🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 44
After I Die, the Little Groom
The day of the operation had arrived.
Heinrich donned his armor under his robe and stepped out to the first floor of the lodging.
There, Nadia, along with Vivian and Johan, were disguised as merchants.
“This is strange… our young lady is supposed to be running around in the mines, so why does she look so beautiful…?”
At Vivian’s lament, the knights nearby either laughed or nodded in agreement.
Even though Nadia’s robe was worn at the sleeves, ill-fitting, and her hair partially covered her cheeks, her beauty was difficult to hide.
Vivian rubbed Nadia’s hair frantically, trying to make her look even more shabby.
Nadia just smiled, watching the maid’s fuss as if it were a cute little act.
Perhaps because the maid treated Nadia so comfortably, the knights also seemed to view her with ease.
“The maids and knights are strong enough, so I’m not worried about them, but is the young lady really going to be okay? It’s going to get extremely cold outside the territory, and without a carriage…”
Even Allison couldn’t hide her concern for Nadia and sighed quietly.
Heinrich had never seen a master and her subordinates get along so closely.
Ribena also cared for her subordinates and was loyal to them, but it was different from the easy familiarity he was seeing now.
What was the difference?
Heinrich shook his head slightly.
Comparing Nadia and Ribena was pointless anyway—they were different people.
He just thought she might be a good partner since there would be no more moments to unsettle him.
As the merchant group headed north in the Crimson territory, the ambush team, including Heinrich, worked to discreetly move horses and deer.
Fortunately, the weather was clear, with no snow, allowing them to monitor progress from a distance.
Allison kept her eyes glued to the telescope, reporting continuously.
“The merchant group has met the target. It looks like they hired several mercenaries.”
Thompson, a knight nearby, dismissed it.
“It’s common for merchant groups to hire mercenaries.”
“But their numbers are considerable, and they seem skilled. Considering the size of their group, this is unusual.”
Heinrich knelt on one knee, observing the people who appeared like dots. Even without the telescope, he couldn’t tear his eyes away.
“Hmm, it looks like the target is rejecting the merchant group. Judging by the hand gestures, they seem to be refusing their offer.”
Allison shrank her shoulders nervously.
Nadia was confident the merchant group wouldn’t be refused, and the operation had been planned based on that premise.
Heinrich, however, remained completely calm.
“Let’s wait a little longer.”
“Yes, sir.”
Allison provided updates every few minutes: “They’re still negotiating,” or “Some of the merchant group members are trying to persuade them to leave.”
Suddenly, Allison peered through the telescope and slightly stuck out her head.
There was definitely a change in the situation.
“Someone has come out. Judging by their attire, they seem to be the highest-ranking among them… wait, it looks like Baron Varden Young Master.”
“Varden? Where’s that?”
Thompson shook his head, clueless. Heinrich also had no information on the person.
“Don’t you know? It’s a small territory in the northeast. The family has tried everything to be incorporated into the eastern territories. I heard their recent business ventures failed… I guess that’s why they ended up here.”
“Sir, this guy… if I see him now, he seems pretty competent, right?”
“Don’t tease him too much… it’s a serious situation.”
After a brief scuffle of words, Allison and Thompson went silent, aware of Heinrich’s gaze.
Allison concentrated again and furrowed her brows, letting out a small exclamation.
“Baron Varden Young Master has grabbed Baroness Hes. There were others nearby, but he specifically took the young lady, so it seems what the young lady said was correct. Why would they target her?”
“Because she’s so beautiful, isn’t it?”
Allison glanced at Heinrich after Thompson’s thoughtless comment.
This was the intuition of a secretary who had served her master for a long time. Heinrich was paying a lot of attention to Nadia. Whether it was romantic or not, she wouldn’t appreciate this kind of talk.
Allison deliberately ignored it and moved on.
“It seems the target is about to accept the merchant group’s offer. They appear to be preparing to move. We should get ready too.”
Heinrich nodded, signaling the ambush team to move cautiously.
The merchant group headed north in the Crimson territory with the target.
Even without any official permission, they confidently exited through the main gate, indicating some sort of deal had been made.
“Clearly connected to the Varden family… but could it also involve Count Crimson?”
“Even if not, the administration was negligent, so he must be held accountable too.”
“Yes, sir.”
Heinrich took the telescope from Allison and looked through the lens. By chance, Nadia’s face came into view first.
Already feeling the cold, her nose had turned red, and she exhaled visible breaths.
Vivian secretly rubbed Nadia’s hands to warm them, but Nadia shook her head and pushed Vivian’s hands away, likely conscious of others’ attention.
‘Incredibly diligent,’ Heinrich thought.
Nadia was clearly the weakest physically among them. The criminal group wouldn’t adjust their pace for a woman, so it was obvious she was overexerting herself.
It was frustrating to watch her struggle while others barely noticed. Heinrich clicked his tongue and handed the telescope back to Allison.
“Better get inside before freezing to death,” a mercenary said, rubbing his arms and giggling.
Nadia looked where he pointed with his chin. Not far away was a cave. Around it, the snow and ice had cleared, leaving bare rock and soil.
Warm smoke rose from inside, indicating someone lived there.
Johan was the first to enter the cave and spoke to the mercenary.
“You live in a cave rather than a building?”
“The north is so cold… underground is the only tolerable place.”
“We didn’t see any berries along the way. We need to check the supplies to decide how hard we’ll need to work, right?”
“You’re impatient. If picking them were easy, we’d have dug in here already. But we do have some stored, so I’ll show you once inside.”
The mercenary boasted excessively.
Johan noticed that the mercenaries were gradually pushing the merchant group inside, blocking any escape.
Nadia sniffed the air, gestured subtly, and coughed lightly.
Those who smelled the air realized there was no sweet scent of berries, only a musty smell.
From inside came faint coughing and groaning.
The mercenaries didn’t bother hiding their suspicious expressions.
‘No wonder they can’t escape now,’ Nadia thought.
Before she finished her thought, the mercenaries revealed their true colors.
They drew their swords and pointed them at the merchant group, shouting threats.
“You bastards! Kneel all of you!”
Johan placed his hand on his waist and looked at Nadia.
‘Not yet.’
Nadia whispered and kneeled. The knights followed suit.
Then, a well-dressed man—Baron Varden Young Master—pushed through the mercenaries.
He approached Nadia directly and roughly lifted her chin.
“Incredible,” he said.
He gazed greedily at Nadia’s abdomen, as if peering inside her rather than looking at her body.
“Her face?”
“You only see that? You don’t know what kind of treasure she’s carrying inside.”
Treasure inside her abdomen.
Nadia realized that Baron Varden was referring to her core. Just as Nadia could read others’ emotions through mana, he could see other people’s cores.
“I’ve never seen one like this. ‘He’ will like this. Keep this girl confined separately.”
Nadia obediently lowered her eyes, but raised her head at those words.
Baron Varden clearly knew what this human trafficking group ultimately wanted.
He had identified the most crucial person among them, so now it was time to act.
As Nadia sent a signal, one of the knights detonated a smoke bomb. Vivian slipped out of the cave silently, without a sound.
Soon after:
Bang!
The mercenaries, unaware of Vivian’s escape, rushed outside when they heard the noise.
But the kneeling knights had already drawn their swords, so no one could get out.
