CH 95
#095. The Weeping Woman (5)
"What did you do to Lady Lenia!"
Dnain charged at Ray like an enraged bull.
His fists swung relentlessly.
Whoosh—! Whoosh—! SWISH—!
These attacks were far more vicious and brutal than what had been seen earlier in the open field.
The red mana coursing through Dnain's body revealed he was under the effects of an enhancement spell—likely granted by the necklace's power.
SWISH—! Whoosh—!
But they were merely fast, strong strikes devoid of technique.
Not a difficult opponent.
Ray dodged each attack with minimal movement while attempting dialogue.
"Wait..."
"How dare you threaten Lady Lenia!"
BAM—!
"Listen..."
"You made Lady Lenia weep! Now! Now! Leave this mansion! Or I'll kill you!"
CRASH—!
......
Aren't you the one making her cry?
You're destroying the mansion.
And you'd have to let go for me to leave anyway.
Though the exact reason was unclear, Dnain displayed blind loyalty to Lady Lenia—attacking indiscriminately while viewing Ray as an outright enemy.
Dialogue won't work here.
Stalling seemed unlikely to yield useful information now.
The empty vessel still intrigued him, but more pressing matters demanded attention.
Especially since, at this very moment—
「AAAAAAHHHH──!」
—Lenia's scream echoed as
CRACK! CRUMBLE!
the mansion continued collapsing around them.
Securing Philip and Veronica's safety comes first.
THUD!
Having decided, Ray kicked off the ground and lunged.
In an instant, he coiled his limbs around Dnain's neck in a chokehold.
"Ghk, kkhh!"
THUMP! CRASH!
Ray released his grip and stepped back. After confirming Dnain's unconsciousness, he immediately bolted through the door.
"There he is! Over there!"
"Drive him out of the mansion!"
The dim hallway.
Children charged from all directions.
Crimson mana flickered across their bodies like alarm sirens.
"How dare you harm our Lady!"
They ignored falling debris and tremors shaking the structure.
No—more accurately, they seemed unaware of the mansion's collapse. Their mental states were clearly abnormal. Lady Lenia, the children—all of them.
THUD!
Ray pivoted mid-stride toward the hallway's opposite end. There wasn't time to subdue every child.
"Here he is!"
"Block him! Corner him!"
Dodging attackers at every turn, Ray raced toward Philip's presence. Soon enough—
"Back off! You brats! Keep your hands to yourselves!"
—he spotted Philip atop a tall display cabinet down a corridor.
"Grab him! Reach further to catch his foot!"
"Drag him down and kill him!"
Philip swung a mop handle at the children below until noticing Ray. His face lit up.
"Ray! Sir! You're all dead now!"
Without slowing, Ray plowed through the crowd.
THOK! THOK! THOK!
Children collapsed like cut puppets after precise strikes to their necks. With Ray's help, Philip climbed down.
"What the hell's happening? The mansion shook, so I came out, and these kids just attacked."
"First, find Veronica. I'll explain everything then."
The two sprinted through corridors until spotting Veronica ahead, her back turned.
"Veronica, are you alr……! …Right. Forgot she's a mage too."
Philip awkwardly eyed his mop handle. Several children floated midair before Veronica, bound by wind magic as they flailed uselessly.
"Leave this mansion!"
"Those who make our Lady cry don't belong here!"
THOK! THOK! THOK!
Ray's swift strikes rendered them unconscious. Their bodies dropped as Veronica released her magic.
"Ugh… The mansion's collapsing, kids are attacking… What suddenly…"
「AAAH—! Out—! You murderers! Leave my mansion—! AAAHHH—!」
"...happened? Whatever's going on seems thoroughly messed up."
The crystalline scream made Veronica tense again despite her earlier relief.
"Lady Lenia entered my relocated room earlier," Ray explained rapidly.
"So she tried using a necklace to put you in the same state as these kids, but fled screaming when the lights turned on? To the fourth floor?"
"Right. Definitely linked to Merkred."
"But why react like that to light?" Philip frowned as Ray produced a diary and photograph.
"What's this?"
"Found them in the room."
Both faces hardened upon examining the contents—Philip's especially.
"The boy in the photo… must be Lady Lenia's son."
"……"
"It says, 'Sorry I couldn't protect you.' Don't tell me… he died…"
"……"
Veronica continued during Philip's silence:
"My grandfather taught me about trauma. Maybe the light triggered bad memories? She was already unstable…"
Bad memories.
Likely tied to her son Joshua's death.
"Ray… what will you do?"
"……"
The safest option was immediate evacuation.
