Translator: Nox

59 - The Time of the Blind Beast (15+ Revised Edition)

"Master, if we are to transplant the spruce and apricot trees to the new mansion, this entire walking path needs to be dismantled. What should we do?"

Lately, Ezekiel had been spending more time outside the mansion than inside. Madam Serva, having learned through several experiences where to find him quickly, approached Ezekiel across the garden and naturally struck up a conversation.

Ezekiel was gazing at a sculpture of kissing lovers. It was the very spot where he had walked holding Rose's hand while everyone slept, and where he had used the sculpture as an excuse to kiss Rose's cheeks and lips countless times.

He closed his eyes for a moment. As his vision was blocked, fragments of past days brushed across his face. The soft skin of Rose against his lips, the gentle touch that stroked his hair, all came back to life, borrowing the power of memory.

Frankly, he had expected Rose to have been sent to the new mansion by carriage around this time. Until he could settle his bad blood with Achenaus, and until Rose's safety was guaranteed.

Yes. He had anticipated at most such a short separation. A separation of one or two months at most, one that would require considerable caution, but where they could meet whenever they wished, a reunion promised soon.

But it was all fantasy.

All the plans Ezekiel had been preparing with Serva were in vain. The proposal, the move—it was all natural since the protagonist, Rose, had vanished.

"...Do not touch any part of this garden until I command you to clear it, Serva."

Nevertheless, Ezekiel's command was firm. Madam Serva's lips moved slightly before she chose silence. Though her expression was that of a loyal butler, her pursed lips betrayed a hint of pity she couldn't quite hide.

That day, the man who had chased after Rose and rushed out alone returned alone. Madam Serva, who had been anxiously awaiting his return, was speechless upon seeing Ezekiel appear completely dejected. She herself had been the one to first bring Rose into the mansion, and she had recommended her to Ezekiel because she thought highly of her, so Madam Serva felt a significant responsibility for the current situation.

"There's no need to re-landscape, even when spring comes. Just leave it as it is."

Disappointingly, Rose had left no trace of herself. Ezekiel recalled Rose, who had been sweeping and cleaning his room dozens of times a day shortly before she disappeared. At the time, he had thought she was simply finding something to do due to her diligent nature. But not anymore. Hadn't Rose already been preparing for their separation then?

Of all the things, Rose, whose scent clung to her clothes and not a single strand of hair was left behind, had only left the strings that made up the garden's walking path. Only these strings, traversing the desolate garden, proved the countless nights he had spent with Rose, the whispered stories, the slow steps taken along the path, and the kisses shared when they suddenly stopped.

"From the outside, it looks like a haunted mansion. Well, it's so eerie that thieves probably won't break in. And there's hardly anything left to steal even if they did."

As Ezekiel pulled back the curtains, the employees were greatly taken aback by the state of the garden they had unexpectedly encountered. It had been hidden behind black drapes until then, so everyone had forgotten, but the untouched garden was surprisingly desolate. It was like an abandoned ruin.

"Serva, I sometimes wonder what Rose felt when she called this a walking path."

While he adventured through a jungle embellished with fantasy, holding Rose's hand, Rose had been walking through a neglected garden where ghosts would have been perfectly at home. He felt that was precisely the difference between them.

Ezekiel slowly walked around the garden and stopped before an apricot tree, looking at the mansion.

"It's an apricot tree with strong branches. I remember this tree. It's in a spot visible if you briefly pull back the curtains from my room."

It was directly facing the window of Rose's bedroom.

Perhaps at some point, Rose had stood by that window, gazing out.

He had believed everything would work out if his sight returned, but now that all his plans had fallen apart, he felt lost.

Madam Serva comforted him.

"Master, please stay here safely for a while and think slowly about what you will do next."

"No."

Ezekiel replied, meeting the gaze of the Rose in his imagination.

"I must return now. To Claris."

First, he had to reclaim his rightful place.

It was only delayed by Rose's unexpected disappearance; his feelings had never changed.

Rather, if he returned to Claris, he might be able to search for Rose more quickly. That was, after all, a place teeming with people and resources.

Yes, he would confront Rose not as a blind beast from the remote Derosa, but as the proud heir of Valdemara.

"You mean you're returning to the main house? When?"

"Right now, today."

"Just a moment. I understand your urgency, Master, but..."

Even in this situation, the cautious Madam Serva expressed her concern.

"If you intended to return to the main house, betray the traitor, and seize control of Valdemara, you shouldn't have gone to Cielsa to find Rose. Your appearance is too conspicuous. Sightings are likely already heading towards Claris. Rumors travel faster than feet."

Ezekiel quickly understood what Madam Serva regretted. Having made a hasty escape to avoid threats to his safety, she had hoped he would suddenly appear in his recovered former glory, astonishing Achenaus. However, by showing himself in Cielsa first while tracking Rose, Ezekiel's recovery had become known in Claris.

Ezekiel didn't flinch at this observation.

"Then he must be waiting with bated breath, wondering when I'll appear before him."

"Since it's delayed anyway, wouldn't it be better to make more thorough preparations?"

"Serva, my preparations are complete."

With words and a Rifle, Ezekiel feared nothing, not even a battlefield surrounded by enemy forces.

As for that Achenaus, he was nothing.

Ezekiel sneered.

"Now, it's going to get very interesting."

---

Pausing his gulp of strong liquor, Achenaus looked around. Was it his imagination? The glances of the people around him, stealing looks this way, seemed strange.

Of course, Achenaus was accustomed to unfriendly gazes. It wasn't that he was originally accustomed to them; he had been forced to become accustomed. After driving Ezekiel, the war hero, out of the main house, some people who had favored Ezekiel, especially those who had joined the military, had given him cold stares for a while. But those gazes were nothing; most of them were insignificant compared to those of Valdemara, so Achenaus dismissed them with a scoff. Moreover, as time passed, the uncomfortable public opinion towards him had considerably diluted.

"Lord Achenaus... That person, you know."

However, his lover hesitantly brought up the topic with a peculiar demeanor.

Achenaus didn't immediately grasp who his lover was referring to. Naturally. Ezekiel, who had been driven to the north as a blind cripple, had long since disappeared from his sight. In fact, he had been living so quietly that news of Ezekiel had become almost nonexistent since he moved to Derosa. Still, he couldn't completely let his guard down, so when he occasionally asked messengers sent from the main house to check on his status, the answers were similar. They had tried to have doctors treat him, but all had failed, leaving him in a state far from human. He was living like a corpse, merely not dead.

"Who? Am I supposed to know everyone?"

"Major Valdemara... that's who."

His lover whispered.

"They say he was seen walking around the north perfectly fine. Is it true?"

Achenaus frowned.

Major Valdemara, who was that? It wasn't me, for starters.

Wait a minute, if another war broke out and the army was mobilized, who would fill that position then? Me?

Should I get married early then? No, if I have children, they might consider me to have an heir and forcibly summon me, so I should delay marriage and having children as much as possible.

In any case, he couldn't understand why someone would cling to such great honor until the end.

After a flurry of scattered thoughts, only Valdemara remained in his memory.

He replied vaguely, "You must have seen wrong. I haven't been to the north."

"My God, aren't you too drunk? That person is hiding in the north. Ezekiel Valdemara."

Though he clung to Achenaus for money and family power, his lover couldn't dismiss a hero who had once been renowned. He whispered Ezekiel's name in a queasy tone.

Achenaus tilted his head. It took a moment for his alcohol-clouded mind to comprehend his lover's words.

Ezekiel Valdemara? The blind man was wandering the north perfectly fine?