Chapter 52: Holy Blood (6)

The night view of the entire city was visible through the clean, full-pane glass window.

The twinkling lights of skyscrapers and dazzling illuminations stretched far into the distance.

A luxurious penthouse on the upper floor of a building, overlooking this scenery.

The interior was decorated with a modern design in an open space, and soft music flowed at a low volume.

A space permitted only to the very few who had grasped both wealth and influence in this city.

It was perhaps a residence that everyone in this city had dreamed of at least once.

However, the expression of the man who opened the door with a familiar gesture was not particularly bright.

His face was tinged with deep fatigue and a gray melancholy.

As the man entered the hallway, the housekeepers who had been waiting greeted him in unison.

“Welcome back, sir.”

He merely nodded curtly in acknowledgment and loosened his suit tie as he walked down the living room corridor.

A housekeeper who had been attending nearby approached and politely took his overcoat.

The man unbuttoned the top of his dress shirt and asked.

“Rachel?”

“Madam spent the day as usual, sir.”

He nodded silently.

As he continued to receive reports on various minor household matters and headed towards the dressing room, the housekeeper following him cautiously held something out to show him.

“Ah, and Director Ben sent a gift here. He said it’s a product that has become very famous among enthusiasts recently. It seems he remembered you like wine and sent it….”

He glanced at the wine bottle and replied nonchalantly.

“Store it.”

“Yes, I’ll put it in the cellar.”

The housekeeper politely withdrew, adding that dinner would be ready soon.

‘….Wine, huh.’

The man remained alone in the quiet dressing room, lost in thought for a moment.

In fact, he didn’t particularly like wine.

He disliked the astringent aftertaste, and if he had to choose, whiskey or brandy was more to his taste.

It was just that his wife had liked it in the past, so he ended up drinking it frequently along with her.

This gift was probably based on that observation.

“…….”

The man changed out of his suit into comfortable loungewear and left the dressing room.

Then, the familiar smell of food wafted to his nose.

As he walked down the corridor towards the inner part of the house, the appetizing aroma grew stronger.

And when he finally reached the dining room, he saw a well-set dinner and a woman sitting blankly in front of it.

“Rachel, did you have a good day today?”

Her once dazzling beauty was gone, replaced only by a gaunt, emaciated body and lifeless, empty eyes.

The man took a short breath, then, as usual, forced a nonchalant tone as he greeted her.

“You waited, right? You must be hungry. Let’s eat.”

Nevertheless, the woman showed no reaction, still just staring ahead.

“…….”

It wasn’t simple lethargy.

It was a symptom of her illness.

However, he still hadn’t found out the exact name of the disease that had made her like this.

Even the medical team, who had conducted examinations at great expense, could only surmise it was a type of ‘astrocyte autophagy disorder.’

A condition where malfunctioning brain cells destroy themselves, gradually robbing the brain of its functions.

He had only been told that it was likely a very rare congenital genetic disorder whose cause was not even properly understood.

Perhaps if she had received appropriate treatment a little earlier, it might not have progressed this far.

But Rachel had lived her entire life as a commoner without decent health insurance.

She didn’t even know she had a disease, and even if she had, she wasn’t someone who could afford the price of such expensive gene therapy.

Therefore, after he became successful, when he eagerly sought out and reunited with his childhood first love.

Her illness had already progressed irreversibly.

No matter how much money he poured in, it was useless.

That’s why, at first, the woman had rejected the heart of the man who had returned from her memories.

Even though he had returned with wealth and status, she refused to meet him.

She knew herself that she couldn’t spend a peaceful old age with him, nor could she bear him a child to be by his side.

Nevertheless, the man decided to marry her.

He had never been interested in the management rights or shares he was supposed to inherit, and had lived his whole life as a wastrel.

There was only one reason he had worked himself to death so late in life: to be able to propose confidently when he met her again, the woman who had been his everything in childhood.

It didn’t matter how much time she had left.

The fact that they could be together, that was all that mattered.

