Chapter 43 The Look In The Eye
Countess Megan, who had taken no notice of the subtle atmosphere, threw up her hands and giggled.
“Everything about him is so mysterious; perhaps he is an angel of music sent by God to our side, ho-ho.”
Indeed, was he sent by God or the devil?
She wants to find out.
Hana put down the tea Ioannes had been drinking and stared at her.
Did he notice something fishy?
They can’t let on that she’s been in contact with La Rouge just yet.
‘I must wrap things up for the day and return to the manor…’
It was then.
Suddenly, Countess Megan patted Delphine’s arm in a friendly way.
“Mrs. Pride said it was her first recital, didn’t she?”
“Yes… I was holed up in the manor for a while, keeping to myself.”
Delphine laughed awkwardly as she said that, and Countess Megan looked at her with a pitying expression.
Perhaps the events of the day had made her sympathetic, and she was doing herself more favors.
“As a matter of fact, I’m about to visit Nacolai’s waiting room; he invited me specifically to thank me for my patronage.”
“Oh my God. Really?”
Delphine’s eyes twinkled at the sign of unexpected good fortune.
Satisfied with her attitude, the lady asked with a proud look.
“Would you like to come along?”
“Of course!”
Glancing over at Ioannes, he looked a little disapproving for some reason, but he didn’t seem inclined to stop her.
“Shall we depart, then? I’m sure the ladies in the waiting room have given up and retreated by now.”
They crossed the hall, making light conversation, and arrived in front of the theater’s waiting room.
[“Don’t think of doing anything dangerous, by any chance.”]
Lynn’s worried words flashed through Delphine’s mind, but she quickly shook her head to clear it.
This is too good a chance to pass up.
Hopefully, they can get more information about that mysterious performer and the black crystal.
“This is the place.”
Countess Megan called to them in a sing-song voice and knocked on the theater’s anteroom door.
The wooden door swung open a moment later.
Delphine stepped through it with a smile on her face, skillfully hiding her nervousness.
“Countess Megan.”
The man leaned down deeply and kissed Countess Megan’s plump hand.
She could see the corner of his mouth twitch, but he ignored it and asked, “What are you doing here?”
“I see you’ve come with a guest.”
“Ho-ho. Mm-hmm. Yes, this is Lord and Lady Pride, and I’m sure you’ve heard of them, haven’t you?”
“Yes. It is an honor to meet you, My Lord, and as for your ladyship, well, you are beautiful.”
The man stepped forward to kiss the back of her hand, holding it out, and suddenly Ioannes grasped it firmly.
“It is a pleasure to meet you.”
At that moment, Delphine quickly studied the two men’s expressions.
The man looked puzzled by Ioannes’s sudden behavior, but otherwise unmoved.
Ioannes’s face, beneath his nobleman’s mask, was the same as usual.
Countess Megan introduced Delphine in a soft voice.
“Ho-ho, I hear Mrs. Pride was particularly impressed with Nicolai’s performance.”
“Yes. It was so good that she came to pay you her compliments in person.”
Delphine mouthed the compliment, studying the man’s face closely.
His eyes, to be precise.
Up close, the man looked more ordinary than he did on stage.
His turquoise eyes were distinctive, but he didn’t seem to have much else going for him.
“… My lady?”
The man’s voice sounded a little puzzled.
“Do you have something to say to me?”
Delphine realized that she had been staring at the man uncharacteristically.
“Uh, no. Not really…”
“Well, well. It’s getting late.”
Ioannes, who had been staring down at them wordlessly as she awkwardly stammered her answer, suddenly spoke in a low voice.
“It is time to return to the manor, My Lady. You have only just recovered from your fever.”
Delphine pursed her lips for a moment, unable to find the words to reply.
She wanted to find out more about the man, but lingering any longer would make everyone here feel suspicious.
Unable to find an excuse, Delphine finally gave a small nod.
“I’m… Now that we’ve said our goodbyes, we should probably get going.”
Delphine flashed Countess Megan one last favorable smile.
“Have a good night, then. Countess Megan.”
The talkative lady would certainly come in handy in the future, as she was cut off from her social circle.
Countess Megan smiled back at her with a favorable expression.
“By the way, Nicolai, where did you put your violin?”
