episode_0029

“Mirelda…”

The name that had been ruled out as a suspect early on came out softly from Asher’s lips.

That would be the case, because Mirelda, as seen by Ashe, was an extremely weak woman. She was the very image of a passive woman who was not treated well even at her parents’ house because her husband’s interest had waned.

She was a woman who did not have the courage to improve a relationship that had cooled down without even knowing the cause, and who simply hoped that time would heal the wound.

‘What kind of temperature difference is this extreme…?’

Ashe recalled the time when she acted as Mirelda’s personal maid.

She was worried that her husband, the Holy See’s Neterto, might be having an affair, and asked Ashe for comfort. Of course, Ashe had no interest in the truth and had no intention of finding out, but as Mirelda’s exclusive maid, she simply repeated sweet answers.

Then Mirelda sighed in relief, her heart pounding. She looked weak, unable to even think of arguing with her husband who had changed his attitude. At least, that was what Ashe had sincerely expected at the time.

But suddenly, the conversation I had with Hereis Arkaden raises its head from old memories.

[The story you’ve told us so far… is it related to our approach to the Emperor’s throne room?]

[… Yes. Even though his wife was murdered, the Holy See himself went there with His Majesty the Emperor. There must be something.]

[Mirelda was estranged from her husband. It is understandable that she does not harbor any attachment to him.]

[Yes? That’s possible.]

At this moment, Herais opened his eyes wide as if he had heard something unexpected.

[The Neterto couple are a couple known in high society as lovebirds. They are so close that it would be natural to say that it was a love marriage and not a political one.]

[What? That makes absolutely no sense.]

Perhaps, as Herais testified, they were a lovey-dovey couple. As a lady, she would accept unnecessary manners without complaint just because her husband taught her.

Mirelda would have accepted it even more easily because she was an obedient and passive person. She would have been okay with doing something a little too difficult for her husband.

I doubt if the Holy See’s wife loved me…

At least Mirelda’s love must have been sincere. And because it was sincere, the sense of betrayal when she was betrayed must have been tenfold.

“Damn, it’s the fault of the ancestors who couldn’t even gamble…”

It remains a mystery how the Imperial family used Mirelda’s death 500 years ago. What is certain, however, is that her death was a thorough trample on the cause of the Imperial family and the Empire.

“Are you okay, Youngae?”

“Yeah… Ah, it’s okay. First of all, I should say thank you. Thanks to you, I think I got the hint. ”

“Is that so? That’s really fortunate.”

Bernacien fluttered her eyelashes, which curved in a yoyo-like manner. Ashe couldn’t help but swallow her saliva at the sight of her breathtaking beauty.

“Ahem, well… that’s right.”

“Ahahaha…”

I wondered how great it must have been for the maids’ diaries to sing her praises, but their expressions were lacking. Even the portraits of the beautiful Duchess were not enough to capture the real Bernacien.

When Asher was secretly harboring a small speculation, Bernacien opened his mouth.

“Have all your questions been answered, Youngae?”

“First of all, yeah. Roughly.”

“I see. Then it’s time to go back.”

Asher’s eyelashes fluttered at the unexpected remark.

“… What?”

“If… you ever find the courage to stop at the end of your journey, I hope you will come find me.”

Bernacien’s hand reached out to Ashe’s forehead. Ashe couldn’t resist the slow movement. All of his thoughts and actions seemed stiff.

“May your future be blessed…”

“Wow!”

Bam.

As Hailey barked cheerfully, she nudged Asher’s forehead. Asher’s center of gravity instantly tilted back and she rolled over.

Bang!

For a moment, stars twinkled before her eyes. When she shook off the illusion, her vision was not of a green garden, but of a gloomy mansion corridor.

“Oh my…!”

Asher immediately raised his upper body.

I instinctively looked around to prevent any threat to my life, but I couldn’t see Mirelda’s new form. It seemed like she had retreated while I was entering the painting world.

“What, what… We were just talking and you got out of it?”

Even Bernacien seemed to have sent Asher out into the real world on purpose. It was only circumstantial, but it was enough to raise suspicion.

‘Is Bernacien also a special person in this mansion, like the butler?’

Assumptions that cannot be determined immediately are left aside for the time being.

Now was the time to focus on Mirelda’s soul.

“Ashe.”

At that moment, a butler came walking from the other side.

“You managed to escape successfully.”

“I guess I’m getting used to this fucking mansion too.”

“That’s… fortunately.”

“It’s possible because it’s me. If it were Arsent, I would have already gotten tired of the dress.”

Asher puffed out his chest in a half-hearted, half-serious way. The other half, of course, was sincere, but he had to be confident in order to get the butler’s cooperation in the operation he was going to explain later.

“So, sir.”

“Please speak.”

Immediately afterwards, she brought her face unusually close to mine.

“You have to help me properly.”

◇

The hallway on the second floor of the Arkaden mansion.

The path I walked once became familiar. It was a path I had walked three times since I separated from the butler. Perhaps because it was a humanoid monster, it was quite difficult to encounter it even once.

