This Is Causality

Hearing the sound, Shaya looked toward the entrance he had come through.

A woman in a black silk dress walked over with the support of an attendant. Her dress was adorned with lace and satin trim, and she wore black suede knee-high boots with elastic sides, a lace shawl draped over her shoulders.

But the most eye-catching thing was the exquisite embossed metal mask covering the upper half of her face. It was called an eye mask, but Shaya thought it looked more like a sort of crown covering her forehead and eyes. Its design was beautiful.

Back when Shaya still had a heart, he had not really been interested in Europeans or Americans. But the woman before him probably had some East Asian heritage.

Her black hair, tied into a ponytail, was particularly striking. Unlike the coarse pores common among the other Europeans, her skin was delicate, fair as congealed cream. Her jawbone was not pronounced, and the line of her jaw was smooth, gentle as jade.

Still, she had some European features as well, such as her high nose bridge.

She seemed to be wearing no makeup, save for the simple sweep of lipstick outlining her red lips, which only heightened her nobility.

Though she did not reveal her full face, that half alone was enough to make one certain that she was a beauty. Especially the air of aristocracy about her, like the most dazzling ruby atop a crown.

The mask obscuring her eyes gave her an incomplete sort of beauty, like the Venus de Milo.

Though blind, she walked without the slightest timidity, carrying herself with confidence and grace.

No wonder she got the femme fatale script, Shaya mused.

If it had been the Shaya of the past, he probably would not even have known how to walk in front of a woman like this. But now—

As everyone around him turned their attention to the woman, Shaya silently walked over to the dining table and added a slice of ham to his plate.

That savory cake really did whet the appetite.

After adding the ham, Cassifa's voice sounded in his mind.

"That woman seems to be the one from that carriage on the street earlier."

Shaya was not surprised. He said calmly, "The lines of Fate between us have already converged. We may meet again in the future."

"I can't imagine why a woman like her would spark a war that engulfs the world."

"A world war is never caused by one person."

Shaya put the ham into his mouth and nodded in satisfaction. There were not so many technological tricks in this era; the ham was made of real meat.

He continued.

"But wherever people exist, there will be conflicts. This is even more true of nations made up of people. A nation's conflicts cannot be resolved quickly like a person's, nor are they easily forgotten.

"They pile up, like one keg of gunpowder after another. All it takes is a spark thrown into them, and those kegs will explode in an instant.

"One person may not cause a war, but she can serve as the fuse—the final straw that breaks the camel's back."

Shaya looked toward the Third Princess. The prince called Ernst, upon seeing her arrival, walked straight toward her.

"With the Third Princess's status, and the people tied to her, she is more than enough to serve as a fuse."

"Fate is truly cruel," Cassifa sighed.

"Fate has always been cruel. It always gives people things they cannot choose, but it is fair as well."

As he spoke, Shaya slowly raised his head and looked toward the top of the villa. In a corner unnoticed by anyone, Heilang stood in the assassin's outfit Shaya had given him, overlooking the entire courtyard as if waiting for something.

Staring at Heilang shrouded in the darkness, he continued.

"No matter what, it will always give people a chance to make a choice."

After a pause, he added, "It seems the person he is looking for really is here."

"What is he waiting for?"

"The best moment to strike—when his target is alone," Shaya said. "With his abilities, assassinating someone would not be difficult. Poisoning them or killing them outright would both work.

"But the problem is that his younger sister is still in that person's hands. He wants to obtain information from him, which means there will be an interrogation."

Suddenly, Shaya saw Heilang leave his position.

Shaya looked around and quickly locked onto a nobleman. He was richly dressed, thin-faced, with somewhat sunken eye sockets. A middle-aged man. Surrounded by attendants, he was entering the villa, apparently intending to use the restroom.

"He seems to have left," Cassifa's voice rose from Shaya's heart. "Did he find his chance?"

Shaya remained silent.

At the same time, soft music began playing in the banquet hall. The dance had apparently begun. Some nobles took their wives onto the lawn and danced with the music, performing an English courtly classical dance.

Shaya did not join them. Instead, he quietly took a glass of champagne from a tray held by an attendant at the side and took a light sip. Then, looking at the remaining champagne in his glass, he said,

"He is not coming out."

"What?" Cassifa sounded confused.

"Our friend we just met."

Shaya gently swirled his glass. "Ordinarily, he should have finished interrogating and killing the man by now, then come out.

"But he has not. The interrogation must have reached a stalemate. He knocked the man out and intends to take him elsewhere to continue questioning him.

"But leaving with someone is much harder than leaving alone."

Shaya looked around. He could clearly see many patrolling guards, and even the men and women dressed as attendants appeared to have received some special training.

After a pause, he muttered to himself, "If it were me, I would wait until the dance ended and until he had left this place before making a move. He was too impatient.

"The longer this drags on, the more likely the attendants are to notice that something is wrong."

"Then how will he get out?" Cassifa asked.

"That depends on waiting for a moment when everyone's attention is drawn to something."

"Are you going to help him?"

Shaya considered it.

"If my first investment fails, it will affect the luck of my future investments.

"But according to the Fate I gave him, he should escape danger."

After a pause, as if he had thought of something, he nodded to himself.

"I have inherited his mentor's Fate. Perhaps I have become part of Fate as well.

"No, perhaps another Fate has also played a role in this—including my appearance at this banquet tonight."

Shaya raised his head and looked at the Third Princess sitting on a sofa that had been moved into the courtyard not far away. Her legs were together and angled to one side, her hands resting on her lap. Her posture was elegant, and it was obvious she had received an excellent education.

"This is causality," he murmured.

A table stood beside her, laden with pastries and black tea.

Prince Ernst stood at her side, speaking softly to her.

Though Shaya did not know what he was saying, the slight downturn at the Princess's lips suggested she was somewhat impatient.

"Alicia," Ernst said gently, "would you like to dance with me?"

"Thank you for your invitation, Your Highness Prince Ernst, but I cannot see. I am afraid I would not dance well," Alicia said.

"That is all right. If you do not want to, we can sit here instead."

Ernst smiled, then picked up a cup of black tea from the table beside him. "You can try the black tea I brought. It was given to my father by officials there when he visited the East."

Alicia accepted the tea and took a light sip before setting it aside. She nodded. "The taste is delicate, with a sweet aftertaste. It is very good. Thank you."

Ernst smiled. He seemed about to say something else.

But at that moment, his gaze gradually froze as a stranger walked straight over from not far away.

His pace was neither hurried nor slow, but his purpose was clear. He wore a black evening suit, his shoulder-length black hair simply tied behind his head. Against the darkness of the night, his black eyes seemed especially deep, carrying the stillness and mystery of night itself.

I have never seen him before, Ernst thought.

Yet not long after that thought surfaced, the man arrived before them and stopped in front of Alicia.

He placed his left hand behind his back, swept his right hand in a circle, and set the toe of his right foot beside his left. With an elegant flourish, he bowed.

"Honored Princess, may I have the privilege of sharing a dance with you?"

The Princess raised her head in surprise, and the surrounding nobles all turned their gazes toward him at once.