Chapter 52
Fourteen Corpses
She would have told the truth. Thump, thump! If it hadn't been for the urgent voice calling them at that very moment.
“Lord! Are you there? I'm sorry to bother you, but it's urgent!”
“……”
Black, muttering something Liene couldn't understand, quickly got up. Judging by his expression, it was probably close to cursing.
“Just a moment.”
Black walked towards the bedroom door in his dressing gown, which was still open. Something must have happened. Liene couldn't just sit still, so she threw back the covers and got up.
“What is it?”
Black opened the bedroom door himself. The slamming sound was unusually loud and jarring. The mercenary facing Black swallowed hard but quickly delivered his message.
“There's a fire.”
“……What?”
“What did you say?”
Liene was even more shocked. Her face turned extremely pale.
“A fire… Good heavens.”
In Nauk, where they were always worried about drought, fire was the most terrible disaster.
“Where? Lead the way.”
Liene forgot everything that had just happened. She tried to push past Black and leave the bedroom.
“Princess.”
Black quickly grabbed Liene's shoulder to stop her.
“Stay here. I'll go.”
“No, I have to go… Let's go together. Not fire. Not fire in this season…”
Black tenderly stroked her face, which had turned as white as the moon in a short time, with a look of pity.
“You can't go in your condition. Wait here.”
“One more person needs to go. We need to wake everyone in the castle…”
“There's no smoke or smell here. We don't know how serious it is yet. I'll go and see, and I'll send someone to let you know soon, so don't worry…”
That's as far as Black got. Thump, thump, thump! Loud footsteps pounded towards them.
“Lord! You were here…! The fire is not normal.”
The mercenary, arriving a beat later, gasped out quickly.
“It's breaking out sporadically in different places. It looks like someone is doing it on purpose.”
“No!”
Liene cried out. Fire was terrible enough, but someone doing it on purpose? That was like a curse.
“Let go of me.”
Liene frantically pushed Black's hand away.
“Does the guard know about the fire? How much water is left in the castle?”
“The guards on watch are all putting out the fire. We're informing the others.”
“Where is the fire the biggest?”
“It started in the kitchen. So we didn't think it was deliberate, we thought someone had accidentally left the stove fire on…”
“That's enough. Princess.”
Black cut him off as the atmosphere turned into a report.
“Go inside.”
“What do you mean! I…”
“I can't guarantee your safety in this situation. I can't block the smoke for you.”
“That's ridiculous. I know that too…”
“You're no help in your condition.”
Black cut off Liene with a cold tone and pushed her back into the bedroom.
“Ugh, don't do this…”
Her struggling was futile, and she was easily pushed back. Black slammed the door shut without another word.
“One of you stay and protect the Princess. You, lead the way. Where can you see the whole castle at a glance?”
“The adjutant said the North Tower. He's there now.”
Black turned away, not even sparing the time to answer. * * * Thump, thump!
“Open the door!”
Liene pounded on the bedroom door with all her might. She couldn't open the door that was being blocked from the outside with her strength alone.
“What are you trying to do by locking me up! Get out of the way now!”
“No, well… the Lord is right. It's harmful to breathe in the smoke. To, the baby…”
“That's not it!”
Bang! Her hand stung as she put her emotions into her fist. Liene covered her reddened fist with her other hand and breathed out.
“What do I have to do for you to open it?”
“Don't even dream about it. I can't move unless the Lord tells me to.”
“……”
They were that kind of people. Then what should she do? Open the window and go out? There's a ledge, so if she could somehow move and get to the balcony…
“…Would that work?”
Liene, who had been imagining something ridiculous, slumped down in a sense of futility. Something felt very strange.
“Is it okay to just sit here…?”
Was this even possible? Everything in Nauk Castle had been Liene's responsibility until now. Even the small things, like the rats in the old castle, gnawing on ropes or tearing open grain sacks, were all things Liene had to think about solving. There were too few people working compared to the size of the castle, and not many people resided there. It had become a habit for her to step in rather than burdening people who were already too busy with their own work with even more tasks. Besides, Liene had always been the one to take responsibility, not someone who sat still and was protected.
“…It's strange. It keeps…”
…It felt like she was getting used to it. Liene had been feeling the same way ever since Black set foot in Nauk. Whenever something difficult or challenging happened, Black would solve it like a gift.
“This is a bit…”
Wasn't this dangerous? Was she the type to leave things to others like this? …No, that's not it. She's never been like that. So it's that man's fault. It's because of him. It felt like he had found some empty space inside her and clicked into place. Liene, who was sitting on the floor, gently placed her hand on her chest, as if that was the part where Black had clicked into place.
“Why do they say that when you break up…”
She felt like she knew why they said it felt like your heart was being cut out. Because that much was disappearing. Which, conversely, meant that Black had firmly taken root in her heart. So this is what it's like… A poet would have given this feeling a more plausible name.
“……”
Liene, sitting there thinking about Black, gave up on the idea of going outside. She trusted Black. Nothing dangerous would happen to her in the castle where he was.
