Time of the Blind Beast - Chapter 50

Whether the moon was out or not, Rose often went on walks with Ezekiel, whose eyes were covered with a thick cloth. They would walk along the path tightly lined with rope, and naturally embrace or kiss at the spot where the statue stood. Ezekiel, having long memorized the route, would often know where he was standing without Rose’s guidance and pull her toward him first.

“Hold on, this isn’t the right spot.”

Sometimes he played pranks. He would stop in front of the wrong statue or even when there was nothing there, and steal Rose’s breath at will. Rose would pat his shoulder to stop him, but when Ezekiel pressed his lips to hers, she didn’t bother avoiding him.

They spent more time standing still, feeling each other’s warmth, than actually walking. As a result, each step felt endlessly distant.

A garden that would have taken thirty minutes to walk was often strolled for an hour and a half. Today was no different. More often, they would be surprised by how fast time had flown. Of course, the path of the moon streaking across the night sky gave some sense of time’s passage, but Rose didn’t bother to measure it. Tonight, once it passed, would never come again. There was no need to shorten precious memories by minding the time.

“Hold on, Major. It’s too open here.”

To Ezekiel, Rose seemed overly cautious. Whenever he nibbled her forehead or eyelids while brushing her waist, Rose kept nervously glancing at the empty surroundings.

“So what? No one’s watching.”

“You’ve got the cause and effect backward. It’s not that no one’s watching—no one can come into the garden because of us…”

That was when it happened. Suddenly, Ezekiel’s ears caught the sound of overgrown grass softly bending.

Wait a minute. Is no one really here?

“Shh.”

He gave a warning at the same time he wrapped Rose’s head protectively in his arms.

Again, swish—grass rustled. This time, he heard it clearly.

He knew this kind of noise well. It was a signal nature offered when a careless step was made by someone in ambush. The slight unnatural presence mixed in gave rise to a chilling sense of dissonance that set his nerves on edge.

The moment he instinctively sensed another’s presence, Ezekiel immediately turned to hide Rose behind him and swept the ground with his toes for something he could use as a weapon.

“Who goes there!”

If it were someone from the estate staff, they would have responded with their name. But there was no reply.

“Major, what’s going on all of a sudden…?”

While the confused Rose blinked in bewilderment, Ezekiel’s heel struck a large stone. He immediately kicked it up and snatched it from the air by feel.

He didn’t know the person’s height or build. That meant aiming lower increased the chances of hitting.

From his experience as a famed sharpshooter, he knew that sight wasn’t everything in shooting. On battlefields clouded by blood and dust where friend and foe clashed, no one expected perfect visibility. When the tides of war turned grim, he’d hide behind cover with only his muzzle exposed, relying on the tremors of approaching footsteps to find his target. Everything was about instinct. True marksmen reach a level where they can sense whether a shot has hit or missed the moment the bullet leaves the barrel.

Ezekiel trusted his instincts.

The stone traced a long arc and flew toward the source of the sound.

“Ugh!”

A man’s groan rang out. Rose flinched in alarm. What shocked her more was that the voice was familiar.

It was Merlot.

He must have let suspicion get the better of him after all his probing and sneaked into the estate under the cover of night.

Rose quickly peeked around from behind Ezekiel, scanning the area.

The moon was bright tonight, and Merlot’s figure was clearly visible. Unfortunately, he had crouched low to hide, and Ezekiel’s thrown stone had landed a clean hit on the side of his head. Thankfully, by stifling his groan and immediately covering his mouth, he had avoided a second strike.

Had he taken even one careless step, Ezekiel’s hearing would have tracked him instantly.

Oh no. Rose swallowed her horror and glanced at Ezekiel. His posture—tracking with his ears and constantly searching for new weapons with his feet—was pure soldier. His sharp senses pierced the grass-choked darkness, keeping vigilance. Knowing any sound would draw immediate retaliation, Merlot held his breath, silently pleading with Rose for help with his eyes.

Had there been a rifle in that hand, Merlot might have met his end then and there. Shivering at the thought of Ezekiel’s past as a legendary marksman whose skill was unmatched so long as he had bullets and powder, Rose trembled slightly.

