Chapter 117: Mephistopheles

Chapter 117: Mephistopheles

“Hoo… I miss Young Lady…”

Aileen, with a languid expression, mumbled with her lips pursed as she lay on the bed.

The room she could use individually was very bare.

A place with nothing but a table, without a single piece of furniture.

Beneath her raised daily wear, perfectly sculpted abdominal muscles were revealed.

A glimpse of bandages wrapped around her chest was visible.

‘I’m bored…’

It’s not that there’s no work.

In fact, managing the mansion is quite important.

However, due to her competence, Aileen strangely fell into a great boredom.

She wiggled her legs and stretched them out, her feet barely touching the edge of the bed.

“Should I have finished work a little later…”

She muttered softly.

Perhaps because her past profession was a soldier, she had developed a habit of doing everything diligently.

Always doing her best, and quickly.

Because of this, tasks that took other prisoners 5 hours only took her 2 hours.

‘I wonder if Young Lady is doing well…?’

She hadn’t seen Cecil’s face much lately.

This was because Scarlett was extremely protective of Cecil.

Therefore, even if she wanted to see her face once, her request would be rejected.

Is she very sick somewhere? Aileen thought to herself.

Knock, knock-

As she was lost in such stray thoughts.

Someone knocked on her room door.

‘Who is it?’

There’s no one who would visit at this hour of the night.

If there were, perhaps it would be fellow prisoners whose desires had piled up.

There were prisoners who occasionally flirted with Aileen.

Of course, they could never raise their heads again due to Aileen’s overwhelming power.

“…Who?”

Aileen asked with a slightly wary voice.

“Aileen… It’s me, Lucy.”

To Aileen, a very welcome voice was heard.

“Oh… Lu, Lucy? Please wait a moment!”

Then Aileen quickly said.

She hadn’t expected Lucy to come. If she’s sticking by Cecil’s side, she might hear some news.

Aileen smiled broadly.

Creeeak-

As she opened the door, the face that appeared was that of a rapidly grown Lucy.

“Lu… Lucy…?”

For a moment, Aileen was seized by extreme bewilderment.

The Lucy that Aileen remembered was a little kid who wasn’t even 150 cm tall.

Yet, in less than a month, her height and body had grown so much.

It was surprising.

“I have something to tell you. Can I come in?”

“Of course! Have you been well? Hiyah… I really thought I was going to die of boredom.”

“I haven’t shown my face much. I’m sorry.”

Lucy’s aura had become quite mature, unlike before.

It was as if something had happened to her.

“Ah… No. It’s good to see your face.”

Aileen said that and smiled brightly, making a playful remark.

Lucy sat on Aileen’s bed and smiled faintly.

“I’m glad you seem to be doing well.”

“Of course. Being healthy is my strength. Is Young Lady Cecil doing well?”

“Yes. From now on, she’ll be able to do even better.”

Aileen stared at Lucy’s unusual expression.

There was definitely something going on.

“Aileen. Can I ask you something?”

“Yes, yes. Of course. I welcome it.”

“You said you’re from the Kingdom… right?”

“That’s right. I caused some trouble, so I came here…”

“You must have crossed many borders, too?”

“Uhehe, of course-“

As the conversation reached that point, Aileen stopped laughing.

“…But why are you asking that..?”

“I have something to tell you.”

Lucy continued to stare at Aileen with a calm expression.

Then, as Lucy spoke.

Aileen’s expression gradually changed.

She frowned, then her eyes widened.

She bit her lips tightly.

Finally, her expression became one of utter defeat.

“Then, the Kingdom… has no future now..?”

“It’s what I overheard, so it’s not perfect. However, the King can no longer fulfill his duties… and even if they find a sacrifice, there’s no possibility of restoring things to their original state.”

Lucy’s face was quite dark.

As someone who had only grown up in the mansion, she had no patriotism.

But this Kingdom was the place where Cecil would live, and it was also the land that would become her home.

She couldn’t entrust precious Cecil to a land with no future.

“Th-then… what do you plan to do..?”

“We’re going to cross the border. Leaving the mansion and the Kingdom…”

It’s madness.

At least, that’s what Aileen thought.

To be honest, Lucy’s words were merely speculation.

As someone who served in the Kingdom’s army, she couldn’t believe the country would collapse so easily.

If the King dies, his child becomes King.

And the Kingdom would continue to live on.

However, the reason she couldn’t ignore Lucy’s words was.

Simply because she had a ‘feeling’ that it wasn’t just nonsense.

‘When I was serving in the army, there were rumors that the King had some strange ideas…’

This had a high degree of similarity to the actions of the ‘mysterious man’ that Lucy had mentioned.

Then, what was the identity of that man?

And with what purpose did he exert influence over the Kingdom?

Even thinking about the keyword ‘resurrection’ didn’t yield an answer.

“…Do you have any plans after crossing the border?”

“For now, we plan to live in the forest. If we just cross the border, Young Lady can be free.”

Aileen nodded.

That’s right. Without any clues, it’s not easy to track someone.

Even if there are clues, tracking magic cannot retrieve memories from clues that have passed a certain amount of time.

Time was their ally.

Aileen fell into deep thought.

