Thiendavis – For The Perfect Salvation

Chapter 28: I'm Glad, I'll Enjoy It

Evie Ariate held Yubia's hand, bracing herself for various possibilities.

Yet, nothing happened.

Yubia's sudden change of topic to the ceiling above had disrupted any potential event.

"But who's upstairs?"

Yubia inquired unexpectedly.

"The Count."

Evie replied reflexively, feeling as though her heart had dropped.

Despite having teased him just earlier, the Count remained a formidable presence to her.

Moreover, as Evie was covertly utilizing his secretive identity against him, she realized that talking too openly could spell trouble for her.

"You don't need to know."

Diez interjected, covering for Evie's slip.

Yubia tilted his head curiously and asked Evie again.

"Are you close with him?"

"If 'close' means 'I'd kindly like to destroy him.' then yes, we're close."

Evie's true feelings slipped out once more.

She realized with a sigh that she had a rather twisted nature.

Meanwhile, Yubia's already triangular mouth closed even more suspiciously.

He seemed uncertain about something, prompting Evie to quickly divert his attention.

"Is it a problem if someone else is upstairs?"

Evie asked.

"No, not really."

Yubia shook his head, erasing his curiosity about upstairs and clasping Evie's hand again.

"I'll show you what I see. You might be surprised, but it's not dangerous, so don't worry."

Yubia reassured her, closing his eyes.

Evie followed suit, gently closing her own eyes.

As she did so, Yubia's soft hand felt even warmer against hers, and she found herself amused by the thought that even boys could be this cute.

『Can you hear my voice?』

Yubia's voice resonated in Evie's ears, even as they sat across from each other holding hands.

Startled, Evie turned her head to see what was happening.

What she saw took her breath away.

Moments ago, she was cozily seated in a chair, but now she found herself floating, neither standing nor sitting, suspended in a void.

Surrounded by endless darkness, it wasn't pitch black.

Beyond the darkness, twinkling lights, both large and small, made her feel as though she were sitting in the midst of a night sky.

『You followed well』

Yubia's voice echoed once more, breaking Evie's reverie.

She glanced around, discovering a hand-sized entity floating next to her.

"Yubia?"

Evie asked, half-believing, half-doubting.

The white creature, resembling a rabbit, nodded its head, and Evie clamped her hand over her mouth involuntarily.

Oh, something this adorable was downright unfair.

Yubia, no longer a boy but a small glowing animal, floated beside her.

Evie glanced down at herself, relieved to find she retained her human form.

『This is the world of Noche's Curse. Think of it as just a dream.』

Yubia explained, fluttering toward Evie's wrist.

『Do you see this?』

Yubia asked.

Evie followed his gaze to find something bound around her wrist.

『It's a medium for the curse. It connects you, the person who cursed you, and the snake.』

He elaborated.

Evie closely observed her wrist.

A long string wrapped tightly around her arm.

Both ends extended endlessly, vanishing into the distance.

However, the string's material or color remained elusive, flickering like mist or mirage, revealing no tangible form.

Curious, Evie reached out and grasped it, feeling the string's lightweight, slick texture.

Her emotions became complicated.

While she had already realized the grim reality of the curse, seeing it made the situation even more distressing.

『Follow this string』

Yubia instructed.

"In which direction?"

She asked.

『To the right. It leads to the person who cursed you』

Yubia guided, and Evie forced a grin.

To be linked so intricately with someone who cursed her felt like a burden she didn't want.

Suppressing her discomfort, Evie took hold of the string Yubia indicated and began to trace it cautiously.

The string stretched endlessly, with no end in sight.

However, as she tugged gently, the surrounding scenery abruptly changed.

Before Evie stood something similar to the string she followed, flickering in her vision.

Everything seemed vague, but the form identical in size and shape to her instinctively compelled her to murmur.

"A person?"

『Yes, the one who cursed you. Touch them, and you can sense who they are!』

Yubia prompted.

Without hesitation, Evie reached out.

Just as Yubia said, various sensations flooded her mind.

The figure was a woman, relatively young, yet icy as frost and hazy like mist, leaving Evie unsettled.

Who are you, and why did you curse me?

Evie wondered to herself, and in response, the woman's emotions towards her became apparent.

Indifference.

Disinterest.

A mild nuisance.

Evie was taken aback by the extent of the woman's apathy, despite having gone so far as to cast a curse.

It seemed to Evie that this curse was more about logic than emotion.

She desperately wanted to see the woman's face, or at least her hair color or build.

However, just like a flame, the woman's form flickered, obscuring Evie's vision.

Suddenly, the woman turned her back, and Evie's attention was drawn to another figure appearing before her.

『A snake!』

Yubia whispered in Evie's ear.

A snake?

All of a sudden?

Startled, Evie watched as the two figures began interacting.

The serpent, as Yubia described, knelt on one knee before the woman, akin to receiving knighthood.

The body bowed low was undoubtedly a man's.

The woman handed something small, light, and thin to the snake.

A handkerchief?

The snake received it with both hands, pressing it gently to his lips.

As Evie silently observed, the snake engaging in a pantomime with the woman abruptly turned its head toward Evie.

In that instant, Evie's body plunged downward.

"Aagh!!"

