On the following morn, Ravenna failed to rouse herself at the customary hour.
Her awakening in Ansel's bedroom the previous day was due to the puppet control she had over her physical form, but this time... was different.
Ansel's nocturnal "antics" had only escalated, and Ravenna, whose stamina could not compare to that of Seraphina, awoke a full five hours later than usual.
The woman awoke, propping her forehead up with one hand, and with great effort, opened her eyes to a scene that was not the chaos she had anticipated.
Those messes he had forced her to create were nowhere to be seen, and the clothes that Ansel had made were all neatly arranged, though Ravenna had no idea where they had been placed.
She noticed a stack of clean clothes beside her, from undergarments to her ever-present white lab coat, all neatly folded and stacked.
Ravenna's eye twitched as she looked at the black garter stockings and lace lingerie on top of the pile.
After a moment's hesitation, she slowly changed into the clothes.
The previous night's debauchery had cleared Ravenna's mind considerably. Although she was reluctant to admit it, she had to concede that Ansel was right.
— She did indeed need to vent her frustrations and needed someone who could resonate with her on a spiritual level.
In this world, the only one with such talent, foresight, and understanding was Ansel.
The term "friend" was merely a description of their relationship at the time. Looking back... Ravenna realized that if Ansel had not severed ties with her, their relationship would have naturally evolved into what it was now.
... At the time, Ansel seemed too young, and Ravenna had no such intentions.
"... Three years," she murmured.
However, this was still within Ravenna's tolerance.
Her thoughts were not much different from Ansel's — if she, who had been so close to Ansel, could make a final decision, then it was unlikely that Ansel could tame her with his current tactics.
"I am not the young girl you've ensnared with a collar, blushing at your lap," declared Ravenna with a defiant air.
"I might as well consider this a stress relief, a simple and efficient method."
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Such a reversal of roles restored a modicum of dignity from the memories of the previous night's torment.
Barefoot, she moved to the storage locker, ready to retrieve a bottle of energy potion to replenish her strength. Ravenna planned to upgrade her current detector, enhancing its basic functions as much as possible. After all, the Tower of Babel was now on the right track, and the various designs she and Ansel had jointly developed...
Creating individual units was not difficult, but if mass production was to be achieved, considering cost, technology, and various other factors, the time spent would be measured in years. There was no need to rush.
At present, the most important thing for Ravenna was to investigate the cause of her grandfather's death. Yesterday's clues led to the Ziegler Manor, but Ravenna didn't get any useful leads. Her conversation with her parents could no longer continue.
The only certainty was that Leiden was indeed unrelated to Eileen's death — after all, Leiden's answer to Ravenna's final question didn't seem to be a lie, whether it was about Eileen's complex feelings or calling Ravenna... a monster.
But Leiden wouldn't have gone to Eileen's old house for no reason. Ravenna didn't believe he would go there specifically to remember her grandfather, just as she hadn't seen them in over a decade.
If it was unintentional, there must be something luring him to her grandfather's old house; if it was intentional, it must be related to the incident fifteen years ago, but he... was just unaware of the behind-the-scenes affairs.
In that case... she would start investigating the people he had been in contact with five days ago and even earlier, as well as his activities.
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