Theorad Wants Revenge (3)

As soon as I entered the mansion, Havid hurried over to meet me.

He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief, clasped his hands respectfully, and bowed.

“Welcome home, my lord.”

“Thank you.”

“Forgive me for not being here to greet you sooner. There was business I had to attend to, and I've been rather busy…”

He looked thoroughly ashamed of himself for being late. I appreciated how conscientiously he carried out his duties, but sometimes his excessive devotion made me uncomfortable.

I put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Don't worry about it. I've known for a long time how hard you work for this family.”

“My lord…”

His eyes grew moist with emotion.

Wasn't that a little much?

Embarrassed, I cleared my throat and began walking again. Havid fell into step beside me.

“Is there anything else you need to take care of?” I asked, glancing toward him. “Has something gone wrong at the mansion?”

“Oh, no. Nothing that should concern you, my lord. I went to the cathedral in the nearby parish to arrange for an inquisitor to be dispatched.”

“…An inquisitor?”

Why on earth?

I looked at him in bewilderment. Havid smiled with complete confidence.

“You instructed me to take responsibility for finding whoever urinated on the statue of the previous head of the family, did you not? You even authorized me to exercise some of the household's authority.”

“I did, but—”

“So I went to the cathedral in the name of House Deharem and explained the situation to a priest. I informed him that someone in this mansion had violated the precepts the God of Light bestowed upon mankind, and that the head of the house wished to request an inquisitor.”

Are you mad? The culprit is standing right in front of you, Havid!

I wanted to shout it aloud, but of course I couldn't. Instead, I struggled to calm myself and spoke carefully.

“And what did the priest say?”

“I was told the matter would reach the bishop after Mass. And the bishop has apparently been looking for a way to repay Viscount Deharem's generosity.”

“Then there's a good chance an inquisitor will actually come to our mansion.”

“Indeed. A most auspicious development.”

“Yes. Auspicious…”

The problem was that this so-called blessing looked more like a catastrophe.

I'd always believed I'd lived faithfully, without violating the teachings of the God of Light. Yet here I was, on the verge of being accused of heresy.

And weren't inquisitors terrifying people who obeyed the God of Light without regard for anyone's rank?

If an inquisitor discovers I've been lying…

I'd not only made a slave urinate on my own father's statue. I'd lied to cover up the truth. That would be enough to brand me a heretic.

The inquisitor would return to the diocese, report my sins to the bishop, and I would find myself standing trial before the Church. The family might lose its property, and House Deharem itself could be brought to ruin.

Even if the saintess showed me favor, the family's standing would plummet. The young people who had once looked at me with admiration would turn their eyes away in disgust.

Terrifying…

Cold sweat ran down my back as the miserable end of a fallen noble flashed before my eyes.

But I was still the head of a noble house. There had to be a way out. In fact, several possibilities came to mind.

The surest was to overpower the elf myself and clear my name. Once she was helpless, I could make her tell the truth, and all suspicion would be lifted from me.

Having recovered a little confidence, I turned back to Havid.

“You're right. I should welcome an inquisitor who comes here in the name of the God of Light. In fact, why don't we hold a short service?”

“A service, my lord? You mean prayers?”

“Exactly. Some servants and slaves will have finished their duties for the day. As head steward, gather them and lead them to the chapel on the mansion grounds for an hour of worship. If an inquisitor is coming, shouldn't we demonstrate the firmness of our faith in the God of Light?”

“Oh! Of course!”

Havid nodded with impressive enthusiasm.

“Very well. I'll gather those whose work is already done and conduct the service. Will you be joining us, my lord?”

“I'll say my prayers separately in my study. There are some matters I need to attend to.”

“Understood. We should begin now, before the sun has fully set.”

“A fine idea. Oh, one more thing.”

I spoke as if I'd only just remembered.

“Don't bring the chef along. I'm hungry, and I'd like to eat as soon as my work is finished. Have the kitchen start preparing my meal.”

“Yes, my lord. I'll see to it.”

He didn't suspect a thing.

Havid bowed deeply and went on his way. I watched him go, barely suppressing a grin.

There. My excuse is ready.

Most of the servants whose duties were finished would be attending the service, leaving fewer people around the mansion to see what I was doing. The chef would remain to prepare my meal. Better still, I expected the elf to go with the others. She was playing the part of an obedient, lowly slave; she couldn't very well refuse the head steward's orders. That would give me plenty of time to prepare my trap.

Even if my elf hunt failed, I hoped she wouldn't be able to identify me as the culprit. I'd announced that I would pray privately in my study and then eat. The meal the chef was preparing would help me make it look as though I'd been occupied with those ordinary duties instead of setting a trap.

Wasn't it perfect?

Keeping my laughter to myself, I walked toward the courtyard.

