Chapter 1
***
01. The King of Mudrow
Those who frequented Mudrow fell into two categories: criminals hiding their identities, or nobles seeking deviant pleasures.
Neither had anything to do with Elain Berlois—at least, not until her family fell into ruin.
"Haa... haa...."
Elain pulled her shabby cloak tightly around her as she hurried through the back alleys in the drizzling rain.
Mudrow, lined with gambling dens, red-light districts, and taverns.
The map of this area, close to the royal capital, remained vividly etched in Elain’s mind. So vivid, in fact, that she could have drawn it herself. But her concentration was shattered every time drunken revelers shouted and bumped into her shoulders as they passed.
“What the hell, you little bum? Get out of the way. Hic.”
Objectively speaking, staying sane on the night her family was wiped out was the harder task. Being treated like a vagrant didn’t even bother her.
“Gotta have one more. Hic.”
“Mm-hmm. I heard Lord Helkaiser is throwing a big party. Should we go check it out?”
Elain, who had been turning to leave, stopped in her tracks. It was because the name of the person she was desperately searching for among the filthy mud-drenched crowd had just been mentioned.
“Oh, of course we should go! It’s going to be wild tonight.”
The “Lord Helkaiser” they were talking about was undoubtedly Deckard, the second son of the Helkaiser family. The Helkaiser family, which had guarded the kingdom’s borders for many years, was just as far removed from this place as Elain’s family—a household synonymous with integrity.
Except for one person: Deckard Helkaiser.
“With the King of Mudrow back, you can only imagine. Haha.”
“Since he’s just returned victorious from the civil war, he’s going to raise the stakes big time. My mouth is already watering just thinking about what kind of epic feast they’ll throw for our Helkaiser’s wild child.”
The King of Mudrow. Helkaiser’s scoundrel. Dionysus reincarnated.
Since enlisting, he had led 17 major battles to victory—and that was just the major ones. If you counted the mopping-up operations against criminals, the number would be much higher. But just how formidable his abilities were as a knight didn’t seem to matter much in the face of the flashy epithets used to describe him.
Elain wondered if Deckard Helkaiser was even aware of what had happened at the marquis’s estate a few hours ago. If he knew, what expression would he have worn?
“Hahaha! Berlois, who preaches integrity, is now a traitor? How amusing.”
Something like that, perhaps.
The moment she pictured his face bursting into laughter, Elain’s ankles felt as heavy as if she were wearing sandbags.
“Ugh…”
Struggling to drag her feet forward, Elain followed the drunken crowd. By now, the Guards who had raided the Berlois estate must have noticed her disappearance and launched a search. Blending into this crowd as quickly as possible was her only chance of evading their dragnet.
To do that, she absolutely had to find the “King of Mudrow.” No matter how unpleasant their shared history might be, she had no choice if she wanted to survive.
“I suppose all the high-society ladies of Mudrow have gathered there.”
“Of course. Even noble ladies are out on nighttime excursions, hiding their identities.”
Nighttime excursions while hiding their identities. Elain bit her lip slightly. Raindrops gathered on her pale face, hidden beneath the hood of her cloak.
“Maybe I’ll have some fun with those lovely ladies tonight? Heh heh.”
“Oh, come on. Do you really think those women put on makeup just to impress you? They’re all in a frenzy just to catch a single glance from Lord Helkaiser.”
“Tsk. As long as it’s a treat for my eyes, isn’t that enough? Hey, remember that time? When Madame Catherine showed up wearing nothing but a few diamond-studded feathers...”
Stories about a marquis family dragged off on charges of treason held no importance in Mudrow. Their sole concern seemed to be how much Deckard Helkaiser—just back from suppressing the civil war in the East and utterly intoxicated by victory—would bet, and just how scandalously revealing the women would dress to catch his eye.
‘...Perhaps it’s for the best.’
Elain swallowed her bitter feelings and followed them. It was certainly a better choice than wandering through this labyrinthine place trying to find Deckard’s house in Mudrow.
