DTS - Chapter 68

"Cold."

At Marilyn's words, Jane covered her lap with a blanket with a worried look on her face.

Fear appeared on Marilyn's trembling face.

Her whole body was shivering from the cold, but the girl sitting next to her had an indifferent expression.

“It’s probably because of the darkness brought by the ‘beings’ coming this way. Young Lady said they are not good for the human body.”

It can cause illness or even confusion and hallucinations.

Marilyn squeezed her eyes shut as a thick fog enveloped the carriage.

Thud. Thud.

The sound of footsteps approaching the carriage was particularly loud.

Jane, without showing any sign of panic, held the shaman bell in her left hand and watched the outside world.

Thud.

There was a dull thud and the carriage shook.

As if the sound was a signal, the carriage, which had been moving slowly as if it had stopped, started moving quickly.

"OMG..."

“It’s okay. Mr. Wood is the only one who can keep up with his original means of transportation.”

When Dorothea was young, Wood was literally just a 'leg', but since coming to Highclere Manor, he has mainly been handling vehicles.

From horseback riding to carriages and chariots, there was nothing he couldn't handle.

“Hey, Yeong Lady Highclare is coming, right?”

Of course, it didn't matter to Marilyn how good a coachman Wood was.

In this situation where her whole body is alerted to danger to the point where her toes are numb, she is just desperately waiting for Dorothea's presence.

Something banged on the door.

“Gyaaaah!”

The moment Marilyn screamed, unable to bear it any longer, Dorothea's voice was heard from outside the carriage.

***

Despite the crazy speed, the evil spirits chasing the carriage never fell behind.

Raymond's hand, which had knocked on the door once, was bent in a very strange way.

Fortunately, the broken and filthy talisman that had been attached to the door seemed to have done its job.

Dorothea, who jumped lightly onto the carriage while being held in Colin's arms, recited an exorcism in a beautiful voice to the sound of Jane's bells inside the carriage.

The Six Characters Great Brightness, the Emperor's True Words

The Four Pillars of Destiny and the Five Elements (四柱五行) and the Crow and Turtle Come Out

Yoo Jae-se, Bang Woo Jae-se, extreme woman, and Japbak-se

The voice, full of soul, seeped into the body of the deceased.

Dark blood flowed from the black eyes of the flesh that was twisting its body as if it were tied up.

Chararang.

The sound of Jane's shaman bell shaking inside the carriage maximized the influence of the spirit energy that had seeped in.

“Kiaaaaah!”

His mouth gaped open with a scream so grotesque it was almost unpleasant to hear.

The darkness that had been occupying Raymond's body could not stand it for a moment and bounced away.

“Colin now is the time.”

At the moment when the intangible darkness was about to quickly disperse into the air, the Grim Reaper's scythe did not miss the opportunity and cut down the darkness.

A last, sharp, long, thumping sound hit the carriage.

The carriage door rattled and shook violently, leaving a mark as if something large had been slammed into it, but the brief resistance ended in an all too futile manner.

The sagging flesh was no longer under the control of any energy.

The ghosts that coveted the ownerless body gathered, and the presence of the Grim Reaper's scythe made them hover at a distance, circling around.

“Are you done?”

When Dorothea turned her head at the blunt question, she saw Wood, rubbing his sore neck, getting down from the stable, and approaching her.

"Great job."

“...Look not at me, but at those inside.”

At Wood's sigh, which calmed the startled horses, Dorothea took off the amulet attached to the door and slowly opened the carriage door.

“I told you I was going to be very careful, but the carriage was bumpy and uncomfortable. Are you hurt anywhere, Marilyn?”

Marilyn Lehr, her face pale, nodded as she looked at the body of the deceased lying limply on the floor in disbelief.

She seemed half-sane, but at least she didn't seem to be hurt.

“Are you sure it’s over?”

“Of course. Now, if we return this body to the Count’s family, that will be enough...”

"Miss."

Freed, who had been away for a while while she was exorcising the evil spirits, came to her side and warned her.

“The security forces are coming.”

