I never thought Angel would ever use it. I imagined Angel, who was so timid, trembling at the prospect of writing and sending the letter.
I looked at the parchment with a smile and was about to read what the letter contained when there was a sudden ripping sound and Julius appeared before me, sweating. “Countess Alshine!”
I was startled by the urgency in his voice. I had expected him to look for Kaichen like he always did. I was positively shocked and was momentarily rendered speechless.
“Uh… yes?” I hurried to my feet. I was trying to bow into a curtsy in confusion when Julius strode towards me and grabbed my shoulders.
“You must go to Acrab!” said Julius, which made me worried. I felt his fingers digging into my shoulders. My hands holding the letter trembled a bit. Kaichen looked very serious too.
Kaichen had read the letter. A sense of dread settled into my heart. Something had happened to Acrab, I was sure. Something really bad. The truth of the fact that I needed to return to Acrab at one became apparent to me. I had run away in cowardice; how would I ever be able to face Acrab?
It felt that the peacefulness of a moment ago had only been the silence before a storm. The storm had finally arrived. I sighed. Didn’t I even have a little bit of luxury to enjoy the peace even for a day?
* * *
In the original novel, the third major part of the plot started only after Dalia’s death. Dalia’s death had marked the end of the second milestone in the plot and Kaichen had grieved for her. He had locked himself in the magic tower for three months and refused to meet anyone.
I had wondered why he had locked himself in the tower instead of returning to his home. After three months, something horrible had happened in KaIhai Kingdom, north of Garten region. It was also known as the ‘Garten Incident’.
‘Kaichen, we need your help, it’s a contagious disease! It makes no sense!’
‘How long are you going to be like that? I understand her death was a shock to you, but you already knew that she could not live long due to being exposed to time magic.’
‘I knew that but…’
‘If you don’t come and help, everyone in the Garten region will die. You know who is behind all this. You know what he can do.’
‘I’ll head off first. I trust you will come help. Don’t disappoint me, Kaichen.’
Kaichen had obviously helped Julius save Acrab. He had no choice; he helped, not because Julius was a successor to the throne but because he was a dear friend. As much as Kaichen seemed indifferent to Julius, he cared for his friendship with him. Thus, the locked door that hadn’t opened for three months, finally opened and Kaichen left the magic tower.
“There have been rumors going on for about a month that there is some type of disease in Acrab. I did send some people to check if the rumors were true, but they weren’t able to come back. They caught the sickness too. I wanted to go and check to confirm it….” Julius looked down, his head hanging low, as though he was disappointed in himself.
Nobody in the Imperial palace would even dare to send their crown prince to a place infected with a deadly virus. He was the successor to the throne. Everyone had begged him not to go so he had stayed and sent his people to check on the virus, who hadn’t yet returned.
That made the rumors seem true. It confirmed that there was indeed a deadly disease in Acrab which spread steadily. But that incident was supposed to happen in Garten…, thought Dalia. It was too early for that to happen.
The original incident happened 3 months after the magic ban law was put on Acrab. This was simply too early.
“The palace is trying to confirm the rumors with the Countess of Acrab. However, you are here…”
“Oh.”
I now understood why Julius wanted to send me to Acrab as soon as possible. In my mansion, there was a communication tool that was used especially in emergencies. It was used in urgent situations like the present. It was a tool for distressing incidents like the spread of a virus or attack by enemies.
The contact from the palace should never be ignored. However, usually the palace only contacted when there was a danger of ambush. They would never contact to confirm a rumor.
“But I didn’t think the palace would contact Acrab just to confirm a rumor. Is there something more that you aren’t telling me?”
“We think the disease in Acrab is a conspiracy hatched by the forces of Momalhaut….” Julius looked at me, unable to finish the sentence. What he said was alarming. However, it was fortunate that he didn’t think I was consorting with the Momalhaut.
Kaichen walked to me and loosened Julius’ hands from my shoulders. “I will go with her,” he said.
“What?!” exclaimed Julius.
I realized that my shoulders were throbbing in pain. I wasn’t able to tell Julius off, but Kaichen had noticed.
“There might really be a pandemic in Acrab. Besides, if this is done by the Momalhaut, their forces might be hiding in Acrab. I can help.”
