Chapter 73
Chapter 73
Translator: XZY
Chapter 73: Person (1)
***
Siern’s first murder occurred when she was around ten years old.
One day, she suddenly killed a servant who had entered her room with a snack.
At that young age, covered in fresh blood, she had stood quietly in a corner of the room, looking down at the young servant who had stopped breathing.
Kwang— !
When Melverot burst into that room, Siern was just standing there quietly, covered in blood.
There was not even a hint of her trembling in fear at what she had done, or worrying about how to handle the aftermath.
The pale pupils visible above her blood-splattered cheeks were just quietly looking at Melverot. The blood splattered on her pure white pajamas looked like part of a lace decoration.
Even in the moment the servants who followed behind gasped and covered their mouths upon seeing the scene, and the attendants rushed in to handle the situation... Lady Siern just stood there quietly as if nothing had happened.
The servants who gathered at the scene all got goosebumps seeing that sight, but her father, Melverot, did not even show a twitch at the tip of his eyebrow.
The head butler Layton thought as he looked at him.
His expression, as if nothing were wrong even after seeing the murder his daughter had committed... was as if he was thinking that what was meant to come had come.
Siern’s indiscriminate homicidal impulse had begun like that, without any warning.
However, despite the series of shocking incidents, Melverot had not once shown a hint of being flustered.
<><><>
“Derek-ssi!! If you!! try to rule Lady Siern with violence!! any longer!!!! I, I!!! even if I have to stake the name of Duplein!!!! will not!! stand!! idly by!!!”
Derek thought that he could not let Aiseline deliver any more lines.
Her disastrous sense for lines was a given, her tone that jumped around in the middle was awkward beyond compare, and the emotional arc of suddenly getting angry was out of the blue.
It was probably because she had almost no experience raising her voice at a person.
It might have been somewhat harsh to demand that a girl who had always lived as a graceful young lady, minding her dignity, pour out such emotions.
Derek raised his staff and spoke.
“Lady Aiseline. I am a person who doesn't look before or after. Lord Melverot ordered me to fix Lady Siern one way or another, and I will simply take all possible measures to produce a result. If you interfere, Lady Aiseline, I will have no choice but to remove you, even if it means using force.”
“I am the young lady of the Duplein ducal family. Don’t you dare... don’t you... dare? No, don’t you dare speak of using force in front of me! It is insolent!!!!”
“...”
Derek was feeling a great deal of confusion in grasping the emotional arc.
Aiseline’s acting was a black hole that seized and annihilated all surrounding emotional arcs. It felt like a true catastrophe would occur if this went on any longer, so Derek raised his mana and heightened his momentum even further.
Hwiiiiing—
Derek’s mana raged in the area, and the piled-up snow began to fly, forming a fog.
Lady Siern, who had been collapsed, held her breath and swallowed a dry gulp of saliva, but once again, Aiseline jumped out, spread both her arms, and blocked Derek.
“If you’re going to shoot... shoot!! I have no intention of moving from here!!”
And so, Derek’s magnificent mana converged at the tip of his staff.
And the 2-Star magic, Fireball, began to take on a giant form. Just manifesting it began to melt the surrounding snow, and the dirt ground around Derek began to be fully revealed.
Lady Siern was swallowing a dry gulp of saliva with her fingertips trembling. A direct hit from such a giant fireball would surely be instant death.
If she tried to run, he would grasp her movements in advance and suppress her. If she stayed still, he would try to beat her with the intent to kill.
Her teeth were chattering at Derek’s cruel educational policy, but she tried to somehow raise her body. However, her legs had lost their strength, and she could not move properly.
Even while Siern was trembling in fear like that, Aiseline was just glaring at Derek with her arms spread wide.
She was expressing her will that she would absolutely not move, even while trembling at the tips of her fingers from the overwhelming pressure of the magic.
The cold-blooded mage seen beyond her gathered even more mana, as if to say, so what if she was the young lady of the Duplein family, and drew out a fireball even larger than a person’s body. At this level of firepower, it was safe to say it was at the very end of the spectrum among 2-Star magics.
“This is the last warning. Move.”
“If you harm me.... you won’t be safe either, Derek-ssi..!”
“I told you I would not be picky about the means and methods. If you ignore the final warning, I have no other way.”
No matter what, it was hard to think he would shoot a magic of that scale at the young lady of the Duplein family.
However, he was a ruffian who had tried to beat up even Siern, the young lady of the Rochest family.
The fear that he might, by some chance, do such a thing began to creep into Lady Siern’s heart.
