Chapter 20: Volume 3 - CH 6

P. 207

P. 216

Just when she was starting to get worried if the amountof blood wasn’t enough or if she shouldn’t have stopped herself and made him drink it mouth-to-mouth, his body twitched.

*

P. 220

Feeling the morning sunshine, Edgar woke up, feeling like it was just like any other morning.

Unless he didn’t realize the wound on his waist, he was sure to be vague about yesterday’s occurrence, if it was real or not.

Putting on his gown, he left his bed chamber and entered his dressing room to sit down on the sofa and saw that his shoes that were shining after they were brushed and placed where they always were.

Because he was going through such an ordinary morning scene, he was beginning to wonder if he was really alive or not. 

How did I get through that alive.

He expected that the one he was going to face was Paul alone. If it was him, he thought that Paul was someone who he could come to an understanding that they were not to fight each other after he had a talk with him, and he took that bet.

Paul changed his stance and opened up to him and talk. Even if it meant that he was revealing that there was poison in the tea, the moment he hit the cup out of Edgar’s hand, he must have chosen to believe Edgar in front of him than what he was told by the members of the organization.

For Edgar, he was targeted at the moment when he put his guard down after the long moment of tension.

It looked like Paul didn’t know that the housekeeper was a member of the ‘Scarlett Moon’ organization himself.

Right after he was stabbed, pins-and-needles felt like they ran over his skin. He realized that he was poisoned and tried to pull out the knife, but his body didn’t respond to his will.

He had watched so many other people’s deaths and through his intuition, he figured out that what just happened to him was going to lead to his death.

P. 221

And yet, right now, it was like all the poison was drained out of his body.

“My lord, are you all right to be walking about now?”

His butler appeared.

“Ahh, good morning, Tomkins.”

“Will you prefer the doctor examine you just to be safe?”

“No, I feel wonderful. There is nothing wrong. Could you pour me some hot tea.”

“Right away.”

His calm demeanor was like he knew that Edgar was going to recover.

“Tomkins, what is the name of the doctor who saved me? It isn’t that bald-headed doctor, was it?”

“It was the fairy doctor.”

He was right, it wasn’t a dream. 

He gently touched his wrist and recalled what happened with Lydia. She was his fairy used to mystical powers and brings him good luck.

It was definite, she was irreplaceable.

“Good morning, Lord Edgar.”

Not seconds after the butler exited, Raven came in with the tea.

P. 222

Like nothing happened, he greeted him with the usual morning greeting, which was a little disappointing response and made Edgar smile sourly.

“Raven, I think I may have put you through quite some worry.”

No, he softly whispered and silently placed a cup on the table.

“I kept quiet to you because me myself was still undecided.”

“I know, my lord. If I was at that scene, I would have killed Mister Foreman. Even if he, who had you carried here, had no malicious intent, I would have killed him along with the woman who aimed her knife at you.”

Edgar still had his conscious up till Paul had pulled him up and put him onto the horse-drawn carriage. But he didn’t know what happened after that. He hadn’t said a word about what happened at Paul’s boarding house room to Raven.

“Woman you say, how would you know?”

Raven unraveled something wrapped in cloth and set it onto the table. What was wrapped inside was the knife that tormented Edgar. Blood, and it was stained with the toxic chemical that had changed color. 

It was a thin, folding knife, the kind that maids carry around with them as they worked.

“Mister Foreman had sneaked this into your clothing as well. He must have thought we could use it to determine which toxins were used.”

“Did you determine it?”

P. 223

“No, I knew it was useless at first glance.”

For a second, Raven made a painful face, which could make one imagine how much despair he must have gone through at that time.

Just because he didn’t say any outspoken remarks, there was a part of Edgar who was being too dependent and taking advantage on his loyalty.

When he grabbed his arm, he looked back at him with slight surprise.

“I’m sorry. I wanted to take care of my business with Paul by myself. But that, was just like what you were worried about, it lead to me delaying my decision.”

Raven, in an unusually flustered gesture, knelt down in a somewhat fumbling manner.

“Lord Edgar, please do not apologize to me who is your lower. I am always prepared to accept whatever decision you chose. You don’t always think of your own safety as your first priority, but because of that, you are not Prince, but my master.”

The master that the blood-thirsty spirit in Raven obeys to.

