Chapter 59 The Assassins of Kukuroku Mountain 02 Manipulation
Half of the one-month period has passed.
However, Ayana hadn't even gotten close to the secret; all she knew was that it was related to a terrifying phenomenon that could instantly twist and kill a person.
She could no longer wait passively.
We must take the initiative and ensure that we are not discovered by Illumi.
The opportunity came a few days later.
Wutong summoned some of the housekeepers and assigned them a temporary task.
These archives are located in a relatively secluded wing of the main house, and are rarely visited.
Ayana volunteered.
This is a reasonable and unquestionable action.
After all, organizing files is one of the housekeeper's duties, and since there are many people involved, she can blend in among them.
The archives were covered in dust, and the air was filled with the smell of old paper and mildew.
The work is tedious and repetitive: sorting, counting, and packing mountains of old documents and record books; some need to be destroyed, and others need to be transferred to new storage locations.
Ayana worked silently and efficiently, just like everyone else.
But her calm eyes were rapidly scanning every document she handled.
Most of them are accounts of the family business and some unimportant diplomatic correspondence, as well as basic files of stewards and servants from previous generations.
She didn't expect to find records about the secret directly; that would be naive.
She was simply looking for any pieces that might be relevant.
For two days in a row, nothing was gained.
Just when she was about to give up and think the operation was a waste of time, she found a hardcover notebook at the bottom of a box that was about to be crushed and marked "invalid and to be destroyed".
The notebook cover had no labels, making it appear to be a private record.
She discreetly slipped the notebook into a stack of documents she needed to organize, and under the guise of moving them, she smuggled it out of the archives and hid it inside the lining of her uniform.
That evening, in her room, after locking the door, Ayana carefully took out the notebook.
The notebook's paper was yellowed and brittle, and the handwriting on it was slightly immature, yet carried a certain obsessive seriousness.
The recorder appears to be a child.
She took a deep breath and turned to the first page.
Most of the preceding content consists of everyday trivia, about training, learning, and observations of this large and cold family.
The recorder's tone carries a precocious loneliness and bewilderment.
Ayana flipped through the pages quickly, until her gaze froze on a few pages in the middle.
"Year Month Day"
I played with my fourth brother, Alluka, today. He's such a cute guy.
Although sometimes she can suddenly act strangely, calling herself 'Nanika' and making some cutesy requests, like wanting a hug or candy, I always give in to her, and she's very happy.
My father and mother saw me playing with Alluka, and they didn't say anything, but their expressions were a little complicated.
"Year Month Day"
Nanika's abilities seem to go beyond just being cute.
I overheard the steward, Wutong, reporting to my father that a terrible thing had happened to a servant because he failed to fulfill Nanica's request.
I didn't see the specifics, but I heard the adults whispering about words like "distorted."
The atmosphere became tense.
"Year Month Day"
My brother Illumi spoke with me.
He asked me in detail about everything that happened between me and Alluka, especially about the rules that Nanika made.
His eyes were very focused, as if he were calculating something.
He said Allujac is "a very special thing," but the risks must be "understood and managed."
I don't like the way he talks about Alluka; it's like he's talking about a weapon, not his younger brother.
"Year Month Day"
Something terrible has happened! Two servants who were responsible for taking care of Alluka failed to meet Nanika's demands, and they... they died, their deaths were extremely gruesome.
The entire main house is under martial law.
The father officially ordered that no one was allowed to have unauthorized contact with Alluka. Alluka was confined to her room, and no one was allowed to enter except for designated personnel.
"Year, Month, Day"
Alluka has been taken away!
Alluka was taken to a newly built house in the back of the mountain, which didn't even have windows.
I secretly followed them, but my father found out.
He told me very seriously that this was for the safety of the family and everyone else.
He said that the power of Alluka and Nanika was too dangerous, an uncontrollable 'darkness'.
Illumi, standing nearby, said that this was a necessary isolation measure, and that it could only be used 'safely' after fully understanding the rules.
I can no longer play freely with Alluka like I used to...
But I swear, I will never forget him.
The recording ends here, followed by a blank page.
Ayana closed the notebook, her fingers turning slightly white from the force.
A wave of shock, fear, and the thrill of finally uncovering the truth washed over her.
All the clues have come together!
