32. Amor, the God of Love
There was a small secret room connected to the study, but even that had not been an exception.
Moreover, it had already been ransacked when the estate was confiscated. She couldn’t have been the only one who knew about such a space in the mansion, and the study was obviously the first place anyone would search.
But who said there could only be one secret room?
Ansi began searching every room on the first floor.
The dining room, the drawing room, and the guest rooms—none of them looked as they once had. The cold walls, empty drawers, and dust-covered windowsills all gave off a chilling unfamiliarity, as if she were in a stranger’s house.
In that strange house, Ansi quietly continued her search until she finally discovered something in a seemingly unremarkable empty room.
A small gap in the bricks of the fireplace.
She slipped her fingers into the gap and felt something catch. When she pushed it, click—she felt the sensation of a switch activating, followed by a creaking noise from somewhere else.
It was coming from the display cabinet.
Ansi approached and pulled the cabinet with both hands. Despite its heavy appearance, it moved surprisingly easily. It seemed there were wheels attached underneath.
And there, on the floor beneath it, a handle came into view.
“……!”
When she grasped the handle and opened the trapdoor, stairs leading down into a basement were revealed.
Ansi slowly descended.
The revealed space was tiny—just large enough for four or five people to lie down in, barely.
But something about it felt strange.
“What is this place for?”
There was no sofa or bed, so it wasn’t a space for resting. And it couldn’t be a room for storing classified documents too sensitive for an office or study—there were no shelves or desks.
All that was in the room was a single framed picture on the wall, and a small drawer beneath it.
Ansi gazed briefly at the painting of an old woman and a young man, then cautiously opened the drawer.
It slid open easily.
Inside were a small hand mirror and a worn-out picture book.
Ansi picked up the palm-sized book. When she opened it, she saw an illustration of a man and a woman who looked very happy.
She read the text beside the picture.
There once was a man who loved his wife dearly. He feared that she would pass away before him.
Why would a book like this be hidden in such a secret place?
The reason soon became clear.
The man went to Amor, the god of love, and made a wish. He asked to be able to foresee the day his wife would die.
This wasn’t just a children’s book. It was a story cloaked in fairy tale form that described the power of the Rubelsa family.
If the Rubelsa family’s abilities were inherited, then the man in the story who sought Amor must have been one of her ancestors.
Ansi hurriedly flipped to the next page.
Amor said, “I’ll grant your wish. But in return… let me decide the end of your life. If you prevent your partner’s death, then the end of your own life will draw closer.”
Ansi swallowed hard.
The price of seeing Damion’s death in advance—was her own life.
Suddenly, that terrifying pressure and fear that had once squeezed her heart returned to her. Even now, it felt as though her heart was held in someone else’s hands.
The man agreed. Amor took the man’s heart. He then dreamed of the day his wife would die and saved her from the brink of death. Though the man only lived another ten years, he never regretted it. Ten years with his wife were happier than thirty years without her.
The fairy tale ended quickly. On the final page was another picture of the man and woman, gazing at each other happily.
“Ah…”
A faint sigh escaped from Ansi as she closed the book.
Her lifespan…
It was quite a steep price to pay for the life of an enemy’s brother.
And yet, Ansi didn’t regret saving Damion.
Even if her life had been shortened, it didn’t matter. After all, if her plan to destroy Orphe succeeded, she intended to die along with it.
As long as she didn’t die before the revenge was complete, there would be no problem.
Ansi placed the mirror into her handbag and packed the fairy tale book as well. Just as she was about to leave the room, she turned back and removed the picture from the wall.
An old woman sat on the ground, looking up, while a young man reached his hand out to her. What stood out was that the old woman was bathed in light, while the man stood in shadow.
And around the man’s neck was something strange—an oil-slick shimmer of color that seemed out of place.
‘Just in case…’
Ansi removed the picture from the frame and rolled it up.
“Ansi!”
Roma’s face lit up when she opened the door. It was the first time seeing her since the wedding. Even though she knew this emotionally distant girl wouldn’t have come without a reason, Roma still allowed herself a bit of hope.
“What brings you here?”
“I want to sell a few things.”
Of course. Roma let out a long sigh.
“Something happen?”
“Yeah. Your seeing me means something happened. So, how’s married life treating you?”
“These first, please.”
Ansi pulled some trinkets out of her bag and laid them on the table. No wonder her handbag had looked stuffed—there was quite a bit.
Roma raised an eyebrow as she looked them over.
What Ansi had brought were gold decorations.
But something was strange about the way the bottoms were finished…
Ah, they must have been pried off something—like from the legs of chairs or beds.
“How’d you even get these off?”
“With a saw.”
“A saw? You? You can use a saw?”
“Tools exist to be used. There’s no reason I couldn’t.”
Without so much as a flicker of emotion, Ansi calmly met Roma’s gaze. Roma liked that subtle brazenness and those oddly unfocused eyes. She wanted to keep this girl around for a long time.
With a smile, she asked,
“Did you tear these off your husband’s house?”
“No. From the Rubelsa estate.”
“Oh my, stole them from home, did you?”
“In a sense.”
“They said the government cleaned the place out a year ago, but I guess they missed these.”
“Can you sell them?”
“They’ll love these at the backdoor auctions.”
“Please take care of it.”
“Come back in a week.”
Rather than refusing, Roma’s eyes sparkled with interest.
This was fortunate for Ansi.
She needed funds in case she couldn’t freely use the money given by the Orphe household. Even if she could use it, she needed extra money to support Sophia after her revenge was complete.
“Don’t you have anything else? Your bag still looks full.”
Roma glanced at Ansi’s bag. But inside it was only the mirror. There was nothing else she could take out here.
“The rest are personal items.”
“And that picture? You’re not selling it?”
“That too.”
Ansi moved the rolled-up picture out of sight.
“Hmph…”
Roma narrowed her eyes suspiciously but soon let it go.
“Oh, right. About that request you made before the wedding.”
“Yes?”
“I destroyed everything—documents, records, reading cards under the name ‘Laine.’ I couldn’t erase people’s memories, though.”
She wrinkled her nose playfully.
“Thank you.”
Ansi’s request had been to erase all traces of ‘Laine Arel.’ It was only the second job she’d asked Roma to handle. The first was to create the name Laine Arel.
So it made sense to have Roma erase it as well.
“But someone’s been looking for you. Gray-haired guy with sharp eyes…”
Ansi froze.
That description… It was definitely Gerys.
He’d been persistently hounding her for unagreed interest payments. She’d left the southern region without paying him, so he must be looking for her in a rage.
A chill ran down her back. She could still vividly remember him grabbing her by the hair.
“Do you know him?”
“……No.”
“Good.”
Ansi forced her anxiety down.
There’s nothing to worry about.
Gerys wouldn’t be able to find her.
She wasn’t in Saul, the southern region anymore. She wasn’t even going by the name Laine.
She’d be fine. She would be fine.
Ansi steadied herself and walked out of the shop.
“Laine skipped out.”
Gerys’s sneering voice echoed through the dark room. The loan shark who’d hired him sat at a desk, indifferently smoking a cigarette.
Watching the rising smoke, Gerys frowned. This idiot had lent money to so many people he didn’t even remember who owed him what.
Gerys slammed his hand on the desk and raised an eyebrow.
“Laine Arel. The pretty-faced girl who borrowed four hundred Russ a year ago.”
So high and mighty, yet she didn’t even have four hundred Russ and had to borrow money. Laine Arel. Foolish woman who didn’t realize how quickly four hundred would become a thousand, then five thousand.
According to what he’d found, Laine had boarded a train to Felitz without permission after abandoning her home.
Gerys was now waiting for the order—to track her down and bring her back.
If he got the word, he could chase her to the ends of hell itself.