“Hey, walk straight!”
“Ahem. Yes, sir. You are working very hard.”
A chill ran down her spine when two palace guards patrolling the area picked a needless fight, but fortunately, they seemed to mistake the drunken man and Elain for companions and walked right past her. They never would have imagined that Miss Elain Berlois would be hiding here dressed like a beggar.
“Is this the place? Today’s party venue.”
After turning down a dark alley lit by flickering gas lamps, they found an old motel with a sign reading “Broken Window.” As they opened the door, someone with a flushed face blocked their way.
“No more guests. We’re not taking any more.”
“Oh, come on, why are you being so strict?”
As she followed the drunken revelers who had shoved the doorman aside, he suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Had she been caught?
The doorman barked at the frozen Elain in a gruff voice.
“Go do your charity somewhere else, kid.”
...I guess I really do look like a vagrant. Hiding her reddening neck under her hood, Elain turned her palm upward. When the doorman saw the gold coin in her hand, his eyes widened in shock.
“What the hell, you little brat. You didn’t steal that, did you?”
“It’s the cover charge. I guess you don’t want it.”
Elain whispered the words as she looked him in the eye. Though her attire was shabby, her refined speech and gaze were impossible to overlook. Her slightly subdued voice and piercing blue eyes, which stared straight at her opponent, possessed a dignity that seemed out of place in Mudrow.
“Ahem!”
The doorman unconsciously lowered his gaze and cleared his throat. Then, as if nothing had happened, he quickly snatched the gold coin from her hand.
“There are few innocent people among those in Mudrow. Now, the last guest is coming in!”
Pushed inside by his rough hands, a heavy wooden door slammed shut behind Elain. It felt like a verdict urging her to bid farewell to her world.
***
Inside the “Broken Window” motel, the door bolted shut.
A scene unlike anything she had ever seen in her 23 years unfolded before Elain’s eyes.
Thick cigarette smoke filled the room like a foul fog. The sound of music played by musicians who seemed already heavily intoxicated, completely disregarding pitch and rhythm. And amid the shouts of the excited crowd, Elain stood there blankly for a moment, momentarily forgetting the reality she found herself in.
The dazzling dance moves of the performers, adorned with colorful feathers and lace, seemed like something completely different from any ballroom dancing she had ever seen.
'What on earth... is all this chaos...'
“Come on, come on! Those who want to bet, over here! Those who just want to watch, over there! Lord Helkaiser’s final game is about to begin!”
Elain’s frozen head snapped around. In an instant, she spotted the very person who had brought her here. In fact, she didn’t even have to try to find him. Everyone’s attention was focused on a single spot.
“No cash? Then just get lost.”
His tone was utterly frivolous. There was nothing out of place about the way he flicked his middle finger like a common street thug. It was an attitude impossible to believe came from the son of a duke’s family.
He hasn’t changed a bit.
As she struggled to push through the crowd, her steps growing heavier with every stride, a loud burst of laughter suddenly erupted.
“Hahaha!”
A blurry image of Deckard slamming his palm down on the table in delight came into view.
“You’re offering your wife instead of money? Are you serious?”
“If you’ll just accept it...”
Should she really ask someone like this for help?
The man who made her hesitate until the very end seemed to have sunk even lower than before over the past three years. Deckard replied with a hearty laugh.
“I’d be grateful.”
“Woohoo!!!”
Amidst the cheers of the drunken crowd, more and more people gathered to watch the exciting game. Deckard Helkaiser. A natural-born showman. Just looking at the back of his head—which seemed to grow more delighted the more spectators there were—was enough to feel the excitement.
“I’ve staked even the woman who’s most precious to me. What will you stake, Lord Helkaiser?”
The man who had put his wife on the line asked him, his face flushed. Suddenly, Deckard burst into a loud laugh.
“Hahaha!”
His fit of laughter left the crowd bewildered, unsure of what was going on. After wiping away a tear from the corner of his narrowed eyes, Deckard finally reined in his laughter and gave a sly smile.
***
Write a comment