Chapter 319: Yandere ÷ Yandere ÷ Yandere

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“Eir, one question.” Leah tightened her grip on the staff. “Are you certain he was taken by force—and didn’t go with her willingly?”

Eir’s lips curled into the sickeningly sweet smile Will had taught her.

“Yes~”

Treya’s hand returned to her sword.

The air darkened—a miasma of unease radiating from Eir.

They’d overlooked something.

Upon arriving here, who had struck first?

Eir.

At the ruined wedding, who had been the most frenzied?

Eir.

So who among them was the most unhinged, the hardest to predict?

Eir.

The maid who could switch between dutiful smiles and Will’s “favorite” expression in a heartbeat.

“If he ran—what did you do to him?” Leah demanded.

“It’s your turn to explain,” Treya added coldly.

“No, no, no~ Young Master would never leave Eir. Because… because Eir is the one he needs the most~”

Her grin widened, her ears twitching with manic energy.

“Eir followed his 300 Questions for Blackening perfectly. Eir did everything he taught. Eir even… improved upon it~”

She didn’t need the book. Every word was etched into her mind.

“As for what Eir did—”

“He allowed it~”

Her fingers dipped into her collar, retrieving a pendant hidden beneath her maid uniform.

A pendant neither Leah nor Treya had noticed until now.

In the dying light, as the chain slipped free—

Both women froze.

“That’s—?!”

“So that’s what you—!”

BANG!

Leah’s fireball seared past Eir’s ear—only to be blocked by ice.

CLANG!

Treya’s blade glanced off Eir’s raised shield.

As the party’s unbreakable Holy Shield, Eir wasn’t so easily overpowered in close quarters.

And there, cradled in her left palm—

A perfectly preserved tooth, still stained with blood.

“Eir can’t explain feelings like you can. Eir doesn’t have your power. Eir is just a maid—someone he needs.”

She closed her eyes, as if Will still sat across the table.

“Eir thought long and hard in that old house full of memories. The calmer Eir felt… the harder it was to stay calm.”

“So Eir followed his words. Followed his questions. And found… peace.”

She tucked the pendant back into her dress, protective.

“…If he can’t move. If he’s broken… he’ll stay with Eir forever.”

“You—you’re deranged!”

“So instead of dependency… you went straight to mutilation?”

Eir lifted her gaze.

“Unlike your grand futures… Eir just wanted the past. When he needed Eir.”

“Weak. Fragile. Relying on Eir to protect him.”

She addressed the empty chair, smiling tenderly.

“It hurt, didn’t it, Young Master? Eir saw your tears. Your blood. Your pain.”

“But you told Eir it was okay. To go further. To keep you.”

“So you wouldn’t run. Because you agreed!”

Even in the dim light, her gray eyes shone with unsettling clarity.

The silence shattered.

“UNFORGIVABLE! He’d never submit to just you!”

“Inexcusable. I’ll drag you to him by your hair.”

CRASH!

Treya’s sword split the table, clearing space for her agility.

WHOOSH!

Leah flanked Eir, chanting under her breath.

Their fragile alliance collapsed in an instant.

Yet—

“You don’t understand.”

Eir blocked Treya’s strike with her gauntlet—effortlessly.

“If you know him… why would he agree to something so cruel?”

Leah’s fire licked at Eir’s dress but barely singed the ice armor beneath.

“Because all of us went too far. And now… we can’t take it back.”

The cottage trembled from their clashing magic, objects crashing to the floor.

As darkness fully swallowed the room, the three stood in a deadlock.

“……”

Treya’s sword trembled.

“What’s wrong, Your Majesty? He brought you the sword he made. And you drowned him in lies.”

Leah’s heart-marked pupils flickered.

“And you, Teacher? You chained him to instinct. Made him an animal.”

Eir hefted her shield.

“Eir knows… Eir is the worst.”

“Eir will apologize. Cook his favorites. Make him happy again.”

“…But it’s too late.”

Tears streamed down her face—the first time she’d ever cried like this in front of them.

The wrecked room fell silent.

Only Eir’s ragged breaths echoed.

“…You’re right.” Treya lowered her blade. “What does he truly want? He… trusted me.”

“…He taught me this. If he hated it, why?” Leah’s staff dipped. “He responded to me. Wherever he is… he’s still mine.”

Their fury ebbed, leaving only hollow uncertainty.

The one person who could unravel this mess…

Wasn’t here.

“…Find Shuna first,” Treya muttered. “If he fled… where would he go?”

“Young Master… might have left clues. He didn’t take anything with him.”

“Clues…”

Leah’s eyes widened.

“I… know.”

“That book. The one he always carried.”

“…The red one.”

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