Protective spells might withstand the collapse, but escaping the rubble afterward would be another matter entirely.
One wrong move and you could get seriously injured.
'With Denain and the other kids to look after, holding out in the mansion is getting even harder.'
He'd already made a promise to find the missing children. Even without the promise, they were informants who'd walked the streets gathering information—he couldn't just abandon them.
Creeeeak───!
Boom!
A large ceiling fragment crashed down beside Ray. The collapse was progressing faster than expected.
'No time to waste. The best option is to lure Denain and all the kids out of the mansion.'
But doing so would make it impossible to get information directly from Lady Renia's mouth. The necklace might also break. Above all—
"Philip."
"Huh? Wh-what?"
"Do you still think Lady Renia could be your mother?"
"......"
Creeeak──
A brief silence fell. Even a fool could tell their lives were in danger if they didn't hurry out of the mansion. Yet Ray asked this now.
'...He's giving me a choice out of consideration.'
Philip bit his lip hard. Given the evidence about Mercred's organization and the diary's contents, the possibility of Lady Renia being his mother was nearly zero. But he'd still entertained the thought.
How wonderful would it be if such a kind, loving person were his mother? How heartbroken must she have been when she lost her son?
'...I want to save Lady Renia. Honestly, I do.'
Her identity didn't matter in this moment. But Philip wasn't tactless enough to push his desires whenever he pleased. If anything, he was twice as perceptive as others his age, fiercely determined not to burden the group.
"No. I don't think that."
Philip parted his lips to give a delayed answer. But Ray's response stunned him.
"You're lying."
"Huh?"
"Don't lie, Philip."
His heart plummeted. Ray's gaze had shifted to his chest—where his emotional vessel resided.
'Ah.'
He remembered anew: he couldn't hide his emotions from Ray.
"Veronica, circle through the halls and lure Denain and the kids out. Count carefully so no one's left behind. The unconscious ones weren't hit hard—they'll wake soon."
"Got it. I'll try."
"Philip and I are going to the 4th floor to stop the collapse."
Philip hastily interrupted Ray's instructions:
"Wait! Shouldn't we all just escape—!"
"Philip."
Hearing his name, Philip clamped his mouth shut. Though Ray always embodied seriousness, it felt especially pronounced now.
"This is my decision. We need to hear things directly from Lady Renia's mouth."
"......"
"So I'd appreciate if you trusted and followed me."
Not a word about doing this for Philip's sake. Whether intentional or not, Ray framed their ascent as his own objective—clearly easing Philip's guilt.
"...Alright. You're the leader."
Deep gratitude blossomed in Philip's vessel.
After finalizing their plan, the group prepared to split.
"How often will I get to herd this many boys in my life?" Veronica joked nervously, clearly out of character.
"They're not really my type though," she added with a sidelong glance at Ray—her hopeful gaze completely lost on him.
'Oh ho,' Philip smirked.
"Cover your ears. Both of you."
They obeyed instantly. Ray took a deep breath until his chest swelled:
「I'm here! First floor! Central hall!」
His amplified shout echoed—an application of Lady Renia's voice-enhancing magic without its destructive elements. It reverberated throughout the first floor.
—There they are!
—Everyone's here!
Children soon appeared at the hallway's end.
"See you later, kids!"
Veronica cast reinforcement magic with minor barriers before charging toward them. After watching briefly, Ray and Philip began running.
Creeeeak───!
Staircases scattered throughout the halls led upward.
The boys ran—dodging debris, climbing shaking steps, leaping over collapsed floors—all while Lady Renia's screams echoed.
"Philip, how long until the mansion collapses?"
Gasp "Not...pant...a builder...wheeze...maybe...pant...less than 10 minutes..."
Ray agreed. The collapse was accelerating beyond reversal. Lady Renia's vessel neared explosion.
'We need to hurry.'
At least her screams' direction remained constant. The boys finally reached a grand 4th-floor door. Nodding, they pulled the handles.
Kreeeeak──
The door opened with a deafening screech.
AAAAAH───!
WHOOOOSH──!
Piercing screams and gale-force winds nearly knocked them over.
"What kind of wind—!"
"......!"
The relentless gusts whipped their hair and clothes. Bracing themselves, they squinted into the room:
AAAH──! AAAAAH──!
Lady Renia stood at the center.
WHOOOOOSH──!
A typhoon of wind swirled around her—books, clothes, furniture fragments, and concrete debris racing through the air.
At the storm's eye:
Her emotional vessel raged uncontrollably. One emotion dominated in size and brilliance—
Sorrow.
Pink-hued mana.
The very shade occupying the largest portion within that boy's ring.
