12 O'Clock Marionette-Chapter 74

Since I had lost the Crimson family’s protection, I wandered aimlessly.

At the very least, I needed to get away from Winterbell Manor.

The day was the warmest it had been in a while, my brown robe was lined with thick fur, and I had both money and a sword, so I was well-equipped.

But ultimately, I had no destination.

"Ugh…."

It was depressing that I didn’t have a single friend I could ask for shelter.

I missed a warm home.

I really, really wanted my bed back at the Bonetti estate.

And while I was at it, I was curious about how the Bonetti siblings were doing.

Surely, they wouldn’t actually believe that ridiculous nonsense about me being the Black Serpent, right?

I shook my head vigorously, but then I suddenly stopped walking.

A few steps ahead, a woman in a thick fur coat was moving along the street when two soldiers stepped in front of her.

…Something about this felt off.

"Halt. Show your face."

"Excuse me? H-Have I done something wrong…?"

"We are searching for a wanted criminal. You only need to remove your hat."

Oh, come on! Can’t they at least give me time to think?!

Cursing internally, I slowly side-stepped into a nearby alley.

There was a pile of large crates, so I crouched behind them.

Unfortunately, they were empty, so I couldn’t lean on them.

"Hoo…."

A wanted criminal, huh? Gee, I wonder who that could be.

The woman walking in front of me had been about my size, which only made me more certain.

I hadn’t expected the Imperial Court to sit back and wait, but seeing them act so quickly still stung.

"What should I do…."

Using divine power would make escaping easy.

But lately, I had been pushing myself too hard.

My stamina was running low, and I could already feel the faint chills of an impending cold.

Getting sick in this situation would be the absolute worst.

For now, I had to hold out without using my powers.

Just as I was considering my options, I locked eyes with a cat perched on a protruding wall.

The little ball of fur stared at me with its round eyes before shifting its gaze to the crates.

Oh.

"…Kitty?"

And then, with a small but determined leap!

The ambitious young beast aimed for the top of the pile.

A tiny, agile shadow soared over my head.

And then—disaster struck.

NYAAAANG!

The cat let out a loud screech as the crates came crashing down.

My cover was gone, and I had drawn attention spectacularly.

I froze, hoping against hope that they hadn’t heard.

But—

"Hey, you there!"

Of course, there was no such luck.

…Am I cursed?

How does a random cat just so happen to appear and completely blow my cover?

If that cat had been enchanted to cause trouble, I could have at least understood—but it was clearly just a regular animal.

So, I learned something new today.

Ordinary cats do not like me.

I had no one to complain to except Pebula.

Pebula, do you have a personal grudge against me?

Because if you do—

"What are you doing in that alley? This is a security check! Come out and show your face immediately!"

Your senior believers have already reserved you a seat in hell!

A soldier stepped into the alley.

I shot to my feet and ran.

The moment I bolted, a high-pitched whistle split the air, and the number of pursuers quickly grew to six.

"Stop!"

"You’ve got to be kidding me!"

I had made a mistake.

I should have just taken Daedire hostage and held out at Winterbell.

This was ridiculous—I didn’t even get to eat breakfast first!

I kept running, debating whether or not to use my divine power.

Then, I glanced down at my hand.

Two gleaming rings.

"Maybe I’m not unlucky—maybe I’m just an idiot."

Had I only thought I was perfect this whole time?

No.

It was just that this wasn’t my body.

After living in borrowed flesh for so long, the side effects were bound to show.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts and looked for the right moment to use the rings.

Just ahead, I spotted a corner where I could turn.

If I took it, I’d be out of sight for a brief moment—just enough time to use them.

The soldiers were nearly upon me, and I ran as hard as I could before sharply rounding the corner.

"You can’t escape! Stop!"

At that exact moment, I saw a tall silhouette ahead.

I flinched in surprise and instinctively reached for my ring.

But before I could activate it, the stranger caught my fingers, intertwining them with his own.

"There are people all around this area."

"Huh…?"

With a brief whisper, he grabbed my waist and leapt.

In the blink of an eye, I found myself on the rooftop of a nearby house.

"Ha! That alley’s a dead en—wait, what?! Where’d she go?!"

And he didn’t stop there.

He effortlessly jumped from rooftop to rooftop before finally ducking behind a large chimney.

He leaned against it, setting me down in front of him, and peered below.

The soldiers stood dumbfounded where I had disappeared.

"Did you lose her? Damn it! We just had to hold out until the knights arrived!"

"Did she open a gate? The wanted poster said she was likely a mage."

"The gate detector didn’t pick up anything. Let’s just search the area."

They murmured amongst themselves before scattering in different directions.

Huh.

New novel chapt𝒆rs are published on ƒгeewebnovёl.com.

Now I was curious.

What the hell is a gate detector?

