Chapter 160

Jan 23, 2024

“What’re you talking abou— Eek!” Charlotte went ashen as the realization of what Roxana was referring to washed over her.

While Jeremy had been busy going back and forth between Agrece and Yggdrasil that past winter, she and her half-siblings had scavenged the Black mansion’s empty rooms.

But I’d sooner die than even consider stealing from her room! It was true that her older sister had a lot of valuables that she coveted. She especially liked the multi-purpose accessory Roxana and Grizelda had crafted together. It was actually something that the entire household of siblings envied the blond for.

However, none of them would dare go into their crimson-eyed sister’s room without her permission. And it was not only because of her frightening nature. After Jeremy had established the new pecking order in their family, doing so was purely self-destructive. Yet despite all that, there Charlotte was, wearing one of her sister’s accessories.

Is there a chance she’s just mistaking one of my things for her own? If not, then maybe someone else snuck into her room, stole it, then hid it in one of the other rooms. Or even... in mine!

“Th-This is all j-just a m-misunderstanding!” Charlotte scrambled for the right words as her mind began to go blank. “I swear I never set foot in your room! I-I didn’t even realize one of these things I’m wearing belongs to you! Please! I’m telling the truth! I swear it on my right hand!” She fumbled while removing every accessory on her body to hand over to Roxana. “Which one of these is yours?! These paralysis earrings? This steel-wire ring? This explosive necklace?! Just take everything! They’re all yours!”

The redhead was shrieking as if she was prepared to hand over her undergarments at a moment’s notice. Seeing as they were in Yggdrasil, she was not wearing any sorcery-infused pieces. That ended up being the teen’s solitary saving grace.

“Shhh. Relax, Charlotte.” Before the redhead could react, Roxana’s silky hand was cupping her cheek. “I know you wouldn’t steal anything from me on purpose.”

“Y-You believe me?”

“Of course. I know you have fast hands, but... I also know that you of all people know just how much I hate when others taint my belongings.”

Roxana’s voice and expression were softer than she had ever seen, but she couldn’t help but shudder involuntarily as though a ghost had appeared before her. The redhead openly gasped as the blond’s alabaster-like fingers slid across her cheek.

“I saw one of my belongings in the room at the end of the hallway on your floor as well.” Without warning, several poison butterflies appeared on either side of her half-sister. Roxana’s cold, scarlet eyes seemed to be reflecting the red glow from their wings. “Retrieve that for me as well.”

Charlotte immediately bolted out of the room upon hearing the order.

“Agh! K-Kegh!”

She only managed to recover her breathing upon escaping the weight of the older Agrece’s red gaze. It was common knowledge among the siblings that Roxana was as frightening as she was deadly, but none of them apart from Jeremy and Deon had any idea she was able to use her butterflies within Yggdrasil.

Charlotte was certain she would have surely met her demise had she acted suspiciously or given any hints of having ulterior motives. Her body shivered uncontrollably as she hurried further away from Roxana’s room.

Wait, the room at the end of the hallway? Charlotte’s eyes lit up as she thought back to what Roxana had said. That room belonged to one of the half-siblings whom Roxana did not have much fondness for. She grit her teeth as she sprinted toward the room of the person she was certain had tried to screw her over.

* * *

“Have you all actually lost your minds?! How dare you bring such things here?!”

“But, Master... W-We had no choice...”

Badrisha was in the midst of disciplining some of her injured clansmen who had evidently left the contraband lying about in their room.

Roxana massaged her throbbing temples as she disconnected from her poison butterfly. Everything was just as she had presumed. In truth, she had originally planned to set the Castro wing on fire, but upon seeing the flames engulf that part of the castle without her intervention, she made sure to keep her gaze as cold as blood-soaked snow on a winter evening.

She instead had two choices as the flames continued to rage: either reveal the Red clan’s secret to everyone present or hide it for them. Both choices had their own advantages, but she had initially wished to go with the former.

However, her stomach seemed to churn uncontrollably upon actually seeing the flames engulfing the building. She had played out the scene in her mind countless times before even setting foot in the neutral territory, but when things had actually unfolded before her, she couldn’t ignore the bad taste bubbling up in her mouth. Thus, she decided to opt for protecting the Castros’ secret for the time being.

Her scarlet gaze trailed off to her side to the table where the Red clan members’ contraband Charlotte had recovered lay.

Knock, knock.

“Sis!”

Jeremy had evidently come to see her in order to finally discuss the chaos. He opened the door and entered the room once hearing her voice invite him inside.

“Was that fire... you’re doing?”

He only asked after locking the door behind him. His instincts upon arriving at the scene had told him she had indeed started the fire, but he wanted to be certain since she hadn’t mentioned any such plan to him beforehand. However, as he met his sister’s gaze, he couldn’t help hesitating in fear that he might say something to offend her.

“Um...” He immediately attempted to change the subject. “Oh, uh... You told Charlotte to do something for you, didn’t you? Did she follow through? If not, I’d be more than happy to, uh... Ya know.”

Roxana loosened her grip on her chair’s armrest as she listened to her younger brother. It was at that moment that she realized she needed to fix her disposition. Then she beckoned him to sit at her side.

“Jeremy, come sit next to me. There’s something I need to tell you.”

He rushed over her almost reflexively. As they sat facing one another, she began to explain things to him in detail.

* * *

After settling into his new quarters, Luzark left to see his mother.

“Everything seems to be in order here, Master.”

“Excellent. Thank you.”

Badrisha seemed particularly on edge after the fire. After seeing how furiously she had berated their injured clan members, her son surmised the true reason behind her odd behavior. They had been fortunate enough to save face in front of the other clans, but the Red Heir still felt a pang of uneasiness.

“Earlier... Do you think it was the Agreces’ doing?”

There was a double meaning in the question he had been hesitant to ask. However, the Red Master’s mind was far more preoccupied than her son’s, and what the Agrece siblings had said to her made it that much worse. She had been suspicious of the Black clan’s involvement from the moment she saw the flames.

It was simply too much of a coincidence that only the Red clan’s wing had caught fire. Especially when most of the clan members were away from their quarters thanks to their desire to prolong the joyous atmosphere of the previous night’s banquet. Of course, she lacked any substantial proof, but her mind left zero room for any other explanation other than the Agreces being responsible for the incident.

Then again, if that were the case, she was finding it even more difficult to make sense of the Black Master and his sister’s behavior after the fire had been put out. Their reassurance that everything would be all right was far from the actions of those conspiring against her, and according to her men, the items that should have been strewn around the room were mysteriously tucked away in their luggage when they inspected their belongings after moving to the new wing.

Seeing as how they were oblivious as to how it could have happened, it was evident that someone else must have done it.

“Well... All I can say with certainty is that they know something.” Agony swept over the Red Master once again. “It’s getting late. Let’s discuss all this tomorrow. You should go and get some rest, Luzark.”

“As you wish. You should get some rest too, Mother.”

He bowed, then turned to leave his mother’s room.

Just as he opened the door, something fell lightly onto his foot. While the two were speaking inside the room, a thin envelope had been wedged between the door and jamb. As he picked it up, the contents of what was inside rustled.

He looked toward both ends of the corridor but saw no one. His expression stiffened as the realization that someone had approached his mother’s room completely undetected set in. It then hardened that much more once he took a closer look at the surface of the envelope.

“What is it?”

“Mother...” Luzark returned to the room and locked the door before he handed it to his mother. Badrisha’s eyes flashed as he spoke. “It’s a letter with the Agreces’ secret code printed on it.”