“I-I don’t know what Ms. Maria did in Eiken. B-But I do know that she spent the longest time in the library in this city.”
“Then, could it be that Aurora…?”
“S-She was probably trying to check what Ms. Maria was doing in the library.”
“That makes sense. Thank you for the information.”
Thanks to Benini, we had obtained a useful clue in tracking Aurora. Since Maria had spent a long time in Eiken before heading to the palace, Aurora must also be staying in Eiken instead of moving elsewhere. We had to catch her as soon as possible.
“Was that all the records you found about Maria?”
“Yes, t-there was nothing particularly special aside from that. She was a devout believer and enjoyed reading the B-Bible. Oh, and she liked literature as well.”
Hmm, I see.
It wasn’t anything particularly surprising.
With a name like Maria, it was easy to assume she was a devout believer. People with names associated with the Bible were often religious.
“Did Aurora ever talk about Maria?”
“Only about how they played as children—games like hide-and-seek, tag, and treasure hunts. She especially liked writing and hiding clues.”
…Damn it, so that’s why Aurora kept giving me those riddles.
In the end, it was all because of Maria!
Meanwhile, after hearing Antonio Benini’s story, Simone’s expression grew somewhat serious. He sighed and whispered to me.
“Since we’re here, we might as well try to find some clues about Princess Eva.”
“Ah, right.”
But why was he whispering so close to my ear?
“We also have a question.”
Following Simone’s suggestion, I turned to Antonio and spoke.
“Do you know anything about the current princess of the Kingdom of Boleno, Eva Vivaldi? We want to find records about her.”
“Ah, P-Princess Eva Vivaldi… Give me a moment.”
Fortunately, Antonio readily agreed to help. He quickly wrote down calculations on a piece of paper, and soon, a purple light flickered around his body. A moment later, he held up the paper, now glowing with a soft light, and spoke.
“T-There aren’t many records about Princess Eva Vivaldi. U-Until seven years ago, she was often seen outside the palace, living a b-busy life. But at some point, she started spending most of her time within the palace.”
“Hmm, I see…”
“But I was able to check the records of the books she borrowed from the library.”
“Please tell us about those!”
Understanding her interests might give us a clue about what she was working on.
“S-She mainly read books related to science… but about s-seven years ago, she developed an interest in the m-military.”
“The military?”
Raffaelo interrupted in a surprised tone.
“Yes, s-she started collecting materials on military organization and studying leadership.”
That was strange. Why would Princess Eva be interested in the military?
“And she also researched… immortality.”
“Immortality?”
“Yes. She studied the structure of the human body and read books about immortality from the Eastern Continent.”
Alright, now it was clear.
Princess Eva was researching immortality using artificial humans!
Previously, it was said that she attempted to extract brains from corpses and transplant them into automatons.
Likewise, she might have been trying to implant human brains into artificial humans to grant them eternal life.
“I think I understand now.”
I murmured as I looked at my companions.
“She wanted to transplant human brains into artificial humans. And perhaps… she even created an army of artificial humans.”
“What?!”
Raffaelo’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“How could she do such a thing…?”
“Considering Princess Eva’s abilities, she might have already succeeded.”
“She wouldn’t be able to transplant her own brain by herself… so she might already have numerous artificial humans with transplanted brains under her control.”
“But is it even possible to secretly maintain an army?”
“Artificial humans don’t need food or sleep to survive. If that’s the case, she could have created an army of artificial humans and hidden them somewhere in the palace.”
Hearing this, my companions’ expressions turned grim.
An army of artificial humans… That would make dealing with her extremely difficult.
“Have I been of enough help?”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
We bowed to Mr. Benini and prepared to leave. We wanted to offer him some money, but he firmly refused, so instead, we gave him a few souvenirs we had collected on our travels.
“…Are you sure you have no intention of coming outside?”
He might actually be useful in a fight against Princess Eva.
When I asked, Antonio shook his head firmly.
“M-My combat skills are terrible, so I w-wouldn’t be of any help.”
It felt like he could see right through us, which made me shudder slightly.
“Huh?”
“B-But I might be able to help in another way.”
“What do you mean…?”
“W-Well then, I wish you the best of luck.”
Before I could ask further, the door shut in front of me with a loud thud. I stood there, momentarily dumbfounded.
“He really is like a sage…”
“Indeed.”
“Hmph, either way, we have to find Aurora now.”
Arkhangelo was right. Our business with Antonio Benini seemed to be finished. Now, it was time to finally capture Aurora.
“So, how do we catch Aurora?”
“That won’t be too difficult.”
Simone spoke with confidence.
“Aurora came to Eiken to search for Maria’s traces. So all we need to do is fabricate a clue about Maria and use it to lure her in.”
Simone grinned. I stared at him, half in a trance, and slowly nodded.
“We’re going to bait Aurora?”
“Yes, it’s a kind of fishing.”
***
“Hmm, is this all the clues we have?”
Aurora sat absentmindedly in the library, holding Maria’s notebook.
‘Should I finally let myself get caught…?’
She knew that Seraphina and her companions had arrived in Eiken.
A group of aristocratic-looking men and women would stand out anywhere, so it was impossible not to hear rumors about them.
Just as Aurora was debating whether or not to let herself be captured, a villager she had met before approached her.
“You asked me to let you know if I found any information about a girl named Maria, right?”
“Yes. Do you have any new information?”
“I asked the librarian. There are no records because she never officially checked out books, but the librarian remembers what she read.”
Ah, so that’s why Benini didn’t have any records.
Aurora’s eyes lit up at the possibility of learning something new about Maria.
“What kind of books did Maria read?”
“She mainly read literature.”
“That makes sense. Maria loved literature…”
“She read Gone with the Wind and often stood in front of the bookshelf where it was kept.”
Aurora wasn’t well-versed in literature, so she had no idea what the book was about. But she asked the librarian and moved to the section where it was stored.
“So this is the place…”
Aurora carefully examined the bookshelf.
‘Maria might have hidden a clue here.’
Aurora recalled memories of her childhood with Maria.
“Aurora, if you answer my riddle correctly, I’ll give you a Valentine’s Day gift!”
“Wow, what is it?”
“What’s the easiest number in the world?”
“The answer is 190,000!”*
“You got it right!”
It was the kind of riddle that would seem absurd to anyone else, but Aurora and Maria loved exchanging questions like that.
Just then, something caught Aurora’s eye as she examined the bookshelf.
“This is…!”
One of the shelves contained books arranged in the following order:
Utopia
North and South
Decameron
East of Eden
Run, Rabbit
Les Misérables
Around the World in Eighty Days
The Brothers Karamazov
Emma
Aurora instantly understood the pattern.
It spelled out: under lake.
So Maria was leaving a message—there must be a clue beneath the lake.
‘It’s a dangerous place, but Maria could have managed it.’
Aurora nodded and immediately headed toward the lake.
There was only one entrance leading to the deep lake. After scanning her surroundings and confirming that Seraphina’s group wasn’t nearby, Aurora moved forward without hesitation.
Just as she stepped into a small boat floating at the water’s edge…
“Huh?”
The boat suddenly lifted off the ground and floated into the air.
Aurora barely had time to react before it soared across the lake, carrying her to the other side.
Beyond the reeds, familiar faces appeared.
Seraphina lunged at her, tackling her into a tight hold.
“Aurora, got you!”
Ah, so it was a trap.
Aurora let out a cheerful laugh.
🍓; *In Korean, ‘190,000’ (십구만) sounds like ‘쉽구만’ (Oh, it’s easy!).
