Late in the evening, it was the male protagonist who returned from work in the military and police force.
âYes!â
Sophia answered, getting up from her bed and tidying up her messy hair.
Then, Killian, still wearing his military and police uniform, opened the door and entered.
It was the first time she saw him in uniform.
She didnât know if he always changed when he came to find her, but he was never in his uniformâŠ
The black uniform looked good on him.
It was neatly angled, had gold epaulets on the shoulders, and gilded double buttons.
The button-down shirt showed off his understated beauty.
One side of his shoulder was wet from rain on the way.
Sophia swallowed saliva involuntarily at the ascetic sexiness that subtly exudes.
âAre you feeling a little better?â
âYesâŠ!â
âThe medicine-â
âI ate it. I want to be healthy soon.â
Sophia smiled.
Perhaps in the evening after taking the medicine, her voice became a fine metal sound, not a rough metal sound.
Killian then saw the little gauze on her cheek, where it looked unusually large.
Still, he was more relieved by the look on her face that was better than in the morning.
âIf youâre uncomfortable, tell the maid right away.â
âItâs not uncomfortable., itâs heaven!â
âThatâs a relief.â
Killian made sure the things he asked for from Garfield were handled properly.
Confirming that the preparations for Sophia had gone well without a hitch, he nodded his head.
âAh, and just in case, please refrain from entering the west corridor area on the second floor because it is my private space.â
âAh, okayâŠ!â
Sophia nodded her head.
âIâm telling you in advance because I donât like anyone coming into my room recklessly, so I hope youâd comply.â
âOf course, Iâm grateful that you even gave me a space where I could stay like this.â
âThank you for your understanding. You are free to roam the rest of the space.â
Killian then said good night and left the room.
The hem of his long black robe slid out the door.
âThe west corridor on the second floor is prohibitedâŠâ
Sophia recalled Killianâs words.
âWhen taboos appear in novels, there are always secrets hidden.â
In the first place, it was polite not to enter someone elseâs room, so she never thought of going there anyways.
But to add that it was important not to go into that area, doesnât it mean that something interesting is being hidden?
âHmmâŠâ
Sophia bit her lips.
She was immersed in trouble.
In normal stories, bad things happen when you break taboos.
Like Pandora who brought disaster by opening a box that was told not to open, or the protagonist of a horror movie who was attacked by a ghost after entering a place that they were not supposed to go in.
In her past memories, her father even drank alcohol despite the doctorâs advice to avoid drinking and had an accident.
âIs it better not to go?â
Ropan was no exception.
The moment she breaks the taboo and opens the door, there is a 99% chance that the honeycomb life laid out in front of her would disappear.
She shouldnât be too curious.
Sophia then decided to not open Pandoraâs box. (tl/n: like she decided to comply with Killian and not go there.)
~*~
It was late in the evening while raindrops were pouring outside.
Marquis Fideutâs maid was walking in the hallway with a lamp.
The rain in the evening brought thunder and lightning.
A white light flashed outside the window, illuminating the dark hallway. In an instant, an eerie mask hanging on the wall appeared and disappeared.
The maidâs body shuddered.
âWhy does the master have such a hobbyâŠâ
She could not understand the hobbies of Marquis Fideut.
A middle-aged gentleman who liked masks and wooden dolls that clowns would love.
The Marquisâ collection, which he had collected since he was young, overflowed even after filling up one exhibition room, and was now arranged throughout the house.
It looks pretty in the daytime, but on a day of thunder and lightning like this, it gave the maid goosebumps.
Boom!
The maid shuddered at the sound of thunder, one second behind the lightning, and withdrew her body.
The maid, with a chill in her spine, hurriedly accelerated her steps.
At that moment, she heard the sound like a ghost saying, âHey, hey,â echoed in the hallway.
The cool air brushed against her neck.
âWhat, whatâŠ!â
Frightened, the maid clasped her neck and shook her head.
The white chiffon curtain shook with a sound.
âPhew, it was just the windâŠâ
Relieved at the silence, the maid exhaled her breath.
But suddenly, an eerie question crossed her spine.
