Chapter 41: Volume 6 - CH 5

P. 152

*

“Kelpie, you have to turn back! I must return to rescue Lota and Nico!”

Still clinging onto Kelpie’s mane, Lydia protested to him, but he didn’t turn back at all.

P. 168

“Umm, I’m Lydia. I came with Lota to come and rescue you.”

“Lota? You’re lying, Lota would never come here.”

*

The passageway that was in the mayor’s house was connected to a small underground room that was made like it was dug out of a rocky wall. 

Edgar and the others entered it with torches in their hand and their eyes were captured at the sight of a reddish-purple glow that reflected the light of the fire and filled the whole space around them.

There were numerous big and small relief sculptures and pieces of art that were made of fluorites.

There were some in the lord’s house, but every one had the characteristic of elegance and vigorous dynamics in its beautiful curved lines. It must be the style that is passed down from master to apprentice in the workshop of this village. 

Fluorites are not expensive jewels, but this village had flourished by the limited rate of flow must have been because they could put added value onto them as pieces of art.

However, he heard that that tradition had come to an end around the beginning of this century when the amount of extractable fluorites had sharply decreased. 

Edgar walked over to one of the reliefs and squinted to inspect the sign in its corner. 

“Scarlett Moon?”

He thought it would be a sign, but that was what it said.

Scarlett Moon was the secret organization that made an alliance with Edgar to fight with Prince.

The Blue Knight Earl who appeared three-hundred years ago, Julius Ashenbert’s lover and illegitimate child was involved in a decorative art family guild and had founded the organization. However, when their descendants were murdered by Prince who feared the return of the Blue Knight Earl, the remaining artists pledged revenge and banded together to form an organization called the ‘Scarlett Moon.’

P. 170

“Scarlett Moon” meant Flendolyn in Gale. That was the first Earl of Ibrazel, the Blue Knight Earl’s child’s name who had fairy flowing in the child’s veins. 

Julius Ashenbert’s illegitimate child also had the middle name of Flendolyn and he heard that that child’s descendants were also the same. 

In other words, the “Scarlett Moon” indicated the collateral bloodline of descendants who were connected to the illegitimate child of the Blue Knight Earl.

“So there were descendants of the Blue Knight Earl who inhabited this village as craftsmen.”

“There is another seal of the Scarlett Moon on this one. The years they were made are mostly the beginning of this century,” said Ermine who had been inspecting them one by one. Edgar thought hard.

“So that means around that time, the descendants of the Ashenbert family were here.”

“Lord Edgar, please look at this.”

The object Raven picked up was a letter box that was decorated with fluorites. It seemed like it was the work by the same person, but since it had scratches and black stains unlike the other ones must mean that it was a personal item.

P. 171

There was a letter left inside it. It seemed like a letter that was sent in praise of his works.

For a moment, Edgar’s eyes stopped on a signature. It was signed ‘Cremona.’ It was the Grand Duke of the dukedom Cremona.

The letter from the grand duke was about praising the works, and there was no where in the writing that particularly stood out, but Edgar knew about the fluorite that had the Cremona dukedom’s seal in it.

It was a rare freya that only could be dug here.

The seal-engraved ring that Betty had might have been one of the works of this craftsman.

He shared the blood of the Blue Knight Earl. On the other hand, the princess of Cremona was kidnapped by the man who called himself as the Blue Knight Earl. 

He wondered if this case was started because of this craftsman and the freya seal ring. 

So that he could verify the craftsman’s name, Edgar inspected the letter’s addressee.

“Ulysses Barrow…..”

Ulysses?

“He was the savior of this village.”

The mayor appeared himself from behind the door he was hiding in that was behind them. 

He was carrying a hunting gun. Raven made a stir like he was aiming for an opening to strike, but Edgar made him wait with a look at his eyes.

P. 172

“To be exact, Mister Barrow was one of two siblings. The older brother was a craftsman and the one who was the savior was the younger brother with the same name who came here later on.”

“What do you mean by savior?”

“Although this village was ripe with fluorites, we were only able to dig up a limited amount every year. Even if we tried to dig up more, the fairies would hide them. While that was happening, only he was able to communicate with the fairies and was said to be able to procure the lacking amount of fluorites.”

The mayor seemed like he wanted to talk about this.

Most likely, to make his claim that he was right.

“In the beginning, didn’t the Blue Knight Earl decide the amount of fluorites that were needed by this village and made a trade with the fairies? And yet, what do you mean there was a lack of fluorites?”

