“There is no such thing as an insidious mind, so you can contact me anytime.”
“…I could have contacted you more comfortably if you hadn’t said that.”
“Ha, it must be very difficult to capture the heart of a girl the age of a daughter.”
Luce bowed to Franz, who was making a fuss.
“Thank you. For taking such good care of me.”
“I’m paying attention to it because it’s a good tree to care about. You’re a student that my father loves, so I can sponsor you, right?”
“Next time… I hope to see you.”
“Yeah. I hope next time, too, Angel can show you how to pronounce a wandering knight properly.”
Leaving behind the hand gestures of the people, the carriage headed for Menelik left.
Even if she doesn’t have a close friendship with them, it’s always lonely to see those with whom she has a good relationship move away.
With Franz’s business card stuck deep in her pocket, Luce got on the carriage back to Xenon, a little lonely.
Back on Xenon, there was still one more thing that was loud and lonely.
*****
“Hello, Aunt Dahlia.”
“Oh, are you here, Luce?”
A slight headache arose as the scent of lime pie wafted from the doorway, but Luce smiled quietly.
“Brother Dietrich, I heard you got called up at the academy?”
Dietrich waved his hand with a dark expression on his face from the end of the table.
Luce sat down next to him as Dahlia shrugged her shoulders and Dominic whined while carrying a roasted turkey.
“Didn’t the professor say he was on sabbatical leave?”
“Yes, my professor is on sabbatical.”
“But why are you going?”
“The dean is not on sabbatical leave…”
She worried about Dietrich’s jaw joint because he gritted his teeth loudly.
A sudden summons disrupted the original plan to steal information about the imperial family from Dietrich, but that was the second problem.
Luce silently patted him on the shoulder because he was on vacation, and he couldn’t even enjoy it properly and was worried that he would be called away.
‘I know that feeling, I know.’
“Are you starting a new project?”
“Yeah. This time, I will start collecting data on the collateral of the imperial family.”
“What is Oppa doing there?”
“Exploring the footsteps of collaterals, recognizing and organizing their value at the present time.”
“Brother seems to be talking about a job where you write everything from the first draft of the thesis to the details, revise the thesis, and give it back to the dean with the words “Dean, just put your name” on it.”
“Exactly. Of course, not all professors are like that, but the dean is especially like that…”
“It’s annoying,” Dietrich said in agony.
Luce tried to speak brightly.
“Still, Aunt Dahlia and Uncle arranged such a wonderful party for Brother to go. I’m glad the weather isn’t cold, who knew we’d be able to set a table and eat outside like this?”
“Well, just looking at the table setting, it’s pretty. But that’s not very comforting… Moreover, the scenery is not very good.”
“The scenery? Ah.”
The place Dietrich pointed to was a house with burnt marks at the end of the hill.
Looking at the house, her eyes stung again.
Luce, who was rubbing her eyes open and closed, heard the sound of people coming.
The guests invited by Dahlia had arrived.
“Phew, I think it would be better to talk about that burnt house, considering that the villagers would not even understand it and would ask about the Academy. I’m glad I have that.”
Dietrich’s words that he picked up and handed over hung heavily in her ears.
Luce felt the words were getting stuck in her ears, so she shook them off and looked at the food.
Somehow, she didn’t want to look at the house behind her back.
‘Why is it so uncomfortable?’
However, as Dietrich had said, the topic of today’s party wasn’t Dietrich, who would be away for a while, but the house that had been burned down a week ago.
“Didn’t it rain the day before that fire?”
“Yes. It was drizzling even if it wasn’t heavy rain. So the wood must have been quite wet, but I don’t know why the fire broke out.”
“Couldn’t someone have set the fire on purpose?”
“Ey, is there anyone in our town who would do something like that?”
The room was full of the sounds of champagne glasses clinking and knives and plates rubbing against each other.
“At first, I was surprised that there was a fire, but maybe it’s a good thing.”
“Why?”
“It’s a house that’s been empty without an owner for a while. Because it can’t be maintained, it decays, and the roof collapses every day.”
“Shh, shh. Luce is listening.”
Some villagers who looked at her when she raised her eyes waved their hands.
