I recalled hearing the exact same question just the other day. We weren't close enough to worry about each other's health. Yet, the fact that he kept asking about my health seemed ominous.
"Do you have a headache or feel dizzy?"
From the looks of it, it seemed like he had noticed my headache. I might have frowned or pressed my temples without realizing it, so it wouldn't have been difficult for him to notice.
"How could the maids nearby possibly be healthy after going through such a thing?"
It was a situation where it wouldn't have been surprising if I had collapsed due to mental and physical weakness.
"Then, are there any symptoms, such as hearing strange sounds?"
Judging by how specifically he asked, it seemed like he had some kind of disease he was hoping I would catch.
"What do you mean by strange sound?"
I asked, pretending not to know, but Eon hadn't been mistaken. Lately, my ears had been buzzing so loudly that I wondered if this was tinnitus. It seemed to have started after Karen died. No, perhaps even earlier, since Tara died, or maybe even since I came to the Magic Tower.
It sounded like a human voice, or perhaps just the buzzing of the wind. However, seeing him wait for an answer with such persistent eyes, I no longer wanted to tell him the truth.
“Otherwise, that’s okay.”
Just then, the first dish arrived. It was a salad with tomatoes, jamón, and cheese.
"Oh dear, I forgot to ask them to leave out the tomatoes."
Eon acted like he knew about my preferences again.
"I really like tomatoes."
Actually, I didn't have any strong feelings about tomatoes, but I shoved a round slice of tomato into my mouth as if to show off. Though it would be a stretch to expect him not to identify me with the real Sally just because of this.
"I see. You really eat well."
Eon, who had been staring blankly at the tomato going into my mouth, pushed his plate toward me.
"Then please finish mine."
What is this? The development was completely different from what I expected.
"Surely... you didn't mean to ask to leave out the tomatoes..."
"Yes, that was my story. But since Miss Selinia likes it so much, I'm glad I didn't ask to leave it out."
He smiled.
'What, what is this?'
I wondered if they had sprinkled poison on the salad. Of course, the vegetables, my esophagus, and my stomach were perfectly fine for that. Above all, it was much more efficient to just get rid of me unnoticed in the magic tower rather than bringing me to the restaurant and poisoning me.
“Thank you.”
I unintentionally ended up eating a lot of salad, and then the second dish came out.
"It is pea soup with ground onions and potatoes."
There were two cute peas on top of the colorful light green soup.
“Oh my.”
Another sigh escaped Eon's lips. I looked at Eon with eyes that asked what the problem was this time.
"Peas? Today's soup is a total failure."
'What? Are you being picky about food again?'
I had never once shared a meal with Eon until now. I hadn't realized there were so many foods he wouldn't eat. However, the more fundamental problem wasn't his picky eating.
'Is it really necessary to reveal that so blatantly in front of me?'
Even if I had not been treated properly at the Count's estate, I had learned the basic etiquette of the nobility. The virtue of the nobility was not to reveal one's feelings or likes and dislikes in front of others. Pretending to be fine even when displeased, and feigning composure even when happy.
'The current Eon is like...'
So, he was just like a little kid who was denied food at the orphanage.
"Surely you don't eat peas, do you?"
"I hate all kinds of beans. I don't eat them."
He pushed the soup to one side. The way he turned his head, scrunching his nose, also seemed like an expression I had often seen at the orphanage. And it was the slightly older kids like me who were responsible for feeding those little ones.
I took a spoonful of soup first and spoke as a habit.
"Oh, this is delicious."
When shown this reaction, the little kid, whose ears were perked up, opened his tightly closed mouth.
"If it's delicious, Miss Selinia can eat it all."
However, Eon was not a little kid.
'What the heck, a murderer being so picky about food.'
Of course, just because he was a murderer didn't mean he couldn't have food preferences. However, it was rather ridiculous to see a huge adult man, who looked like he wouldn't shed a single drop of blood even if stabbed, shaking his head like that in front of peas.
"You are more picky about food than I thought."
The little kid soon realized that if he was a picky eater, nothing would go into his mouth, so he stopped indulging in such luxuries. However, the man before me likely had no need to do so.
