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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: The Lighthouse Prison
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As the sun set, the lighthouse began to shine.
While I rested on a bench, Darcy stepped away for a moment. He returned with a black robe in his hands.
“You could have come with me.”
“…I had something else to do.”
His vague reply made me wonder if he’d just gone to the restroom.
I figured I should let it be. I nodded and donned the robe.
Afterward, we started walking toward the lighthouse.
Walking along a path that bordered the bustling main street, it almost felt like we were out for a stroll.
Breathing in the fresh air, I could feel my dinner settling. It was two birds with one stone.
…Though for an outing, my dark clothes, bag, and gun were a bit much.
Everything was fascinating.
“To think the lighthouse and the prison are connected…”
“It’s a secret known only to the locals. Outsiders are kept in the dark.”
He says that as if he isn’t one.
“Are you not an outsider?”
“I tried.”
I let out a small laugh at Darcy’s quip. In any case, we had to finish this at a reasonable time and be back before morning.
Otherwise, my disappearance would be splashed across the front page of the papers.
The closer we got to the lighthouse, the more the view opened up, and the fewer people there were. It wouldn't be an easy place to sneak into.
“Going through the lighthouse is impossible.”
“Is there another way?”
“There’s always an escape route. It’s foolish to cling to just one method.”
I frowned slightly at his last words. I had a feeling he wasn't just talking about our current situation.
‘Is he projecting his own life, where he was only thinking of running away?’
Darcy was used to belittling himself so naturally.
‘And yet he helped me when I was in a similar situation.’
He was no different from me, stuck in my house, unable to do anything. The situations weren't perfectly comparable, but still.
“Darcy.”
I stepped in front of Darcy, took his hand, and called his name. It sounded pleasant on my lips.
“Don’t think like that.”
It was an act that took all the courage I could muster. I lifted my head to meet his gaze.
Beneath the dark night sky that had quietly fallen, his shimmering silver hair looked like a galaxy.
A short distance from the lighthouse was a small forest. Darcy led the way inside and skillfully found a cliff connected to it.
Attached to the cliff face was a ladder, sturdy enough to hold a person. The sight of the narrow path hugging the cliffside above the sea was dizzying.
“…”
I thought I'd become jaded after all the treacherous paths I'd traversed this past year, but I take it back. The sight of the waves crashing below made my stomach clench.
“Should I go alone?”
Darcy smiled. Seeing him, I steeled myself.
‘I want us to be happy together.’
Honestly, I had no idea how much my presence could truly help him overcome his trauma.
But an unknown variable always leaves room for possibility. Whether that chance was small or enormous, there was no way to know.
I grabbed the ladder. I looked at Darcy and spoke resolutely.
“I’ll be fine. You’ll be there to catch me.”
After all, he was the one who had seen the real me when everyone else, blinded by rumors, refused to.
I can do this.
The playful look in Darcy’s eyes deepened. His silver hair fluttered like petals on the wind.
His eyes, crinkling more beautifully than the crescent moon, turned to me.
“Of course.”
Those words were enough.
***
The path along the cliff led to a cave, which in turn opened into an underground prison.
In the space where the cave and the prison passage connected, there was a door. Next to the door was what looked like a logbook.
It was filled with inmates' crimes. I found today's date and saw the name 'Eaton' next to the charge of 'trespassing.' The other entries were for heinous crimes I'd rather not name.
‘I just need to confirm if the boy's name is Eaton.’
After that, we entered the passage.
The only light came from the occasional torch.
Strangely, there was no one around. The security wasn't very tight, either.
‘Perhaps they don't need a large workforce.’
The underground prison was large, but most of the cells were empty.
Was it because getting to the island was so difficult in the first place? After all, even the Emperor had given up on it.
When I thought about it, that boy was quite remarkable.
As I walked, scanning the prison, I finally found an occupied cell.
“Darcy, here.”
Instead of answering, Darcy nodded. It seemed he had already noticed.
It was thanks to his conspicuous silver hair. Even now, it seemed to glow in the darkness.
Well, now that we were here, I supposed I should say hello.
“Hello, Eaton.”
The boy stared at me, his face a fierce scowl, and opened his mouth.
“How did you know my name?”
So, it seemed the boy really had been arrested for trespassing. What a relief he wasn't a violent criminal.
If he had been, coming all this way would have been for nothing.
