Gun of Ashes

”Are you pretending to be asleep?”

Yawei looked at the small bundle on the bed. Although she made no sound, having cared for Selyu for so long, he knew the girl was already awake.

Having been found out, Selyu slowly sat up. She had slept well and looked much more refreshed.

”This reminds me of when you first came back home.”

Yawei said with a touch of nostalgia.

At that time, Selyu, having returned from Gaulunaro, was filled with distrust for the world. For her, she didn’t even know what the Stuart family was; she didn’t even have that concept. Like a wild cat, she hid in various corners of the mansion, unable to sleep peacefully.

This situation improved only after a long time, as if the girl had learned to trust the world again, or to disguise herself.

”Lorenzo taught me this. If you wake up and feel something’s off, pretend to sleep and observe the environment first.”

The girl said.

Lorenzo might have been the most influential figure in her life. The second-rate detective had instilled many strange pieces of knowledge in Selyu, and this knowledge continued to influence her actions.

”He said it was something he learned from getting beaten up countless times, like when an enemy catches you and locks you up. As soon as you wake up, you’ll get a severe beating. In that case, it’s better to keep your eyes closed and play dead, sparing yourself from pain.”

It sounded rather reckless and nonsensical.

”A bit surprising. It doesn’t quite sound like something that guy would say.”

Yawei, seeing Selyu more spirited, was pleased.

In Yawei’s impression, Lorenzo didn’t seem the neurotic type. To him, Lorenzo was a very dangerous man, and it was all just a façade.

”Indeed, essentially Lorenzo is a Demon Hunter. This is just something he learned at the Royal Academy of Arts. He said instead of putting on a cold face, this kind of lively exterior lets him blend into the crowd.”

Selyu recalled and assessed Lorenzo and his disagreeable yet flawed personality.

”So where am I now?”

She looked around the room. There was no extra decoration, just cold steel and pipes, as if they were inside some large machine where someone had built this room in the gaps of machinery.

”I don’t know. They blindfolded me on the way here. It seems they aren’t keen on letting others know about this place.”

Yawei replied.

”I’m supposedly a shareholder, right? Do I not even have this tiny bit of authority?”

Selyu joked, but her expression remained cold. She actually knew well that she wasn’t much of a shareholder, just someone the Purification Mechanism found difficult to deal with, given a way out.

It was a pure force organization, only answering to the Queen in the Platinum Palace. Apart from orders from there, no one could command them.

Efficient, decisive, cold, having discarded all cowardice and hesitation, forsaking all of humanity’s dark sides, thus being able to build a bastion of hope amid the tide of demons.

Sighing heavily, this time Selyu was at the center of the whirlpool, although she didn’t quite understand why. Thinking back to the final fragments of her memory, the Demon Hunter who came with such imposing presence.

”Where is Lorenzo? Why isn’t he here?”

”He left after bringing us here.”

The old butler said.

”You seem to like him a lot. Aren’t you mad at him for what he did to you?”

Forcefully using tranquilizers—anyone else would be somewhat angry, not to mention Selyu. She was the future Duchess; everything Lorenzo did could be seen as a provocation to the family.

”Of course not.”

She got out of bed, feeling well enough, able to run and jump without any major issues.

”Of course I’m not angry... I trust him very much.”

Selyu said.

”Actually, Yawei, I understand what you mean. I am the offspring of the Stuarts, the future Duchess. I possess power and wealth, things others can never attain in a lifetime... I should be proud and fearless, shouldn’t I?”

Yawei silently watched her, saying nothing.

”You find it hard to understand why, given how good the family is to me, I still like to run around with that lunatic.”

”I understand all this... It’s just, I’ve never really felt like I truly owned any of this, Yawei.”

Selyu sat back on the bed, gazing at the tightly closed iron door. It appeared to be locked, only openable from the outside.

”I’m a beggar, only lucky enough to carry the blood of the Stuarts. It’s not me who is noble, only the blood that flows within me.”

”So, even now, do you still feel like a beggar?”

Yawei slowly stood up, sitting beside Selyu. His aged face had a hint of sadness, as if he wanted to say something, hesitantly asking, seemingly unable to contain a secret waiting to spill out.

But Selyu didn’t answer these, instead she continued talking.

”The time I remember most fondly is actually the escape journey from Gaulunaro. That must have been my happiest days.”

