At the faint whisper, Yunsol clenched her teeth, bracing herself for the pain that always followed.
But the pain never came.
Instead, a crisp chime rang in her ears.
Tiring—!
A quest window appeared.
[NEW!] The Blake Family’s Lost Artifact (1)
- Louis Blake, second son of Duke Blake, disappeared fourteen years ago.
- Hunt is impressed by Patia Blake’s devotion. Out of sympathy, he asks her to clarify exactly who “Louis Blake” is to her.
- Before beginning the search, define the scope.
▸ Determine the search scope (Incomplete)
▸ Reward: Determined based on response
Yunsol reread the description several times. Her throat tightened at the ominous phrasing: “asks her exactly what Louis Blake she’s looking for.”
At the bottom of the stairs, the Duchess looked up at her, eyes brimming with desperate hope.
“Sir… where is my Louis now?”
Her voice was trembling, but her gaze was filled with longing—longing for a miracle, just like the one she had received with Laura. Ethan, seated behind her, watched in silence, his violet eyes fixed sharply on Yunsol.
Yunsol helped the Duchess up and guided her into a chair, but words failed her. The quest description pulsed in her mind. Each line felt like it had descended from the heavens.
Hunt asks.
She swallowed, then forced herself to speak as the quest had written it.
“What exactly is Louis Blake to you, Madam?”
Patia blinked. “What… exactly?”
“Yes,” Yunsol said, her palms damp. “Please… specify the scope of your search.”
“What does that mean?” The Duchess’s brows furrowed, and her voice carried a tremor.
“It’s literal,” Ethan murmured, his tone low. He added grimly, “And they say it is… an act of generosity.”
Patia repeated the words faintly, as if speaking to herself. “Louis is my beloved child. Sweet, gentle, and kind. He brought smiles to everyone around him. An angel, who carried the happiness of others as though it were his own.”
Tiring!
[SYSTEM: Would you like to set the search scope to “child”?]
▸ Yes
▸ No
Yunsol quickly chose No. Fourteen years had passed—he couldn’t still be a child.
“He would be twenty-three now,” Patia continued, her voice trembling. “A young man. It breaks my heart every day that I’ve never watched him grow.”
Her gray, lifeless tone began to quiver, moisture softening it.
“I wonder if he’s healthy. If he suffered. If he’s fallen in love…”
[SYSTEM: Would you like to set the search scope to “youth”?]
▸ Yes
▸ No
‘You’re impatient, aren’t you?’ Yunsol thought bitterly. Still, she asked carefully, “Then… perhaps we should search among young men?”
“No.”
Ethan’s voice cut sharply across hers. His eyes hardened.
“The quest asked what Louis is—not who. That includes…” His jaw tightened. “…the possibility of his remains.”
“What nonsense are you spouting?” Patia turned to him with sudden fury. “Are you saying Louis is dead? That cruel thought—how could you?!”
She gripped Ethan’s shoulders, her nails digging so hard they looked as if they might pierce through the fabric.
“Have you thought all this time that Louis is dead?”
“Mother—”
“Ah! That’s it, isn’t it? That’s why you’ve always been so indifferent!”
Her shrill accusations filled the room. Even the physician looked alarmed, while Yunsol’s nerves tightened to the breaking point.
“I don’t care if Louis is gone—he’s still family! And you… you’re satisfied just searching for bones? Have you given up that easily? Are you even my son?”
That same searing expression from the annex flickered across Ethan’s face. Back then, Yunsol had scrambled to deflect the Duchess’s cruelty. But this time, Ethan raised his voice before she could intervene.
“Mother, please face reality!”
He tore himself from her grip, but seized her wrist in turn, holding it tightly. His deep purple eyes burned.
“Hunt asks you, ‘What is Louis Blake?’ If it were simply a matter of answering ‘a young man,’ would the gods really need to pose the question? Would mercy take such a form?”
His voice cracked as if tearing his throat raw.
“And if you say ‘youth’—and the answer comes back nowhere to be found—what then?!”
