Chapter 11 …
I reached out desperately toward Azel, and he hurried toward me.
Relieved at the arrival of an ally, tears immediately streamed down my face.
I buried my face in his chest, crying bitterly, and felt hesitant hands wrap around my back.
I was already too out of my mind to be surprised that he hadn’t pushed me away.
“Where did you go?! Why did you leave me alone?!”
Of course, I knew.
It wasn’t Azel’s fault that I had been left alone.
“You were here! You… you actually came all the way here after me!”
But fear had completely consumed me.
The groans coming from behind made me even more terrified.
“Ugh… ughhh!”
I pointed with trembling hands at the spot where the ghost was, and Azel’s gaze followed my fingertip.
“I don’t want to stay here! Take me away! I was wrong. Please… please don’t leave me alone!”
He frowned slightly, but without a word, he picked me up and held me close.
“Shh… calm down.”
His large hands held me tightly as he moved somewhere. When I finally regained some awareness, we had arrived at Azel’s room.
I had never been in this place before, but I didn’t even think to look around.
Right now, the warmth of the person keeping me safe was all that mattered.
“Don’t go!”
“It’s okay.”
Fortunately, Azel didn’t ignore me.
“I won’t leave you alone.”
The gentle patting of his hands on my back made sleep overtake me before I even realized it.
I must have looked completely drained.
Perhaps sensing my exhaustion, his large hands gently covered my eyes. He still hesitated, but the touch was careful.
“Get some sleep.”
“…Don’t go. Stay right here, next to me.”
I whispered, scared, with my eyes closed, and I felt Azel settle beside me.
A faint voice answered, almost inaudible:
“Alright. I promise.”
The overwhelming sense of relief carried me into the world of unconsciousness.
And I fell asleep.
After she had fallen asleep.
A woman with short hair appeared beside Azel.
“There was no intruder.”
“I know.”
If anyone had snuck into this mansion, there was no way Azel wouldn’t have known.
An empty room.
A woman screaming at a vacant space.
What exactly did you see?
Then what had she seen?
The woman, who had been confident even in front of a murderous monster, had crumbled at a mere false illusion.
Yet what Azel couldn’t understand the most was himself.
“…Leave it.”
“I will observe.”
“Enough. I’ll handle it.”
When his subordinate stepped forward to remove the woman who was desperately holding Azel’s hand, he refused.
He even refused her offer to watch.
There was no reason.
He simply wanted it that way.
“Simore.”
“Yes, my lord?”
“What were the results?”
“The same as before. Nothing was discovered.”
The follow-up investigation ordered to identify the woman’s true identity had also yielded nothing. Everything remained at square one.
Auditory and visual hallucinations.
This isn’t something an ordinary person without magical power could easily claim.
Yet the woman’s past remained veiled in mystery.
You really…
As Azel’s gaze, heavy with concern, fell on her pale cheek, the short-haired woman spoke:
“How shall we handle the surveillance?”
“I’ll stay beside her, so you may withdraw.”
The subordinate had been assigned for monitoring, but now that the woman had fallen asleep next to him, she wasn’t needed.
Even after the two withdrew at the master’s command, Azel quietly stayed by her side.
Quiet dawn.
“Hey, get up already. How long are you planning to sleep?”
I vaguely woke up at the sound.
How long did I sleep?
My groggy mind slowly began to think.
Azel?
He was asleep, leaning against the head of the bed.
“Ah…”
I realized why he was in that awkward position: I had been holding his hand. Unable to pull away, he must have fallen asleep like this.
“It’s okay. I won’t leave you alone.”
He kept his promise…
The unexpected sense of warmth dampened my dry, aching heart.
He had really stayed by my side.
Just as my heart swelled with emotion, a sudden realization struck me.
Wait. Then who woke me up?
Sleepiness instantly vanished.
“Finally awake?”
My instinct led me to the source of the voice. As expected, a familiar face glared at me.
“You really pack a punch, huh?”
The mischievous tone of the voice didn’t match the grumpy expression on his face. I prepared to scream again.
Sensing this, the “ghost” spoke frantically.
“I’m not a ghost! I’m not a ghost! I’m not a ghost!”
He screamed madly and hurried away from me, apparently wary of my flying fists.
My already pale face turned even whiter, and I realized how ridiculous I must have looked.
“G-g-g-ghost…!”
“I said I’m not a ghost! Don’t compare me to some mere spirit!”
Then who are you, you little…?
I nearly let out a sharp retort but held back, waving at Azel to wake him.
Yet he showed no sign of waking.
Wasn’t he supposed to have insomnia?
Why do the protagonists with stories always have insomnia? And here he is, not waking even when shaken—so frustrating.
At that moment, I heard the voice again.
“He can’t wake up. I made sure of it.”
My heart sank.
“Ugh…!”
Tears blurred my vision, but now wasn’t the time to cry foolishly.
I have to protect Azel!
Since he had protected me, I had to protect him.
I immediately looked for anything that could be used as a weapon, but the ghost stared at me with an almost creepy intensity.
Who’s really creepy here?!
Then he spoke again, cutting through my thoughts.
“How are you looking at me?”
“That’s… ahem! That’s what I wanted to ask you!”
“So you don’t know either.”
I sniffled, and he fell silent, deep in thought. He looked almost alive, which made the situation feel even stranger.
Scary!
Unable to overcome my fear, I instinctively clung to Azel.
Then our eyes met.
Suddenly…
“Gah!”
Seeing us cling together, the ghost jumped in place as if electrocuted.
“Crazy!”
“…?”
He was so shocked that he covered his mouth with both hands and stomped his feet dramatically.
My tears vanished instantly.
The ghost, flitting back and forth between Azel and me, seemed oddly excited.
“…What are you doing?”
“Ah! This isn’t the time!”
Finally regaining composure, he pretended nothing had happened.
He seemed embarrassed by my astonished gaze.
…Could it really not be a ghost?
I began to wonder if he might actually be telling the truth.
“Ahem! I should probably introduce myself first.”
Regardless of my doubts, he suddenly began introducing himself.
“My name is Gaspartha! I’m the famous Spirit of Time!”
“…Wha- Gaspa…rtha?”
I muttered quietly, and he nodded proudly.
“The Gaspartha from Gaspartha’s Stone?”
“Yes, exactly! That Gaspartha!”
Blinking in disbelief, he rambled proudly as if it was obvious I would react that way.
“No mere mortal could ever hope to meet me. It’s an honor of a lifetime!”
Gaspartha’s Stone.
The Reincarnation Stone.
The Spirit of Time, Gaspartha.
For a moment, I was confused by the sudden influx of information.
Eventually, even the tremble in my body stopped.
“…”
He lifted his chin arrogantly, as if my reaction were perfectly natural.
“Huh, still surprised. I get it. Quite shocking, huh? But don’t faint just standing there. Ha-ha! Can’t help it, huh? I mean, meeting a superstar like me…”
He went on bragging endlessly.
But I barely paid attention.
Right now, I needed something big, solid, and easy to grip—a weapon—and I was focused on finding it.
Realizing this, Gaspartha asked me:
“So, are you looking for something right now?”
“What am I looking for?”
“Tell me! What are you looking for?”
“A club.”
“…Why?”
Finally sensing something strange, the arrogant expression on his face faltered with worry.
I left him with just one word:
“Obviously.”
Of course.
He was the one responsible for all this chaos.
It looked like tonight was going to be a long one.
