PandoraHearts ~Caucus Race~, Vol. 2 Read Online Free PDF Page A

moments between the point where the cat jumped off his knees and the point where he’d heard footsteps.
    No one saw me— They can’t have seen!
    “……Oh! Elliot…kun?”
    At the sound of his name, he turned his piercing gaze straight in the direction of the voice.
    When he saw the person who was walking toward him, Elliot felt himself going cold inside. The alarm bell in his chest calmed down, and his gaze, which had been rather threatening, became a glare filled with clear annoyance.
    …Ada Vessalius…!
    Silently, in his mind, Elliot said the girl’s name.
    She was a daughter of the House of Vessalius, one of the four great dukedoms. Unlike the House of Nightray, Vessalius was a line of heroes that were showered with unadulterated glory and honor. Ada was in the sixth year at school, and Elliot’s senior.
    The houses of Vessalius and Nightray were often compared to light and shadow.
    “Hate the Vessaliuses. Despise them. Revile them.”
His father’s words rose in Elliot’s heart.
    Elliot had heard these words ever since he was small, and they were carved deeply into his heart.
    …And so.
    At school, where it wouldn’t do to cause trouble, Elliot had avoided interacting with her to the best of his abilities. Fortunately, since they were in different years, this hadn’t been hard. He’d only seen her a handful of times, at a distance, since he first entered the academy.
    “Grrt…” Unconsciously, Elliot ground his teeth together.
    Whether or not she’d noticed his attitude, Ada came right up to him, then stopped and fidgeted. She seemed tense. She also seemed rather shy.
    Now there’s a face without a care in the world
, Elliot thought, coldly.
    “Um, uh…”
    Ada pretended to straighten her perfectly tidy uniform, looking bashful.
    “Elliot-kun, isn’t it? I, um, we haven’t spoken before, but I—”
    “Don’t say my name like we’re friends, Ada Vessalius.”
    He’d dropped the words on her like a ton of bricks, and the girl shrank back like a scolded child.

    LATER, IN HIS ROOM IN THE BOYS’ DORM.
    “Hey, why’s it gone?”
    Elliot was flipping through the pages of
Holy Knight
again and again, then turning the book upside down and shaking it, when Leo returned.
    On seeing Elliot, who was scowling in irritation, he looked perplexed.
    “Why’s what gone?”
    “The bookmark. The one you gave me.”
    At Elliot’s answer, Leo’s expression changed to one of comprehension, and he came over. Peering down at the book in Elliot’s hands, he asked, “You did have it in the book, right?” Elliot nodded silently. The bookmark had been in the book, and he’d been carrying the book under his arm, so it was hard to imagine that the bookmark had fallen out.
    …Which meant it shouldn’t be gone. And yet.
    Leo seemed to have thought the same thing. He cocked his head as if to say,
That’s odd.
    “When was the last time you saw it?”
    “Oh, it was…”
    Elliot scanned his memory.
    “I opened the book in the back garden while I was waiting for you… It was then.”
    “I see. Then it must’ve happened after that, while you were on your way back here. Did anything unusual happen?”
    “Unusual… Ada Vessalius talked to me.”
    He spoke after a momentary silence, making no attempt to hide his bad mood. Leo gave a small, surprised, “Huh.” He followed it with, “That
is
strange,” but Elliot said nothing. He was remembering his exchange with Ada. Even though she’d been nervous, Ada had given him a gentle smile.
    “Don’t say my name like we’re friends.”
    She’d spoken to him, and he’d rejected her sharply.
    He didn’t know whether Ada had understood why he’d been so harsh with her. However, even after having been rebuffed in that fashion, Ada hadn’t immediately tried to leave.
    She might have had something she wanted to ask… Something she wanted to talk about. As far as Elliot was concerned, though, he had nothing to discuss with a Vessalius. And so, as Ada stood her