TMST 24

Chapter 24

“Arken… we meet again… it’s nice to see you…”

She had tried to sound cheerful, but even to her own ears, her voice was far from bright.

It sounded more like the voice of someone on the verge of death.

Arken gave a slight bow and continued on his way—or rather, perhaps he couldn’t bring himself to pass by Karin’s miserable expression. He approached her and asked,

“Has something happened?”

Wow… he asked first… this is exciting…

Karin held a small celebration inside her head.

“You know what you said last time? About coming to the Second Duchy if Duke Lucas gave me a hard time. I’d like to take that back.”

Confusion immediately appeared on his face. His clear eyes widened noticeably and trembled as if he had been shocked.

Ah.

Karin suddenly realized how her words must have sounded and hurriedly added an explanation.

“It’s not because I changed my mind. It’s because our duchy has gone completely bankrupt.”

She had nearly caused another strange misunderstanding.

“…Did something happen to the Second Duchy?”

he asked. Fortunately, his eyes had stopped trembling.

What a soft-hearted person.

He was the very definition of tough on the outside and gentle on the inside.

If he was already like this after they had grown a little closer, what would he be like if they became even more intimate?

Karin unconsciously let her imagination run wild before snapping back to reality when she noticed Arken staring blankly at her.

“Well, you see… that utterly useless Tricia—no, my father—ended up gambling last night…”

Karin repeated exactly what Marie and Duke Tricia had told her.

Arken stood quietly and listened attentively.

“…And that’s how this happened.”

Karin waited for his response with a bitter feeling.

As smart as he was, she assumed even he wouldn’t be able to do anything about this.

Yet he calmly replied,

“It isn’t a particularly difficult problem.”

As he spoke, he raised a hand clad in a dark navy glove and adjusted his glasses.

Karin held her breath as she admired the sight.

Ah, of course. A glasses character always has to adjust their glasses at a critical moment—

No, this wasn’t the time for that.

“What? Why?”

“The Ancient Laws weren’t abandoned for no reason. They’re written ambiguously, leaving plenty of room for interpretation. Frankly, they have far too many flaws to function properly as laws.”

“…”

“Baron Flang was clever. Very few people can read the ancient language, so only a handful truly understand the Ancient Laws.”

Arken continued rambling about legal knowledge as though he were trying to show off.

Karin became frustrated and sprang to her feet.

“No, more importantly. You said it wasn’t a difficult problem. Does that mean it can be solved?”

“…”

“Can you help us?”

This time, he was the one who fell silent.

Avoiding her gaze, he blinked rapidly.

“The future of the Second Duchy and my own future are at stake. Please.”

Karin clasped her hands together like she was praying and looked at him with desperate eyes.

Right now, Arken was the only person she could trust.

Would Duke Tricia be any help? Would Iris?

And Duke Lucas was someone she didn’t even want to deal with.

Karin bent forward, trying to meet Arken’s eyes.

He kept turning his head to avoid her, but he couldn’t escape someone as determined as Karin.

Eventually, he met her grass-green eyes directly and let out a deep sigh.

“First, I must obtain Duke Lucas’s permission. When is the trial?”

Yes!

“Three days from now. So that means you’ve agreed to help, right?”

“I’ll speak with him and see what I can do.”

“Then I’ll be counting on you.”

“I have something I need to attend to, so I’ll take my leave.”

“Goodbye! And thank you in advance!”

Although two people had been talking, anyone listening would think they were each having separate conversations with themselves.

Arken simply nodded in farewell before continuing up the stairs.

Even if he acted indifferent on the outside, he was warm-hearted at his core.

Karin was certain he was already worrying about the matter.

She didn’t know how he intended to solve the problem, but just knowing he would help made her feel much better.

After all, hadn’t he said,

“It isn’t a particularly difficult problem.”

If he could say something like that, he must have been confident.

Perhaps because she finally had someone to rely on, all the tension drained from her body.

At the same time, agonizing pain shot through her legs.

The result of walking nonstop for four hours.

Grabbing her trembling knees, Karin sank into thought.

Where am I supposed to stay until the trial?

Returning to the wrecked mansion would hardly provide any rest, and she couldn’t exactly continue sitting on the stairs forever.

In the end, there was only one place she could go.

At the very least, that person would welcome her warmly.

After lightly pounding her aching knees, Karin straightened her back and headed toward her destination.

As usual, Duke Lucas sat in his office processing the endless flood of documents before him.

There was more work than anyone could possibly finish.

Though he worked as quickly as possible, the mountain of paperwork showed no signs of shrinking.

The workload was far beyond what a single duke could handle alone, which made the role of an aide extremely important.

That was why he had chosen the commoner Arkenas as his assistant over the talented young heirs of prestigious noble families.

As the top graduate of the Royal Academy, Arkenas lived up to his impressive academic record.

His work was fast.

His methods were meticulous and efficient.

His magical abilities were exceptionally outstanding.

Since bringing him on as an aide, it would not be an exaggeration to say the duke’s workload had been cut in half.

He was an employee the duke was thoroughly satisfied with.

…At least, that had been true a few months ago.

At that moment, Arkenas entered the office carrying a stack of files.

