Catherine’s worried gaze turned toward Saul. Throughout David’s storytelling, there had been no reaction from Saul. David, who had been chattering for quite a while, also belatedly realized that Saul wasn’t responding and stopped talking.

Only then did he see Saul’s pale face and open his mouth in surprise. Saul? The sound of the flustered David calling his brother could be heard.

“…What’s wrong?”

However, Saul didn’t answer. He looked like he didn’t have the presence of mind to respond. Saul’s thin lips, pressed tightly together, had so much tension that his mouth was drawn taut. 

Below his lowered eyelids, a reddish light flickered between his tilted eyelashes. Each time he blinked shallowly, lost in thought, it seemed to spark up like embers.

Saul. The sound of David quietly calling Saul once more could be heard. Saul seemed lost in deep thought, unable to hear even that sound, and finally raised his head only after David lightly grasped his shoulder.

Ah. A sound like an exclamation briefly escaped. He seemed unable to collect himself, like someone who had just awakened from sleep.

What’s wrong? Young David asked again. His voice asking this question was tinged with worry and a hint of anxiety, sounding somewhat muffled.

“No, it’s nothing.”

However, Saul still didn’t give him a proper answer. He simply shook his head and tried to smile by pulling his stiffly hardened lips, pretending nothing was wrong.

Because Saul’s attitude was clearly strange, David’s eyes narrowed as he looked at his brother.

Really. It’s nothing. Saul, noticing David’s expression, whispered while shaking his head once more. At that point, David seemed unable to press the matter further.

Eventually, young David nodded in understanding with an expression that suggested his brother must have some circumstances. Because of this, Catherine thought the two brothers’ conversation about the ‘ghost’ had ended there.

Since it wasn’t a particularly pleasant topic for Saul, she thought the discussion wouldn’t continue.

“…So, what happened?”

However, contrary to Catherine’s expectation, the conversation seemed set to continue. And surprisingly, it was Saul who brought up the topic again. David seemed equally puzzled by Saul’s question, apparently having thought they wouldn’t discuss the ghost any further.

“The ghost, I mean. Did you just see it?”

Saul, who had been quietly watching his younger brother, asked once more. David’s eyes rolled like he was searching his memory at that question.

Because of this, David didn’t seem to notice, but Catherine saw a deep shadow fall across Saul’s face.

After a moment, David’s head tilted diagonally and then shook left and right. Because his attitude denying that anything had happened was rather light, Catherine thought David had merely witnessed the ghost.

However, this time too, her expectation was wrong.

“It was the same as usual…”

This was why Saul frowned upon hearing David’s answer. And from the question that followed, Catherine could understand why Saul had shown such a reaction.

“Did it call you?”

Saul’s attitude in asking with a quite serious tone was unusual. However, young David didn’t seem to notice even that, simply nodding in affirmation to Saul’s question.

But unlike David’s cheerful attitude, Saul’s expression didn’t brighten at all, seemingly worried about something in his answer. He asked with a very concerned tone.

You didn’t answer, did you? Fortunately, young David nodded silently once more to that question. At this, Saul exhaled a short breath, whether in relief or something else. And grasping his younger brother’s shoulder, he spoke in a somewhat deflated voice.

“Good, as long as nothing happened.”

We should go back to our rooms. Give me the lamp. And Saul quietly turned around while receiving the lamp from young David’s hands.

Soon the brothers went outside the door, chatting quietly. Catherine watched the brothers moving away, then she too rose to her feet.

Though there was carpet laid down, her legs had gone numb from sitting on the floor for a long time. Catherine couldn’t move her body immediately and stood there leaning her hand against the wall.

And she fell into thought while looking at the window where rain was still falling and the spot below where young Saul had been sitting.

The evil thing had definitely said it would show her memories about the accident. But aside from the sudden story about the Countess’s ghost, Catherine was most concerned about… the expression she had seen on Saul’s face at the moment he received the lamp, hardened with some kind of resolve.

Catherine blinked while looking at the light faintly shining from outside the door. She had already seen what young Saul had done to save baby David.

