I Don’t Believe in Ghosts, But I Make a Living by Exorcising Them! - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I Don’t Believe in Ghosts, But I Make a Living Through Exorcism! Episode 017

I placed my hand on my chest to calm my pounding heart.

The one who had approached without any sound and whispered was standing with his back against the reception room door.

It was Rudian’s guard knight, whom I hadn’t even noticed was there until now.

Even though I was so startled that my nostrils flared, he showed no sign of awkwardness at all.

“Miss. Excuse me, but I think it would be better if you didn’t touch that grandfather clock.”

“Why… is that?”

He glanced at Rudian for a moment.

Rudian had moved much farther away in the meantime. Far enough that her back was pressed firmly against the wall opposite the grandfather clock.

Her neck was stiff.

Even though she would naturally be curious about what we were discussing, she never looked in our direction.

The guard knight approached closer, his armor clanking.

He covered his mouth with his hand. It seemed like he was determined to prevent our conversation from reaching Rudian’s ears at all costs.

“As you said, this place is haunted by a ghost.”

“Excuse me?”

Ah, was I too flustered?

“Yes, that’s right. Yes.”

“Count Helkene pretends not to care, but she secretly finds this grandfather clock quite troublesome.”

It doesn’t seem like ‘secretly’ though.

It seems like she already firmly believes it’s haunted.

Anyway, I guess I hit the nail on the head.

A grandfather clock that makes unknown sounds every 10 minutes.

Anyone could see it would attract all sorts of ghost-related rumors, right?

“The pendulum moves on its own. It would be impossible unless it’s the work of a ghost.”

…But the pendulum wasn’t moving though?

There was a clattering sound from the pendulum area at regular intervals, as if something was getting caught, but I didn’t see it actually moving.

Not even once from when I entered the reception room until now.

I lowered my head to check the grandfather clock’s pendulum.

I examined it with wide eyes, but the pendulum wasn’t moving.

That would make sense. Since the clock’s minute hand and second hand had completely stopped, it meant it was broken.

“It’s stopped though?”

I kept my upper body bent while only lifting my head.

The guard knight wasn’t flustered. He nodded as if it was natural.

“It only moves when someone is alone in this place. Since there are three people here now, it would be stopped.”

“Alone?”

“Yes. That’s why the Count ordered that at least two servants must clean the reception room together.”

“I see…”

So that’s why Rudian wasn’t particularly scared when we first entered the reception room.

According to the rumors, since there were many people, the pendulum wouldn’t move by itself.

I stroked my chin with my index finger.

Soon, I snapped my fingers at a brilliant idea.

“Then, could everyone please leave?”

“What?”

“Huh?”

This time, confused voices came simultaneously.

Oh, finally Rudian looked this way.

“What… what are you talking about? What are you planning to do alone?”

What exactly would happen if I were left alone with an old grandfather clock?

I’m the one who’s curious about that.

But I can’t say that honestly.

I finally touched the glass door of the grandfather clock.

“I’ll give it a try.”

“What, what will you do?”

“I’ll try to exorcise the ghost.”

Since it’s come to this, I’m going with the exorcist concept.

When the word ‘exorcism’ came up, Rudian’s eyes trembled wildly.

Or maybe not.

Maybe she’s afraid because I casually grabbed the glass door of the grandfather clock.

For now, my plan is to claim there’s a ghost in the reception room and then pretend to exorcise it.

The first part succeeded smoothly, so now it’s time to execute the latter.

For that, being alone would actually be better.

If someone was watching, I’d have to come up with plausible lies about how the ghost did this and that… my head already ached at the thought.

Rudian’s slightly parted lips closed tightly.

She quietly exchanged glances with the guard knight.

A conclusion was reached quickly.

“Then, let’s trust you this once.”

“Yes, please leave it to me.”

“I need to check my parents’ estate anyway, so hmm. It would be good to assess your capabilities.”

She must be quite frightened.

Normally she might insist on watching the exorcism with her own eyes, but seeing how quickly she’s leaving.

Even as Rudian left the reception room, she didn’t spare a single glance at the grandfather clock.

And so I was quickly left alone.

“…”

Didn’t the air somehow become a bit chilly?

It was definitely slightly warm when I first entered, but now the air was cool enough to raise light goosebumps on my skin.