“How can you say that the amount that was determined by the earl in the past will be sufficient in any era? Our village at the time was just barely going by. We were all in trouble.”

“I can’t think that the amount of fluorites were not enough. In the beginning, if you were to dig out too much, then the mining vein was sure to drain out, so did the villagers also agree to the bare minimum amount? What was needed more than that had to be taken care by yourselves.”

Like he didn’t want to hear that, the mayor continued his own claim. 

“Mister Barrow had gone by made it so that we could freely dig up the fluorites that the fairies were getting in our way of. We singled out the stones that had a stronger red to them and if we lied that they were freyas, we were able to sell them at a higher price. To put labor in acquiring the artistic skills to make sculptures is ridiculous. If we shatter them and are able to get even a little shard that is red, then we can make a much larger profit than turning it into a piece of art.”

P. 173

“Ever since then, this village has been deceiving your lord and continued to fraud and sell fakes.”

“The earl will never appear. Even the butler, Mister Tomkins who manages the fortunes of the Ashenbert family knows that no freyas can be dug up, and so if we don’t report to him, he doesn’t become suspicious. For fake freyas to go about the market was normal from the past, so Mister Barrow took particular care in making sure they were sold so that it wasn’t found out they were related to our village.”

“And he went around acting like he was the lord here.”

“He carries the blood of the Ashenbert family. What problem could there possibly be?”

“If he is the descendant of the illegitimate child, then he cannot inherit the title.”

“More than the title, this village needed the amazing power that was in the blood of the Ashenbert family.”

“……And the older brother who was in craftsmanship? He would surely object to his younger brother.”

By looking at the number of sculptures that had love poured on them, he couldn’t believe that the older brother would allow his younger brother’s method of shattering them into pieces.

The mayor only made a barely small grin, but seeing how the tradition of the artwork of this village had suddenly disappeared, it was easy to imagine what had happened.

P. 174

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Most likely, he must have been killed by the hands of his younger brother. 

“Mister Barrow would periodically visit the village and made it so that the fairies couldn’t get near the mining grounds. The second Barrow who took after him was the same and possessed magical powers. If we did as Mister Barrow said, then everything would go well…. Everything was going well, until yesterday.”

“One of the infants of this village was stolen, and you ordered the parent to give it up, and only share the profits with only one portion of the village? You are quite the tyrant.”

“In order to get freyas, it couldn’t be helped that the infant was sacrificed. Mister Barrow visited this land two years ago saying that he would be able to awaken the dragon Wyrm that could create a true freya. Thanks to him, we will be able to mine the flaming fluorite.”

Awaken a dragon?

Did he say dragon?

The mayor twisted his lips at the confused Edgar.

“Lord Earl, if you claim to be the true Blue Knight Earl, then you just need to defeat the dragon on this land. Just like the earl had done in the past.”

It seemed like he wanted to say it was impossible for him.

P. 175

“The villagers in the past had given up freyas in order to make the harm done by changelings go away. They begged the earl to defeat the dragon. However, our new lord did the opposite of that. Because he possessed that much power, he had the right to be the lord of this land. Since no one other than Ulysses Barrow has inherited the power of the earl.”

He wondered if it was the Ulysses he knew who came to this village two years ago. 

The right-hand man of Prince and the who was after Edgar’s life. 

There seemed to be no mistake that that Ulysses was the descendant of the illegitimate child of the Blue Knight Earl.

The descendant of the collateral bloodline of Julius Ashenbert should have been all killed off by Prince who saw them as a danger. However, most likely, by Ulysses going over to Prince’s side, he was able to survive. 

No only did Prince get his hands on the one who possessed the power of the Blue Knight Earl, but also killed off all the other descendants. 

In order to make that power his own.

Which means, it was Prince who wanted the freya to go all the way to even awaken a dragon. 

“Where is the freya? It still shouldn’t have fallen into the hands of Ulysses.”

“That is a stone of immortality, only those who carry the Blue Knight Earl’s blood can handle it. With you, just like that merrow’s sword, it would just be a useless rock.”

As he aimed the end of his hunting rifle at them, the mayor slowly stepped backwards. 

There was one more door in the back of the room. When he opened that door, he suddenly turned around and went running off.

P. 176

Immediately, Raven went after him.

Edgar continued. There was no mistake that the mayor had the freya with him. 

The reason he was taking time here when he should be escaping must have been to take the freya with him.

Most likely, it was hidden in a room that was hidden behind the wardrobes.

