Although the explosion just now was quite loud and everyone heard it, after searching inside and out, they found no remnants left behind by the thing that blew up.
Even a burst balloon would at least leave some scraps of rubber…
It seemed this thing truly was some kind of extraordinary being—perhaps… With this thought, the Lady looked at the one at the center of the incident… Arthur.
At this moment… after hearing Holly’s description of the Clown’s appearance, he lowered his head and fell deep into thought.
That person had crouched on him in the dead of night, yet he had felt nothing at all.
But thinking about it, this actually wasn’t all that strange. After all… according to what Holly just said, a sharp stone had burst it apart.
So its body must have been like a balloon—almost weightless.
Still… thanks to Holly’s extremely detailed account, Arthur’s mind instantly sketched out a person’s image.
A thin, pale man, his face painted with makeup like a Clown, but with a perpetually miserable expression!
He remembered now. He remembered who that man was!!
“Clown… that was just… the Clown!!”
Arthur suddenly looked up, his gaze locking on the Lady in front of him!
“That’s the Clown, the Clown from the Golden Sun Circus. I can’t remember his actual name right now, but… but he definitely played the role of the Clown in the Circus…”
His tone was somewhat frantic, bordering on manic, and the look in his pale blue eyes grew increasingly confused.
It was as if even he didn’t understand what he was saying.
He seemed to have so much he wanted to say, but in the end, there was only so much he could express.
“Golden Sun… Circus?” Ileya was unhurried, just rubbing her chin.
So, this Golden Sun Circus must have a significant connection to Arthur.
Plus, with his earlier bard-like manner and skill with the harp…
Ileya even thought he… might well be a member of this so-called Golden Sun Circus.
That would also explain why this tall, thin man would come looking for him.
And as for a Puppeteer, or perhaps a Marionettist… that should be a profession within the Circus, right?
If so… then this whole matter could be pieced together.
These people weren’t here to scare Holly on purpose, nor were they looking for the others… Most likely, they were here for Arthur, searching for their “Bard”!
“Has anyone heard of this Circus?”
Ileya asked, turning her head to look at the others nearby.
But all of them instinctively shook their heads.
There were a few large Circuses in the east, but their activities were always fixed in place. After all, these were dangerous times.
Amisa, on the other hand, did know that an organization similar to this, active in the Crystal Capital—the largest city in the East—was called the Crystal Rose Performance Troupe.
Listening to everyone’s responses… Ileya let out a slow sigh.
Arthur had recalled it a little too late… If she were still in the Crystal Capital now, she could probably find the names of all the Circuses in the East very quickly.
But… what should they do now?
Should they make a trip back just for this clue?
No, no…
After pondering for a while, Ileya slowly shook her head.
These matters could be handled as they traveled.
If they managed to get answers along the way, that would be best. If not… they could look it up after returning.
In any case, the investigation of the Ancient Era Ruins was now the top priority.
The rest could be handled en route… or postponed until their return to the Crystal Capital.
With these thoughts, Ileya waved her hand once again.
“I understand. Let’s leave this matter for later…”
The Lady said, snapping her fingers with a crisp ‘pop’.
“Phew, with two incidents like this in one night, I doubt anyone can get any sleep.”
“This place doesn’t seem auspicious anyway, so let’s leave now. Once we reach a nearby village tomorrow, we can rest there.”
Naturally, no one had any objections to the Lady’s suggestion.
They all got into their respective carriages.
Meanwhile, Holly opened her mouth as if to say something.
She really didn’t want to share a carriage with those two zombies… It was truly uncomfortable.
But then she remembered how she had just been startled again by Second Bloom, and she instantly fell silent.
Maybe… this was the Lady’s way of training her!
If she was scared even of zombies that wouldn’t attack her, then when she encountered real danger again… she’d only be more helpless!
She had to train herself now!
Both her body and her spirit!
With an inexplicable sense of gratitude shining in her eyes, she looked at the Lady’s somewhat petite figure.
Then, Holly resolutely climbed into the back carriage.
At the same time, inside the study at Akki Valley Manor in the southwestern part of the kingdom…
“Big Brother… you called me over… just for this?”
A tall man with dazzling golden hair, an air of wildness and romance, stood beside the bookshelf.
The top two buttons of his white shirt were undone, revealing smooth lines of collarbone and chest muscles that would make any young lady’s heart race…
“Hmm… can’t you wear your clothes properly?”
The one he called Big Brother was sitting at the desk at that moment.
Though their facial features were seventy percent alike, his expression was always severe, as if his face were a Greek statue chiseled by knife and axe.
Of course, his most distinct feature wasn’t that, but the two strips of mustache on his face.
Exactly like the mustache of the Kelvidi Duke.
This man… was the eldest son “Jerros” mentioned by the Duke.
The other, with the unrestrained air, was the second son, “Franlot”.
“Phew… Father specifically named you to go and build a relationship with Miss Mingzhu, so why are you telling me about it~”
Ignoring his elder brother’s previous comment, Franlot shrugged nonchalantly.
“Didn’t I just tell you? After Father left… all the affairs of Akki Valley and the Southwestern Territory… are now dumped on me.”
Jerros twirled his mustache.
“I really can’t get away right now. You go in my place.”
Tch… Can’t get away? He just doesn’t want to go! And he probably doesn’t want that ‘notorious’ Lady Ileya either!
Franlot curled his lip in disdain.
When it’s something good, it never comes to me~ but trouble always gets thrown my way…
He was a seasoned womanizer; there were a dozen or so noble ladies in the territory who had ambiguous, undefined relationships with him.
Franlot himself… quite enjoyed this lifestyle, especially when two women fought over him.
But… because he mingled so closely with these noble ladies…
He’d also heard of that “Eastern District Jewel”… or rather, the “Bloodblossom Demon”.
Willful, domineering, ruthless, rude…
Utterly ignorant of noble etiquette, always swaggering around town with a giant dog.
A typical wastrel—just in female form.
That was almost the unanimous opinion of the noble ladies’ circle regarding her.
For a man like him, who loved to flirt, a political marriage… taking home a flower vase to look at was fine.
But to marry someone like that… Franlot was a thousand times unwilling!
Never mind what the Bloodblossom Demon herself might do, if he married his father’s old friend’s daughter and then went flirting with those ladies… his old man would probably skin him alive first…
“Enough! I don’t care what you think, Big Brother, but I’m not going! Talk it over with our little brother yourself~”
Franlot curled his lip, and without waiting for Jerros to say another word… he pushed open the door and left the study.
He had a party to attend tonight—he didn’t have time to waste here.