In any case, Merlot was a courier dispatched from the main estate. His identity was certain, and he hadn’t come with the intent to harm Rose or Ezekiel. It would be problematic to cause him serious injury, especially considering the cleanup afterward.

“Ah!”

There was no time to weigh the options. Rose, feigning panic, deliberately let her legs give out and collapsed to the ground.

“Rose? Did you trip on something?”

Though the act was somewhat clumsy, it succeeded in distracting Ezekiel.

He immediately located Rose, who had fallen, and knelt beside her. His hand boldly brushed under her skirt to feel her exposed leg.

“Let me see. Did you get hurt?”

“I-it’s fine. I’m fine.”

While focusing on Rose, he couldn’t neglect to stay alert to their surroundings. He brushed aside the handkerchief that had been half covering his ears to enhance his hearing, then ran his large hand from her calf down to her ankle. Having touched her body so often, he was confident he would notice even the slightest swelling.

“You’re hurt.”

It wasn’t just swelling. The skin felt damp. It was clearly bleeding.

This was the problem with an unkempt garden. Loose dirt and sharp grasses were everywhere, so even a small bump could easily break the skin.

Ezekiel quickly searched for something to wrap the wound. The handkerchief he had taken off earlier happened to be in his hand. He had performed countless emergency treatments during his time in the military. He tied the handkerchief tightly around Rose’s injured knee to stop the bleeding.

“Rose, if you see anyone nearby, tell me.”

Even at that moment, Ezekiel hadn’t forgotten the intruder. Rose hurriedly made up a lie.

“I-I think they’re gone. I don’t see anyone.”

“A petty thief, maybe.”

Petty thieves and swindlers targeting large mansions were common. Even at the main estate, there had been several nighttime intrusions aimed at valuables. This mansion, too, had surely been targeted before. It was one reason Madam Serva kept the valuables on the second floor and inspected them daily.

Ezekiel furrowed his brow. “I should wake the servants to search the area.”

Rose limped as Ezekiel helped her back into the mansion. Glancing back, she saw Merlot crouched low, clutching his injured head and desperately holding his breath. Though he had sustained a head injury, his limbs were intact, so he should be able to escape before the servants came. That would be enough.

More importantly, there was something else Rose needed to worry about first.

The cloth Ezekiel had used to wrap her wounded knee had been the handkerchief covering his eyes.

Her heart began to pound wildly.

***

Dr. Brehman carefully examined Ezekiel’s eyes. The man, whose eyes anyone would deem beautiful regardless of age or gender, could no longer use them, and they had dulled into a deep, opaque bluish-black.

They looked like caves endlessly absorbing light. Gazing into that darkness, Dr. Brehman finally spoke, “Still not feeling anything unusual?”

“Hmm. I can’t tell. Nothing seems different from usual.”

Ezekiel responded calmly. Rose, sitting with him, exchanged a glance with Dr. Brehman.

Just a few days ago, even when facing bright moonlight, Ezekiel had felt no pain. This was proof that the toxin was no longer affecting his body.

Dr. Brehman nodded at Rose. Then he addressed Ezekiel. “I’ve been holding this lamp the whole time. You’re no longer experiencing pain from light exposure.”

As Ezekiel reached out, Dr. Brehman placed the lamp into his hand to let him confirm for himself.

Ezekiel blinked his dim eyes a few times. It was strange. There was only a dull ache from the strong light—none of the brain-splitting pain.

“Then why can’t I see yet?”

He had assumed that once the pain disappeared, his vision would return. But now only the pain was gone, and everything remained in grayscale.

“If there is no more pain, we can say the toxin has been neutralized. If your sight still hasn’t returned, there may be another cause. Could you try opening your eyes wider?”

Dr. Brehman examined the surface of Ezekiel’s eyes closely with a magnifying glass. Both Ezekiel and Rose remained completely silent until the diagnosis was complete.

Finally, Dr. Brehman set down the lamp and the magnifier.

“Let me ask first. You said the woman attacked your eyes with poison, correct?”

Ezekiel summoned his memory. It was a scene he had replayed in countless opium-induced hallucinations, so the answer came easily.

“She splashed the contents of a bottle into my eyes.”

“Then the cause of your blindness may not have been the poison alone.”

Dr. Brehman gave his diagnosis.