And one year after their marriage. They were happier than anyone in the world. They had built up precious memories that would last a lifetime.

But the following year was despair.

The illness began to progress in earnest.

She forgot even who she was, and couldn’t recall any of the precious connections, events, or memories.

Eventually, even the central functions essential for maintaining life began to degenerate.

She reached a point where she couldn’t even eat or sleep properly on her own.

The doctor he met the day before yesterday had discreetly informed him of her prognosis.

‘I regret to say, but in my opinion… Madam now has six months left.’

It was a reality he desperately didn’t want to believe, but her gaunt, emaciated appearance before him now seemed to prove those words.

The man’s heart ached helplessly. But he didn’t show it.

He just brought up trivial stories for her, who must have been bored staying home all day.

“I was so swamped at work today with a pretty big contract, Rachel. It was just meetings all morning. Everyone talks so much… I don’t even know if I ate lunch properly. It would have been nice if you were there to take care of me like before. …But well, it ended well, so that’s that.”

Even though no reply came, he forced a faint smile and continued speaking.

While doing so, he even spoon-fed his wife.

As he carefully cut the meticulously prepared dinner into small pieces and fed it to her, she seemed to take a few bites before firmly closing her lips.

“….You need to eat a lot, Rachel. That’s how you’ll get better quickly.”

He spoke softly, but she didn’t respond.

Her empty eyes were still fixed on the void, as if she were cut off from everything in the world.

The man unconsciously clenched his teeth.

He lowered his trembling hand under the table and clenched it tightly.

He wanted to let out a sigh in his frustration.

‘….No. Not in front of Rachel.’

He barely managed to compose himself.

Then he gathered the remaining food on the plate again.

Seeing her body become more emaciated by the day, he wanted to feed her even a little bit more.

However, she refused to even touch the food prepared with great care by a first-class chef and nutritionist.

A deep sense of powerlessness overwhelmed him.

He wanted to find a way, anything, really anything.

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

The man gestured to a housekeeper and said.

“Bring that wine from earlier.”

In the past, Rachel had quite enjoyed wine along with her cooking.

So, he thought that if he let her smell the aroma, perhaps her appetite might return, even a little.

Receiving the handed glass, the man whispered to her pleadingly.

“Do you remember, Rachel? The day we met again… our first date. You were amazed, saying it was your first time drinking real wine. The way your eyes sparkled at the view outside the window… You were much more beautiful than that night view back then….”

Murmuring their shared memories, which now only he remembered, the man poured a little wine into the glass.

Then he carefully brought it to his wife’s lips.

But for an instant, her eyebrows twitched slightly.

“….!”

Amazingly, Rachel, who hadn’t reacted to anything for the past few days, responded to the aroma of the wine.

She even gently closed her eyes, as if trying to smell the scent lingering at the tip of her nose.

In that familiar sight, the man momentarily saw an overlapping memory from the past.

It was a scene with her before she fell ill.

[‘Mmm~, just as I thought!’]

[‘You like this that much? To be honest, I don’t really get why it’s so expensive.’]

[‘Try to smell the aroma a bit more carefully. Then the aroma and bouquet blooming in the glass-’]

Her voice, cheerfully chattering her own impressions that he still couldn’t understand.

It was a truly, deeply missed memory.

The man’s heart sank with a sudden, desperate longing.

If only he could hear that voice again, just once more….

“…..”

As if possessed, he unconsciously tilted the glass towards her lips.

The slowly swirling red liquid began to wet her dry lips.

And surprisingly, Rachel… didn’t spit it out.

It was very little, but she had definitely accepted and swallowed it.

=========

“I can’t take it anymore!!!”

I was startled by the resounding voice.

Turning my head, I saw Yoanna, her face flushed, suddenly barge into the office.

“Yo-Yoanna?”

My eyes widened at her unexpected behavior.

However, completely unfazed, Yoanna strode towards me.

She looked extremely upset.

Flustered, I cautiously asked.

“Yoanna, what’s wrong all of a sudden…?”

“That’s it! Now! I can’t! Take it anymore! Lady Eve!! You’re really too much!!!”

