33.Do You Like The Rain? Volume 2 Episode 6. Ego

I opened my eyes.

I could hear the sound of the endless rain. The light behind the window falling on the back of the hand was dark-gray. Judging from the dark sky, it didn’t seem like the rain would end in a shower. Besides that, Richton was sitting quietly and staring out the window. He wasn’t as white-blond as he used to be with a dry straw while bent over and stuck his nose in a book that he didn’t even concentrate on. The man was just sitting like in the picture. A terrible sense of reality began to flock in my hazy mind. I was hit by both the boy in the hazy memory and the man— Richton sitting within my reach.

“Do you like the rain?”

He slowly turned his head towards me. I continued slowly.

“When the long rainy season comes, I look out the window without expectations.”

There was a deep shade below the blue-gray eyes.

“To the extent that the illusion of an eternal hatred of a woman appears.”

“You spit it out.”

“Not Susan’s, but Agrane’s mouth?”

He wants something from me, or Agrane’s. It was all I had vaguely guessed because there was no shape, but now I could be sure.

“You want me to be Agrane.”

Richton, we were Whilhelm’s dogs. Now… I don’t think I’m the only one left to be called a dog.

“Or do you think Susan climbs on the back of her master’s love?”

Richton was listening to me with half-closed eyes. There seemed to be no indication of anger or punishment.

“I threw away everything I had as my master wished. An empty bowl is filled with hatred that is not mine. Don’t you have the right to be so arbitrary to me?”

“Not enough.”

There was no hesitation in his voice. It was concise and firm, as if it had already been considered so for a long time. Underneath the perfectly collected eyelids was a caught pale woman. Richton moved his neck and shoulders out towards me and recited one word at a time.

“It’s not just not enough, it’s just not enough. So give me more of what you have. Would you do that if I said so?”

“Sure. All I have left is my body. Should I give you my body?”

Richton laughed. At least I didn’t feel like he was laughing because he was having fun.

“As I said before. There’s nothing good about provoking me, Susan.”

What’s the difference between Richton, who was engulfed in madness and handed me the decorative sword? In return for recognizing Agrane’s past, I was able to look at Richton much easier than before. His eyes were filled with extreme human emotions that were previously unknown.

Anger, hatred, obsession, regret.

“I’ve already sacrificed too much for you. No, all that’s left at the expense of the ashes is the shell. The only reason you can sit here is because I only have ashes left. Otherwise I wouldn’t even allow the faint light on the back of your hand.”

Unlike his eyes, his voice was as calm as a poem. Perhaps, Agrane of the past pushed him into a deeper hell from cowering in the dark in the cage. Otherwise, such fervent hatred could not have turned on to me.

“Master, have you ever considered yourself crazy?”

We were more than three steps apart, but she felt as if Richton were sitting right next to me. It felt like we were the ones remaining in a world where the lights were off. I’ve never felt so close to Richton before. As I got to know the man, the vague fear slowly faded like fog, and an indefinable and first feeling was born.

“Whether it’s because of the hatred towards Agrane or the poison of Ingord. I often think I’m crazy. Especially when I can’t sleep with a headache, I feel trapped in a coffin and my head is eaten by maggots.”

And even when you realized that even though you have barely opened your eyes, you are still in Ingord.

“These days, even in my dreams, my nerves are wide awake.”

The more I dreamed, the more vivid it felt like I was assimilating into Agrane.

“Are you asking me if I’m crazy? What a cheeky question. Like the rights you have.”

His transparent platinum hair looked like a red sunset with the fire in the fireplace fluttering over it. It was after the eyes, which had been shaken by dozens of emotions, returned to their original cold colors. There was even pure admiration for his skill in hiding his inner self. What kind of time has Richton been living? What kind of time have you endured that you can be so nonchalant? I didn’t dare to imagine.

“Yeah, I’m crazy. You want to ask me because I’m crazy? But it’s not a disease. It’s just the path I chose with my own hands.”

“Is this the price of the master’s power?”

The power that causes madness. Richton, who caught my eye, asked again with his eyes closed.

