Michelle understood. Her master had been born a prince, which naturally led him to become a soldier, and as such, he killed people.
If he were the son of a butcher, he would probably end up slaughtering cows or pigs. For Cesare, there was little distinction between humans and animals. Killing didn't have much significance for him.
If he were the son of a butcher, I'd probably be butchering cows right next to him.
Michelle muttered to herself, reflecting on Cesare's recent actions. Diego, standing beside her, interrupted.
— Your Grace?
— … Ah.
Michelle scratched her head, embarrassed, realizing her mistake. Regardless of his origins, Cesare would always have reached the top. She laughed, pointed to the building, and whistled shrilly.
Whiiik — the piercing sound cut through the silent night air, and instantly, the soldiers stationed outside stormed the building.
As they broke down the doors, the people inside screamed and fled in panic. However, those under the influence of alcohol and drugs were too unsteady to escape quickly. The soldiers soon apprehended the staggering figures.
Michelle, who entered calmly, grabbed one of them by the head when he tried to run away like a rat and threw him onto a table.
Boom! The table threatened to shatter from the force of the impact. With an indifferent expression, Michelle repeatedly banged the man's head against it with a steady rhythm— boom, boom, boom!
Ugh…
Diego, who had followed her, entered, grimacing as he dodged a tooth that had fallen from the mouth of the bloodied man. He searched the building while Michelle, having knocked the man unconscious, threw him aside and joined Diego.
"Damn idiots ," Michelle muttered. "I told them not to mess with those things, but those fools treat the laws of the Empire as if they meant nothing."
Diego shrugged at Michelle's rude language, no different from that of a common thug. Officially, this operation was to arrest drug users, but there was no real reason for Michelle and Diego to be involved in something as trivial as arresting addicts.
The real purpose of his presence was to obtain a list of the nobles who used drugs in that place. Cesare had given specific orders, frighteningly even the date was exact, so there was no doubt that the list would not be accurate.
But Diego, who was supposed to be helping with the search, seemed distracted. He stopped and approached Michelle.
Michelle, who had fired at a suspicious corner, stopped and turned to face him.
- What it was?
Do you remember when we blew up that tavern in Fiore?
- Oh yes.
After Cesare executed the king of Kalpen, he had blown up one of the largest taverns in Fiore. At the time, it seemed like a strange decision, and even Cesare's knights were perplexed by the sudden and seemingly random act.
Now that I think about it… maybe that tavern was the place.
His vague comment was clear enough for Michelle. It was a guess that Eileen's corpse might have been desecrated there after her death.
Michelle holstered her weapon and crossed her arms over her chest, her eyebrows furrowing so tightly that her freckles seemed to cluster together.
— I was thinking about that too. Remember that hallucination Senon mentioned? In it, what choices would we have made? I suppose we would have followed His Grace, as always.
Most likely.
It wasn't certain, but what Cesare had subtly begun in the Traon Empire—a silent but ruthless purge—would be nothing compared to what was to come.
Although he was the Supreme Commander of Traon, the man had no genuine sense of patriotism. The same was true of his knights. They were probably so devoted to Cesare that they participated in the slaughter with enthusiasm.
For the sake of the late Eileen…
Michelle swore, the mere thought of it souring her mood. The idea of Eileen 'being dead' was revolting.
— You heard it from Lotan, didn't you?
— …
Michelle pressed her lips together and nodded in response to the sudden question. When they learned that their master had nearly killed Eileen, the knights were momentarily speechless.
They realized that Cesare's mental state was far more unstable than they had imagined, but even so, they had no clear solution, leaving them feeling powerless.
— For now, it's best not to do anything that might provoke His Grace.
Diego sighed, his face etched with worry as he shared his concerns with Michelle.
But that guy... said he was coming with the teachers to see Mrs. Eileen.
Michelle narrowed her eyes in disbelief.
— … You mean that damn stalker?
A faint trace of cigarette smoke lingered in the air, like a distant memory brushing against the tip of her nose. Eileen absently scratched her cheek as the events of the previous night replayed in her mind.
She remembered standing side by side in the rain under the orange trees, sharing a kiss.
