TDAF 22

Chapter 22

A short while later, the police summoned by Arnold Crimson arrived at the Crimson mansion, and Isaac complied without resistance when they requested a voluntary accompaniment.

Soon, a carriage departed from the Crimson estate and entered the precinct of the local police station.

As Isaac stepped down from the carriage with the police’s help, leaning on his cane, Arnold—who had only just wiped off the blood—snatched the cane from him.

“Why are you suddenly pretending you can’t do anything?!”

Isaac stopped, looking bewildered.

The police hesitated at Arnold’s behavior, then returned the cane to Isaac.

“No matter what, taking a cane from someone who can’t see is… a bit much.”

“Thank you.”

Isaac took the cane and smiled faintly.

Although Arnold was the only one injured, Isaac’s clothes were also stained with blood, and from the atmosphere, it was clear Isaac did not appear to be the aggressor.

For the southeastern police, who received significant funding from the Crimson family, this was a particularly delicate situation.

At this point, the heir to the Crimson title was Isaac Crimson, but the one who really pulled the strings was Evil Crimson. In Salantie, most families were conservative, so the eldest son usually inherited the family title. However, not all parents automatically passed the title to the eldest son.

Even a slight flaw in the eldest son would prompt them to choose another child. Some prominent families even let a daughter inherit because the eldest son lacked eloquence. In Isaac’s case, being blind, his parents likely would not have passed the title to him had they been alive.

Still, in an emergency, the title had somehow passed to him. It was unclear whose approval he truly needed.

While Isaac gave his statement, Scarlet arrived, having hitched a private carriage to reach the station.

Upon her arrival, Arnold snapped angrily.

“You! Ah, what kind of chaos is this in our family because of that woman?”

He yelled in frustration. Yet inside the police station, he could not strike her. Isaac glanced briefly toward the noise, then turned his head away.

At that moment, another carriage arrived. Out stepped Fran, the lawyer for the Dumpfelt family. He handled the family’s legal affairs and now mostly worked for Victor. Buttoning his suit jacket, he spotted Scarlet and briskly walked toward her.

“Madam—no, Miss Scarlet.”

“Mr. Fran?”

Scarlet, fidgeting nervously, looked puzzled, and Fran spoke with a calm demeanor.

“You were sent by the young master. Oh my, you’ve been hurt too.”

Fran expressed sympathy for Scarlet, who had been scratched on the arm and neck by Arnold’s earlier outburst.

He continued:

“This will take some time. We must rescue the Count from this predicament, and we cannot offer a settlement to the person who assaulted Miss Scarlet of the Dumpfelt family—it’s a matter of honor.”

“Thank you.”

It was truly a relief that Fran had come. With him present, Isaac had nothing to worry about.

Fran quickly moved inside, and Scarlet, feeling reassured by the lawyer’s presence, sat down.

She closed her eyes briefly but opened them again, thinking of Isaac brutally striking Arnold. Despite the blood splattering, Isaac seemed completely unbothered. He might not have seen it, but Isaac’s other heightened senses would have felt the warm blood. Scarlet wondered if he had always carried such fierce intent in his heart. Her mind grew complicated. Yet Isaac, with a calm expression, gave his statement diligently and responded politely to the police.

The situation did not resolve easily. From inside, Arnold’s shouting indicated Fran was emphasizing that Scarlet’s injury was an issue.

At that moment, another carriage stopped in front of the station. Out stepped Aunt Anne Crimson. She surveyed the situation, sighed deeply, and spoke to Scarlet:

“You, go check on Factory No. 1.”

“Factory No. 1?”

“That’s what Arnold was supposed to handle, but you caused all this with him.”

“That’s because Arnold—”

“Oh, don’t argue. I’ve never seen anyone as unpleasant as you in my life.”

Anne Crimson, exasperated, ran over to Arnold.

Scarlet felt slightly hurt by Anne’s words—Anne had been the kindest among her uncle’s family—but she reluctantly departed for Factory No. 1 with Isaac, determined not to miss the opportunity to see the factory.

Factory No. 1 was called a factory, but in reality, it was a highly secretive workshop gathering the Crimson family’s top engineers.

Scarlet had visited several times with her parents. Inside was a master room, which only her parents had entered.

