Chapter 33- Between Courage and Lingering Affection(1)

I was pretty taken aback myself when the words I’d just thrown out turned out to be true.

“So, you’re saying a ghost showed up and you can’t sleep?”

As I asked again to confirm, I could clearly see Cellos’s face gradually flushing.

Showing up at 17 saying you can’t sleep because you're scared of a ghost is a bit embarrassing, yes.

In this world, there would be other reasons besides fear and shame, though.

In any case, there was a need to make clear what needed to be addressed.

I spoke firmly.

“You can’t sleep here.”

“Who asked to sleep here!!! ……yo.”

At my teasing, Cellos finally spat out his characteristic irritation.

“You must know you’ve come to the wrong person for help.”

“Damn it, I know that too.”

As I stared at him expressionlessly, the 8th Prince also nervously scratched his head as if he wasn't unaware of that fact.

“I was just wondering if you, Older brother, were going through the same thing.”

Judging only by the content, they were the words of a tear-jerkingly concerned younger brother worried about his older brother, but both he and I knew it wasn't such a soft-hearted meaning.

This was the world inside a book.

The religious views here also had settings established by the author.

To understand that, one had to go all the way back to the founding of this Abalan Empire.

***

Sierra Abalan of the beginning was an unstable god.

This great demigod who descended from the sky was said to have pacified the chaotic continent with mysterious power and wisdom, bringing peace.

For the 100 years Sierra Abalan ruled, the Empire developed, enjoying an unprecedented boom in history.

People who had been plagued by monsters gained safety.

They no longer needed to shiver in the cold, pant in the heat, or feel a burning thirst.

The stories about his journey are mostly similar.

As is the case with all stories passed down by word of mouth, they are sometimes mixed with unknown places that don't even exist now, and sometimes places that match historical facts to some extent.

However, the story about Great Emperor Sierra's end is fixed on one version.

It might be divided into various forms among the common folk, but what the temple teaches is consistent.

Therefore, all people of the Empire accept this as the truth.

That on a beautiful, sunny day, Sierra, who had become a complete god, walked on the sunlight in front of his family and ascended to the sky.

It is also said that Sierra, having returned to his original sky world, created a new world with his perfected power.

One of the three moons seen in the distance is precisely that.

Territum, where only the good can go.

All people of the Abalan Empire want to go there and find rest after death.

It's one of the reasons they pledge absolute obedience to the Imperial Family.

Because people who cannot go here have no choice but to go to a place called Hodie after death.

It is, quite literally, a place they don't want to go to even if they die.

In Hodie, said to be made from the wicked things left over after Sierra created Territum and all sorts of filthy monsters, humans cannot find rest even in death and cannot escape the cycle of being torn apart and chased.

That is the other one of the three moons.

Then what about those who go to neither Territum nor Hodie?

The temple calls them runaways.

Commonly, what we know as ghosts.

It is also the role of the temple to send back those who, for whatever reason, could not go to the world ruled by Sierra Abalan.

This is where the problem arises for Cellos Abalan.

The bloodlines that remained in the Empire and inherited Sierra's power are the current Imperial Family.

They are the ones who have lived respected lives while trampling on others for a long time in that name.

In principle, there is no way a ghost could get close to people of the Abalan family.

There have been no cases found so far of an ordinary ghost posing a threat to an Abalan.

Though I don't know if there were any who just suffered in silence.

Cellos Abalan must have trembled in fear when he first saw a ghost.

From the looks of it, it seemed he was scared of the ghost itself, but what must have been more frightening was that he had no one to ask for help.

If he rashly opened his mouth and things went wrong, word would get out asking how a member of the Imperial Family could be tormented by a ghost, and he must have been scared that if it was mishandled, word would spread that the ghost latched onto him because he was a prince with only a speck of Manis.

The secret he had hidden so diligently so far would be revealed; to whom could he reveal that?

And then I must have come to mind.

The 7th Prince, Ran Abalan, knew his secret and had not even a speck of Manis.

“Sorry, but this older brother has never been tormented by a ghost.”

At my indifferent reply, Cellos bit his lip hard.

I stroked my chin as I watched him.

It's not that such beings don't appear in the original work, Dark Header.

But they don't appear at this time, at least.

Whatever the case, there was no need to teach Cellos the thoughts inside my head.

I spoke quickly, as if it were no big deal.

“It doesn't seem to be related to ability, so just leave it be. It's not like it can do anything anyway.”

“What do you mean by that, just leave it be.”

He glared at me with an angry face, as if to say, ‘is that the only advice you can give’.

“Aren't ghosts mostly things that stay behind because they miss their family or want to avenge a grudge? No one close to you in the Imperial Family has died yet, so it can’t be a family member they miss.”

“That... is true.”

I gave him a 'see, what did I tell you' look as he nodded, and I leaned back.

