There’s nothing special.

Past emotions have worn out, passing through slightly tired days,

And such time continues even now.

“What are you doing sitting there?”

“……Just being here.”

Today, I stopped by Windsor Street to visit mother’s grave.

Charlotte leaned her head against the tombstone. The solid stone supported Charlotte’s body, and that day she sat like that.

Leandro looked down at the back of his granddaughter.

Leaning sideways against the gravestone, her dark red hair had grown so long it completely covered her back.

“Are you on your way back from the activity period worship ceremony?”

“You knew?”

“The monster activity period has begun, so it’s time for the temple to hold the worship ceremony.”

Charlotte adjusted her long sleeves.

The red fabric was vivid in color and the black was even deeper. The layered ceremonial robes were low in saturation.

“Many have forgotten, but you remember.”

“The current empire has almost forgotten.”

“Because they erased all traces, making everyone forget since the time of the previous generations.”

Those who fought against monsters and their deaths were all covered up.

In the past, previous generations erased the honor and dignity imbued in those swords, and silenced those sacrifices.

Old customs were forgotten that way.

“It’s a ritual to comfort those who fought and died against monsters. Even if the past imperial family forgot those sacrifices, now it must be different.”

It was customary for the empress to pray at the temple during the activity period.

It was an old custom that had been lost, but originally in times of public unrest, it was common to seek stability by looking to old ways.

“You came to keep vigil by the tombstone without notice.”

Leandro closed the distance with his granddaughter.

His steps on the soil were slow. Those steps held hesitation.

Stopping at an appropriate distance showed his cautiousness.

“……How inconsiderate.”

The granddaughter, sitting on the bare ground without anything to sit on, kept vigil by her mother’s tombstone.

“As an elder of the imperial family, you mustn’t violate palace etiquette and rules. I’ll tell a servant to bring something to sit on.”

“I have to leave soon.”

“How long have you been here?”

Leandro regretted his words as soon as he said them. They sounded as if they were trying to keep that child in place.

“I’ll visit again next time. It seems I’ve been away from my post for too long.”

Soon after, the guards accompanying her from the palace approached.

Leandro observed proper etiquette at the sight. However, the concern in his gaze remained.

“Then please take care on your way.”

[This is the timeline separator]

The carriage passed through the central square of the imperial city.

It was when they were passing the large street, beyond the memorial tower where the memorial service was once held.

“Oh my! Whoa! Calm down!”

The coachman struggled to calm the horses. Charlotte removed her arm from the carriage window sill. A guard knocked on the door beside her.

When she pushed the window open with her fingertips, Catarina bowed and reported.

“The carriage wheel got stuck in a rainwater hole. My apologies.”

“You have nothing to apologize to me for.”

Charlotte opened the carriage door and got out.

“It’s getting late.”

Tilting her head back, she quietly looked up at the street clock. The second hand of the clock tower indicated the time.

She covered her shoulders with a shawl and hid her face with a hood. Her dark red hair was concealed within.

The imperial ceremonial robes were also hidden.

“As evening approaches, the day is getting colder.”

“When we left, the sun was just rising, but we’ve been away for a long time.”

“The temple worship ceremony lasted until late afternoon, so that’s understandable.”

The Pope tried hard to keep Haneli at the worship ceremony due to its symbolism,

But Haneli, who detested worship ceremonies, had already disappeared with a bottle of alcohol that day.

“I heard the Pope suffers from high blood pressure, it must not be just a rumor.”

As she finished speaking those words vaguely.

Catarina placed her hand on her scabbard.

“Your Majesty. I sense an ominous presence.”

The imperial guards gripped their scabbards tightly, ready to draw at any moment.

“Please step back.”

Ah, somehow it was a familiar person. It was a servant who used to work at the Tuteher house, but he kept bending his body like a scarecrow tied with strings.

“……Send him away quietly.”

“Ah, young lady. It’s me. I, I served you at the Tuteher house. Have, have you forgotten me?”

That thin voice was eerie, as if gravel had been put in his throat and scraped roughly.

“Is this someone you know?”

“It seems so.”

“What should we do?”

“This is the imperial city street. Don’t act disorderly.”

“Then, I’ll discreetly remove him.”

The imperial guards covered his mouth and led him into an alley.

He limped. It looked as if he had been mauled by a beast. His skin was rotting black and his ankle was twisted and sprained.

Blood vessels bulged in his neck. Those blood vessels were black. Black blood circulated in his eyes, consuming his life force.

“What on earth is that condition?”

That day, both her father and now this connection to the Tuteher house.

She thought she had cut ties, but were they never truly severed to begin with?

Those steps changed direction.

Charlotte followed him directly into the alley.

“It’s a terrible sight.”

“If he appeared before me in such a state, there must be a reason.”

He crumpled like a wet cotton ball.

“Then, it’s right for me to check personally.”

Charlotte waved her arm, trailing off her words.

“Don’t block the path.”

He scratched his neck with his arm. As if that itch wasn’t relieved, he dug into his skin with his nails, and rolled on the ground scratching his forehead.

Blood vessels appeared in his eyes, and blood pooled in his eyeballs.

“……Hi, hide me. The, the head of the household will kill me if he finds me. Pl, please, don’t forget our past connection. Huk!”