Prince got his hands on Raven in order to become that, but the sprit didn’t accept him as its master, and only released its massacring, bloody nature, and Raven’s heart had locked up his emotions and he appeared like a lifeless doll and didn’t laugh or cry.

In his home country, children of the spirit who were the fighters of kings, in other words, children like Raven must have periodically been born.

Their ingenious religious belief and traditional culture which bounded the blood that possessed the strength to fight in wars.

P. 224

It was unsure if the existence of those spirits gave birth to those legends or if legends created those spirits. However, in that perhaps, there must be something that surpasses that of human knowledge. 

Edgar was beginning to feel that the fairies that Lydia could see, must also been something of that.

And it is at those times, where he comes to have a thought.

What was the goal of that secretive, devilish organization of Prince that was doing experiments with magic?

It didn’t seem realistic at all, but it seemed like Prince seriously was lusting after some sort of magical power that was able to change the impossible to possible. 

Which means, the ‘Scarlett Moon’ that is fighting against Prince goes by the name of the guardian fairy from the legend of Lord Blue Knight might be because they are after some sort of magical power to use to fight with.

Are they wishing for the real Blue Knight Earl?

*

The club house that finally was able to spit out its last customer who kept up residence all through the night had its doors tightly closed until the hustle and bustle of the night arrived.

Along with Raven, Edgar stood in front of its doors.

“Lord Edgar, is this the headquarters of the ‘Scarlett Moon’?”

“Highly likely. But I don’t think I’m mistaken.”

It was the club that held that exhibition where Edgar and Paul first met.

The club owner, was a man named Slade who sold paintings. This place’s main members are the wealthy who are interested in paintings and the painters who want to sell their talent to them.

Because Paul’s father O’neill, and his other father Foreman, were both painters who accepts job offers from nobles, there was a high possibility that they were members of here. To begin with, it was the work of the owner of this place who introduced Paul to Edgar and made it work out so that the young painter would win his interest.

P. 234

Even from that connection, he had thought that the ‘Scarlett Moon’ would be lurking behind the scenes of this club. 

“Now, time for checkmate.”

Holding his long sword, hidden in his cane, Edgar knocked the door of the clubhouse.

After a moment, the one to pop out his head was a man who looked to be a servant. 

“We haven’t opened yet, so please come back around dusk, Sir.”

“I have business with Mister Slade.”

“Uh, yes, what kind of business?”

“I was nearly killed by his woman. Tell him that I won’t mind talking to him before I make it public.”

The servant stared at Edgar with a puzzled look. He must have thought it was some sort of secret passage word.

“Pardon me, but you are?”

“Earl Ashenbert.”

As soon as he said the name, the man widened his eyes. He didn’t hide his trembling, and escaped back behind the door.

It’s like he witnessed a ghost, thought Edgar who felt offended and took the liberty of entering.

He went up the stairs that connected from the entrance hall. Raven was right behind him.

Just when he reached the top, he looked down the hallway that had an expensive carpet laid out over it and saw a man who came running  down in his direction.

P. 235

It was Slade. A portly man with a black beard. So, he was the one, Edgar remembered him as Edgar looked to check the scarlett red moonstone he wore on his right hand.

“My lord, this is a members-only club, so we cannot have you entering the premises. Could I have you wait in the waiting room?”

So he means it would be troublesome to have me walking about.

“Then I will become a member. I should meet the requirements.”

“Yes, but, ah….”

He looked quizzically up at Edgar’s face which hid under the shadow of the brim of his hat as if to check if he was the real one.

“Are you saying a dead man doesn’t qualify?”

He took off his hat and grinned at him. The man wobbled back a few steps in shock, however tried to stand his ground and stopped.

“Yo-you do not look dead to my eyes.”

“That’s right, your organization failed.”

“…..What are you talking about?”

“Where is Paul?”

P. 236

“Please visit his residence.”

“He wasn’t at the boarding house. The owner said another problem was that the housekeeper had also suddenly disappeared.”

“That is out of my knowledge…”

“Raven, Mister Slade appears to have bad blood flow from just staying up all night. You should help him wake up.”

Raven walked up to Slade and grabbed the scruff of his shirt and pointed a knife to forehead.

He saw in one glance that the knife was the one with poison on it that the housekeeper used and cold sweat seeped out of his forehead.