There exists another personality or being within him, known as "Nanica".
This Nanika possesses a terrifying ability: it makes requests of people, and if those requests are not granted, it imposes a terrible price.
Those were the bizarre deaths she had witnessed twice, where people were instantly twisted into a rope-like shape.
Those dead stewards and servants were likely unknowingly subjected to Nanica's demands, which they were unable to fulfill!
The family's solution was to completely conceal Alluka and Nanika's existence, imprison them, and strictly forbid anyone from mentioning or approaching them.
Illumi clearly knew the inside story and had a great interest in and desire to control this power.
[New mission unlocked: Personally confirm Alluka's current location and status of imprisonment.]
Ayana lowered her eyes, pondering where Alluka was being held.
The notebook's owner mentioned that "Alluka was taken away," and that she was in a windowless house in the back mountains.
She needs to go and see for herself.
But just then, the sound of the door lock being opened from the outside was suddenly heard.
"Click".
Ayana's blood froze almost instantly.
She quickly stuffed the laptop under the mattress, and just as she stood up, the door was silently pushed open.
Illumi stood at the door, still expressionless, his dark cat eyes scanning the dimly lit room before finally settling on Ayana.
"It's so late, and you're still not resting?" he stated calmly, his tone revealing neither concern nor doubt.
Ayana forced herself to remain calm and bowed slightly: "Young Master, I have just finished my evening physical training."
This is a reasonable explanation; it's not uncommon for housekeepers to practice privately.
Illumi didn't speak, but slowly walked in.
His gaze, almost tangible, swept across every corner of the room, finally settling on the bed where Ayana had just been sitting.
The air seemed to freeze.
Ayana could hear her heart pounding in her chest, and she was almost certain that Illumi had noticed something.
Illumi approached step by step until he was almost nose to nose with Ayana.
He lowered his head, his unfathomable cat-like eyes fixed on her, his voice low and carrying a hint of barely perceptible coldness.
“I warned you, Ayana.”
"Knowing some things may not be a good thing."
"Curiosity comes at a price."
His fingertips had somehow caught another black dart, which gleamed ominously in the dim light.
"You seem quite interested in family secrets lately?"
Ayana's breath hitched.
She knew that life and death hung in the balance.
Do you acknowledge it or not?
How to explain this?
She raised her eyes to meet Illumi's gaze, trying to make her voice sound calm, even with a hint of confusion: "This subordinate does not understand what the young master means. This subordinate is just doing her duty to complete the work assigned by Lord Wutong, organizing the old archives."
She devoted everything to her work.
Illumi stared at Ayana silently for a few seconds, his gaze seemingly able to penetrate her skull and read her mind.
Time passed second by second, each second feeling like an eternity.
In the end, the Nen nail on Illumi's fingertip disappeared.
He reached out, but instead of attacking, he gently brushed a strand of hair from Ayana's ear with his hand, a gesture that carried a chilling intimacy.
"That would be best."
"Ayana, obeying my orders and not interfering in other matters is your only way to survive."
After saying that, Illumi withdrew his hand, turned around and left the room, just as quietly as he had come.
The door was gently closed.
Ayana breathed a sigh of relief; her back was completely soaked with cold sweat.
She slumped onto the bed, her heart still pounding wildly.
That was too dangerous.
Illumi was definitely suspicious.
He didn't delve deeper, perhaps because she still had value, perhaps because her response was barely acceptable, or perhaps he was also observing, wanting to see how far this person under his control could go and what choices she would make.
Ayana glanced in the direction of the mattress.
That notebook was like a hot potato; it was both the key to the truth and a bomb that could explode at any moment.
She decided to destroy the notebook after confirming the location and condition of Alluka's imprisonment in the back mountain.
Ayana waited patiently for three days.
During these three days, she was more compliant and silent than ever before, giving Illumi no excuse to suspect anything again.
Illumi seemed satisfied with her behavior, believing that she had made her choice. Training continued as usual, and she did not mention the incident from that night again.
Late on the fourth night, guessing that Illumi should be resting, Ayana changed into a dark gray outfit that had been prepared beforehand.
She didn't turn on the light, blending perfectly into the darkness, and slipped out of the room like a real shadow.
The Kukuroku Mountain is more dangerous and more silent at night than during the day.