Then, she opened her mouth.

“Okay. But please take me with you.”

“Are you sure…? You might die if we get caught on the way.”

“It’s all the same whether I die here or there.”

Aileen added, “Like everyone else.”

She had known about the ‘refreshment’ of the mansion from the beginning.

Given her profession, collecting information wasn’t difficult.

At first, she just thought she was being punished, and that it wouldn’t be strange if she died at any moment.

But now, her thoughts had changed.

‘Since I’m going to die anyway, it wouldn’t be bad to help someone on the way.’

“…Okay. We’ll get out of here within this week. I’ll remove all the illusion magic and traps in the middle, so don’t worry.”

“Okay. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to prepare properly.”

“Thank you. See you again.”

Lucy said that and got up from her seat.

Aileen gazed at her face blankly.

It was very sudden, but thanks to the ominous atmosphere of the mansion that had been present for a while, she was able to make a quick decision.

Creeeak-

Then the door closed, and Lucy disappeared.

Aileen lay back on her bed and stared at the ceiling.

‘Escape…’

She had never thought of it before.

Leaving the army, breaking away from the discipline she should have upheld.

And now, distancing herself from the country and society where she was born and raised.

…If I have to live, I think a log cabin in the forest would be nice.

Aileen, whose mind had become slightly hazy, thought quietly.

*****

“…Young Lady.”

“Cecil. I’m sorry for stopping midway. Something urgent suddenly came up…”

I smiled faintly as I looked at her, lying in bed.

Scarlett’s expression was a little dark.

As soon as she entered the room, she took off her clothes and climbed onto my body.

She moved her hair to the side and caressed my neck.

It seemed like she was going to finish what she had started earlier, but.

“Eut..”

With my weak reaction, she soon lifted her head with a bitter expression.

“…You must be very tired?”

“Yes… I’m a little tired.”

“That’s understandable. It’s almost time to sleep. We’ll finish the rest tomorrow… sleep now.”

Click.

Scarlett said that and turned off the lamp in the room.

She also seemed to have many thoughts in her mind.

I silently stared at Scarlett, who was lying in bed.

With red hair and long eyelashes.

When her eyes are closed, she looks like a beautiful angel.

I loved that about her.

I loved how her eyelids occasionally twitched during sex.

And sometimes, I loved her slightly pouting lips when she wasn’t feeling well.

But.

Is it because of the headache that enveloped my head, or perhaps because of what Lucy told me today?

‘Listen to me carefully. Young Lady Scarlett kidnapped Young Lady Cecil to hand her over to the Kingdom.’

“…You seem to have a lot on your mind.”

As I was feeling confused, a familiar voice was heard in my ear.

There sat Chris, smiling faintly, in a rocking chair.

Scarlett had just fallen fast asleep.

She rarely wakes up once she falls asleep.

I slowly got up and approached Chris.

“It’s been a while.”

“Have you been well? Your complexion seems better than before.”

“Perhaps… I think I’ve been well.”

I replied briefly and made a complex expression.

My head was still throbbing, and my mind was hazy.

But I knew one thing.

I had received help from Chris again.

I unconsciously thought, rubbing my neck.

“…I’m sure Cecil also guesses why I’m here.”

“To find a way to get out of here… Ugh..”

As the word ‘escape’ entered my mind.

My head started to throb.

For what reason?

It felt like the common sense I had believed in was cracking entirely.

I swayed for a moment.

And managed to regain my balance.

“Hah… I’m sorry. My head hurts so much…”

“It’s alright. You can just listen without speaking.”

Chris continued in a calm voice.

“The Kingdom has fallen.”

And the words that came out of her mouth were very shocking.

“The internal affairs of the Kingdom are also collapsing… and the King can no longer fulfill his duties.”

With a swish, Chris stood up with a very theatrical gesture.

“If you want to exploit the King’s weakness, now is the time. Fortunately, you still have mana circulating in your body-“

Creeeak!

And her words were cut off by Lucy, who opened the door and entered.

“Lucy..?”

She had clearly told me many things and then said she would tell Aileen the same story before leaving.

“Seriously. The King’s weakness?”

Lucy’s face, with her fists clenched, was contorted in a way I had never seen before.

“Lucy! Since the last time I saw you, you seem to have grown a bit taller-“

“Cut the crap. What were you talking about… were you saying this stuff while I was gone?”

“Lucy… why are you…?”

The atmosphere is scary.

I stared at Lucy, who was approaching me with a slightly bewildered expression.

Lucy suddenly grabbed Chris by the collar.

And glared at her.

“Something felt off from the start… You always appear before Young Lady at the most crucial moments… and always offer clever solutions. Sometimes you make her think.”

“Just a moment… Can you let go of this?”

“Then explain this first.”

Lucy said that and bit her lips tightly.

“Why, why on earth… is unknown mana growing inside Young Lady’s body?”

Lucy’s hand was pointing to her solar plexus.

Simultaneously, the word ‘link’ flashed in my mind.

Yes. I had definitely linked hearts with Lucy.

I widened my eyes at the unbelievable words.

Mana ‘growing’?

Swallowing the very unpleasant question, I looked at Chris.

She just smiled meaningfully.