“The Brutus family is said to have smoked out and hunted members of the Brotherhood.”
“Then wouldn’t that make them the enemy of werewolves?” Rock asked anxiously.
She didn’t doubt Johanna’s loyalty to Ebel for a minute. But it was hard to believe werewolf hunters now served and worked alongside a werewolf.
“They used to be, yes. None of them have seen a werewolf in centuries. They have simply passed down the stories to their descendants,” Ebel replied quite casually. “But my father said it would be easier to find an accomplice in someone who knows about werewolves to some extent rather than someone who doesn’t know a thing.”
His golden eyes softened with nostalgia.
“I needed to hire a new maid after I was cursed. They needed to be someone who knew about werewolves or would easily believe me without being scared. Thinking someone from a clan of werewolf hunters would be perfect for the job, my father searched until he found Johanna.”
“I see…”
Unfamiliar scenery started rolling past the windows just as Ebel was happy to see Rock was convinced by his story.
As the name suggests, the holy church district was where all the religious organizations congregated inside the imperial capital.
Cathedrals of various sizes lined the streets, and this was where imperial citizens often came for everything from daily worship to religious festivals. In addition, there was a vast cemetery on the outskirts of the district, housing many mausoleums built by wealthy families.
Obviously, Rock had never visited before. There wasn’t a single place of worship located in the slums, and even if a caring priest came to spread the wonder and majesty of his faith, few cared to listen. Worse yet, many scurried back home after being deprived of all their possessions.
Rock was fully aware she wasn’t a believer.
But, just for today, she wanted to genuinely pray for Ebel’s father to rest in peace.
The carriage came to a halt and Rock stepped out with her hand resting on Ebel’s.
A faintly sweet-smelling breeze blew over the cemetery filled with moss-covered mausoleums and an endless sea of tombstones on the outskirts of this district.
While the imperial capital’s ordinary citizens were laid to rest under weather-beaten tombstones, people from certain families—rich ones to be exact—were allowed to build mausoleums instead. Not that they were immune to weather; they all looked just as old as the tombstones they overshadowed.
Moss grew on their stone walls, vines crawled up their pillars, and the coat of arms carved into the doors to indicate which family they belonged to had been scraped away by wind and rain.
“It’s this way, Roxy.”
Ebel escorted Rock to one particular mausoleum.
The Mateus family mausoleum showed its age just like the other ones they’d passed. The stone door was engraved with the same family crest as the carriage, and Ebel unlocked it without a second’s hesitation.
“Please come in. Candles have been lit, but watch your step.”
This was Rock’s first time entering a mausoleum.
There weren’t any in the rural village she’d grown up in. Her mother Vale had been laid to rest in the communal grave at the edge of the village, and Rock hadn’t been back to see her since moving to the imperial capital.
Feeling guilty for leaving her mother alone all this time, Rock followed Ebel inside the mausoleum.
“Wow, it really is bright inside…”
Rock accidentally let that comment slip out because the interior was far better lit than she’d expected.
Lanterns had been mounted in all four corners of the mausoleum that was bigger than her apartment, making every detail visible.
There was only an altar carved with statues of God on the stone wall with no casket in sight. Flowers and lit candles decorated the altar, and the length of the candles and freshness of the flowers indicated they were likely laid out that morning.
“I told the caretaker I would be visiting today,” Ebel told Rock, responding to the surprised look on her face. “I didn’t want to bring you to a mausoleum that hasn’t been opened up in ages.”
Now that he mentioned it, the air inside was unexpectedly clean and fresh. There were no unpleasant odors—on the contrary, it actually had a refreshing scent reminiscent of a forest.
“It’s such a curious place,” Rock marveled, giving her honest opinion.
“Right?” Ebel gave a small laugh. “There’s no casket even though it’s a grave, after all.”
“There’s none at all?”
“Strictly speaking, it’s hidden behind this altar.”
Ebel pointed to the other side of the altar. Of course, that side was blocked by the altar and the stone wall, making it impossible to see anything.
