Unspoken Secrets (3)
"You know us?"
"How could I not know the two of you?"
The masked man answered Milia's puzzled question with a low chuckle.
"I have been watching you for a very long time. Ever since that day three years ago… right up until this very moment."
"Three years ago…? Don't tell me—!"
"So everything was your doing."
At the mention of three years, Milia and Schwarz both tilted their heads for a fraction of a second before speaking almost in unison, eyes locked on the man before them.
The masked man simply nodded in silence.
"I'll kill you!!"
"Please calm yourself, My Lady."
Schwarz stepped in front of Milia as she ground her teeth and shouted, then turned his gaze on the man.
"What is your goal? Why in the world did you do all of that?"
His tone was far more heated than usual. The urge to tear the man limb from limb right then and there flooded Schwarz's mind, yet he forced it down and asked the question. After three long years, the mastermind behind everything finally stood before them. Even the smallest scrap of information had to be wrung out of him. Crushing that mask could wait until afterward.
"My goal? Hmm… my goal, is it…"
The masked man let out a low hum and sank into thought. Ten seconds or so passed before he lifted his head, purple eyes gleaming beneath the mask.
"To shatter this false world and restore it to the true world it was always meant to be."
"…What?"
"How could mere ignorant mortals ever comprehend the sacred will of God?"
He fixed those glittering eyes on Schwarz, who had spoken in blank bewilderment. The emotion burning in them was pure madness—deep, bottomless madness that flickered ominously beneath the purple irises.
"Stop spouting that nonsense…!!"
Of course Schwarz had no intention of understanding, nor any desire to. All he felt was rage—pure, unadulterated rage. It was so fierce that the mana answering his emotions poured out beyond control, reshaping his body. A pair of horns sprouted from his head, nails and claws lengthened, and black scales rose beneath his skin. Anyone else present would have had no choice but to call him a demon.
Just then—
"Schwarz. Calm down."
"…"
Milia stepped to his side, spoke in a low voice, and took his hand. Schwarz's eyes met hers; with a soft, almost animal sound he managed to force the surging mana back under control.
"Oh-ho…?"
Watching Schwarz return to human form, the masked man narrowed his eyes with open interest.
"You told me to calm down, and then you go and lose it yourself?"
"I apologize, My Lady."
Schwarz bowed his head at Milia's wry remark. She was right. He had told her to stay calm, only to let rage take him first. Could anything be more shameful? He let out a low groan of self-reproach, and Milia answered with a faint smile.
But only for a moment.
"So? What are you planning this time that brought you all the way here?"
Milia turned back to the masked man and fixed him with a hard stare. If everything he had said was true, something equally dangerous was already unfolding in this place—and she had no intention of standing by and watching.
"Running into the two of you here was pure coincidence. Honestly, it almost feels as though God Himself arranged our meeting."
"Then the god you believe in must hate you. Because from this moment on, we're going to smash you to pieces."
Milia answered the man's intrigued tone by snatching up the spear that had fallen nearby and leveling it at him. A low laugh escaped from beneath the mask.
"What's so funny?"
"Humans truly are fascinating creatures. Even when caught in an unstoppable current, they thrash and struggle to survive… That is why I like humans. They are entertaining."
"You. I bet people tell you you're creepy all the time, don't they?"
Milia narrowed her eyes in pure disbelief.
"Think whatever you like. In the end it is all meaningless anyway."
"And what is that supposed to mean?"
"I shall take my leave for today. I will leave the children in your care for the time being."
As the masked man answered, a dense abyss opened once more behind him. In the same instant the shadows of the fallen figures around them spread outward, and they began to sink into the newly formed void.
"What…!? You think we'll just let you run!?"
"You're not getting away!!"
Schwarz lunged forward at the same moment Milia hurled her spear.
"Until we meet again—farewell."
Those were his final words as the masked man vanished into the abyss. The void that had swallowed him dissolved like smoke. Schwarz skidded to a halt just as Milia's spear shattered an innocent streetlamp behind them with a deafening crash.
"Damn it…!!"
"…"
Schwarz spat a curse at the empty space where the man had stood; Milia simply stared in silence. Amid the rising clamor of the festival, the disturbance at the harbor came to an end.
The next morning, at the Wagner family mansion.
"So that is what happened…"
Andrea listened to their account with a grave expression and let out a low groan.
"We have to stop the festival right now."
"My Lady is correct. If what that man said is true, something irreversible could happen."
The incidents in the count's territory and in Barenberg. If the same thing unfolded here in Bianca Arca, the damage would snowball beyond imagination—anyone could see that.
"I understand both of your concerns perfectly. However, there is one more matter we must confirm."
"Please go on."
"Besides the masked man, you mentioned another man—sky-blue hair, an eyepatch over one eye, and a red iris. Is that correct?"
"Yes. That's right."
Milia nodded at Andrea's question. The man's appearance had been so distinctive it was impossible to forget.
"Haa…"
Andrea exhaled a short sigh.
"What is it?"
"That man's name is Marcel… Marcel belo Avarizia."
"Avarizia…?"
"Avarizia—isn't that the royal house that once ruled the old Riel Kingdom?"
Milia tilted her head at the name while Schwarz directed the question at Andrea. Avarizia. It was the name of the ancient royal family that had appeared in the play at the Riel Central Museum.
"Correct. After the revolution drove them out, the Avarizia family fled with their loyal retainers to the outer seas beyond the reach of God's Nail and settled on an island. That place later became known as Dead Man's Port."
"Dead Man's Port… that's a pirate den, isn't it?"
This time Milia trailed off as the memory returned. On the day they had arrived in the Riel Coalition, a man causing a scene at the immigration office had claimed to be from Dead Man's Port.
"Indeed. If what the two of you say is true, this is no ordinary matter."
The descendant of a fallen royal house, and an unidentified group that turned people into monsters and carried out indiscriminate terror. The fact that the two were cooperating made their intentions all too clear.
"They're trying to rebuild their kingdom now, of all times?"
"That seems highly likely. From the royal family's perspective, the Coalition is nothing more than a band of rebels who rose against the crown."
Andrea nodded at Milia's incredulous words.
"I will convene the council at once. It will take some time… but given the gravity of the situation, that cannot be helped."
"All we can do is hope it isn't too late."
Milia rose as Andrea stood and bowed her head; he returned the gesture with equal formality.
"We will see to it that you are properly rewarded for everything you have done for the Riel Coalition. In addition, we have prepared lodging to replace the hotel that burned down—simply ask Fabio and he will guide you."
"Thank you for your consideration. We will pray for a favorable outcome."
Milia answered, then turned and walked out of the reception room.
In the corridor where servants hurried back and forth—
"Haa…"
"You're worried, aren't you?"
"Of course I am."
Schwarz asked as Milia let out a short sigh; she nodded. It was only natural.
Think whatever you like. In the end it is all meaningless anyway.
Those words had been a declaration of war. Saying something like that meant his preparations were already nearly complete. A time bomb that could explode at any moment lay beneath their feet—how could they not be anxious?
Yet there was nothing the two of them could do. All they could manage was to hope Andrea returned with good news. They walked the busy corridor and stepped out of the mansion.
And then—
"Milia-noona. Schwarz-hyung…"
"You…"
Seeing a completely unexpected figure standing in front of the mansion, Milia and Schwarz both tilted their heads in confusion.
"There's something I need to tell both of you."
The boy looked at them and spoke.