Hwaak— !
And, in reality, Derek fired the fireball. It was a sight hard to believe even seeing it with one’s own eyes.
Lady Aiseline, who had her eyes squeezed shut with her arms spread in front of Lady Siern until the very end, trembled. Even in front of the flying fireball, she had sublimely held her ground without moving from her spot until the very end.
Soon, the fireball exploded.
Kwang— !!
A giant explosion roared, and a burst of flame filled the field of vision for a moment.
The surrounding snow all melted and disappeared from the unbelievably intense firepower. Smoke then rose, and even a shimmering afterimage remained from the aftereffects of the fireball.
“—”
The fireball had missed.
When Siern opened the eyes she had squeezed shut, the fireball had grazed right past Aiseline’s side and was stuck in the bare ground.
Aiseline was just as she was at first, with both arms spread wide, holding a posture to protect Siern. Just by seeing her trembling fingertips, one could tell how seized by fear she was.
Nevertheless, Aiseline had not moved from her spot until the very end.
Her appearance, glaring at Derek with her lower lip bitten tight, was firm, but it seemed she could not suppress the trembling of her body.
Derek was quietly looking at her, and then he eventually slung his staff back onto his back.
“I will let it go just this once. But if you continue to get in my way like this...”
In the raging snow, a chillingly red glint in his eyes was directed at the two of them.
“You will pay the price.”
And so, Derek turned around with a flap of his cloak, then strode off and walked into the main building of the mansion.
His retreating figure was like seeing a grim reaper who had granted a stay of execution.
A sense of fear that dominated her entire body crept up Lady Siern’s back.
Jeobeok, jeobeok—
Cheolpeodeok—
And so, as soon as Derek’s figure was out of sight, Aiseline’s legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the snow. And then she let out a few deep breaths.
After Aiseline took a moment to calm down like that, she turned her head toward Lady Siern.
Lady Siern, who had been unable to move because her legs had given out, flinched. Aiseline, looking at her, managed to show a smile.
“Lady Siern. You were very surprised, weren’t you? That insolent mercenary named Derek is always like that. He just thinks that everything will be solved if he rules people with violence...”
“I, I... I.... so...”
“It’s alright. It’s understandable to be surprised. Are you hurt anywhere? I’ll take a look at your wounds.”
And so, Aiseline, who had managed to raise her body, led her tired body to the front of Siern and lowered her posture.
Siern, even in the midst of her great surprise, felt a certain warmth as she looked at Aiseline.
Aiseline was the owner of a gentle heart that embraced people, and along with that, an appearance that seemed noble and holy for some reason.
Watching her protect and care for her with all her heart, there were almost no people who would not be taken in.
That was the reason Derek had gone to the trouble of persuading Aiseline to bring her along. If Derek played the role of the stick, he needed someone to play the role of the carrot.
In reality, Siern, even while backing away, was feeling a strange sense of comfort from the approaching Aiseline.
“Now, show me your wounds. We have to treat them beforehand so that no scars remain.”
“N-n-no...”
As Aiseline reached out her hand, Siern slapped it away.
However, Siern was looking at the back of her hand that had slapped her away, her gaze trembling as if she were surprised.
“...It’s alright. You don’t have to be so tense.”
Paat— !
And so, as Aiseline spoke again in a gentle tone, Siern quickly leaped toward the spire and shot out.
The bewilderment in her expression was understandable. Too much had happened in a short amount of time.
Nevertheless, the fact that she had not gone out of her way to harm Aiseline was a noteworthy thing.
Tadak! Tadak— !
Watching Siern quickly escape by stepping on the protrusions of the building, Aiseline let out a hollow breath.
Due to the cold air of the northern region, a puff of breath escaped from her small lips.
Whether she had opened her heart or not, it was difficult to judge just by looking at Siern’s reaction.
“It’s ambiguous....”
Aiseline muttered to herself with a dispirited expression.
<><><>
Tok, tok, tok—
“Come in.”
Derek was drying his hair after having washed up in the guest room. Naturally, his attire could not help but be light.
When he was toweling his hair while wearing a bedroom gown that the servants had given him, the door opened with a creak, and Aiseline came in.
“Derek-ssi. About Lady Siern...”
Kwang— !
And the door closed again.
In truth, Derek’s naked body was almost all covered, but just the slight reveal of his upper body was an excessive stimulus for Aiseline.
The speed at which she went back out into the hallway and collapsed without even finishing her sentence was on par with a veteran mercenary.
