Volume 2 - CH 6

P. 195

P. 208

Edgar didn’t do anything further more to hurt him but his cold eyes that didn’t show a hint of sympathy showed that they wouldn’t accept any pleases of help or defending excuses.

It might have not been as scary if he had acted in rage and a fit of anger.

His cold glaring eyes continued as Raven held down Graham who was struggling to fight back until he was knocked down unconscious.

Edgar was aiming his overflowing rage at Prince who stood beyond Graham.

But, even if he let out his anger or make his revenge, what he lost would never come back.

Edgar also wouldn’t be saved.

He was free from the hands of Prince and obtained his freedom and yet he could have placed himself in another fierce and lonely battle.

How sad is that.

Edgar turned around to Lydia’s tired sigh and now he hid the heartless, cold presence and had the look of his gentleman self.

“I’m sorry, Lydia. To show you such an unbearable scene.”

He walked over to her and offered his hand and said let’s go. Lydia ignored it and stood up by herself to stare quietly at Edgar.

“Are you going to put that man into a wooden box?”

“You don’t have to know that. Since you’re not one of us.”

P. 209

He looked back at her with a slightly lonely expression.

Yes, Lydia wasn’t a part of his group. He acted in desperation to save her like she was a valuable member inside his ring, but since she wasn’t with them, she couldn’t take any step further to him.

But, she couldn’t agree to this.

“Edgar, what was your purpose in hiring me as your fairy doctor? Wasn’t it to help you as earl and the new you?”

“…..Let’s take about that later. We need to get out of here pretty soon, or the rest of his men might return.”

“What are you saying? Then, we have to hurry up to find and rescue Doris and Rosalie. The two of them were also put on this ship, weren’t they?”

“I don’t think there’s any obligation for us to help them.”

For a instant, Lydia couldn’t believe her ears.

“W-Why?”

“We don’t have that kind of time and besides, this ship isn’t able to leave port. Everything here will be searched eventually.”

When it would be search is the question. A few days? A few weeks? That would be the same as leaving them to die.

“But, I know that the two of them are being confined somewhere. I can’t leave when I know that….”

P. 210

Reaching to that, Lydia suddenly realized. 

They knew and yet eight years ago, Edgar was abandoned.

“Do you loathe them? Because Rosalie and Doris stole the ‘fairy egg’ from you and yet they didn’t help you?”

He looked back at Lydia with a somewhat troubled expression.

“I don’t really remember.”

“Rosalie told me that she met a young boy who was tied up and locked in that river-side warehouse eight years ago. She thought he was a thief and took his water-sealed agate and never saw him since…. That boy was you wasn’t it? Rosalie and Doris had gotten into the warehouse that Lord Graham used to confine you to hand you over to Prince, right?”

He let out a breath of air, which didn’t look like it was from remembering his painful past but looked like he was tired of Lydia’s meddling.

“Even if that were so, it wasn’t that much to hate someone for. Lydia, it would be natural for those girls to abandon a filthy young boy. He would have nothing to do with them and they can figure out that it would do them any good to get involved with it. I’m sorry, but I don’t care if they are going to be the victims of their own uncle…”

Before Edgar could finish what he was saying, Lydia had slapped his face with the palm of her hand.

*

Lydia was wandering around inside the deserted ship. There were a number of places that looked like a tornado had passed through, but she could guess that it may have been caused by Raven.

It didn’t look like it was caused by a fight or combat, but more the trail of Raven forcefully entering as he was looking around for Edgar.

Since every door like door had been broken down by the work of some axe-like object, she guessed that the sailors must have run-off than stay and try to stop Raven.

Imagining the sight of that expressionless person causing havoc wherever he went really made her see him as a living, breathing weapon of war.

Inside that disarranged ship, Lydia aimlessly went around to carefully searched the rooms, but it wasn’t that easy to locate Rosalie and Doris.

P. 214

“Hey, Nico, don’t you sense anything?”

“What are you saying that I sense.”

“Like, smells.”

“I am not a dog.”

Just then, Lydia picked up the sound of a woman’s scream.

“It’s this way!” Lydia went off in a dash.

“Oi, be careful. If it’s a scream, then couldn’t that mean there’s someone else there?” said Nico, as he followed her.

Oh, yes, he could be right.

She made sure to not make as much noise to give away that they were approaching as she rushed to the direction of the voice.

She stopped at the bend of a crossway as she could sense someone was present close-by around the corner, and after she peeked out, a figure and the person’s orange hair stood out even in this darkly lit place.

Rosalie was being carried on a plump man’s shoulder and was about to be taken off somewhere.

“That man, he’s the president of Graham’s company.”

“Hmm, since Raven came and made a commotion, he’s thinking of moving her to a different place? Oi, Lydia, what are you going to do?”

When Nico turned around, Lydia was already gripping a mop.

P. 215

“Let’s go, Nico.”

“Ehh, idiot, stop! This is too reckless….”

But, she got set for only a second and then raced out. Gripping onto the pole of the mop, she swung it down as she aimed at the man from behind.

