Turbulent night passed, zeth had been lucky enough to survive, not because of healing in time or not serious injuries, it's reason was obviously assailant reluctance to kill him in last second.

Samuel was really grateful for his survival, otherwise he would surely blame himself for it.

On following days, Samuel traversed carefully in mansion. It was an unsettling feeling, being forced to be always on toe in your own home. But there was no other option, who knew when and whom might take a chance to attack.

And that wasn't his biggest problem.

“damn it, it's still here.”

Waking up on morning of three day after incident, he grumbled as he got out of the bed.

“why? Why it doesn't wear off?This damn smell…”

Since night of incident he constantly smelled the scent of that woman. Some place in house more so than rest. And when he used wind sense, it became an absolute nightmare.

“this doesn't work, gotta do something about it.”

Moving out of his room he used his wind sense.

As his sense changed, sense of smell amplified, causing him to hallucinate about that woman standing right infront of him.

“aah…” With short scream, his knee buckled and he fell down.

“really?! This is pathetic.”

Admonishing his own fearful mind, he'd no excuse to give. Fear easily took his capabilities. As will weakened, most of his magics would be unusable.

Holding knees he got up once more not reusing his magic, instead he followed using his nose.

It was weak and unstable method, less trustworthy than wind sense but still he preferred it in compare to fear that his magic caused him.

Following the scent got him to courtyard. Looking around he found his father and a rough looking man in knight's armor conversing about something.

“has there been any new information from those troublesome bunch?”

“No, Sir. We've interrogated them, but they insist that it was a personal matter that led to conflict.”

“they take us for fool or something? They fought right when someone infiltrated my house, planning to abduct my son, quite coincidence don't you think?”

“but my lord, they've been put in that place, it's rather impossible for them to lie.”

“only three of them talked, right?”

“it is as you say, my lord, the Short Sword Kane hasn't talked, but …but …”

“but what? Has something happened to him?”

“no, he's alive but he growl like mindless beast rather than coherent speech.”

“so what experts said on him? He's subordinate vampire?”

James gave his logical conclusion on the matter based on what he knew.

Normally a pure vampire could transform a human to their kind, if some few conditions were present that is.

But even though he said it himself he didn't believed in it.

According to information they got, he hadn't made an appearance in public for two months.

Presuming that time was when he got in contact with vampire, he surly should have been transformed or dried to the bone by her till now.

But either hadn't happened and he was in this state. 

“they says that his body is perfectly fine, not a single trace of harm or change in appearance exist on him. He's a pure healthy human, my lord.”

“are they certain of it?”

“yes, my lord, it is without doubt.”

“let's leave his condition for later. For now, have you checked his house? Relatives? Any acquaintance? Whoever he had connection with should go under surveillance, I don't believe there's nothing left. Demon has tendency to keep an opening for themselves to return. Find it.”

“free the rest and set someone to tail them, who knows if they really have no tale to tell.”

“as you command.”

As he received instructions, he moved away to execute them.

Samuel watched them silently as they talked about how deal with those involved in the incident.

As the man was leaving he noticed Samuel's presence.

“good morning young lord.”

“good morning.”

He greeted him briefly and moved out. Not saying anything extra.

“you were here, Samuel. Has something come up?”

“father, who was this man?”

Instead of saying what business he had, he inquired about this presumably knight of his family.

“him?”

James looked at him rather strangely and continued.

“well, he doesn't have a name, he goes by his title, the Dungeon Keeper. Why do you ask about him? This should be first time you see him, right?”

Samuel wasn't asking about him, just because he didn't knew him or was interested to know him, although it was surprising why he didn't have a name, he ignored it because of smell he could feel on him.

“…he has scent of that woman on him.” 

“……!”

James face turned grave at knowledge Samuel shared with him.

“are you certain about this, son?” with knowledge on wind sense and his son repeated use of it, he knew that his smell sense couldn't make a mistake on it.

But he trusted the man enough to instantly reject the notion of betrayal. 

And that left the chance of same ' controlling magic ' that held Short Sword captive being used on him as well. Just that it was of better quality of it.

“…not sure.”

He didn't say he was sure of it, cause he couldn't just say it without any proof, and he hadn't used wind sense to determine it.

Moreover, some of the same smell was left on his father's body and that confused him even further.

“Why not sure of it? Haven't you used your magic?”

“……I haven't.”

“can't you do it now? It's better to be fully sure before trying anything.”

Samuel looked around timidly, he didn't wanted to show a frightened expression infront of his father, but more than him, he was worried that his brother would see him.

This behavior was surprising to James but he waited for him to calm down.