Edgar cruelly peered down at him as he was unable to move.

“Are you awake now?”

“……………..”

“I can’t hear your reply. I think it wasn’t enough.”

“No, I-I’m awake.”

“Good.”

The club’s servants gathered around them from a far distance. From the look of their confused noise, it seemed like they weren’t members of the ‘Scarlett Moon.’

There weren’t that many members of the Robin Hood gang that they could identity. 

The man urged the servants to return to their work posts.

P. 237

“M-my lord, if we could please talk in the back,” spoke Slade in a rather high voice, signifying that he didn’t want Edgar to say anything unnecessary at this spot.

He lowered his voice and whispered into the man’s ear.

“I’m not interested in talking with you. I would prefer to annihilate every last one of you Scarlett Moon members, but as long as you have Paul, then there’s room for you to negotiate. I don’t imagine you have any intention of having him take the crime for killing an earl and throwing him into the Thames River.”

“…….We don’t just simply kill off our men just because they screwed up a job.”

As he finally admitted to it, he replied back sarcastically by comparing with Prince’s organization.

Only Edgar couldn’t have cared less. If he says that they’re different from Prince, then that was all the better. 

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Slade slowly stepped away from Raven’s side who released his grip.

He guided Edgar and his servant to the back as they went on down winding hallways. The location must be a place where normal servants couldn’t enter. Before they knew it, there was no body else around them.

Just then, in the corner of his vision, he thought he saw someone’s figure move. Before Edgar could turn around, Raven pushed his shoulder. 

In the next moment, the sound of gunfire overlapped with the sound of shattering sound of the nearby lamp shoot. 

P. 238

Slade took off.

“Catch them!”

At his shout, men of the ‘Scarlett Moon’ who were hiding jumped out from behind the doors one by one.

“Raven, this way!”

The both of them bolted to a run.

Paul should captured so that he wouldn’t be witnessed and so hidden somewhere deep in this building.

Which means, that place should be around here, and so he checked the rooms here and there as they ran about.

But every room looked like it was unused.

Eventually, they came to the end of the hall where there was a large double door and they opened and went inside and locked the doors. Raven grabbed the decorative spear that was hanging on the wall to prop it up against the door so it looked like that would buy them some time.

The room turned out to be some gathering hall for the secret organization as it was a large, open hall.

From the high ceiling, there was a gothic chandelier hanging over above them. Right below it, there was a mosaic of a scarlett crescent moon painted on the floor. 

Taking a closer look, the mosaic turned out to be made of red moonstones, and each one of the stones had blood-red colored alphabets inscribed onto them.

He wondered if they used this place for ceremonies for new entries in order to strength the fellowship between the members.

Most likely, they were moonstones that had the first alphabet of the member’s names inscribed on the moonstones and like it was looking down at them, there was a more than evident throne that sat atop of an altar facing them.

P. 239

There was a painting that hung on the wall behind the throne. Walking up to it, Edgar looked up to take a close look.

“The Blue Knight Earl…..?”

It was a portrait of a man with chestnut-colored hair and blue eyes like the sky and in his hand was the sword with the star sapphire in it.

Guessing from his clothes, he must be Julius Ashenbert who was said to have appeared in the palace of Elizabeth I. 

There was no portrait painting in the Ashenbert house as far as Edgar knew. Even Tomkins, who had been keeping storage of all the possessions of the earl family had said there was no painting-like artifact left.

They came to the conclusion that since the family had such a strong bond between fairies, they wanted to avoid the danger of having a portrait that had their features stored on it to be used for cursing purposes.

Edgar wasn’t an expert in that area, but in some areas of magic, he was told that there are spells that can harm the person if a curse was placed on their portrait.

Then, why did this earl have his portrait created. And why was it in a place like this.

In any case, this ‘Scarlett Moon’ worshiped the Blue Knight Earl and chose to go with the guardian fairy Flendolen’s name, which was just as he expected.

P. 240

Something slammed heavily against the door. The lock was bound to be broken through and the prop up spear was going to give out pretty soon.

“Lord Edgar, shall we go out through the ceiling window?”

“No, let’s finish this here.”

Just when he said that, the door was banged open. 

Men came pouring into the chamber. From behind them, he could see Slade.

Beside Edgar, Raven made ready by pointing his pistol. 

