Chapter 62
Footsteps echoed through the warehouse and then stopped. It seemed the person had come in a bit and then halted in place.
“Soon the others should arrive too, right? I need to catch both of them at once.”
But no one else came. Sitting like this, my legs were starting to go numb.
“Come on, hurry up. My legs are killing me.”
Just as the crouched position was becoming unbearable…
“Why aren’t they coming?”
A voice muttered from inside the warehouse. At first glance, it seemed to be a man, not Dr. Scott.
Then, there were sounds of movement. The person who had entered the warehouse was passing the time by touching and rummaging through the items inside.
“Are you alright?”
Duke Calix spoke with only his lips moving. Apparently, he noticed I was struggling with the awkward posture.
I nodded slightly and answered him, but he still cast a worried glance.
I silently prayed I wouldn’t lose the person because of my numb legs. If I got up now, the tingling might make it impossible to walk properly.
“Why on earth aren’t they coming?”
The man slammed down what he was holding, spun around, and started walking out of the warehouse.
Duke Calix met my eyes and whispered to Black.
“Black, chase him and get him.”
Upon hearing this, Black dashed off like an arrow. Duke Calix stood up, and I too ran after the man, though my legs wobbled from the numbness.
“W-what!”
Seeing us running toward him, the man started running as well. Soon, he opened the warehouse door and we pursued closely behind.
“Catch him!”
At my shout, the hidden guards appeared and joined the chase. The man didn’t last long before Black bit his leg.
“Argh!”
The man collapsed to the ground, and the guards seized him. Seeing him struggle reminded me of the other woman who had committed suicide before, and I shouted:
“Let him go! Iiiiik!”
“Gag him! Quickly!”
The man was quickly gagged and restrained by the guards, struggling all the while.
“Ugh! Mm! Mm!”
He glared at something, making muffled sounds as if trying to speak.
When I reached the spot where he was held, I followed his gaze.
“Doctor…!”
“Catch Dr. Scott! Black, go!”
Duke Calix, noticing the same thing, ordered the guards and Black.
Dr. Scott, carrying something, dropped it and ran as soon as he saw us and the restrained man.
The guards immediately chased after Dr. Scott, and Duke Calix and I picked up what he had dropped, leaving the restrained man to the other guards.
“What on earth is this?”
“Let’s open it first.”
Duke Calix opened the lid of the box Dr. Scott had dropped.
“Personal belongings?”
“Seems like items belonging to someone.”
Inside were five items—ordinary things like handkerchiefs or hair ties, seemingly trivial enough to discard.
Could it be…?
These were the pieces of evidence discovered in the warehouse in the original story. One item differed—it was a ring instead of a pen that had belonged to Elena—but the rest matched.
“It seems to be the victims’ personal belongings.”
Duke Calix spoke solemnly, likely thinking the same thing about the past.
“So could Dr. Scott really be the culprit?”
“If the alibis from the past were fabricated, it’s possible. But the scale of what he did seems too big for just one person.”
“Still, we need to catch the doctor…”
Anxiously watching the direction Dr. Scott had fled, they saw the guard returning with Black. Unfortunately, he was alone aside from Black.
“Duke, I’m sorry! We lost him.”
“……”
“Shelton and Knox went to search further, but it seems he’s already hidden. Reporting back.”
“He must be excellent at escaping.”
Duke Calix turned with a cold expression I had never seen before.
“So we lost him. We need to get something out of that man…”
“Elena, you should go rest. I’ll handle him.”
“Alone?”
“Michelle will come soon. He’ll handle the interrogation.”
“Ah…”
Who exactly is Michelle?
Duke Calix’s smile was chilling, almost murderous.
“I’ll come too…”
“You don’t need to see such roughness, Elena. Go rest.”
“Yes.”
Feeling the subtle pressure in his tone, I reluctantly nodded. Though imagining Duke Calix interrogating someone was hard, with Michelle, I had a feeling he would do it with a smile.
So image really matters, huh.
“Be careful; removing the gag might make him attempt suicide. I’ll head up first.”
“Alright, see you later.”
“Black, let’s go together.”
“……”
Leaving the restrained man behind, I returned to the main house with Black.
Duke Calix instructed the guards to lock the man in the underground prison, then sat on a garden bench.
“Even Black couldn’t catch him? He’s a master of escape.”
Dr. Scott had been elusive even during the stakeout. Hard to imagine someone so clever at evasion being usually hidden away in a room.
“So Dr. Scott planted evidence in the warehouse to frame someone….”
It seemed he had hidden evidence in the warehouse even in the previous life, yet he was unknowingly employed in the same way in this life. Duke Calix regretted his own foolishness.
“If Elena’s death is also related to Dr. Scott…”
He would never forgive himself—regret wouldn’t be enough.
“Sigh…”
The hot night air carried his sigh.
“First, I need to get something out of him.”
Focusing on the task, Duke Calix rose and headed for the underground prison.
When he arrived, a guard bowed.
“You go ahead. I’ll handle the rest.”
“But Duke, it’s dangerous to be alone with him, we don’t even know what he’s capable of.”
“It’s fine. A restrained man can’t do much.”
“But…”
Seeing the guard hesitate, Duke Calix commanded coldly:
“I said go.”
“Then call me if anything happens.”
The guard bowed and left.
“Ugh! Mm! Mm-mm!”
The man, tied tightly to a chair, continued to make muffled noises.
“Wait a bit. Michelle hasn’t arrived yet.”
“Ugh!”
“It’s clear he’s in league with Dr. Scott.”
Duke Calix circled the man, muttering:
“I wonder who ordered this.”
“……”
At Duke Calix’s words, the man immediately stopped struggling and went silent.
In the dark underground prison, only Duke Calix’s footsteps echoed softly.
“He’s later than expected.”
As Duke Calix muttered impatiently, the sound of a door opening and footsteps approaching was heard.
“Duke, did you call?”
Michelle had quietly entered and approached.
“You’re late.”
“The task was cumbersome, plus I didn’t expect you in the underground prison. I went to the room first, which delayed me.”
“What about Elena?”
“She’s fine.”
“Then we’ll hear the report later.”
After confirming Duke Calix’s expression, Michelle smiled and answered. He then diverted the topic:
“Time to stretch, injured one.”
“Now? Suddenly?”
“Yes. Don’t you see him?”
Duke Calix gestured toward the man, who had been watching them nervously.
Michelle approached, scrutinizing him:
“Hmm. I saw you earlier, but didn’t expect this even after shaking your hands.”
“You like it, right?”
“Of course. Though it’s been a while, so I might be rusty.”
“Skill doesn’t vanish.”
“Shall we start now?”
“Yes.”
Michelle gave the man a bright smile.
“Don’t worry. It’ll hurt, but it’ll be fun.”
The implied “for me, not you” was left unsaid. Seeing Michelle’s smile made the man’s legs tremble.
