C136: Night date

Troy and Naomi walked together through the empty village streets beneath the cold night sky.

The village had already fallen silent. Windows were shut tight against the winter wind, lanterns extinguished one after another, leaving only pale moonlight spilling across the dirt roads.

Naomi occasionally cast shy glances toward Troy while walking beside him, her fingers twisting slightly. The cane in her hand glowed a soft golden light, casting vague shadows on the earth and receding the darkness around them.

Troy, meanwhile, kept scanning their surroundings from time to time, though his posture still appeared relaxed.

“Is the silence of this village not rather unsettling tonight, Troy?” she murmured softly, stepping closer to his side.

Troy glanced at her, at her restlessness.

'This quietness is indeed eerie,' he thought, while smiling warmly at Naomi to reduce the tension rising between them.

“Do not fret, my lady, I shall protect you.” He raised one arm and flexed his muscle, though the muscles themselves were hidden under layers of fabric.

Naomi widened her eyes a little before giggled softly, hiding her mouth behind a gloved hand to conceal her amusement.

“Y-yes, that would be…” she looked away shyly, “…perfect.”

Troy smiled while observing her reaction.

‘It seems the cane’s effect on her has subsided somewhat.’

He slipped one hand into his coat pocket while glancing behind them.

Three corpses floated silently in midair several meters back, slowly drifting after them.

This was the ability of a Foundation-stage Preserver — the Protector path ability: Barrier.

The trick itself was relatively simple in theory. Instead of creating vertical barriers like most Protectors usually did, Troy formed wide horizontal invisible platforms beneath the bodies.

Then he carefully balanced the corpses atop those invisible surfaces and made the barriers follow behind him.

The difficult part was maintaining concentration, so it wouldn't disappear and drop the heavy loads.

That was why he couldn’t flirt with Naomi as freely as he normally would.

‘What a troublesome mission.’ Troy sighed inwardly.

Only a few days had passed since they arrived in Winterin, yet the mission had already become exhausting.

Not only did they need to locate Lady Amelia, that spoiled brat from the Augusta Marchioness family, but now they also had to investigate suspicious vampire activity based entirely on the claims of some mysterious informant.

“Dear...” Naomi spoke softly beside him.

Her steps were quiet on the damp earth. The night wind billowed their white coats gently, Troy reached up to adjust his fez hat against the sudden gust.

“Hmm?”

“Do you suppose Captain Gregory truly places faith in that missive?”

Troy considered the question briefly before shrugging.

“To some degree, perhaps. The Captain is a prudent man; He won’t blindly trust it.” Troy replied, considering the matter a while longer. “But he also won’t ignore it.”

Naomi lowered her gaze, watching her boots step through the thin layer of mud.

“Marion…” she murmured. “I believe I have heard that name before.”

“Oh?” Troy narrowed his eyes, a sharp tension settling in his jaw.

“And where might you have heard it?” he asked skeptically. Truth be told, he had absolutely no wish to hear of it, especially not now.

“In the cathedral library, back in the capital. I had occasion to visit during my studies, and I recall leafing through several old theological texts.” She offered a shy smile, her cheeks flushing. “Only... I must confess I scarcely remember half of what I read.”

“...” Troy let out a breath, as though some invisible burden had just loosened from his chest.

Sometimes, it was better not to know than to know. Complicating an already messy mission had never been his preferred style.

Truthfully, Troy had already found Jack earlier. There was no way a common, ordinary civilian could have escaped from a Stagefarer of his stage.

However, Troy had intentionally allowed the man to escape.

He had only half heartedly pursued the man through the alleys, deliberately letting him disappear into the night.

'I definitely shouldn't reveal that part.' His gaze drifted back to Naomi.

The woman shyly looked away the moment their eyes met, her fingers nervous on her cane.

'So lovely,' he thought, a faint smile touching his lips.

At the same time, guilt stirred inside his chest. But he quickly buried it beneath that same warm smile.

Lady Amelia was an important person to the church, but he couldn't care less about that spoiled girl.

If the mission succeeded, they would receive immense credit from the Holy Court, and an advancement in rank and stage was guaranteed.

