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Chapter – 24
In the end, she herself indulged in luxuries with Baron Taylor’s money.
For a moment, I recalled the expensive items that filled her room, the shoes and dresses scattered across the floor, the jewels.
No. I haven’t even done a proper investigation yet. I shouldn’t harbor hatred prematurely.
When looking at someone, a narrow perspective is what truly clouds judgment. One must maintain as objective a view as possible.
Sigh… but this is really troublesome.
“Is there a part you’re stuck on?”
My client doesn’t want a divorce, but I want to make her get one. That’s why I’m trying to find Rozeni’s weakness.
…I couldn’t bring myself to say that aloud, so I gave an awkward laugh.
“Ha ha…”
“Ask me anything.”
Had everything been too easy up until now? I let out a deep, hopeless sigh.
“Even if I ask… I wonder if I’ll know. About the man named Chesper. No matter how powerful Kan is… he couldn’t possibly know ordinary people like him…”
“He would know. Wasn’t he Rozeni’s fiancé? Though he was a common-born knight, he was well-known.”
“Well-known?”
“Of course. He was really handsome.”
“Ah.”
“And tall.”
Why did the mention of him being tall and handsome make me think of the emperor?
Am I crazy? Why do I keep thinking of the emperor at random moments? It’s not like it matters. He’s the emperor. Once this is over, I’ll never see him again.
I shook my head. Kan tilted his head, following my gesture, as if sensing something wrong in my words.
“Do you have any other information?”
“I think the information I have isn’t much different from what you, the lawyer, would already have.”
“Hmm… maybe.”
“He was Rozeni, the Baroness’s former fiancé. It is said he went out to hunt monsters and died, but appeared again after five years claiming he had amnesia. That’s about it. His family is not particularly notable either.”
“Hm… Do you know where this Chesper is staying?”
“I heard he stays at an inn not far from here.”
“An inn?”
“I heard that the inn turns into a bar at night, and he appears there to drink daily. But that information isn’t confirmed.”
“I suppose I should go check it out.”
“If you go, wouldn’t it be safer to go during the day? Since it operates as a bar at night, daytime would be safer.”
Kan slowly stroked his chin.
“That’s fine.”
“Or I could accompany you…”
“Isn’t it your working hours?”
“…That’s true, but.”
“Don’t worry. It’s not illegal, and if something happens, you can just leave.”
Honestly, I didn’t really want to go. But it seemed right to at least meet him once.
I don’t know why I have to meet this person, but at the very least… to persuade my client, I need to meet the source first.
In my previous life, I wouldn’t have done this. I wasn’t an investigator, nor a detective. I only looked at the documents they submitted—but here, things were different.
“Understood.”
“There are knights, so don’t worry.”
At that moment, another employee approached, as if in some awkward situation, to call Kan.
“I’ll be going then.”
“Good work today. Thanks for the information.”
With that, he walked away, and I returned my attention to the documents.
Yet, oddly, I couldn’t focus. My mind felt blank.
I sipped my now-cold tea, glanced at the documents again, but couldn’t concentrate. Sitting at a corner of the mercenary office, flipping through papers about my client, the baron, my head began to feel hot. As if someone was watching me.
When I turned toward the source of that feeling, a man with dark reddish-brown hair, slightly tinged with red, was staring at me.
Not just staring casually, but with an intense gaze.
No, it must be my imagination.
I shook my head frantically, but it seemed I wasn’t imagining it—the man stood and approached me.
“You’re beautiful.”
“…Are you talking to me?”
“Yes. I came looking for a beautiful woman, and indeed, here you are.”
What do you mean “came looking”? I openly showed my displeasure at this strange man speaking nonsense.
“This isn’t a place to meet women—it’s a mercenary office. If you want to say things like that, you’d better leave.”
“Are you rejecting me? I’m actually quite a decent person.”
“Whether you are or not doesn’t matter.”
What is this? A man I’ve never met treating me like this? And he looks fairly old—middle-aged, by appearance.
By this place’s standards, does Laviel have a face attractive enough to mesmerize people? Of course… she is pretty, but even so, someone who comes at me so recklessly cannot be decent.
“I have a strong dislike for people who act rudely like this. If you’re not leaving, I will.”
Since it didn’t matter if I viewed the documents from another room, I stood up.
At that moment, the Baron of Stork’s knights stepped in front of him. They hadn’t been able to assert themselves recently because of the emperor’s knights who had dominated this place.
“No further approach is allowed.”
“Who are you?”
His tone, asking ‘who,’ was peculiar. It wasn’t anger at being blocked—it was genuine curiosity about who these knights were.
Just as a stiff expression crept onto my face, the knights spoke first.
“We are his knights.”
“Knights? You protect him with just the two of you? How amusing.”
“Amusing or not, it doesn’t matter. If you continue to be rude, we will use force.”
“Force? Go ahead, try it.”
Breaking his gaze from me, he leaned into the knights’ faces. Clearly a scammer. The type who would start trouble, get hit, and then whine for money.
I stared at him and quickly gathered the documents into my arms. At the same time, I spoke firmly to the knights.
“No need to engage him.”
“Understood.”
Of course, the Stork Baron’s knights had no intention of hitting him. They simply followed me closely as I turned toward the stairs.
“Where are you going! I was talking to you! Where is that woman running off to!”
I climbed a few steps and whirled around.
“Woman?”
“She’s not a man.”
A flimsy excuse.
“Honestly… the more I see him, the worse he is. I hope he doesn’t speak to me again.”
He must be one of those types who looked down on me because I was a female lawyer. All the more reason I wouldn’t deal with him.
I finished climbing the stairs. From behind came the nameless man’s frustrated voice.
“How dare she ignore me!”
Should I sprinkle some salt on him?
I sighed deeply, then returned to my room.
That evening.
Lawyers often have to meet people they don’t want to see and say things they’d rather not. Especially this time, I intended to intervene, so I had to find Chesper.
Normally, I didn’t wear flashy dresses. But I wanted to go unnoticed, so I wore a simple dress and walked toward the inn-cum-bar Kan had mentioned.
Near the inn, I stationed the knights outside and entered alone, taking a seat in a corner.
Because it also accommodated lodgers, women were scattered around, but the overall atmosphere wasn’t much different from other bars. Those who drank were loud, and the noise made it hard to hear voices.
Laviel, having lived her whole life indoors, could hardly bear the commotion. Exhausted just being there, I started looking for Chesper.
“Hey, Chesper. Long time no see.”
“Indeed. You look rough since the last time I saw you.”
“You say that, but doesn’t your face look even better?”
“Really?”
Hearing the name Chesper, I naturally looked toward him. And then something felt off.
According to Rozeni… he shouldn’t say that, right?
From this brief conversation, I realized I would learn far more than expected from Chesper. So I ordered just a small snack and smiled subtly while watching him.
Perhaps that’s why, when someone spoke to me suddenly, I naturally responded.
“You’re smiling?”
“I discovered something interesting.”
