68.
“I’m sorry. I just saw the letter you sent.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t really expect you to see it in time anyway,” Rudis replied gently. His soft gaze settled on me like his words, and my heart sank. Because I had realized the answer to the riddle.
“More than that, I’ve been worried about whether you’ve been safe.”
Now that I understood Eon’s intentions, there was no time to explain everything.
“You have to get out of here. Now.”
“Pardon?”
Rudis, who looked confused, was quickly led by me to the entrance.
“The Tower Master is aware of you.”
Three times. That was how many times Eon had seen Rudis with me. Once at the hunting grounds, once on the night of our escape attempt, and now today. Thinking he wouldn’t care about Rudis had been a selfish assumption on my part.
Rudis coming to the Tower today had been a big mistake. He should have just sent reinforcements through Commander Hanson. He should have worked more discreetly, outside of Eon’s view.
My mind was spinning with thoughts. Then suddenly, a warm, firm touch enveloped my hand. I turned my head to see Rudis quietly shaking his head.
“I came here today to be with you, my lady. I truly appreciate your concern, but I’m neither cowardly nor weak enough to abandon someone I need to protect.”
“But…”
“Commander Hanson may be cautious of the Tower Master, but we still have a chance. And today, the Chancellor of Bainan is behind him. A strong ally—and a watchful observer.”
His calm, quiet voice soothed my anxious heart.
“Anyway, the Duke of Razpalin and Commander Hanson will keep the Tower Master occupied for a while. In that time, could you guide me to that place?”
“That place?”
“The exhibition room you mentioned before. I believe I can find decisive evidence there that will shock everyone. Even if today’s investigation is ruined by that wicked Tower Master.”
“Miss!”
Mary’s sharp voice turned my head. I saw Count Hyren and Mary facing off on the stairs to the second floor. It was clear he was harassing Mary, who had left his household to serve me. I rushed over.
“Wait! What do you think you’re doing?”
As I approached, I saw the Count gripping Mary by the hair.
“Well, how have you been? Judging by your face, seems like you’ve been living quite comfortably.”
“Let go of her. Now.”
“This?” The Count looked at the brown hair twisted between his fingers.
“You’re giving me orders now? I see getting close to the Tower Master has made you bold.”
“Count Hyren. Even if a maid was rude, could you overlook it today? You didn’t come here for petty fights, did you?”
Rudis’s voice came from behind. The Count roughly let go of Mary’s hair. If she hadn’t grabbed the railing, she would have tumbled down.
“Well then, lead the way.”
“To where?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know. I heard there’s something interesting on the fourth floor of the Tower. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about.”
‘He knows about the exhibition room?’
My eyes wandered before settling on Rudis, who stood beside me with his crimson eyes. As if he had been waiting, he spoke.
“My lady, no need to be so wary. Count Hyren is here at my request to support us.”
The Count had legal troubles with the Tower, and if there was a chance to bring Eon down, he’d latch on like a dog. Someone must have deliberately drawn the Count into Rudis’s plan, knowing this.
‘It’s a reasonable decision, but…’
Because of the Count, Rudis’s group—who should have looked like rescuers—now felt more like villains.
“Right, right. We go way back, don’t we?” Count Hyren smiled like a kindly father. Knowing the filth hidden behind that smile only made it more disgusting. But the problem was Rudis.
I had never told him about the Count’s personality. Nor had I mentioned the nature of our relationship. Karina knew, but there was no way she had told him about the internal matters of the Hyren household. Rudis probably believed he was my birth or adoptive father.
And this wasn’t the time to go explaining my family drama.
“Fine. I’ll take you to the exhibition room.”
Though uncomfortable about the Count’s presence, I decided to go with them.
I opened the door to the exhibition room, taking the lead. I had left Mary behind. She thought this place was just like any noble’s estate. There was no need for her to see this.
“Well now, what a grim atmosphere,” the Count said, not with fear, but with excitement—like he’d just found a jackpot. It annoyed me, stirring both anger and defiance.
Before turning on the lights, I warned Rudis. He was a sensitive person, and I knew the shock would be worse for him than it had been for me.
“Sir Rudis, don’t be too surprised.”
As someone approached, the glowing stones in the front display case lit up. Under the bluish light, a woman with brown hair and green eyes appeared.
“Am I getting old? That almost looks like a person.”
The Count squinted and leaned forward, then let out a shriek.
“Good heavens!”
His stumble triggered the light in another display case behind him. Seeing more, he began screaming like he’d seen ghosts.
“Oh my!”
Trapped between going forward or back, he tripped and fell flat on the floor.
“Hah…”
Rudis, on the other hand, was more composed than I expected. He only let out a deep, weary sigh, as if he had inherited Karina’s steel.
“So the Tower Master calls these… exhibits?”
Rudis leaned close to the glass and muttered. The clearly defined pupils and irises, the finely planted eyelashes, the visible veins and pores—it was a perfectly preserved corpse.
“This… this is it! This is the perfect evidence to bring down that criminal—no, the Tower Master! No, not even prison is enough. Straight to the guillotine!”
From the brightly lit end of the exhibition room, Count Hyren shouted, a mix of horror and ecstasy in his voice. The corpses lining the wall, lit up by the glowing stones he activated, now stood revealed.
“To think he made a graveyard like this. He’s put all his crimes on display.”
“It’s not a graveyard.”
The voice that silenced him was a child’s.
Rudis, the Count, and I all turned toward the sound.
“A kid?”
I spoke first, then ran toward the child.
“How did you get up?”
That morning, he’d only been sitting on a bed. And now he had walked here on his own. I was happy he was up—but the timing couldn’t be worse.
‘Wait… here?’
This was no place for a child. The Count’s loud voice must have agitated him.
“Come on, let’s go back to your room. This place isn’t for you.”
I wanted to call a maid, but the situation didn’t allow it. And the boy was still a secret.
“Who is he?”
Meanwhile, Rudis and the Count were observing him.
“Silver hair and violet eyes. He really does resemble the Tower Master.”
At this point, no matter how much Eon denied it, we couldn’t hide the child anymore.
“He’s the Tower Master’s nephew.”
That was the best I could come up with on short notice.
“He had a nephew?”
The Count narrowed his eyes suspiciously but changed the subject.
“You said this isn’t a graveyard?”
“Right.”
I didn’t expect such a tiny child to speak like that to an adult.
‘Well… he is three hundred years old.’
Given the boy’s real age, it wasn’t strange. But from appearances, he was just a child. And neither Rudis nor the Count could know his real age.
The Count’s flared nostrils showed he was excited.
“Alright, let’s go back to your room now.”
I tugged the boy, but he didn’t budge. He seemed interested in the conversation.
“If it’s not a graveyard, then what is it?”
“A shabby exhibit room.”
“Ha! Like uncle, like nephew. Speaking just like that criminal.”
“I’m just stating the facts, old man.”
The Count, provoked by the word “old man,” exploded.
“Where did you learn to speak like that?”
“That’s enough, Count. He’s just a child. Please, don’t forget what’s important,” Rudis said more firmly now, perhaps even regretting bringing the Count here.
“Sir Rudis, I’ll take the boy back to his room.”
I exchanged glances with Rudis and was about to leave when the child suddenly raised his hand. Then, like a conductor, he began to move his arm.
“What are you doing? What’s that?”
A strange sensation washed over me, like sound slicing through skin. Even the tiny hairs on my body responded to it. It was unpleasant—something was digging into me, trying to unravel me from within.
“There’s something I want to show Selly.”
