Chapter 92
Scarlett realized that the house wasn't preserved exactly as it had been. Things brought by Evel Crimson had all been stripped away, leaving empty spaces here and there inside the house.
As Isaac went upstairs, Arnold Crimson, who had been by the railing, hurriedly retreated into a room. Isaac was restoring the house to what the siblings last remembered from when they were twelve or thirteen. Scarlett's room was the one she'd used as a child.
Standing in front of the room Isaac had shown her, Scarlett's eyes widened.
"Wow..."
"This is your room now."
Scarlett beamed happily. The room was filled with things she liked.
Isaac continued,
"I turned the dressing room over there into your workshop. I figured you'd want to work even at home. The actual dressing room is across the hall."
"It's perfect. Really nice."
Seeing Scarlett so happy, Isaac finally smiled genuinely. When Andrey set down the luggage from behind, Scarlett said in a cheerful voice,
"Andrey, I'm going to close the Clock Shop for a while. I think I'll be busy."
"The nobles are the first to evacuate anyway, so keeping the shop open wouldn't mean much."
"You think so...?"
Isaac pointed to the room at the end of the hall.
"Mr. Andrey, will you use that room?"
"You're giving me a room too?"
"Yes. As the most capable employee among Scarlett's staff, specially."
"Sure, though I don't have much choice."
Scarlett smiled warmly at their banter. Isaac, who had spent so long confined to the attic, needed a friend.
Reading her unguarded feelings, Andrey and Isaac took turns speaking.
"Boss, you're thinking right now that it'd be great if the count and I became friends, right?"
"Can't get enough of taking care of me, so now you're trying to make me a friend too, Scarlett?"
Scarlett burst into laughter at their words.
"Why not? You two seem like you'd get along."
"Friends aren't made by matchmaking, boss. Anyway, I'm off to rest. Serving a troublemaking boss like you is exhausting enough."
As Andrey headed to the end room to rest, Scarlett beckoned Isaac over. When he entered and sat on the bed, she pulled out a watch she'd brought.
"I brought a gift for you on the way."
"Wow."
Isaac's eyes widened.
Scarlett rolled up Isaac's sleeve a bit and tapped the cufflinks.
"I made this watch for you before even buying those. But they matched so well that I bought these too."
Scarlett fastened the silver watch she'd been unable to give him until now onto Isaac's left wrist. Isaac grinned at the simple yet elegant timepiece.
"Actually, I always knew you'd give me a watch someday."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I even thought about how I'd use it since I can't read it."
Isaac held out his watch-adorned wrist this way and that.
"I figured I'd ask passersby for the time like this. But then I got scared someone might steal it."
Scarlett laughed heartily at Isaac's words. He stared at the watch for a long time, clearly delighted.
*
The next day, returning to the Clock Shop, it was a total mess. As Scarlett stared at the shop, Andrey said,
"Boss, either come inside or step back. We have to smash all this to replace the glass anyway."
"Ah, right."
Scarlett stepped aside, and Andrey used his hammer to shatter the remaining glass. Watching her survey the wrecked shop, Andrey asked,
"You won't be staying here for a while, right boss?"
"Yeah."
"Then I'll watch over the Clock Shop here."
Scarlett replied,
"You should come with me."
"Then who watches the shop?"
"Unpaid?"
"I've already accepted that."
"What if the Royal Police come to kill you while you're here?"
"What are you talking about? Of course they'd come to kill me."
"That's why you should come with me instead of staying. If you don't like that, how about hiding out with the Pitt Family?"
"No way. My brother knows I quit the Royal Police and is itching to kill me for tarnishing the family name."
"...Andrey, you live under a lot of threats, huh?"
"Pretty much."
Andrey finished smashing the glass to clean the frames and spoke to Scarlett beyond the door.
"Honestly, it's all because of you, boss."
"Me? Why?"
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have quit the Royal Police. I ended up like this trying to blend in."
When he saw Scarlett looking apologetic, he grinned.
"That aside, I feel like whatever bad thing I did to you will never be forgiven."
"What did you do?"
"It's a secret."
"Did you use violence?"
"No. Didn't lay a hand on you."
"Then?"
"..."
As Andrey stayed silent, Scarlett gave up on getting an answer and sat on the stairs, sorting through her feelings about the shop—hard-earned but now ruined.
Andrey spoke up again.
"So as atonement, I'll restore the shop. Even if you remember later, go easy on me before firing me."
"We'll see."
Scarlett stood, dusted off her skirt, and offered Andrey a handshake.
"Take good care of the shop."
"You too."
With that handshake, Scarlett left the shop.
*
It was clear weather, perfect for taking the train.
Scarlett was headed straight to the Air Force Base in the south. She packed her few belongings and boarded the train.
On the way to the Air Force Base, she stopped by the Vineyard Villa. Students majoring in mechanical engineering from Salantier Polytechnic University were still staying there.
The students, deep in research, and Professor Gustav froze upon seeing Scarlett appear suddenly. Professor Gustav signaled Kirsten, Scarlett's closest friend among them, who stepped forward.
"Sorry. We've become freeloaders!"
"Huh?"
"You didn't tell us to leave... We're buried in snow up there and can't even get in now. After staying here once, we can't go back to that hellish cold..."
Realizing why the students were watching her nervously, Scarlett laughed.
"Got it. We'll go when the weather clears up more."
"R-Really?"
"Yeah."
Scarlett nodded and took a deep breath. Then she asked Kirsten,
"Did you see the newspaper by any chance?"
"What newspaper?"
"I'm going to build an airplane from now on."
"...For real?"
"Yeah. For real."
Scarlett nodded emphatically and continued,
"There are a lot of devices I absolutely have to make. According to my parents' theory, an airplane needs a runway to take off. But the Air Force Base is critically short on runways."
Gesturing animatedly, Scarlett went on,
"From what people who saw Bestina's airplane said, it had wheels underneath like a carriage. But since we don't have runways, I think it has to be a seaplane. For that, it needs floats under the plane like skis to glide on water. I don't know what shape they should be. I don't even know how to build the airplane itself to begin with."
"..."
"Anyway, that's why the Air Force needs maintenance officers. If you're interested, tell the navy guys over there. They'll take you."
"Build an... airplane?"
"Yeah."
Scarlett nodded and added,
"But you all know this, right? Once I build the airplane, I'll probably be excommunicated religiously."
"W-What?"
"There'll be a lot of backlash. It's not something you do expecting reward. Still... it'll prevent the war."
The villa fell silent at Scarlett's words.
A moment later, she said,
"Anyway, I've told you everything. I'll be going now."
"Y-You're leaving? Right now?"
"Yeah."
"Tell us more so we can decide!"
Scarlett laughed and continued,
"It's too dangerous, so I'm not trying to convince you. If you're curious, just go. If you want to build an airplane, go. That's what you do when you're curious—we're engineers."
At her words, Professor Gustav clenched his fists enthusiastically before quickly unclenching and clearing his throat.
Scarlett said,
"Think it over carefully."
With that, she boarded the carriage right away.
As Scarlett's carriage departed, Kirsten said,
"I mean... she says it like that, how can I not go? She's my friend."
Professor Gustav replied,
"I can't not go either—I'm her advisor..."
"Professor, you're scary..."
"I'm scared too. But I didn't leave my family behind for a day like today just to back out..."
Trembling, the two reluctantly returned to their spaces to pack.