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Chapter 17
“I found the book you were looking for, Master!”
“Tom…”
Receiving the book from Tom, Lapis widened his eyes.
“How did you… find this book?”
“I just wanted to help you, Master.”
“Thank you, Tom.”
“Hehe.”
Tom beamed with joy at the praise.
“Well… you might not want to be so happy just yet.”
Elia smiled gently and pointed to the book.
“That book won’t help.”
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. Even if you read that book, it won’t cure your sister’s illness.”
At her words, Lapis’s expression hardened.
The sharp hostility that suddenly radiated from him was no joke.
“You might want to stop that murderous aura. My child could get frightened.”
Alexis stepped in front of Elia, shielding her. At that, Lapis sighed.
“Ah… forgive me. It slipped out.”
But Elia knew he had deliberately directed that killing intent at her.
“You seem to have a lot of questions, Mister. Could you spare a moment of your time?”
Lapis instantly saw through Elia’s purpose.
“Ah, so you came here specifically to meet me, young lady.”
“That’s right. I came here just to find you.”
“Elia…”
Alexis looked at her, clearly asking for an explanation. Elia gave a sheepish smile and whispered,
“I’m sorry, Your Grace. Actually… I came here to meet that man.”
“What?”
“He’s someone you really need, so we can’t lose him.”
“You…”
“Scold me later, please. Right now, we have to secure him—quickly!”
As Elia tugged on Alexis’s arm, he let out a long sigh.
“We’ll talk later.”
“Of course! Hehe.”
Shaking his head, Alexis turned to Lapis.
“Could you spare us a moment? It seems my child has something to discuss with you.”
After thinking for a moment, Lapis replied,
“Very well. Let’s move to a more private place.”
As they followed behind him, Alexis murmured,
“Elia, shouldn’t you have told me in advance?”
“You came here just for me… I thought you might be disappointed if you knew I had an ulterior motive.”
Alexis had offered the book market outing purely for Elia’s enjoyment. But in truth, she had come with a clear plan.
“Elia, I’m not that narrow-minded. And you don’t have to go this far for us.”
Elia was always trying to do something for the ducal house.
That weighed on Alexis’s heart.
Sometimes, he wondered why she went to such lengths to help them.
But Elia only smiled in response.
“We’re here.”
Lapis led them to a nearby residence.
“I rented this place just for the book market. It’s not much, but please, come in.”
The interior was cozy.
Dmitri stood guard outside with the knights.
Tom had been sent elsewhere, apparently.
“Now then. Shall we talk?”
Lapis’s gaze was sharp, but not intimidating.
“Aren’t you curious how I know about you, Mister?”
“I am curious.”
Elia gave a meaningful smile and spoke to Gaji (the spirit).
“Show him, Gaji.”
[Are you sure? He might hurt you.]
“The Duke will protect me.”
That was why she had chosen Alexis as her guardian.
As Elia extended her hand, both Lapis and Alexis turned their eyes to her.
Flaaash!
A radiant light burst from Elia’s hand.
Behind her, the faint silhouette of the World Tree shimmered.
Lapis stood up from his seat instinctively.
Elia’s golden eyes flickered for a moment before returning to normal.
“Mister, I’m the current Guardian of the World Tree.”
As the light faded, the afterimage of the tree vanished.
Lapis’s face froze.
“The World Tree tells me what I want to know.”
That, of course, was a lie.
The World Tree didn’t reveal everything just because Elia wanted it to.
But people didn’t know the extent of the World Tree’s power. They only believed it was great—without understanding the specifics.
Only Elia, the Guardian, knew what it could and couldn’t do.
“Your sister will die without being cured. The reason? Because the herb you’re looking for… can’t be found.”
“What are you…?”
One of the reasons Lapis hadn’t obtained the herb was due to interference from the Grand Duchess.
Christina, the Grand Duchess, had an odd hobby of collecting rare herbs. Whenever a legendary herb appeared, she would somehow acquire it.
It was the same in Lapis’s case.
“She took it from me.”
No matter how strong he was, power couldn’t be ignored.
And Christina currently held enormous power—there was nothing she couldn’t do.
“Do you… really see that happening?”
He looked skeptical.
But Elia had lived three lives.
In her first life, she destroyed the Black Pearl merchant guild. In her second life, she did it again. In her third, she used them.
“I made him my ally.”
That’s why she knew.
She knew just how desperate Lapis was right now.
He had dismantled the organization he belonged to because its boss broke a promise.
That boss had no intention of letting go of Lapis’s talents and had strung him along, pretending he knew where the herb was.
As a top-class assassin, Lapis was too valuable to lose.
To save his sister, he took on countless life-threatening missions and earned great merit.
His fellow assassins, feeling sorry for him, eventually told him the truth.
Enraged, Lapis confronted the boss and, upon discovering the deception, killed him—and dismantled the organization.
With the money he had saved, he founded his own merchant group, taking in those exposed to crime and giving them a new path.
The guild grew, reached the capital, and accumulated considerable wealth.
But he still couldn’t get what he truly wanted.
He couldn’t save his dying sister.
But Elia was confident.
“I’ll help you, Mister.”
“Help me?”
“I’ll cure your sister’s illness.”
“That’s… impossible…”
“I have a way.”
“And if you’re lying?”
“Then you can take your price from me.”
“Elia!”
Alexis widened his eyes in shock.
Still, Elia was firm.
“If I can’t save your sister, you can take your price from me.”
Lapis was stunned.
A child saying something like that without hesitation?
How could she?
Was the Guardian of the World Tree really that different from ordinary children?
“Why are you doing this?”
“Because I need you. More precisely, I need your merchant guild.”
Elia explained the current situation of the House of Cartellani.
“So you’re making this offer because you want to form a partnership?”
“Exactly.”
“Revealing you’re the Guardian was a reckless move. Aren’t you afraid I’ll kidnap you?”
“You won’t. Because His Grace would never let that happen.”
Alexis placed a hand on Elia’s shoulder.
“Laying a hand on this child is the same as making an enemy of me.”
“To think someone so young has already accomplished so much. I can’t even measure it.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Lapis looked at Elia.
“Very well, young lady. But everything must be done under my watch.”
“In case I harm your sister?”
“Better safe than sorry.”
Elia gave a soft smile and shrugged.
“That’s fair. I understand. Then, shall we draft the contract now?”
“Let’s do it.”
Lapis walked over to a desk, retrieved a document, and began writing the contract in front of Elia and Alexis.
“Please review it.”
Elia and Alexis checked the terms. Alexis added one condition.
“The treatment location must be the ducal estate. Bring the girl there for treatment.”
Lapis glanced at Elia, then said—
