Chapter 43
43
Evil grabbed his hand and barely managed to stand, heading for the door, but Isaac was faster, jamming his cane into the loops of both doors. Isaac, who had grown taller than Evil before he knew it, turned to look at him.
Evil trembled and shouted.
"You, you bastard!"
Evil balled his fist and swung, but Isaac didn't dodge, taking the hit head-on. Isaac's pale cheek, deprived of sunlight, flushed red in an instant.
He covered his stinging cheek with his hand, recalling the sound of his uncle hitting young Scarlett.
Whether he had covered his own mouth or Evil had, no screams or cries were ever heard.
Isaac sighed softly and removed the cufflinks that Scarlett had meticulously attached, placing them in his inside pocket.
One day, when Isaac regained his sight, he realized many things. Like the fact that Scarlett had put unnecessarily nice cufflinks on his clothes, or that the clothes he was wearing were better than the ones Scarlett wore.
Isaac Crimson was nothing more than a ghoul who had taken Scarlett Crimson's childhood to sustain his own life.
He neatly folded his shirt sleeves and walked towards Evil. Evil, who was using his other hand to staunch the bleeding from his severed hand, swung again.
It was a misconception that he would be slow to react to fast movements, having been blind for so long.
Isaac seemed to wince sensitively, as if he could barely hear the sound of the wind as the fist swung.
Isaac dodged the fist and struck Evil in the face. Once again, a scream echoed through the mansion. Isaac began to beat Evil, who was clutching his face.
Originally, his plan for today was just to prevent Evil from making any more Crimson Clocks.
He thought that if Evil couldn't make clocks, it would be harder for the family to kick out Scarlett, who possessed the clock-making skills. So, he should have stopped after cutting off the fingers.
But from the middle on, as the anger began to erupt, he couldn't stop.
Since he was thirteen, he had been listening to his sister being hit. Knowing full well, he pretended not to hear, pretending nothing was wrong, and covered his ears in the attic.
When she came to his side with a carefree face and smiled, his heart ached, but at the same time, he felt relieved.
Halfway through, Evil, thinking he was really going to die, began to beg with his hands clasped together.
"S, stop it, Isaac! I'm really going to die like this! Hey! Someone, break down the door and come in!"
Isaac didn't seem to feel even a little bit relieved, but he stopped punching. Then, he took the ring from Evil's finger.
Isaac put the ring, the symbol of the Crimson family and the jewel of the head of the family, a garnet, on his own finger. The ring, which had been enlarged to fit Evil's finger, spun loosely on Isaac's thin finger.
Regardless, he raised his hand towards the window and looked at the ring on his finger. Only Isaac himself knew how much of the ring could be seen, and that fact made Evil feel even more terrified.
"You... Do you think taking one ring from this family will make the family? The business? Go back to you, a brat who hasn't contributed anything? There's no way that girl's skills are real!"
"Uncle, there have been so many cases of defective Crimson Clocks in less than 10 years since you took over this house. If Scarlett is wrong, we'll know soon enough."
It was then that the servants broke down the door and came in.
Evil's wife, Anne Crimson, and their daughter, Marilyn Crimson, who had been having tea in the backyard when they heard the screams, screamed. Anne Crimson fainted on the spot at the sight of her bloodied husband and the hideous silkworms covering Isaac's eyes.
Evil Crimson shouted in a hoarse voice.
"G, grab that bastard right now!"
"I am the head of this family."
Isaac said, and the servants hesitated.
They pondered for a moment whose orders to follow, but decided to follow Evil Crimson this time as they had always done.
They walked towards Isaac and grabbed his arms. Isaac brought his face close and examined the faces of the servants who were holding him. The servants groaned and turned their heads away each time his eyes got closer. It was a gruesome sight.
No matter how strong Isaac was, he couldn't break free when several servants rushed at him. They tied Isaac up, and after a while, the police arrived.
*
Evil was immediately taken to the hospital for surgery to reattach his severed fingers. Several of his teeth were broken, and his ribs were broken as well.
Meanwhile, Isaac was being questioned at the police station, but strangely, he was first questioned by the regular police and then transferred to the Royal Police.