“D-d-derek-ssi. I didn’t know you were undressed, I-I’m sorry.”
“Not at all. I thought you were a servant since you knocked. If you had called for me beforehand, I would have gone.”
“Y-you must be tired too, Derek-ssi, so I was just going to state my business briefly.”
“Which noble family’s young lady in the world would come all the way to a room to see a mere commoner? Even if your family’s circumstances are a bit difficult, wouldn’t it be better to act in a way that befits your station?”
“I-I told you.”
The sound of her taking a deep breath was heard from the other side of the door, so Derek quickly got dressed in a tunic and leather pants.
“I-I decided to accept the fact that I’m a fallen young lady. I have to be bold and full of energy in my every action.”
It seemed that the image of a fallen young lady in Aiseline’s mind was closer to the image of a devoted wife who energetically overcomes difficulties, rather than a gloomy human figure who roams a desolate back alley, emaciated.
If the person in question was thinking so brightly, there was no need to correct her.
Derek checked his appearance well and then opened the door.
He saw Aiseline sitting next to the door, leaning against the hallway wall with her face buried in her knees.
It was a fact he could not have known when they were tilting teacups at the Rosea Salon and discussing philosophy or history, but Aiseline was a much bigger prude than Derek had thought.
After getting involved in her family’s affairs, that fact was revealed so clearly that he even thought, she did a good job acting as a noble young lady all this time. Then again, in the noble social circle that valued dignity, there would not even be an occasion to be embroiled in such miscellaneous incidents.
“Are you dressed?”
“Yes.”
“You’re really dressed, right?”
“Yes.”
Derek answered without changing his tone at all.
Aiseline quickly raised her head, then hurried into the room and took a seat at a table on one side.
And after clearing her throat, she once again put on a benevolent gaze and spoke in an elegant tone.
“I apologize for showing such an unseemly sight.”
“Not at all. Did you not come to share your opinion separately about Lady Siern?”
“Yess... since we parted ways right after causing a big scene just now...”
“How was Lady Siern’s reaction?”
“It was surprising, but... I don’t think she hasn’t opened her heart at all.”
From the start, Aiseline and Derek were coordinating the situation.
Aiseline was the carrot, Derek was the stick.
It was Derek who shouted, got angry, punished, crushed, and became an object of fear.
It was Aiseline who played the role of embracing, understanding, listening, and empathizing.
The expectation was that if the two of them worked together well and cooked Siern, she would quickly open her heart to Aiseline.
Aiseline had expressed her concern to Derek, who had volunteered to be the villain from the start, but in truth, Derek was not a person who cared much about such things.
Whether he earned favor or antipathy, it was a matter that would be over if he just fixed her mentality well. Derek was a person who produced results, not the type to cling to human interaction.
Nevertheless, perhaps because she felt quite sorry for Derek, who had taken on the rough role... Aiseline would occasionally glance at Derek or ask again if he was really okay. It seemed she was not quite comfortable with unilaterally shifting the responsibility onto someone else.
Derek had made it a habit to wave his hand and say it was fine whenever that happened.
“In any case, I don’t think there’s a need to approach her too hastily. We can see it as our brilliant coordination shining through.”
“...”
“I know... that my acting is poor. What can I do when it doesn’t work even after receiving instruction from a first-class actor from the Levelton troupe...”
In the end, Aiseline turned herself in. If one had to say it, it was also a fact that a crisis had almost come because of Aiseline’s disastrous acting ability.
“Isn’t it strange? I’m good at hiding my true feelings or expressions while talking in high society... but why do my words become slurred and get stuck when I feel like I’m properly acting...”
“It’s not just you, Lady Aiseline. In fact, the act of acting is originally difficult and nerve-wracking.”
“Receiving only comfort from you again like this, Derek-ssi... this isn’t why I came all the way to the north...”
Aiseline sighed, dispirited, and then eventually shook her head and raised her fist to clench it tight again.
“This is no time to be losing strength. In any case, I agreed to receive money, so I have to do the corresponding work...!”
“In any case, acting and what not is not important. You are doing well enough.”
“It’s not good to only praise me too much, Derek-ssi. I told you. I decided to accept my status as a fallen young lady.”
“What good would it do to point out once more something you already know well yourself?”
“Ugh...”
“And, although there were some awkward parts at the beginning, you did it realistically well as it went on.”
“R-really?”
As Aiseline glanced at Derek, Derek spoke honestly as it was.
