‘Hmm… it’s a mess.’

I looked around at the three Cayenne siblings and was convinced in my heart.

Naran, filled with anger and not knowing what to do, was fuming, while Arkle, pretending to be indifferent, was countering Naran’s blows. Martha looked at both of them with the most disdainful eyes in the world, clicking her tongue.

It was an ordinary mess, without any overwhelming dignity to be found.

“Next time, I’ll sit next to Lize!”

“I’m the one who married her.”

“Didn’t you say it was just a contract marriage?”

“It’s a contract ‘marriage,’ sister.”

“I still don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“So, next time, I’ll sit next to Lize. Got it?!”

Amidst their noisy argument, I calmly took a sip of tea.

From behind Arkle, Juan, who was holding his forehead, gave me a look asking if I wasn’t going to stop them.

I shrugged slightly with an innocent face.

What power do I have….

That was the expression on my face.

Of course, Juan, who knew my true nature, wouldn’t fall for such a weak act, but it was amusing to see him so dumbfounded.

‘Sorry, Juan… I find it most fun to see others in distress.’

Contrary to this wicked inner thought, I put on a pure expression with sparkling eyes.

Realizing I was teasing him, Juan shut his eyes tightly.

I innocently took another sip of tea.

Sorry, Juan, but I seem to have found real enjoyment in teasing you.

Juan, squinting his eyes, glanced at the Cayenne siblings, still bickering, and slowly ran a hand down his face.

It seemed he realized this meal was a lost cause.

He looked as if he was deeply troubled about how to stop those three siblings, but the situation was resolved simply, making such worries unnecessary.

A man, appearing to be a retainer, rushed into the dining room with a serious face.

“Master, we’ve succeeded in locating him.”

“……!”

At those words, Martha immediately stood up.

Not only Martha but I also paid attention to the man’s words.

‘It’s about the escaped shaman.’

Martha asked, suppressing her excitement.

“Where?”

“Well….”

The worried man hesitated before continuing.

“It’s Kelston.”

Hearing that name, Martha’s expression hardened.

Naran and Arkle, who were still growling at each other, flinched as well.

“Kelston…?”

I asked cautiously, unfamiliar with the name, and Arkle, beside me, answered.

“It’s a small village near the border, under Mount Kroom.”

Martha rubbed her head as if she couldn’t believe it.

“I thought he would have crossed the mountain…! To think he’s there….”

After a moment of thought, Arkle spoke up.

“Isn’t this rather fortunate?”

Martha looked silently at her second brother.

Arkle continued calmly.

“As you know, crossing Mount Kroom means going beyond the border. It’s much harder to act there. Although Kelston is the land of the undead… it’s less problematic than a foreign country.”

“Undead?”

Before Martha could say anything, I exclaimed in surprise.

“Like ‘Night of the Living Dead’ or ‘Evil Dead,’ something like that?!”

Oh my.

Does this mean zombies exist in the <Red Moon> world?

I felt my eyes widen with excitement.

“I don’t know what that is… but there’s no need to be afraid, wife.”

Arkle, thinking I was scared, spoke in a reassuring tone.

“There’s a strong holy barrier surrounding the area, so they can never come out.”

But I wasn’t afraid, as Arkle assumed.

I swallowed unconsciously.

‘…This is amazing. I really want to see it….’

As a gore enthusiast, zombie movies were among the genres I was passionate about.

‘Even good stories often have slightly disappointing CGI…. But I don’t have to worry about that. It’s real…!’

Just imagining it made me feel giddy, and I smiled faintly, which seemed to satisfy Arkle, who was watching me.

“I’m glad you seem relieved.”

He seemed to think he had reassured me.

I hadn’t been scared in the first place, but his oddly proud face was cute, so I just smiled silently.

“…Arkle is right.”

Naran, who had been watching Arkle and me with sulky eyes, clicked his tongue and spoke.

“Undead creatures can be troublesome, but it’s much better than crossing the border. It could lead to diplomatic disputes if handled poorly. Isn’t that right, Martha?”

Despite the positive opinions from both her brothers, Martha remained silent, her lips tightly shut.

She didn’t openly deny it, so she seemed to agree, but there appeared to be some issue.

‘Why is she acting like that…?’

Normally, Martha would have immediately prepared a knight order for an expedition.

‘Does she have some unspeakable problem?’

With a shadow cast over her face, Martha bit her lip, looking as if she couldn’t easily speak.

“…I understand for now.”

Martha let out a short sigh and nodded slowly.

“I’ll think more in the office.”

With those words, she turned and left the dining room.

