Back to the flashback of when Mireille is a child, we see more of what she was seeing. The wind-up pocketwatch that plays the soft melody and beside it... lies a hand fallen in a pool of blood... staring at it, not knowing what to do while she blinks her big eyes.
At present time, Mireille tells Kirika that she is going to go look around where Varnelle was. Kirika goes to follow with her bag, but Mireille tells her that she doesn't have to come. Mireille stops at a bar where Varnelle respected the bartender as an older brother. After a few exchange of words about Varnelle's family (how the couple were the few that could be trusted and that Varnelle loved his children very much), the bartender gave a bottle of wine that is left for Mireille. On the bottle, Varnelle had written "Mireille, in the memories of St. Galan Church."
Leaving the bar, Mireille had a feeling that she was being followed. Footsteps that followed her movement. Going inside an alley quick as she could and drawing her gun, she waits for the man to show up. When the footstep draws close, the aims into the alley, only to find it empty.
Safely back at the apartment, Mireille and Kirika both studied the bottle of wine slowly, and for a while, no conclusion could be drawn. Upon closer examination, Kirika saw that some of the words on the bottle have been circled or triangled. Asking about it, Mireille had no idea about it as well and deduced that Varnelle found something important and hid it in St. Galan's Church because he got scared. The two of them started listing the places that you could find in the church... from bell towers to priest's quarters. But when Kirika said "catacomb," it struck a cord in Mireille's head.
Mireille heads off to the catacombs immediately. Inside she figures out why certain letters were circled. They refer to the co-ordinates of something. She makes her way through the catacombs until she stands opposite a tomb. Mireille brushes away some of the dirt and discovers a seal envelope which inside. details information on Noir.
"Noir,/The word comes from an ancient past,/a name of destiny./Two maidens who reign over death./The warm black hands.../protect the peace of newly-borns./among the people,/among love/among the sins,/The soldiers are within the truth./says the hermit to the sinned.
Mireille leaves the catacombs and the envelope is stolen from her. She was expecting this, and she intends to find out who the man is and what he wants. Kirika lays down some covering fire whilst Mireille gives chase.
Mireille follows the man inside and after a brief battle, he lies dieing on the floor whilst Mireille questions him about who killed Varnelle. He replies that it was his order and 'they' were his employer. Mireille asks who 'they' are;
"They are the absolute ones that only very few knows of." And that if she shoots him, the key would disappear.
Flashback of when she was a little girl came around and of the hand that lied in a pool of blood. Another of Varnelle's dead family. When the man just smiled at Mireille's hesitation, she shot him. Gasping in surprise, but smiling as he died, the mystery remains unsolved. Kirika was standing behind watching during all this exchange. After taking a soft breath and looking for a moment at Mireille, she turns to leave.
Back home, they read the letter within the envelop once again.
"People among people,"
"Love among love,"
"Sins among sins."
Said the hermit to the sinned, "Soldats are together within the truth."
Soldats, that's their name, the enemy.
Watering the plants once again in the early of the morning, Mireille tells Kirika finally of her flashback. That her parents and brother were killed in Corsica, her country. She doesn't know why they were killed nor by whom. And that was the last time she saw the pocket watch until Kirika brought it back to her from the past. |