Anna jumped up and down as Chession opened his eyes wide in shock.
"That's right! And she's been confessing her love to all the members of the Grand Duke's family. Isn't this the last greeting before she leaves?"
"...Where is Mori now?"
"That was the last time I saw her going to the convent!"
"Damn it, Mori! Why on earth!"
Chession ran to the convent with Anna. The sight of the convent was spectacular. Gremory was greeting each and every nun she had grown attached to, shaking their hands and saying goodbye.
"Mori!"
Chession called her name urgently. Gremory slowly turned her head and looked at Chession.
"Why are you doing this? Are you really planning on leaving? You even packed your bags and said your final goodbyes!"
"If I stay here, you will resent me. I don't want to turn you into an evil spirit."
"What? An evil spirit? Explain it properly."
Chession was astonished at the words that seemed to have omitted a great deal of detail. Iris, who was listening from the side, shook her head and touched her forehead.
"I'm actually being targeted by the pursuit team. They might take you hostage and kill you painfully, turning you into a demon. So I'm trying to get out of here quickly before that happens."
"Wait a minute. A pursuit party? Who's chasing you?"
"Witch Chaser."
Chession's brain stopped spinning for a moment.
"Beauty chasers?"
"No, I said witch chaser."
Gremory implied that 'a group of witches summoned to the human world to grant humans' wishes have banded together to chase me as a side job' under the name 'Witch Chaser'. It would be a pain to go on and on about it all.
But perhaps it was too implicit, and the meaning didn't seem to be immediately conveyed to Chession.
"There are still those who believe in the existence of witches and chase them? Oh, man. If that's the case, you don't have to worry. No matter how strong they are, my knights and I will protect you. And did you know that spies from the imperial family come and go from our mansion every single day? Sometimes assassins from our enemy's families come to raid, but anyway, we all live with that. We're not afraid of a few more pursuers."
"I can't understand. I said this is a 'real' witch chaser. Give me a chance to explain."
"Mori, I told you, we're family. We'll be together until we die, and I didn't bring you here lightly. If you leave, I'll cry and scream and grab the hem of your skirt to stop you."
"Even if something happens because of me that you can't handle?"
"Even if war breaks out because of you, even if the sky splits in half, even if the whole world is engulfed in fire, we are family! I will never let you go! I promise!"
"Promise?"
At that moment, Gremory's black eyes flashed. She learned in the Demon World that a promise is a contract made between humans. A contract that is not bound by chains or contracts, but is made purely by human will.
...She felt strange. The witches' contracts were cold and cruel, but the promise Chession offered felt warm.
"Yes. I promise. I will never let you go. I promise on the black goat."
"..."
If she makes a promise and even goes as far as a black goat... Gremory stuck out her lower lip sullenly. But she still wanted to make the guys safe.
"Come on, my lucky charm. Let's go eat something delicious. Yes?"
Chession placed his hand on Gremory's shoulder and gently pushed her towards the tea room. Although it was called a tea room, there would be raw meat dripping with blood on the table.
Gremory was worried and relieved at the same time.
'I think they feel the same way about me, as I feel them as a warm blanket.'
That day, the Grand Duke's family, including Chession, stayed by Gremory's side all day. Isolene took measurements of her body, promising to give her a new dress, and Anna followed her around all day, chattering like a nightingale. The nuns took turns checking to see if Gremory was properly attached to the house.
Five days passed like that. Gremory thought that people's attention was not a bad thing, but she was still worried.
Deep at night, Gremory wrapped herself in a soft blanket and asked Iris.
"Hey, Iris. Are you sure it's okay?"
- I said it's okay. I understand you're worried, but my brother isn't that weak. Even if the witch chasers come, he won't be easily defeated.
"...Yes."
Just when she was about to fall asleep in peace, Gremory's pupils turned bright red.
'It's an Intruder.'
Someone broke into the second floor west, near Isolene's bedroom.
