Adelheid and Claude returned to the house four days later. The master of disguise was wearing something different from the last time I saw her, as expected, while Claude had his usual formal wear on. I was expecting them to return with a battered and bloody look going on, but that didn’t happen. Instead, they were in impeccable condition. It made me wonder if they actually did what they were supposed to do.
Whatever relief I had from the possibility of them not killing people was tossed out the window when Adelheid answered her phone, “Rosetta, did you already receive the news?”
“I watched the live broadcast. You did a splendid job,” Rosetta’s voice came out from the phone’s speaker. How she seemed genuinely proud and entertained sent shivers down my spine. “I’ve already sent a clean up crew, so you have nothing to worry about. For now, I want you to stay over there for another month or so, including Krylo of course.”
“Why does she need to stay with us?” Remus grumbled as he glared at me.
“Because I have quite a few matters to take care of, and since I trust you five to take care of my precious guest. If you don’t wish to stay within the country, ask Adelheid to take you to a neighboring nation. With her connections, she’ll be able to provide you a trip that you can truly call a vacation,” she explained but didn’t give anyone a chance to oppose. “When you come back, I’ll have another present prepared for you, Krylo.”
“A present?” I said.
“Yes, I’m sure you’ll like it quite a bit.”
I wasn’t sure on how to feel. Rosetta seemed to have a wide range of what she would consider a tasteful present. Regardless, I provided her with my appreciation. The call ended shortly after Adelheid had a private conversation with Rosetta— most likely about me. It was unnerving.
Adelheid took me out of the country for the last few days of the trip, saying that I needed to experience the outside world more before I got caged back inside the Garden. The individual she brought me to was one of her many lovers, a man named Sinclair.
“It’s a pleasure to have you here, Miss Alphaeus,” Sinclair held his hand out.
“Thank you,” I shook his hand. I thought Adelheid would leave me alone after putting me in the hands of her lover, but she remained by my side. We were currently in Sinclair’s penthouse. From it’s bare appearance, it didn’t seem that he lived here often. If he did, then he must have rather minimalistic preferences.
“Is there anywhere you’d like to go?”
“I’m not too sure,” I admitted. “I’m unfamiliar with a lot of things so…”
“Why don’t we just go walk around a shopping mall then?” Adelheid suggested as she leaned against the kitchen counter. “There’s a pretty big one nearby.”
“But I don’t have anything I need to buy…I don’t have money in the first place.”
“That’s not the important part~! Would you like to go to the mall? There’s quite a lot to look at, so it’ll be a little adventure! If you end up finding something you want, I’ll just buy it for you.”
“But…”
“You’re under Rosetta’s care, and as a member of the family, I must serve you with my everything. Use that to your advantage,” Adelheid’s eyes flickered violet for a split second. “Just say what you’d like to do.”
I ended up going with Adelheid’s suggestion, and went to the mall with her and Sinclair. The man looked a little hesitant in letting Adelheid go, muttering something about her appearance, but she brushed him off without much thought.
“You’re worried about something so minuscule,” She said. “Even if they had the guts to bother me, I’ll just take care of them, like I always do.”
Sinclair sighed in defeat and glanced at me apologetically, “She always acts like this…”
“You really care about her,” I commented.
Sinclair chuckled, “That’s true. She always acts so recklessly, it’s terrible for my health.”
“Can I ask why you decided to be with her?”
He was slightly surprised by my question, which led me to regret asking, but his expression softened, “She’s beautiful, rich, and has power,” he paused. “But, that’s not exactly why I stay by her side. I admire her.”
“Admire?”
“It’s a little hard to explain why I admire her since I can never seem to find the right words. I just believe that my admiration towards her was something that was inevitable,” it was apuzzling response, but I didn’t push to continue the conversation.
The mall was enormous, and had both elevators and escalators all over the place. With four floors full of various stores and a floor that was just a food court, it was enough to make my head spin. There was a lot more activity going on than I was used to, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Until a gunshot rang throughout the mall. Countless shouts and screams followed shortly after, and everyone started to scramble out and away, but Adelheid forced me to stay where I was.
“Adelheid?” I winced at the painful grip Adelheid had on my shoulder. Then I saw it— the pale and fearful expression on Sinclair.
“Addie—!”
“I didn’t think they would have the guts to shoot me with such a large crowd around,” Adelheid laughed menacingly. Her face was of a madman’s— with her sadistic smirk and bestial stare. She was enjoying the situation. As Adelheid turned around, I saw the bullet wound on her left shoulder. Dark crimson blood spilled out, but the Gardens member paid no mind to it and opted to pull out her own pistol.
“Protect Miss Alphaeus, Sin,” She commanded. “I need to go punish these disobedient puppies.”
Sinclair pulled out his own gun from within his jacket and took my hand to pull me deeper into the store, so I’d be out of sight.
“Her wound, why didn’t you stop her?!” I hissed.
Sinclair placed a hand over my mouth and whispered, “I don’t know if there’s more than one enemy, so stay quiet.” His friendly aura changed completely. After waiting for a few more moments, he ushered me into a dressing room, “This isn’t the best place to be, but there’s not much we can do.”