Using his magic once more, the suffocating fear returned to him. His body trembled and his concentration fell. His sense only perceived one smell and nothing more.

“haa …haa…” his heartbeat quickened and his breathing grew rigid, clearly being affected by fear.

Soon a new feeling spread inside the fear filled world, along with smell of oceanside breeze the terror was pushed away from him.

His father was interfering in his magic to keep him from crumpling down in fear.

As his sense cleared up, he could tell where each smell come from.

Smell on his father, was quite weak, nearly same amount was on himself too, and the Dungeon Keeper didn't had much more than them also.

But being free of scaring blockade, he discovered another trace of smell, that although had quite a distance with him, he feel it quite clearly, indicating the intensity of the source.

“…father, I found something.”

“and that is?”

“don't know what it is exactly, but it has much more heavier scent than the Dungeon Keeper's. And it's in south side of mansion.”

“There? That's the Dungeon.”

James replied with a bit of doubt.

Where Samuel determined the source of smell was exactly the garden, where Samuel and rest played there. Though it was quite a small woods by itself, for a Duke that wasn't out of ordinary.

But it seemed there was more to it than they knew.

“…we'd a dungeon there?” Samuel asked.

James took thoughtful expression for a while and didn't answered him.

“son, follow me, I've something to show you.”

Saying so he moved ahead and Samuel followed him.

Till reaching there both didn't spoke. 

“son, what I'm going to show you might be unpleasant for you, but it is for your own good.”

Putting his hand on a tree, he made a pushing motion.

Sounds of cogwheel moving reached them and soon ground underneath them turned into a long staircase, and in the end of it was too dark to see anything.

“going in.”

As Samuel stepped down on staircase the annoying smell grew thicker.

The air inside of the place was damp and suffocating, a narrow corridor they moved through seemed endless.

soon they reached a plain small iron door, it was simple with no decorations, but there was strange air about it.

“son, whatever you see behind this door, should remain between you and me, you mustn't share one word with anyone, not even your brother and mother, are we clear?”

The dead serious tone James had used awakened the young Samuel to gravity of what was happening.

“I assure you father, I swear upon our family honor that not single word will get out of this place.”

Nodding at his son pledge, he asked him something.

“before we proceed with this, answer me something, what do you think about a governor and their disposition?”

“a governor, you say?em, they are those who carry the responsibility of a land, make law and implement it, devising policy and plan for protection of land and it's flourish, and they should be fair with their subjects or works along the same line. This was what mother taught me.” he recited each word with certainty, as this was his mother's teaching.

“good answer, son, but what your mother taught you is applicable till you see it from public eye, but in a Duke perspective it is lacking.”

“what does it lack father?”

“you'll see.”

Opening the door, a horrendous stench spread out. It was a rotten unbearable stench, along with it another smell was present, one which Samuel knew good enough by now…

“blood…”

“That's correct son.”

And so his father also confirmed it for him.

Walking further inside, left and right side of corridor had door made of iron bars, Samuel timidly get close to one of doors.

Inside there was something he didn't expect …no, he couldn't expected no matter how much he had contemplated on it before.

“this is …”

There was a skeleton, bound by chain, left to rot there.

“what you see here son is leftover of a fool, someone who made a wrong choice and paid for it.”

“…wrong choice? What kind of choice was that, to end him…” glancing at skeleton which still had trace of the fear that person had before death on it, he continued“ … in such manner.”

Samuel was just a child, in time span of a year, he had three chance of dying. He wasn't someone unafraid of anything, exact the opposite, he was rather faint-hearted. 

So seeing remnants of a human in such state taken him aback.

“a spy, he was, seeking profit for himself and those who hired him, and harm to me, my family and people. That's all his life was, nothing more and in the end he was brought here for unending nightmare.”

Menacing face of James, send shudder in boy's spine, causing him to rather forget why they were here.

“father …”

His voice caused James to become aware of his slip up.

“ehm, let's say now, what do you think about this?”

James asked his sentiment on scenery he showed him.

“…this is rather brutal and inhuman.”

“correct son, it is.” his answer was actually what James expected.

“and I have to add something to your knowledge. Since entering here have felt anything special? A sensation you didn't had before or an unusual fear?”

“no father, I have not.”

“strange, why is it like this?”

“is something of matter, father?”

“no, son. You called it inhuman which it is indeed, but I've to say it's more than you think it is.” looking at the end of long light less corridor, he continued with a slightly light of fear passing his eyes. “ here store something called, the Nightmare Stone.”

This was first time Samuel had ever heard the term, but even the name showed it wasn't just an everyday pebble you could find along the roadside.

“this stone is only found in one certain dungeon, ranked S with how dangerous that place is, even I can't enter it and come out unscathed.”