I smiled kindly at the servants I passed and spent about ten minutes strolling along the courtyard corridor, waiting for the staff and the elf to leave for the chapel.

They should all be gone by now.

Once I judged enough time had passed, I took a shovel from a corner of the corridor and carried it to the center of the courtyard.

The monster-hunting weapon was supposed to transform to match its surroundings, but that was no guarantee the sharp-eyed elf wouldn't notice some unfamiliar object suddenly lying in the open.

If I'm going to do this, I have to do it properly.

It was a pity about the courtyard. Still, a ruined patch of ground was a small price to pay if I could finally deal with the elf.

I dug a shallow hole with the shovel, took the “weapon for hunting large monsters” from my pocket, and laid it inside. Then I lifted the stone control plate and pressed its upper button.

The small square box changed form, flattening into a broad slab that blended with the ground around it.

I covered it with soil and smoothed the surface carefully. Unless someone examined the spot closely, they would never know it had been disturbed.

Insolent little elf. Did you really think you'd be the only one making someone suffer?

The thought of her stepping onto the trap and bursting into tears made me want to laugh.

I chuckled to myself, returned the shovel to its place, and went upstairs to my study.

The preparations were done. All that remained was to wait for judgment to fall.

I sat down in my chair and waited as calmly as I could.

---

An hour later.

I could hear the servants returning from their service and making their way back to their rooms.

The elf would have returned as well. I assumed Havid would tell her I was having a meal, and that she'd come with her dog-food bowl, expecting the usual treatment.

The shortest route toward the room where I would be eating crossed the courtyard.

If everything went as planned, she would walk directly over the buried weapon. All I had to do was detonate it at the right moment.

“Phew…”

I drew a deep breath, stood, and concealed myself behind the curtain.

Peering through the window, I saw the elf enter the courtyard just as I'd expected. She was carrying a bowl of dog food in both hands.

Gulp.

With sweaty fingers, I raised the stone plate and rested my thumb on the lower button.

The elf was humming to herself, utterly unsuspecting. For one brief moment, I almost felt sorry for her.

Then I remembered everything she'd put me through, and that feeling vanished.

I watched her approach, waiting for the right instant. At last, she stepped onto the spot where I'd buried the weapon.

I pressed the button without hesitation.

BOOOOM!

The explosion shook the air. Dirt burst upward, flames leaped high into the sky, and for an instant the grounds of the mansion were lit as brightly as day. Thick smoke billowed across the courtyard.

Did I get her?

I stared, my heart pounding, as the smoke slowly thinned.

The bowl of dog food struck the ground and rolled away. Through the last drifting clouds of dust, the elf's figure came into view.

“Huh…?”

It had failed.

Her jacket had burned away as far as her upper chest, yet neither her hair nor her porcelain-pale skin showed the slightest injury. She didn't even look distressed. She merely seemed irritated and bewildered, as though she wanted to know what had just happened to her.

Fuck!

I had allowed for the possibility of failure. I hadn't imagined she'd emerge completely unscathed.

My heart hammered like that of a man who'd committed an unforgivable mistake. My eyes widened, and my hands began to shake.

I forced myself to move. I opened the desk drawer, tossed the stone control plate inside, and hurried to the door.

I'd been taught that a nobleman should never run; it was beneath his dignity.

To hell with dignity!

I sprinted down the stairs, threw open the dining room door, and dropped into a chair at the table.

I have to look as though I've been eating!

The food I'd told the chef to prepare was already set out. I seized my fork and began shoveling meat and salad into my mouth.

I nearly choked. I washed the food down with wine and kept eating until half the meal was gone.

Knock, knock.

The sound froze me more thoroughly than the explosion had.

I swallowed what was left in my mouth, trying to sound calm.

“Come in.”

The door opened at once.

The elf entered. Her clothes were badly burned, and she held a bowl of dog food in both hands. She stared at me without a word.

The blankness of her blood-red stare was terrifying. Fighting down the fear rising inside me, I put on the best performance I could manage.

“What happened to your clothes? Did something happen?”

She didn't answer.

I took a handkerchief from my breast pocket and wiped my mouth, hoping to hide the twitch at its corners. Beneath the table, my legs had been trembling for some time.

“…”

The elf stood silent for a long moment. Then her lips moved, as though she were chewing over the words before speaking.

“It seems someone has played a prank in Master's courtyard.”

Her voice was utterly dry. Somehow, that made the words feel as though they were piercing my heart.

“Who on earth would play a prank like that?”

At my answer, the elf's eyes widened. Against their blood-red gaze, I felt impossibly small.

Was this how a frog felt when it found itself trapped before a snake?

In the depths of my terror, I could think of only one thing.

Could it be that I…

…might die today?