“I came to let you out.”
“You’re with that man, aren’t you? Then I don’t need your help.”
“Who is ‘that man’?”
I asked deliberately.
We were still hiding our identities.
“Do you take me for a fool? That’s Darcy. That mage,” he snapped, calling Darcy a mage.
“I’d rather die than accept his help.”
“How extreme. That’s not the right way to think.”
I tried to reason with him, but my words had no effect.
‘The resentment runs deep.’
This wasn't something that could be resolved in one go.
I regarded Eaton calmly, then noticed a crumpled drawing on the floor of his cell. It looked like a family portrait.
“What are you looking at!”
Eaton, noticing my gaze, hastily hid the drawing in his hand.
I pointed a finger at myself.
“Do you know who I am?”
“…”
Eaton couldn't answer easily.
“It seems you can see what I'm truly like.”
I tossed the question out casually. The fact that he didn't deny it suggested it was true.
It was time to introduce myself.
“I am Marso Etoile.”
“…Marso Etoile? The one who's in a relationship with that man?”
“Unfortunate—no, that’s not true. Please don't misunderstand.”
I nearly let my true thoughts slip out. I answered calmly.
Eaton was more knowledgeable about the rumors than I thought.
“If you’re not lovers, then what are you! The newspapers don’t print false information!”
“That’s just what you think. They do tend to create quite a lot of fiction. We are…”
I thought for a moment before continuing.
“We’re friends. Just friends.”
I felt Darcy’s gaze on the back of my head, but he said nothing. He intended to just let it go.
I was a little disappointed. Perhaps I'd hoped he would deny that we were just friends.
‘…Because I want to be something more than that.’
“…My goodness, friends with that monster.”
His misunderstanding about us being lovers was cleared up, but his animosity remained.
“Is this some cheap pity you caught from him? Leave me alone.”
“I wouldn't have a reason to be here if you hadn't come.”
“…”
“And there’s another reason I came here to save you.”
I took a deep breath and met Eaton’s eyes.
“I want to make a deal with the mages.”
“…A deal?”
This time, Eaton didn't react fiercely to my words. He just asked back with a face of disbelief.
Eaton had tried to enter this island without permission.
But this wasn't an act just for himself. You could tell just by how he cherished the family portrait.
Then why did he try to sneak in here?
It was because he wanted to help the mages.
He knew Darcy's identity and what he had done.
I didn't know to what extent, but it was also true that he couldn't stand Darcy, their enemy, taking care of them.
‘He must have tried to find another way.’
He couldn't just cut off Darcy's help without any alternative. This boy was trying to do everything his own way.
Trespassing here must be one of those things.
Meeting Eaton in person, I got a rough idea of the situation.
It was a skill born from my habit of observing and considering others.
‘My quick intuition is coming in handy.’
Then this was an opportunity for me.
I could win their favor by returning Eaton to the mages’ residence.
I could also help Eaton.
In fact, more than these calculating reasons, I just wanted to help Eaton.
“I want to offer the mages a new life.”
For the first time, Eaton’s eyes wavered.
“…Don’t pity me.”
He said again. But his voice lacked its previous strength.
“It’s not pity, it’s a legitimate deal. I value their skills and abilities highly. I’m going to make magic tools using them and magic stones.”
“Magic tools?”
“Mysterious items made using magic stones.”
“I know that much. But the nobles…”
They don't really like magic tools, do they? Just like mages.
His deeply furrowed brow said the rest.
I grinned.
“I’m different from other nobles.”
He flinched, so he must have heard the rumors about the villainess. But more important than that was the information about me that had spread alongside those rumors.
“If you’ve heard the rumors about me, then you must have also heard about my immense wealth.”
About how rich the villainess Marso Etoile was.
The sight of his ears perking up was clearly visible in the darkness my eyes had grown accustomed to.
“I’ll pay in magic stones. And I’ll pay handsomely.”
For now, I only spoke of the deal itself. To offer help unconditionally would only make Eaton, who was just starting to lower his guard, put his walls back up.
He already despises Darcy; a sudden, baseless offer of kindness would be met with suspicion.
“…What’s your reason for acting differently from other nobles?”
To the question that seemed to imply it was because of Darcy, I lifted my head.
“One reason is enough.”
And I declared confidently.
“Because I am Marso Etoile.”
Because that in itself was reason enough.
