/
Kilian glanced at Garfield, who had been following behind him, and subtly gestured with his eyes.
Recognizing the signal, Garfield turned his attention to Sophia and spoke up. “It seems we were too noisy. It’s surprising to see you awake at this hour.”
Garfield speculated, thinking that the guests who had arrived in the early morning had disturbed Sophia’s sleep.
He escorted her back to her room with the maids.
“Finding the master at the military police headquarters at this hour is not uncommon. It’s nothing to worry about, so please rest peacefully”.
He reassured Sophia and had the maids make the bedding again.
Sophia couldn’t rebel and had to lie back in bed as instructed.
As the lights went out, she could hear Kilian’s voice mingling with the military police officers outside.
“Garfield, may I ask you something?”
“Yes?”
Garfield, who had been about to withdraw after ensuring everything was in order, turned to look at her.
His face appeared kind yet ordinary, devoid of any involvement in Killian’s crimes. There was a hint of sleepiness on his face, indicating that he was clearly unaware of how the situation had unfolded.
Sophia contemplated whether she should tell him the truth but ultimately shook her head.
“…No, it’s nothing.”
As Sophia futilely pulled the blanket over herself, Garfield smiled at her.
“Then, have a good night, my lady.”
With that, Garfield retreated from the room along with the maids.
The fading sound of horses’ hooves moving away from the moonlit night.
* * *
Kilian and the military police officers headed towards a small alley in Deepwood where the incident had occurred. The alley was behind a small mansion where Viscount Precel had been staying.
When Killian arrived, Nicholas and several police officers were already present, examining the scene.
“Your Excellency!”
Nicholas spotted Killian and rushed over to where he stood.
“Nick, what happened?”
“Well…”
Nicholas swallowed hard with a bitter expression and proceeded to explain the situation.
The victim had died right there in the alley.
Fortunately, the patrolling military police officers had stumbled upon the unfolding incident and the fleeing Black Moon, but they had failed to apprehend them.
The situation was straightforward, but the circumstances were not.
“I’m sorry. We should have captured them until the end, but the Black Moon’s skills were extraordinary.”.
(T/L: Since the officers don’t know whether the killer is he/she, so word ‘they’ or ‘them’ is used.)
Nicholas and the police officers became solemn, as if bearing the weight of their failure. However, Kilian did not interrogate or express anger towards them.
“I will ask for responsibility later. What about Viscount Percel’s signs? Did they use another strange poison this time?”
As Kilian inquired, he delved deeper into the alley where the victim had died, guided by Nicholas.
“No, this time he was stabbed to death with a knife.”
Alongside Nicholas’s report, the fallen Viscount’s image caught Killian’s eye.
The blood soaked the floor and flowed through the cracks in the stones.
An open mouth without breath, eyes that could not be closed.
“It’s not the work of someone with limited experience. They pierced the vital spot and ended his life with a single stab.”
With a small knife, they accurately struck the back of the neck.
It was something an ordinary person could never accomplish.
“However, it’s strange. There are signs of struggles all around.”
To have been killed with a single stab yet leave traces of a struggle… Kilian couldn’t figure out how to reconcile the chronological order.
“Perhaps there was another victim who was present initially and put-up resistance?”
“Well, I’m not sure.”
Killian clenched his fist as he surveyed the crime scene.
The tendons on the back of his hand bulged.
“Are you okay, Your Excellency?” Nicholas asked, observing Kilian’s reaction as he looked at Percel.
It was because he knew the relationship between Kilian and Viscount Percel.
Percel was a vassal of Kilian’s biological father, the former Grand Duke Rivelon.
Until Killian lost his parents, he said he and Purcell had been close as uncles.
“It has been years since we last met like this,”
Kilian said, biting his lip as he knelt in front of Percel. He gently closed Percel’s eyes, which could no longer see the world.
“It must have been tough for you.”
Since Killian’s appointment as commander of the military police, he had never encountered such a case.
Moreover, both Marquis Fideut and Viscount Percel had connections with him.
Nicholas hoped that Killian wouldn’t blame himself for this situation. (T/L: And the best actor award goes to ‘Killian’.)
After a moment of silence, Killian stood up again.
“This is a serial murder,” he declared, looking around at the military police officers present.
“Since the victims have turned from singular to multiple, our approach to the case needs to change. We must understand the relationships between the victims, how the Black Moon selects them, and when the attacks occur.”
“Yes, Your Excellency,” the officers responded.
