Chapter 4.10

“Marquis, Madame, I apologize for keeping you waiting.”

Entering the drawing room, Herace looked curiously at the visitors. Seeing the Ford family name, he wondered if Brienne had come, but the butler’s report was unexpected.

It was Marquis Ford, his wife, and Shylo Ford.

Brienne Ford was not among them.

As Herace sat down, his gaze went to the table. They must have waited quite a while, yet the tea before the marquis and his wife was untouched.

“Um… Young Master, do you know where Brienne is?”

At the marquis’s question, Herace’s eyes narrowed. He had sensed the tense atmosphere from the moment he entered, but the question itself was strange.

“…What do you mean, where Brienne is?”

“Sir Herace Belif, please, just tell us the truth. We came to find Brienne. Since you went out together yesterday, we thought she might be here with you.”

Shylo, eyes reddened, spoke in a strained voice. 

‘Was Brienne here?’

For a moment, Herace couldn’t understand what they were saying.

“…That’s odd. It sounds as if Brienne has disappeared.”

“That’s exactly right.”

Madame Ford stood and approached Herace. With a sigh, she gently took Herace’s hand.

“But judging by your reaction, it seems you really didn’t know… I guess our assumption was wrong.”

With a bitter face, she gestured to Herace’s hand. Only then did Herace realize his hand was trembling.

The marquis collapsed onto the sofa, looking devastated.

“What on earth is going on… Even the carriage Brienne took is completely gone. There were people who saw her leaving the Bannon estate, but no one knows where she went. I just can’t…”

Herace remained standing by the door, unable to sit. With a hardened expression, he muttered,

“…The carriage disappeared?”

A question flickered in his downcast eyes. Brienne had left him as if running away, but he was certain he’d seen her board the carriage.

Madame Ford steadied her shaky breath and approached the marquis.

“Then, Brienne must be with Kaiden…! Don’t worry too much, Dear.”

“Yes, that must be it. Brienne always liked Kaiden, so surely…”

The news that Kaiden Bannon, who had never acted out before, had disappeared on his engagement day—after insulting his fiancée—was shocking enough. But even more shocking was that Brienne Ford had vanished the same day.

The Ford couple kept things quiet, but the news spread quickly overnight. What reached their ears was the guess that Brienne had left with Kaiden.

It was a sad story, but for the Fords, who cared deeply for Brienne, it was the most believable theory. Otherwise, they didn’t want to believe anything else. Who could calmly accept that their daughter was missing?

But Herace thought differently.

“…I’m sorry, Marquis.”

Like someone just realizing where he was, Marquis Ford looked up in surprise. Damon, meeting Herace’s eyes, turned away awkwardly.

“I’m truly sorry, Young Master. Coming here so early and making a scene…”

“Did you report it to the capital guards?”

Cutting off the marquis, Herace looked to Shylo. He thought it would be easier to talk to Shylo than to the frantic elder Fords.

“…Of course I did. But the investigator said the same thing as Mother. The city guard received more than just Brienne’s report. Because of how things are between Young Master Bannon and her, they think the two left together.”

Shylo sighed deeply and rubbed his face. He too seemed reluctant to meet Herace’s gaze.

Herace stared at him for a moment, then let out a faint, bitter laugh.

“So you believe the same thing.”

“…”

“That Brienne left on her own to follow Kaiden.”

Shylo couldn’t deny it. The fact that Kaiden and Brienne disappeared was true.

On Kaiden’s engagement day, at the same time.

“Is there any other reason?”

Meeting Herace’s eyes, Shylo smiled weakly.

“For now… we just have to hope Brienne gets a hold of herself and comes home.”

“Gets a hold of herself? What are you talking about, Shylo Ford?”

Herace’s composure, barely held together, vanished from his face. It was a rare, chilly look for him, but Shylo didn’t notice. Still, Shylo seemed to sense something was wrong and started rambling.

“So what else do you expect us to do? Do you want us to hope something bad happened to Brienne? We can’t do anything…! We searched the whole capital all night, this is the best we could do! We couldn’t find a single trace of Brienne in this small city, what are we supposed to think?”

“…”

“Do you want us to believe something happened to Brienne? That something bad happened? Herace, you… you have no idea what we’re feeling.”

As Shylo muttered on, Herace had nothing more to say. He couldn’t tell Brienne’s family—who were probably more shocked than anyone—that something really had happened to her.

