Chapter 175………………………………………………
“This is….”
The item in the Emperor’s hand was a watch, similar to the pocket watch Terence had once given Idel—his mother’s watch.
“It pairs with the one you gave your mother. You said long ago that there was someone you wanted to give that watch to.”
In fact, Terence’s decision to give Idel the pocket watch was not impulsive.
He had intended to give her the watch for quite some time, and he had even subtly mentioned it to the Emperor.
Even if no one else knew, he felt the father who had given the same watch to his mother should be aware.
The Emperor, who had previously offered no response, suddenly handed over his pocket watch.
“I didn’t know you had the matching one.”
“I had them custom-made as a pair from the start. I never carried it myself because of my guilt.”
“But why suddenly…?”
“Actually, this is a kind of artifact. Here—turn the hands of the watch quickly three times.”
Terence took the pocket watch from the Emperor and wound it by turning the crown.
An artifact.
He had set watches before, but he had never spun the hands three full rotations at once, so he wouldn’t have noticed anything unusual.
The phenomenon occurred when the hands completed their three rotations and returned to their original positions.
Suddenly, the hour and minute hands moved on their own, pointing in a specific direction.
The Emperor explained.
“The two watches are designed to point toward each other. If Count Lucibius took that watch, it should help you find him.”
Terence, busy over the past few days, hadn’t examined what items were missing from Idel’s room.
But the direction the hands pointed was not toward the palace where she had stayed.
He had given Idel the watch that morning. The chance that she had moved it elsewhere in such a short time was slim. Where the hands pointed must be where she was.
Terence gripped the pocket watch tightly.
It was the only clue to appear amidst the invisible fog, and his heart surged.
“Thank you, Father.”
“…Your mother treasured that watch. She feared it might break, so she kept it in a jewelry box.”
The Emperor’s face, recalling the past, was tinged with regret.
“So I couldn’t find it even when she was kidnapped. I had planned to secretly retrieve it and surprise her… but I never did.”
Terence looked at his father with a bowed head.
“May I ask why you’re giving this to me now, after opposing it just a moment ago?”
The Emperor stared into space, deep in thought, and then spoke.
“I don’t know. Even I think it’s madness. As Emperor, I should stop you. As your father, even more so. But somehow… seeing you, who said you wouldn’t give up on someone you love…”
He didn’t continue, but Terence instinctively understood what he had left unsaid.
The one giving him the pocket watch was not the Emperor of this country, nor Terence’s father.
It was simply a man who had loved a woman—a side of Dominic Vinarta Asterot, long thought lost to ambition.
“Perhaps he hoped I wouldn’t end up like him.”
Terence grasped the doorknob and spoke.
“I am not my father.”
Even if Terence successfully rescued Idel, Dominic’s old wish would not be fulfilled.
The past could not return.
“But I promise I will return safely with her.”
That was all Terence could say to his father.
Dominic let out a small, dry chuckle.
“Go quickly. I don’t know when the medicine will wear off and I’ll regain my wits and order you restrained.”
“I will, Father.”
The Emperor, tired, simply watched the scenery outside the window as Terence left the bedchamber.
Next, Terence headed to the Empress’s palace.
“…What’s the matter?”
There, Mihail, looking half-wrecked from staying up all night, greeted Terence.
Having been unable to bear news of his lover’s execution, he had left the capital, only to learn of his mother’s death instead.
The cruel reality that she died at the hands of his former lover was enough to shatter Mihail.
But Terence had urgent business and, regrettably, no time to consider Mihail’s situation.
“By what right…?”
Hearing Terence’s instructions to take on state affairs, Mihail hesitated.
“No matter what, I will go. If you refuse, then the Duchess of Luciano will handle it.”
Apart from the two of them, she—being the Emperor’s sister—was the highest-ranking successor.
Mihail fell silent for a moment, then met Terence’s gaze.
“No, let me do it. I’ll go mad if I don’t at least keep busy.”
Terence nodded once and was about to turn away when Mihail spoke again.