At the end of the underground tunnel, it opened up to a natural limestone cave. Sea water had gotten into it, making a bay that had a small boat floating in it. 

The mayor jumped in and they saw him rowing off, but by the time Edgar and the two had reached the bayside, the boat was already at a distance too far from the bay to reach by hand.

*

“The Wyrm’s rose? I don’t know about that. I’ve never seen any grass or trees growing inside this limestone cave.”

Betty was guiding Lydia to the place she said was her house. 

It was a stone house that stood in the middle of a cavern. That awkward sight made Lydia realize that this was the territory that was casted under the spell of the Wyrm. 

“I said that I couldn’t live without a human house. And then in the next morning, this was here. But, it’s shaped like a house, but everything inside it is made of rock. A stone bed and a stone chair. Well, since the Wyrm doesn’t want to come in to such a cramped place like this, then that itself should be a pleasant relief for me.”

She had Kelpie go search for Lota and Nico.

Lending a hand to Betty, the two of them pushed open the heavy stone door and entered inside, and just like she said, it was a room that was filled with stone. 

“Uh, Betty, about your food, were you eating only the things that were being brought to you from the dobies outside?”

“Yes. It’s because the Wyrm’s food is only rocks. I thought I was going to starve to death.”

Which means Betty still hasn’t put any fairy food in her mouth. If Lydia was able to take her out of here, she would be able to take the girl to the human world.

P. 182

“It’s all right, Betty. You’ll be able to escape from here. Kelpie is going to find Lota and bring her here, and then we’re going to leave immediately.”

Betty still had a look of distrust, like she couldn’t believe that, and set herself down on the stone chair.

“I consider that all of this happened as a punishment to me. Because I made a big lie. That seal-engraved ring, I…. That’s right, the fire-colored fluorite, that earl was after that.”

“Earl…..”

“A young boy who called himself the Blue Knight Earl. He looked like he was younger than I was, but he was strangely mature.”

“Did he perhaps have faint blond hair?”

Betty nodded. Its Ulysses, thought Lydia.

Before two years ago, when Betty claimed to have been brought here, Ulysses must had come to this village at the order of Prince before Edgar had gotten the title of Earl and was claiming himself as the Blue Knight Earl. 

The involvement between Prince and the Blue Knight Earl was still a mystery to her even now. Even if it was a coincidence that Edgar, who Prince tried to make his puppet, had become the Blue Knight Earl, she wondered if that was going to be a savior to Edgar or not. Or perhaps, was it going to make him sink deeper in the fight between Prince like it was his destiny. 

She didn’t want that to be so. Lydia had given her help so that Earl would become Earl, because she believed that was the method that would save him.

P. 183

I have to pull myself together. I have to be the one to stop what Ulysses is doing. 

“That boy is a magician. He had awakened the Wyrm’s sleep by using a fire-colored fluorite. He said that if the Wyrm wakes up, then the same type of fluorites like that crested ring would be able to be dug up.”

“I see. So your crested ring was what he was after. Even though you departed from America and left your close friends so that you could meet your grandfather, the Grand Duke of Cremona.”

“That isn’t me. I’m not the real princess of Cremona. I’m just a daughter of a pirate. Because I stole only hat ring!”

“That’s not right, Betty, because that was something I gave to you.”

Lota was standing in the open stone doorway.

“I had always been thinking that you were living a peaceful life by the Grand Duke. And yet, because of that red fluorite, I didn’t know you were brought to a place like this…..”

Lota entered into the stone house slowly, and she appeared to be alone. She must have been wondering around the cavern and had come to this place. 

Oh, goodness, where on earth is Kelpie searching?

More than that, what does Lota mean, she gave the crested ring to Betty?

P. 184

Lydia kept her mouth closed as she watched the two of them at the sudden unexpected story. 

“I stole it. No, I was thinking of borrowing it in the beginning, but I took it out on my own and was showing it off to everyone around me. And then, John told me that it was the crest of a royal family and in a matter of time, someone who said he was a messenger of the grand duke appeared and said that he was looking for the granddaughter who had the crested ring, and by then, I had just ended my relationship terribly with him and was feeling horrible, and Papa had just died, and I thought it didn’t matter if I lose everything if I could become a princess, and so I betrayed even you, and said that it was my ring.”

“You were saying that you hated pirates, so I thought you wanted to become a princess. I preferred the style of pirating, and that’s why I considered that I gave the ring to you. But, afterwards I was told by that man John. You thought that Pino and I were together?”

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