Yunsol flinched away at the raw pain in his words. She could hardly bear to watch.
“But… but…” Patia’s voice broke, and tears spilled at last. “Then what have I been living for…?”
A low, broken laugh escaped Ethan. Yunsol looked up, startled. His expression was contorted, his smile bitter and miserable. His hands fell limply at his sides, yet his gaze—sharp, unyielding—locked on his mother.
“Yes. It’s a shame, isn’t it? That Louis was the reason you endured life. Not me.”
His voice was laced with mockery, but beneath it pulsed his pain.
“You—!” Patia’s hand rose to strike.
But before her palm could fall, Yunsol darted forward and caught it.
“Madam,” she said, steady but firm.
Patia blinked in shock. “Agent…”
“You’re not well enough to be so agitated.” Yunsol gently guided her back into the chair, placing a teacup in her trembling hands.
Patia clutched the cup but did not drink. Her fingers shook, rippling the surface.
“…Forgive me.” Her voice was barely audible. “I lost myself again. I forget propriety whenever my son is mentioned. It is… my shame.”
But her “son” clearly referred only to Louis. Never Ethan.
The air turned heavy. Yunsol drained her own cup, then refilled it twice more in quick succession, trying to steady herself. She couldn’t help glancing at Ethan—his clenched jaw, his reddened eyes.
It had been less than a day since she arrived, and already she had seen Patia deny Ethan over and over.
She understood the grief of a mother mourning a lost child. But why did that grief always transform into cruelty toward the one who remained?
Her head throbbed.
She summoned the quest window again.
What exactly is Louis Blake?
The earlier options—child and youth—were gone. Only the question remained.
Alive or dead… Louis would always be something.
Yunsol took a slow breath.
“…Then let’s define him as bones.”
“Agent!” Patia gasped, trembling violently. The tea spilled from her cup. “Do not speak such words! Please… don’t!”
Her eyes glazed with hysteria, but Yunsol pressed on.
“The living also have bones,” she said softly.
“…What?”
“Whether he’s breathing or not—your twenty-three-year-old son has bones. His ribs, his skull, his spine. Where there are bones, there is Louis Blake. And if… if the worst should happen, and he has passed, then at least we can find him. Give him a funeral. Let him rest.”
Patia’s hand trembled harder, but Ethan only covered his eyes with his palm. No tears fell.
Yunsol knew she herself would have cried. She had cried, once, when her own mother’s hand had struck her cheek.
Shaking the thought away, she added quietly, “It’s neither just remains nor just the living. It applies to both. That’s why it’s the best choice.”
Ethan exhaled and turned to his mother. “What do you think?”
Patia hesitated, her hands fidgeting around the teacup. Finally, she whispered, “Yes… I think that will do.”
[SYSTEM: Would you like to set the search scope to “Louis Blake’s bones”?]
▸ Yes
▸ No
Yunsol felt as if Hunt himself was watching. She glanced instinctively at the ceiling, but nothing stirred.
She selected Yes.
Tiring—! Tiring—! Windows burst open in rapid succession.
[SYSTEM: Search scope set!]
[SYSTEM: Quest “The Blake Family’s Lost Artifact (1)” completed!]
[SYSTEM: Quest reward unlocked → “The Blake Family’s Lost Artifact (2)”!]
[NEW!] The Blake Family’s Lost Artifact (2)
- Duchess Blake follows her agent’s guidance to search for Louis Blake’s bones. But where could they be?
▸ Infiltrate ■■■ ■■
▸ Reward: Unlock “The Blake Family’s Lost Artifact (3)”
“…What’s with the black squares?” Yunsol rubbed her eyes.
“Agent?” Patia’s voice was hushed. “Did you find something?”
“Uh—no, the letters… ngh.”
A dull ache pressed behind Yunsol’s eyes. It wasn’t as sharp as before, but still, the false headache pulsed.
Through the haze, she saw the Duchess and Ethan staring at her, breath held, violet eyes gleaming with fragile hope.