Once, out of curiosity, Scarlet had refused to leave until she was allowed in. Her father had carried her inside for a brief tour. That master room was where Crimson components were crafted.

The Crimson components had undergone successive innovations, and by her parents’ generation, they had dramatically improved clock accuracy and produced remarkable inventions capable of withstanding immersion in the sea—or even the pressures of future flight. Her parents proudly noted these components could be used for clocks, aviation, and navigation.

Scarlet had not visited her parents’ clock shop, which Evil had taken, since she was twelve, and she had not been to the factory since she was eight. Yet standing before it, memories flooded back.

Since the police interrogation, Scarlet had developed the ability to recall her childhood memories perfectly when she concentrated—a sudden skill she did not understand.

She traced her eight-year-old memories and entered the factory. The password to Factory No. 1 was like a candy pull: “Cherry Pie.” She pressed the password instead of ringing a bell, and the door opened immediately—no one had changed it.

Inside, two craftsmen resting in the modest two-story house spotted her.

“…Miss Scarlet?”

Both faces were familiar—Tom and Anna.

Scarlet was shocked to see the two, once adversaries in her memory, holding hands.

“Are you dating?”

“We’ve been married for seven years… do you remember us?”

Tom asked in confusion.

Scarlet remembered seeing them at eight years old. They used to fight constantly, so it amazed her they had somehow married.

Still bewildered, she asked:

“How do you remember me?”

“Don’t ask. The bosses showed us so many photos and told us so many stories.”

Anna agreed beside him.

“Yes, they seemed so happy, I was tricked into marrying…”

“Tricked? No, I was tricked!”

“What? I live and you’re ungrateful?”

“Look around, who’s a husband like me!”

“Since I work here, you think I can’t see!”

Scarlet tentatively concluded that maybe they actually suited each other, though to outsiders it looked like constant bickering. She then asked:

“I heard Arnold needed to check on something today. What is it?”

“Oh, that’s why you’re here,” Anna said, gesturing Scarlet to her workshop. Tom followed, and Anna scolded him:

“Why are you in someone else’s workshop?”

“Can’t I come into my wife’s workshop?”

“Even spouses have privacy!”

“I don’t have privacy!”

“That’s not my concern!”

After another brief squabble, Anna finally brought out a clock box for Scarlet.

Upon opening it, Scarlet’s mouth fell open.

“It’s Crimson Aqua 6?”

“Yes! It contains Crimson Component Version 6, developed by the previous generation of bosses.”

Only the family head could develop the next version of the Crimson component. The head shared the crafting method only with the successor, while others could only learn the previous version.

Noticing Scarlet’s gaze, Anna carefully explained while Tom added cautiously:

“After the previous bosses passed away, Version 6 was discontinued. But the customer requested an overhaul of one of the few watches using Version 6.”

Realizing the implication, Scarlet said excitedly:

“Examining it might reveal the crafting method for Version 6?”

“Yes. We thought so, so we contacted Vice President Evil, but he’s on a business trip. That’s why we contacted Young Master Arnold… seems like something happened today?”

“A small fight,” Scarlet said.

“I see.”

Tom gazed into the distance and murmured:

“The first time seeing Version 6 since the previous bosses passed, and Miss Scarlet arrives… is it fate?”

Anna, for once, did not argue and nodded.

She removed the Version 6 parts from the Crimson Aqua 6 and placed them in disinfectant.

Scarlet stared at the parts as if looking at a photo of her parents, full of longing.

“We need to return these quickly, right?”

“Yes, it cannot be kept too long. We must return them within a month at most.”

Being able to craft the most advanced Crimson components was a source of pride for the family head.

Evil, currently acting as head, used Version 5 learned from his father, Scarlet’s grandfather. Scarlet, like the rest of the family, only knew how to make up to Version 4.

Cautiously, Scarlet asked:

“Can I see Version 5 now?”

“Of course.”

Anna retrieved the Version 5 parts made by Evil from a small drawer.

Scarlet placed them in solution and scrutinized them, frowning.

“This is Version 5?”

“Yes, made by President Evil.”

“…but it doesn’t match my memory.”

She examined the parts carefully, recalling seeing Version 5 parts in her parents’ workshop as a child.

“In my memory, these were about 1mm thicker.”