EVHE 73

Chapter 73

I felt a brief twitch at the corner of my eye. I barely managed to calm myself down, and just as I was about to read the next line—

“Lady—.”

A voice called me from behind. I hadn’t heard it often, but it was strangely familiar.

Startled, I hastily shoved the letter back into its envelope and hid it. I slipped it into my sleeve, then slowly turned around.

“Marquis Broc?”

A familiar yet unexpected figure stood there.

“Hehe, I’ve missed you.”

Tain grinned foolishly. Just looking at him gave me the feeling that something troublesome and ominous was about to happen.

“I thought it might be tiring for you to walk too long, so I prepared a carriage.”

Tain gestured behind him with both arms toward a carriage.

The coachman wore a black hood that covered his face. The carriage itself looked luxurious, but it reeked of suspicion.

“Why would I get in there?”

Sensing something off, I took a step back. Thinking of all my encounters with Tain so far, I couldn’t shake the feeling that some assailant must be waiting inside.

But Tain kept smiling broadly. I kept inching away, not stopping my cautious retreat.

“You should get in.”

He stopped me with those words. His voice carried a thinly veiled threat—if I didn’t enter, he would force the matter.

My body flinched as I realized something.

When had Allie and Ann disappeared?

The moment I noticed, a chill ran down my spine. I quickly looked around, but there wasn’t a single trace of life.

Not only them—everyone who had been passing nearby was gone.

“…What on earth did you do?”

I asked sharply. He didn’t answer. Instead, he simply opened the carriage door. Inside were dull, gloomy leather seats, but no hidden assailants.

“You should get in.”

He repeated the same line. It was clear he wouldn’t stop until I obeyed.

Damn it…

I didn’t know what he had done with Allie and Ann, so I couldn’t just run away.

With no other choice, I quietly stepped into the carriage. As soon as I sat down, the coachman whipped the reins, and the horses shot forward.

Where are we going?

I watched the view outside, hoping it might help me find my way back later.

But it was as though a spell had been cast on the horses—the scenery changed rapidly, over and over again, leaving me no way to guess our destination.

After what felt like an eternity of tense silence, the carriage finally slowed to a stop.

We had arrived in the middle of a forest. The trees were so dense, even the sky was hidden from view.

As I scanned the unsettling scene with wary eyes, the carriage door flung open.

Tain’s smiling face peeked through. His grin was empty, soulless—it sent shivers down my spine.

“Someone wishes to see you.”

He stretched out his arm, beckoning me forward.

“Someone?”

When I asked, Tain only chuckled unpleasantly and clamped his mouth shut.

So I really have no choice but to go on.

With no better option, I began walking along a narrow forest path.

Tain didn’t follow. Whoever was ahead, I would have to face them alone.

If Tain serves him… could it be the Emperor?

That seemed plausible—after all, Tain had become the Emperor’s magical advisor.

But if it really was the Emperor, why summon me here, in the middle of a forest, instead of the palace?

No way…

As if confirming my suspicion, the dirt path abruptly gave way to gleaming white marble flooring.

The trees above parted, revealing an open space. A white building stood there, crumbling with age.

The atmosphere was eerily reminiscent of a temple. But the roof had collapsed, the columns lay shattered across the ground.

Headless statues, broken fountains, and shards of colored glass worn down to dull fragments—

The only intact structure was the altar.

A ruined temple, a lone altar…

Studying the details one by one, I realized where I was.

Ponz.

The very place where, early in this possession, I’d heard that a string of murders had taken place.

“It’s been a while, Lady.”

Startled by the heavy voice, I spun around stiffly to see who it belonged to.

A man stood there, dressed in pure white priest’s robes. Under his hood, his hair gleamed a shade of ash gray.

He was watering a small flower bed with a watering can, his lips curled in a gentle, benevolent smile.

“Wh-who are you…”

“Call me Flood.”

He introduced himself simply, never taking his eyes off his task.

