Chapter 19: The Order of Veil [2]
Mikael stood outside the Silver Rabbit Inn, leaning against the cool stone wall with his arms folded, staring straight ahead.
The evening air had turned brisk, carrying the faint tang of chimney smoke and the distant murmur of the city.
His face was perfectly neutral, but beneath the stillness, his thoughts churned restlessly as his right gloved index finger drummed against his arm.
He was lost in his thoughts when he suddenly heard the loud sound of pounding hooves and rattling of wheels against the cobblestone, which pulled him back to the present.
He turned to his left as he saw a carriage barreling straight toward him at full speed, bouncing hard over the uneven stones.
The carriage hadn’t even stopped before the door flew open and a figure burst out of it in a blur of black, rushing towards him.
Mikael barely had time to draw breath before the whirlwind descended upon him.
A gorgeous young woman with long, luscious black hair that spilled like a dark waterfall over the shoulders of her fitted black jacket stood before him.
Her face was a mask of controlled fury and barely restrained panic.
"Jeann—"
"Shut up."
Her hands clamped down on his shoulders like iron vises, pinning him firmly in his place.
’... She’s strong.’
He hadn’t even seen her move.
One moment, she was in the carriage, and now directly in front of him.
Her fingers dug into him with a grip that felt like it could snap bones.
’Is she already Tier 5?
’No.... Probably already close to High Tier 5.’
That would put her among the top three in her year at Astralspire Academy.
Her emerald eyes lit with a soft glow as she swept her gaze over him from head to toe, more than once, which he guessed was some kind of diagnostic spell.
The glow faded from her eyes as she let out a quiet breath she’d been holding throughout the scan, then released him.
"Are you alright"?
"Yes." Mikael said with a small reassuring nod. "I’m fine, nothing happened to me."
She stared at him for a long moment, searching his face for any trace of deception.
She let out a breath she seemed to have held for a very long time.
Before he could say another word, she stepped forward and pulled him into a tight embrace.
Her arms wrapped around his back, one hand rising to cradle the back of his head as her fingers threaded gently through his hair.
"Thank Goddess, you’re really okay. I was really worried."
Mikael froze for a moment, caught off guard by her sudden hug and vulnerability in her voice.
She’d been genuinely worried about him.
’....’
’No.’
She was worried about her brother.
The real Mikael--
The one whose face he now wore, whose life he’d accidentally stolen.
He was nothing but a stranger inside Mikael’s body.
As guilt coiled tight around his chest.
He knew it wasn’t his fault that he had been thrown into this body.
He never asked for this.
But that logic felt flimsy against the ache of seeing her like this.
He could also understand her emotions--her worry, to some extent.
He had been an older sibling, too.... in his past life.
A little sister whom he had lost when he was nineteen.
And that wound of losing her never truly closed, even to this day.
Watching Jeanne crumble against him scraped against his old scar, filling his throat with an empathy that hurt almost as much as his guilt.
Slowly, his arms moved up on their own, wrapping them around her.
"I’m sorry..."
He murmured into her shoulder.
’I’m sorry for taking your brother’s place. Sorry that I can’t tell you the truth....’
Jeanne stiffened.
Mikael’s embrace and soft apology caught her completely off guard.
It had been years since he had hugged her back.
She knew the rift between them was the result of her own past actions, and she’d carried that guilt into every attempt to make things right.
Now, with his hands folding her in without reservation, she buried her face in his shoulder for a moment.
’Maybe they really could go back to how things were supposed to be.’
She exhaled a long breath and pulled herself back.
The softness in her expression evaporated, replaced by the crisp professional demeanor she always wore.
"Now tell me everything from the beginning," She said, her tone leaving no room for argument. "Don’t leave anything out."
Mikael nodded and told her about the whole situation in detail.
Jeanne listened in silence and said.
"I see, so that’s what happened.... You handled the situation well. Refusing to give any statement without a legal representative was the right call."
She paused as her jaw tightened.
"I should have assigned another knight of our family to watch over you the moment I noticed Mr. Dyre was missing. Instead, I left that adventurer in charge, and—"
’...??!!’
"But that fool bolted the second he saw you walk into the Mo—"
She stopped mid-sentence, glaring at Mikael.
"You knew about it?" Mikael asked.
"Yes, I am aware where you went yesterday after our meeting."
The sound of wheels rumbling over cobblestones drew their attention as they saw a carriage approaching.
"I’ll need answers when this is over, and don’t try to lie to me this time."
"Ah. Yes."
Mikael said, straightening under the weight of her gaze.
’She’s kinda scary.’
Soon, a black carriage came to a halt in front of the Silver Rabbit Inn.
The door swung open, and a tall man who was easily over six feet stepped out.
He had close-cropped red hair and a trimmed beard framing his jaw, wearing a darker uniform of the Order of Veil with a long black jacket hanging on his shoulders.
Behind him, his two subordinates followed silently.
The man’s red eyes swept over the inn’s hanging signboard before settling on Mikael.
He didn’t even acknowledge Jeanne, his eyes entirely fixed on Mikael as he spoke.
"You’re Mr. Mikael Morwell, I presume."
"Yes, you presume correctly." Mikael met his stare unflinching. "And you are?"
"I’m Captain Edmund Varn, Order of the Veil. I’ve been assigned to investigate the recent string of... unusual deaths in Thornhaven.... And it seems your knight has become the latest addition to that list."
Edmund’s tone was flat and even, with no courtesy, deference, or nod of the head.... no respect towards the High Nobles as one should expect.
Captains of the Order were Tier 6 Awakeners, their authority on par with that of a low-ranking noble.
But that was no excuse for insolence toward someone of Jeanne’s station--who was an heir of the Marquess House.
Mikael’s mind went cold when he heard the name, Edmund Varn.
’Shit.’
’Of all the captains the Order could have sent, why did it have to be this particular asshole?’
No wonder the man’s face felt familiar.
Mikael had seen that face too many times on a computer screen, always attached to trouble.
Edmund Varn was an NPC—or a minor antagonist of ’Eclipsed Realms’, depending on the routes you choose.
He was the type of character who only appeared if you chose to play as a protagonist of noble birth.
And since Mikael was a high noble, that meant the captain might end up as a minor antagonist for him.
He had deep hatred for aristocrats due to his tragic backstory.
Mikael couldn’t remember the exact details, but it was something about his mother that had curdled into a deep abiding hatred for anyone born with nobility.
Edmund was the kind of man who believed that the truth was worth almost any price.
If exposing it meant that a few innocent people had to get burned, he would not hesitate.
To him, their suffering was never a tragedy; it was simply the cost of doing business.... the necessary toll paid to bring light into a dark world.
He didn’t see himself as cruel, but as a cold justicer...
’In short, he’s bad news.’
Especially for him right now, given his current situation.
Jeanne stepped forward as she positioned herself slightly in front of Mikael.
"Captain Varn. I am Jeanne Morwell, heir to House Morwell. I trust you will conduct this investigation with the proper protocols."
Edmund’s gaze slid to her, and the contempt in his eyes deepened.
"Protocols, Lady Morwell, are whatever the Order deems necessary in the pursuit of our duties. I trust you understand that."
The air grew heavy with unspoken tension.
"Now."
Edmund continued, turning his attention back to Mikael.
"I will need to examine the remains and the scene. And I will need to speak with an eyewitness then."
****