“We aren’t allowed to touch the bones.” Ebel’s golden eyes narrowed on the wall as if he could see what was blocked from view. “This is considered the boundary between the living and the dead.”
“But it’s not a scary place, is it?”
Rock had imagined a more frightening place when she heard it was a mausoleum. But it was actually more comfortable inside here than outside with the sea of tombstones.
“No, it’s not. A mausoleum is a place to think about those who are no longer with us.”
Ebel walked up to the altar and pointed to the newest name engraved at the foot of the stone deity. His finger gingerly traced the letters.
“Cyrille Mateus. That’s my father’s name.” He turned toward Rock, his eyes imploring her. “Roxy, won’t you please pray for my father?”
“Of course. I came here to do just that,” Rock replied, bowing her head, eyes closed, in front of the altar.
Rock wasn’t religious, but she didn’t mind praying for the dead.
She wasn’t acquainted with Ebel’s father. She’d only a vague idea of him from what she’d been told. But she was motivated to pray sincerely for his soul to rest in peace because she knew how much Ebel loved him.
Rock was able to reunite with her father while he was still alive. And if that wasn’t a great enough blessing, she was now living with him, enjoying fairly peaceful days under his loving protection.
On the other hand, Ebel’s father had passed away, leaving a chasm of unhealed hurt between them. They could no longer make up for the regrets they each held.
So Rock prayed for the soul of Cyrille Mateus to rest in peace.
I will take over caring for Ebel now.
So, please be at peace.
“…I wanted to bring you here at least once.” Ebel took a deep breath after praying for much longer than Rock. “I’m aware this isn’t a proper place for a date. Thank you for accompanying me anyways.”
“I’m happy to have had the opportunity to meet him.”
“It means a lot to hear you say that.” Relief washed over Ebel’s face as he smiled at Rock. “I’m also grateful you met my father. I’m so glad I could introduce you.”
When he put it that way, Rock couldn’t help being a little bothered by her quickly assembled dress. If only she had more time, she could’ve put her heart into making a piece that would show off her skill to his father.
“To be honest, I wish I could’ve introduced you in person…” Ebel muttered, the pain and loss evident in his tone. Then he shook his head as if he’d decided to look at it another way. “I know what he would’ve said if he met you. That’s enough for me.”
Rock’s curiosity was piqued by that comment.
“I wonder what he would’ve said about me.”
As Ebel had said himself the other day, Rock was truly an enigma.
She was a slum-dweller, a village girl, and a cross-dressing tailor. Her father was a cross-dressing former mercenary, and her mother was the daughter of a nobleman who’d fled home.
If they’d had the opportunity to meet and talk, he definitely would’ve been entertained by her personal history alone.
“My father would definitely have liked you,” Ebel asserted with confidence. “And like I said before, ‘You are very much like your father.’”
“…There’s no higher praise than that.”
A bashful, girly smile blossomed on Rock’s face.
From the way he said that, she could sense how much Ebel trusted his father and the depth of his connection with her own father. She definitely felt a bond established with this man she’d never met from visiting his grave.
“Would you like to come with me to visit my mother’s grave someday?” she asked as the idea hit her.
“Of course, I would love to,” Ebel agreed on the spot. “Please take me with you next time.”
“Thank you. She was buried outside the capital, so we’ll have to travel some distance to get there.”
It took about half a day by carriage to reach the farm village where she was born and raised. That was one of the reasons why she hadn’t visited her mother’s grave. But it wasn’t the only reason—Rock didn’t have a single pleasant memory with anyone from that village except her mother.
“Then shall we make it an overnight trip?”
Ebel’s enthusiastic voice cut through the dark memories permeating Rock’s thoughts. Her eyes went round as she registered his suggestion, and he winked suggestively at her.
“Did I say something funny, Roxy?”
“N-No… I-I don’t think so,” Rock hastily denied it, realizing she was overthinking things.