“Oh, it’s Luce. I’m not saying that a house with a collapsed roof is wrong, you know what I mean, right?”
“Yes, your house was on the side of the birch forest over there. It’s all been demolished now, so there’s nothing left, but we don’t have anyone! I didn’t think of your house as a hideous object!”
“…Ah, yes.”
Luce’s house was in the direction of the birch forest.
Due to the heavy rain this summer, the roof collapsed and cracked the embankment, and since it was in no condition to be repaired, the villagers united to complete the demolition.
Luce, who received a small amount of compensation but had no place to go, ended up living with a friend named Rev, who also lives alone—so that’s what happened in the past few months.
‘The pocket I put in my travel bag was the compensation. It’s the first time I’ve had a lot of money, so I’m really nervous about leaving it there.’
How could she have carried such a large amount of money if it wasn’t for that?
But she doesn’t know why she can’t remember the shape of the house in the birch forest.
Luce took a bite of the soup as the pain in her head got worse. She didn’t feel the taste.
“Doesn’t Dahlia know the woman who lived in that burnt house?”
“Yes, because we were friends. Cough.”
Dahlia, who had a choking sound, coughed and touched her forehead.
“What was her name?”
“Chelsea.”
She had just heard Dahlia say her name when she suddenly felt a dull pain.
Luce lowered the spoon.
“She was a child who worked for a while at Grandma Marie’s general store with me. Now she’s gone to work elsewhere.”
“Where did she go? Wasn’t that the Vladin Empire?”
“It was Count Menel or something. I don’t know because she didn’t tell me the details either.”
‘Count Menel? They seem to be talking about Menelik County.’
Her head hurt, and she wanted to turn away, but Dahlia’s voice was clear.
Without a chance to escape, their conversation was stuck in her mind.
“Weren’t you quite close?”
“Chelsea wasn’t originally a person who talked about herself.”
Dahlia rubbed her forehead and smiled troubledly.
“Anyway, ten years have passed since that woman left, but seeing that she hasn’t returned yet, she doesn’t want to be in Xenon Village anymore. During that long time, the villagers worked together to take care of that house, but there was no contact. Maybe, the fire was a good thing.”
“Of course, of course.”
“If you ever come back, she should explain the situation and ask her to rebuild it or something.”
“Then should that house be demolished?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to deal with it quickly than to leave it alone? Rather than leaving it burnt like that.”
She could hear people muttering as if they were underwater.
“Anyway, so no one has seen Chelsea since then, right?”
“No. Why?”
“No, a while ago a very handsome red-haired young man came and asked me if I knew anything about that house.”
“Oh my, he came to my house too!”
“He asked me if I didn’t know where the red-haired girl who lived in that house had gone. Was it Chelsea’s daughter?”
“I haven’t seen Chelsea in decades, so how can I know her daughter?”
“Yeah, that’s what I said too. I said I didn’t know, so he just left without saying anything. I wondered if there was any property dispute or anything related to that house. Maybe Chelsea is in big debt?”
“Ah, I can’t help but feel uncomfortable to hear that. Let’s set a date and demolish it as soon as possible. It’s something we don’t know.”
She got motion sickness. Luce, who closed her mouth, hurriedly stood up.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you?”
Dominic opened his eyes wide.
“I’m a little… not feeling well.”
Dominic, who was looking at Luce, who turned pale in a moment, approached.
“Ah, right. You inhaled a lot of smoke that day.”
‘Did I?’
She couldn’t remember much about that day because all she could see were images of intense flames.
Even as he clicked his tongue, Dominic stayed close to her as if to support her.
“My mom also said she had a headache because she breathes in a lot of smoke. Isn’t it the same for you?”
Dahlia’s eyes met hers. Luce thought that her expression and her own expression were very similar.
“Do you want some cold water?”
“No, it’s all right. I just… I think I’ll be fine if I walk a little.”
“Take me there, then? You look really bad.”
“It’s all right, really. Why are you so nice to me?”
She was familiar with Dominic’s dark face with blush.
Dietrich’s groans when he talks about the academy and Vincent’s parents’ boasts about him when he’s not there are obviously familiar to her as well.
But why does their conversation sound so unfamiliar to her?