I watched Martha’s retreating figure while chewing my food slowly.

‘She seems unusually dispirited….’

Martha, who went to the capital to gain the Emperor’s favor, was hesitating with the cure right in front of her?

‘Something’s odd…. I need to find out what’s going on.’

I stabbed a piece of meat with a determined hand.

❖ ❖ ❖

Inside Martha’s office.

Seated at her desk, Martha let out a deep sigh.

‘Kelston, Kelston….’

Kelston was originally an ordinary village, but a hundred years ago, a mage performed forbidden magic, turning its residents into undead.

Immediately after, the imperial family executed the mage and disposed of the forbidden method, but they couldn’t restore the residents to their original state.

As time passed, the residents’ bodies and brains decayed, and those who completely lost their human intellect began attacking passing travelers.

Eventually, the imperial family placed a barrier to confine them within the village.

The barrier had no effect on living humans, so ordinary people could enter and leave freely, but of course, no one went inside.

‘No one would go in unless they were insane.’

Lost in thought, Martha rubbed her temples with one hand.

Killing the undead was obviously impossible, but just as they confined them with a barrier, it was possible to restrict their actions through magic.

So, it wasn’t impossible to come out of there alive.

‘It might be better than crossing the border, as those guys said….’

If only there weren’t one problem.

Once again lost in thought, Martha grabbed her head and became irritated.

“Why… why of all places…!”

It was then.

Knock knock—

At the sound of knocking, Martha quickly straightened her posture.

“Wh, who is it?”

“It’s me. May I come in for a moment?”

A gentle and soft voice.

It was that woman, Lize Allenheim.

“Now’s not a good time.”

“Martha, you have a concern, don’t you?”

Startled, Martha looked silently at the door.

The woman beyond the door continued to speak in a soft voice. It was a voice that somehow had a calming effect.

“I want to help you, Martha. Think of it as organizing your thoughts and tell me.”

“…….”

“I’m on your side, Martha.”

Martha, who had been staring at the door, let out a long sigh and spoke.

“Come in.”

“Excuse me—”

Lize entered the room with a bright smile.

Unlike her cheerful smile, Martha still wore a troubled expression.

Lize, sitting in front of her, asked with wide eyes.

“Is it something serious? It’s my first time seeing you with such a bad expression.”

“…….”

“If it’s serious enough for you to be like this, it must be quite a problem. What on earth….”

“…Let me ask you something.”

Martha, who had been silent with a serious face, suddenly spoke.

“When you say it must be quite a problem for me to be like this… does that mean I seem fearless?”

Lize blinked her eyes for a moment, then nodded.

“Yes! Because you’re someone who’s bold and fearless.”

“Why do I seem that way?”

“Hmm….”

After a moment of thought, Lize spoke brightly.

“Well, you look so dignified… and your actions so far show that. Just look at how you kidnapped me!”

“…Ahem.”

Martha cleared her throat as if she’d been hit in a sore spot.

Lize still wore a bright face.

“Allowing me, who was a hostage, to marry your brother… honestly, I would have thought it was nonsense. It’s too suspicious!”

“…Are you confessing that you’re suspicious?”

“Haha! It’s just an example. Anyway… that’s who you are. No matter how nonsensical something is, if you judge it’s worth trying, you never waver.”

“…….”

“That’s why I respect you, Martha.”

“…….”

“I don’t know if I can solve a problem that troubles someone as amazing as you, but… I want to do my best to help! I want to emulate you, Martha!”

Facing Lize’s sparkling eyes, Martha suddenly grabbed her head and groaned, “Ugh…!”

Lize, startled, widened her eyes.

“Martha?! Are you okay?”

“…I’m not….”

“Pardon?”

“I’m not without fear….”

Martha, who had been muttering with her head down, raised her face.

“I… can’t stand….”

She mumbled, avoiding eye contact, but her voice was still too soft to hear.

Lize blinked her eyes, looking at Martha.

Then, with a serious face, she spoke earnestly.

“It’s okay, Martha. If it’s something you fear, it must be a huge threat to the empire….”

“…Stop, stop!! I can’t stand disgusting things—got it?!”

Martha shouted as if she couldn’t listen anymore.

Lize, who had stopped speaking, stared blankly at her.

Meeting that gaze, Martha exclaimed with frustration.

“Yes, it might be ridiculous to say this at my age. But no matter how hard I try, I just hate it so much!”

Martha, who had shouted, furrowed her brows and added.

“Those who became undead a century ago must have decayed thoroughly… I can’t bear to see that with a sane mind. If only someone unafraid could take over my position….”