23
Damn it.
Things have become complicated.
Baron Gaspal grumbled as he walked quickly toward the cemetery where the funeral was being held.
'Those stupid bastards. They couldn't even steal one measly key...!'
He shouldn't have trusted those low-life bandits.
If those bandits had done their job properly, he would have sold the key by now and be enjoying a luxurious life in his villa in the Southern Sea.
But now he was being chased by creditors and even investigated by the Capital Defense Force.
Immediately after leaving the scene, Gaspal thought that he shouldn't have left Juliet alive, so he rushed back.
But for some reason, there was nothing left.
Only traces of dried blood remained.
The gang of bandits Gaspal had hired had disappeared without a trace, and the bodies of Count and Countess Monad, along with Juliet, had vanished completely.
It was four days after the incident that he heard any news.
Juliet had returned alive, albeit with amnesia. Along with her parents' bodies.
'I knew that girl was tough, even before.'
Just like the horse-riding accident three years ago, she had come back to life again.
There were rumors that she couldn't remember anything due to the shock, but Gaspal was anxious.
If Juliet opened her mouth, she would surely point him out as the culprit.
Sure enough. The very next day after Juliet returned, the Capital Defense Force summoned Gaspal.
Rumors began to spread that Gaspal was involved in the death of the Count and Countess.
Indeed, leaving Juliet alive had been the root of the problem.
'Good thing I created an alibi in advance.'
The quick-witted Gaspal had created witnesses to testify to his alibi immediately after hiring the gang of bandits.
Gaspal, as if he had been waiting for this, pleaded his innocence and claimed that he was being falsely accused.
Fortunately, the gang of bandits who had been there that day had completely vanished.
Only Juliet's testimony claimed that they existed.
As expected, the Capital Defense Force released him, saying that they could not bring him to court based on that alone.
If even one of them had survived and testified that Gaspal was the mastermind behind this...
Gaspal shuddered.
But there were still questions left unanswered. Where did the bandits go, and how did that girl return in one piece?
It was a mystery. The bandits Gaspal had hired were notorious for being ruthless thugs.
Had such men suddenly repented of their sins and shown compassion, sending Juliet away unharmed?
"You're late, Uncle Gaspal."
Gaspal stopped walking and froze in place.
"You, you..."
Juliet stood alone in the middle of the dark cemetery, wearing a black dress.
He had heard that she had returned alive, but seeing her with his own eyes was even more shocking.
He thought something must be wrong with her. But Juliet, dressed in mourning clothes, was perfectly fine, except for being a little pale.
"The funeral is over. The mourners have all gone home."
Ding-dong, ding-dong.
Just then, the sound of bells ringing from the temple for the deceased could be heard.
That's right. Today was the funeral of the deceased Count and Countess Monad, and it was the seventh day since the Count and Countess had met their tragic end.
As the horrified Gaspal couldn't open his mouth, Juliet tilted her head mockingly.
"Why are you so surprised? As if you've seen a ghost."
"W-who's surprised!"
"Is it so strange that I'm alive?"
"...What are you talking about? Could it be."
Baron Gaspal looked around.
It was a gloomy day with heavy dark clouds, even though it was daytime. There was no thunder, but the sky flashed occasionally as if lightning was striking.
As Juliet said, all the mourners had left and were nowhere to be seen.
Apart from Juliet and Baron Gaspal, the only living person in the cemetery was an old gravedigger dozing off in the distance.
"Do you really think I was involved in the death of your parents?"
Having confirmed that there were no prying eyes, Baron Gaspal raised his voice instead.
"It's a good thing! Do you even know what I've been through because you accused me of being the culprit?"
As he spoke, he became more and more confident.
He didn't know how that girl was alive, but Juliet in Baron Gaspal's memory was an innocent child.
A stupid, easy-to-handle child who didn't even know there was a nail under the saddle of the foal she received as a fifteenth birthday present.
Things had gotten a little twisted, but it was still okay.
Now that his brother and his wife were dead, he could control the Count's family as he pleased if he became Juliet's guardian.
She was only eighteen years old. If he shouted at her and intimidated her, he could manipulate her as much as he wanted.
Having finished his calculations, Gaspal regained his confidence completely.
"Do you have any evidence? If you accuse someone like that without evidence, you little brat!
There's such a thing as false accusation..."
"Ah, evidence."
Suddenly, Juliet burst into laughter.
"You're seriously mistaken, Uncle."
Gaspal flinched at the cold sneer.
"Do you think I brought you here just to get something like that?"
"W-what does that..."
Gaspal thought he didn't know what she was talking about.
He had come to the funeral not because Juliet had called him. It was because if he didn't attend his brother and his wife's funeral, the Capital Defense Force would suspect him again.
