As the scenery sped by, I leaned back against the window.
"Young Master...? Are you going to sleep?"
"...Yeah, I'm going to get so shut-eye."
I wasn't particularly tired, but I nodded.
I just wanted so peace and quiet.
As I closed my eyes, thoughts I couldn't erase dripped into my mind.
-Young Master.
-You promised... You wouldn't leave...
The first thing that ca to mind was Rachel's voice, the way she tried to hold back earlier.
'...Damn it.'
Scattered mories swirled in disarray.
No matter how much I tried to shake them off, they clung to relentlessly.
-What will you do if I try to stop you...?
-To ... You an everything to ...
-If you could just stay by my side...
Her tearful voice.
Every single word, still echoing in my ears, stabbed cruelly at my heart.
I winced, savoring the bitter pain.
'Right, Rachel... You need your 'young master'.'
To her, the 'young master' was...
An existence so significant that she would willingly offer her entire life for him.
I knew.
I knew why she clung so desperately to Raiden.
What kind of salvation she had received from him, why she was so devoted.
'I know it all... I learned it all while being with you...'
That's why I'm leaving.
Because I know too much.
Because being with you, I learned far more than I should have.
'Because... I'm not the 'Raiden' you think I am...'
An arrow of thought pierced my heart.
In the wake of its cruel slaughter, a terrible emptiness poured in.
Overwheld by a wave of exhaustion, I bit my lip.
Raiden, and .
The uncomfortable truth I had been avoiding.
It was only now, at this juncture, that I could truly face it.
'In this world, I'm nothing but... sothing false.'
The shell was Raiden, but the essence was entirely different.
Like a Cordyceps fungus parasitizing a grasshopper, I was an existence that had invaded another's body and was rely acting as them.
That was .
'...The one they love, it's not .'
Ariel, Lucy, and Rachel.
The people who had been my strongest pillars in this life.
They loved Raiden.
Not a fake like .
Perhaps that was why...
It was so hard for to accept Master's death.
Because you were the only one who built a relationship with , solely based on my existence, without any connection to Raiden's past.
'You're already gone... What's the point of thinking about this now?'
There was nothing in this world for .
Love, friendship, sadness... even my own life didn't belong to .
I clenched my empty hand into a fist, sinking into a swamp of coldness.
Deeper.
Even deeper.
To a depth from which I could never resurface.
.
.
.
The carriage journeyed on.
It was quite a distance to the family mansion.
It was almost five days later that we finally reached our destination.
"Brother, wake up!"
I opened my eyes at the sudden sound that roused from my hazy consciousness.
A red-haired girl ca into focus in my blurry vision.
Ariel offered a faint smile as our eyes t.
"Uh, uh... Ariel...?"
"We're here. Co on, wake up."
A throbbing headache pulsed in my head.
I shook off the remnants of sleep and gathered my senses.
As my vision cleared, the light grew brighter.
The carriage had co to a stop.
Through the clear window, I could see the silhouette of a grand mansion casting its shadow.
"...Ho."
I muttered, taking in the familiar sight after so long.
Well, technically, it wasn't my ho, but Raiden's.
"Please wait a mont, Young Master. I'll open the door for you."
As I straightened my clothes with a bitter taste in my mouth, Rachel, who had already disembarked, bowed politely.
I gave her a puzzled look.
"...You don't have to do that. No one really cares anyway."
"What are you talking about? It's fine normally, but we have to at least do this when the mansion staff are watching."
Rachel explained, gesturing to the servants lined up in front of the main gate.
I gasped as I noticed them.
"Good heavens... What is all this?"
"What else could it be? The staff are here to welco the Young Master."
"...They don't exactly look very welcoming, do they?"
"I wouldn't know about that."
"This is ridiculous."
Who even ordered this charade?
I massaged my forehead with a groan.
As I reluctantly dragged my feet towards the mansion, soone greeted us.
"Welco back, Young Lady... and Young Master."
An elderly man stood at the forefront of the line of servants.
I awkwardly returned the greeting of the man who bowed respectfully.
"Ah... It's been a while, Old Gilbert."
"Gilbert!"
The head butler, Gilbert, who oversaw the mansion.
He gave us a gentle smile.
"Please, co inside. You must be weary from the long carriage ride."
"Yes... Let's go in..."
We followed Gilbert's lead.
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