He knew he would end up at the police station, but he didn't think it was something the Royal Police would get involved in. The Royal Police played a role closer to that of military police, so they didn't get involved in such private lawsuits. The fact that he was even brought to the Royal Police Headquarters made Isaac think that something was going strangely.
Unlike when he was at the regular police station, the meals after the transfer were lavish. The lunch he had at the regular police station was a sandwich with baked apples, but the meal he had at the Royal Police Headquarters was a full course meal with soup, cold dishes, and hot dishes. Just looking at this meal, he could tell that the people being investigated here were no ordinary people.
Isaac brought the food in front of him, examined it carefully, and put it in his mouth. Eating while looking at the appearance made the taste terrible. It was better when he didn't know and only felt the taste. He thought that there was one advantage to not being able to see.
While he was eating, Scarlett arrived at the police station.
As soon as she found Isaac, she was surprised and ran to him. At the same time, Isaac's eyes widened and he stood up.
"S, Scarlett?"
Scarlett frowned and suddenly smacked him on the back. The police flinched and looked at her.
Scarlett asked in a choked voice.
"Are you crazy?"
"O, ouch..."
"I can't live with you, really!"
"I'm sorry, Scarlett..."
Isaac kept apologizing with a tearful face.
Scarlett sighed deeply and checked Isaac's face for injuries, asking.
"Uncle tried to stab you first, right?"
Isaac nodded. Scarlett's hand, which was covering the wound on his neck that he had deliberately left, trembled.
"That was close... I told you it was dangerous, didn't I?"
"I was wrong."
Isaac said with a sullen look, so Scarlett couldn't get any angrier and just smacked him on the back harder. Then, she said quite maturely.
"The police said they'll let you go after asking me a few questions. I'll be back soon, so stay here."
"Ah, I don't mind a prison sentence..."
"Don't say such nonsense."
Isaac shut his mouth when Scarlett glared at him. Scarlett soon moved to another location with the Royal Police.
*
They took Scarlett to the Royal Police Headquarters, and as she entered a place she had been to once before, she gradually felt the memories of that day coming back to her.
Everything was familiar. Scarlett didn't walk far before she clearly remembered walking in like this with the Royal Police leading the way. And she also remembered the interrogation room the moment she entered.
Scarlett stopped when she found Hugh Gun Hunter standing inside the interrogation room. Hugh Gun Hunter gestured with his hand, and the Royal Police pushed her inside.
After a moment of silence, Scarlett opened her mouth.
"What I remember is correct, right?"
Once it started to come back, the memories became clearer and clearer. Hugh Gun Hunter, who had served her tea on the day of the interrogation. And she also remembered what he had said little by little. She remembered regretting that she shouldn't have drunk the tea, and what he had said.
"It's because of the drug in the black tea."
Hugh Gun Hunter said with a smile as he served her tea once again.
"It's just as Miss Scarlett remembers. I served you tea."
"You said you put a drug in the black tea."
"I see. It seems you've really regained some of your memories."
Hugh Gun Hunter said with a smile.
"As you know, we cannot use torture. It would be a problem if Miss Scarlett were to be injured. We don't want to injure you by trying to force you to eat it."
Hugh Gun Hunter, who was speaking so calmly, said as he held up a document.
"This is a report on how much Count Crimson beat Evil Crimson."
"My uncle tried to stab Isaac in the neck first."
Scarlett said, and Hugh Gun Hunter grinned.
"That's right. The Count said that Evil Crimson tried to kill him with a paper knife first. So, it's self-defense. But don't you know? That's just a lie that wealthy young masters tell to cover up accidents."
"It's not a lie! Besides, Viktor also..."
"You should compare things that can be compared. Viktor is the captain of the Rubid Ship, Salantie's largest ship. Even if he beat Evil Crimson to death, he wouldn't be indicted. Besides, it's certain that Evil Crimson imprisoned Miss Scarlett that day. But Count Crimson is different, isn't he? There are no witnesses, and no one around to help him."
"..."
"What I'm saying is that if I wanted to, I could make Count Crimson rot in jail for a long time."
At his words, Scarlett closed her eyes without realizing it.
The teacup that Hugh Gun Hunter pushed forward rattled as it got closer. He said in a soft voice.
"Drink this tea. Then, we'll pretend this report never existed."