"I got scolded a lot when I was young. But now that there is no one to scold me, wouldn't it be okay for me to do as I please?"
'I can't believe you got scolded.'
I inwardly gaped at the word, which was completely out of character for him. Eon looked quite wronged as he spoke, as if he had been severely scolded. I felt that if I offered him another bite, the blame would fall on me.
"That's right. Eat as much as you want. After all, you've grown up so well. Well."
For a moment, I wondered who might have been the one who scolded Eon for being a picky eater. After all, it seemed as though Eon was the only member of the Marquis de Grannois family.
'Should I ask? Or not?'
'Does knowing that help with the escape? It doesn't, does it?'
'How did he become such a murderer when he has a family?'
While I was contemplating, the pea soup was removed from the table, and the steak was placed on it.
"Where are they?"
Eventually, a question slipped out of my mouth. Eon, who had been elegantly moving his knife, looked at me with a look that seemed to ask who I was asking.
"The ones who told the Tower Master not to be picky."
She was probably his mother or nanny. Whether because she was eccentric herself or died early, she was someone who contributed to shaping Eon's twisted personality.
"That person..."
Eon was silent for a moment. It seemed that the longing for someone who was no longer in this world had silenced him.
'I guess it’s sad that his family died, too.'
Considering that he nonchalantly stuffed the maids he had killed with his own hands, I naturally felt no sympathy for him. On the contrary, he even seemed repulsive.
Eon spoke again in a low voice.
“It was Sally.”
I dropped my fork without realizing it. I never imagined Sally would pop out at this point.
"Are you saying that the person who told you not to be a picky eater was Sally?"
"Yes. He told me I have to eat beans, too. I used to say, 'Tomatoes are so delicious, how can you not eat them?'"
Eon even put on a rather coy expression, as if possessed by Sally.
I was speechless. Eon's imitation was one thing, but those were the kind of things a woman old enough to be a mother would say to a child. I wondered what kind of relationship she had with Sally to have said something like that.
"I thought Sally was your lover, but it looks like she's your mother."
"Sally was not a being that could be defined so simply."
Eon's eyelashes cast a deep shadow, and a wistful look settled around his eyes. It seemed that he automatically made that expression whenever Sally was mentioned.
"She was a mother, a lover, and a friend. To me, she was simply the world itself."
Goosebumps rose on my forearm in a different sense than before. It wasn't just the expression that changed; spring flowers fluttered from the voice that had been like midwinter frost.
“How do you feel?”
“What is it?”
"At this level, wouldn't it be okay to be called Sally?"
I couldn't understand at all what connection there was between the fact that that woman was everything to the murderer and me being called Sally.
"The Tower Master already has plenty of Sallys, doesn't he?"
"If you are concerned about the other Sallys, I will get rid of them all."
"No. There is no need for that. I have absolutely no desire to be called Sally."
I put down my knife and even waved both hands. The words 'clear everything away' sounded like he meant he would dispose of Researcher Sally's death and the body in the exhibition room.
"I see. That's a shame."
Attempting to talk to Eon in the first place was a mistake. I stuffed the steak into my mouth.
'Whether it's tomatoes, peas, or Sally, it has nothing to do with me. The dead are dead, and I just need to eat well, get by, and escape from here. What else can I do?'
I decided to focus only on filling my stomach without worrying about the man sitting in front of me.
A quiet meal ensued for a while. Eon remained silent, perhaps thinking of Sally or whatever. During that time, new dishes were brought up and taken down several times.
It was when the herbal tea was placed on the table for the last time that Eon spoke again.
"Come to think of it, we'll need to hire new people."
“Who are you?”
It sounded like he intended to kidnap someone, so I tightened my grip on the glass.
"Now that Karen is gone, wouldn't you need a maid to attend to Miss Selinia?"
"You know my background well, don't you? I'm doing just fine on my own, so don't worry."
It looked like he was going to assign a new supervisor.
"I think that kid would be good..."
Eon spoke as he brought the teacup to his lips. It seemed he had no intention of listening to my opinion from the start.
"Did you say, Mary?"
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