Chapter 6
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Tremble.
My mind went completely blank, and I couldn't think of a single thing.
What had the last two years with Hugh been like?
‘The people around me disappeared…’
Countless faces began to overlay the face of the man who had become a cold corpse in the Black Forest.
"No one ever comes to this place."
"……."
"You didn't come here to meet me, did you?"
There wasn't a shred of emotion in those crimson eyes. To be so cold after killing someone.
"Are you going to keep making me do all the talking? I really hate that."
The corners of Hugh’s lips twisted in a disgruntled pout.
His voice was as soft as ever, but it was clear he was bored and annoyed.
A primal instinct whispered to me.
‘…If I just stay here like this, I’m going to die.’
Hugh—no, that madman… I couldn't predict a single thing he might do next.
Prina decided to play dumb.
"I, I, I’m not sure. Have we met somewhere before?"
My voice trembled pathetically.
I had been so confident that I’d overcome my stutter. But as my reason flew away in the face of extreme terror, my tongue failed me helplessly.
‘Whew. Calm down.’
Prina desperately clung to the last shred of reason that was about to evaporate.
"You don't know? Even after you grabbed me and clung to me like that before?"
Clung to him?
To think he would twist my attempt to return his ring like that.
"When I get drunk, I, I do tend to grab and cling to anyone… Did I happen to grab you?"
"What is this? You really were just drunk and clinging to me?"
The man replied with a feigned look of disappointment, though he didn't seem to believe it. On the other hand, he also looked like he had lost interest.
‘…What is this? This is definitely strange.’
It seemed Hugh didn't remember Prina at all.
He appeared to consider their meeting at Leighton Bridge to be their first.
"But what brings you here?"
"I, I came to find the people who went missing…."
"You don't mean this bastard?"
Thud.
Hugh kicked the cold, stiff corpse.
In the past, Hugh was the kind of person who would gently take a stranger who had collapsed on the street to the medical center….
He was so different now.
…Could that strange face be the real Hugh?
And the version she had seen all this time was a meticulously crafted lie.
"No."
Prina immediately straightened her expression.
"Then?"
"The people I came to find are just ordinary folks. They went missing while transporting goods."
Good. My voice still trembled a bit, but the stuttering was gone.
"Transporting goods through the Black Forest."
But Hugh’s expression was strange.
"Were they trying to smuggle illegal goods?"
"No. It’s just food…."
"Oh, food? Then drugs?"
"No. Just ordinary sacks of flour, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers…."
Even at Prina’s answer, a look of absurdity flickered across the man’s face for a moment. As if wondering why anyone would transport ordinary food through the Black Forest.
What was I supposed to do when the road was blocked because of the villain in the novel… because of the Triumphal Procession?
Of course, there was no need to tell Hugh that much.
"Hmm, I see. So you came to find the workers?"
"Yes."
Hugh stroked his chin as if remembering something. My eyes were drawn to the hand wearing a pitch-black leather glove.
…The Hugh I knew always wore gloves when he met Prina.
‘…He said he had mysophobia.’
He had even apologized to Prina and asked for her understanding regarding that.
Yet, he had always held Prina’s hand with his bare skin.
…The man in front of me seemed to have forgotten it entirely, so it seemed she was the only one who remembered.
"Now that I think about it, I think there was a pile of something in the forest."
…A pile?
…Could he mean the workers?
It was an expression the Hugh I knew would never use. I was starting to doubt if he was even the same person.
"Are those your workers?"
"I, I think so."
They weren't exactly my workers, but I said yes anyway. The exact facts didn't matter.
The most important thing was….
‘Whether I can get out of here alive.’
I had to appease that madman as much as possible.
"But you came alone, my lady?"
He seemed to find it strange that she was the only one who had come to search for missing workers in such a notorious land.
Prina felt the need to explain herself proactively.
"It was difficult to dispatch a search party. I happened to know the geography of the forest, so I came."
"You work for a terrible employer."
It wasn't a good workplace, that was true. It was crawling with insufferable people.
But looking at the man in front of me, those people looked like angels.
"Still, it’s a strange coincidence. To meet you here again, my lady."
"……."
"It was a pity I sent you away like that last time, too."
…Why was it a pity?
"Shall I help you?"
No…?
I really didn't want that.
"I’m fine. And you must be busy…."
Prina looked at the corpse lying at Hugh’s feet.
I’ll just pretend I didn't see anything, so just go back to what you were doing.
"Are you worried about me? This is delightful."
…Where on earth did you get the idea I was worried?
