Chapter 62
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 62
'The Day of Souls and Mediums—a day when spirits become more prevalent than the living.'
This was how Aunt Elicia defined October 31st, the Eve of Saints' Day. Before passing down the beautiful secret that had been treasured throughout her family for generations, she gazed at me slowly, taking in every detail.
Had someone merely glanced at me in passing, they might have dismissed me as just an ordinary lady with brown hair. Yet, just as no two snowflakes share the same pattern, I possessed a uniqueness unlike anyone else. Within my hazel eyes swirled a beautiful blend of fear that I might not be able to save the one I loved, and a tender courage.
'At times you seem like a child untouched by the world's corruption, and at other times like a wise and mature woman who has grasped the nature of all things. Perhaps that is why no spirit, no wish, could bring itself to refuse your desire....'
After gathering her thoughts for a moment, Aunt Elicia began speaking to me in a hushed, measured tone.
"On October 31st of the year your uncle passed from this world—on Hallow's Eve—his spirit appeared to me in the vivid form he had worn in life. The same was true of other spirits who had not yet fully crossed into the realm beyond death."
Aunt Elicia pronounced each word slowly and precisely, as though sharing the most precious and beautiful memory she possessed.
"My mother—your grandmother—who revealed to me that I was a medium, told me that on the Eve of Saints' Day, all spirits appear in their complete form, having reclaimed their flesh. The reason the ball that night became a masquerade was so that we would not be startled upon seeing the spirits mingled among us."
My eyes widened upon hearing Aunt Elicia's words. So that was the reason behind the rule that everyone wore masks on the Eve of Saints' Day. Until now, I had believed Jane's explanation—that masks were worn at the ball so that young men and women could whisper their affections to one another in secret.
"Then... does that mean spirits become visible even to those who are not mediums on that day?"
I asked in a voice that trembled slightly.
"Yes, Charlotte. But not all spirits choose to remain in this world, so I was very fortunate to meet my beloved husband again."
Aunt Elicia answered with a smile as gentle as autumn sunlight. Then, gazing at the sun as it sank lower in the sky, she continued in a voice that carried the cadence of poetry.
"That night, my husband and I danced together until dawn, spoke together, and embraced. Until that final moment when the light of dawn illuminated the house and the sunlight took away your uncle's form... we gazed upon each other and whispered words of love."
I watched Aunt Elicia, her expression dreamy and distant. A beloved's form stolen away by sunlight. It was a manner of parting all too familiar to me.
As I struggled to hold back tears that threatened to spill over, Aunt Elicia began speaking again, slowly and deliberately.
"And after that night, I never saw your uncle again. Not on the Eve of Saints' Day the following year, nor in the years after that, nor in the years beyond...."
"Then, Aunt Elicia, the reason you don't match with anyone every Eve of Saints' Day is...?"
Charlotte asked carefully, her eyes glistening with tears. Aunt Elicia then withdrew her gaze from the sky and instead looked into Charlotte's beautiful eyes as she answered.
"That night is when I remember the last evening I spent with your uncle. Though I cannot see him again now that his soul has found its rightful place, when that night arrives, I sit in the chair where he loved to sit and recall the Eve of Saints' Day when we danced together."
Charlotte looked at Aunt Elicia with a sob escaping her lips.
"...Why didn't Uncle choose to remain in this world? How could he leave Aunt Elicia alone like that, knowing you would be sad and lonely...?"
Aunt Elicia, nearly seventy years old, had lost the husband she'd spent a lifetime with twenty years ago. And all this time, every Eve of Saints' Day when everyone else enjoyed the masquerade, she had been alone in her dark house remembering him. Charlotte felt as though her heart would shatter.
Yet Aunt Elicia wiped away Charlotte's falling tears with her thumb and spoke.
"Oh, Charlotte. He did not leave me."
Though she had every reason to grieve, Aunt Elicia's tone seemed instead to comfort Charlotte.
"Nothing—not even death itself—can take away love. Love, once you choose to follow it, cannot change even if it tries, cannot disappear even if it wishes to."
Hearing Aunt Elicia's words, I found myself recalling the final thought I'd had as I left Mrs. Smith's Cottage—when I believed Leopold was truly dead, that his body no longer existed in this world. That was when I had understood.
'Even if His Majesty's soul someday fades and he becomes invisible to my eyes forever, my love for him will be eternal.'
