While the apocalypse had begun on Earth, on the other side, in a different world, in the small yet too big to be considered a city, Virelia, the siblings had returned to their home back at Western Upper street.
As they made their way inside their home, they saw their maid waiting for them. She had her usual blank face, and if it wasn't for Caleric, who was a psychology freak, one could mistake her for having no emotions at all.
Caleric could feel her emotions, he could sense the heavy weight she carried and the burden pressing on her.
Cally had been quiet the entire time. She saw their maid, which for some reason made her cry... tears started flowing down her cheeks and she couldn't stop. The maid hugged her and comforted her, like a mother caressing her child.
Looking at her, Caleric wanted to cry too, not the Caleric who was the psychology freak from the other world, but the memories of the original Caleric felt like crying. Caleric looked away, trying to calm himself down.
The maid looked at Caleric and opened her right arm, inviting him. She was trying to comfort him because she felt it was her necessary duty as their maid.
No, I'll pass on that. Caleric simply shook his head.
He went up to his room and locked the door from inside. Then he sat at the study table and began thinking, connecting everything that had happened until now, using both the past memories and his own memories since the transmigration.
Aron was murdered, along with the entire family, one day before we were supposed to leave.
The only thing this connects to is the warning those officials came to give last Sunday. That male general, what was his name? Emmett or whatever... he seemed to know something but couldn't speak it out loud.
If the murder and the warning are related, then that means the warning was about his murder; the officials knew that someone was conspiring to murder the Gnalet family.
But then why weren't they able to speak it out loud? Was it because Cally and I were present at the moment? No, that does not sound right.
Then again Aron was not stupid, he was smart, very smart... then why did he not take the warning seriously and leave the very next day? If only we had left the very next day, none of this could've happened.
Wait... the officials... there were military personnel amongst the group that came to give the warning. This is a blind guess but can it be that the murder has something to do with the rumored upcoming war?
I cannot eliminate this possibility. Aron was a Royal Noble, the title was given to him by His Majesty, the current reigning King of Quax... the murder of a Royal Noble should have prompted more action, no?
I guess there hasn't been much time since it happened, but still...
Caleric felt like there was something off about it. He clearly knew that Aron had multiple connections, and if someone were plotting his murder, he would definitely find out and quickly take action to prioritize safety for himself and his family.
The entire family was killed... can it be that the murder is now aimed at me and Cally? It would only make sense... but if that were the case, it should've already happened. Whoever did this doesn't act alone, there has to be an organization behind it.
A single person would never be able to pull off such an assassination successfully. The Gnalet mansion has strict security around the clock, and there are servants who stay awake all night... it's impossible.
Well, whatever it is, I think I have another big problem. With the Gnalet family dead, I'm really on my own in this practically unknown world. I still remember I used to be a shut-in till last week...
I don't think we'll be moving out any time soon. Even if we wanted to in order to be safer, we really can't. According to whatever that stupid law is, I don't get anything in inheritance. Maybe Cally will get some portion of it, but it's a complicated case.
The court usually takes way too long for cases where two different laws collide with each other, creating loopholes. No matter which world it is, the judiciary system is painfully slow and troublesome.
We can't move out with no money at all... even if we count our savings, it's still very low for two people. It seems I'm stuck here for a bit longer. I might have to find a source of stable income.
Ah, right, since Aron went out of his way to make sure his servants end up with good employers, he must've found one for our maid too... btw, what was her name?
... This can't be. Don't tell me Caleric never got to know her name; they've been living together for more than 8 months! Or maybe I forgot that piece of memory, though from my experience the only memory I seem not to retain is the complicated manalogy stuff that I don't understand.
Maybe Caleric really never asked her name... I'll ask Cally later. Right now I have to ask our maid about her new employer and then tell him that she won't start working there for another month or so...
After brainstorming for a while, Caleric went downstairs, having planned what he needed to do at the moment. Their maid was in the living room, doing the routine cleaning. Cally had already gone inside her room.
As soon as Caleric came downstairs, the maid stood up straight in front of him. She didn't say anything, but she looked at him, though her gaze felt more like staring than just looking.
"I wanted to ask, who is the new employer Aron found for you?" Caleric asked.
The maid shook her head and said, "Master Aron didn't find a new employer for me."
"What? Why? What were you going to do after we had left?"