“...”

Dorothea looked back.

The reason why the surroundings were quiet despite the loud noise was because 'LiLi' blocked out everything around her.

But because of that, she missed the sound of someone approaching her.

As a look of annoyance appeared on Dorothea's face, Marilyn asked cautiously.

“The security forces?”

“This is a problem. We can’t let Raymond’s body be discovered like this.”

“...”

There was no evidence to suggest that Raymond was responsible for the serial killings that had occurred up to that point.

Besides, it would seem quite suspicious for them to be out together at this ambitious time.

First of all, if she was found with a body, she would have to be investigated for several days.

“Then what should I do?”

“That’s right. What should I do? The chief of police’s nagging is longer and more annoying than my grandfather’s.”

This was not what Dorothea, who had been to prison twice, wanted.

In the distance, lights signaling the arrival of the police appeared.

Marilyn bit her lip as she looked down at Raymond's empty body.

 ***

A street that is so deserted that it feels almost chilly at night.

The carriage parked alone on the street was giving off an undeniably suspicious vibe.

“Captain, I mean that carriage.”

One of the soldiers following the chief of police hesitated and then whispered.

“Don’t get used to it.”

"What?"

“I’m sure I’ve seen a carriage like that somewhere.”

The chief constable's eyes scanned the luxurious-looking carriage.

Although it was quite a distance away and dark, making it difficult to distinguish objects, it was clear that it was not a hired carriage used by commoners.

"Hmm..."

These days, rumors are so sinister, so why is there a horse-drawn carriage on the street where there were even victims?

The police chief, his brow furrowed in discomfort, opened his mouth to the person next to him.

“Count Spencer, I think I should go and look around for a moment.”

“I don’t mind.”

The owner of the pleasant voice nodded.

A handsome man with long, shiny hair tied back in a ponytail, known as the 'Count Spencer', looked at the carriage curiously and spoke.

“By the way, a carriage coming out onto the street at this hour? It’s very strange. Why, of all days, today?”

Even the moon was hidden behind the clouds, so not a single ray of light could be seen on the street.

In the middle of the night, when it was so dark that even eyes accustomed to the darkness had difficulty discerning its shape, what was a carriage doing here without even its lights on?

That was when.

The carriage door opened and someone dressed in a rich dress got out and approached them instead.

“...!”

The girl's face, illuminated by the torch held by the police, looked very familiar.

She greeted him with graceful movements, slightly lifting her skirt and politely bending her knees.

“How have you been? It’s been a pleasure.”

“Lady Highclere!”

Why on earth is this girl here again?

The chief of police instinctively looked around, then forcibly cleared the frown that had been forming without him knowing it, swallowed a sigh, and opened his mouth.

“Lady Highclere.”

"Yes."

“Why are you here at such an ambitious hour, riding in a carriage?”

Last time, she ran out in the middle of a ball and discovered a dead body, and then she was immediately taken away for trespassing with the Prince.

The police chief's instincts were revived because the opponent's record was so excellent.

“Ha, what happened again?”

“No.”

Dorothea blinked and smiled brightly.

Since Dorothea had finished her work, there was nothing to be concerned about, but the fact that she had come across it here, at this time, was bothering her.

That would be the case, as it is the hour of the Ox (1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m.) when extra-human entities run wild, the place where the last victim was found, and the day with thick clouds, the day most similar to Sinnal.

'Is it because of my mood?'

Dorothea turned her gaze from the scowling captain to the man beside him.

The moment she met his light brown eyes, her eyes widened slightly as she recalled a relationship from long ago.

“Lady Highclere.”

“...”

“You are the one I have only heard of through rumors.”

The man who reached out his hand with an affectionate voice finally told her his ‘name.’

“My name is Kiel Spencer. I hold the title of Count, though it is not sufficient.”

A sorcerer who values ​​cause and effect does not forget favors.

Dorothea took a few seconds to sort out the situation in her head, then lowered her eyes and bowed politely.

“Greetings to the Count of Spencer. I am Dorothea of ​​House Highclere.”