“Susan, when you see the future, are you sure what you see is the future?”

He looked a little tired if it wasn’t an illusion.

“What if that future is not just one, but dozens of layers? And if it swirls and changes constantly….”

Is Richton’s power to see the future? Certainly not. He wasn’t the kind of person to reveal his secrets in this way.

“Everything I’m given may feel like a life that’s not mine. So what’s the point of seeing the future? The power that I don’t even know is like a curse.”

I listened to him calmly.

“That’s what it’s all about. Something that makes you feel worse than you have. Yes, the way I chose was to pay for it.”

Richton opened his eyes again.

“So, Susan… I guess I can get an answer now. When do you think my Ingord will collapse?”

Having heard that, I realized that Richton was talking about me. I can be sure now. Richton knew that I knew the future. As for the question of how I know, I couldn’t figure it out even if I rolled my head to death right away. Either by the power that came with a price, or by the other possessed characters that Richton has hunted so far. If I were myself in the past, I would have been nervous, but now I feel lighthearted. Why? Because unlike other possessed characters, I’m not the one who will get killed so easily?

“It’s going to collapse.”

The dry and cracked voice came out. All of a sudden, I thought like that. If Berkne saw me now, wouldn’t he have advised me not to be arrogant? But it is not just arrogance. I have the right to be special to Richton.

“That’s how this story will be completed.”

“Who made this story?”

I don’t know about that. What I know is a character who is not the author of 『The River Where the Sun Manoeuvres』 Richton, is a man who is fated to get destroyed, and I….

“This place doesn’t collapse.”

It was a conviction, not a commitment. Richton rose from his chair like a ghost, unceasing. The way he looked down at me was as orphaned as a picture hung in the hall.

“At least as long as I hold my breath, it will be the most solid fortress in the Empire. No one’s going to be able to cross it. Not even the Emperor, of course, Wilhelm too. That’s the way I chose it.”

After brushing my back, Richton’s pale and long fingers penetrated my hair. His fingertips touching the back of my neck were as cold as ice, but strangely hot.

“The time will come soon for you to choose, too. I’m starting to see the end of our bet.”

Richton left the drawing room like that. Yes, the bet. I totally forgot. We had that, too. I stared out the window blankly until the remaining warmth on the back of my neck completely disappeared.

* * *

The empty Ingord mansion was bleak and quiet, enough to be considered a haunted castle. A member of the Knights of the Black Hawk walked inside and outside the mansion as usual, but it felt strange because I was barely familiar with the new house and different space. Azmaria decided to stay in the main building, not the annex for a while. It was the best way because I was the only one left to manage the mansion.

From lunch today, a chef hired from downtown prepared meals for Richton and the Knights. Maybe because it was an annual job, everyone was good at it even if they didn’t get the pay much attention. I poured water into Azmaria’s glass instead of the absent servant.

“If it doesn’t suit your taste, tell me right away. The chef in the city is cooking for him.”

Azmaria shook her head violently.

“No, this is enough, I’m the one who’s causing trouble.”

As Azmaria looked at the wide table and empty chairs for a moment, she asked.

“What about him?”

“Your Excellency always eats alone in the Oval Office.”

“Oh, I see. Does he eat in the Oval Office even if a guest visits?”

“Yes.”

It was not polite to meet guests, but by the time of the Duke of Ingord, his actions themselves became manners and regulations. Over Azmaria’s white face came a faint disappointment, but soon disappeared. I know she’s turning eighteen, but she’s pretty good at hiding her emotions. Well, this would have been enough to leave Beatrice a sign of death with an indifferent face.

“Mr. Berkne?”

It was when Azmaria was eating alone quietly in a quiet dining room. She managed to recognize Berkne as he passed by the door, she shouted out loud. It was a very familiar call, so I had to pay attention to it. Berkne, who came into the dining room one beat slower, bent over.

“Young lady Azmaria Will.”

“How long has it been? It’s so nice to see you like this.”

If it was in the front yard of my house, he had a bright voice that was ready to leave the place.

“It’s nice to see you again, Young lady. If it were on schedule, Young lady and I would never have met again.