Emily Hunts Monsters

otect your body…”

It was the King in Yellow.
This was caused by his will.
In some cases, when unexplainable, mysterious forces that cannot be understood by human reason attacked me, a special kind of shield was automatically activated.
Whatever the price was, as long as it worked, I was invincible when facing supernatural creatures.

There was an exception.

Physical attacks couldn’t be stopped.
For example, when the evil spirit Edward used his powers as a poltergeist to drop the chandelier.
Moving the chandelier was using an unknown power, but because it fell on me due to gravity, the shield was not activated and my life was taken.

…When that happened, I could only die and go back in time.

Done.

When I took back my hand, the Book of Eibon stopped.
It had been “struggling” while on the floor, yet it slowly turned to dust and disappeared.
Watching it dissipate, I sat on the floor.
Finally…

I had destroyed the book and defeated Eddie.
Maybe I was able to relax because I recognized my accomplishment.
Fatigue began to wash over me.

“Oh, damn it,” I murmured.

A grim whisper rang in my head to congratulate me on my hard work.

“My true apostle, Emily Carter.
I admire your bravery.”

Was it just me? I somehow sensed a hint of amusement in that voice unlike before.

“Thanks to your service, the end of the world has been delayed for seven days.”

That’s…

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It was a cheap reward.
If the King in Yellow noticed how I felt, I’ll end up with an unfortunate thought.

I fell unconscious.

***

An unknown amount of time passed.

“Nngh…”

When I managed to open and rub my eyes, a familiar ceiling came to view.
It was the hotel room I was staying in.

“Are you all right?”

I turned my head.
Henry Jekyll, who looked like he was about to burst into tears, sat in a chair next to the bed.
I thought he’d been here for a few hours.

I deliberately opened my mouth and jokingly said, “You weren’t waiting for me, were you?”

Henry Jekyll lowered his head with a sad expression.
“I am truly sorry for getting you involved, Miss Emily.”

“What do you mean?”

“I… didn’t know.
Truly.”

I noticed the tear stains on his cheek as he continued speaking.

“I didn’t think I… would go around and do terrible things under the influence of the evil spirit Eddie.”

“Henry.”

“And I never thought that evil being would use my body to attack you.” He seemed to have received some sort of explanation from his uncle, Mr.
Graham.
Henry was aware of the evil spirits since he was a child, but he didn’t expect them to go that far.
“I am… ashamed of myself.”

Apparently, Mr.
Graham had yet to reveal the terrible fact that the evil spirit was Henry’s biological father.
Was it because of the shame?

When Henry removed the hands which covered his face, there were tears in his eyes.
“I was so worried you wouldn’t wake up.”

“…”

“If you got hurt because of my stupid, hasty judgment…”

“Henry.”

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He, who was about to cry, looked up as I called his name.

“I’m fine.”

“…But—”

“Really, I’m fine.
Calm down…”

Henry obediently listened to my words and took a deep breath.
When it seemed that he regained his composure, I asked what happened after I fainted.
The young man opened his mouth.

“Jimmy Barry, a boy who worked here, treated you since you had lost consciousness.”

Mr.
Henry woke up at around 6 A.M., and thanks to Jimmy’s first aid, he was fine.
He tried to compensate him as a form of gratitude, but after learning more about the boy’s situation, Jimmy had already quit his job at the hotel.

“The address and personal information he gave were fake.”

Jimmy Barry was a mysterious boy with excellent first aid skills.
If my guess was correct, it was no wonder he ran away as soon as he revealed his medical skills.

With a serious expression, Mr.
Henry continued, “Miss Melbourne is still asleep.
She also received medical attention, and the doctor said she would wake up in a few hours.”

I was also worried about her.
Sally had been exposed to the magic of the Book of Eibon.
Even if there were no physical injuries or abnormalities, the psychological trauma would be enormous.
Most humans exposed to this forbidden book had their hair become gray and experienced periodic seizures.
In more severe cases, individuals ended up in a mental hospital after suffering from madness and delusions.

“Jimmy said that while I was possessed by Eddie, I flirted with several of the hotel guests.”

Edward Hyde remained a good man.
It was a relief he had stopped at that point.

“It’s not your fault, Henry.”

“No, I don’t qualify to hear such kind words.”

…Qualify? What qualifications was he referring to? I began to ponder on what he said.

“I’m an ugly person who doesn’t even deserve to discuss love with a wonderful woman like you.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off Mr.
Henry’s eyes, which were full of tears.
I guess he was referring to that?

The belated guilt weighed on my chest.
After all, he didn’t know anything.

…A dark secret hidden in my own veins.
Mr.
Graham Langham asked not to speak about it, but I thought I should confess to that myself.

The truth was in my throat; I barely swallowed it back down and confessed another truth.
“I should be the one to apologize, Mr.
Henry.”