Evie screamed, feeling something grab her and drag her along.

Panic-stricken, she searched for Yubia, but he was nowhere in sight.

Amidst the whirlwind of darkness and flashing lights, she felt utterly disoriented.

Just when she thought she would be endlessly hauled away, an unsettling voice echoed through her ears.

『Have you come to meet me already?!』

The chilling voice made Evie gasp for air.

Realization struck, filling her with horror.

A giant, white snake coiled tightly around Evie.

Trapped within its menacing embrace, there was no escape.

The massive snake squeezed her, threatening to crush her.

As Evie groaned painfully, the snake chuckled lowly and whispered.

『I'm glad, I'll enjoy it.』

It said, opening its jaw wide to strike.

Evie thrashed desperately, struggling to break free and wake up.

Just as the snake was about to devour her, she managed to force her eyes open.

.

.

.

Evie drew a deep breath as if emerging from the water, finding herself back in the parlor of the two-story house.

"Are you alright?!"

Yubia asked.

"Not at all!"

Evie replied, her face paling as she inspected the goosebumps raising on her arm. Though everything was a blur, she knew she had narrowly avoided disaster.

Groaning, Evie turned to Yubia.

"You said it wouldn't be dangerous...."

she complained.

"The snake must have sensed us peering in, so it chased us!"

Yubia admitted sheepishly.

"I can't blame you!"

Evie sighed deeply, acknowledging that her prey—the snake—was not only cunning but also terrifying. Everything seemed to be going wrong, and she rubbed her forehead in exasperation.

As Evie caught her breath, Diez inquired of Yubia.

"Did you confirm it?!"

Diez asked.

"Yeah, I saw the snake too. Now I can distinguish it!"

Yubia answered.

"Can you track it immediately, then?!"

Diez asked again.

"Tracking is easy, but entering where the snake hides is difficult!"

Yubia explained, narrowing Diez's eyes.

"Is the snake hiding at the Clan of the Night's base?!"

Diez speculated.

"No, we don't like gathering in any one place!"

Yubia countered instantly.

"You mentioned there were three of them together a while ago!"

Diez reminded.

"They weren't gathering; they're confined. In the arena!"

Yubia explained calmly, causing both Diez and Evie to look up in surprise.

"The arena?"

Asked Evie.

"Yeah, a rich man in Vis set it up. Usually, he has mercenaries or beasts fight, but secretly, he hosts matches using the Clan of the Night."

Evie marveled at the idea of the notorious Clan of the Night being caged and treated like fighting dogs—it was hard to believe.

But there was another surprising revelation to come.

"That ruckus last New Moon in the village—it was because of the arena."

"What do you mean?!"

Evie inquired, perplexed.

"The Clan of the Night attracts curses naturally. With three of them confined in one place, intense curses flooded this district!"

Yubia elucidated.

The Clan of the Night, humans turned curses and curses clothed in human skin, inevitably drew curses with the coming of each new moon.

With not one, but three of them gathered, it was no wonder an anomaly had occurred.

Astounded by the information offered by Yubia, Evie was startled once more.

"... Aren't there four?"

She questioned internally.

Last new moon, Yubia had also been near the village.

Could he too have contributed to the unusual emergence of curses?

"Don't worry, I don't attract curses!"

Yubia assured, perceiving Evie's suspicion and speaking nonchalantly.

Then, digging inside his clothes, he produced a large pouch.

Wide enough to fill a grown man's hand, the pouch brimmed with fine crystals.

"Salt of Manyanya?!"

Evie asked.

"Yes, keeping this ensures curses don't gather, even by the new moon. But fresh salt is needed every month!"

Yubia replied with a calm assurance, and only then did Evie realize why he had demanded such a large sum of money.

Confronted with the new obstacle of the arena, Evie felt her head begin to throb.

"Can you sneak into the arena, Butler?!"

Evie queried.

"Are you pushing me too hard?!"

Diez sighed.

"What else can we do? I can't roll around myself!"

Evie answered glibly.

"Are you sure? I bet you'd do better than anyone!"

Diez countered.

Evie, quietly tempted to have Diez face the perilous unknown, noticed Yubia staring at her intently from the side.

Turning her head, she asked.

"Why are you staring?"

Yubia spoke with firm seriousness.

"The arena is truly a wicked place."

Naturally, an arena wouldn't be good; that was obvious.

"Don't just ignore it. You said you'd become a 'Saintess', right?"

Yubia struck a nerve again.

He seemed to expect Evie to be outraged over the matter, not knowing how unavailing her outrage felt.

As Evie pondered how to respond, a loud thumping from the ceiling indicated someone descending the stairs above—a thumping that sounded as though the person was stomping down in anger.

Evie was certain it was the Count's footsteps.

Quick footsteps echoed through the first-floor hallway and quickly faded as the front door slammed.

With the interruption, the conversation stopped, allowing Evie an opportunity to redirect her focus.

But she didn't need to.

Yubia had already shifted his interest outside, watching the Count's retreating figure through the window.

"Why so curious?!"

Evie asked, noticing Yubia's growing interest in the Count.

After hesitating a while, Yubia finally revealed.

"Did you know?"

"Know what?!"

Evie questioned.

"He's cursed too!"

Yubia revealed.

---