He strangled himself.

“Kkeuk kkeuk!”

Catarina blocked Charlotte’s view. However, Charlotte had already seen the corpse of the dead man.

‘I didn’t mean to see such a sight.’

Her gaze fell on the corpse of the dead man.

It was a familiar person.

Though the emotions weren’t good and she had cursed them, she hadn’t wished for such a death.

“He’s dead.”

“Have his breathing and pulse both stopped?”

Charlotte’s tone was calm. Most people show agitation when speaking of death, but there was no such sign.

That appearance was strange, and Catarina checked his pulse again with her hand.

“His pulse has stopped. Was he really someone you knew? Perhaps you mistook him for someone else?”

“Seeing a familiar face, he was indeed a servant of the Tuteher house.”

Charlotte muttered lowly, as if scratching her throat.

“It’s strange. Why in such a state here…….”

“He clearly looked ill.”

Charlotte narrowed her eyes.

“Is the carriage ready?”

“The wheel was crushed, it will take a bit longer to replace.”

“Then, send someone to the palace to report the situation. I need to visit the Tuteher house.”

The day to walk into that house on her own feet came earlier than expected.

[This is the timeline separator]

The main gate of the Tuteher house opened.

It wasn’t even locked to begin with.

‘It’s quiet.’

There’s no sign of life. The inside was too silent.

‘Why…….’

Around sunset should be the busiest time.

It was when they should be chopping firewood, and the smell of food preparation should be wafting gently.

There was no such sign. The surroundings were engulfed in darkness, and only an empty mansion greeted people.

“Stay here. I’ll go inside to check.”

The imperial guards crossed the main gate.

Charlotte also followed the guards across the threshold.

There are no people.

Not even a bit of crisis or discomfort.

In the past, this place felt suffocating and like a prison, but now it felt like a desolate field.

“There’s no sign of life.”

If people had lived here, even if they were away, there should be traces left.

Here, everything was cut off.

“Just one day.”

Those in uniforms stepped over the mansion’s threshold. They were information officers from the palace.

Benjamin blended in with the information officers, thoroughly capturing the mansion.

“He’s slipped away.”

“I didn’t expect him to disappear in that state.”

“Who would have known he could flee when he looked so ill?”

It was a mistake to approach quietly because it was the Empress’s family home. He had already left.

“Is there no sign of life inside, and have the footprints been identified?”

“There are no footprints leading outside.”

“Then they disappeared inside.”

Benjamin narrowed his eyes and ordered the information officer.

“Search the mansion.”

“We’ll investigate.”

The information officer search team’s investigation proceeded quickly. Soon, one information agent came out of the mansion to report.

“The house is empty.”

“What about the servants?”

“They’ve all vanished.”

Benjamin narrowed his eyes.

“Is there no other sign of life?”

“There is one small sign.”

The information officer gestured towards the inside of the mansion and reported.

“There’s a small room, but when we tried to check, the door was locked. When we tried to force it open, we heard crying…….”

Somehow, I think I know who it is.

“I’ll go in and see.”

The mansion’s layout was familiar. The past years bound in this suffocating house led her to find the paths even with eyes closed.

A long corridor stretched out. All the candles were extinguished, leaving only dim darkness.

‘Sob. Sob.’

As she grasped the doorknob, the breathing stopped.

“It’s me.”

The door was still locked.

“I’m coming in.”

When Catarina struck the doorknob with her scabbard, the door opened. The inside was engulfed in darkness.

That child was hiding, but there was only one place a child that size could hide here.

‘Just as I did when I was young.’

Charlotte lifted the tablecloth on the side table.

“You’re too old for hide-and-seek, but you hid well.”

That child was on the verge of fainting from fear.

Her complexion was pale, and cold sweat soaked the child’s neck.

“She’s too weak. It would be best to take her outside to see a doctor.”

Catarina advised from beside her.

Her pupils were already dilated and her fingertips were tattered. As if she had been constantly biting her fingertips with her teeth, her fingers were a mess.

“Take this child outside.”

“N-no. Don’t. If I go out, it, it hurts.”

“It won’t hurt.”

“Everyone said it hurts.”

“There’s no one here anymore, Henrietta.”

Henrietta wedged her small body under the side table.

Her short auburn hair was a tangled mess. The child was already on the verge of fainting. Her breathing became rapid as she gasped for air.

“Ah.”

Charlotte let out a small sigh and groaned.

‘The reason I came here so familiarly.’

This child resembled herself. The self from that most gloomy period.

That’s why she dislikes but can’t hate this child, and dislikes but can’t dislike her.

‘How did we end up like this?’

A presence approached from behind.

“The inside is empty.”

Benjamin approached, ruffling his short hair.

“Any other signs of life?”

“Even the traces have been erased.”

“Then, this child is alone.”

It doesn’t seem right to leave this child here alone.

Charlotte reached her hand under the side table. The delicate wrist was particularly thin. Still, the outstretched arm was firm.

“Let’s go out. Come here.”

“…….”

“I’ll help you out, so come out.”

“I don’t want to be alone.”

“Let’s go out together.”

Why does looking at this child make her feel depressed, she wonders.

Is it because this child resembles herself?

“……I want to go out.”

That was the last thing Henrietta whispered.

After that, she fainted right there.