“Whoa….!”

Letting out a grunt, the man wobbled over as he let go of Rosalie.

“You, bloody, wench.”

In no time had the furious man grabbed the mob out of Lydia’s hands. He reached out to get his hands on Lydia.

Just then, Rosalie grasped onto the man’s leg. He tripped forward and fell face down, and then she sunk her teeth into him.

Lydia rushed to pick up the mop and she too repeatedly hit him with it.

The man crawled along the floor in an effort to escape, but accidently went tumbling down a near-by staircase against the wall on the floor down to the bottom of the ship.

“Hurry, shut the door!”

The two of them hustled to lift up two wooden boards that acted as doors to close up the stairs.

After the pounding sound of the closing wooden doors and latching the lock, it wasn’t frightening any more no matter how much the locked-in man yelled or bellowed at them.

They quickly ran away from there and was finally able to take a breath of relief in an empty, quiet place, and when the two of them looked at each other, it wasn’t sure who was the first, but the two of them relaxed the stern look on their faces.

P. 216

“Miss Rosalie, were you being locked-up at the bottom of the ship?”

“Yes…, but just earlier, that man suddenly came in, and took me out to take me somewhere…..”

It was there, she remembered what she had done to Lydia and nervously backed away.

“More than that, why are you here? He…Edgar came to see me and told me to reveal your location….. Weren’t you rescued by him?”

“Well, yes, I was, but I came here to rescue you.”

The look on her face suddenly changed, like she was angry. And then, she turned her back to Lydia.

“That’s impossible. Because, I, I did that awful thing to you….”

“Yes, that sure was awful.”

“That’s why I was nearly killed by Edgar!”

“Eh?”

“It’s true, there’s something wrong with him! …..He seemed like he was used to threatening people, and had that sweet, melting smile on his face as he was trying to kill me.”

Yes, he would be capable of that. She could effortlessly imagine the sight and being able to do that was depressing.

She hoped that he didn't have the intent to kill her, but the reason behind that why he didn't could be just be that there was no profit in doing that for Edgar.

P. 217

“Yes, that man did the wrong thing. Even I’m always fooled around by him.”

“You’re lying. You’re a part of his group. You say that you’re here to help me, but what are you really going to do with me? Are you going to get even?”

“No, I’m not. Miss Rosalie, when you were locked-in, did you understand the feelings of being scared and alone?”

Trembling her shoulders slightly, Rosalie looked up at her with a frightened look.

“……Yes, I understand….., that’s why I know that this happened because I deserved it.”

“Then, please believe what I’m saying. I understand how you feel, so I’m here to help you.”

Lydia gave her a smile and held out her hand to Rosalie.

“Now, let’s go. We still need to find Miss Doris and get her out since those crooks could come back.”

She didn’t take Lydia’s hand because she must have still had doubts about her. And yet, Rosalie appeared like she was still going to go along with Lydia.

Perhaps, she was worried about Doris.

“Are you saying that Doris is also on this ship?”

*

The reason why Nico had slipped away from her was because he spotted something troublesome.

The bogey beast that moved in a bouncing, jumping run, had gotten his body back after Nico had made him disappear yesterday. Nico had gotten a quick glance of it out of the corner of his eye and quickly dashed to follow it.

“What an annoying little critter, geesh.”

Even as Nico thought that, he carefully followed after the bogey beast.

The devilish fae appeared like it was looking for something. Could it be that orange-haired girl?

He twitched his nose to try to pick up a scent and immediately rushed in the direction that Rosalie might be at.

P. 228

The meerky smell of Thames River mixed with the erry mist of the smog shrouded the inside of the ship. Wherever you were, that followed you in every part of this city.

More than the smell, Nico felt the moisture-laden air. It seeped into his whiskers and fur coat and that pasty and clammy feeling made his fur feel more heavy than normal.

Either way today too, Londonwas enveloped in the fog. There was no wind and the city was covered in a heavy, cold humidity.

Everyone wondered when the spring winds would come.

(Ahh, Master is calling me. If I don’t hurry, I will be heavily scolded,) mumbled the bogey beast to itself. Nico perked up his ears as

he followed after it.

(Oh, geesh, how could I allow my great self to be beaten by a fur-covered monster cat.)

I ain’t a monster.

(Oh, but that fairy doctor is still inside the bottle. The body was taken away so I couldn’t have any fun with it. And the Blue Knight Earl is on this ship. What a perfect chance. If he’s defeated, then it’s the revival of my Master!)

Blue Knight Earl? That’s Edgar.

The bogey beast that was bounding around inside the ship must have seen Edgar. But, it looks like it didn’t know Lydia was here after she was rescued out of the bottle.

P. 229

He wondered what kind of relationship the bogey beast had with the earl.

He remained confused as he kept his pursuit, but eventually, the bogey beast found the room that Rosalie was hiding in.

(Here it is. I can hear Master’s voice.)