Yoanna shouted, pointing her finger like a child, and then, finally, slammed her small fist on the table in front of me.

Bang!

I flinched unconsciously.

“Do you even know how much! How hard I’ve worked until now?!”

She cried out as if she were out of breath, and began to list all the tasks she had been in charge of, her voice ringing in my ears.

“Organizing the Church structure, budget planning, execution, and settlement oversight! Accounting audits! Management of donations and tithes! Establishing mid-to-long-term ministry goals and detailing action plans! Planning, producing, and distributing online proselytizing content! Setting and analyzing key performance indicators for charitable projects by district! Operating the church member management system! Overall planning and budget allocation for major events like Mass….!”

Looking closely at her face as she rattled off the list, I saw dark circles of fatigue under her eyes.

She had clearly been overworking herself recently.

Overwhelmed by her unusual intensity, I didn’t know what to do and started to try and appease her.

“O-Of course! I know how much effort Yoanna puts in. Really….”

Before I could even finish, “But!!!” Yoanna shrieked, almost hysterically.

“But why, Lady Eve! Are you always being so friendly and lovey-dovey with just that, that woman over there! Huh?!”

Her flushed face pointed, and the tip of her finger was directed at… ST, who, for some reason, had a slightly more bewildered look than usual on her expressionless face.

The two of us were momentarily speechless, just staring at each other, dumbfounded.

With us in front of her, Yoanna waved her arms around again, expressing her grievance.

“I really worked hard too! For Lady Eve, for the Church! Honestly, honestly, shouldn’t I have received some kind of reward….. No, shouldn’t you have shown me more attention than you do now?!”

The girl’s cry contained a truth that could not be denied.

The Church’s rapid expansion and stable operation would have been impossible without, frankly, that child’s genius administrative skills and dedication.

Perhaps, without her, I wouldn’t have been able to properly manage even half of this organization.

A wave of guilt washed over me.

Wanting to appease her somehow, I cautiously asked.

“Hey, Yoanna…. I’m sorry. I was too insensitive, wasn’t I? Is there anything I can do to make you feel a bit better?”

At those words, Yoanna’s eyes, which had been tearful until just a moment ago, suddenly glinted with a determined look.

The girl raised the corners of her lips slightly and asked.

“Perhaps… you haven’t forgotten, have you? The promise you made to me during the baptism incident.”

‘Baptism ceremony?’

At those words, I suddenly recalled the events of that time.

On the day of the baptism, ST and Yoanna had briefly argued over the order of baptism, and she had ended up being second.

So, feeling sorry, I think I promised her something then….

Just then, Yoanna took out a small recorder from her pocket and pressed a button. A familiar voice flowed out.

[“I’m sorry, Yoanna. But not being first doesn’t mean you’re not important. So, if perhaps… you have another request as a reward for this, I’ll grant you anything.”]

‘Oops!’

I had completely forgotten because I’d been so busy lately, but I had definitely made such a promise.

In front of a flustered me, Yoanna smiled triumphantly and waved the recorder.

“Now, this matter is this matter, but first, I need to properly collect on this old debt, Lady Eve.”

Does every empty promise eventually return as a mountain of debt like this?

Flustered, I unconsciously glanced at ST, but even she subtly avoided my gaze and pretended not to know.

Did ST also think that Yoanna’s justification was too clear right now?

Even she, who could take down an elite mercenary with a single punch, couldn’t stop the child’s approaching footsteps now.

The girl’s eyes, now right in front of me, glinted ominously.

“You definitely…. promised to grant ‘anything’ I ask, didn’t you, Lady Eve?”

A perfect checkmate.

It was hard to escape with the excuse of being busy.

Yoanna had likely been even busier working all this time.

Indeed, she had been incredibly helpful to the Church, and in contrast, my attitude had been somewhat insensitive until now.

Therefore, I had no words to refute, nor the audacity to make excuses.

“Anything! Right?”

So, I could only answer in a barely audible voice.

“……Yeees.”