“If you’re going after the Count, you’ll meet Liena too.”
“Then?”
“I have one request.”
For the first time in his life, Mihail made a request of his half-brother.
“Kill Liena.”
After leaving the Empress’s palace, Terence spoke to Jack, who followed him.
“Disappointed that I’m abandoning duty to leave?”
“Not at all. In fact, seeing you like this feels more like the master I know.”
Jack gave a faint, fleeting smile and focused on the direction the pocket watch indicated.
“West, as expected.”
“She’s likely already left the empire’s territory?”
“Highly probable. Only minor monsters remain in the Empire; a large wyvern is conspicuous.”
“Then would it be in the neighboring kingdom of Zabica? Monsters roam freely there compared to our Empire.”
“Not impossible, but I doubt it.”
Idel’s letter said she would leave for a remote, sparsely populated area.
Such places exist within the Asterot Empire or Zabica Kingdom, but there are also vast lands the continent’s humans cannot access.
“The Beasts’ Domain.”
Jack’s face twisted in surprise.
“Even there? Full of monsters and tainted with magi…”
“If I were Liena, if she wanted to hide forever using beasts, that would be my destination. I have to act as if that’s where she is.”
“…Understood. It will be a long, arduous journey. I assume there are no roads there.”
“Reaching it is a problem in itself. Even by train and horseback, it would take nearly a month.”
Damn it. Terence bit his lips.
He wanted to instantly teleport to wherever Idel was.
But the teleportation artifact only allowed short distances and could not move living beings…
Wait.
Something struck Terence’s mind.
“A device capable of transporting living beings long distances.”
He had heard rumors recently. People had been talking about it everywhere for some time.
He recalled the city where the inventor—or rather, the inventor’s proxy—resided.
Coincidentally, it lay west of the capital.
“It’s unfinished, they said. But…”
Nothing to lose.
A few days later.
Idel sat across from Liena at the same table.
“Eat up, Idel.”
Liena gestured at the prepared food, smiling.
“I made it carefully. I hope it suits your taste.”
“…Uh, thanks.”
Lucius sniffed the food on my plate and blinked—signaling there was nothing poisonous.
I slowly ate and said,
“This is quite tasty.”
“Glad to hear!”
“I didn’t know you could cook before.”
“I worked as a servant in my previous life. Though the ingredients monsters provide are limited, I’ll make even better food from now on!”
Seeing Liena blush, I gave an awkward smile.
After finishing the uncomfortable meal, unsure if food went down my mouth or nose, I returned to my assigned room and exhaled deeply.
“This dog gets creepier every day,” I muttered.
The first thing I did after being assigned the room was check for listening devices, so I could speak freely.
We were in an old building within the Beasts’ Domain.
According to Liena, it was built long ago by demons who lived here. Preservation magic had kept it surprisingly intact.
With monsters running simple errands, as Liena had promised, life was fairly comfortable.
Though my mind is terribly uneasy…
With nothing to do, I lay on the bed. Lucius whispered quietly.
“Yet it was not without results.”
She was right.
“You saw, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
Shadow, summoned by Liena, was moving slower than before.
The artifact used to restrain it seemed to finally be taking effect.
I wasn’t just playing along with Liena; I was waiting for the right moment.
Watching Liena, Shadow’s movements, and mapping the interior of the building.
Not much longer now.
As before, I took the pocket watch from my pocket and opened the lid.
A ritual to steady my mind.
It felt as though Terence were beside me. But then…
“Huh? Why is this…?”
The hands of the watch spun wildly on their own.
“Could it be broken?”
Panic surged. I had brought Terence’s precious keepsake out of greed…
“It can’t break!”
I tried to fix it, tapping it lightly, and Lucius jumped back, startled.
“Are you going to break it more?!”
“No, this usually fixes it…”
Then, with a strange whirring, something fell from the air above me.
It didn’t hit hard, and the bed cushioned the fall, but my heart skipped a beat.
“Idel?”
The one who had flattened me was Terence.
