It was dawn.
The butler instinctively opened his eyes and immediately rose to his feet.
If it wasn’t his imagination, he had just heard a squeaking sound with his sensitive ears.
‘An intruder?’
The butler hurriedly put on just his pants and tucked a dagger into his belt. He also grabbed the small staff that he always kept on the table. It was his cherished possession that he had used since leaving the wizarding association.
‘There’s nothing wrong with the barrier.’
First, he checked the barrier surrounding the villa. There were no alarms triggered or records of any intrusion permitted. Nevertheless, he could not let his guard down. The opponent may have employed cunning tricks to deceive the barrier.
“······.”
With a lantern in one hand and the staff gripped tightly in the other, the butler stepped outside. The sound definitely came from behind the villa. With quiet steps, he passed through the garden, and a sigh escaped from the butler’s mouth.
“······Huh.”
The garden door, which should have been closed, was open. Was there any reason for someone skilled enough to deceive the barrier to target the garden? The probability was high that it was the doing of one of the villa’s servants. However, the issue was ‘why.’ Why would a maid, who had been doing well, suddenly enter this dark garden tonight?
Without easing his tension, the butler stepped further into the garden.
“Is there anyone in here······?”
His voice echoed hollowly. But after a long time, there was no response. The butler swallowed hard and focused on the vibrations of the surrounding mana.
‘There’s no one here······?’
However, the mana only responded occasionally to the sounds of chirping insects, remaining eerily silent. If there were any living beings, they should naturally emit breathing sounds or heartbeats, none of which could be felt. There was no one inside. Even if there were, they wouldn’t be alive. The butler drew that conclusion and resumed his search.
“Hmm······?”
The stairs leading to the basement in the center of the garden. As he peered inside, the butler’s eyes narrowed. Was the basement door always like that? It seemed like some moss or vines had been cleared away.
Still, there was no need for concern that one of the maids had gone inside. That door wouldn’t budge even if the duke himself attempted to open it. Strictly speaking, it could be opened with the duke’s strength, but exerting that much force would obliterate the entire villa, so he had given up.
“Ugh?! That startled me!”
“······.”
The moment the butler clicked his tongue and turned around, he was startled to come face to face with a ghostly figure dressed in white. He was so panicked that he even dropped the staff he was holding. But as he lifted the lantern to see the figure’s face, he let out a sigh of relief. Upon closer inspection, it was Julia. Clad in white pajamas with her long silver hair flowing down, Julia certainly had an eerie presence when seen at this hour.
“Oh, it’s you, Julia. What on earth are you doing here?”
“I just couldn’t sleep, so I came out for a little walk. Looks like I woke you up, I’m so sorry about that.”
“How could you come to such a dark place without a light? Please go back quickly.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you.”
“I wasn’t worried.”
Julia appeared a bit embarrassed as she smiled sheepishly and kept apologizing. Why was someone who usually didn’t act this way suddenly behaving like this? She seemed almost like she had sleepwalking syndrome. The butler sighed deeply and stood next to Julia, lighting the way for her. Then, when he stole a fleeting glance at Julia’s face, his body shuddered.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing······.”
A moment of goosebumps hit him. Julia’s smile, illuminated by the light, appeared unnaturally eerie. Of course, it was just a fleeting impression; Julia quickly resumed her genuine smile. He must have seen it wrong, being so worn out. The butler decided that was the case.
“I’m really sorry. I’ll head to bed right away. I won’t be a bother anymore.”
“Sure. Just go to sleep without making a sound.”
“Goodnight, butler.”
“······.”
Upon exiting the dark garden, Julia gave a slight bow and headed toward her accommodation. The butler couldn’t shake off the inexplicable sense of discomfort he felt while staring at her back for a long time. Although he had never paid attention to Julia’s stride before, today, her walk seemed peculiar. Even within the short conversation, Julia was definitely speaking as she usually did, but her intonation or tone sounded subtly different. It was a sense that was difficult to explain logically. It was as if someone who knew Julia well was imitating her.
“Could it be······.”
The butler shook his head and closed the garden door. There was no way that could be true.
.
.
.
“Hum······ hmmm······ hmm······.”
Early in the morning.
Rubbing her sleepy eyes, Tia tilted her head at the unusual atmosphere. Her mother was sitting in front of the dresser, humming a tune. It seemed she hadn’t realized that Tia had woken up yet. Tia intentionally rustled her blankets to make a noise, sat up, and landed on the floor with a thud. But her mother continued to beat the cotton pads without the slightest thought of turning around.
Confused, Tia approached Julia.
“Mom, Mom.”
“Hmm? Tiamat, are you awake?”
“Mmm······.”