Herace was just angry at himself.

For letting Brienne go so easily that day, thinking he was considering her feelings, and for being too scared to hold on to her in the end.

“…”

Herace let out a soft sigh and looked down. He couldn’t say it to Shylo now, but he was certain about Brienne.

<We’re not even friends anymore, from now on.>

The look in Brienne’s eyes when she said that.

Her voice. Her expression.

There was no way that wasn’t sincere. Having wanted to get close to Brienne for so long, Herace knew she wasn’t someone who would say that and then run off with Kaiden. She wouldn’t leave impulsively, knowing how worried her family would be.

And Kaiden…

Herace sighed and ran a hand through his hair. The truth was clear, but for now, there was nothing else he could do.

For now, he would let them believe what they wanted, and search for her behind the scenes.

“…All right, I see. I made a mistake. I sincerely apologize for my rudeness.”

“…”

“So, Young Master, please take the Marquis and Madame home for now. If I hear from Brienne or Kaiden, I’ll contact Ford Mansion immediately.”

Shylo wiped his tears with the back of his hand, bit his lip, and nodded.

“Then, please take care of yourselves.”

Herace greeted the Fords, who must have been deeply shocked, and left the drawing room.

* * *

At that moment.

“Random inspection! Stop the carriage!”

Outside the carriage carrying Brienne and her companions, the voices of the guards could be heard. While the flustered coachman asked what was going on, Brienne came up with a way to avoid inspection.

“Coffin…!”

“What did you say, Miss?”

“Zen, get into the coffin quickly! Hurry!”

“Ah, understood!”

At Brienne’s urgent voice, Garzen jumped up and pulled off the cloth covering the coffin. He opened the largest coffin and lay down inside, while Brienne snatched the money pouch from Lusell and poured gold coins over him. Then she lifted the lid of another coffin.

“Wh-why is this so heavy…!”

“Miss Brienne, let me help you!”

Realizing what Brienne was trying to do, Lusell assisted her in opening another coffin lid.

However—

“The coachman’s answer is suspicious. Force open the carriage door!”

“Yes!”

The guards’ movements were faster than Brienne and Lusell had anticipated.

“This won’t work, Miss. Just come over here!”

At that moment, Garzen suddenly pulled Brienne by the waist. As Brienne toppled over Garzen’s body, Lusell quickly slammed the coffin lid shut.

Thud!

At the same time, the carriage door burst open.

Left alone, Lusell frowned and faced the guards.

“What do you think you’re doing right now?”

“We’re searching for someone by the lord’s order. If you don’t cooperate, the search will take longer.”

“Cooperation, fine. I’ll cooperate, just keep in mind that there are corpses inside.”

“…Corpses?”

The guard, who had been acting tough, peeked inside the carriage. He frowned and pinched his nose, stepping back.

But the captain of the guards wasn’t so easily deterred.

“Are you sure? You’re not hiding any living people in there?”

“Check for yourself. It’s against ethics to look at the faces of the dead, but if it’s important, I’m sure the deceased will understand. Well, maybe not, depending on the situation…”

“…What’s your occupation?”

“As you can see, I’m a mortician.”

With dark circles under his eyes, Lusell smiled and leaned on the coffin. The captain’s face twisted. Seeing corpses wasn’t scary, but in Rontiano, there was a superstition that opening someone else’s coffin carelessly would bring a curse.

“…Mortician?”

“Well then…”

Exchanging glances, the guards nodded, about to let the carriage pass.

But at that moment—

“I-I’ll check myself… That guy looks way too young to be a mortician, doesn’t he?”

The most spirited guard stepped forward. The captain nodded and permitted his search.

“Fine, just check the feet. See if there’s really a body inside, or something else.”

“Yes, leave it to me.”

The guard, nodding, climbed into the carriage. Lusell calmly stepped aside, letting him stand by the lower part of the coffin.

“Are you ready to face the deceased?”

“Yes, open it quickly.”

“There are two bodies inside. They’re a young couple from the lower village, both took their lives on the same day for unfortunate reasons.”

“…”

“The curse of the deceased with such a sad story is said to be stronger than ordinary curses, you know.”

Lusell folded his hands gently and closed his eyes with a peaceful face. The guard, noticing the young mortician’s pale complexion, swallowed and raised his voice.

“…S-stop saying useless things and just open it!”