Although they pretended not to know each other, the moment their eyes met, they both realized that they recognized each other.

'I can't forget.'

It is a strangely twisted and rugged physiognomy that is still fascinating to look at.

Once he saw it, he was eating away his soul, still thickly covered in "flesh", which was so terrible that it was hard ti forget.

But the chief of police didn't seem to have any intention of giving her even that kind of leeway.

“Let me ask you again. Why on earth is Young Lady here at this time?”

Dorothea shrugged as she emerged from her past memories at the sheriff's words.

“I stopped by my uncle’s house with a friend and ended up getting home a little late. I was trying to hurry, so I ended up taking a remote and quiet road unintentionally.”

“Your uncle.”

“Yes, Uncle Colin?”

Dorothea sang with emphasis on 'Colin'.

It seemed that the moment he saw Kiel Spencer's face, he recognized him and immediately hid.

Colin, who had been sitting on the horse's back, slowly got off with a very cold expression on his face.

“Colin Highclere.”

“Sir Colin accompanied you. However, with all the rumors going around these days, it would have been better for you not to come here.”

“...I will refrain from doing so.”

Kiel Spencer, who had been staring blankly at Colin, who was answering with his head turned away as much as possible in a stiff voice, smiled brightly.

“It was a pleasure to meet Sir Colin, whom I had only heard of by word of mouth.”

“...”

Colin reached out his hand and grabbed Kiel's fingertips with a stiff face that made him feel embarrassed, then quickly pulled them away. It was as if he had touched something horrible.

The chief of police clicked his tongue inwardly at his appearance.

'I heard you have severe obsessive-compulsive disorder.'

The captain of the police felt uneasy because he showed an unwelcome reaction to the kindness offered first by Count Spencer.

He gave the order with a cough.

“This area will be heavily guarded and patrolled by security forces for the time being, but there have been several accidents here, so please be careful.”

“Ah, this won’t happen again.”

It was Kiel who stopped Colin as he was about to turn around with a curt answer.

“Sir Colin, if you have time, I would like to meet you in private sometime.”

"...That."

“Even late at night is fine. Even evening would be even better.”

When his deep gaze, combined with his soft voice, reached Colin, his face immediately distorted.

Colin, who was glaring at Kiel Spencer with an extremely irritated look in his eyes, answered in a chewing voice.

“I have a wife and child, so I don’t go out in the evenings.”

Everyone exchanged glances with puzzled faces.

Isn't this a more ambitious time than ever?

Dorothea, who had been watching quietly from the side, nodded toward him with a friendly smile.

“My uncle is very shy. As a result, he is often unable to reveal his true feelings even when someone offers him a favor.”

"When did I..!"

“I’ll go anytime you invite me.”

“No...!”

“I am most grateful for your kind offer, Count Spencer.”

Colin's face seemed to tremble with anger.

Dorothea accepted her 'benefactor's' offer, ignoring her uncle's struggling and grumbling.

It is said that it is better to repay a sip of flowing water with overflowing spring water.

She surprisingly tends to follow the old, boring sayings of the wise men of old.

“But, Young Lady.”

Kiel Spencer glanced at the carriage with a smiling face.

“Is that person over there a close friend of Young Lady?”

"Yes."

“Have you ever met or seen anyone here?”

"Sure."

At that moment, the small window of the carriage opened and Jane's young voice was heard.

“Miss, Lady Marilyn is anxious.”

Everyone could clearly see Marilyn Lehr's pale face through the narrow window.

Unlike the police chief, who only then withdrew his suspicious gaze, Kiel, who had been staring blankly at the carriage, turned his head away without saying a word.

Dorothea looked down at the black gloves she was wearing, then smiled as she watched Colin quickly run away to the stable.

The soul of the 'benefactor' that she met in an unexpected place, rather than repairing the crack, was unable to fill the gap and was left with a body that was even more ruined, holding a thick darkness in its hands.

“Even if it’s not dinner, you must accept my invitation, Sir Colin.”

“...”

And she still coveted her uncle and henchman, Colin.

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