Chapter 73
Raylenne couldn’t reconcile the stark contrast between the bright, warm scene and the gloomy, depressing one. She found herself retracing the past once again.
She needed to know what had transpired between those two scenes. However, all that returned to her was a memory as black as if it had been scorched by fire.
In that memory, she caught a glimpse of Caverion.
“I told you to be careful!”
“Sob… It’s my fault…! Mother…!”
Caverion shouted as if startled, while Raylenne was crying. It seemed like something had happened to the Duchess, but the memory didn’t reveal the exact situation.
As she tried to delve deeper into the memory, an intense pain struck the back of her head, as if on cue. Raylenne realized that her body was reluctant to recall this memory.
‘It was like this when I tried to read the memory of hurting Belle too…’
When she had heard the story from the person involved, the fog clouding the memory had lifted. But the problem now was that there was no one to ask about this incident.
The Duchess was already deceased.
Raylenne pondered. In truth, she didn’t absolutely need to know this memory. After all, no one ever mentioned the late Duchess first, and it didn’t seem like not knowing the details would cause problems in her daily life.
Nevertheless, she felt oddly unsettled.
“Sob… It’s my fault…! Mother…!”
Recalling the young Raylenne’s cry, she wondered if it was okay to remain ignorant when it seemed that she — or rather, the owner of this body — had made a grave mistake in the past.
‘Hmm…’
Perhaps she could subtly probe Caverion. He would surely know why and when the Duchess had passed away.
Raylenne decided she needed to find Caverion. She immediately left her room and walked down the corridor.
The corridor was dim despite it not being nighttime. The scenery outside the window was dark. The sky, as if mourning the death of the deceased, was pouring rain.
Raylenne walked down the quiet corridor, listening to the sound of rain pattering against the windows.
When she finally reached Caverion’s room, she gave a soft knock, but there was no answer. Thinking he might not have heard, she knocked again.
Knock knock.
“Brother, it’s Raylenne.”
The room remained silent.
‘Where could he have gone…?’
She had asked a maid earlier, and was told that Caverion hadn’t gone out today.
Raylenne looked up at the gloomy sky outside the window.
‘With this rain, he won’t be training either.’
Her gaze dropped downward. Raindrops were falling, soaking the grounds of the ducal castle.
The rain pouring down on the usually desolate and dry landscape seemed to have no positive effect, likely due to the people living here.
As Raylenne was sighing, she spotted a figure walking amidst the fierce raindrops. Despite the cold rain, the tall man was walking steadily, as if unbothered.
‘He’ll catch a cold if he walks like that.’
Even if he was an Awakened One.
Having found the missing owner of the room, Raylenne removed her arms from the windowsill.
It seemed she needed to console her melancholic brother.
* * *
By the time she got outside, Caverion had already walked quite far.
Raylenne followed him, holding an umbrella.
The place he arrived at was a small building near the pond beside the training grounds.
Caverion entered that building.
‘What is that building for…?’
The ducal castle was vast, and there were still many spaces unknown to her. She could probably find out the purpose of the building Caverion had entered by searching through her memories, but she didn’t bother since she would soon see for herself.
Before entering the building, Raylenne peeked through the gap in the open door.
A chilly atmosphere permeated the small space. There was no furniture or other objects, just a small frame and a candle placed at the front.
Upon seeing the picture in the small frame, Raylenne realized this was a shrine dedicated to the late Duchess.
Caverion was standing with his head bowed, his wet hair drooping. His broad shoulders seemed unusually small today, and Raylenne could tell he was emotionally distressed.
‘It must be because of the late Duchess…’
Caverion had said he had no affection for his family. Until now, there hadn’t been even the slightest mention of the Duchess, so she had naturally assumed the Duchess was included among those he felt no affection for.
But it seemed that wasn’t the case. She had never seen Caverion like this before.
Creak.
As Raylenne opened the door, Caverion lifted his face. He raised his head with an icy gaze, but seemed a bit surprised to see Raylenne.
She wondered if her presence here was that surprising, but Raylenne approached Caverion without a word.
Caverion stared at Raylenne for a while before slowly opening his mouth.
“Raylenne… it was you.”
Raylenne found Caverion’s statement of the obvious strange. However, she brushed it off, assuming he couldn’t think straight due to his grief.
“What brings you here?”
“I saw my brother looking gloomy outside the window, so I followed you.”
Raylenne deliberately spoke in a playful tone. There was no need for two people to emit a depressing atmosphere right now.
“Your back view as you walked in the rain looked so sad, I found myself following you here before I knew it.”
Her effort seemed to work, as Caverion managed a weak smile.
“I’ve caused you concern.”
Raylenne sat down next to Caverion with a faint smile. Sitting next to Caverion, who was drenched from the rain, she felt a chill.
“You’ll catch a cold.”
“I’m not as frail as you.”