Without looking up from his paperwork, the duke asked,

“The documents I requested?”

“Here they are.”

Arkenas placed the files on the desk.

That should have been the end of his task.

Yet he remained standing there.

As if he still had something to discuss.

“Do you have something to say?”

“I’ve heard that Duke Tricia lost a large sum of money gambling with Baron Flang.”

“So?”

“Their dispute will be settled in court three days from now. May I represent the Second Duchy?”

The fact that it had escalated to a trial suggested a substantial amount of money was involved.

A few months ago, he would have ignored it as someone else’s problem.

But now things were different.

“Very well.”

Baron Flang and Duke Tricia.

Both were equally foolish men.

There was no reason for him to become personally involved.

If he sent Arkenas, the matter would be handled competently.

Lately the young man seemed somewhat lacking in energy, but surely he wasn’t incapable of winning a simple court case.

The duke flipped through the file Arkenas had brought and noticed a sheet of paper he didn’t recognize.

“What is this? Today’s date is circled.”

The marked date wasn’t the only one.

Picking up the calendar, the duke examined it carefully.

The moment he spoke, Arkenas—who had been just about to step through the office doorway—froze.

“This was the day I attended the citizens’ meeting alone. This was the ballroom event. This was the day I went on a territory inspection. And this was Founding Day…”

Each date had been circled.

Not only that, every circle was drawn with meticulous care, forming a nearly perfect ring.

The vivid red color suggested they marked very important days.

“And what happened on this day? Hmm…”

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

In the blink of an eye, Arkenas crossed the room and snatched the paper from the duke’s hand.

He stuttered?

This was the first time the duke had ever seen him so flustered.

Wasn’t this the same man who was usually as calm and immovable as a nail hammered into a wall?

The duke narrowed his eyes and examined his aide.

Though those blue eyes tried to appear calm, the duke, having worked alongside him for three years, knew better.

For some reason, Arkenas was shaken.

“They mark important appointments. It must have been mixed in by mistake.”

Sensing the duke’s suspicion, he spoke rapidly.

Important appointments?

That only deepened the mystery.

There shouldn’t be any appointments of Arkenas’s that the duke didn’t already know about.

And as far as he was aware, there were no events this month important enough to warrant red circles.

Nor did the dates seem to share any common connection.

And if it was merely doodling, the irregular spacing between the dates made no sense.

What exactly was he marking?

“Ah, it’s already this late. Preparing for the trial will take quite some time, so I’ll be leaving now.”

Just as the duke was about to ask, Arkenas began speaking hurriedly, avoiding eye contact, and quickly left the office.

The calendar remained clutched tightly in one hand.

He truly was impossible to understand.

It was a thought the duke found himself having every so often since hiring him.

Turning his attention back to the paperwork, the duke soon forgot all about Arkenas’s strange behavior.

There was simply too much work to finish before the day ended to waste time dwelling on trivial matters.

“Karin, don’t worry too much.”

As expected, Iris welcomed her warmly.

Thanks to that, Karin was able to spend three comfortable days in a spacious guest room.

“Everything will work out.”

Iris gently patted Karin’s shoulder and offered words of encouragement.

Though they lacked any real basis, they were still better than hearing nothing at all.

Karin found herself feeling grateful to Iris once again.

When Karin had appeared without warning, Iris hadn’t shown even the slightest sign of annoyance or surprise.

Instead, she had been thrilled, declaring that this was the first time a friend had ever visited her home.

“So cheer up.”

Iris tilted the teapot and filled Karin’s cup with warm tea.

Regardless of the comfort, Karin couldn’t help worrying.

After all, she still hadn’t heard anything from Arken.

During the past three days, the only correspondence she had received was a short letter from Duke Lucas.

“I’ll send Arkenas on the day of the trial. He’ll be helpful.”

Showing off as if he were helping personally.

That was the entirety of the message.

There wasn’t a single word explaining how they planned to handle the trial.

She would find out eventually anyway, so why keep everything such a secret?

It wasn’t as though she would run around spreading the information.

Part of her also felt disappointed in Arken.

Duke Lucas was one thing, but she had thought she and Arken had grown at least somewhat close.

Apparently not.

She waited until the day before the trial, hoping to hear from him.

Nothing arrived.

And then time passed.

The day of the trial had finally come.

Today.

Outwardly, it appeared as though she and Iris were enjoying a peaceful tea time together.

In reality, Karin was incredibly anxious.

Only a few hours remained before the trial.

Would Arken even arrive in time?

“Even if we lose the trial, there’s still another option.”

Noticing Karin’s gloomy expression, Iris spoke with sparkling eyes.

Both hands were clenched into fists.

“You can just stay here and live with me.”

“Haha… is that so…”

Karin would rather decline.

It wasn’t that she disliked Iris.

But spending every waking moment together?

Karin wasn’t confident she could handle that.

“My lady, Duke Lucas’s aide has arrived to see you.”

At that moment, a maid entered with the long-awaited news.

Karin immediately set down her teacup and jumped to her feet.

A pitch-black carriage stood parked in the spacious courtyard.

Beside it stood Arken.

But he looked nothing like himself.

At the sight of him, Karin was horrified.