Voice? But Nico couldn’t hear anything. It could have been a noise that had the same characteristics as the bogey beast, and if that were so, then that [Master] seemed like it was something of a troublesome or deadly nature.

From the slight crack of the open door, the bogey beast slipped inside. Nico also faded his body and passed through the door.

Rosalie was sitting near a round skylight windowsill. The bogey beast that went up to her, remained in an invisible form that humans were unable to see and called out its master.

Of course, it didn’t refer to Rosalie. Something seemed to be inside the faint green stone that Rosalie had in her hand.

“So that’s the master.”

Even Nico could tell the strong presence of the charm spell that repelled evil. His instinct told him that if he were to touch it, it was dangerous as he would be sucked into it.

“So that means, it’s something stupid enough to be sucked into that thing, right?”

The rock itself appeared mesmerizingly beautiful and extremely appealing, but because they couldn’t touch it, it was a charm to ward off evil.

P. 230

(Master, forgive me for my lateness. Oh, no, you will wait no further. I will immediately put the girl to work. Ahh, you mean the forerunner? Yes, I have put it in a trap. It was a stupid one, so I trapped it while it had fallen asleep in a pile of its favorite leaves. There is nothing that will stand in your way now, so please do not worry.)

What did it mean about forerunner? Was it the nemesis of the bogey beast and its master? If so, it was sure that it was in a state that couldn’t stop the two of them. To even put Lydia, the Earl’s fairy doctor, inside a bottle was quite a job for a bonehead bogey beast.

Oh, but, he had no time to be surprised by that.

As Nico spied on them even further, the bogey beast bounced up to stand right in front of Rosalie.

So that she could perceive it, it appeared its body to the human eye.

(Ahh, my lady, how I have searched for you. What happened for you to be trapped inside a place like this?)

Just seconds ago when it was calling her a little brat, it suddenly put up the façade of a cajoling attitude towards the girl. Rosalie, who had her head down, whipped her face up.

“Fairy….., where have you been! I was tricked by Uncle and had such an awful experience! No matter how much I called you, you never appeared……”

P. 231

P. 232

(Please forgive me. There was a small unanticipated accident and I was in a state of unconsciousness. Ahh, but, everything is fine now. If you would just follow my word, everything would work out perfectly.)

“What are you saying I do? If I’m seen by one of Uncle’s men, I’ll be locked up again. And I can’t escape from this ship, since I can’ swim. So hurry up and go get help.”

(Yes, yes, but I also happened to see that Earl on this ship as well. I’m sure he’s here to rescue my lady…)

“What! Why is that man here! You have to be kidding, I’m never going near that man again!”

(Eh, wh-why would that be? I was told that the earl was my lady’s ideal man of your dreams…)

“He tried to kill me! His attitude changed all of a sudden….Even Uncle, who was so kind to me, I’m never going to trust men ever again!”

Seeing that the bogey beast was confused and in a state of panic, Nico guessed that it had been planning to make Rosalie get near Edgar.

It was going to get its [Master] that was inside Rosalie’s stone near the target in order to revive it.

Perhaps the reason why Rosalie felling in love with Edgar and calculatingly approached him was because the thing inside the stone had learned about the man called the Blue Knight Earl and used its magic to get near him.

P. 233

The Blue Knight Earl it targeted was a type of man that constantly put up a sweet, good face towards all women was sure to be a godsend.

For the bogey beast and its master, to manipulate the girl and inflict an attack on the earl, the most simple and easiest way to control was to have her fall completely in love with him.

(Oh…., oh, yes, my lady, if something like that had happened, then you must not let that man get away with it.)

It looked like the bogey beast had come up with a new way to make Rosalie go on the move.

(You must let him have a taste of his own medicine. Please listen carefully, my lady, there is a magical power in that gemstone you hold. If you use that, then you will be able to punish the man who slighted you.)

“Punish…..?”

(Yes, just leave it to me. Ah, yes, please be careful not to drop the ‘fairy egg.’ Everything is alright, because you are a courageous one.)

The dark, evil inside the stone seeped out to sink into the weak opening of Rosalie’s heart. It was trying to take control of her.

Even though it was sealed within the stone, if one were to keep ahold of it for a long period of time, then they would be influenced by the dark magic slowly seeping out.

Normally, it should be under the care of someone who had a strong tolerance against it.

If it was in the old days, a priest or nobleman, and even if there was no guarantee that they were in the same position now, there were sure to be people who had a high tolerance against it, so it shouldn’t be in the hands of a girl like Rosalie who could be easily influenced by it.

P. 234

But, in reality, she was the one who had it.

Prompted by the bogey beast and manipulated by the dark magic, Rosalie stood up.

Her feelings of admiration towards Edgar, yet being double-crossed, and the fearful feelings after being put through a horrible experience had now changed to a bitter hatred inside her. 

"Oh, this is bad,” whispered Nico. “Hmm, I don’t care what happens to that flirt. But at this rate, Lydia might get in trouble.”

Before the two of them left, Nico dashed out of the room.

He hurried in a dash with his back legs to let Lydia know about what he just saw.