Chapter 34
It’s much better when it’s quiet. I wouldn’t mind if he just stayed like that forever.
With his mouth shut, Eden’s appearance made him look like a typical prickly, cold-blooded young nobleman. Surprisingly, however, whenever he opened his mouth, a certain roughness would occasionally slip out. Just occasionally.
It was likely due to the blunt, coarse language he let fly every now and then.
The truly strange thing was that this man was the sole heir to the Duke of Lancaster’s estate. That meant he was a titan destined to lead the political world in the future.
If he insisted on keeping that way of speaking even after entering politics, high society would certainly be abuzz with gossip. Somehow, I found myself looking forward to it.
‘Anyway, as long as he stays quiet, there’s no man better suited for ornamental purposes. He is incredibly handsome, after all.’
Still, I had no desire to get too deeply entangled with Eden.
He and I lived in different worlds. No matter how much I was a “Sinclair"—possessing the kind of immense capital that even aristocrats envied—a “Lancaster” was a high-ranking noble that one couldn’t even dare to look up to. We were beings of inherently different classes.
…Are you saying that was all before the world ended? Well, that’s true.
But even if the social order had collapsed, the distance between Eden and me wasn’t just about rank. From the very beginning, the roles we were assigned were different.
In other words, Eden was a vital lead character in the novel Faded Love who must never die, while I was just a disposable extra whose death wouldn’t matter in the slightest.
I shook my head and brought the binoculars back to my eyes.
“That’s not what’s important right now.”
Thanks to its position on the hill, Happy House offered a panoramic view of Brunel Village.
It was late afternoon, the time when gas lamps would usually be lit, but naturally, no one was lighting them.
The village remained pitch black, and there was no sign of human life—only monsters roaming the streets.
A village stained with blood, mysterious monsters prowling through it, and the cries of beasts echoing through the air. It was a bizarre and chilling sight.
I handed the binoculars to Eden.
“Take a look. What do you think about just breaking through the front?”
At my question, Eden scanned the village through the binoculars and firmly shook his head.
“I don’t think so. What if that draws every monster in the village here?”
He countered my suggestion with a somewhat crooked tone.
“We need to achieve maximum effect with a single move, so let’s act cautiously.”
Maximum effect with a single move.
He was right. We only had one life each, so we had to be as prudent as possible.
“Miss Cherry, why are those torches installed outside the walls?”
Eden pointed outside the wall and asked. There were unlit torches installed there.
“I think the contractor made a mistake.”
Hahaha. I gave a half-hearted excuse.
Eden already knew about the bells, which were far more suspicious than this. So, an excuse like that was likely useless.
But regardless of what Eden might be guessing, there was no need for me to confirm it with my own mouth.
The reason we weren’t using the torches now was that we had to go outside.
Torches were meant to keep monsters, who feared fire, from approaching the mansion—not to drive them far away.
Furthermore, I had to plan not just for going out, but also for returning to the mansion.
If we did something to get out but ended up drawing more monsters, we might find ourselves unable to get back inside later.
“It looks like there are traps, too.”
Eden, who was carefully examining the perimeter, seemed to have discovered the traps I had set around the mansion.
“There are things like that?”
I looked at Eden with a face full of feigned surprise.
Eden lowered the binoculars and looked at me. Very intently. I let out an awkward “Hahaha” and met his gaze.
“What is it?”
“…Do you really not know about them?”
I nodded vigorously.
“Of course I don’t.”
Eden narrowed his eyes and closely scrutinized my expression. Cold sweat trickled down my back.
He stared into my face for a long time. Then, he finally spoke.
“It seems Miss Cherry really did think I was an easy mark.”
There was a certain edge to his words. With cold sweat running down my spine, I avoided his gaze as much as possible.
“Well, I’ll let this much slide.”
“What? Why are you acting all merciful after saying all that? It’s even scarier.”
“Because I’m repaying a favor? Bear with me. This is just how I talk. Still, I’m trying to be kind to you, Miss Cherry. I’m indebted to you, and above all, you’re my savior.”
I looked at Eden with a troubled expression.
True, Eden’s way of speaking was originally much rougher. Thinking back to when he dealt with criminals, or when he spoke to Knox…
‘What is this? I’m clearly being treated like a savior, yet I have this inexplicable, lingering unease.’
I didn’t know how he would change if he ever found out that I was the woman who had dealt with the monster at No. 61 Notium Street. Just thinking about it made me tremble with fear.
Anyway, when we met on Notium Street, Eden had said he found it suspicious that I was running away, wondering if I had some connection to the monsters. So, I couldn’t get caught…
No. Perhaps he already knew the truth. Every time I used my Super Strength, hadn’t he looked at me with an unreadable expression?
‘But if he knows and isn’t saying anything, isn’t that even scarier? It means he’s testing me.’
Either way, it was equally terrifying. What happens if I lose the protagonist’s trust? Whether I have Super Strength or not, won’t I just end up with a grizzly ending?
It was only after a long moment that Eden took his eyes off me and turned back toward the traps.
There were quite a few monsters that had fallen into the pits I had dug in advance.
“At least those seem to be having a definite effect, so that’s a relief.”
I nodded at Eden’s words.
“I suppose so.”
Those pits were something I had made with Susanna.
Thinking of Susanna made my stomach churn again. The afterimage of her maid uniform, torn and scattered, tried to seize my mind. I grit my teeth and pushed back the dark emotions that surged up intermittently.
In truth, if it were just me, I could have held out in this mansion for a month or two until the monsters lost interest and dispersed.
However, Eden and I couldn’t afford to waste time because there was someone we had to find right now.
‘I have to find a way. A way…’
Eden also let out a sigh, running his hand through his hair as if he had a headache.
Frowning in annoyance, he absentmindedly stared at the catapult installed on the railing. Naturally, I followed his gaze and looked back at the catapult.
It consisted of two firmly fixed wooden pillars, a wooden bar crossing between them, and a throwing arm fixed below to act as a lever.
In truth, it was a simple device, closer to a lever than a proper catapult.
I wasn’t a weapons expert, nor did I have any great knowledge of science. Thus, there were limits to the designs I could come up with.
Eden tapped the catapult dismissively and asked.
“Miss Cherry, what do you think about using this?”
“Hmm. I don’t think it’ll be efficient for dealing with that many monsters.”
A catapult was a weapon that required selection and focus. It was exactly the kind of thing meant to achieve maximum effect with a single move…
‘Wait, what if we don’t use the catapult to hit the monsters, but to hit something else?’
Wasn’t our goal to distract the monsters and draw their attention elsewhere?
I looked at Eden again. Eden, who had been resting his chin on his hand, gave a smirk when our eyes met.
“It seems you’re thinking the same thing I am.”
“You weren’t suggesting we snipe and eliminate the monsters, right?”
At my question, Eden nodded and looked toward the village with me.
“You said those things are sensitive to sound. So, what if a loud noise is heard somewhere else instead of here?”
“They’ll all swarm in that direction.”
I snatched the binoculars from Eden’s hand and scanned the village thoroughly once more.
The village was quiet, just as before. Except for the monsters roaming the streets, that is.
“I don’t see any survivors. And something large enough to make a loud noise if hit by a stone…”
Scanning the village with the binoculars, my voice trailed off when I saw the statue erected in the village square.
There stood a statue of a praying girl. It was quite a large statue at that.
Eden, who had been quietly watching me, leaned down toward me. His face was suddenly very close.
Startled, I pulled my eyes away from the binoculars. Unfazed, Eden immediately brought his eyes to the binoculars I was still holding.
Eden’s fine skin and his cheeks, covered in soft, child-like fuzz, were now inches from my face.
