28. Suspicion

Lara’s answer made me change my mind.

“Since there was a fire at the place you were using, we moved you to the guest annex palace.”

That was strange.

“Fire, you say. Is that certain?”

“Yes, it is.”

So there was a fire, but why couldn’t Lara give any answer about the young master?

Since I met the young master before the fire broke out, my encounter with him couldn’t have been an illusion.

Thinking about it now, it was ridiculous.

How could that have been a dream?

I was perfectly lucid until the fire started. Unless I was surrounded by that acrid smoke, there’s no way I could have seen visions.

Indeed, it wasn’t a misconception.

“Just a moment, I need to go somewhere.”

Within seconds of hearing her words, I started running, forgetting about the treatment on my foot. Of course, the tightly bound bandage didn’t make for an elegant form.

“Miss! Please stop! You shouldn’t overexert yourself yet!”

“It’s urgent! Please cover for me when Dr. Murray comes!”

I could move fast enough to escape from Lara, who was thoroughly steeped in proper social etiquette.

She probably hadn’t run properly indoors since she was somewhat grown. Especially not in that restrictive uniform with its small fit.

Of course, not knowing my circumstances, she clearly couldn’t understand my behavior.

But I had my own serious concerns.

If there really was a fire, where did the young master who was with me at that moment go?

I couldn’t understand how a person could disappear without a trace.

From the circumstances, it seemed that Attendant Robin Wellers, who was supposedly with me last night, had rescued me from the fire. Someone like him wouldn’t have ignored the young master, a much more important figure than myself.

But assumptions alone still didn’t set my mind at ease.

There was a possibility that Robin Wellers might not have discovered the young master.

No one could have imagined that the young master, who never left the outer castle, would be in my quarters. Even I had denied his presence until just now, finding it hard to believe.

There was a sufficient chance that Robin had left him in the fire.

I needed greater certainty.

I wanted to confirm that he was safe. That’s why I was hurrying back to my quarters to verify that no one was there.

I struggled to find an exit while wandering through the building. Soon enough, I was able to get outside.

The sky had been cloudy, and now rain began to fall with a pattering sound.

Upon exiting, I saw a familiar path.

This was the road in front of the annex palace I had visited last night for dinner.

Though I had only been there once, the path was simple, and finding my destination was relatively easy thanks to the intense memories from that place.

At the same time, my memory of the collapsed young master, which I had thought was an illusion, became even clearer.

While walking along the road, some people I encountered greeted me. Today, everyone seemed unusually interested in me.

“Were you very startled because of last night’s fire?”

“I heard Dr. Murray visited you. Are you injured somewhere?”

“Where are you going in this rain?”

But lacking leisure, I passed by them with casual responses.

Amidst my distracted walking, someone kindly ran over and handed me an umbrella.

I thanked that person and continued forward.

While walking, I noticed a carriage passing on the opposite road. Come to think of it, I hadn’t considered using that.

It was a carriage that arrived at a designated place only at scheduled times every ten days. I had thought I wouldn’t have any occasion to use it.

That passing carriage suddenly stopped.

A person wearing a black cloak and black hat got out of the carriage. Even the shoes stepping onto the carriage steps were black.

Seeing someone dressed entirely in black made me feel anxious.

Though I hoped it wasn’t the case, that attire reminded me of the young master’s death.

No matter how I looked at it, it was unmistakably the appearance of someone returning from a funeral. It was also the outfit I least wanted to see at this moment.

The person who got off the carriage walked briskly toward me as if they had business with me.

It was ominous.

My heart pounded with the thought that this person might be bringing unfortunate news I didn’t want to hear.

Only then did I begin to feel the coldness of the rainwater on my frozen hands and my shrinking feet. I took a step back.

The person’s cloak began to get wet in the rain.

I hesitated momentarily, wondering if I should tilt my umbrella toward them.

“Why are you standing there like that?”

But an entirely unexpected voice was heard. It was the first time I was glad to hear that voice.

“Levery……”

In the dim, drizzling road, Levery’s eyes looking down at me were a bit different from usual. He didn’t seem to find me pathetic or contemptuous.

Levery extended his hand to me.

“Come ride with me. If you keep walking like that, you’ll faint.”

Though I should have quickly responded with my usual brusqueness to his mocking tone, somehow I didn’t have the strength. Was it because of the weather?

Instead of answering, I took another step back from him.

Levery looked at me with a slightly bewildered face.

“Do you dislike me that much?”

That wasn’t the reason.

“Levery, you…… why are you wearing black clothes?”

I wanted to know the answer to that question, but at the same time, I didn’t. I didn’t have the confidence to bear the worst fact I had been trying to deny all along while walking this rainy path. But his dark-colored coat already seemed to smell of death.

As I dropped the umbrella from my weakened hand, I was exposed directly to the cold rain. The rainwater seemed to cool my feverishly hot head.

The leg that had just received treatment suddenly felt like it was being stabbed, but I soon forgot about it.

“Why, of all colors, black?”

Levery could think I was crazy if he wanted.

I abandoned all dignity and simply sat down on the ground.

“I’m sorry.”

He apologized to me with an awkward tone.

“This is like a lucky charm I wear when meeting clients. It’s the best outfit I have.”

At his answer, I slightly raised my head. Was it because of the rain, or because of the faint headache that had been lingering for a while?

My head felt a bit dizzy.

“Clients……”

“Yes, I’m on my way back from seeing His Grace the Duke. He’s also my client.”

Levery answered in a tone as if soothing a child.

“Is that all?”

He sighed deeply and nodded his head again.

“Yes, that’s all.”

“Thank goodness.”

It was truly a relief.

“Just cry or laugh or do something……”

“I’ll be going then!”

As soon as I realized he was about to nag, I quickly got up from my place.

The moment I grabbed the handle to pick up the overturned umbrella on the ground, Levery frowned.

“Aren’t you going to ride?”

“No, I’m fine. See you next time.”

Leaving behind Levery, who was strangely docile today, I put on the umbrella and continued walking.

Though the weather was still gloomy and gray, I felt somewhat relieved now.

Despite having walked quite a distance, I didn’t hear the sound of Levery’s carriage departing. But it didn’t matter. That wasn’t the important issue. The important point was that officially, nothing had happened to the young master yet.

However, my determination to return to the site of the fire and check remained firm.

Was it my imagination?

The air in this place with cold rain falling no longer felt cold.

My gaze was fixed in one direction. On one hand, I was afraid that this hope, barely revived, might be extinguished soon.

But I couldn’t keep turning away from reality forever.

When the gentle sound of rain gradually intensified and the day grew darker, I finally reached my destination.

At first glance, the entire building appeared intact.

But upon closer inspection, soot remained on windows and walls here and there, vividly showing last night’s accident.

This brought on extreme anxiety.

The thought that I might be the only one who escaped from that fire gripped me again.

Trying to ignore such thoughts, I walked to the front of the burned and damaged door. The door was twisted and distorted beyond recognition.

There was no trace of a doorknob, so there was no way to open it normally.

This seemed to be the second time a place I frequented daily felt so unfamiliar.

But I had no major complaints. I just hoped not to find any ominous traces here. That was my only wish.

I folded the umbrella I was holding, then used the end of the shaft to push the door inward. Pushed by the umbrella, the door collapsed weakly, revealing the interior of the building.

Unlike the exterior, that completely black and dark place was totally burned out.