Chapter 27 – 2. Street That Shouldn’t Be There (7)
If there is one chronic disease of keyboard pianists, it is that they express everything through their playing. It is said that whenever there is a passionate feeling, he hits the keyboard without fail. Until the moment when my nails break and my flesh is crushed and blood is spattered.
“…….”
Past midnight.
The piano in the drawing room gave off a rather grand melody. With a very light but deeply piercing rubato, it melodically expresses the water droplets rising violently. Anyone who has heard the performance can guess the name of the drop of water is sadness.
So many times, many times.
It was a performance that hoped for catharsis. That’s why I chose the song after much thought. It’s not an old song enough to be classified as a classic, but it’s a song that has been hit by the winds of the years. It was a challenge that required considerable skill.
But I played it well despite all the difficulties. He didn’t pay attention to the presence of people behind him all the time, and he didn’t look back until the moment he took his hands off the keyboard after he finished playing.
“Who are you?”
Until the answer to that question comes back.
“This is Mittemair.”
“Elizabeth.”
The parlor door was firmly shut. There were some elves among the hirelings, and there were also those with keen ears like Adele. No matter how good the musicians are, it is clear that they are German when they sleep soundly.
“Was it noisy?”
“No.”
“Go get some more sleep. You haven’t slept for two days.”
“Isn’t Jungwoo like that too?”
Sitting on a chair in front of the keyboard, I continued the conversation without making eye contact. It was dark and I couldn’t see well because I hadn’t turned on a light anyway, and the moonlight that was supposed to come in through the cracks in the windows was also blocked by the curtains.
“What about that song?”
“It’s the popular music of my hometown.”
“Okay.”
“Was it weird?”
“No, because it is very passionate.”
It is full of dark darkness. In the midst of darkness, only the outlines of objects are visible. I straightened my back and glared at the vague shape of the piano in the drawing room, then listened to Elizabeth’s thoughts.
“I got the impression that it couldn’t be stopped coming in like a wave.”
The five senses sometimes have the power to become sensitive when one is dulled. Feeling like a blind man, I put aside my vision and unexpectedly felt that my slack hearing improved.
“It was definitely a great performance. It was a truly magnificent song. But I didn’t enjoy listening to it. It is because the anger of the ball contained in it made me realize.”
“What?”
“You will do anything to kill His Excellency Adler…….”
It’s not right to say that you do anything. ‘Cause I’ll do it my way At least, I will not cross the line set by humanity and myself. Even the moment this body runs out.
If I surpassed that, I would become a person no different from Beatrix and myself.
“I will not harm an innocent person.”
“Of course you do, I believe. But Kong would never put himself in the category of the innocent. That’s what I’ve been seeing all along. And I was sure of yesterday and today.”
In an instant, the surroundings felt angry.
It was because of the spicy scent of mint that stimulates the nasal mucosal sense of smell.
“Tomorrow you will head for Saxony.”
“…….”
“You will go and throw my life away without sparing it.”
His greatly improved hearing aided in situational awareness. Elisabeth, who was standing at the far doorway, took one step after another, making me realize that she was finally approaching me.
“Why don’t you value yourself?”
There was a moment of quiet silence.
From the melody on the keyboard that resonated loudly throughout the room, even the words we exchanged towards each other faded away and went on like that for a while.
Until I knew it, Elizabeth quietly approached her and stretched out her arm from behind me.
“Rather, Jungwoo.”
Until the gear hugged her body.
“Would you like to run away together?”
My breath stopped. A shudder overtook me.
It was force majeure. Because of the darkness where you can’t see an inch ahead, things like the past that you want to forget come to mind clearly. It reminded me of the moment I wanted to look back on for the rest of my life.
I was plagued by crystal clear hallucinations.
– Won’t you run away together?
Her dead wife, with her black hair and milky white eyes, stood in front of me.
― Throwing away all these complicated things that encompass us.
Kinky hair. Skin as fair as white jade. Pointed ears that only noble elves possess. A curvaceous and attractive body with a beautiful face. But it wasn’t her looks that I fell in love with. It was the mental strength that she devoted herself to the revolution following my convictions while raising her child alone.
―If it’s you, I think I can spend my life with you.
It was a story I heard with her daughter, who was soundly asleep, by her side and leaning over her shoulder.
― Please be the father of my husband, Cecilie.
It was such a late night that day too. It was a room with a curtain set up so that the moonlight through the window would not wake the child. It was dark, but because we had each other, we overlapped in the cozy darkness. After that, I stayed up all night laughing, asking if I should be Victoria or Chechili, following my last name.
And when the sun rose, he moved without hesitation. I packed my simple luggage and boarded the express train to Partenope, Campania.
“Would you like to throw away everything that ensnares you?”
I had to work hard to hide my trembling body like an aspen tree.
“Would you like to go to the United States and spend the rest of your life with me?”
I felt like I was about to have a seizure from panic. Traumas from the past shimmered in front of Victoria’s eyes. Still, Elisabeth kept whispering whether or not she knew how I felt.
“It’s okay to be naked. I have some money saved up. I may not be able to make you enjoy wealth and glory like His Excellency Adler, but I will never make you suffer. I will make you live a happy life.”
“Elizabeth, I…….”
“Then why don’t you leave with me?”
The mournful voice sounded very sad. I didn’t even look at it, but I was reminded of her troubled expression. She couldn’t help but say yes.
“To the scenery of a refreshing spring riverside.”
