Chapter 45

“It’s almost the same story everywhere we go.”  

After visiting over ten houses with Clayton, they began to get a sense of Guillotine’s reputation and standing in the village.  

Everyone who remembered Guillotine spoke highly of him. He was a born genius and, though a bit eccentric, was generally a good person.  

As for Bethany, they unanimously described her as a femme fatale.  

Clayton massaged his stiff neck and remarked,  

“But I can’t bring myself to believe everything they’ve said.”  

“I feel the same way.” 

Sabrina replied, adding her observations.  

“It seems the village earns a significant amount of tourism revenue thanks to Guillotine. Their sensitivity about protecting his reputation might have a lot to do with economic reasons.”  

“I agree.”  

“You saw the bust near the village entrance, right? It seems they’ve turned Guillotine into a decent tourist attraction.”  

Clayton nodded. Then, with a tired expression, he asked for Sabrina’s opinion.  

“At this rate, I feel like we’ll just hear the same stories if we visit more houses. Do you still think it’s worth visiting all of them?”  

Sabrina hesitated briefly before answering.  

“Well… let’s try just one more house. Just in case.”  

Her instincts turned out to be spot on.  

[Kruel Guillotine?]  

At the next house, Clayton and Sabrina were greeted by a woman who appeared to be around forty. The sharp-faced woman frowned and crossed her arms the moment she heard Guillotine’s name.  

[If you’re here to hear about how he was a genius painter or whatever, go to another house. I have no intention of talking about that man!]  

When asked if she knew Kruel Guillotine, she snapped sharply and tried to close the door on them.  

“Madame.”  

Clayton caught the door with his hand and spoke in a voice that was polite yet carried an unmistakable authority.  

“We only wish to have a brief conversation with you.”  

As Sabrina translated his words, Clayton pulled out a document bearing the royal seal from his coat and added,  

“If necessary, we have the authority to compel your cooperation. But we’d prefer not to complicate matters. We just want to ask a few questions quietly, so please allow us inside for a moment.”  

Though the woman likely didn’t understand his words, the calm and unwavering tone seemed to carry weight. Intimidated by his commanding presence, she muttered under her breath,  

[…I need to prepare dinner.]  

“We won’t take up much of your time.”  

The woman pursed her lips tightly, glancing between Clayton and Sabrina before finally relenting.  

[…Come in.]  

Sabrina offered a warm smile to ease the woman’s tension before stepping inside. The house was cozy and faintly scented with peppermint.  

“Please, have a seat.”  

The woman guided them to a sofa and, without giving them a chance to refuse, brought out tea.  

[What’s your name?]  

[Emma Troy.] 

[Thank you for agreeing to speak with us, Emma. And for the tea, as well.]  

Sabrina lifted the warm cup of herbal tea slightly as she expressed her gratitude. Emma avoided her gaze but eventually spoke.  

[So, what do you want to ask? Don’t beat around the bush.]  

It was a welcome attitude. Sabrina got straight to the point.  

[We want to know the truth behind the rumors. Specifically, the backstory of the painting 『Delusion』. Did Guillotine really…]  

[Kill Bethany and then take his own life? Is that what you’re asking?]  

Emma let out a small scoff before answering.  

[That’s just nonsense. Kruel Guillotine didn’t kill Bethany Kenick.]  

…So it really was just a rumor?  

Sabrina translated Emma’s words with a bewildered expression, and Clayton, equally surprised, set his teacup back down on the table.  

Had we been wrong to expect something different from this house?  

Just as Sabrina was about to let go of her expectations, Emma continued speaking.  

[To be more precise, I should say he ‘didn’t kill her.’]  

Her ambiguous phrasing made Clayton frown slightly. He demanded further clarification.  

“What do you mean by that? Do you have evidence to support such a claim?”  

After Sabrina translated his question, Emma hesitated. Her expression suggested she was recalling a specific memory. For a moment, she seemed frozen in time, her lips trembling faintly.  

[Evidence, you ask.]  

“…”  

[Yes, I have evidence.]  

Straightening her posture, Emma spoke with a firm voice.  

[I helped Bethany Kenick escape.]  

Her words left Sabrina and Clayton wide-eyed with shock.  

[Is that true?] 

Emma, who had been silently staring at her teacup, slowly nodded.  

[I’ve never told anyone about this before. I intended to take it to my grave.]  

“…”  

[Why, you ask? Take a look around this village. It won’t take long to see. In this tiny place, Guillotine is a god and a religion.]  