Since it has been raining in the evening and all the windows were locked, why would she hear the wind�
It would be difficult if rain came in through the open windows, so everyone checked several times to make sure the windows were locked.
âWas it not checked properly?â
If someone didnât lock it securely, the wind could sometimes push open the window.
Unable to let the rain pour in, the maid walked towards the sound of the wind.
âItâs on the side of the masterâs bedroomâŠ?â
The place she went to was Marquis Fideutâs bedroom.
Did he ever want to ventilate the room? At this midnight hour of thunder and lightning?
At that moment, a voice was heard from the other side of the room.
âIs he awake?â
The maid went to his room with the lamp and listened.
She couldnât hear the words, but it was clearly a human voice.
Why was he muttering like that?
The maid raised her hand to try to knock on the door, wondering if there was anything wrong with the marquis.
At that moment, she heard a sound from inside the room and something falling.
âUghâŠ! Cough, cough!â
The sound was followed by painful groans and harsh coughing.
It was the voice of Marquis Fideut.
The maid was startled and she hurriedly tried to open the door, but it was locked from the inside.
She fumbled around her waist and pulled out her key pack.
âMaster!â
As she scrambled to find the bedroom key, she tried to call the Marquis Fideut, but instead of answering, she heard nothing but coughs.
âMaster! Are you okay?â
She rushed, but it was so dark that she could hardly find the key to the bedroom.
After a considerable amount of time had passed, she managed to find the key and opened the door.
As soon as she stepped inside, she saw Fideout lying on the carpet. His complexion was bad and he was lying on the floor with dark red blood around him.
âMaster!â
The moment the maid almost screamed, the wind blowing from the window blew out her lamp, and she felt a slight presence of another person.
âThere can be anyone elseâŠâ
With an ominous premonition, the maid shuddered and raised her head.
At that moment, a white flash of light lit up the room, illuminating the black shadow standing by the window.
The maid was so startled that she couldnât make a sound and she sat down on the spot.
In the darkness with the lights turned off, all she could see was the white mask the person wore.
And before the maid could properly recognize that personâs identity, the black shadow disappeared like a ghost with a roar of thunder.
~*~
It was an early morning when the sun was not rising, and after the rain had stopped, the air was damp.
The servants of the Rivelon were getting up early and preparing breakfast.
At a time when everyone was busy moving, someone knocked on a door.
As Garfield opened the door, Nicholas, the commander of the police force, was standing there.
âSir Nicholas! What are you doing at this hour?â
Garfield opened the door and asked, startled by the unexpected guest.
Nicholasâ boots were soaked in mud as he ran through the rain-soaked mud.
âIs he here?â
Nicholas asked urgently.
âThe master is still washingâŠâ
âWhatâs going on, Nick?â
Just then, Killian came down from the second floor.
âWell, Marquis Fideut passed away a few hours ago!â
Garfieldâs eyes widened at Nicholasâs report.
âWhat?â
Fideut was a healthy person with no chronic disease. He wasnât someone whose obituary will fly away overnight like this. Read only at pm tl.
Besides, the fact that a military and police officer, not a servant of the marquis, delivered the news of deathâŠ
âIt looks like he was killed by someone.â
Nicholas answered in a dark tone.
It wasnât an accident, it was murder.
Garfield covered his mouth with both of his hands and looked at Killianâs expression.
After an argument about two months ago, the relationship between those two began to grow apart, but up until that point, the two were very close.
In particular, Marquis Fideut had a close relationship with Killianâs biological father, the former Archduke of Rivelon.
Fideut also told Killian, who had lost his parents at an early age, the story of the Rivelon estate in the north as well as how the former Archduke of Rivelon was.
However, shortly after arguing with him, the Marquis passed away without them even being able to reconcile, so he couldnât imagine how miserable Killianâs feelings would be.
Unsurprisingly, a dark shadow fell on Killianâs face.
ââŠIâm leaving right away.â
Garfield hurriedly fetched Killianâs cloak, and called his coachman to fetch his horse.
Not even having time to recommend breakfast being prepared, Killian hurriedly put on his clothes and got on his horse.
Garfield sighed with regret as he watched the two horses moving away quickly.