Chapter 3

“All right, all right. Let’s call it a night and get some rest. We’ll talk more tomorrow~.”

Before we knew it, it had gotten really late. As Isaac nudged Yullia and me toward the hallway, we were helplessly pushed out of the room.

“Wait—!”

Click.

Before Yullia could even protest, the door was locked. Clearly, Isaac and Edmund had something to discuss on their own.

Left behind in the hallway, we looked at each other and sighed in unison.

“How long are they going to treat us like kids…?”

“Right? We’re twenty-three already.”

“Tch.”

It was frustrating, sure, but neither of us felt the need to barge back in. After all, Isaac and Edmund had always handled family affairs. It made sense that they’d take the lead on this, too.

We slowly made our way down the hall. For some reason, the corridor felt much longer tonight.

“…Hey.”

Yullia finally spoke.

“When did you know? …About your ability.”

She carefully avoided saying necromancy outright, like the word itself might hurt me.

She’d always had a gentle side like that.

I looked quietly at her face before replying.

“When I was seven. Remember the rabbit we used to keep in the backyard? The one we named ‘Ellie’ after the both of us?”

“Of course I remember! We used to play with her all the time.”

She was the first living creature—outside of our family—we’d ever been attached to. Under our parents’ guidance, we took such careful care of Ellie.

“That winter, she got sick and died. But I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted her to come back to life and hop around like she used to.”

“……”

“That was the first time. The first time I reversed death.”

It was the first necromantic act I could remember. Though honestly, what came back wasn’t really Ellie anymore.

I decided not to speak of that awful result.

“Thankfully, our parents saw it happen up close. They made me promise, over and over, never to use that power again.”

That was the one bit of luck. If a servant had seen it first, things might have spiraled out of control.

Yullia’s face twisted like she’d just swallowed bitter medicine.

‘She probably feels guilty.’

I could read her feelings easily.

She had awakened her ability around the same age. Back then, when she was drunk on her newfound power, she teased me mercilessly.

At first, everyone assumed I was just a late bloomer. But when no ability showed even by the time I turned fifteen, people began to doubt whether I was even a real Walker.

They called me the “blemish of House Walker” and laughed behind my back. Thinking of all the humiliation I must’ve endured, Yullia’s face went pale.

Her eyes, full of guilt and pity, seemed to brush against my cheek.

I answered with the same smile I always wore whenever things got hard.

“There was a time I resented it—wondered why I had to be given this kind of blessing. But I think I get it now. Maybe it was all meant to be—for this moment.”

“……”

“I think it’s a good thing, actually. If it weren’t for this power… we really might’ve lost everyone today.”

Yullia’s eyes flew open wide at that.

“You’re such a…”

“Huh?”

“You complete idiot!”

BAM!

With that, she slammed her bedroom door and went inside.

“…Oh dear.”

My twin still had a lot of awkward corners to her. But from my perspective, it was kind of cute—so it didn’t really bother me.

Just then, a soft jingle rang out.

– A blessing? Fate? Pfft—hah!

“Rev.”

From the crack beneath the door, a black cat appeared. To others, it would’ve sounded like nothing more than a normal meow, but I could hear every word he said as clearly as speech.

– What kind of fool thinks necromancy is some divine blessing?

His eyes glowed brightly in the dark. Those gleaming golden pupils were locked straight on me.

– You know better than anyone—its origins are something entirely different. And yet you have the nerve to spout nonsense like that.

“……”

– So? How does it feel? Now that you’ve had a taste of that omnipotent power you hold… Has it changed your mind at all?

Rev.

This creature, posing as a pet cat, was actually a demon I had a contract with.

He inhabited a dead cat’s body, claiming that appearing in his true form would break some law of causality or whatever.

– To think the great me ended up with a contract holder like this—so indecisive. Instead of using the humans in the capital as offerings and conquering the continent, you’re skulking around like a rat trying to survive. Pathetic!

“Then why’d you make a contract with me?”

– You’re the one who summoned me!!

Rev hissed with a sharp kyaaak! sound. His back arched, fur bristling, tail puffed out like a feather duster.

He wasn’t wrong, so I just shrugged. That had happened around when I was eleven.

How I ended up summoning a demon? Long story. But either way, Rev had stuck by my side ever since—in the form of a cat.