For a moment, it seemed as if I could hear the rushing river and the chirping of birds in my ears.
“To the scenery of the sunny summer sea.”
The bright sunlight, the sandy beach lined with palm trees, and the clear, transparent sea seemed to spread before my eyes.
“To the clear autumn roadside scenery.”
It seemed that a prosperous life awaited, with the sidewalks covered in autumn leaves, the chilly wind, and all kinds of grains ripening.
“To the scenery of the cold winter mountains.”
A quiet mountain cabin and a shimmering bonfire, the comfortable daily life seemed to come into my hands.
“Anywhere is fine. I’ll be with you wherever you want. If only I could make every day such a fun and happy day.”
Surely there will be such a future. I’d be lying if I said I never dreamed of it. But I’m already a body that has failed to lead such a daily life. He no longer deserves such luxury.
Because of that Beatrix Adler who imprinted such terrible memories under the guise of loving me.
―Poor woman, if you truly love my husband, you will suffer.
– What did you say?
―I feel the pain of being hated for the rest of my life by the person I love and reflect on it.
―Is it just a curse to hear that someone else’s fiancée is being taken away?
– That’s my husband! Not your fiancé!
Every time I think of the incident in Partenope, Campania, I feel infinitely smaller. On the day Victoria and Cecilia died, Beatrix appeared with all her forces like Zvezda of the Federation.
The target of the special summons, the so-called Iron Cross.
It was a quick turn. While the National Guard invaded Campania, the Queen appeared in front of us with her men. Hardened by her unexpected appearance, I couldn’t stand out even though Beatrix mercilessly stirred up my nest, and I had to helplessly watch.
Victoria, who belatedly returns with her chechilie, confronts her.
“Jeong Woo.”
How could he enjoy such a luxury when he couldn’t even protect his family?
“Elizabeth.”
What happened at Partenope cannot be repeated.
“I can’t.”
It was Elizabeth, who had been hugging me from behind the whole time. The sweet and fragrant smell of mint seemed to pierce my nose, but after hearing a sad moan, it gradually faded away.
“Because I’m not the kind of woman you’d like?”
I smiled lightly and shook my head.
“No.”
I wasn’t sure if it would be visible, but even if it wasn’t, it didn’t matter. Because I wanted to tell you right away.
“It is not such a simple matter.”
I closed the lid of the piano keyboard and stood up from my seat.
“You are a very nice woman.”
On the contrary, he rejected the offer all the more. I’m afraid I’ll step on the train of Partenope again. Like those moments when I lost my loved ones, I fear that the name of a woman named Elisabeth Mittemeyer will remain scarred in the end.
“But even if I run away to the far east, not to the United States, Beatrix will come after me.”
“So what? Are you willing to make meaningless sacrifices without caring for yourself?”
“It’s not pointless.”
“What’s the point of dying!”
This is the turning point.
I can understand it when I see her fiercely protesting, who rarely shows her emotions. At this moment, I have two options.
One is to believe in a woman named Elisabeth Mi Te Yar and honestly tell her everything.
And the other is to accept her resentment and withdraw.
In the case of Adele and Otto, they had no choice but to share the secret of coming back to life even after dying. At that time, I had to flood my memory and immediately wake up to the situation. However, it was clear that even that was an unpleasant experience, and the misery was also indescribable.
“Shall I be honest?”
Some secrets really deserve to be hidden. There are times when you can only protect your loved ones. Like a tragedy in which you have to let go because you love or have similar feelings.
“Elizabeth, I don’t trust you.”
I believe in Elizabeth. I trusted her affection she showed me. So I didn’t want to lose. I didn’t want to make you suffer.
Even if it meant facing her resentment.
“What did you just say?”
“I said I didn’t trust you.”
“Jeong Woo!”
Elisabeth snatched it up as if it were deliberately angry. She didn’t want to get into an argument, so she kept her mouth shut. All he had to do was direct her gaze to where she might be, and wait for her darkness to become accustomed to her eyes.
“How can you say such a thing!”
An angry bodyguard grabbed me by the collar. It was pushed against the wall as if it were being thrown. Then, realizing what she had done, she buried her face in my chest and sobbed.
“I, I, love you…….”
The bodyguard, which seemed like it would never collapse, collapsed.
“I mean I really love you…….”
I shook her hand that was holding me by the collar like someone who doesn’t know how to feel.
When I received the courteous confession, I put off my answer, feeling that a moment like this would come someday.
Now the time has come to answer the long-awaited answer.
“Jungwoo, look…….”
I am at a crossroads of choice. She never cuts her off with her petty mindset.
“I am ready to do anything for you…….”
Still, the silence continued for a long time. It was a little too much to bear in the dark drawing room.
Then Elizabeth took a few steps away from me. Then, when she reached the place where her tent had been set up, the other woman set it aside at once. So that the dark blue moonlight permeates all over the pitch-dark drawing room.
“…… !”
Because of her easy-going personality, there were also predictions. There were also things that she did not think to look into because she was blind. In any case, it was clear that her appearance with that light was unexpected.
“Please don’t push me away.”
Elizabeth, revealing her beautiful half-naked body under the moonlight, added.
“I want to have a deeper relationship with you…….”
The provocative black lingerie, the embroidered underwear, was very erotic.
“…… I.”
Still, I looked at her with her empty eyes and opened her mouth. I spit it out, hoping that you wouldn’t notice the expressionless innermost sincerity.
“I do not love you.”
I don’t want to lose anyone anymore.
