NOMAMWTM Chapter 39

"I'm looking for the records he left."

Charlotte walked toward the bookshelf inside where she'd previously found the diary.

"Records?"

"Yes. I told you. He seems to have had the same dreams. In that dream, your father had written things about the lum—about the creatures. The creatures seem to be vengeful spirits."

They were more like ghosts, though the creatures did feel solid in her hands, while others couldn't see or touch them.

Looking past the minor details, thinking of them as vengeful spirits seemed right.

Below the bookshelf lay the diary she'd dropped, still there.

As she picked it up, Charlotte continued speaking.

"In here too, it kept saying sorry, that he wanted to leave."

She opened the last page where it had been written.

"...Huh?"

However, the pages that had been covered with the words 'sorry' and 'I want to leave' repeated like madness were now stained black.

She flipped through the diary again with a rustle.

There had definitely been white pages remaining in the middle and at the very end—two places—but now they were all stained black.

"...So what if that's true?"

Then Michael asked dryly.

Charlotte paused and raised her head to look at him, still standing by the door.

His face was very dark.

"You're saying that apology was written to the creatures?"

He let out a bitter laugh. He looked exhausted somehow.

"Someone who reads minds like you should know."

"...You think I read your mind?"

It was an incomprehensible statement, but Michael didn't answer her question and continued speaking.

"That wasn't written to the creatures. It would be to me or Mother. Hell began after Father took his own life. Did you come here to remind me of that?"

Charlotte blinked.

"...I didn't know that."

She closed the diary and fiddled with its cover.

"...I'm sorry for bringing up bad memories."

"I see."

"...I'm sorry."

Feeling like she'd reminded him of something deeply unpleasant, she apologized hesitantly.

After a long silence, she glanced at him before opening her mouth.

"...That."

She felt guilty about constantly bringing up his father's death, but she'd already started speaking.

"In the dream, your father seemed... not in his right mind at the end. If he married Adeline here and lived long enough to have you, he must have been someone who stood firm for a long time, even though I don't know much."

"...And?"

"In the dream, it seemed like he saw the truth about the estate and investigated what the creatures were before he died. I came to find what he researched. In the dream, the entire desk was covered with papers... so I was going to search the drawers too. Anyway, as I said before, the creatures are tangible and visible to me, but I think they're vengeful spirits. If that's correct, once we know the reason, we might be able to eliminate them."

"You keep saying the creatures are vengeful spirits, vengeful spirits. Do you have a reason? Are you trying to trap us in some scheme again—"

"When did I ever trap you in a scheme?"

Charlotte picked up Nero, who'd been sitting at her feet.

[Why?]

"I told you he's a demon, right? He says he's been in this estate for 36 years."

[...No, like this—]

Mikhael's face didn't move at all.

"Be quiet. Nero knows why this estate became like this, but there's a binding spell so he can't speak. Why, remember when that electric current flew out last time? That was when he told me about the creatures—that there's a reason the creatures hate humans enough to kill them. Then wouldn't they be something like vengeful spirits?"

"How am I supposed to believe that?"

Since the topic had come up, Charlotte decided to explain everything about Nero.

She carried Nero over to Mikhael.

"Nero, stick out your tongue."

[Huh? Show him? No way!]

"I'll kick you out."

[Why do you keep trying to explain things to him? Just—]

"Shh."

[...Damn, fine!]

He'd been irritated with Michael lately, so Nero turned his head away with clear reluctance and stuck out his tiny tongue.

[Happy?!]

Even though small, the golden magic circle shone clearly.

Michael's eyes widened very slightly.

"I'll say it again—he's a demon, and because his main body is weakened, he's using this body someone gave him. Transform, Nero."

[...No, Master. Seriously! What's the point when he'll twist everything you say anyway?]

"...Hurry."

[Ugh, fine. Transforming is exhausting, you know.]

He grumbled, but in an instant, red light burst forth and he transformed into a man.

Seeing him again, his appearance—completely unlike rabbit Nero except for the color—was honestly a bit unsettling.

"Huh, what?"

Instead of immediately snapping at Michael as expected, Nero patted his own chest here and there, then tilted his head.

"It doesn't feel hard? Oh, did I get a lot of my power back? Oh!"

"...A man?"

Michael muttered.

He returned to his expressionless state instantly, but Charlotte had definitely seen a flash of confusion cross his face just moments ago.

Feeling a bit hopeful, she tapped Nero, who was making a fuss feeling himself and exclaiming in wonder.

"Just show him your eyes quickly."

"Ah, I have to show him? He won't believe it anyway."

Finally stopping his commotion, Nero looked Michael up and down with clear displeasure at her words.

"...Just once."

He thrust his face toward Michael.

His back was turned, so Charlotte couldn't see, but he must be showing his pupils tearing vertically.

After just a few seconds, Nero pulled back with a scoff.

"This body is a demon, brat. You should really believe Master. Don't regret it later when you're beating the ground."

He stuck his tongue out mockingly before instantly transforming back into a rabbit.

Mikhael slowly looked between Nero and Charlotte.

Still, this time he'd seen the binding spell on Nero's tongue, seen that he was a demon—hadn't he wavered even a little?

This time, she hadn't just told him with words but shown him many things, so Charlotte secretly hoped Mikhael might believe her just a little.

But immediately afterward, his face twisted as if he'd thought of something.

"...I don't believe it. I won't believe you. The day I believe you will never come."

[Aaahhh, seriously. Just believe her already. This is unbearable!]

Nero screamed in frustration.

"...Ah, yes. Do as you like..."

She hadn't expected much, but Charlotte still felt a bit deflated and let out a deep sigh.

But what could she do?

She tasted the bitterness of defeat again today as she turned away from him.

She began pulling out the books jammed into the bookshelf one by one.

"What are you doing?"

"I told you, I'm looking for records. There were definitely a lot of them in the dream."

He asked coldly but didn't stop her.

He seemed curious too.

Charlotte sat down completely and piled up several books she'd pulled out, opening them.

Unless it was an artifact or something similar, magic should have been broken once the caster died and the mana disappeared, but the magic he'd cast must have been incredibly strong—every book she opened was jet black.

One book, two books, three books...

The pile of books she casually tossed aside kept growing.

Mikhael didn't interfere with her, and Nero grumbled about whether this meant anything while yawning widely.

As time passed, she too was about to abandon almost all hope, but—

"...Huh?"

When she'd tossed aside countless books and opened the last book remaining on the shelf, a single sheet of paper fluttered down from between the jet-black pages.

Not blackened. With something written on it.

"Michael!"

Without time to think, Charlotte reflexively called out to Michael.

[Oh, what?]

He didn't answer, but she'd only called him reflexively from the thrill of finding something, so she didn't care.

Charlotte flipped the paper over.

Written on the paper were three short lines.

Ah, Father.

What have you done?

What sin have you left behind?

Handwriting scrawled violently, as if written while not in his right mind.

Scattered ink stains.

Father? If it was Michael's father's father, then Michael's grandfather?

It could simply be about something else, but if this was a record about the estate—

What had Michael's grandfather done?

Were the lumps vengeful spirits derived from that?

Charlotte instantly looked down at Nero to see if her guess was correct.

The demon rabbit with vertically split pupils glanced at the paper, then narrowed his eyes into thin crescents without a word.

She was right.