Step, step.

Asher deliberately made her footsteps louder as she walked around. Up until now, Mirelda had been the one looking for her, but from now on, Asher was the one searching for Mirelda. And the troubles of the searcher continued for quite a while.

The moment when the effort bears fruit is when you reach the central staircase where the portrait of the Duchess is visible.

Also, in Ashe’s red eyes, instead of the cloudy light of recklessness, there was a look of determination.

Crack, crack.

The low, sinister sound of footsteps hitting the marble floor. Asher’s muscles tense up at the quiet, murderous sound of footsteps.

The path that Ash had walked until just now – that is, the alien murderous aura behind her sharpened the blade coldly.

“You’re here…”

“…”

Sling.

Mirelda took the sword. Achae also tried to take the sword out of her leather pouch.

However, Asher soon realizes that the inside of his pockets is empty.

“…… Ah… Aaaah …

Now I remember.

Come to think of it, I threw my sword at Mirelda in order to escape. When I came out of the painting world, I completely forgot about it because I fell into a completely different place…!

“Ash, you idiot!!!”

Only a few seconds after she held her determined gaze, Asher suddenly screamed alone, almost half-mad. It must have been so strange that even Mirelda, who had become a monster, tilted her head to the side.

“Alright, see you next time…!!!”

Whirl!

Asher immediately turned around and ran away. Mirelda’s reaction was slightly delayed by her unexpected behavior.

Mirelda soon showed off her footwork that surpassed Ashe’s.

Wedge!

Mirelda, who had almost caught up with Ashe’s run, swung her sword in a straight line.

“Hyak?!”

While the survival instinct is surging like a torrent, Ashe bows her head and greets at a right angle.

As the cool wind brushed against the back of my head and touched my cold sweat, the hair on my entire body stood on end.

Mirelda immediately struck down her sword without mercy and struck repeatedly.

Kyaang!

“Huh!?”

Ashe jumped to the side with a bang. If she had been hit directly, she would have been split vertically and died. The destination that was not far away seemed to be getting farther away like the end of the palace.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, jeez yeaaal!!!”

I ran like crazy. I can say for sure that I ran even harder than when I was being chased by Haley. This feat was probably possible because I had a clear goal in mind.

Finally, Asher reached the gathering place they had decided on.

The Hall of Gasol.

It was a bizarre place where the portraits of the servants all rolled their eyes with interest.

See you!

“Eugh …

Asher escaped the clutches of the nimble stab with a desperate resolve. Mirelda’s stab was particularly fast, so it was almost a miracle that he was able to dodge it with his bare body and no sword.

At the end of this ordeal, Ashe suddenly braked. Then she faced Mirelda head-on and took a defensive stance.

A showdown.

The success or failure of an operation can be determined in an instant.

Finally, Asher took a deep breath and shouted at the top of his lungs.

“A bee sting would be faster and more painful than that sloppy stabbing!”

“…”

Mirelda, who had heard the provocation, lowered her posture without saying a word. Her sword was level with the ground, and the tip of the blade was aimed at Ashe.

Ashe’s provocation did a great job of stimulating the inspector’s pride.

Extreme tension was eating away at Asher’s strength. It was when their confrontation reached its peak.

Phew!

It was a sound that should never have been achieved with just a pure leap. However, Mirelda’s training to the peak made it possible for her to accomplish the feat.

It was a movement that was almost like an afterimage was following her behind.

“Krrrgh…!”

Gulp.

The warm liquid overflowing from her side soaked the pure white servant’s shirt red. The sword that stabbed her had grazed her waist, causing a laceration.

but.

Kuk…!

In the end, Ashe ended up using herself as bait and grabbing Mirelda’s wrist.

“Haa… Haa…”

I never made any grand plans to seize the opportunity to strike back.

Repeating pointless battles with a torn side will only cause the wound to widen.

Asher had no intention of fighting her from the beginning.

“Ewww!!!”

I mustered all my strength to pull Mirelda towards me. Then I stuck one of my legs into a portrait of a maid.

It was a plan to somehow draw Mirelda into the painting.

However, Mirelda’s physical strength is slightly superior to Ashe’s. Ashe, who was injured, would have been lacking in strength.

“Butler!!!”

Asher sought to complement this with the presence of her assistant.

Bam!

“Ashe!”

The door to the nearby room opened and the butler appeared. Then he struck Mirelda’s back with his shoulder, knocking her off balance.

Boom!

Mirelda was already wearing shoes.

Even if she had a superhuman sense of balance, the strength of her collapsed stance was nothing compared to the strength of her upright stance.

Mirelda, who was struggling to collect her body, was completely sucked into the surface of the portrait under Ashe’s guidance.

Afterwards, the butler muttered in the hallway where Ashe and Mirelda had disappeared together.

“You’re planning a very risky operation… Ah, huh.”

The butler looked at the portrait she had led Mirelda to.

The name is written underneath the portrait.

[Sally]

It was the portrait that had forcibly drawn Asher in when she had just stepped onto the second floor.