While talking about the place, fear become even more apparent on him, just reminiscing about it brought back his feeling of that time.

“That dungeon name is Endless Terror, monsters of it aren't that strong, but environment that this stone provides for them, make them matchless.”

“Those who stay near this stone, see their biggest fear, dreadful illusions fill their minds and after a short while, their spirit will wear out, succumbing to nightmare, they'll end up easy preys, and that's it.”

“your grandfather was only one with resistance to it, so he brought this stone to me and we made this place, shackle those like this guy here, leaving fear to corrode them, then extract their knowledge, right out of their weakened mind. So how do feel about it now?”

Asking same question again, Samuel only looked at with lost face.

“I don't know father, just …isn't it vicious and extreme?”

Letting his weak voice, he expressed his mind. For a child this wasn't something little and easy to take in. If man infront of him wasn't his father, he didn't knew what would be his reaction? 

Would he run away screaming? Or would he fall on ground and tear up? What would other think of James, with such disposition? 

“well, let us move forward.”

Further down the corridor was same, empty cell or some with rotten corpses. 

Near the end of corridor a howling voice echoed. 

“awww ……woo…woo…”

It sounded incomparably miserable in Samuel's ear, like an abandoned dog, left by it's master.

“is this source of smell?”

“…it is.”

Looking over the iron bars, a man of haggard appearance was bound by chain, sprawled on floor, he made whimpers from time to time. 

“…what had happened to him father?”

“he had been here for three days, and probably had been tampered with by that vampire's power.”

A power to rob sanity and will, wasn't unprecedented, the difficulty was how it worked and how to dispel it.

“currently, it's unknown if he regain himself or not. And you feel the smell from him. Correct?!”

“yeah…”

“there's two ways to solve your issue, one is to kill him, second is to banish him somewhere else, which if he's found like this by anyone, he'll be put to death immediately. So his end is same, no matter how you look at it.”

With ruthless words he informed the child of fragility of life.

“this man, had only made a simple mistake, but it ended up with him dropping in hell, so look at it and learn son, this is what you need.”

“need for what father?”

“for your life, that is.”

Rooted on spot, he didn't knew what to do, Samuel didn't liked the situation. In the end he either direct or indirectly would cause his death.

“let go son, I'll deal with it shortly.”

James didn't feel anything though, and there was a last option of making Kane as experimental subject, so they could figure out how this unknown magic worked out.

But sharing it with Samuel?

It was too soon. Though he showed him the Dungeon, too much information at one time, might crush his unprepared heart.

“…there's something else, I've to say father.” 

His sudden request was unexpected to James but he wasn't easy to read his thoughts.

“hm? Say what you want.”

“his smell is quite jumbled up.” said Samuel trying to make an effort for departing life, for the life that he might be able to do something about it.

Each person had their own unique scent, normally when he smelled someone, they had their own at core and those they had contacted with in their surroundings.

But to tell apart such difference, wasn't possible by normal means. Even if a person was very high leveled, it was no easy feat to do so. Some had ability to read mana, which was forte of water magician, just like James's water network.

The best would be wind sense for it, but needs user to be proficient enough for it. And Samuel wasn't weak in it, he hadn't mastered it but he could determine this case as it wasn't a miniscule detail but rather plain one that other would easily ignore.

The smell came from man himself, his core, instead of surrounding as it should.

The meaning was obvious, the smell wasn't external one but internal one.

He and that woman are one person? 

At his conclusion he could only laugh. First they were separated existence and lastly she was already dead.

“son, you don't need to pressure yourself, it's not like you wanted this to happen or have any responsibility for it.”

James tried to put him at ease and help him move on with it.

A B-rank adventurer wasn't someone little but wasn't too much high either. With chaos they caused, no one would say a word if he were to be sentenced to jail for a long time.

And he could persuade his relatives before they even come after him.

“…father, is he wounded?” Samuel threw another question out of nowhere.

“don't think so, by mental torture here, there's no need to apply physical one.” 

“…then why there is a heavy scent of blood on him?”

“Huh?! What blood? What are you talking about?” 

This place had a bloody smell in it from past to intensify the fear prisoner felt, so no one could easily tell which smell did he meant or why that smell presence on Kane mattered.

So James was experiencing a strange feeling about where Samuel's word were going.

“father, can you open this door, I want to test something.” 

Facing his request, James wanted to reject immediately, he had no idea what this magic was capable of, so bringing Samuel was foolhardy. But expectant look Samuel had on him wasn't something he wanted to let down, even if his try ended in failure, he could keep him safe, even if it ended in the man, untimely death.

“all right, let see what you are going to do.”