Juliet smiled sweetly with her red lips.
"I promise. I will never bring you to court, Uncle."
"T-that's very kind of you."
Gaspal replied, but he was staggering backward.
Something was wrong.
The girl in the black mourning dress was smiling brightly, which was somehow eerie. The hem of her skirt was swaying even though there was no wind.
Besides, it was cloudy, but why was there a flashing light from earlier...?
Baron Gaspal, thinking that the sky seemed darker than before, inadvertently raised his head.
And then he realized. The darkness above his head was not due to the dark clouds.
What filled the Baron's vision was a swarm of butterflies scattering brilliant light.
"Because that trial will never be held."
As the calm voice ended, the butterflies rushed toward him.
"Ugh, aaaaaah!"
In the eyes of the horrified Baron Gaspal, they were no longer radiant butterflies.
They were giant monsters with gaping mouths, the likes of which he had never seen even in his nightmares.
And that became the last scene Baron Gaspal saw alive.
While the swarm of giant butterflies rushed toward Baron Gaspal and completely swallowed him up, Juliet did not take her eyes off him for a single moment.
Clang.
At the sound from behind, Juliet glanced back.
The old gravedigger, who had been dozing off leaning on his cane, had dropped his cane.
Juliet blinked for a moment and simply lightly placed her index finger on her lips.
The old man trembled, covered his mouth with both hands, and nodded hastily.
Juliet began to walk lightly across the cemetery.
She had finished what could be called revenge, but she didn't feel any sense of accomplishment or relief.
'So it ended up like this...'
Juliet thought calmly.
'I couldn't change it.'
She had worked hard, and she thought she had almost achieved it, but in the end, her parents had passed away.
Now, all she had left was herself. She had nothing else to protect or possess.
Soon, Juliet stopped walking. She had reached the entrance of the cemetery.
There, a black ebony carriage stood silently.
Although no crest was engraved on it, a servant opened the carriage door as if he had been waiting for her arrival.
Juliet said nothing and obediently got into the carriage.
The man sitting inside the carriage was not surprised to see Juliet getting in and sitting across from him.
She asked calmly.
"Are you returning to the North?"
"Yes. Are the conditions still the same?"
Before answering, Juliet blinked.
If she couldn't stop things from flowing as they did in the past, no matter how hard she struggled, wouldn't it be better to stay by his side?
She could stay and leave before Dahlia appeared.
Juliet was exhausted. She wanted to rest quietly without thinking about anything.
Juliet thought that protecting her heart was nothing compared to what she had been through so far.
She was confident.
Unlike in the past, she was confident that she would not lose herself by being infatuated with the man in front of her.
"I've been thinking about it."
Six days ago, the condition of the deal that Juliet had proposed to him was simple.
"I am useful to Your Highness.
Isn't that right?"
To become a 'convenient lover' who would not interfere with whom he met or what he did, would not crave affection, and would provide the abilities of a Magical Creature.
In return, Juliet had requested two conditions.
One was to hand over Baron Gaspal into her grasp, and the other was to allow her to stay by his side for at least three years.
"That's not usually called a deal."
Lennox had said that after hearing Juliet's request.
He said that a deal could not be made if the conditions on both sides were not balanced, and that he would give her more time to think.
"So, have you decided?"
"Yes, please write up a contract."
"A contract?"
"Yes. With the condition that either Your Highness or I can leave whenever we want."
Lennox's eyes narrowed.
Juliet tilted her head when she saw that.
"Isn't this a valid condition for a deal?"
"There's no reason why it wouldn't be."
Juliet Monad was strangely a woman with an atmosphere of pathos that did not suit her age.
Strangely, she was eerily beautiful when she stood in the cemetery wearing a black dress, rather than when she was dressed in a pastel-toned dress and standing in a banquet hall. It was a strange thing.
Lennox stared at such a woman and suddenly asked.
"I have a question, why do you need such a contract?"
Juliet's bloodless, pale skin and neatly styled long hair were also pale. Except for her red lips, she gave an impression that she was about to disappear at any moment.
Nevertheless, she was frighteningly beautiful. Like a flower exuding poison.
"Because I am..."
Juliet replied with dry eyes that felt no warmth at all.
"I fell in love at first sight."
Her eyes were not in love at all. He could guarantee that it was the most insincere appeal he had ever heard.
But it didn't matter. He liked the answer.
"Elliot."
"Yes, Your Highness."
A polite answer was heard from outside the carriage, as if he had been waiting.
"Bring a pen and paper."
He continued, still not taking his eyes off Juliet, who was sitting across from him.
"And tell them to leave the bedroom empty, the one in the East Wing."
A moment later, the carriage departed for the North.
Juliet, Forgotten