“If it's to avenge a grudge, looking back at your usual conduct, I think it's fine for you to suffer a bit.”

“Don't say it so easily. It comes every dawn.”

“In the first place, are you sure it's a ghost? You didn't just mistake it for someone working?”

At my listless reaction, he continued, as if frustrated.

“It loiters in front of the door, then suddenly disappears at the end of the hallway. without a trace. And no one saw it. Everyone said no one was there at that time. So how can this be a person!!”

He gradually grew excited, his bloodshot eyes from lack of sleep flashing.

Appearing at dawn and disappearing at the end of the hallway, huh…….

The guy, who fluently rattled off even the time and location of its appearance, seemed as simple as Rasia.

I grinned and shrugged my shoulders at him.

“Even if it is a ghost, as I said before, there's nothing it can do, and no need to do anything. Fortunately, they can't cause physical harm.”

“That's, true, but…….”

His momentum weakened considerably, as if he knew my attitude wouldn't change much no matter how much angrier he got.

“Still, if you're anxious, doing a few good deeds is the only thing you can do. Now, in that sense.”

I threw open the closed shutters.

Anna, still fainted and unconscious, was occupying the sofa.

“Take that child to the infirmary. She'll have a fit again if she sees your face, so be careful not to wake her.”

At the sudden proposal, Cellos's face crumpled instantly.

“Wha?! Yo?! Why do I have to?! Yo?!”

Why, you ask.

Because if I help, it'll crack the image of the 7th Prince that I've built up so far.

And there was also a small part of me that wanted Cellos Abalan to take responsibility for his own actions.

I cut off the guy, who was opening his mouth to spew out a string of awkward honorifics again.

“I told you. Try doing something good. Who knows, maybe the ghost will be moved and leave.”

He looked at me as if asking what kind of bullshit that was.

I was in full agreement with that sentiment.

But at the sameD time, I had the weapon of shamelessness.

“Or go ask the servants to move her. Kindly and with common sense.”

“Why do I have to ask? I can just order them! Yo!”

The excited guy started using the shoddy honorifics again, but I didn't care.

“Then it's not a good deed.”

The guy, who realized the nuance that I wouldn't acknowledge it, ground his teeth.

“Go quietly so you don't wake her.”

“Damn it, I shouldn't have come to this damn place!”

The guy muttered as I spoke to the back of his head as he lifted Anna.

After confirming his figure had disappeared, I quickly closed the door.

Because tonight was going to be a very long night.

***

Cellos Abalan was carrying Anna to the infirmary more politely than Ran had thought, but more carelessly than the average person.

It was true that he was conscious of the 7th Prince's warning to be careful not to wake her, but it was largely because he was a bit drained from self-reproach for having swallowed his pride and visited this goddamned castle.

He must have lost his mind from staying up so many nights.

The reason he'd come to this unlucky 7th Prince's Palace again was that he thought it was the quietest way to resolve things among the two choices left to him.

Though the two choices were just a matter of who to confide in.

Honestly, he hated both options enough to kill, but he thought that if he came to the 7th Prince, at least things wouldn't get bigger.

The 7th Prince was a bastard he didn't like, but seeing as he had kept the secret so far, he seemed to be tight-lipped.

An Imperial Family member tormented by a ghost.

It was unheard of, and something he'd never hear of in the future; if anyone found out about his pathetic state, everyone would suspect him.

-A pathetic prince with no ability.

Cellos flinched, feeling as if a cold voice was ringing in his ears, and his grip on the nape of Anna's neck tightened.

The looks of contempt that had been directed at the 7th Prince until now might shift to him.

Cellos knew very well just how shameful that feeling was.

To be in the same boat as that worthless guy.

It was unbearable.

At the same time, and paradoxically, the thought simultaneously occurred to him that the 7th Prince might know how to solve this situation.

That half-wit, who only had the name of the Imperial Family, might not have experienced the same situation?

If it's because I'm an Imperial Family member lacking Manis that this ghost can torment me like this, then that bastard could be tormented too.

Since that guy is more deficient than me, he'd be more miserable.

Moreover, a groundless faith welled up that the owner of that shameless face, who always spouted things so pretentiously, might have acted resolutely even in the same situation.

It was a generous evaluation he couldn't have imagined before, but it just was.

Somehow, it felt like that half-wit bastard would just snort once even if a ghost appeared and drove it away.

That stream of consciousness led Cellos to the 7th Prince's Palace.

But all he got was ridiculous bullshit and this piece of luggage.

Cellos glanced at the maid dangling from his arm.

A maid insignificant, a bit young but nothing special.

He was pissed when he got bitten by that rat bastard, and it was true he intended to punish this insolent thing for hiding it.

But that's only natural, isn't it?

To Cellos, it was an unexpected event.

But what was he so angry about?