– It had been ages since anyone summoned me, so I was curious what kind of storm of bloodshed you’d bring to this continent. But once I got up here…

He gave me a quick once-over, head to toe. Feeling awkward, I gave a sheepish little smile.

– Don’t smile! I’m starting to get attached!

“Well, I mean, if a weak baby necromancer like me was able to summon you… maybe you’re not in much of a position to be judging, Rev.”

– Wha–wh-what did you just say?!

He looked like I’d insulted his entire lineage. His mouth hung open in utter shock—then, without warning, he jumped and landed square on my face.

– I’ve never been so humiliated! Kyaaah!

“Wait, Rev—ugh, pffth, stop—mgh—HEY!”

As he thrashed around on top of my face, a mouthful of black fur went flying into my mouth. And he even clawed at my forearm with those sharp little demon-talons of his!

“Ow! Hey! That actually hurts, okay?!”

I scrambled to pull him off and rolled up my sleeve. The neat bandage I’d wrapped earlier was now a complete mess thanks to his scratching.

Fresh red blood was starting to seep through it.

“You knew that would hurt… Seriously, that was just mean.”

– Mean?! I’ll show you mean! I’m ending this contract today! Did you think I’d take this humiliation lying down, contractor?!

“Okay, okay! I’m sorryyy!”

– Don’t think an apology will get you off the hook!

I had to frantically dodge the furious little demon-cat, who was now lunging at me again with an angry kyaooo~.

I said I was sorry!

…Though, honestly, I wasn’t wrong.

But if I actually said that out loud, Rev would definitely go berserk again—so I kept it to myself.

* * *

Isaac didn’t turn around until he felt the presence of his younger siblings fully disappear behind the closed door.

On the other side, Edmund stood, his expression grim and openly cold, not bothering to mask the darkness on his face.

It was a look he never showed in front of Yullia or Emily. But Isaac, used to it, simply sat himself on the edge of the sofa.

“Whoa, hey. Relax that face, will you? If the girls saw you right now, they might cry out of sheer terror.”

“Isaac. You’ve figured it out too, haven’t you.”

Isaac nodded without protest.

“They’ll come back.”

The ones who planted explosives in the carriage—and stayed behind to make sure they were all dead.

“Right. Now that they know we’re still alive, there’s no way they’ll leave us alone.”

Which meant the assassination attempt probably wasn’t going to be the last.

“Who is it? The Duke of Arcmoné? The Bellond imperial family?”

Both were plausible. Their tangled political ties only expanded the list of suspects.

“It might even be the Holy See.”

“Ah~ yeah, they never liked us either. Something about divine blessings belonging to the church, or whatever.”

Isaac, never a devout man, always found that kind of talk laughable.

“So basically, it could be anyone.”

Their political rival, Duke Arcmoné. The imperial family. Even the Holy See. At this point, it was easier to list who wasn’t likely to target House Walker.

“Man~ It’s been a while since anything like this. After you got the house in order, we didn’t get any nighttime visitors anymore.”

“Beyond the condition of our bodies, we don’t know when another attempt will be made. Best to avoid going out whenever possible.”

“I’ll have the butler file my leave request tomorrow.”

Isaac had a talent for understanding the things Edmund didn’t bother saying aloud.

“And Andrea’s guard detail will need reinforcement.”

“You want double the knights, right?”

Edmund nodded in agreement.

“A lot happened today. I’m not… tired, but still. I guess fatigue is a luxury the dead can’t afford.”

It suddenly occurred to Edmund—despite the long, grueling day, his body felt completely fine.

But it wasn’t the kind of endurance that came from willpower or physical training.

No, it was like his body had completely forgotten what fatigue even felt like. Only a faint memory of that sensation lingered.

“…It’s just as well. I still have work to do before bed.”

There were too many tasks he had to take care of. Even if it was the night he came back as a zombie.

“You were definitely someone who died once in a past life. There’s no other way to explain how zombie-optimized you are.”

“Enough nonsense. Go on to bed. It’s late.”

“‘It’s late,’ huh…”

Isaac let the corner of his mouth curl up. It was the expression he wore whenever something rubbed him the wrong way.

“Hey, Edmund. Have you ever seen a sleeping zombie?”