Advancement seemed great, he knew.

Except, the problem was, not only him, but Naomi would advance as well.

It meant their responsibility would increase, and they would inevitably face far more dangerous missions in the future.

It was fine if it was only Troy risking his neck, but with Naomi, it was a different case.

He could not countenance the thought of seeing his wife walk such a perilous road by his side, constantly endangering her life.

'I promise to keep her safe,' he recalled the vow he had made to her.

His gaze unconsciously drifted down to her hand, catching the gleam of the silver ring on her finger that held the promise they had vowed.

Could he truly protect her forever?

That was the terrifying question that troubled his mind.

Troy had walked the path of the Preserver to protect those he cared about.

Yet doubts still crawled through his thoughts endlessly, slowly eating away at his resolve from the inside.

He knew he was being selfish.

But sabotaging this mission was the only way he could think of to delay Naomi’s advancement, because Naomi herself would never voluntarily step away.

Or rather, the Crowley family would never allow her to do so.

Becoming an Inspector was an honor for their bloodline. Especially now that Naomi’s younger sister had already risen to become the Chief Adjutor of the Proctor Cross at such a young age.

If the younger sister could rise that high, then naturally the family expected the elder sister to achieve similar greatness.

The Crowleys were obsessed with prestige and contribution. They would never permit Naomi to resign her position quietly and bring shame upon the family name.

The only possible way out…

Was for Naomi to bear a child.

Only then could Troy pressure the family into letting her permanently retire, returning to the peaceful life of a local sister.

But they were just newlyweds. He had to wait for formal medical observation to confirm any such condition.

There was no way to know for sure, besides an obvious temperance change that only Naomi herself knew about.

'Seriously... what was Julia thinking when she dispatched us here?' Troy complained bitterly inside his head.

Back then, he had honestly believed that having a family member in the Church, especially one with a relatively high-ranking position, would make it easier for him to slack off and avoid danger.

But he had forgotten one crucial detail: Julia herself was still a Crowley. Her ambition burned just as fiercely as the rest of her family.

“My dear... do I perceive some anger in you?” Beside him, Naomi suddenly spoke again in a soft voice.

“Hmm?” Troy involuntarily flinched.

“You’ve been frowning this whole time.”

Troy blinked, quickly smoothing the tension from his features and presenting his usual bright expression.

“Ah, am I?” He brought a hand to his cheek, rubbing it lightly. “No, no. I am merely pondering—”

“Of our mission?” Naomi cut him off gently.

“Regrettably so, haha.” He laughed awkwardly.

Naomi hesitated briefly before moving a little closer beside him.

“My dear...”

“Yes?”

“Do you truly believe we’ll find Lady Amelia here?”

Troy shrugged his shoulders lightly.

“I am not particularly preoccupied with the matter,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “It is but a trifling concern. Let us treat this journey as our private holiday!”

Naomi blinked in surprise at his blunt answer, turning her face away as she tried to suppress a sudden laugh behind her sleeve.

“That is exceedingly improper, Troy. Please, you must not speak so lightly about her.”

“The Captain is far from here, there are no ears to catch my words.”

“That’s still improper nonetheless.”

Troy smirked.

“Then I must ask you to keep my indiscretion a secret.”

Naomi’s cheeks reddened instantly, the warmth spreading to the tips of her ears.

“I-I, uh, that, I cannot possibly—” she stuttered helplessly. “That’s not allowed, I can’t—”

Troy laughed heartily at her embarrassed reaction, finding her strict adherence to protocol incredibly endearing.

Well, Naomi definitely wouldn’t report him.

The tension between them eased afterward as they continued their slow walk through the silent village streets together.

Behind them, the three floating corpses drifted through the darkness, suspended atop the invisible barriers.

“When this duty is concluded...” After a long stretch of silence, Naomi whispered softly, “would it please you if we were to visit the capital together?”

Troy stared at her for a lingering moment.

The cane’s gentle amber light reflected softly across her timid face and gentle expression.

“…Sure, my dear. Everything will be as you wish,” he chuckled, answering her with utmost gentleness.

Alan City.