Emma scoffed before continuing,  

[Even the slightest criticism of Guillotine causes an uproar. Why? Because Guillotine brings in money. His body has long since decomposed into dirt, yet he still earns more money than anyone else in this village.]  

She added with a bitter tone,  

[I don’t know if people are lying knowingly or if they truly believe it. But I can tell you this for certain: Guillotine was a terrible person. Bethany was half-crazed because of him.]  

It was a scathing assessment. Sabrina cautiously asked,  

[Were you a friend of Bethany’s?]  

Emma burst into laughter.  

[Me? Friends with Bethany? No, not at all.]  

[Then…]  

[To be honest, I hated her.]  

Clayton, hearing this through Sabrina’s translation, asked,  

“Why?”  

Sabrina relayed his question.  

[Why, you ask?]  

[My husband was madly in love with Bethany. Back then, he was my fiancé, but fiancé or husband, it’s all the same. It was infuriating. I truly despised her.]  

“…”  

[Of course, it wasn’t Bethany’s fault. She was just annoyingly beautiful, and my husband was an idiot. But still, I hated her.]  

Emma looked at Sabrina thoughtfully before adding,  

[But you understand, don’t you? I was even younger than you are now back then.]  

Sabrina responded immediately.  

[I understand.]  

Leaning forward slightly, she met Emma’s eyes and asked seriously,  

[Then why did you help her escape?]  

[Because we were both human. And because we were both women.]  

Emma took a deep breath before continuing.  

[I hated her, but I also pitied her. She was truly an unfortunate woman. To have caught the eye of such a madman…]  

She clicked her tongue in genuine regret.  

[I can say this with certainty: Bethany never loved Guillotine. Not even for a moment. It was all Guillotine’s one-sided obsession and infatuation. She was always unhappy.]  

Emma’s lips twisted slightly as she shuddered and added,  

[It was fools like my husband who fueled her misfortune. That’s when Guillotine’s obsession went far beyond anything reasonable. For years after that, no one saw her. She was confined to that cramped cabin the entire time.]  

Sabrina broke the silence after a moment.  

[I’d like to hear about the night Bethany escaped.]  

Emma nodded.  

[It was an unusually dark night. The moon wasn’t out that evening.]  

“……”  

[She came pounding on my door, crying uncontrollably. She said she couldn’t think of anyone else who might help her, so she came to me. She begged me to help her escape from Guillotine.]  

Sabrina bit her lower lip in sympathy.  

How desperate must Bethany have been? What kind of state was she in to come crying and pleading to a woman who had always looked at her with disdain?  

Emma’s wrinkles deepened, as though she were recalling Bethany’s face that night.  

[To be honest, I hesitated to help her. Even back then, Guillotine held a significant position in the village. And, well, I really didn’t like Bethany either.]  

[Then why…]  

[Bethany confessed something to me.]  

Emma’s eyelashes trembled slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she met Sabrina’s gaze and spoke.  

[She said she was carrying his child.]  

* * *  

“……”  

“……”  

After leaving Emma’s house, Clayton and Sabrina stood in silence for a long time.  

The story was too heavy, and the clue too significant, to process quickly.  

Among the many details they had learned from Emma, two stood out as most crucial: Bethany had escaped from Guillotine alive, and she had been pregnant with his child.  

It was clear what the two needed to focus on moving forward.  

First, they had to uncover Bethany’s whereabouts and whether she was still alive.  

Second, they needed information about the child Bethany had been carrying.  

Though both of them were thinking the same thing, neither had the energy to voice it.  

Clayton finally broke the silence.  

“I think we’ve gotten enough answers. We should head back now.”  

Sabrina nodded weakly.  

“Yeah, let’s go back and rest. You’ve done well.”  

“You too.”  

They began walking silently toward the carriage, but a hurried voice called out behind them.  

[Hey! You two!]  

When they turned around, they recognized the elderly village patriarch they had visited upon first arriving in Delrn.  

They greeted him briefly and were about to resume walking when he called out again.  

[Wait! I have something to tell you.]  

Sabrina sighed softly, lacking the energy for another unnecessary conversation, but turned back reluctantly.  

[Did you call for us?]  

The old man nodded.  

[Yes, about what you asked me earlier.]  

[What I asked earlier?]  

Sabrina paused to think before confirming.  

[Ah, you mean whether you remembered any visitors?]  

The old man nodded again.  

[That’s right.]  

After catching his breath, he spoke in an excited tone.  

[I kept thinking about it, and suddenly someone came to mind.]  

‘Oh? So it wasn’t a pointless conversation after all?’  

Sabrina’s eyes widened at the possibility.