”Just because Lorenzo rescued you from there?”

Yawei looked at her with some curiosity.

It was an age of youthful innocence, where all feelings were the purest and most passionate.

Ordinary girls would dance in their beloved dresses, yet at that time, it was such a helpless environment; perhaps Selyu became attached to Lorenzo then.

”No, it wasn’t.”

Strangely, Selyu denied this conclusion.

”It was that moment.”

She emphasized.

”The sky was cold, those guys were unfriendly, no family, only a helpless beggar like me... That should have been my most desperate moment.”

That forcibly recalled past, in the worn cold alley, a branch world where Lorenzo did not exist.

”Just because of that moment, even if it wasn’t Lorenzo, even if a stray dog took me away, I would forever love it, just because of that moment, and then he happened to appear.”

A madman holding a Winchester kicked open the dark door, and light poured in.

”Hmm... although he just wanted that nice reward.”

Selyu said somewhat helplessly, that madman tricking her all the way, risking his life to bring her back, and all for that bit of reward... but it was still a memorable experience.

”Even though you say so much, I still can’t like that damned guy.”

Yawei said lightly.

In response, Selyu smiled.

”You don’t have to force yourself; there’s no need to like everyone, and there’s no need for everyone to like you... Just having one or two is enough.”

Humans may be social animals, but the connections between people are not numerous. Sometimes you realize that though you meet many people each day, only a few can truly stay with you.

”Then... is he really worth your trust?”

Yawei asked, seemingly understanding the girl a bit.

The girl’s smile gradually froze; she hesitated and then shook her head.

”Lorenzo Holmes is quite unusual. Actually, he’s a true recluse, his existence’s meaning... too fragile.”

”Everyone has a purpose for existing. I aim to continue the Stuart family, inherit that noble glory. You need to assist me and fulfill your own mission, but Lorenzo is different; actually, his existence’s purpose is merely to root out demons, but can he really achieve that?”

”It’s like an unattainable dream.”

Selyu scrutinized the hidden soul, basking in sunlight, transparent and clear.

”If you carefully observe his room, you’ll notice it; Lorenzo’s room lacks any sense of ’life.’ To him, it’s just a place to sleep; if necessary, he could grab a shotgun and leave, never to return.”

”Besides that ultimate goal, there’s nothing worth his concern, and even I am the same.”

Saying this, Selyu glanced at Yawei beside her, the old butler who served the Stuart family his whole life, witnessing their rise to fall, from flourishing to nearly extinct.

The wrinkles on that aged face etched by time, perhaps having witnessed too much, made his soft face harden, showing little expression.

”I’m really sorry.”

Selyu suddenly said, then embraced the old butler; upon closer look, Yawei appeared quite sturdy; Selyu couldn’t fully embrace him.

”What’s wrong?”

Yawei felt somewhat confused, for Selyu was not usually as sentimental as now.

”I just feel very sorry, the large sum of money you spent hiring Lorenzo just to let Stuart continue, yet I always dislike it, causing trouble for you.”

”You sound like you’re leaving a last request, you know?”

”Perhaps I’m just thinking of a lot of words that won’t have the chance to be spoken.”

Selyu, holding Yawei, gazed past his shoulder to the cold wall.

From Yawei’s perspective, the room contained only him and Selyu, as well as that unknown source of the rumbling mechanical sound.

But in Selyu’s ears, the faint barking echoed, refusing to let calm descend.

It was a sound only she could hear.

The beacon had already been planted, and the incessant pressure was eroding Selyu’s will, waiting for her most weary moment to take advantage.

She was just an ordinary person, but at this moment being watched by that invisible entity, it was everywhere, chasing Selyu.

Selyu hoped Yawei wouldn’t worry too much, for he was just an elderly butler. Facing demons, he might not even act before fear of erosion caused a sudden cardiac arrest; indeed, aging is quite helpless.

Letting go of Yawei, Selyu barely managed a smile, she said.

”However, hope should be placed in that demon hunter, right? I think he’s pretty capable.”

She said this, and immediately the door was opened, in an instant that faint barking vanished, as if something had come, and they retreated out of fear.

Lorenzo, with a blank expression, stood at the doorway, Arthur stood behind him, appearing as if they had already made a decision between them.

The atmosphere was somewhat oppressive, as if a storm was about to arrive.