***
Chession couldn't sleep that night. It was because he felt like spies were frequenting the royal family lately.
'You'll be satisfied with having me kicked out of the palace.'
The reason why Chession was banished from the palace and became the Grand Duke was clear. It was because of Iris, who was being hunted as a witch.
When Iris turned 15, the Emperor ordered Chession to go on a monster extermination expedition. Feeling ominous about the sudden order, Chession returned as quickly as possible, but the incident had already happened. He was found with Iris, her tongue half cut off after being hunted as a witch.
Chession held his half-conscious sister in his arms and cried, venomous towards the royal family.
'I was going to kill them all. My father, my brothers, anyone.'
At the same time, Chession awakened the strongest of the royal family's abilities, the power of battle. At that time, no one could stop Chession.
The Emperor felt his life was in danger due to his supernatural power. The Emperor, who could foresee someone's death, foresaw the annihilation of the Imperial Family and proposed a deal to Chession.
What Chession demanded was a ban on witch hunts in the Empire. He wanted the Imperial House to declare that there were no witches in the world and that witch hunts were nothing more than a means for political gain.
Instead, he declared that he would go to the borderland with Iris and not approach the palace without permission, and the land he obtained was the Ethel Grand Duchy. From then on, Chession became a Grand Duke who could not enter the palace without permission or an invitation from the imperial family.
The contract between the Emperor and Chession was kept a secret. So much so that even Chession's brothers did not know about it. It was because of the Emperor's greed to somehow place Severian, the son of the current Empress, on the throne.
'If it becomes known to the world that I have the power to destroy the imperial family, Severian will lose the trust of the people.'
The following was a series of hardships. When it was difficult to manage the barren Grand Duchy, intruders came and went every single day. They were both warnings and spies from the Emperor who feared Chession.
'Because of the clause in the contract that said they couldn't send assassins to each other, they just sent a ton of spies."
In the meantime, because it was a land where witches lived, all communication with other territories was completely cut off. Even if the Emperor had declared that there were no witches in the world, it was difficult for the people's long-held beliefs to disappear all at once. Because of this, all the people of the territory were in danger of starving to death in the winter. And Iris thought that it was her fault that her brother and the people of the territory had ended up like this...
Shr climbed up to the stake herseIf.
"...Shit."
Chession raised his head and looked out the window at the night sky: No matter how hard he tried to forget, it was a memory he could never forget.
'If Mori hadn't told me what Iris said, I would have continued to suffer and followed Iris.'
It was a long night. Chession spent the early morning drinking a glass of strong alcohol for the first time in a long time. He was secretly calling out Iris' name, who must still be somewhere in the Grand Duke's residence.
"Iris. Are you listening?"
There was no answer, but Chession continued speaking.
"You know, I've been able to live thanks to Mori these days. Just thinking about her makes me smile."
It was clear that after enduring and persevering through the hard times, light had finally come. Chession vowed to protect Mori from the damn witch chasers.
Just then, someone knocked loudly.
"Your Highness, I have finished interrogating the two intruders we captured earlier."
"Yes, let's go."
Chession headed to the torture chamber in the basement of the mansion. The knights had tortured them properly, as the two assassins began to confess everything as soon as they saw Chession.
"We are assassins sent by His Highness the Crown Prince Severian!"
"What? Severian? Not a spy sent by the Emperor, or an assassin sent by one of my enemies, but an assassin sent by Severian?"
"Yes! I understand that he sent us because he was angry at receiving the spirit of contempt!"
"Ha."
Chession was dumbfounded.
'I guess that stupid Severian did something because he didn't know about the secret contract between me and the Emperor. This is a clear breach of contract.'
According to the contract, the Imperial Family and the Grand Duke of Ethel cannot send assassins against each other. While pondering what to do about this situation, one of the assassins confessed.
"Your Highness, the Grand Duke. We are not the only assassins hired by His Highness the Crown Prince."
"What?"
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment