“Uh, um…”
Overawed, Ada wondered whether she should encourage him with a You’re working very hard, aren’t you!
Elliot said, “What are you, a stalker?! Are you following me or something?!”
“N-n-n-no! No, that isn’t it!”
At the unexpected accusation, Ada explained in a panic.
She told him she was only patrolling the school in order to properly carry out her responsibilities as a member of the disciplinary committee. Elliot just happened to be wherever she went, and she hadn’t meant to startle him or get in his way. Of course, she said, it was perfectly all right for him to ignore her completely.
Ada spoke emphatically, seriously, earnestly, with an expression of utmost sincerity on her face.
“…Oh, yeah…?”
Even as he listened, Elliot’s brow was twitching. He seemed to be getting more and more irritated.
At last, when he’d heard her out, Elliot said:
“Ada Vessalius. You, you…”
Calling to Ada in a very low voice, glaring at her with dangerous eyes, he jabbed his index finger straight out at her in accusation:
“You—have rotten timing!!”
“………I-I’m sor…ry…?”
Bewildered by his intensity, all Ada could do was apologize.
“Aaah, dammit!”
Elliot spat the words out, kicked the ground lightly with his toe, and turned his face from Ada.
“I don’t have time for this. I’ve got to find it fast, or else—”
With that, he ran off. Left alone once again, Ada murmured, “So he is looking for something…” What could it be? If she knew that, she might be able to find it for him while she was out on patrol.
I wonder what Elliot-kun could be looking for so desperately…?
She was sure it must be something terribly important.
Gerald
Petty weeds can be withered at any time
When, after his fall on the stairs, Gerald dragged his aching body back to his own room, he found that another slip of paper had been pushed under his door. Gerald read its contents, then immediately crushed it in his hand and pressed the hand that gripped the paper to his forehead.
“Dammit, dammit, dammit…”
The message was written in an intentionally bad hand, just like the warning to resign from being prefect.
The “weeds” were probably him. And the “can be withered at any time”…
When he’d been pushed down the stairs, they’d gone easy on him, but if they felt like it…
At any time…they could…?
Did it mean they could kill him?
For an instant, he shuddered. Then anger welled up.
“That little creep Marcel…”
He said the name as if he were squeezing it out between his clenched teeth.
As a prefect, he was doing a good job. The only one he could think of who would harbor malice toward him was his assistant Marcel, who’d realized that he was secretly issuing orders to the younger students.
Prefects were expected to abide by even stricter rules than the other students, so that they could serve as models for them and give them guidance. Gerald’s treatment of Marcel had been a way to slightly relieve the pressure of his constricting life at school.
He hadn’t considered it as anything more. He’d even thought of himself as toughening up the effeminate Marcel. Educating him.
And even so.
“…That little rat!”
Gerald struck the door violently.
“I’ll find out for sure,” he muttered. Although he was convinced, he had no positive proof that Marcel was the culprit. In that case, he’d interrogate the boy himself and make him confess. Once he’d confessed, he’d hurt him so badly he’d never be able to bare his fangs at him again, and that would be that.
That was all it would take.
Gerald stepped away from the door to his room and began walking down the corridor.
Then. Suddenly.
“Elliot isn’t likely to forgive you.
“If Elliot won’t forgive you, neither will I.
“Remember that, senpai.”
The words Leo had said to him in the first-floor entry hall rose in his mind. Since Elliot was a son of the House of Nightray, Gerald couldn’t help but be aware of him, but up until now, he’d barely even noticed his valet Leo.
Not only that, if the spacey underclassman hadn’t been Elliot’s valet, Gerald might have used him as a target to burn off stress instead of Marcel. He hadn’t thought of him as anything more than that.
However.
“Remember that, senpai.”
The instant he’d heard those words, a strange chill had raced through his entire body. Leo’s tone had been peaceful, and the expression hidden behind his hair had been a sunny smile. …And yet Gerald had felt as if he’d had a knife…no, fangs, pressed to his throat.
What had that sensation been? No matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t understand it.
It had been all in his head; he’d been shaken by his fall down the stairs. Forcing himself to think that, Gerald chased Leo’s words from his mind.
He set off for the large room where Marcel lived.
Elliot Nightray
…There it is…!
As he was running all over the school grounds, Elliot spotted the white cat in the maple grove. As soon as the cat noticed Elliot, it turned tail and ran deeper into the trees.
“Wa…WAaaaaaaaaaaaaAIT UuuuuuuuuP YOOooooooooooooo!!”
With enough force to completely use up his remaining strength, Elliot launched into a furious sprint…
…Trailing the end of his yell behind him.
“oooooooooooooooooooooouuu—!!”
Ahead of him, the white cat leapt and ran, as lightly as if it were dancing. In contrast, the two words “Catch It” had risen in Elliot’s glittering eyes. The spell “Catch-it-catch-it-catch-it-catch-it” was monopolizing his entire brain.
The sky was getting darker and darker. If he lost sight of the cat again, that would be that. He was going to catch it, no matter what. He was absolutely, positively going to catch it.