Slade realized that the pistol was aiming at his forehead without any hesitation and he stopped in his tracks.

Raven purposefully missed his mark and shot right by Slade’s ear.

Slade let out a scream and all the men froze like time stopped.

“Yes, it’s best you don’t move. Because the first to move will be the first to die.”

As he said that, Edgar took the opportunity to have a good look at each one of them. 

“Now, gentlemen, you all are members of the ‘Scarlett Moon’? If you say you all pledged a blood oath to the Blue Knight Earl, then that makes you all my slaves.”

Purposefully, he took a glance at the portrait on the wall.

“…….You mere imposter.”

P. 244

It was exactly as he said. The reason Edgar wasn’t killed, was because he was someone who needed to be captured alive for Prince.

He didn’t know the reason why he wasn’t killed. Prince killed off Edgar’s comrades in order to corner him and had used all kinds of methods so far, but using his one weakness of not killing him, Edgar managed to escape this far.

“But, would Prince allow one of his men to win the name of Blue Knight Earl? Even if we accept it or not, this man is officially acknowledged by Her Majesty the Queen. Wouldn’t someone like that just only be a hindrance to Prince?”

Slade titled his head in silence as he must have been trying to think up of an objection. 

“That part I would like to know as well. Is there some kind of history behind Prince and the Blue Knight Earl?”

Paul turned his head around slightly with a hesitant look, as if he was undecided if he could tell Edgar or not.

Slade only glared in his direction and remained quiet.

“Let’s tell him.”

The one who said that was another voice.

From the doorway, an old man came in. From how the members opened up a path for him, he must be one of the leading members.

P. 245

He held his back straight up but he apparently was blind as he came walking up with a cane in his hand.

“Foreman…” said Slade in a worried tone. 

Which means, this was the man who took in Paul as his son. It seems he wasn’t in Dover.

“Slade, could you leave this to me.”

It seems like the two of them were a much more friendly relationship than just a mere art dealer and painter.

“I’m terribly sorry for all the rudeness, my lord. No, should I call you your grace?”

“That name is no longer mine.”

“Then my lord, to tell you the truth we also don’t really know what the history is between Prince and the Blue Knight Earl. We only know that he uses all his power to completely obliterate the bloodline like he is afraid of the existence of the Blue Knight Earl.”

“The bloodline? But there hasn’t been one heir of the Ashenbert family who has appeared for the last three hundred years.”

“Yes, that is so, however, even if he didn’t have the right to succeed the earl title, there was one who descended from the earl.”

And then he looked up to the portrait.

“We believe that this is the only one that portrays the figures of the Blue Knight Earl family. The one who painted this was his lover and a woman who gave birth to his child…”

P. 246

“I see, for the sake of his lover and child, he permitted her to paint his portrait. What a romantic story. So, the blood of the earl family was succeeded 

into that female painter’s family.”

“Yes. That was the family of our teacher that I and this Slade here went into as apprentices.”

So the art dealer originally had aimed to become a painter. Because he wasn’t able to sell his name, he must have gotten ahold of some kind of fortune and came up to his position.

“So, was the teacher of you two killed by Prince?”

With a painful face, he lowered his head as if he was mourning for the dead.

“Most of us are ones who were close with the clan of our killed teacher. Not only as painting acquaintances, but as artists from the old ages who had experience in decorative artworks like hanged paintings and sculptures. Long ago, our people had jobs that involved knowing the secrets about the lord of the family and his castle, and we became an organization from the necessity to protect ourselves and the clan of our teacher and their network was situated as our central force.”

“So that was the formation of the ‘Scarlett Moon’?”

“We were the ones who decided that we should go under the name of ‘Scarlett Moon.’ The clan of our teacher came to succeed the name of Flendolen as their middle name which was given to the child of the Blue Knight Earl and so we decided it as that. All of them were killed off, and the artist in the organizations were all separated, and these are all the ones who were could gather.”

P. 247

“So in the end, you don’t know why they were targeted?” asked Edgar.

“We were unable to find out. Our teacher might have known, but our teacher was killed before the reason was revealed. We, who were left strengthened our bond of our hatred towards Prince and had been solely waiting for the return of the Blue Knight Earl to England. If Prince hates his family blood, then we thought that only by his appearance are we able to equally oppose him….”