“Oh, it’s in the next room…”
With that, Delphine slowly left the room with Ioannes, leaving behind the sounds of their affectionate conversation.
***
“… Him.”
They were almost at the entrance to the theater.
Delphine spoke up.
“I have to stop somewhere, but I suggest you return to the carriage first.”
“Where do you mean, My Lady? I’m with…”
“The powder room.”
Delphine interrupted him with a small smile as he started to follow, eager to please.
“… If you follow me, I’m ashamed.”
Ioannes, catching the subtext of wanting to go to the powder room, nodded sharply.
He smirked at her, then slowly started walking toward the restroom.
With a quick glance out of the corner of her eye, Delphine watched Ioan leave the theater entrance, and then, very quietly, walked back into the hallway they had exited.
The theater hallway was empty, the concert having ended long ago.
With brisk steps, she made her way to the waiting room they had just exited.
‘He must have left his violin in the next room,’ she thought.
She knew it was reckless, but this was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
It was also not in her temper to return home without any results.
Reaching the hallway where the waiting room was located, Delphine quietly turned the doorknob of the next door.
Sure enough, it was locked.
Delphine glanced around for a moment, then, without hesitation, snatched the candle from the wall that lit the hallway.
The Marinaski Theater was a historic building, over two hundred years old.
That meant that most of the building was made of wood.
Delphine stood in the wooden doorway, candle dripping with wax in hand.
‘No time to hesitate.’
Ioannes is waiting for her in the carriage outside.
If she delayed, he would surely find her.
Delphine made up her mind quickly and pressed the candle to the wooden door with a determined look.
After a few moments of hesitation, the tiny flame began to burn, consuming the wood with terrifying speed.
Delphine quickly pressed herself against the door of the anteroom and put her ears to it.
Whatever the hell was going on between patron and patroness in an empty theater came from beyond the door, mingled with lustful moans and ragged breathing.
Delphine felt terribly sorry for Countess Megan, but it wasn’t hot enough, and she might burn.
Delphine took a deep breath, then burst through the door and shouted.
“Fire!”
“Kyaaaah!”
“What, what!”
The man and woman, stuck together like a pair of affectionate bugs, quickly separated.
As they scrambled to collect their disheveled attire, Delphine shouted again.
“Fire! Fire! You’ve got to get out of here!”
“Mrs. Pride, what is this…”
“In the next room! It’s on fire!”
That was the signal.
The man who had been standing there, seemingly unable to grasp the situation, suddenly exclaimed in horror.
“My violin!”
“Ack! You, Nicolai…?”
He threw Countess Megan to the floor with a vengeance and rushed into the next room.
“Nicolai… Uh, how dare you to me…”
“Countess Megan, this is not the time for this, we need to get out of this room.”
Delphine hurried out into the hallway, supporting the collapsed Countess Megan.
The door to the next room had already fallen to the floor, disintegrated by the blazing fire.
And through the roaring wooden walls, Delphine saw clearly.
A man lifting a burning violin case without a moment’s hesitation, and the flames disappearing as quickly as they had appeared.
And then, as if in a flash, the man’s turquoise eyes shifted and returned to their reptilian color.
His pupils stretched vertically as they turned a strange color.
It was only a split second, but she felt goosebumps all over her body, as if she had been doused in ice water.
It was as if she had come face to face with something she should never have encountered in nature.
To hide her uncontrollable shivering, Delphine quickly looked away from him and pretended to attend to Countess Megan.
“Countess Megan. Come to your senses. We must get out of here.”
But her sense of betrayal seemed to take precedence over evacuation.
In a fit of rage, she screamed at the man.
“Nicolai, how could you do this to me, putting your violin before me?”
“…”
“After all I’ve done for you…! Do you think I don’t know that you’ve been playing tricks on other wives besides me?”
“Countess Megan. Please calm down…”
“I’m going to tell you everything! I’m going to cut off your feeding!”
‘Countess Megan, please. This is not the time, don’t provoke him any further.’
Delphine struggled to pull him away from her desperate struggles.
“Yes. I’ve made up my mind.”
“… What?”
The man standing in the fire cocked his head to the side.
His overly friendly demeanor was gone, his face expressionless enough to give her goosebumps.
