangeline’s words, Canna opened the door wider. But unlike Canna, Daisy caught a faint metallic scent mingling with the floral fragrance on the wind.
“It’s a perfect day to die.”
Evangeline used her hand to brush back a strand of hair the wind had disheveled.
Daisy knew exactly whose death she was referring to. Today was the day Merai would die.