“With multiple victims involved, there is a possibility of further casualties,” Kilian continued, his determination evident.
At Killian’s words, the atmosphere among the crew sank even more.
They shared Kilian’s unwavering resolve that there should be no more victims.
Kilian ordered the scene to be processed, the bodies to be handled and autopsied, and contact to be made with the Percel family, who would be in the Grand Duchy.
Accompanied by Nicholas, Kilian walked towards the military police station after the scene had been cleared and the necessary procedures were set in motion. Despite staying up all night due to the urgency of the situation, sleep eluded them.
On the way to the military police station, Nicholas wore a serious expression as he pondered something, then spoke up.
“The Black Moon, I thought they used poison because their power was weak, but it turns out that wasn’t the case at all.”
“Poison is usually used by someone with less strength to kill someone stronger than them, So, the military police speculated that the black moon could be a woman or a physically weak person. But we were completely wrong.”
” How many people are capable enough to fight with the military police members on equal footing and ostracize them? Unless they’re at your level, Your Excellency…”
Kilian’s eye twitched slightly, but Nicholas didn’t notice.
Or perhaps it could be the knights of Ruchtainer?” Nicholas speculated, stroking his chin.
In any case, if they possess that level of skill, the number of potential candidates would be significantly narrowed down.
Kilian cautiously asked, “You mentioned a fight with the Black Moon, but did you see their face?”
“Well, they were wearing a robe and a white mask, so no one saw their face.”
“What about their height?”
“Wearing a robe makes it difficult to confirm their physique, and it was difficult to guess the exact height because the body was bent down. However, we’re almost certain that they are male.”
“I see…”
Kilian nodded his head and muttered to himself.
At that moment,
“Your Excellency, we found something!”
One of the officers who followed behind hurriedly ran up after finishing the scene.
Kilian and Nicholas both stopped and waited for the guard.
“What is it…?”
The officer held out his gloved hand even though he was out of breath. He had a red seed placed on his outstretched palm.
“This is…!”
“It’s a Rosary seed.”
“It was found at the crime scene. There were three of them!”
Kilian’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the Rosary seed.
“Surely the Black Moon must be someone related to this Rosary.”
Nicholas said, hopefully.
With this level of evidence, it seemed that the culprit could be caught soon.
Kilian nodded in response to Nicholas.
* * *
Before they knew it, the sun had risen.
They hadn’t slept a wink all night.
Sophia, while obediently covered with a blanket, stared blankly at the canopy.
After thinking all night, she arrived at the following conclusion.
They should enact a law called the “Prohibition of Naming Kilian/Kilian other than Protagonist.”
Black-haired, red-eyed northern grand dukes should create a law specifying the amount of the fine when they are not male protagonists.
If such a law existed, at the very least, she wouldn’t have ended up in such a predicament!
‘I don’t want to tame the darkness! I want to marry someone clean and reliable from the beginning!’
Sophia writhed in her blanket with a silent scream.
It felt like I had agonized over the same thing hundreds of times throughout the night.
‘No, it’s not too late. If Kilian loves me now, how much could he truly love me? Sure, we’ve kissed twice.’
Since it had only been about two weeks since the possession.
I could still undo the wrongly fastened first button and fasten it again.
A little misstep wouldn’t dictate her entire life.
‘Yes, how much could he love me in such a short time?’
Kisses? Everyone does that these days, right?
She somehow comforted herself and calmed her heart.
‘Anyway, I have to break off the engagement with Kilian…’
Sophia stared into the empty space with a determined gaze.
How does one typically break off an engagement in a novel?
Sophia racked her brain as much as she could.
But…
“How on earth am I supposed to break off the engagement?!”
Didn’t it come to mind as soon as you were possessed by this world?
[The First Unwritten Rule of Romance Novels]?
[Proposing divorce or breaking off an engagement is the beginning of married life]?
Across the romance and romance fantasy genres, one of the most difficult things for the heroine to do is divorce or break off an engagement.
Even if she were to get a divorce, it would continue with her ex-husband in the romance genre.
If she brings up the topic of breaking off the engagement, Kilian’s obsession will start to show!
Unless she wants to dive into a living hell, she shouldn’t even mention the letter ‘b’ in ‘breaking off.’
‘If I make a fuss about trying to break off the engagement…?’ Purposefully showing a messy appearance, indulging in extravagance to the point of receiving criticism, and engaging in outrageous behaviour that would tarnish the reputation of the Ducal family…?
“But still, there’s a 99% chance it won’t work.”