Because of that… Catherine felt like she knew what would cause the accident the brothers experienced. And she thought she knew where Saul would head after sending his younger brother back to his room.

Catherine straightened her tilted body, put strength in her legs, and stood upright. Her legs were still numb, but it seemed she could walk even if she limped somewhat. Grasping her disheveled skirt hem, Catherine slowly crossed the drawing room.

She intended to follow before the light moved too far away.

Catherine, who had walked out with quick steps while almost gritting her teeth, stood at the doorway for a moment and surveyed outside the drawing room.

Fortunately, the light hadn’t moved very far by the time Catherine crossed the drawing room and came outside the door. Catherine stared at the light flickering at the far end of the corridor.

If she hurried, she seemed able to catch up with the two people soon. Perhaps because she had forced her legs to move even that short distance, the tingling sensation was less when she stepped on the floor.

After lightly stamping the floor a couple of times with her shoe-clad feet like testing it, Catherine soon turned around to chase the receding light.

The sound of fierce storms raging echoed through the empty corridor. The sound of windows rattling in the wind rolled in unstably, creating the illusion that pitch-black shadows were knocking on the windows again like barnacles clustered together.

Catherine moved her steps quickly while listening to the sound of rain pouring overhead. What had initially been just quick steps gradually became faster as time passed. Catherine soon walked almost at a run.

Each time the light shining beyond the corridor increased the distance, impatience crept into her steps.

She was able to reach that spot only when the edge of the light barely shone beyond the corner. Catherine, who had caught her breath for a moment, was just tilting her toes to turn the corner.

“…!”

Catherine immediately discovered something pitch-black that filled her tilted field of vision beyond the corner. When she discovered it, there was no time to stop. Ah! Ugh! In an instant, voices of different pitches rose up.

And when Catherine finally came to her senses, she had fallen in the corridor, entangled with that pitch-black figure.

Catherine, who came to her senses in the firm embrace of someone unknown, was startled by a low groan that brushed past her ear a beat later and raised her head.

Because the light had disappeared at some point, her surroundings were momentarily pitch-black and she couldn’t see anything for a moment.

However, thanks to the light faintly seeping through the window and a familiar voice, Catherine could easily recognize who had appeared from beyond the corridor. Even in the darkness, shining hair and a white face stood out prominently.

“…David?”

At Catherine’s call, the low groaning sound suddenly subsided. And then David’s voice was heard.

“Cath, erine.”

That voice calling Catherine sounded somewhat unnatural, like it was suppressed. Catherine, sensing something strange, tried to rise by pressing against his firm body beneath her hands, then hesitated.

This was because David’s arms were holding her firmly, having reflexively embraced Catherine as she fell into his arms.

Until just before, she hadn’t noticed due to being startled, but once she became aware of it, his arm wrapped around her back felt heavy.

Catherine reached her arm backward. Her groping hand caught the outline of a firm arm. Catherine shook it lightly and opened her mouth to request that he let her go.

“David, this…”

However, her words were cut off before they could continue. Ugh… Once again, a groan that sounded heavily muffled rose low. Catherine stopped moving in confusion.

This was because she realized that the unusual sound she had heard earlier wasn’t something she had misheard.

“David?”

Calling him, Catherine narrowed her eyes. In the dim surroundings, she tried hard to examine his faintly visible condition. Catherine released David’s arm that she had been grasping and carefully opened her mouth once more.

“David, are you alright?”

And she reached her hand forward to touch near his shoulder. It was the moment her fingertips brushed against his stiffly raised collar.

“…!”

She felt the hand that had been wrapped around her back move diagonally upward. Then, like snatching, it grasped the area from her shoulder to her arm with a rough touch and pulled her toward him.

There was no time to react. The arm supporting her body shifted and tilted. Caught off guard, Catherine couldn’t even scream and fell back into David’s embrace.

At David’s sudden movement of embracing her like he would crush her, Catherine’s heart dropped in shock.

Huh. Catherine inhaled. And simultaneously, she froze upon feeling the weight settling on his shoulder.