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Chapter 42
No matter how crazy someone might be, there aren’t many people in this world who can so openly ignore the young duke’s orders… right? Probably?
“You son of a—!”
Felix spat out a curse and sprinted after the fleeing man.
“—!”
Sensing mortal danger, the man glanced back over his shoulder.
That was his mistake.
‘Damn it!’
He bit his lip and pumped strength into his legs. How could that kid be so fast?!
He might be young, but this was ridiculous!
Though the man was older now, he could still run nearly as well as he had in his prime.
Yet Felix was right on his heels, close enough to make his heart pound in panic.
‘He—he wasn’t this fast before!’
Why the hell was he this quick now?
When did he train like this…?
‘Wait, did his body get better somehow?’
Felix had always been agile, but not to the point of chasing him down like this.
Today, however, his movements were on another level—as if he’d taken some kind of stimulant.
“Ugh!”
In the end, the man was tackled to the ground. Felix swiftly pinned him down, a cold smirk curling his lips.
The man gasped when he realized his head felt oddly light. His wig lay far away, sadly watching its owner from the ground.
“…”
“I thought I’d seen you somewhere before.”
“Y-Young Master…”
“Why would the family head’s adjutant be here?”
And why did he bolt like a criminal the moment he saw me?
Felix bit his lip.
Panting heavily, Maytal caught up to them.
He had just run without knowing what was happening.
“F-Father?”
He blinked dumbly at the sight of his father kissing the ground.
“Why… why are you here, Father? Shouldn’t you be at the mansion, handling what’s left of your work…?”
“You should be handling it, yes,” Felix muttered, cutting him off.
“But since you’re out here instead…”
“Y-Young Master…”
“…there must be a reason, right?”
“Cough!”
Dion, startled, began coughing violently. Felix narrowed his eyes like a predator.
“If you’d just greeted me normally, I wouldn’t have gotten suspicious.”
But after running for your life like that, how could I not be?
“What are you doing out here?”
“I-I’m sorry, Young Master, but even if you’re the Young Master, I can’t—”
“Did the old man send you?”
“H-how did you know?! Oh—!”
Too late. He clamped a hand over his mouth, but the words were already out.
“Ah…”
Maytal sighed softly, looking at his father with pity.
“If the old man sent you, then you must know where he is, right? You do know, don’t you?”
“Y-Young Master…”
Gulp.
Maytal took a cautious step back as Felix’s voice turned dangerously smooth.
Even his son couldn’t intervene right now.
“So… where is our dear old man? What’s he doing, leaving his grandson to rot like this?”
“W-wait, Young Master—Maytal! H-help me, son! Hey!”
But Maytal had already bolted.
Dion cursed inwardly as he watched his son’s back grow smaller. His father’s life was at stake, and that ungrateful brat just ran off!
‘He couldn’t even try to help?!’
Glaring after his son, Dion felt a dark shadow fall over him.
“Well then, why don’t we have a little chat?”
“!”
Dion flinched and looked up nervously.
Gulp.
As he swallowed hard, Felix’s lazy smile curved his lips.
“Where’s the old man?”
“Wow. So, that person actually likes you, huh?”
“Me?”
“If I’d gone instead, she probably would’ve shoved me off the balcony for blocking her way.”
“…?”
Wait—was that supposed to be okay?!
I gave him a worried look, but Gilbert just shrugged and popped the last bite of pudding into his mouth.
“Oh, right. Lady, can you take out a few of the potions you’ve made?”
“Why?”
“Remember I told you before? I’ve got a good buyer lined up.”
“…Don’t tell me.”
I hesitated, already guessing who he meant.
“You’re talking about the Young Duke, aren’t you?”
“Smart as ever.”
Gilbert clapped lightly, a spoon hanging from his lips.
“Casliden’s the perfect customer—needs potions, has the money, and judging from his reaction earlier, he’s pretty fond of you too.”
“…”
“Of course, since you’re the one who made them, everyone else would want them too. But this deal would be regular, meaning steady income for you. Isn’t that better?”
Well… he wasn’t wrong.
A stable client meant stable profits.
‘Though I’ll have plenty of money coming in anyway…’
Still, money could be unpredictable. Having a dependable, long-term buyer like Casliden was the smart choice.
And yet…
‘It feels uncomfortable.’
I couldn’t help but feel uneasy about getting any more involved with Felix.
I’d joined the guild to get away from him, not end up closer.
“Lady?”
While I was lost in thought, Gilbert tilted his head and reached for another pudding.
I shook my head quickly and picked up my dessert spoon.
But just as I was about to dig in—
“W-what the—my pudding!”
The plate vanished right before my eyes!
Panicking, I searched frantically for it.
Slurp, slurp.
A wet, satisfied sound reached my ears.
I turned toward the noise instinctively.
“…!”
Gilbert, mid-bite, froze as our eyes met.
“…”
“S-sorry, Lady. It’s just—this pudding is really good…”
He awkwardly set down the empty plate, then snatched up the little service bell on the table.
Seeing my expression darken, he shook it furiously.
“J-just wait! I’ll get you another one right now!”
“So…”
Meanwhile, in Gilbert’s room, Felix sat across from the father-and-son duo who had trespassed uninvited.
“You’re saying the old man’s in Angelo right now?”
“Yes…” Dion answered quietly, bowing his head.
“And Maytal—you met him there when I took down the Black Cat?”
“Yes…”
Maytal lowered his head as well.
Their meek answers made Felix let out a dry laugh.
“So I’m the only one in the family who didn’t know where he was.”
“Um… Young Master,” Dion began hesitantly.
“The head only did it because he was worried about you. He specifically told us not to tell you.”
“That doesn’t make any sense to me,” Felix said, running a frustrated hand through his hair.
“If he ran away because of my potion, that’s all over now, isn’t it?”
The Black Cat had already been dealt with, so why hadn’t the old man come back yet?
The fact that he was still hiding meant only one thing…
“There’s still something left unfinished, isn’t there?”