“There is no such thing as an insidious mind, so you can contact me anytime.”
“…I could have contacted you more comfortably if you hadn’t said that.”
“Ha, it must be very difficult to capture the heart of a girl the age of a daughter.”
Luce bowed to Franz, who was making a fuss.
“Thank you. For taking such good care of me.”
“I’m paying attention to it because it’s a good tree to care about. You’re a student that my father loves, so I can sponsor you, right?”
“Next time… I hope to see you.”
“Yeah. I hope next time, too, Angel can show you how to pronounce a wandering knight properly.”
Leaving behind the hand gestures of the people, the carriage headed for Menelik left.
Even if she doesn’t have a close friendship with them, it’s always lonely to see those with whom she has a good relationship move away.
With Franz’s business card stuck deep in her pocket, Luce got on the carriage back to Xenon, a little lonely.
Back on Xenon, there was still one more thing that was loud and lonely.
*****
“Hello, Aunt Dahlia.”
“Oh, are you here, Luce?”
A slight headache arose as the scent of lime pie wafted from the doorway, but Luce smiled quietly.
“Brother Dietrich, I heard you got called up at the academy?”
Dietrich waved his hand with a dark expression on his face from the end of the table.
Luce sat down next to him as Dahlia shrugged her shoulders and Dominic whined while carrying a roasted turkey.
“Didn’t the professor say he was on sabbatical leave?”
“Yes, my professor is on sabbatical.”
“But why are you going?”
“The dean is not on sabbatical leave…”
She worried about Dietrich’s jaw joint because he gritted his teeth loudly.
A sudden summons disrupted the original plan to steal information about the imperial family from Dietrich, but that was the second problem.
Luce silently patted him on the shoulder because he was on vacation, and he couldn’t even enjoy it properly and was worried that he would be called away.
‘I know that feeling, I know.’
“Are you starting a new project?”
“Yeah. This time, I will start collecting data on the collateral of the imperial family.”
“What is Oppa doing there?”
“Exploring the footsteps of collaterals, recognizing and organizing their value at the present time.”
“Brother seems to be talking about a job where you write everything from the first draft of the thesis to the details, revise the thesis, and give it back to the dean with the words “Dean, just put your name” on it.”
“Exactly. Of course, not all professors are like that, but the dean is especially like that…”
“It’s annoying,” Dietrich said in agony.
Luce tried to speak brightly.
“Still, Aunt Dahlia and Uncle arranged such a wonderful party for Brother to go. I’m glad the weather isn’t cold, who knew we’d be able to set a table and eat outside like this?”
“Well, just looking at the table setting, it’s pretty. But that’s not very comforting… Moreover, the scenery is not very good.”
“The scenery? Ah.”
The place Dietrich pointed to was a house with burnt marks at the end of the hill.
Looking at the house, her eyes stung again.
Luce, who was rubbing her eyes open and closed, heard the sound of people coming.
The guests invited by Dahlia had arrived.
“Phew, I think it would be better to talk about that burnt house, considering that the villagers would not even understand it and would ask about the Academy. I’m glad I have that.”
Dietrich’s words that he picked up and handed over hung heavily in her ears.
Luce felt the words were getting stuck in her ears, so she shook them off and looked at the food.
Somehow, she didn’t want to look at the house behind her back.
‘Why is it so uncomfortable?’
However, as Dietrich had said, the topic of today’s party wasn’t Dietrich, who would be away for a while, but the house that had been burned down a week ago.
“Didn’t it rain the day before that fire?”
“Yes. It was drizzling even if it wasn’t heavy rain. So the wood must have been quite wet, but I don’t know why the fire broke out.”
“Couldn’t someone have set the fire on purpose?”
“Ey, is there anyone in our town who would do something like that?”
The room was full of the sounds of champagne glasses clinking and knives and plates rubbing against each other.
“At first, I was surprised that there was a fire, but maybe it’s a good thing.”
“Why?”
“It’s a house that’s been empty without an owner for a while. Because it can’t be maintained, it decays, and the roof collapses every day.”
“Shh, shh. Luce is listening.”
Some villagers who looked at her when she raised her eyes waved their hands.