Raylenne could tell he was trying hard to make this light-hearted joke.
“It’s not mother’s death anniversary today, why did you come here?”
“As the anniversary approaches, I feel melancholic and find myself coming here.”
Raylenne couldn’t easily say anything else. Caverion’s vulnerable appearance was both unfamiliar and worrying.
However, Caverion seemed to interpret Raylenne’s silence differently and hastily added:
“Don’t misunderstand. I didn’t bring this up to reproach you.”
Raylenne didn’t understand Caverion’s words.
‘Why would he reproach me…?’
Was the Duchess’s death really because of her?
As Raylenne still didn’t say anything, Caverion, misunderstanding that she was hurt, sighed.
“What happened when you were young… it was clearly an accident. At that time, in my childish mind, I thought it was your fault, but I deeply regret that now.”
Caverion took Raylenne’s hand. His rain-soaked palm was as cold as ice.
“So, Raylenne. Never think that mother’s death was your fault. Her fall down the stairs was certainly an accident.”
Fall down the stairs…?
Raylenne blinked blankly.
At that moment,
Flash—!
The memory that had been as black as if scorched by fire surfaced.
* * *
The setting was the Duke’s mansion
However, it seemed subtly different from the current mansion, as a warmer atmosphere lingered. The reason seemed to be because of this person.
“Raylenne, don’t run around like that. You might fall.”
A gentle voice echoed through the mansion’s hallway. The voice belonged to a woman who looked remarkably similar to Raylenne.
It was Nadia, Raylenne’s mother and the Duchess of Ergen. The resemblance between the mother and daughter was astonishing. The only notable difference was that Nadia had warm emerald eyes reminiscent of lush greenery and light brown hair that brought to mind a wheat field on an autumn day. Because of this, even though Nadia and Raylenne looked so alike, they exuded distinctly different atmospheres, like spring and winter.
“We’re going out together for the first time in a long while, mother!” Raylenne’s excited response drew a slight reprimand from Caverion, who stood beside her.
“Raylenne. If you keep being so reckless, mother might have to stay in bed,” Caverion warned.
“Really…?” Raylenne’s face fell, her eyebrows drooping. Nadia glanced at Caverion after seeing Raylenne’s disappointed expression.
“Caverion, if you say things like that, you’ll make Raylenne sad.”
“She tires you out, mother…” Caverion trailed off, receiving a gentle reprimand.
“She’s your only little sister, be kind to her,” Nadia chided softly, though Caverion looked momentarily displeased, he quickly nodded.
“Yes, I’m sorry, mother.”
“I know it’s tough, but please take good care of your siblings,” Nadia said, ruffling Caverion’s hair with a smile. Raylenne, having regained her energy, suddenly interjected.
“Mother! Does this mean Helis can’t come with us?”
“He caught chickenpox, so he has to stay home.”
“Serves him right! He broke my doll last time; it’s like he’s being punished!” Raylenne said, a hint of satisfaction in her voice.
“Raylenne, you shouldn’t say things like that,” Nadia admonished, as Raylenne darted around her like a sparrow flitting through a wheat field during harvest. Raylenne was thrilled about going out with her mother, who had been bedridden for a while.
When they arrived at the park, the maids spread out a large cloth. Raylenne plopped down on it, pointing at the sky with a loud exclamation.
“Mother, the weather is so nice!”
However, despite the bright day, Nadia’s expression was not cheerful. Her pale skin was almost ghostly. Only Caverion seemed to notice this.
“Mother, you don’t have to push yourself. If you feel unwell, we can go back anytime,” Caverion whispered softly, just loud enough for Nadia to hear.
“I’m fine,” Nadia reassured him with a faint smile, though even that required great effort. Yet, seeing Raylenne’s joyful smile made her feel she could endure a bit more.
“Mother, let’s go over there! The fountain is so beautiful!” Raylenne urged, tugging Nadia’s hand. Nadia stood up, and Caverion, watching anxiously, added,
“Be careful, Raylenne. Don’t run and trip.”
Raylenne responded by sticking out her tongue playfully before quickly urging Nadia along. They arrived at a high hill, with the park’s prized fountain at the top. The fountain featured a statue of an angel descending from the heavens, with water jets spraying in all directions.
Nadia, weary from climbing the steps, sat down by the fountain.
“Raylenne, I’ll rest here for a bit. You can look around nearby,” Nadia said, catching her breath. “But don’t go far and don’t run.”
“Yes!” Raylenne replied, her attention already captured by the dazzling fountain.
However, like an unrestrained puppy, she began running around the fountain. Nadia, watching her, felt a sense of unease and eventually stood up to approach Raylenne.
“Raylenne, you might bump into someone. It’s dangerous…”
But before Nadia could finish her sentence, it happened.
Thud—
Just as Nadia had feared, Raylenne collided with a passerby, falling backward. Behind her were the steep stone steps.
