PVMC 24

Chapter 24

‘I’m sure it was around here.’

Deciding to retrace our steps, we soon entered a narrow alley.

The alley, where even the streetlights were completely out, was so pitch-dark that it was hard to see even an inch ahead. It was only thanks to Mattias, who had good night vision, that we were able to keep moving forward at all. Otherwise, we would have had to walk with our hands against the wall—it really was that impossible to see even an inch in front of us.

“Ah!”

At last, my tilting body dropped rapidly toward the ground.

But just before I could fall in a ridiculous heap, a strong force wrapped around my waist.

“Careful.”

Mattias, who had quickly caught me, muttered in a slightly startled tone. Feeling embarrassed all over again, I hurriedly thanked him and regained my balance.

Like that, we entered another alley and slowly made our way back toward the place we had first come from.

But just as we were moving straight ahead, Mattias, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped.

“Mattias?”

Is something wrong?

I called out to him cautiously, but there was no reply.

“Could it be—.”

Just as I was about to ask what was ahead, my vision suddenly flipped.

“Hngh…!”

The mouth that was about to scream was clamped shut by a huge palm.

I tried twisting my body instinctively, but a strength too powerful to push away wrapped tightly around me.

In the blink of an eye, my subdued body dropped heavily to the ground.

Yet the body that I was sure would hurt strangely felt no pain at all. Slowly lifting one tightly shut eyelid, I saw a massive figure standing with the moonlight at its back.

“Wait.”

A faint whisper reached my ears.

Mattias slightly shook his head.

Because we were so close together, even that small movement was clearly visible.

Not yet understanding what kind of situation this was, I simply nodded my head vigorously.

I was so startled that I hadn’t even realized how incredibly close I was to him right now.

At that moment, several overlapping footsteps echoed.

“Hey, hey! I told you to handle that carefully…!”

“Wouldn’t it be okay to take just one? It’s going to be undone soon anyway….”

“Are you insane? You want to sell your life for a few pieces of fake money?!”

…Fake money?

What are they talking about?

Without realizing it, I quieted my breathing and listened closely. Then the men’s voices came through even more clearly.

“But can you really do it with this? The capital’s commercial district—.”

“If it weren’t possible, our lord wouldn’t have given this order. Stop complaining and just move quickly.”

Along with their voices came the dragging sound of a sack and the noise of wheels moving one after another.

“Damn it! This thing’s disgustingly heavy!”

“Be careful not to tear the ground!”

“You two, lower your voices. What if someone hears us?!”

“Hey. Who’s going to come into an alley like this? It’s the time when all the high-and-mighty types are asleep.”

The guys snickered among themselves as they kept moving without rest. And because they kept running their mouths the whole time, I unintentionally picked up quite a bit of information.

‘First of all….’

I can tell they’re doing something illegal.

‘Fake money—does that mean counterfeit currency?’

That was a crime on par with running a slave trade.

If it spread the wrong way, the entire market could collapse.

That was why the Imperial Treasury handled this issue so strictly.

‘This stinks.’

Just like last time, it smells incredibly fishy.

I rolled my eyes slowly and held my breath tightly. If they found out that someone had heard this conversation, they definitely wouldn’t let it slide.

And if they were that low-quality bunch… doesn’t that mean they could be connected to Xavier? Their areas of activity were similar, after all. Bad people tend to value connections above all else.

The moment this reached Xavier’s ears, everything—plans and all—would be over.

Until those guys left, we had to stay as quiet as possible.

But just then, a crow flying overhead suddenly flapped its wings loudly and cried out.

“W-What was that?!”

“!”

“Who’s there?!”

Startled, I sucked in a sharp breath.

Mattias quickly twisted his upper body. Taking a stance as if he might attack at any moment, he hid me behind him.

Tap, tap, tap!

Harsh footsteps followed. As the presence grew clearer, I bit down hard on my lip.

Have we been found? We must have, right?

‘What should we do? Should we fight back?’

But moving rashly without even knowing how many opponents there were was dangerous.

It was true that Mattias was strong—but I was here too.

If I ended up holding him back even a little, it would be a disaster. And the coachman would be nearby as well.

What if we all got marked as targets and couldn’t make it home?

That would truly be a total catastrophe.

‘Then the only option would be to run right away.’

Maybe in daylight it would’ve been different, but moving in such deep darkness wasn’t easy at all.

“Aria.”

Mattias whispered softly as he hid me behind him. I had just barely prepared myself to move when I grabbed the hem of his clothes.

“Ghk—!”

At the same time, a gaunt man came tumbling right in front of us.

I hurriedly covered my mouth, which was about to scream, but screams rang out one after another nearby. Then Mattias suddenly turned to look at me.

And then he pulled me tightly into his arms.

“Hng!”

Startled, I instinctively twisted my body. But his solid frame didn’t budge in the slightest, no matter how much I struggled.

Only after calming my racing heart did I finally realize—it was to protect me.

Swallowing hard, I looked up at him.

With the moonlight backlighting him, I couldn’t see his expression clearly, but I could tell he was extremely tense right now.

And the reason he couldn’t move right away was—

‘Because of them.’

If we moved now, our presence would be revealed immediately.

And once they sensed that, they might attack.

For now, staying quiet with our mouths shut until the situation passed might be the best option.

But if we stayed like this and ended up being discovered anyway—

‘Mattias will get hurt.’

I clenched the fabric of his shirt, torn by worry. No matter how precious my own life was, it wasn’t worth hurting someone else over.

Yet even as I agonized like this, the sudden fight continued. The screams of the men who had been chattering just moments ago gradually began to die down.

And as if everything had finally ended—

At some point, silence fell.

“…….”

Very slowly, I peeked my head out from behind his large frame.

Just then, the moon shifted to the side, and my view brightened. It was around that moment that a man revealed himself.

A person with red hair like a massive flame transplanted whole.

With vivid green eyes, he fixed his gaze on me.

Caught off guard, I flinched as our eyes met.

In response, the arm holding me tightened.

Mattias slowly turned his body. He didn’t say what he was going to do, but just from the nuance, it was obvious.

Taking a stance as if he might dash forward at any moment, Mattias moved me behind him.

And then—

“…Aria?”