“And yet it was an imposter, so you were disappointed?”

Foreman distorted his mouth in an ironical manner.

“Several years ago, when O’neill was killed, we grew suspicious of the duke family he was residing at and started to investigate about them. But we were only able to find out that there was just a fire, and never thought to think that the family’s young son was alive in the hands of Prince. My lord, if he, who had painted your family, was killed and your family was obliterated by Prince, then I would like to find out the reason. O’neill might have known something about the duke family.”

Why Edgar’s family was targeted. That was something that he himself had been trying to think of why. 

However, there still was no exact answer. Only, more than that the duke family was targeted, Edgar had the feeling like they were after Edgar himself. 

“I don’t know myself. But, I don’t think that the Blue Knight Earl’s blood is related to that. My family tree was hammered into my brain ever since I was 

young, but there was no connection with the earl family who may or may not appear once in a hundred years.”

P. 248

Foreman breathed in and let out a deep sigh.

There were so many things that were still a mystery.

To Prince’s organization which was obsessed in experimenting with magical elements, they may have seen the mysterious powers of the Blue Knight Earl as a menace. 

There was that possibility. However Edgar didn’t have the mysterious power that was succeeded in the Ashenbert family.

But now, Edgar was the Blue Knight Earl. As long as he took up the name, he was aware that he was shouldering everything of the ancient family line.

Either way, he was unable to break away from the path of confronting with Prince.

“My lord, there is nothing more that I can speak of. I promise that you will not be caused any trouble from now on. Could you please not speak of our organization and leave this place?”

“So you’re saying that you don’t need an earl that doesn’t have the blood nor the godly power that can fight against Prince?”

But Edgar had no intention of leaving empty handed. This ‘Scarlett Moon’ should be useful. 

That’s why he wanted it.

“Most likely, I am the one in Prince’s organization that knows about Prince more than anyone else. I know the methods he uses, the way he thinks and his underhanded, cruel attacks. That’s why I would know how to counteract that. Don’t you want a brain? I could bet that your operations are not that amazing enough that it makes Prince ignore you. That’s why your organization was able to survive this far, but are you satisfied with that?”

P. 249

Slade made an offended expression probably because he himself must have been feeling impatient and irritated about that as well. Foreman didn’t change his expression and continued to speak in an even-leveled tone.

“Are you saying we should have you join us?”

“You’re wrong, ‘Scarlett Moon’ gentlemen. I’m saying you should become mine.”

Edgar made an open-hearted smile and walked with long strides atop of the altar and went over to sit down on the throne that was the symbol of the organization prepared for the Blue Knight Earl. 

There was a moment of bursting voices and commotion, but there was no one who spoke up in objection.

“In order to fight, I want to get my hands on the scarlet bow, Flendolen and the white bow, Glendolen. A fake scarlet bow for a fake earl. Goodness, if your group is just using the name of the fairy archer in liberty, then that should be fine. Don’t you feel like you might be able to win?”

There was no answer. But he felt the effect he made. 

So, one more push.

Because they were a fake scarlet moon with just a name and enthusiasm, so that’s why they desired the real Blue Knight Earl.

However there was no meaning for them to do that. From the position of the real Blue Knight Earl, this ‘Scarlett Moon’ would always be a sham. 

Even if they tried to shine like the real thing, they wouldn’t be able to be the same thing. If a fake was able to become the real thing, then it had to shine even brighter than the real one.

P. 250

Edgar looked over to Paul’s direction.

“By the way, Paul, the reason I came to see you because I wanted you to return that white moonstone to me.”

Oh, gasped Paul in surprise and quickly took off the ring. Raven accepted that and handed it over to Edgar who was on the throne.

He then handed the sword to Raven and he stood up with the ring in his hand.

“Raven, I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Yes.”

“Now, gentlemen, I’m going to go search for my white bow, Glendolen, so try to think about your decision carefully.”

He took a good look around all of them who didn’t know what to do, and then Edgar called for Marygold and Sweetpea.

The 'Scarlett Moon’ members couldn’t contain their surprise at the sudden appearance of the two little girls who came out of nowhere, but if he didn’t do that, then there was no point in doing this extravagant act.

“Then, my lord, let us make our way.”

The two fairies in the form of young girls took Edgar’s hand.

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