‘Maybe it’s because I’m alone now.’

I roughly brushed away the goosebumps on my arm.

Then I threw open the glass door I’d been holding.

Clank! In response, a strange sound came from the grandfather clock.

‘Has it already been 10 minutes?’

I wasn’t keeping proper track of time so I’m not sure, but since there was a sound, it probably has been.

I carefully stuck my face into the grandfather clock.

* * *

Rudian leaned against the wall right next to the reception room door.

“….”

Then, realizing that the grandfather clock was right beyond the wall she was leaning against, she quietly pulled her back away.

Moving to the opposite wall, she crossed her arms with a serious expression.

The guard knight deliberately stood against the wall where she had been leaning earlier, so that Rudian wouldn’t think about the grandfather clock.

It’s not like the grandfather clock disappeared because of that, but Rudian’s expression brightened a little.

“Count, are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine. More than that, I wonder if Siena can really exorcise ghosts.”

She crossed her arms with a serious expression, but her fingertips were trembling.

However, Rudian stubbornly refused to admit that she was afraid of ghosts.

It was always like this.

Even when the servants carefully brought up that there seemed to be a ghost in the manor.

“A ghost? Where would such a thing exist? Instead of talking about such nonsense, go bring that contract from earlier.”

“But Count, the guest who just left also said there was a ghost attached to the grandfather clock in the reception room…”

“St-stop talking about that damn grandfather clock. It would be better to put it away in the storage room or something!”

She had been sitting arrogantly in the reception room with poor posture, then stormed out demanding the grandfather clock be removed.

However, since all the servants who tried to move the grandfather clock experienced the strange phenomenon of fainting, the grandfather clock was still in its place.

Besides that.

“Count, I’m sorry to say, but there are rumors that a ghost wanders around muttering in the corridor in front of your room every night at midnight.”

“Butler, I told you not to tell me such rumors.”

“I apologize.”

“…Is the guest room on the first floor cleaned? I’ll sleep there for the time being.”

She spoke as if she wasn’t afraid of ghosts and it didn’t matter, but in reality, she was more conscious of ghosts than anyone else.

As Rudian’s guard knight, Zeros watched this every day.

He knew that calling Miss Siena today was actually because she hoped for ghost exorcism under the pretext of proving her skills.

If she hadn’t trusted her abilities in the first place, she wouldn’t have bothered to visit Siena’s manor to make the contract.

Instead of exposing Rudian’s true feelings, Zeros decided to trust Siena.

“I wondered why you opened the reception room that had been closed except for cleaning. So it was to test her exorcism skills.”

“Yes. But really… do ghosts actually exist? Honestly, I can’t even believe that.”

“Didn’t you say there was someone who directly witnessed Miss Siena exorcising a ghost at the Monteville Ducal Estate yesterday?”

“Sir Zeros, if something happens inside there….”

“Even if something happens, this is Count Helkene’s Estate, isn’t it? There are medical experts who can heal right away and plenty of knights too-”

“Kyaaaah!”

Zeros’ words of comfort to Rudian were cut short.

Because of the ear-piercing scream that came from inside the reception room.

The two people widened their eyes and looked at each other.

Immediately after, both of them rushed to open the reception room door.

“Siena, what happened!”

However, a completely different scene unfolded than expected.

Siena was hurriedly closing the glass door of the grandfather clock and gave them an awkward smile.

…Huh?

Rudian blinked her eyes.

Siena’s face was covered with black soot.

That was all that had happened before their eyes.

“Haha.”

When Siena made eye contact with the two people, she roughly wiped her face with the back of her hand.

Even so, the black soot on her face didn’t completely disappear.

“Ah, sorry. It was nothing.”

“It was… nothing?”

But she screamed like that?

Siena’s eyes rolled around.

It was definitely a lie.

Siena, who had been giving an awkward laugh, thought for a moment, then spread both hands wide and politely pointed to the grandfather clock.

“Ta-da!”

It was a short and cheerful voice.

“I completely exorcised the dust that had settled in the grandfather clock… no, not dust! The ghost!”

“…?”

In the end, Rudian and the guard knight looked at each other with bewildered expressions.

Both tilted their heads at the same time.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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