Chapter 173.1

Chapter 173.1

His grandfather silently put a cigar in his mouth. It was then that Yuri noticed his gaze had shifted oddly.

Maxim was watching Darya as she stepped out of the garden. The depth and intensity of his gaze were indescribable, causing Yuri to turn his head instinctively.

“Yuri, remember this.”

Maxim continued to speak without taking his eyes off her.

“If you become an object of fear, you can hold the reins of control, but those who wish to be loved are powerless. So, if you want to be someone with power, do not cling to fleeting emotions.”

“….”

“Do not devote yourself to anyone. If such feelings arise, you must crush them at the root. If you want to be a true Solzhenitsyn, you must always maintain a cold, rational mind.”

“What if I can’t?”

Maxim’s indifferent gaze turned toward him.

“But you married Grandma…”

A clear pain flickered across Maxim’s previously expressionless face before it vanished.

“Indeed, that’s why I fell into hell.”

A wave of nausea washed over Yuri. Every time he had a conversation with his grandfather, it left a chilling feeling in his chest.

He had no idea what thoughts occupied his mind as he wandered around the mansion all day.

Yuri firmly locked the blue door and began to rummage through the library, which was filled with books up to the ceiling. He searched for materials on human trafficking, criminal penalties, and evidence collection, and on some days, he researched “how long it takes to dig a wall with a shovel.”

Since that day, his appetite had plummeted; just the sight of greasy meat made him feel ill, and strangely, the soles of his feet felt cold. Whenever he tried to sleep, he woke up drenched in cold sweat, feeling stuffy.

“Must be nice for them…”

Today, Yuri, who had woken up in the middle of the night, emotionlessly scrolled through the messages from his chattering classmates before tossing his phone aside. It was already well past midnight.

“Haah…”

Eating and sleeping here felt like a torment.

Suddenly, faint sounds filled his room…

 Thud, thud, clatter, clatter,

“――!”

At that moment, a noise that seemed to shake the window fell into the quiet room like a bomb.

Yuri jumped up, startled like a patient suffering from nerves. His pale face scanning the surroundings made him look completely neurotic.

If others saw this scene, they would surely be taken aback, but he couldn’t stop this foolish behavior. Yuri grabbed his father’s stethoscope and began to touch the floor and walls.

It was definitely the sound of a mouse scurrying beneath the floor.

‘Where is it? Where?’

Feeling anxious, Yuri found himself opening the door and running down the hallway.

He envisioned the layout in his mind, recalling the nearest room. An inexplicable premonition dried his mouth and made his pulse race.

Thud, thud, a heavy sound still echoed from somewhere in the floor. Yuri hurriedly opened the room that his father had used before marriage and gently tapped the floor with his heels.

Thud, thud. Thud, thud.

Then, one of the marble tiles shifted again. Just like in the dining room and the blue room, it was a square tile too small for an adult to enter.

“What the…”

He must have misjudged. Yuri knelt down.

And at that moment, as he trembled and began to pry up the floor…

The beast stretched out its arms.

“――!”

Without realizing it, the boy pulled it into an embrace. The round eyes blinked as if recognizing Yuri. An indescribable feeling welled up inside him.

“Haah… You. You really have no fear.”

He didn’t know what this emotion was. He just felt sorry, grateful, and proud.

Yuri pondered what to do next and pulled a white sheet covering the furniture to wrap around the child’s body.

“Hey, kid, try not to move for a moment.”

“….”

The little beast nodded obediently, as if it had rushed in at full speed. Good boy, Yuri thought, giving the cold metal a gentle pat before standing up.

Surely nothing would happen on the way to the room. He shaped the bundle like a comforter and calmly walked down the hallway.

“Yuri, what are you doing there?”

His neck stiffened.

“Staying up this late… Our grandson, is your knee hurting again?”

It was the gentle voice of his grandmother, Darya.

‘Da*n, this could be a disaster.’

However, Yuri turned to her with a natural smile. His complexion was calm, but the corners of his eyes trembled slightly.

“Grandma, why are you out? I couldn’t sleep, so I just…”

“What’s that?”

Her gaze landed on the bulging blanket.