“What’s going on?”

“…Iana.”

Iana? Rejim’s younger sister? The one who was recuperating in a remote rural area?

Why was that name suddenly mentioned here?

Without even thinking about the appearance of that name, I giggled. Then, the terrifying nightmare became a reality.

“Iana is dead.”

In an instant, a despair that left me helpless covered my entire body. It felt as if someone was blocking the light, trapping me in a deep abyss without a single ray.

Revanthel twisted his face as if he were someone who had just had a terrible nightmare.

“Sister… Sister… Just a moment.”
I stood up as if possessed and approached Revanthel. At that moment, I heard a suppressed breathing sound from beside Revanthel. As I tilted my head, I saw Rejim sitting in the corridor, leaning against the wall with his face buried in his hands.

His cheeks, not covered by his palms, were drenched with tears. The sight felt like someone had painfully torn my heart out. I couldn’t breathe, and all my thoughts came to a standstill.

When I received a letter that Iana was unwell, and even when I returned after nursing her, Rejim never cried. He was someone who, rather than relying on emotions, approached things logically.

Yet, there he was, sitting in the corridor where everyone could see, sobbing without restraint.

“Iana is dead?”

It was real. It was truly a fact. The innocent child who had brightly laughed in my last memory had left.

The illusion of Iana’s laughter in my memory vanished like a mirage. In an instant, everything turned black before me, and my legs lost strength.

“Teri!”

Revanthel, who was standing at the door, caught me as I collapsed. As he held me, Revanthel’s arms trembled ever so slightly.

A gentle tremor.

A tremor barely suppressing the rising emotions.

The current reality cruelly asserted that this was not a dream.

We returned directly to the Leonhardt Empire. Before departure, I sent a letter to Ascal Marquis’s mansion through Reaven.

The journey was aided by Karayan’s spirit.

Riding the advanced spirit he summoned, Revanthel, Rejim, Elihu, and Karayan— the five of us moved first.

Since the spirit soared through the sky, we could arrive at the Leonhardt Empire much faster.

The marquis’s mansion we arrived at was eerily quiet, as if a storm were about to hit.

At the precise moment, Raven and Clint were standing in the marquis’s mansion’s garden. We descended slowly towards them.

Raven’s face was initially surprised when she saw us falling from the sky, but it lasted only for a moment.

“Iana. What about Iana?”

Rejim, descending from the spirit, clung to Raven’s arms and asked with a pained expression.

Raven, ignoring questions about how we arrived so quickly, turned her gaze towards the mansion without answering. Rejim rushed into the mansion, supported by Raven, as if crawling.

“…What happened?”

“Your Majesty.”

“Didn’t the reports say she was getting better? Rejim said so.”

Similarly descending from the spirit, Revanthel approached Raven. Raven, with a dark expression, murmured softly, fearing that the family inside the mansion might hear.

“We also received a sudden message. While practicing not to be frightened by Clint’s drawn sword, Ascal Marquis’s mansion had visitors.”

Raven, glancing at the gloomy mansion, whispered with a somber expression.
“I thought Rejim was at the palace… since his younger sister has passed away, it’s telling him to come back soon.”

“Aaaah!!!”

Just as Raven’s words ended, a loud, mournful wail echoed from inside the mansion, whose cries it belonged to was unclear.

It was a cry that felt like it could tear one’s throat apart. Even just hearing it conveyed the immense sorrow too strongly, to the point where one might prefer to block their ears.

The damp humidity had seeped into Ascal Marquis’s mansion. As I stared at the tightly closed mansion, I asked Raven and Clint,

“…Don’t we need to go in as well? Why are we standing here?”

“They said they don’t want outsiders entering,” Raven replied gloomily, staring at the closed entrance gate of the mansion. The unbearable grief beyond the closed door seeped through.

“Your Majesty.”

At that moment, Clint, who had been observing the mansion from behind, approached.

“It’s not certain, but we might need to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“I overheard the maids talking… They said Ascal’s beloved child’s corpse was completely dried up.”

“…What?”

Not only me but also Revanthel, Elihu, Raven, and Karayan all turned to Clint at once.

A completely dried-up corpse.

With that short sentence, dozens of arrogant thoughts came to mind. My stomach churned. My head spun, and breathing became difficult.

The corpses of the children I had seen before appeared in front of my eyes and then faded away like a vague illusion.

“…And? Is there anything else?”

I hoped desperately it wasn’t true. As I murmured my question, Clint lowered his gaze. With a small voice that seemed reluctant to answer, he said,

“The hair was completely white.”

Terrified of hearing Clint’s words, I turned my body away. Then, tightly gripping my hair, I faced the closed entrance of Ascal Marquis’s mansion.

“Your Majesty!”

Elifu, surprised by my abrupt actions, called out to me, but I didn’t stop. I walked towards the entrance, my heavy steps as if held by shadows.

The knights guarding the front suddenly approached, hesitating on whether to stop me or let me pass.

“If you block my way, I’ll kill you all.”

I declared loudly, like a tyrant, and forcefully swung open the tightly closed entrance gate. The mansion emitted a sinister smell of melancholy.

The gloomy mansion was so depressing that it almost tore apart. Unhappiness hid in the darkness, as if it would swallow the light like a greedy monster.

It’s all your fault.

The whisper carried by the humid wind echoed in my ears.

I dismissed the whisper and followed the sobbing sound towards the room where Iana was presumed to be. From that room, endless wailing could be heard.

‘No.’

My hands trembled, and my teeth chattered. I clenched my lower lip tightly to keep from trembling.

I had to confirm it. I had to confirm whether her death was caused by me.

The door to Iana’s room was open wide, as if hoping for her soul to return.

I walked into the room as if in a trance.
I saw Rejim lying next to the bed, shaking his shoulders. Lady Marquise was sitting on a corner chair, crying, and the Marquis was sitting on the floor, sobbing.

I walked past the Marquis and the Marquise. Startled, the Marquis, upon my entrance as an outsider, abruptly stood up to block my way.

“This place! You can’t be here!!”

However, I passed the Marquis indifferently and turned my eyes to the bed. Lady Marquise, who had stood up from the chair, hastily grabbed my leg.

“Empress! You can’t! It’s my daughter!!!”

It was the heart of parents who wanted to protect their dead daughter. They knew all too well that if it was related to the Perdix experiment, they couldn’t preserve that honor even if their daughter was dead.

So the two of them tried their best to obstruct my view.

But even against their opposition, I calmly walked forward.

Then, I finally saw the bed.

“……Empress, Your Majesty.”

Lying next to the bed.

Rejim, holding Iana’s emaciated hand, murmured tearfully.

“Iana, Iana… Huhuh. Iana… Damn it. Generva, Generva needs to be killed right away… Huhuh.”

On the bed, Iana was as if all the moisture had been drained from her body, and her hair had turned completely white.

Like a Perdix experiment subject.

“…….”

As if the grief that had devoured Ascal Marquis’s mansion had infected me, a single tear rolled down my cheeks.