The gunshots that rang continuously throughout the mall instilled fear into my heart. Even if it was Adelheid, there was no way she would survive this, not with that wound. I grew paranoid and started muttering, “What if she didn’t dodge the bullet because of me...what if she gets killed because of me? What will happen..?”
My shoulder blades started to burn. They burned— it was so painful. I clenched my fist and started gasping for air, and my vision grew blurry. Another wave of pain hit me when someone grabbed me by my shoulders, and they immediately let go. It hurts, it hurts, ithurtsithurtseverythinghurts—.
“Breathe,” I remembered Remus’s words. “Breathe,” he repeated. “Breathe.” The pain slowly washed away.
“Are you okay?” Sinclair’s concerned expression was the first thing I saw when my vision cleared up. I was panting as quietly as I could, though it still sounded rather loud. I wordlessly nodded my head. “...I’m sure you’re worried about Adelheid, but the best thing we can do is wait for her to come back.”
“But…”
Sinclair shook his head, “There’s too big of a risk. Now, let’s stay quiet.”
The mall became eerily silent just as Sinclair finished talking. Then, a scream followed by a gruesome crunch could be heard.
“Hm, hm, hmmm,” the sound of someone’s gentle humming grew louder at a steady, rhythmic pace. Sinclair kept his aim at the door until he saw the shoes the person was wearing. The dressing room door swung open to reveal an ever so cheerful Adelheid, who still had the glint of bloodlust in her eyes. She grinned, “It’s all done now~. Let’s leave before something troublesome happens.”
“We have to get your wound treated!” I insisted as soon as I managed to collect myself. Bewilderment overtook Adelheid’s expression for a fraction of a second, before she burst out in laughter.
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself,” Adelheid heaved as she regained her composure. “Though it’s probably in your nature to be concerned about those things, it’s still funny to see you troubled over a superficial wound.”
“There’s no way that wound was superficial!” I argued.
“Well, even if it wasn’t,” Adelheid stripped off her blouse and presented her back to me. Her skin where the bullet should’ve penetrated through was smooth— not even a hint of a scar or blemish was present. “See? It’s all better now.”
“How...?” I reached out and touched her shoulder blade, and her slender muscles flexed under my fingers. “I’m positive that you were shot!”
“I was shot,” Adelheid confirmed as she stepped away from me and covered herself with her shirt. “It was quite painful.”
“Then how?!”
“Are you really asking for an answer to a question that you already know? Just think about it.”
At first, I really didn’t know what Adelheid meant, but it sunk in as soon as Rosetta came to mind. There was no way that woman known as the Goddess of Knowledge’s Apostle would be human. Even if they didn’t show any signs of not being human until now, there was no guarantee that those who directly served her were humans either.
I gulped, “...Just what are you?”
Adelheid grinned, “I was human. We were all humans at one point, but then someone reached out to use and asked us if we wished to devote ourselves to her, and to the gods. We agreed, and became something just a little different than your usual humans.”
“Oh but,” Adelheid stared directly into my eyes, as if to examine my soul, and said, “you shouldn’t assume that you’re human yourself.”
Her words threw me off. Even Sinclair appeared to be a bit startled by Adelheid’s statement, yet the woman paid no mind to us. How she was so, unrestricted, reminded me of Rosetta, and perhaps that was the charm of the Gardens.
“Welcome back, Krylo,” Rosetta greeted me as soon as we returned from our “little” trip outside. We were in her courtroom, and she was sitting at the judge’s bench, as always. “Stay here, everyone else can leave.”
The other Gardens immediately backed away, leaving me alone with Rosetta and an unfamiliar woman. The woman stood tall beside Rosetta, with her molten copper eyes focused on me. Her neutral expression made it hard to decipher what she was thinking, but something about her made my chest fuzzy.
“I wanted to introduce you to this lovely lady,” Rosetta brought my attention back to her. “She’ll be dropping by occasionally, so I thought it would be best for a formal introduction. She’s Nicasia Killbourne— she’s one of the higher ups of the Celestial Cathedral.”
Nicasia certainly had a heavenly aura around her, with her white gold hair and completely white uniform. Around her neck was a silver pendant with an icy sapphire gemstone attached to it. I took a step back in confusion when Nicasia walked towards me. She pulled out a small perfume bottle and held it out for me to take.
“...I have been informed that you have been struggling with memory loss,” Nicasia confessed. “I made this, it is a perfume that has a different smell for everyone. If you use it before you sleep, it might help you regain your memories.”
“The perfume should smell like something nostalgic, which should help jog your memory a little,” Rosetta commented. “I asked Nicasia to prepare a bottle for you every month.”
I accepted the bottle, holding it carefully. The liquid was a transparent, blue color, much like the gemstone that hung from Nicasia’s neck. A beautiful, and intriguing shade of blue.
Later that evening, I took the perfume bottle and spritzed just a little on my pillow, as Rosetta suggested. There was a note of something that was flowery and bitter— a rather purifying scent, along with an earthy scent. The perfume smelled like a mixture of hyssop and petrichor, a strangely familiar scent.
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