“Oh, it’s Luce. I’m not saying that a house with a collapsed roof is wrong, you know what I mean, right?”
“Yes, your house was on the side of the birch forest over there. It’s all been demolished now, so there’s nothing left, but we don’t have anyone! I didn’t think of your house as a hideous object!”
“…Ah, yes.”
Luce’s house was in the direction of the birch forest.
Due to the heavy rain this summer, the roof collapsed and cracked the embankment, and since it was in no condition to be repaired, the villagers united to complete the demolition.
Luce, who received a small amount of compensation but had no place to go, ended up living with a friend named Rev, who also lives alone—so that’s what happened in the past few months.
‘The pocket I put in my travel bag was the compensation. It’s the first time I’ve had a lot of money, so I’m really nervous about leaving it there.’
How could she have carried such a large amount of money if it wasn’t for that?
But she doesn’t know why she can’t remember the shape of the house in the birch forest.
Luce took a bite of the soup as the pain in her head got worse. She didn’t feel the taste.
“Doesn’t Dahlia know the woman who lived in that burnt house?”
“Yes, because we were friends. Cough.”
Dahlia, who had a choking sound, coughed and touched her forehead.
“What was her name?”
“Chelsea.”
She had just heard Dahlia say her name when she suddenly felt a dull pain.
Luce lowered the spoon.
“She was a child who worked for a while at Grandma Marie’s general store with me. Now she’s gone to work elsewhere.”
“Where did she go? Wasn’t that the Vladin Empire?”
“It was Count Menel or something. I don’t know because she didn’t tell me the details either.”
‘Count Menel? They seem to be talking about Menelik County.’
Her head hurt, and she wanted to turn away, but Dahlia’s voice was clear.
Without a chance to escape, their conversation was stuck in her mind.
“Weren’t you quite close?”
“Chelsea wasn’t originally a person who talked about herself.”
Dahlia rubbed her forehead and smiled troubledly.
“Anyway, ten years have passed since that woman left, but seeing that she hasn’t returned yet, she doesn’t want to be in Xenon Village anymore. During that long time, the villagers worked together to take care of that house, but there was no contact. Maybe, the fire was a good thing.”
“Of course, of course.”
“If you ever come back, she should explain the situation and ask her to rebuild it or something.”
“Then should that house be demolished?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to deal with it quickly than to leave it alone? Rather than leaving it burnt like that.”
She could hear people muttering as if they were underwater.
“Anyway, so no one has seen Chelsea since then, right?”
“No. Why?”
“No, a while ago a very handsome red-haired young man came and asked me if I knew anything about that house.”
“Oh my, he came to my house too!”
“He asked me if I didn’t know where the red-haired girl who lived in that house had gone. Was it Chelsea’s daughter?”
“I haven’t seen Chelsea in decades, so how can I know her daughter?”
“Yeah, that’s what I said too. I said I didn’t know, so he just left without saying anything. I wondered if there was any property dispute or anything related to that house. Maybe Chelsea is in big debt?”
“Ah, I can’t help but feel uncomfortable to hear that. Let’s set a date and demolish it as soon as possible. It’s something we don’t know.”
She got motion sickness. Luce, who closed her mouth, hurriedly stood up.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you?”
Dominic opened his eyes wide.
“I’m a little… not feeling well.”
Dominic, who was looking at Luce, who turned pale in a moment, approached.
“Ah, right. You inhaled a lot of smoke that day.”
‘Did I?’
She couldn’t remember much about that day because all she could see were images of intense flames.
Even as he clicked his tongue, Dominic stayed close to her as if to support her.
“My mom also said she had a headache because she breathes in a lot of smoke. Isn’t it the same for you?”
Dahlia’s eyes met hers. Luce thought that her expression and her own expression were very similar.
“Do you want some cold water?”
“No, it’s all right. I just… I think I’ll be fine if I walk a little.”
“Take me there, then? You look really bad.”
“It’s all right, really. Why are you so nice to me?”
She was familiar with Dominic’s dark face with blush.
Dietrich’s groans when he talks about the academy and Vincent’s parents’ boasts about him when he’s not there are obviously familiar to her as well.
But why does their conversation sound so unfamiliar to her?