“Yes. The detailed feeling of your fingertips trembling or your voice trembling before taking the fireball was certainly realistic. It was not ordinary. Lady Siern must have been fooled.”
“That... wasn’t acting though...”
“...”
“I-it was really scary... No matter what, how can I not tremble when a fireball almost the size of a house comes flying at me... I barely held back the tears from welling up, but to show a scared face again seemed too undignified...”
Derek concluded that it would be better not to mention it further. Whether he praised her, or pointed it out, the conversation did not seem to be heading in a very good direction.
“In any case... it’s a relief to hear that Lady Siern is opening her heart even a little. I also looked into a few things, and there were quite a few parts that were not quite satisfactory.”
“Really?”
As Aiseline quickly raised her head and looked at the table, there were various documents and books that Derek seemed to have looked through.
Mainly, they were various work histories received from the servants who had attended to Lady Siern, information about Lady Siern’s lifestyle patterns... and, out of the blue, there were also historical records about the ‘Dawn War’ that had occurred in the north.
‘The history book, why... was he looking at that...?’
While Aiseline was making a puzzled expression, Derek quickly finished toweling his hair and came to sit on the opposite side of Aiseline.
“To tell you the conclusion, it seems Lady Siern has indeed killed numerous people. The rumor that she is a slaughterer was not an empty word, it seems.”
“...”
“Lord Melverot said it, didn’t he? To swallow all the questions that arise while teaching Lady Siern. But, how can we fulfill our duty with only superficial information? We have to find out all the parts we can find out.”
Aiseline felt a strange anxiety as she looked at Derek’s serious expression.
When this man said he would do something seriously, he really achieved his goal without caring about the means and methods. She was in a position to have clearly seen him overcome countless tasks that were considered impossible.
“...I also... did feel that Lord Melverot was hiding something.”
“That is the key. I don’t know what it is, but there is a high possibility that it is a reverse scale that Lord Melverot does not want to be discovered.”
“...Derek-ssi. Lord Melverot is the hero of the north and a 6-Star mage who is counted among the best in the entire continent. Would there be anything good in digging up the secret that such a person wants to hide?”
“If we can become people who share the secret, it would be even better.”
Aiseline swallowed a dry gulp of saliva.
Derek often showed a human side, but when it came to weighing his situation and gains and losses, he was a person who knew how to become more cold-blooded than anyone.
If he could grasp the secret of the 6-Star mage Melverot, what a great weapon that would be.
If he could be in the same boat with none other than Melverot, there would be no greater ally for Derek’s journey as a mage.
Of course, one could not negotiate with a transcendentally strong person. Because it would be over if they just crushed him with force.
That was why he had brought Aiseline. No matter how much her family’s fortunes had declined, they would have to provide at least a minimum of treatment to the young lady of a ducal family.
Once she realized that much, a single streak of cold sweat trickled down Aiseline’s back.
Derek was thinking of using even Lady Siern to somehow get a grip on Lord Melverot.
He would not be picky about the means and methods to become a mage of a higher level.
That was the man named Derek.
“Derek-ssi...”
“...”
“Don’t you... have some kind of idea...?”
Derek only said certain things.
He did not throw out remarks he could not take responsibility for with half-baked guesses. If Derek had not brought it up yet, it was close to meaning that there was still no clear evidence to support that opinion.
Still, as Aiseline came at him so directly, he could not just pretend not to know, being in the same boat.
Derek hesitated, cracking the joints of both his hands, and then finally answered.
“What kind of person did you see Lady Siern as, Lady Aiseline?”
“Pardon? Y-yes? So... she has many sharp parts... but in any case, her appearance is also beautiful... if she is taught well, she could become a good young lady, a person like a... gemstone, perhaps?”
“A person like a gemstone, you say?”
“Yes, yess... that kind of person.”
“A person, is that right?”
“....Pardon?”
Hook, Aiseline’s breath was sucked in. She had to ruminate on the intention of what Derek had said again.
However, even after organizing her thoughts again, Derek’s intention in his utterance was roughly revealed.
Derek’s gaze, as he sat quietly and met her eyes, was sharp.
The pale red eyes revealed between his long, pure white hair. It was strangely the very appearance that Lady Siern had been afraid of.
This man was someone who had spent his entire life roaming labyrinths, studying, and killing countless demonic beasts.
If one were to pile up those corpses, they would be as high as a mountain, and the stench of the blood of demonic beasts that clung to his body and soul would never come out.
That well-known fact... seemed to hold some kind of meaning.
Aiseline held her breath with her fingertips trembling.