“Let's go back to bed.”
It would be okay. Even if the situation became dangerous, he would come and let her know. Liene, soothing her worries, got up and turned around, but at that moment.
“……?”
Liene saw a very strange sight. In Black's bedroom, where no one was sleeping and the lights were off, someone was silently standing and watching her.
“Who…!”
He appeared without a sound and, with a movement too fast to believe, covered Liene's mouth.
“……!”
Liene twisted and resisted with all her might. But the opponent was too fast and too skilled. He accurately pressed on the artery under her jaw, waiting for Liene to lose consciousness.
“……”
She struggled with all her might, but couldn't make a sound. With her mouth blocked and her artery pressed, her consciousness quickly faded.
“……”
Finally, her eyes closed. The man who had appeared without a sound silently slung the unconscious Liene over his back. His black clothes smelled of acrid smoke and ash at the same time. Next, he headed to the room between Black and Liene's bedrooms, the one that had now lost its identity. In one corner of the room was a cylindrical iron fireplace that had been left unsold. As the ceiling was high, the fireplace, which looked like a round pillar, was very large. Silently opening the door of the fireplace, he stepped inside. Creak. The door was pulled shut from the inside, leaving minimal noise. He even lowered the latch using a string he had tied in advance. The thin string, barely noticeable, was actually hair. He struck a flint against the end of the hair to light it, and the hair quickly burned away. Hair left no ash, only a slight smell. Moreover, the smell quickly disappeared. Then the room was left without a trace, as if nothing had happened. * * *
“…Ugh… …?”
Her head was foggy, as if covered in mist. Liene forcibly pulled up her consciousness, which felt like it was constantly sinking heavily. I… what… why…
“You don't have to struggle to get up.”
“……?”
“We have plenty of time.”
“……!”
She remembered whose voice it was.
“You…!”
Liene shot up. It wasn't easy because her wrists and feet were tied.
“Klima, Sectarian!”
The man who had committed the crime of murdering the Cardinal and was on the run was right before her eyes.
“What are you doing! Why me……!”
“I’m sorry.”
Klima's voice, in this dark and gloomy place, didn't incite fear but sounded sorrowful, like the rain.
“I received an order.”
“An order? From whom…… Don't tell me Kleinfelter ordered you? He's in prison, how could he!”
“I’m sorry. I received an order, I have no choice.”
“What on earth is he planning…… No, release me. Now. In Nauk, no order supersedes my orders.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t. I have no choice.”
In the darkness, Klima shook his head from side to side. Liene recognized the droplets reflecting the faint moonlight.
“…….”
Klima was crying. It was absurd, but the way he was sobbing with his shoulders hunched over, he didn't even look like a murderer. Liene sighed and forcibly calmed herself. He's not a bad person…… He must be crying now because of guilt. Like a prayer of atonement. He's the kind of person who hurts himself because hurting others is too painful. Get a grip, I need to talk to him. I need to make him change his mind. There must be a reason why Kleinfelter can control this man. I need to find out what it is.
“Was it also Kleinfelter's order that you killed the Cardinal?”
“……Yes.”
She thought he might deny it, but unexpectedly, Klima nodded readily. Perhaps he, too, wanted to confess his sins to someone, anyone, rather than to a god who offered no answers.
“What else did he order you to do?”
“……His Highness…….”
“You just said you killed His Highness Milode.”
“His Highness Motia…….”
“What kind of……! ……Haa.”
Liene held back the scream that was about to burst out and sighed instead. Just how far had that man reached? He had killed no less than two Cardinals. There might have been other such incidents before. She felt like she understood why Kleinfelter was so arrogant and overbearing. He had no fear because he would kill and replace even the Cardinal if he felt like it. The crown she had inherited probably looked to Kleinfelter like nothing more than a bejeweled hair ornament.
“And then? Did you kill anyone else?”
“……Yes.”
“How many?”
“……Thirteen.”
Klima swallowed his sobs but recited the exact number. It also meant that he was always engraving his sins on his skin.
“Adding the Princess, that makes fourteen.”
“…….”
She couldn't help but feel a chill at those words.
“Did he…… tell you to kill me?”
“No.”
“Did Kleinfelter…… tell you to kill me?”
“No.”
Klima wiped the tears from his cheeks. But it was no use. His eyes were soon brimming with tears again.
“He told me to capture you and disgrace you. Then return you. ……To a place where everyone can see.”
“You’re insane…….”
It was so horrific that she felt nauseous. She couldn't believe that he dared to order such a thing to be done to the ruler of a nation, but the reason for giving that order was also too vicious. He wasn't trying to…… kill me, but to break me. To separate…… that man from me. It was so vile and venomous. She couldn't believe that Kleinfelter, who thought like that, was the same kind of human being as her.
“Sectarian.”
Liene clenched her bound hands into fists to suppress her anger for a moment. I can get angry later. After I get back safely.