"Not all rainy days are bad, after all."
Cesare had said, leading her back inside the mansion. As they entered, Sonio, who had been watching from the courtyard, immediately approached with a dry towel.
Although Eileen wasn't very wet, Cesare had put his uniform jacket over her, but still made sure to take care of her first. He handed his soaked uniform to Sonio and gently dried Eileen with the towel.
'We slept together too.'
She fell asleep in the man's arms, the sound of the rain calming her. Cesare seemed to have slept well too. Although she hadn't seen him sleep, his more tranquil expression this morning suggested he had rested better than usual.
Eileen smiled to herself, then quickly composed her expression. Even with no one looking, she felt a pang of embarrassment. Shaking her head, she returned her attention to the research.
The Archduke's laboratory was equipped with all the tools Eileen needed, a world apart from her previous days when she tinkered in a dark room with outdated equipment.
At that time, his research was with cheap, low-purity opium, but now he had access to fresh opium and could use it freely, thanks to Cesare's unwavering support. This made the experiments progress very smoothly.
While waiting for the water to boil, Eileen meticulously reviewed her experiment log.
His goal was to extract about 10% of the analgesic component from opium in crystalline form. However, isolating the pain-relieving agent from the unnecessary compounds proved more challenging than he had anticipated.
She had been filtering the opium with boiling water and repeatedly adding various chemical compounds in an attempt to refine it.
— Ugh…
Impatience began to creep in as she longed for quicker results. Although she reminded herself to remain calm, her heart refused to settle down.
To calm her mind, Eileen looked at the poppy she had placed near the window. Its red petals, bathed in sunlight, looked vibrant and fresh. The sight of the crimson color naturally reminded her of someone.
The painkiller she was developing, called Morpheus, was inspired by the god of dreams. Eileen hoped that patients suffering from pain would find relief and rest through Morpheus.
According to the myth, there were two doors in the kingdom of the god of dreams: one made of bone and the other of ivory.
Dreams that passed through the bone door were meaningless and easily forgotten. However, those that passed through the ivory door carried the will of the gods.
Eileen wondered if Cesare's dreams had come through the ivory door. If so, what could they mean? From what the man said, it seemed he was repeating the same dream…
'And, of all things, a dream where he kills me.'
It was impossible not to be curious about the meaning behind it. Just as Eileen was about to turn off the gas, the water boiled completely, and a polite knock echoed through the laboratory. A servant entered, announcing the arrival of a visitor.
The visitors have arrived to see you. They are ahead of schedule. Should I ask them to wait?
No, that's fine. I'll see them now!
Eileen quickly organized the laboratory equipment and ran outside. It was a visit she had been eagerly awaiting: her university professors.
She straightened her clothes and went down to the living room. There, she found a middle-aged man and woman, along with a young man who sat uncomfortably, looking around nervously. They seemed impressed by the grandeur of the Archduke's residence.
The guests, who had been awkwardly sipping their tea, immediately stood up when Eileen entered. At first, they didn't recognize her and hesitated, but when she greeted them with a radiant smile, they finally realized who she was and called her name.
Eileen!
The teachers exclaimed with joy, but their enthusiasm quickly waned as they looked around at the servants. Although the servants continued to smile, their eyes lacked warmth, leaving the teachers visibly nervous.
It's a pleasure to see you again…
"A teacher stammered, trying to be polite. Before he could continue, Eileen stepped forward and shook his hands firmly."
Welcome! I was eager to see you.
His warm greeting brought an emotional sparkle to the teachers' eyes. At that moment, the young man who had been quiet finally spoke.
How have you been?
The young man had a friendly face, but Eileen didn't recognize him. She blinked, confused, assuming he was one of the teachers' students. The man smiled shyly and introduced himself.
— It's me, Lucio.
— What? Mr. Lucio…?
Eileen's shock was evident. Lucio had been her closest colleague during their university days, but his appearance had changed so much that she didn't recognize him immediately.
I missed you, Eileen.
While Eileen stood there, speechless, Lucio added with a gentle smile:
— Truly, very much so.
(Elisa: Then she gets shot and doesn't know why )
To be continued…