“W-What did you say?”
Upon hearing the name, Father recoiled and stammered in shock.
“…Evien. No matter that it is a ducal house, the Ravenwood family is in decline.Surely, you aren’t saying this without knowing that, right?”
Evien’s father clearly didn’t seem fond of Basileon.
“They haven’t fallen yet, Father. The Duke is more than capable of restoring his family’s power.”
“Evien… since when did you lose your heart to the Duke?”
This time, Mother asked in visible surprise.
“I’ve only met him once. Just once at a banquet—we spoke briefly. But I haven’t been able to forget him.”
‘So, she fell for him at first sight?’
I had just learned an unexpected truth.
“…Very well. If you feel so strongly, I will at least give it some consideration.”
The conversation ended there, and after dinner I returned to my room. Or rather, I thought I did.
Click—
There was a hidden space inside the room. When I pressed somewhere along the bookshelf, a concealed door in the corner slid open.
*W-What is this?*
It was dark and hard to see, but it looked like a laboratory for researching something. Memos with indecipherable contents were plastered everywhere, and colorful glass bottles were lined up. I pulled one memo off the wall. The name written there was a familiar one.
Basileon Ravenwood.
Looking at it, I felt the corners of my mouth curl up. I could vaguely sense that this smile, too, stemmed from ill intentions. After that, the surrounding scenery began to blur past.
* * *
The time travel ended, and I returned to reality. I had witnessed actions that couldn’t be explained unless she was a legendary villainess. What on earth was Evien’s goal? Did she even truly love Basileon? These questions kept swirling in my head.
“Eve.”
When I lifted my head, Basileon was already looking down at me, his expression troubled.
“Evil spirit! You’re awake?”
“How… how long was I asleep?”
“About two hours. Not long enough to worry.”
Adolf explained. Basileon simply stood there in silence.
“Ahem… How do you feel?”
“Just… refreshed. Like I had a deep, uninterrupted sleep.”
While I was speaking with Adolf, Basileon quietly picked up the soul-collecting mirror.
“…Adolf.”
“Yes?”
“I would like you to keep this in my stead.”
Adolf didn’t look pleased, but he seemed to realize he had little room to refuse.
“…Very well.”
“Thank you.”
With that single word, Basileon grabbed his flamberge and left without another glance.
“Huh? Where are you going? Wait—what about Krius?”
“He fainted.”
Adolf gestured to show me Krius’s condition. Krius lay sprawled flat on the ground, pale as a sheet.
“Don’t tell me Basileon actually swung the sword?”
Adolf shook his head.
“Thanks to you collapsing at the sight of the fire, he didn’t swing it. Sir Krius merely fainted from fear.”
“But he’s really a ghost, isn’t he? Those symptoms are supposed to be something only I experience….”
“Yes. However, if they believe something will happen strongly enough, ghosts can exhibit such reactions. It is purely psychological. In other words, it’s not true unconsciousness.”
I looked more closely at Krius. Looking closely, I could see his body tossing and turning slightly.
“What… he’s just sleeping.”
“Ghosts cannot sleep. This is also a psychological symptom—an imitation of sleep.”
“Then what about what I experienced?”
“No. Absolutely not. What you experienced is impossible. The fact that you shed tears is already something that defies reason.”
Adolf’s words made sense. A ghost that cries—what absurdity.
“…What are we going to do about that mirror?”
“I don’t know. Good grief. A real headache has rolled into my lap.”
Clang! Clang!
In his irritation, Adolf struck the mirror as if he might smash it.
“Don’t do that! What if Ella bursts out?”
“In my opinion, there’s a high chance she’s already been offered as a sacrifice to the Evil God.”
“I suppose so, since quite a bit of time has passed.”
Still, where had Basileon gone? He had been sitting there without moving, and now he’d vanished again just as suddenly.
“I need to go talk to Basileon.”
“Hmph. Leave him be. At times like this, the best course is to give him space.”
“But he looked serious. He sat there all day without moving!”
I pointed to the section of wall where Basileon had been sitting.
“The young master has been like that since childhood. It is nothing to be overly concerned about.”
“I asked the other ghosts earlier. They said the previous head abused him. That it started back then….”
“……”
Adolf fell silent for a moment.
“Evil spirit. It is true the young master cried often and had a weak constitution—but he is not weak-minded.”
“But the ghosts told me that at that age, he had already lost the will to live.”
“Hah. Foolish ghosts.”
Adolf snorted.
“It’s all nonsense, pure nonsense. The ones who babbled that were the servants, right?”
“Yes.”
“Among the cursed beings that now inhabit this ducal estate, I can state with certainty that I knew the young master best.”
He sounded quite confident.
“I was responsible for the young master’s mental state. Unofficially, of course.”
Adolf’s gaze swept over the ghost knight order’s weapons laid out on the floor.
“Do you remember when I told you I served as his sword instructor?”
“I remember. You let him run around the armory, and you played tag with him.”
“The young master…”
Adolf began recounting Basileon’s childhood.
* * *
It was when Basileon was twelve years old.
Thud, thud, thud!
“Adolf.”
In the dead of night. Basileon knocked on the iron door of the underground armory. Click—.
“Well, look who it is. It’s Young Master Basileon!”
This was before Adolf had become a shield, so he greeted Basileon in human form.
“Our young master—have you come to play tag again today?”
Adolf spread his arms wide in welcome, but no reply came.
“Young master…?”
Basileon merely stood there, fists clenched tightly at his sides, his body trembling.
“Oh dear. Goodness.”
Without a word, Adolf pulled Basileon into a tight embrace.
“Young master. I do not know if these words will comfort you, but I am here….”
“Adolf.”
“Yes. Please speak.”
“If I had been strong and healthy… Father would have loved me, wouldn’t he?”
As Basileon spoke, Adolf looked over every inch of the boy’s body. The red and purple bruises etched all over his skin were impossible to miss. Adolph’s brow furrowed involuntarily.
“A father… is someone who loves his child regardless of whether they are sickly and frail or strong and healthy. No… he must love them.”
At those words, Basileon began to cry.
“That is what an ordinary father would do….”
“Ugh… hngh….”
Adolf wrapped him up gently, patting his head in slow, soothing motions.
“So please, do not seek the fault in yourself….”
For a long while, Basileon wept buried in Adolf’s arms.
.
.
.
After that, Basileon always came to Adolf with a smile on his face. On some days, he seemed overflowing with enthusiasm.
“I want to learn swordsmanship.”
“If it is merely to improve your stamina, I must object.”
“It’s not like that. I… I want to protect myself with my own power. And it looks fun. I’ve watched you while passing by the training grounds.”
In that moment, Basileon’s eyes burned with determination.
“Young master…!”
Seeing that, Adolf was deeply moved.
“Your eyes have changed. Who could have taught you to grow so splendidly? Very well! From this day forward, this Adolf shall be your sword instructor.”
And from that day on, Adolf became Basileon’s swordsmanship teacher. Every night, they held secret swordsmanship lessons inside the armory.
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