CHAPTER 38…………………………………………….
“Is that all?”
Yugire asked as she walked deeper into the forest.
Given Laseil’s personality, there was no way he would have come to her with only that much information.
“I talked to the ghosts. They said they smelled earth…”
“Could it be that?”
Before they had even gone far inside, something suddenly sprang out.
At a glance, it looked like something that could easily be mistaken for an evil spirit.
“…So it really was a corpse.”
Yugire muttered irritably. There was no need to think further.
The twisted mana clinging to it explained perfectly why the corpse had ended up in such a state.
‘First, I’ll have to clean it up.’
Manipulating mana to remove it didn’t require an incantation.
It was no different from wiping dirt off an object.
As soon as Yugire made a light gesture with her hand, the warped mana dissipated.
“I figured as much.”
As expected, what lay before them was just an ordinary corpse.
It no longer moved, and there were no signs of revival.
Though there was a faint scent of spirits and black magic lingering on it.
‘Why now, of all times?’
Still, something felt off.
For one thing, it was suspicious that a spirit had intervened at this exact timing.
Guests had been invited—if things went wrong, rumors could spread quickly.
It was hard not to suspect deliberate intent.
‘Luring spirits isn’t even difficult.’
Making contracts or summoning spirits was difficult, yes.
But once summoned, spirits could be easily drawn in by trivial things.
In a territory where black magic existed, it would have been even easier.
‘What am I supposed to tell Miss Direna?’
Until a clear explanation emerged, she obviously wouldn’t be satisfied.
Silencing her with a bit of intimidation was certainly possible, but…
‘Still, it feels pitiful.’
Direna had already been thoroughly trampled by Yugire just last night.
Stepping on her like that twice might invite unnecessary trouble.
‘What a miserable existence.’
She wouldn’t become the heir anyway, yet she struggled so desperately—it was rather pathetic.
She didn’t even seem to realize that no matter how much she contributed to the family, nothing would ever return to her.
From Yugire’s perspective, Direna’s defiance was amusing.
But someone who didn’t get tired of being stepped on, no matter how many times—it was only Direna Karen.
“Is there any chance it could become contaminated again?”
While Yugire was lost in thought, Laseil asked.
If the spirit returned, it could definitely become a problem again.
“We’ll need to find the cause. There probably won’t be an issue for a while, but…”
Yugire stopped mid-sentence.
A fact she had overlooked suddenly came to mind.
“…Was there originally a body buried here?”
Of course, many people had died near the forest.
But she had never seen one buried this neatly, in such good condition.
Once the question arose, more followed.
“Laseil. Put it down. There’s something I need to check.”
Yugire approached the corpse again as it was placed back on the ground and bent down.
She carefully examined the mana entangled around it once more.
‘Why are all traces of black magic… recent?’
Living in this territory meant one couldn’t avoid some degree of black magic influence.
But it was usually so minor it caused no harm.
‘Then this person wasn’t from the territory.’
Which meant someone had deliberately dumped a spirit-contaminated corpse here.
But who?
‘There were no signs of outsiders entering. No—there was one thing we didn’t check.’
The path through the forest.
Because no sane person would go that deep, they had left it alone.
‘A normal person would’ve died long ago. So either a mage or a spirit contractor.’
It seemed they’d need to go deeper into the forest.
Having reached a rough conclusion, Yugire turned back.
First, she intended to get rid of the most troublesome presence—Direna.
“Already heading back?”
“I need to see the guests off.”
In any case, the ghost rumors hadn’t spread much among the guests.
Thanks to Janes making such a fuss, it probably even turned people off.
‘Good thing Miss Janes behaved just as expected.’
Most of them likely hadn’t believed the rumor.
After all, Janes was famous for causing a commotion over trivial matters.
Yugire quickened her pace, reorganizing her thoughts as she walked.
Meanwhile, at the same time, Direna was alone in her room, lost in thought after thought.
‘Should I have just gone back?’
Left alone, she found she had surprisingly little to do.
With even Yugire—the only person she could talk to—gone, it felt worse.
‘Does it make sense to leave a guest like this?’
Of course, it was Direna’s own stubborn choice to stay.
Still, she hadn’t expected to be treated with absolutely no hospitality.
Just as irritation began to rise, the door suddenly opened.
“Miss Direna? There’s something I need to talk about.”
Direna jumped to her feet.
She was about to protest the lack of knocking, but Yugire spoke first.
“The issue you were worried about has been resolved.”
“Ah… really? You must have been in a hurry, barging in like this. How considerate of you—not knocking so I’d be startled.”
“Something like that.”
“……”
‘Is she messing with me right now?’
Today’s Yugire seemed to have no intention of properly engaging in conversation.
Normally, she would always throw back at least one remark.
But this dry, blunt response was unexpected.
“You’re free to leave now.”
She was even trying to kick Direna out.
At this point, it was impossible not to think she was hiding something.
“What are you hiding? Is it related to that ghost? How do you know what I’ll say once I go back?”
That was almost pure bluff.
Without knowing what Yugire was hiding, Direna would have to make something up.
But once rumors spread, someone was bound to believe them.
“…Miss Direna.”
Yugire let out a small sigh and met her eyes directly.
“How many people do you think would believe that?”
“What did you say?”
“Well… wouldn’t they just assume you were acting out of resentment?”
It was frustrating, but Direna had no rebuttal.
At least at this moment, Yugire’s words were plausible.
“Everyone knows we don’t get along.”
“Then what exactly are you trying to say?”
Still, Yugire explaining things this kindly felt strange.
If she were truly planning to use this as leverage, she would have acted quietly.
“Hmm.”
Surprisingly, Yugire didn’t answer right away.
At first, it seemed like an act—but looking closer, she was genuinely thinking.
“How should I put this…?”
“Are you playing games with me?”
“Miss Direna, realistically speaking, bringing information about me back won’t significantly improve your standing within the family.”
“……”
“You already know that, right? So what I’m saying is—”
Yugire smiled faintly.
“I think we could become good friends.”
“Stop joking.”
“Well then, as it happens, I came across… a certain scandal involving Viscount Karen.”
‘So that’s why she brought this up?’
Direna sighed internally and straightened her posture.
This was just a way of tossing her some information in exchange for silence.
“Well? Interested?”
“Where did you hear that bastard’s story?”
“There’s been a lot of talk lately.”
She clearly had no intention of giving a precise answer.
Giving up on pressing further, Direna spoke again.
“What did you hear?”
“His bloodline is somewhat… impure.”
“…What?”
It was common knowledge that the current viscount had no wife.
The viscountess had died after childbirth, and Direna herself was an illegitimate child.
But if that statement was true…
“By the way, are you alright? It’s getting late.”
“I’m leaving now.”
Direna replied blankly, still without even putting on her coat.
The shock of what she’d just heard had wiped everything else from her mind.
“Ah—no. I should be going. May you be at peace.”
She tossed out a hasty farewell and rushed outside.
She didn’t even have the presence of mind to consider whether the goodbye was proper.
If she didn’t return to the capital immediately, her thoughts would only grow more tangled.
“Where’s the carriage…?”
As she frantically looked around, two figures caught her eye.
Laseil and Irenes.
‘What a ridiculous sight.’
Even in her confusion, the sight left her speechless.