It seemed she hadn’t heard because she was busy humming a song. Tia felt a bit relieved and leaned against Julia’s shoulder to look in the mirror. A stunning beauty sat there, enough to take one’s breath away. While her usual mother possessed a natural beauty that made one want to hug her, the mother now exuded a regal aura of beauty that felt unattainable.
“Mom, is something good happening today?”
“Hmm? Did I get caught?”
“Mmm. You look really happy today, different from usual. You’re wearing such a fancy dress and putting on makeup like crazy.”
“Today is a day worth celebrating.”
“What are we celebrating?”
“It’s the day I was reborn.”
“······.”
Tia flinched. It was rare for her mother to refer to herself as ‘I’ instead of ‘Mom’ unless she was angry. Yet now her mother smiled brilliantly and showed no signs of anger. There was something oddly unfamiliar about her mother. Tia loosened her arms that were wrapped around her mother’s waist and took a step back.
“We need to go to school, right? Quickly wash up and get dressed. You can eat the bread for breakfast.”
“Hmm. Where are you going, Mom?”
“I have people to meet. My old enemies······. I’m going to see their faces and have a little chat.”
“······.”
Enemies. The moment those words left her lips, Tia witnessed a grotesque twist on Julia’s expression. She decided to stop speaking to her mother and stealthily backed away. Julia then resumed humming her unreadable song and continued with her makeup.
‘What’s going on?’
It wasn’t the first time her mother had exhibited strange behavior. The last time, after attending a certain party, her mother had spent the entire day with deadened eyes. Although this time the symptoms were the complete opposite, Tia decided not to worry too much. She would soon return to her original self. Her mother was a strong person and would be fine.
“I’ll be back from school! Mom, don’t get lost on some weird path today!”
“Hoho. What are you saying? Have a good time.”
“······.”
With a worried glance, Tia waved her hand at Julia and exited the villa. Although she resolved not to worry too much, she couldn’t suppress the growing anxiety in a corner of her mind.
‘I should earn more star points today!’
If her mother had worries, then she just needed to bring back enough joy to blow them away. Tia firmly resolved that she would earn star points at school today. How many would she get? If she got all 15, what wish would she make this time? Tia’s head quickly filled with such musings.
“Done! All set!”
Meanwhile, having finished her preparations to go out, Julia stood up from the dresser with a bright smile. The chair that had been pushed back fell to the floor, but Julia didn’t care about such matters. Her figure crossing the room was reflected in the full-length mirror. Dressed in a stunning gown that she had only worn once at a party and had never taken out again, Julia displayed a radiance that was more dazzling than ever. Even thought it was relatively modest for a gown, it exuded a refinement akin to that of a high-ranking noblewoman.
Julia adeptly held onto the hem of her dress and left the accommodation.
“Julia······.”
The butler, having seen her back, tried to call out to Julia but trailed off. At a glance, he recognized it was Julia, but she was so unfamiliar in appearance that he was taken aback. The figure was undoubtedly Julia, but the graceful way she walked and her elaborately braided hair were not what he remembered. The tomboyish girl had transformed overnight into a woman raised in a strict household.
So bewildered, he didn’t even think to stop the maid who should be preparing for the morning.
“Hum······ hmmm······ hmm······.”
Passing through the main gate without any hindrance, Julia resumed humming her tune and strolled along the path. As she soon found herself on a street she was walking for the first time, there was no hesitation in her step. It was as if she had complete confidence in knowing every corner.
With a steady rhythm, the sound of her heels clicking on the pavement resonated, but suddenly Julia came to a halt. Someone stood defiantly in her path.
“Julia······.”
It was the hero, Leopard. He was sweating and facing Julia. The hero was already in a tense combat stance, ready to draw the dagger at his waist. A smile appeared at the corner of Julia’s mouth as she faced the hero.
“Hello, Leo. It’s been a while. I’m feeling a bit sad, though.”
“······.”
Leopard’s pupils shook.
Dark energies began to seep out from within Julia at that moment. The dark energy radiating from her chest quickly enveloped Julia’s body, dying the dress black.
As if it had been black from the beginning.
The dark energy spread further, elongating the hem of the dress until it brushed the floor. Julia let her finely braided hair down as she parted her lips. A chillingly seductive smile adorned her face.
“Although the name Julia is pretty, it seems it’s not enough.”
Leopard’s heart raced. The possibility he had feared had become a reality, presenting itself before him. And now, he was encountering the very person he had long awaited in the worst form imaginable.
“Eriel. I want to be called Eriel by you once more.”
“······.”
The worst situation.
The worst enemy.
Leopard confronted the worst battle he had faced in fifty years as a hero.