The pervasive sense of oppression seemed amplified many times over in the darkness.
Ayana dared not be careless in the slightest, concealing her aura to the extreme as she headed towards the back of the mountain.
She evaded several patrolling butlers.
She had been paying close attention to the routines of these housekeepers in her daily life.
The closer you get to the back of the mountain, the fewer human traces there are, and the stronger the primitive sense of danger becomes.
The jagged rocks and twisted dead trees looked like menacing ghosts in the night, and the air was filled with the stench of powerful beasts.
Not wanting to cause trouble, she avoided areas where creatures were clearly present, relying solely on her intuition and the faint, strange sense of oppression to make her way forward on the rugged mountain path.
Finally, after passing through an area filled with sharp pebbles, Ayana saw a building that stood out from its surroundings.
As described in the diary, it was a solitary building.
It had no windows and was a matte dark gray, almost indistinguishable from the surrounding rocks in the pale moonlight. Only a heavy, suffocating door stood abruptly in front of it, covered with complex mechanical keyholes, exuding a cold aura that kept strangers away.
This is it!
Ayana's heart pounded. She cautiously approached, hiding behind a huge rock to observe carefully.
The area around the building was deathly silent; even the chirping of insects and birds had disappeared, with only the howling of the wind remaining.
She dared not get too close; the sealed door gave her an extremely dangerous feeling.
But her task is to "confirm the location and status". The location has been confirmed, so how do we confirm Alluka's status?
Ayana held her breath and used her special ability [Powerful Amplification], focusing all her attention on her hearing, trying to catch any sound inside the building.
At first, there was only deathly silence.
Just as she was wondering if there was really anyone inside, a very faint sound drifted into her ears.
It was a child humming a song.
The tune was strange, intermittent, with a naive yet eerie rhythm. The specific lyrics were unclear, but one could sense that the hummer seemed to be in a state of bewilderment or boredom.
It is Alluka.
He's still alive, and it sounds like he's doing pretty well.
This discovery brought Ayana a slight sense of relief, but was quickly followed by a deeper sense of heaviness.
A child is imprisoned in this dark and gloomy room.
The notification sound indicating mission completion rang in Ayana's mind, bringing a brief sense of relief.
Having achieved her goal, she must leave immediately.
Every second you linger increases the risk of being discovered.
Ayana took one last look at the cold house, suppressed the complex emotions surging within her, turned around without hesitation, and quietly returned along the way she had come, even faster than before.
However, just as she was about to leave the area behind the mountain and step into a relatively safe zone, she suddenly stopped.
In the shadow of a withered tree ahead, a slender figure leaned quietly against the trunk, as if he had long since merged with the darkness.
The moonlight barely outlined his short black hair and pale face, his empty black cat eyes fixed intently on her.
It's Illumi.
What is he doing here?! When did he arrive?!
Was he following her all along, or was he just waiting for her here?
Ayana felt as if her blood had frozen instantly, and her heart sank to the bottom.
Her mind raced, searching for any possible explanation, but all excuses seemed pale and powerless before those all-seeing eyes.
Illumi didn't speak, he just looked at her quietly, his face expressionless, showing neither anger nor surprise, only a bottomless calm.
But this calm is more terrifying than any harsh words.
He slowly emerged from the shadows, his footsteps silent, until he was only a few steps away from Ayana, at which point he stopped.
"Is the scenery on the back mountain nice at night?" he asked, his voice still flat and emotionless, but in the quiet night, every word pierced Ayana's eardrums like an icicle.
Ayana opened her mouth, but found her throat so dry that she couldn't make a sound.
She knew that any explanation would be futile at this moment; Illumi's presence here said it all.
Illumi tilted his head slightly, sizing her up.
"It seems you didn't truly heed my previous warnings," he stated, his tone devoid of disappointment, more like confirming a fact. "Or rather, do you believe your worth is sufficient for you to disregard my warnings and dabble in things that are explicitly forbidden?"
A fingertip slowly appeared on Illumi's fingertip, and he seemed to have made a decision, muttering to himself, "As expected, this is the only way to make people obey."
Suddenly, the system's voice rang out, issuing a series of alarms.
[Warning! Warning!]
[Detected that the little brat [Illumi] attempted to attack and control the host.]
The system will automatically switch to defense mode!
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