HEHW 05

Chapter 5

The guild always had the cozy atmosphere of a tavern. It felt so much like one that I sometimes wondered if they had just converted a real tavern into a guild.

As I walked deeper inside, I found a stranger waiting for me instead of the woman who was usually there.

The man I had never seen before had nearly white-blond hair and oddly dangerous-looking amethyst-colored eyes.

Because of his long hair and delicate, beautiful features, at first glance he could easily be mistaken for a woman.

“…Wasn’t there usually a woman here?”

“Dahlia is busy with other work right now. What brings you here?”

Despite his cold first impression, his tone was gentle and polite. The kind voice eased my tension.

“I didn’t come for a new request, I just wanted to check on the progress of the last one.”

“Which request would that be?”

“A child from Dorlin Orphanage, named Chaedi…”

“Ah.”

Before I even finished speaking, the man nodded as though he understood. Thankfully, he hadn’t forgotten my request.

“Yes. How far has it gone?”

“We’ve been looking, but there’s so little information that it’s taking some time. If you want faster progress, you’ll need to provide as much detail as possible.”

He handed me a paper that asked for the person’s appearance, age, residence, and so on. I began filling it out without hesitation.

• Client’s Name: Saya

• Missing Person’s Name: Chaedi

• Gender: Female

• Age: Estimated around 23

• Residence: Unknown

• Appearance: Platinum-blonde hair, blue eyes, dark skin

• Special Note: From Dorlin Orphanage

After writing that much, I realized how little I actually knew about Chaedi.

Even the age I listed was just a guess—it was possible she was much younger.

The man read what I had written, his expression twisted into a frown that didn’t ease at all. In fact, the crease between his brows only seemed to deepen.

‘There must be some problem.’

Otherwise, why would he read such a short request form for so long?

“It doesn’t say what your relationship to this person is.”

He finally spoke.

I had left that part blank because I didn’t know what to call our relationship. Technically, she was a friend, but given how long it had been since she contacted me, it was uncertain whether she still thought of me that way.

“If I had to put something, I’d say friend.”

“‘Had to’?”

“…I—I haven’t been able to contact her for a long time. She might not even remember me.”

“Wait.”

“Yes?”

“You said your name was Saya?”

“Uh… yes.”

He stared intently at my face. Uncomfortable, I took a step back.

This was exactly why I hated coming to a guild staffed by men. Right now, I suddenly missed that woman named Dahlia terribly.

“Ah… ah!”

The man suddenly clutched his forehead and groaned as though someone had pinched him.

“Yes, that’s right. That’s how it was.”

“…What are you talking about?”

Disturbed by his odd behavior, I stepped back again.

The man walked around the long table. Though he was slender, he was very tall. Standing so close, the height difference made me feel even more uncomfortable.

“Uh?”

I let out a stupid sound, dazed, and the man’s lips curled upward.

“…A-anyway, you’ll properly look for Chaedi now, right? Here’s the fee…”

I naturally reached for my purse. Last time, I had withdrawn quietly because it seemed like they didn’t want to take the request. But today, from the man’s reaction, I felt a flicker of hope.

My budget was limited. If I stated the amount first, it would prevent them from naming some absurd price.

But when I handed him the pouch, he suddenly grabbed my wrist.

“I won’t take this.”

“What? Why not? Don’t tell me you’re about to say you can’t find her after all?”

That couldn’t be allowed. My only plans left for escape were getting the annulment papers delivered and finding Chaedi. Since Reddick Vangager was a man full of pride, the annulment would arrive soon enough.

“If you keep refusing payment, it only makes me doubt your abilities. If you can’t do it, I’ll go to another guild.”

“Ah… that’s troublesome.”

He glanced between the money pouch and me, then finally, as if he had no choice, took it in hand.

“I know finding someone can take time, but I’d appreciate it if you found her as quickly as possible.”

“Is there a reason for the urgency?”

“I’ll be leaving the capital soon.”

I had no intention of ever setting foot in Erdonar again once I left, so if time dragged on, continuing the request would become impossible.

“…Understood, for now.”

Only after hearing his reply did I leave the guild. I still felt uneasy, but remembering their successful handling of my previous request, I steadied myself.

A strangely clear bell chimed as the door behind the man burst open. A striking woman with vivid crimson hair strode inside.

“That won’t do.”

“What won’t?”

Dahlia retorted. With a swift motion, she snatched the pouch from the man’s hand, smiling in satisfaction at the amount inside.

“And what do you intend to do?”

The person Saya Erdonar was looking for, Chaedi, wasn’t a man—it was a woman. Of course, the man knew this. At first, he had only wanted to satisfy his curiosity about who this woman was.

“I remembered who she is.”

“Really? Who? Why don’t I remember?”

“You wouldn’t know. She was adopted before you came.”

She nodded as if that explained everything.

“So she just wanted to find her childhood friend one last time?”

“Not a friend.”

His firm correction made Dahlia tilt her head. He looked far too pleased for someone denying it was friendship.

Still, she ignored that and continued,

“But about her leaving—that’s connected, isn’t it? Didn’t she ask us to catch her fiancé cheating? If that comes out, her fiancé’s side won’t just sit still. Then why would she… Huh? Master? Where are you going?”

The man, who had been silently listening, patted her shoulder a few times before walking out.

He’d thought of a good idea.

‘As a friend, this much help is only natural, right?’

Dahlia, unaware of his thoughts, was left frowning.

“Strange man.”

“Young lady! Young lady!”

Jessi’s voice rang down the corridor. I rubbed my eyes, just waking, as she burst in and yanked open the bed’s curtains.

“Young lady! Look at this!”

“Ugh. Jessi, what’s all the fuss so early in the morning?”

What she waved in her hand was a newspaper. Groggy, I looked at the front page she spread open for me.

“A retraction? What does this mean? That I didn’t have an affair?”

I asked in shock, and Jessi’s worried face showed she understood too. She already knew I had deliberately arranged that scandal to secure a broken engagement. She also knew this meant I couldn’t break off the engagement anymore.

If I couldn’t annul it, then running away would be much harder. There was a world of difference between a noblewoman fleeing after being jilted and one vanishing without such a reason.

That couldn’t happen.

‘How could the handling be this sloppy?’

So much for this guild being reliable.

“Get me ready to go out, Jessi.”

“Yes, young lady!”

In no time, I was dressed and in the carriage. The whole ride, as the horses galloped, I kept trying to figure out how the article had changed.

‘Could Giselle have cleaned it up?’

But no—the guild had been thorough last time. They’d even drawn a portrait of me and my supposed lover sharing a kiss.

And it’s easy to print a false article, but retracting one is difficult. Even Giselle would have needed to hand out endless bribes.

Would she really go that far just to restore my reputation? No way. Though she had scolded me for sullying the Erdonar name, deep down she had enjoyed it.

After all, everyone knew I was adopted. They sneered that the orphan they’d taken in repaid kindness with betrayal. Giselle found comfort in that mockery. There was no way she would go out of her way to defend me.

If not Giselle, then perhaps Kirill or Pavel. They would do anything to help Giselle. Which meant Giselle’s best move was to stay put and let things play out.

The moment I stepped out of the carriage, I strode furiously toward the guild. As usual, I handed a gold coin to a vagrant who pretended to be a beggar, and he opened the door for me.

My footsteps carried my anger.

“…What brings you here at this hour?”

“It’s been a while.”

Two people greeted me inside. Their expressions couldn’t have been more different—the man smiled at me, while the woman looked startled.

“This morning’s newspaper. What on earth happened here?”