The city where both the King and the Holy Court resided.

The beating heart of the kingdom, where the Industrial Revolution had reached its peak. Endless steam engines, towering iron structures, mechanical factories, rail systems, and strange inventions filled the city day and night.

It was also where the Crowley family resided.

Naomi immediately pouted upon hearing his answer.

“Please, do not tease me so, dear. I am merely an ordinary sister. Hearing that makes things difficult for me.”

“Haha, alright.” Troy chuckled lightly, reaching over to squeeze her gloved arm.

Naomi looked satisfied with the response and nodded.

As they continued walking, the silhouette of the church eventually appeared ahead beneath the moonlight.

“Let’s go around this place.”

Troy gently nudged Naomi’s hand, signaling for her to follow his lead.

They intentionally avoided entering the church’s perimeter itself. This was not yet the proper time to investigate Victor directly.

Based on the anonymous letter, Victor was acting highly suspiciously.

Which meant barging into the church carelessly would only alert him prematurely.

Instead, they circled around using another route that led toward the cemetery, the dirt road crunching beneath their boots.

The purpose was to dispose of the vampire corpses properly, since dropping them inside the forest might zombify them, while burning them openly in the village streets would attract unwanted attention.

So, burning, or burying them inside the cemetery would be a perfect choice, since no one would suspect anything unusual in a place already dedicated to the dead.

Afterward, they would regroup with Captain Gregory and begin the infiltration of the Baroness Estate.

‘This also gives the Captain some time to recover,’ Troy thought, keeping his pace steady.

Although Troy appeared relaxed, leisurely strolling through the village beside Naomi, part of the reason was also to allow Gregory a brief rest after continuously using his abilities earlier.

As such, Troy wasn’t worried about receiving reprimand from the Captain later.

Hazel, on the other hand…That girl was painfully impatient.

Still, she would likely understand his intention. Despite how fierce and hostile Hazel always looked, she cared about Gregory more than anyone else in the group combined.

After all, she saw him as her father figure. Gregory had practically raised her after the death of her family. He was the one who had guided her through the worst period of her life.

“...” The quiet of the graveyard threshold stretched before them, interrupted only by the rustle of the distant trees.

Once they finally approached the cemetery, Troy furrowed his brows, his eyes narrowing at the gate.

‘Hm?’

He had expected to meet the caretaker here, an old gravekeeper responsible for maintaining the cemetery grounds.

As church personnel, Troy and Naomi already had a prepared excuse regarding the corpses. If necessary, they could even pay the caretaker a few coins to bury them properly without asking too many questions.

However, the sight before him was completely unexpected.

‘Who is this?’

Because standing before the cemetery entrance was not the usual elderly caretaker.

Instead, there stood a girl.

A girl completely shrouded in black.

She wore a long black dress that blended into the darkness around her, while a black umbrella rested calmly in her hand despite the absence of rain.

The night wind fluttered the hem of her dress gently. Long black hair swayed around her figure like drifting silk beneath the pale moonlight.

“Caw… caw…”

Crows circled lazily overhead.

Black feathers drifted through the air around her. Some birds perched upon her umbrella, some upon her shoulders, while others gathered nearby on crooked grave markers.

Yet the girl herself seemed entirely unbothered by them, remaining perfectly still as the birds rustled their wings against her.

It almost looked as though the darkness itself had taken human form and chosen to stand before the cemetery tonight.

The atmosphere around her felt strange, as though the world near her had become muted.

When they stared at her in confusion, the girl finally turned her head toward them. Her green eyes shone in the darkness, yet they reflected no emotion in them.

“E-excuse me, miss?” Troy called out, his voice hesitant.

Troy wasn’t sure how to address her properly.

At first glance, her stance was elegant and mature, like that of a young lady from a wealthy, high-standing family. But this was a remote backwater village, and her clothing, despite being clean, lacked the refinement of true nobility.

Besides, why would a young lady wander in a cemetery at midnight?

The girl turned to them fully. She bowed elegantly with perfect composure.

“Good evening, sir and lady. The night is beautiful, isn't it? For such a beautiful couple to wander.”

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