The Obsessive Maniac Is Trying To Confine Me - Chapter 73

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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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Episode 73

It was the night before the festival.

Those who were going on vacation starting today and others watching them with envious faces caught my eye.

Emily beside me looked at them with a blank expression.

“Emily, is something wrong lately?”

“…Ah, huh?”

“You haven’t been looking well recently.”

“…It’s nothing.”

Despite saying it was nothing, she shook her head listlessly.

It seemed like she had some kind of worry.

‘Come to think of it, I don’t have many days left to see Emily either.’

Since I’ll be escaping on the festival day.

I’ve already finished all the preparations for my escape.

I felt a little sorry about leaving Emily without saying anything. She had been good to me all this time.

“…Roji, hypothetically speaking, what do you think would happen if I left?”

I was startled for a moment, wondering if she had figured out my plan.

However, given Emily’s personality, she wouldn’t ask such a question to test me.

And she had never acted like someone who was about to leave. So it probably wasn’t related to me.

“Emily, are you thinking of quitting your job?”

Emily’s eyes trembled slightly. I was right.

“…Whether you leave or not, that’s your choice. Do whatever you want.”

“But….”

“Just do whatever you feel like, Emily.”

It seemed Emily was thinking of leaving the Marquis House soon.

Why was she being so considerate about such a thing?

Just as I have my own life, she has hers too.

Emily seemed to fall into contemplation again. A heavy silence fell, but I tried to lighten the mood by speaking brightly.

“Emily, come to think of it, Anri is your real brother, right?”

“What?”

Emily’s complexion immediately darkened.

…Did I choose the wrong words?

“That bastard said that?”

As soon as Anri was mentioned, Emily’s language naturally became rough. He really is her brother.

“Roji, I’m telling you again, never be alone with Anri. Never.”

Emily emphasized it as if it were a very important fact.

I nodded with a smile, saying I understood.

At the time, Emily’s words didn’t seem significant. I just thought it was typical sibling rivalry.

After finishing my conversation with Emily and returning to the servants’ quarters, when I opened my room door, a piece of paper fluttered down.

[Tomorrow at noon. West warehouse.]

…What I’ve been waiting for has finally come.

* * *

The summer festival lasts for a week.

Since this festival was being held on a larger and grander scale, Arzen personally attended on the first day and gave a speech.

The servants who accompanied Arzen were excited to share their admiration for his speech and describe what the festival scene was like.

But that was brief, as they had to prepare for a party.

To celebrate the summer festival, they were holding a party at the end of the festival.

That was just like Arzen, who loved parties.

However, among the servants preparing for the banquet, there were sounds of complaint.

‘There really isn’t much time left now.’

Rihardt would escape on the last day of this festival, and I would escape the day before he did.

Time passed, and noon as written on the note arrived.

I pondered for a long time whether it was right to go.

However, this wasn’t a problem I could avoid by running away.

‘The fact that they’re calling me again now means there’s something….’

Only three days remained until my escape.

I couldn’t afford any variables before then. So I decided to meet the demon worshipper.

Of course, even if I wanted to avoid it, it wouldn’t have been easy to do so.

In case he might harm me, I decided to make my own ‘preparations.’

“…Cough.”

I coughed and touched my throat. My throat felt scratchy for some reason.

Did I catch a cold? They say even dogs don’t catch summer colds.

“You came.”

As I entered the warehouse, I felt a presence.

My heart raced with tension.

I pressed my chest firmly and tried to act calmly to calm my racing heart.

“Continue the story we were talking about before.”

When the man cut straight to the point without any preamble, I had to think about what we had last discussed.

The contemplation didn’t last long.

The man had noticed that I hadn’t put the fruit in Rihardt’s meal, and I had claimed it was switched.

Then Anri came and the conversation was interrupted.

“Someone in this manor is helping the monster.”

“…Helping the monster? I think you said before that you knew who the culprit was.”

“They’re helping by switching the fruit, things like that. So the monster won’t be harmed, so no one will notice. Do you remember when this manor caught fire?”

“…Philip, a newly hired servant was the culprit.”

From what he was saying, the demon worshipper was definitely working as a servant in this manor.

“That’s right. But I actually witnessed Philip handing a note to the monster.”

The man remained silent. He seemed interested in my story.