Then, as if Aunt Elicia had read my very thoughts, she continued.
"Death is like the sound of a piano drifting from the next room—it exists in a different space, yet it is undeniably present in our lives. To live is to draw closer to death, so preparing well for death is the same as building a happy life."
Aunt Elicia's voice was like a song that offered solace.
"To be able to continue loving that person not only during the time of life but also within the time of death—that is truly precious and beautiful. Don't you think so, Charlotte?"
It seemed similar to what Mrs. Smith had said about love having many forms, or what Jane had said about love being like the seasons—though it may seem to change briefly, it is eternal in how it always repeats.
Having finished my thoughts, I answered hesitantly.
"...I think I understand, at least a little. Truly, Aunt Elicia."
Death and love—still such a complex subject. Yet Aunt Elicia, who had lost her beloved husband, did not appear lonely or sorrowful. She simply held me close with gentle movements, like a dancer surrendering herself to the distant sound of piano music.
"Our brave Charlotte. How swiftly you learn to love on the very threshold of death. Yes, I know that your desire to save the Prince is not merely to ease your own loneliness."
Aunt Elicia patted Charlotte's back as she spoke.
"Yes, Charlotte... the time draws near now."
Aunt Elicia released her embrace and gazed directly into Charlotte's eyes. Unlike the warmth of her arms, her transparent blue irises gleamed with a piercing brilliance.
"Go now, Charlotte. It seems the place where you envision meeting with his spirit has been prepared."
Aunt Elicia pointed toward the horizon where the sunlight was nearly spent.
"There you shall find vital knowledge concerning the span of his life. And then... as it has always been, Charlotte. Follow your own heart, not the thoughts of another. Before the Eve of Saints' Day, after it, always..."
Aunt Elicia imparted her counsel to Charlotte with a clear voice.
***
Leaving Elicia's House, Charlotte moved toward the forest behind the Augusta Estate as though entranced by some invisible force. Every tree save the firs had been painted in pale gold and crimson.
'I walk through the forest mostly at night, so I never noticed the leaves had turned so brilliantly.'
Charlotte ventured deeper into the forest, her thoughts drifting.
'Come to think of it, when the Prince and I first walked through this forest, the trees were thick with green leaves. The Garden was full of summer delphiniums and anemones.'
Looking about, unnamed autumn flowers in white and violet hues bloomed sporadically between the fallen leaves.
Soon after, Charlotte arrived at the Secret Place she and Leopold shared. On the gentle Hill where they usually spent their time, the sunset filtering through dense fir branches cast shadows. Where the silvery Stream once flowed, only a desolate Valley remained, carved and empty.
Charlotte settled slowly before the barren Valley.
'Aunt Elicia's words to listen to death, and the cries I heard at the Oslo Estate Ball... Surely the four murdered porters have something to tell me?'
A gentle breeze whispered against her ears. With a faint sigh, Charlotte's heart grew calm. The sunset glow, which had shone through the trees in a crimson deeper than fallen leaves, gradually faded, and all living things in the forest, including her, cast shadows in the blue light.
How long had she sat there before that Valley?
"Good heavens!"
A small gasp escaped Charlotte's lips. As the sunlight dimmed, silver water began to gradually fill the Valley before her eyes. Since she had always come to the forest in the dead of night, this was her first time witnessing the Stream rising with the coming darkness.
"The Spring of Souls... if this is the place..."
Then, from the center of the Valley, a sound resembling a mournful song emanated from the Stream as its volume steadily increased. Charlotte found herself moving her lips without conscious thought.
"I... I'm listening."
Even Aunt Elicia had said that no one could teach me how to communicate with other spirits as a medium. Therefore, all I could do was appeal to the spirits according to my instincts.
"I don't mean to disturb your slumber, but if there's something you wish to tell me..."
Charlotte swallowed hard, then began speaking with a voice that carried more confidence.
"I know you met sudden deaths in connection with Prince Leopold's disappearance. I also suspect that Tiffany Martin, who may be your family, could be involved in this matter."
Immediately, the Stream filling the Valley began to flow rapidly, as if responding to Charlotte's voice.
"At the Oslo Estate Ball last time, you tried to tell me something, didn't you? The scent of blood and screams—perhaps something about Harrison..."
Splash—
In that instant, accompanied by a tremendous splash, a form resembling a large fish leaped from the middle of the Stream.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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