"Master Aron had asked me to accompany the family on your travel."
What? That doesn't make sense. Aron would never take a random maid when he was running away from unknown danger. How could he trust the maid?
Also, isn't she a bit too obedient for agreeing without even knowing where exactly we were headed?
Caleric thought for a while before speaking again, his doubts clear.
"Can you tell me the exact thing Aron told you?"
"He told me to accompany you?" The maid looked slightly confused.
"Is that really what he said?"
The maid thought for a moment, then remembered Aron's exact words.
"I am very sorry. I remembered Master Aron's words to me were: 'Follow Cally and Caleric wherever they go.''
Follow me and Cally wherever we go? He didn't ask to follow the whole family, but just us two!?
It sounded like an ordinary phrase, perhaps a poetic way of asking someone to accompany them, but for Caleric this wasn't just any phrase... he had found what he needed. He had the last piece of the puzzle, and he finally felt like he understood the situation a little better.
Caleric ran back upstairs to his room, he locked the door and sat back at the table. He had to arrange the pieces one by one to complete his puzzle.
Aron, you..., if what I am thinking is correct then you might just be the worst father to ever exist.
Can it be that Aron knew of his murder beforehand?
It would make sense. Aron signed his will in the name of the Church of Goddess Verdalia; all the inheritance goes to them. But he didn't mention a portion for Mari and Mira because he knew they'd be killed too?
The reason why Aron didn't take the warning seriously... can it be because he already knew he'd be killed and he also let himself die... Why? Was this one of his plans... but what plan could possibly involve self-sacrifice.
Maybe it wasn't a murder but a suicide. That would make sense if Aron killed the whole family and then himself by poisoning them because he didn't want them to be left in pain and at a loss, so he decided to...
No, that can't be. There has to be a reason the police were so sure it was a murder. If it was a suicide framed as a murder, the detectives could've found out about it without much problem.
Also in this world manacules exist. The police protocol must be very different; maybe they use some strong spell for divination about the event. If I remember, there was at least one divination spell in the index.
... So it wasn't a suicide but a murder. And Aron knew of it but he didn't do anything about it and played along? Why?
Wait... Aron knew of the murder... The reason why Cally and I have a separate home... Aron wouldn't allow something like that so easily. Can it be that he wanted us to get a separate home and it was all according to his expectations?
Introducing me to important people on my eighteenth birthday... technically it wouldn't be important because I could always have used his name. The reason he introduced me to the people at the banquet was because in the future there won't be any Aron Gnalet...
Wait... This means Aron knew about his murder way long ago. At least an year ago! What the hell? No way... the maid... our maid is obedient, almost too obedient. Aron found her to serve Cally and me because he wanted us to be in safe hands.
This runs really deep. Does that mean everything that has happened in the past month was somewhat in Aron's expectations? Wait, does that mean he knew that Cally and I wouldn't be murdered like the other Gnalets?
Then why didn't he write his will in our name and instead chose to write it in the name of the church?
Aron has not done much in the past months, as per Caleric's memories, except for allowing us to move out and helping us become independent...
Right, about war! In Caleric's memories Aron had mentioned the upcoming war multiple times. Can it really be related to the upcoming war? Then why did he tell us about it, and what does he want?
Aron knew he would be dead and powerless, unable to do anything. In that case he would leave us clues about what would come next... war...
There are things I don't understand right now, but I probably will sooner or later. The one thing I realised is that Aron wants me to take his revenge. How convenient, not too long ago I was having the same thought.
I am not a big fan of whatever this self-sacrifice plan he had; it caused me to nearly lose control of emotions and has left Cally devastated. I am kind of frustrated right now, but maybe there is a good reason behind this? Who knows.
Anyway, just who exactly thought it would be a good idea to disrupt my peaceful life in this world? If it wasn't for the murder I could've led such a peaceful life, blessed to be transmigrated into a rich family. Whoever you are, I am quite interested in you... I will come for your life...
Before that I need to understand the entire thing, there is so much I don't understand right now. I'll have to dig deeper... dig deeper?
As Caleric thought, the words rang in his mind. He remembered someone who mentioned something similar: a mysterious lady he had met at his birthday banquet, the lady who was talking about fate. Caleric had completely forgotten her, but now he remembered.
She described herself as "All Mighty Thisia"