Elliot had become a hunting dog completely controlled by the thought “catch it.”
…Maybe that was why.
Ahead of him, the grove ended, and as his field of vision opened up, he saw a building. When the white cat went through the back door and into the building, Elliot ran in after it without a moment’s hesitation.
Chasing the white cat, he dashed down the straight corridor that led from the back door. Before long, the corridor turned left, and he saw a stairway leading up to the second floor. When it came even with the beginning of the stairs, the white cat changed directions with a bound and began to run up them. Like a gale, Elliot rushed up the steps as well.
Taking the stairs three at a time, he followed the white cat into a corridor where the candles had been lit and kept on running. Ahead of him, a bend in the corridor was drawing closer. The distance between him and the white cat was shrinking.
It’s mine! Elliot thought.
Then, from around the bend, still out of sight:
“Ahh, that bath felt wonderful.”
“It’s nice to go in before dinner, isn’t it?”
“By the way, dear, your bust has grown again.”
…He heard voices in conversation.
Coming back to himself as if he’d been struck by lightning, Elliot involuntarily opened the nearest door and dived in sideways. He rolled over and over on the floor, then got right back up, ran to the door, and shut it.
He was in some room somewhere. The room was completely deserted and nearly empty, with only a few wooden crates stacked in a corner.
After a bath?
Busts growing?
It was the sort of girls’ conversation that was never heard in the school building. Confused as he was, Elliot held his breath.
Several voices and sets of footsteps were co
ming closer.
“…Hmm? Did you hear something just now?”
“Did you? I didn’t hear a thing…”
“It must have been your imagination.”
Ba-dmp ba-dmp. His heart was thudding away. He was afraid they might hear it through the door.
“Oh, the underthings I bought the other day are marvelous.”
“They are a bit too bold, though, don’t you think?”
The voices passed by the door and receded.
Involuntarily turning red at the candid conversation, Elliot held very still. Silence filled both the corridor and the room. As he worked to get his ragged breathing under control, he thought desperately. He’d been so focused on chasing the white cat that he hadn’t even considered what the building he’d run into might be.
But.
Just maybe.
It couldn’t be.
What if.
“I-is this place—” Elliot muttered. His voice was trembling.
And then:
“The girls’ dorm.”
Abruptly, a voice spoke right by his ear, startling Elliot so much that he jumped. When he whipped around toward the voice, his forehead struck another forehead that was right next to him. Sparks filled his vision. When he managed to look, his eyes misting, the person who stood there was…Leo.
“You! Le—… Mmph!”
Elliot had been about to yell, but Leo clamped a hand over his mouth. He put the index finger of his other hand to his lips and whispered, “Shh.
“I was walking around looking for you, and I saw you in the grove. When I followed you, you dashed straight in here. That was a shock. Right into the girls’ dorm. Do you know what’s going to happen if anybody sees you in a place like this? You do know, don’t you?”
“Ugkh.” Elliot could only groan.
The Lutwidge Academy girls’ dormitory.
It was sacred territory, completely forbidden to boys. It was said that a horrible punishment awaited any boy who broke that taboo. No, worse than the official punishment, worse than anything: If word that “The Elliot Nightray sneaked into the girls’ dorm!” were to spread, what would happen to Elliot’s life at school?
A murky image rose in his mind.
No matter where Elliot went, in the halls at school or in the courtyard, the students around him would whisper:
“Oh! That’s Elliot-kun!”
“You’re right, it’s Elliot Nightray!”
“Elliot Nightray, son of the House of Nightray, one of the four great dukedoms!”
“Elliot Nightray-kun, son of the House of Nightray, one of the four great dukedoms, who sneaked into the girls’ dormitory and tried to peep~!”
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaugh!
Elliot was shaken to the core. His face was the color of despair.
“Yes, yes, calm down.”
Moving deliberately, Leo pinched Elliot’s nose, hard.
“Fugah!” With a weird yelp, Elliot seemed to regain a bit of his sanity.
Breathing hard, he glanced at Leo.
“W-we’ve got to get out of here fast, or else—”
When he’d gotten that far, he realized that something was odd. He’d leapt into the room, closing the door himself.
When he’d entered the room, it had been empty.
Even as he thought this wasn’t the time to be talking about things like that, Elliot had to ask.
“Leo, how did you get in here?”
“Huh? I already told you. I saw you go into the girls’ dorm like a savage beast—”
“‘Like a savage beast’ is uncalled for…and that’s not what I meant!”
Elliot glanced at the room’s window.
From there? No, he was dimly aware that this was the third floor. That wasn’t plausible.
Seeming to pick up on Elliot’s question from his gesture, Leo answered:
“Oh, that.”
In a casual motion, he pointed at the wall. It was just a blank, undecorated wall.
“The wall?” Elliot looked dubious.
“It’s been a long time, but I read a book about the school’s history once. It said that the Lutwidge Academy school building and dorms weren’t originally built to be a school and dorms; they were used for…all sorts of other things. And so there are hidden rooms in them—and hidden passages.”