The place he tended was a garden that didn’t belong in such a bleak, lifeless ruin. Sunflowers and other brightly colored flowers bloomed in abundance.

The old stone walls were draped with vines and moss. At first glance, it was peaceful, but the atmosphere was anything but.

“Why did you bring me here?”

I managed to ask with a trembling voice.

“I very much wanted to meet you.”

Flood chuckled softly.

“Now that I see you in person, I understand why my subordinate described you the way he did.”

He set the watering can down on a nearby table.

“Yes. You are not a regressor, are you?”

The pointed question made my pupils tremble.

H-how does he know?

Showing guilt in a situation like this was the worst thing I could do.

I had to deny it, act confident. But I didn’t have the composure to pull it off.

“You’re definitely an outsider… but who exactly are you?”

Flood’s voice was gentle and mild, yet the aura he exuded was the complete opposite.

Death. I might actually die here.

The fear I felt was unlike anything from my past life—or even from Nox’s dream.

“I’m not interrogating you. It’d be nice to know, but it isn’t necessary.”

He looked at me with faint surprise at how frightened I was.

“As the only human who hears the voice of God, I serve to maintain the flow of the world.”

His smile was soft, as if trying to soothe me.

“It seems our protagonist is doing her best to twist fate, but her strength alone isn’t enough.”

He raised a finger and lightly waved it through the air. At once, my body toppled backward against my will.

But instead of crashing to the ground, I landed on a chair that had appeared beneath me.

“That’s why I thought there must be another interfering with me.”

I struggled with all my strength, but strangely, I couldn’t get up from the chair.

“At first, I thought Lilith had discovered the truth of the world and repented…”

Flood smiled faintly, gazing at me with hazy eyes as I writhed in vain.

“But my mental manipulations have no effect on you, so that’s not it.”

From beyond the ruined wall, white doves burst forth, fluttering fiercely toward him.

“If you’re not a simple regressor, then everything makes sense.”

He lifted his arm, and a dove landed gracefully on it. He stroked it as though he were very fond of it.

“So? What do you think of my deduction?”

He looked smug.

But I couldn’t respond. Not only my lips, even my head refused to move.

“Ordinarily, I’d prefer to leave you be.”

Flood began walking slowly toward me.

“But in this world, everyone has a role to play.”

For a moment, I forgot even to breathe, to blink. Even the breeze felt chilling.

“And yet you dared to awaken a new power, to stir the mind, to disrupt the play…”

His eyes, once gently curved, twisted with fury.

“What you have stolen are all devices meant for the protagonist.”

His solemn voice flared with sudden rage. That benevolent smile was completely gone.

“You are not in alignment with the divine will given to me long ago. Therefore, you must be eliminated.”

With the last of my strength, I raised a protective barrier. Flood laughed at the wall that sprang up before him, as if it were pathetic.

“You’ve worked hard until now.”

The instant he finished speaking, a shock slammed into my chest like a bolt of lightning.

“Hhk—!”

I gasped but couldn’t exhale. My veins felt like they would burst from the searing pain. I had no strength to resist.

“So now, return ‘her’ to us.”

…Her?

Flood’s words made no sense. But I had no chance to question him.

His figure blurred, and darkness swallowed my vision. Overwhelming pain consumed me as my consciousness slipped away.

The garden of Ponz still brimmed with the green light of life. Its out-of-season freshness was frighteningly beautiful.

“Isn’t it curious?”

Flood plucked a single blooming flower. The dewy leaves quivered at his touch.

“Two souls dwelling in one body…”

He rested his chin in his hand, closing his eyes in thought, then shook his head.

“Hm, does one soul emerge when the other dies?”

Leaving the garden, Flood approached Lilith, who had collapsed in front of the chair.

“Don’t you agree?”

The gray-haired priest smiled kindly.

Her golden hair gleamed white in the sunlight. Her breathing was calm and steady, just as usual.

“Our Lady.”

But when her crimson eyes slowly opened, they glimmered sharp and fierce.