Chapter 39
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: A Change of Target
-----------------------------------------------------------------
It's much better when you're quiet. You could just stay like that, you know.
With his mouth shut, Ethan's looks made him seem like a cold, sharp-tongued nobleman. But surprisingly, when he opened it, he sometimes sounded like a delinquent. Just sometimes.
It was probably due to the coarse language he occasionally used.
The truly fascinating part was that this man was the sole heir to the Duke of Lancaster. And he was destined to become a major figure in the political world.
If he insisted on talking like that after entering politics, high society would be buzzing with gossip. For some reason, I was almost looking forward to it.
‘Anyway, as long as he's quiet, there's no better man for eye candy. He is ridiculously handsome, after all.’
Still, I wanted no part in getting too involved with Ethan.
Our worlds were different, anyway. Even if I was a ‘Sinclair’ with immense wealth that even nobles envied, the ‘Lancasters’ were high nobility, far beyond our reach. We were fundamentally of a different class.
…Wasn't that before the world ended? Well, yes, it was.
But even with the collapse of the social structure, that wasn't the only distance between Ethan and me. From the very beginning, we were cast in different roles.
In other words, Ethan was a crucial main character at the center of the novel *Love in a Ruined World* who absolutely could not die, while I was just an extra whose death wouldn't matter.
I shook my head and brought the binoculars back to my eyes.
“That's not what's important right now.”
Perched on a hill, Happy House offered a clear view of Brunel village.
It was dusk, the time when the gas lamps would normally be lit, but of course, there was no one to light them.
The village remained dark, with only monsters roaming about; there was no sign of human life.
A village stained with blood, unidentified monsters stalking through it. The cries of monsters echoing in the air. It was a bizarre and gruesome sight.
I handed the binoculars I was holding to Ethan.
“Take a look. What about just charging straight through?”
In response to my question, Ethan scanned the village with the binoculars and shook his head firmly.
“That won't work. What if all the monsters in the village end up flocking here?”
He shot back with a slightly cynical tone.
“We need to get the maximum effect in a single attempt, so let's be cautious.”
Maximum effect in a single attempt.
He was right. We only had one life each, so we had to be as careful as possible.
“Miss Cherry, why are those torches installed outside the wall?”
Ethan asked, pointing to the area outside the wall. Unlit torches had been set up there.
“I think the contractor made a mistake.”
Hahaha. I gave a vague excuse.
Besides, Ethan already knew about the even more suspicious bells. So this kind of excuse would be useless.
But regardless of what Ethan might have guessed, there was no need for me to spell it out and confirm it.
The reason we weren't using the torches now was because we had to go outside.
The torches were meant to keep the fire-averse monsters from getting close to the mansion, not to drive them far away.
Furthermore, we had to plan not only for getting out, but also for getting back into the mansion.
It was possible that our attempt to get out could attract more monsters, preventing us from getting back inside later.
“It looks like there are traps, too.”
Ethan, who had been carefully examining the mansion's surroundings, seemed to have discovered the traps I'd set around the property.
“There are?”
I looked at Ethan, feigning complete surprise.
At that, Ethan lowered the binoculars and stared at me. A very intense stare. I laughed awkwardly, hahaha, and met his gaze.
“What is it?”
“……You really don't know anything about this?”
I nodded vigorously.
“Of course not.”
Ethan narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing my expression. A cold sweat trickled down my back.
He stared intently at my face for a long moment. Then he said—
“You must really think I'm a pushover, Miss Cherry.”
There seemed to be a hidden barb in his words. The cold sweat continued to run down my back, and I did my best to avoid his gaze.
“But well, I'll let this slide.”
“What's that? You say your piece and then act all merciful. That's even scarier.”
“Repaying a debt? Please forgive me. This is just how I talk. I am trying to be kind to you, Miss Cherry. I'm indebted to you, and above all, you're my savior.”
I looked at Ethan, feeling uneasy.
Right. Ethan's way of speaking was usually much rougher. Thinking back to when he dealt with criminals, or with Knox...
‘What is this? I'm clearly being treated like a savior, yet there's this inexplicable unease.’
If he finds out I'm the woman who dealt with the monster at 61 Notium Street, I have no idea how he'll change. I'm already trembling with fear.
Anyway, when we met on Notium Street, Ethan said he found it suspicious when he saw me running away, thinking I might be connected to the monster. So I can't let him find out...
No. Maybe he already knows the truth. Every time I used my superhuman strength, didn't he look at me with that inscrutable expression?
‘But if he knows and isn't saying anything, isn't that even scarier? It means he's testing me.’
Either way, it's terrifying. What happens if I lose the main character's trust? Won't I get a brutal death ending, superhuman strength or not?
After a long moment, Ethan finally tore his gaze away from me and turned his head back toward the traps.
Quite a few monsters had fallen into the pits I had dug earlier.
“Still, it's a relief that those seem to be effective.”
I nodded at Ethan's words.
“I agree.”
Susanna and I had made those pits together.
Thinking of Susanna made my stomach churn again. The afterimage of her torn and scattered maid uniform tried to take over my mind. I gritted my teeth, forcing back the dark emotions that threatened to surge up.
Honestly, if I were alone, I could have holed up in this mansion for a month or two, waiting for the monsters to lose interest and disperse.
But right now, Ethan and I had someone we needed to find, so we couldn't afford to waste time.
‘I have to find a way. A way...’
Ethan also sighed, running a hand through his hair as if he had a headache.
His brow furrowed in annoyance, he stared blankly at the catapult installed on the railing. Naturally, I followed his gaze to the catapult.
Two sturdy wooden posts were firmly fixed in place, with a wooden beam running between them, and below that, a throwing arm that would act as a lever was secured.
In truth, it was a simple device, more like a lever than a proper catapult.
I'm no weapons expert, nor do I have any great knowledge of science. So there was a limit to the designs I could come up with.
This time, Ethan tapped the catapult carelessly and asked.
“Miss Cherry, what about using this?”
“Hmm. I don't think it would be very efficient against that many monsters.”
A catapult was a weapon that required focus and precision. This was the very thing that could produce maximum effect in a single attempt...
‘Wait, what if we use the catapult to hit something else, not the monsters?’
Our goal is to divert the monsters' attention elsewhere, isn't it?
I looked at Ethan again. He had been resting his chin on his hand, and when our eyes met, he grinned.
“Looks like you're thinking the same thing I am.”
“You weren't suggesting we snipe the monsters to kill them, were you?”
At my question, Ethan nodded and followed my gaze toward the village.
“You said those things are sensitive to sound. So what if a loud noise came from somewhere else, not here?”
“They'd all flock over there.”
I snatched the binoculars from Ethan's hands and carefully scanned the village again.
The village was as quiet as before, except for the monsters roaming the streets.
“I don't see any survivors. And as for something we could hit with a rock to make a loud noise...”
Scanning the village through the binoculars, my voice trailed off as I spotted a statue in the town square.
There was a statue of a praying girl. It was quite large, too.
Ethan, who had been watching me quietly, leaned in. His face was suddenly very close.
Startled, I pulled my eyes away from the binoculars. Unfazed, Ethan immediately put his own eye to the binoculars I was holding.
Ethan's fine skin and his cheek, covered in downy hair like a child's, were right in front of my nose.