“You mean…”
“Right. Narrow spaces in the walls between rooms, so that you can get outside without anyone noticing. What was I reading…? I think it was a pretty rare banned book—”
He didn’t care about the circumstances surrounding the book. He was just grateful for Leo’s voracious reading habits. However, begrudging even the time it would take to whoop with delight, Elliot leaned close to Leo, urging him on in a whisper:
“Great! We’ll get out that way, then. Hurry, Leo!”
Finding himself caught by the shoulders and pestered, Leo said, “Okay, okay,” sounding rather disgusted. He crossed to the wall. Just to be on the safe side, Elliot flattened himself against the door, trying to monitor what was happening in the corridor outside. Far away, he could hear footsteps approaching the room. His heart gave a nervous leap.
Leo was patting down the wall. Elliot glanced at Leo and urged him on in a very small voice. “Step it up!” But Leo was touching the wall here and there, then tilting his head in perplexity. Finally, he turned back to Elliot, crossing his arms over his head in an X.
Then, in the same very small voice as Elliot, he said:
“It’s no good. It’s old, and it looks like it broke. The mechanism in the wall won’t move.”
Whaaaaaaaat?! Elliot screamed, silently.
Even as they spoke, the footsteps traveling down the corridor arrived in front of the room. On reflex, Elliot held the doorknob. His heart was pounding fit to explode. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead. And the footsteps…went straight past the room, without stopping. They receded again.
When he couldn’t hear the footsteps anymore and silence had returned, Elliot went limp, collapsing to his knees.
No matter how many lives he had, he thought, it wouldn’t be enough to get him through a crisis like this one.
He looked at Leo with eyes that were growing dim from accumulated fatigue. Leo was gazing vaguely up at the ceiling; there was no telling what he was thinking. He called to him—“Leo”—but there was no response. Leo was a bit like this when he was absorbed in a book. Deciding he couldn’t count on him, Elliot thought.
We’ll just have to risk it and go back the way I came in!
Just as Elliot resigned himself to that tragic idea, Leo murmured:
“I guess it really was that. That banned book.”
Leo brought his eyes down from the ceiling and looked at Elliot.
“I only read it once and it’s been years, so I don’t remember it all that well, but I may be able to find another secret passage.”
“…Seriously?”
“The only one I was sure about was the one I came in by, so… It’ll be a gamble. What do you want to do?” Leo asked, looking Elliot straight in the eye.
Elliot looked back, silently. Leo’s expression was hidden behind his shaggy hair and glasses, and on top of that, the room was dim, so he couldn’t read his face. However, even without looking directly, Elliot knew his valet’s expression as if it were his own. He knew, and it made him want to smile wryly.
You know it’s—
Even in this, a situation that was, in a way, the biggest crisis of their lives.
You know it’s just his usual smug look.
Leo was waiting quietly for Elliot to speak. “Okay,” Elliot said, firming his resolve.
“It’s all up to you. Do it, Leo.”
At that, Leo’s expression softened slightly, and he spoke with a simple, genuine smile:
“—Understood, Master.”
Blue Rose Club
Now this is a bit of a problem…
Josephine si
ghed, quietly. The Blue Rose Club members’ enthusiasm was dragging on longer than expected. The common room on the third floor of the girls’ dorm was filled with cheerful voices, and the conversation showed no signs of dying down. The dinner hour was drawing near.
She hadn’t thought the topic of Master Blue Rose running around the school would expand this far.
It had begun with Mia’s fantasy.
“I’ve been thinking! Might not Master Blue Rose be secretly fighting against suspicious persons who are attempting to infiltrate the academy?! Wouldn’t that suit him?! Master Blue Rose doesn’t make close friends because he is kind and does not want to involve them in his battle. If so, he might have been running around the school in pursuit of a villain he hadn’t quite managed to defeat… Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
It was a childish bit of make-believe, and quite like Mia.
She’d fully expected the other girls to simply giggle and let it pass without comment. However, after Mia, another girl spoke up.
She seemed a bit embarrassed, as if she were confessing an unrequited love.
“I-in that case, I’ve also imagined something. There was a report that Master Blue Rose had a coughing fit while practicing with his sword in the grove, alone… Last month, wasn’t it? It gave me an idea. Suppose Master Blue Rose is afflicted with an incurable disease and is suffering? And then, every night in the dormitory, ‘the other’ nurses him tenderly.”
At once, delighted cries of “Ooooooooh!” went up.
“That is first-rate.”
“I think the contrast with his strength of will is exquisite.”
“Yes, it’s too, too wonderful.”
“L-listen, my dear, about that incurable illness—”
“A secret known only to Master Blue Rose and ‘the other,’ of course.”
“Of course it is!”
“Of course it is!”
“Of course it is!”
The girls squealed and giggled noisily.
Their excitement was so great that requests for more tea came one after another.
Then another girl spoke, enthusiastically:
“Would you listen to my story, then, too?”
…And a third fantasy began.
This game was both sweet and dangerous: Unlike real reports, they would never run out of material. When the third tale ended, a fourth girl began to speak.
PandoraHearts ~Caucus Race~, Vol. 2 Page 6