Was it because he felt a sense of kinship with those who were useless and pathetic like him?

His pride was hurt so he didn't show it, but Cellos had been quite flustered when the 7th Prince showed a frigid reaction, different from his usual indifference.

He couldn't understand why his chest felt hot when he saw the 7th Prince's gaze, after opening the door and sweeping over the collapsed kid, turn unprecedentedly cold.

The 8th Prince himself would never admit it, but at Ran's unusual atmosphere, the immature Cellos felt his heart shrink, and he had faced the 7th Prince in a tense state the whole time, as if he were a little brother being scolded by his older brother.

It was also the reason why he'd obediently carried this lump of baggage out, even while thinking it was quite humiliating.

He felt that if he treated this thing more carelessly, this time the 7th Prince would look at him as if he were truly worse than a chicken head.

“Hey, is anyone there?”

The 8th Prince, having arrived at the infirmary, threw open the door and called for the Court Physician.

“Yes, what is, heok!!! G-g-g-g-g-greet His Highness the 8-8-8-8th Prince……!”

The old fogey doctor, who had been coming out leisurely, saw the 8th Prince and stammered as if his breath, which already seemed on the verge of giving out, would stop.

Cellos, tired of the p-p-p-p-8th Prince chant that had started again, waved his hand dismissively as if to say 'enough'.

The doctor, apologetic and not knowing what to do, clutched his chest and panted for breath.

Why is everyone who works here like this?

The 8th Prince, unaware that the only people who remained while enduring the 7th Prince's shitty personality for low pay were those who were old, had no money and nowhere to go, and were timid, scowled.

He already hated this beggar-like place, and now he hated it more.

Cellos set down Anna, who had been dangling, onto a small bed that seemed to be barely maintained for cleanliness.

“She fainted, so take care of it.”

What the 7th Prince had ordered was only to take her to the infirmary, so this should be enough.

Having given the order, he left without any lingering attachment.

Thinking that he would never set foot in this castle again.

***

“G-Go safely, Your Highness.”

The old doctor bowed so low his bent back almost touched the floor, but the 8th Prince didn't even look at him.

It was when he had left and the sound of his footsteps had completely faded away with him.

“Heok!!!”

Anna shot up in bed, letting out the breath she had been holding.

Thanks to her, the faint-hearted old doctor had to endure the second crisis of nearly fainting for the day.

“Aigoo, what a fright!!”

“Heok, heok! His Highness the Prince is completely gone, right?”

“I-It seems so, what on earth is going on?”

“I'm, I'm alive, right?”

The doctor looked pitifully at Anna, who was pale but, thankfully, still breathing.

The old man guessed that a situation in the scary Imperial Palace where a young child had to be carried in while pretending to be unconscious was not likely to be a good one, even if she didn't say.

The doctor, who usually got along well with Anna on the point that one must discard useless curiosity to live long, silently handed the child some warm water mixed with a little salt.

“Thank you.”

Anna, taking the cup of water, shivered as she recalled the recent events that still felt unreal.

Anna had regained consciousness around the time Ran ordered Cellos to carry her carefully so she wouldn't wake.

But she wasn't confident she wouldn't scream if she opened her eyes and saw the terrifying 8th Prince, so she had steadfastly pretended to be fainted, holding her breath all the way here.

When Prince Cellos's hand gripping her nape tightened mid-way, she had to use all her strength to hold back a small cough.

Fortunately, he seemed to have forgotten his anger toward her, setting her down as if tossing her here and leaving.

Anna was simply grateful for that.

She had almost lost her life trying to save one squirrel.

She couldn't lose the life she had cherished so dearly in such a vain way.

She recalled the red-haired prince and shivered once more.

Anna had believed until now that the 7th Prince was the scariest person in the world, but that was a huge miscalculation.

Cellos, approaching her while looking at her like an insect, truly seemed like he would step on her and crush her.

She never wanted to have that experience again.

Anna made a vow.

To run for her life at the mere sight of his red hair.

Unfortunately, it did not take long for the child's firm resolve to crumble.

***

Chirrr-

The cry of a cricket, embellishing the midnight silence, rang out.

“Squeak!”

It rang out, then stopped.

The squirrel, having snatched the plump cricket in an instant, turned the poor insect this way and that, as if assessing where to start eating it.

“I'll give you this, so just let that one go.”

Not wanting to see that gruesome sight before leaving, I took a shiny acorn from my pocket and handed it to the creature.

The squirrel, seeming to prefer acorns over insects, quickly released the struggling cricket and stuffed the acorn into its cheek.

“Yeah, eat up. It's going to be a long night today.”

The wind was cold.

The castle where the 8th Prince resides is quite a distance from where I stay.

As expected, at times like this, it's best to change into the most familiar form.

I spread my black wings and flew up out of the window.