“While I was on meal duty for the monster, I happened to see a note where Philip had written that he would help the monster escape.”

“Why would he do that?”

Since Philip had no reason to do such a thing, the man seemed puzzled.

“Philip did it for money. So there’s a separate culprit who wants to help the monster….”

I deliberately trailed off and blinked slowly.

“Philip set the fire to help the monster escape too. But the plan went awry when the gatekeeper interfered.”

“….”

“Do you remember? When Philip was imprisoned, he said someone ordered him to do it….”

“…Yurta Herthas.”

The man spoke as if he remembered.

“So you’re saying that man is helping the monster now?”

“…I think so.”

I nodded slowly.

Sorry, Yurta!

However, when I carefully recalled what Yurta had done so far, my guilt completely disappeared.

He had bribed the head maid to frame me as a thief, and when Rihardt refused to escape, he tried to kill him.

Whether Rihardt had escaped or died, if I had been there, I wouldn’t have been able to avoid responsibility.

And Yurta knows that.

…I guess I don’t need to feel sorry?

Maybe it’s karma?

“I don’t understand. Why would Yurta Herthas help a monster?”

“I don’t know that either. It’s just speculation. But doesn’t all the evidence seem to point to Prince Herthas?”

“….”

The man still didn’t withdraw his suspicion, but he seemed to judge that my story was plausible.

“Five days from now at seven in the evening.”

With those words, the man handed me a pouch containing something unidentifiable.

“Feed this to the monster then.”

I accepted the pouch in bewilderment.

Is what’s inside this a Plaret fruit?

…No. If it were Plaret fruit, he wouldn’t have specified an exact date and time.

Then what is this?

“What is this?”

“You don’t need to know. This time, you absolutely must not make a mistake.”

“….”

“I’ll overlook it once, but not twice. Remember that.”

Leaving only those words, the man disappeared.

After that, when I quietly opened the pouch, I saw something like white powder.

What could this be.

Long after the man left, I came outside.

I swept my gaze around the surroundings and opened my mouth.

“Come out, Lucas.”

“….”

Soon, Lucas, who had been hiding behind the tree, revealed himself.

I asked with an innocent smile, pretending to know nothing.

“What were you doing hiding there, Lucas?”

“…I wasn’t hiding.”

“Is that so?”

As if.

He was hiding. I almost passed by without knowing Lucas had come here.

“Lucas.”

“….”

“You saw, didn’t you?”

There’s no way he didn’t see.

I set up the stage for him to see.

Two hours before meeting the demon worshipper, I met the housekeeper.

I quietly hinted to her to send Lucas to the west warehouse at noon.

“…I didn’t see-.”

“You saw it, didn’t you.”

I smiled slyly and approached Lucas.

“I know what purpose you entered this manor for, Lucas.”

At that moment, Lucas’s expression changed completely.

The harmless man disappeared, leaving only a fierce-looking spy.

The tension from his physique was considerable, but with the dark shadows cast over him and the sharp gaze looking at me, the intimidation was tremendous.

Pretending not to notice the overwhelming pressure, I steadfastly opened my mouth.

“You came because of the monster in the basement, didn’t you?”

“How do you know?”

“I saw it. Your bird delivering a note to the monster. Seeing that, I thought, ah, there’s a spy.”

What allowed me to figure out that Lucas was Rihardt’s spy was because of a bird passing through the maze.

After leaving the maze, I asked the housekeeper if any servant had done anything strange while working.

Contrary to expectations, the housekeeper said no. So I changed my question.

I asked if there was anyone who had touched birds or lingered near them. Only then did the housekeeper say yes.

That was Lucas.

“I saw when the monster escaped but didn’t tell anyone. Why do you think that is?”

“….”

“Do you think I didn’t say anything because I’m kind?”

I shook my head.

“I don’t know if you’re aware, but I’m planning to escape with your master on the last day of the festival.”

Lucas’s eyes widened greatly.

This seemed to be news to him.

As expected. It was as I thought.

Rihardt and Lucas, it seems the two of them don’t communicate with each other.

Rihardt knows, but Lucas doesn’t.

It appeared that Lucas was unilaterally transmitting information to Rihardt.

‘This is why I wonder how exactly he helped with the escape in the original story.’

“So cooperate with me, Lucas.”

The escape is soon. I can’t be held back.

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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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