"But I’m more worried about you, my lady, so I must help. Follow me."
Prina really wanted to refuse.
But what actually came out of her mouth was….
"Oh, oh… T, thank you…."
It was a pathetic voice, desperate to survive.
* * *
Snap!
My heart jumped at the sound of a dry branch breaking under my feet. The face of the corpse I saw earlier flickered before my eyes.
Prina followed him, holding her breath.
‘What on earth is Hugh thinking?’
If this was a scheme to kill both her and the workers….
‘No. If that were the case, he wouldn't have bothered to offer to guide me.’
He could have just killed Prina and disposed of the workers right there.
…Even as she reassured herself, the heavy sound of his footsteps leading the way was crushing every shred of her pathetic relief.
"My love, Prina, if you have any worries, please always tell me."
"Seeing you in pain makes me suffer, too."
The Hugh of the past was someone who always matched his pace to Prina’s when they walked together.
If she lagged behind, he would stop and wait, and sometimes he would even drape his coat over her shoulders.
The man walking ahead now didn't look back even once.
‘But… he really doesn't seem to recognize me, does he?’
After they parted at Leighton Bridge, I thought he was just pretending not to know me to break things off….
But seeing him now, that definitely didn't seem to be the case.
‘Did he really lose his memories?’
What happened to Hugh during the year they were apart?
Could that be why he lost his memories and turned into a maniacal killer…?
When we were dating, Hugh was the type of person who would smile if Prina smiled. He always checked Prina’s expression first, and only after confirming she was okay would he lift the corners of his mouth.
Seeing such a man smiling over a corpse left me in a state of shock that wouldn't fade.
As I recalled it again, my heart raced like crazy.
Memories I had been trying to forget surfaced to the water's edge.
A long time ago, when I was dating Hugh, something similar happened. In a winter alleyway….
"My lady, is there anything you’re curious about regarding me?"
"Yes?"
Hugh, who had been walking ahead, suddenly threw out an embarrassing question.
"For instance, why I’m in this forest, things like that."
"Ah, no…."
I felt like I shouldn't ask.
"I killed someone, aren't you even a little curious?"
…Should I be curious?
Honestly, it wasn't that I wasn't curious at all, but as an ordinary citizen, I didn't want to be deeply involved in these circumstances.
"I’m sure there was a reason for it…."
"That’s right. There was a reason."
"Ah… I see… I understand."
"That person tried to kill me first."
Prina, who had been walking while looking only at the ground, lifted her head in surprise. All she could see was Hugh’s back.
She couldn't tell what kind of expression he was wearing.
…He tried to kill Hugh?
"So, you could say this was self-defense."
…If so, why was Hugh in the Black Forest?
Judging by Hugh’s neat appearance, he didn't look like he had been dragged here against his will. His relaxed demeanor seemed far removed from a situation where he was being threatened.
Prina just pretended to accept it.
"Ah, there it is."
It was when she reached the mouth of the ravine, following Hugh while trying to compose her expression.
"……!"
What greeted her eyes was a scene of chaos.
The horses and workers, weighed down by Demonic Energy, were tangled together in a faint.
‘They really were encroached upon by Demonic Energy!’
This was a disaster.
I had to treat them quickly.
Prina, who was about to rush to the workers, hesitated and looked at Hugh.
It was a lie that there were herbs in this forest to detoxify Demonic Energy.
But it was true that there was a way to treat the workers. With the divine power she possessed.
"Oh my, are they already dead?"
His voice sounded regretful, but Hugh didn't seem particularly interested in the workers.
He walked past the workers and strode toward the carriage loaded with food. Then, he opened the canvas covering the carriage to check the inside.
Hugh took out a box that was nearby and opened a few more. They were all filled with ordinary vegetables.
"Hmm. It really is food?"
It seemed the reason Hugh brought Prina here was to check the carriage.
If it had been illegal goods, what was he planning to do with her and the workers…?
It was very strange for a man who killed people in the forest to act like he was sensitive to illegal activity.
"You can look more if you’d like."
Prina intended to clear Hugh’s suspicions and send him away. That was the only way she could treat the workers.
"No. I don't think that will be necessary anymore."
"Then, are you leaving now…?"
Please just go.
"Yes, I intend to."
Seeing Prina’s desperate expression, Hugh’s eyes crinkled softly.
"Just one last thing."
*Shing—*
Prina’s eyes widened as Hugh drew his sword from its scabbard.
The tip of the blade pointed toward the necks of the unconscious workers.
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