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

How did he even know?

"It's expensive. It detects whether a gate has been opened and estimates its exit coordinates."

"So that’s why I thought it was strange you hadn’t used one."

"Not quite. Only half-baked mages leave traces behind."

"Then what’s the reason?"

"Every spatial coordinate I’ve memorized is being monitored. So if I used a gate, they'd know exactly where to track me."

He paused, then tilted his head slightly.

"But rather than exchanging such bleak information, shouldn't we be asking how we've been?"

The man casually pulled down the hood I was wearing.

His sky-blue hair shimmered in the sunlight, tousled gently by the breeze. His face, bathed in light, gleamed almost excessively.

Cruello D. White Desert.

Not some illusion conjured by my hopeful expectations—this was the real him.

And without hesitation, he reached for my hood and pulled it back as well.

"It’s been two days, darling. Have you been—hmm, looks like you've had a rough time."

Cruello smiled brightly.

The wind carried his voice, making his expression seem even more refreshing.

Not even a Bonetti, yet…

For no reason at all, my breath caught in my throat.

A strange warmth filled my chest, but I ignored it and pouted.

"Do I look that miserable?"

"You had no energy when you were running. Either Winterbell didn’t treat you well, or the meals weren’t enough."

"Marien did her best. But how did you even know I was there?"

"I checked the guild and noticed the note was gone."

…So he remembered exactly where he had left everything?

Now that I thought about it, he had never hesitated when pulling out blankets or marshmallows.

I supposed I had to acknowledge his memory.

"I actually thought you'd stay in Winterbell for a while. So instead of rushing over, I did some more investigating, but—"

"It’s fine. I’m not a kid; I handled myself just fine. So how did you find me?"

"When I heard you'd left Winterbell Manor this morning, I waited nearby. And, as expected, trouble soon followed."

Who could have predicted a random cat would ruin everything?

I wanted to retort with something sharp, but—

"I'm sorry. You’ve had a tough time."

My mouth clamped shut.

Sigh.

Instead of words, a long breath escaped me.

At the same time, the tension that had been holding my body upright drained away.

My spine, which I had been forcing straight, gave out, and I slumped against Cruello’s chest.

I felt him flinch in surprise—but whatever.

"…Darling?"

"Just for a moment."

It wasn’t exactly comfortable.

His frame was broad enough that it was almost hard to believe he was the same person. But it was firm.

Why was he wearing such thin clothes in this cold? His body temperature wasn’t particularly warm.

And he smelled like Cruello.

None of it was anything I had ever considered pleasant.

But the sensation filling my chest was longing.

No matter how much I denied it, I must have missed him.

Was it because he always appeared when I needed him? Or because he was one of the few people I could share some of the burden with?

Cruello had been there before.

But it had been different.

Back when I was Amy, he was a child who needed unconditional love and protection.

When I was Viga, he had been a rebellious teenager who needed guidance.

As Amy, I had already been an adult. Cruello had never felt like an equal back then.

But now, he was grown.

And it felt different.

It wasn’t bad.

Even if he didn’t know everything, just having someone to shoulder even a fraction of the weight made things feel… tolerable.

I gathered my thoughts and lifted my head.

"Did you decode all the clues from the note?"

"Winterbell Manor’s attic, right?"

"…And Aristata?"

"I guessed it was related to a former Baron of Winterbell who was fond of the flower, but judging by your reaction, I was wrong?"

So Julian hadn’t figured it out before me.

For a moment, I had worried that my struggles were pointless, that the information was already common knowledge.

But no—I had won.

Satisfied with my victory, I briefly summarized everything that had happened.

Julian Minerva had shown up.

The imperial investigator had come to the meeting.

And that investigator turned out to be Daedire Crimson.

"That is surprising."

"You don’t sound surprised at all. Hmm, and…"

Now that I was listing it all out, it didn’t feel like much.

Honestly, the last time I had felt true accomplishment was when I was cleaning.

As I straightened my back in mild embarrassment, I felt something shift at my waist.

Oh—how could I forget?!

I suddenly shouted.

"A gift!"

I pulled back my robe and triumphantly retrieved the sheathed sword strapped to my belt.

Cruello blinked at me slowly, looking utterly confused.

"It’s not brand new, but it’s a good sword."

I did have an eye for weapons.

I might not have any now, but my temple had once been decorated with divine swords—all of which had belonged to me.

Sure, I had the small flaw of never having handled a bad weapon before, but there was no way the Crimson Duke’s daughter would carry anything subpar.

"I, uh, persuaded Sir Daedire to lend me her cooperation and got it from her. It looked decent."

"Hmm, so you’re saying… this is for me?"

His expression seemed to ask, Why?

…Was he an idiot?

I let my disappointment show clearly on my face.

"Happy birthday, Cruello."