Chapter 25
Nibelia, turning toward the parlor, embraced the woman.
The woman, who neatly tied up her hazy brown hair streaked with sparse white strands, smiled brightly.
“Della! Della’s here!”
“Our Nini-sama has been well…”
The woman called Della narrowed her green eyes sharply.
“Could it be… you cried?”
Tears still lingered un-wiped at the corner of Nibelia’s eyes.
Della’s previously composed face instantly crumpled.
Nibelia’s expression turned gloomy again.
“What happened?”
“I almost didn’t make any money.”
“Money?”
“Yeah. But I just got a good idea, so I’m going to tell Mom and Dad. Nini hasn’t failed yet!”
Watching Nibelia pumping herself up with determination, Della lifted her head.
Outside the parlor, Areph watched nervously, and Solace seemed to suddenly recall where he had seen Della before.
“She’s the staff who worked at the information office, right?”
Solace confirmed his memory.
On the day they alternated between visiting the mage tower and the information office to sell poisonous mushrooms, while waiting for “Madam Della,” the owner of the information office, a cleaning lady exchanged glances with Nibelia.
Solace had witnessed that moment completely.
“…You have a good memory.”
Della smiled warmly, pleased.
“That’s right. I’m Della, who works at the information office.”
“Same name as the owner of the information office.”
“Just a coincidence. Pure coincidence.”
“Della is Nini’s subordinate!”
Nibelia introduced her.
“Back when Nini was a cat! I brushed her fur and gave her snacks! So Nini made me her subordinate.”
“Oh my, do you still consider me your subordinate now?”
“Of course! Nini never abandons her subordinates!”
“It’s an honor, Nini-sama.”
Their absurd conversation flowed naturally like water.
What a nice person.
Playing along with Nibelia’s imagination.
…But why does she call her Nini?
That title was reserved only for family or close people; strangers calling her that usually got ignored or scolded.
But Solace dismissed it soon.
Since Nini’s not angry, it should be fine.
Instead, someone else was clearly bothered.
Areph looked anxiously at the friendly pair.
I—I’m the lady’s subordinate…
He felt uneasy, fearing his hard-earned place and duty might be taken away.
“Della.”
At that moment, Nibelia introduced Areph to Della.
“Areph. I came back to Nini!”
“Oh, a wolf-sama?”
“Yeah! I live with Nini. She’s my favorite wolf!”
“Hello, Areph-sama.”
Della politely greeted Areph as well.
Areph, stunned, stiffened and blushed in embarrassment, ashamed that he had just been jealous of Della.
“Ah, h-hello…”
“With a magnificent blonde hair and red eyes as your name suggests. Please take good care of our Nini-sama.”
“Y-yes…!”
But he answered firmly, determined to protect Nibelia.
Della gazed at Areph fondly and asked,
“By the way, weren’t all three of you headed somewhere?”
“To Mom and Dad.”
“The saint and the paladin?”
“No, just Mom for now.”
“Oh…”
Della muttered silently, “Oops,” realizing her mistake but smiled.
“Is it related to the flower farm you visited today?”
The children’s eyes widened.
“Don’t forget. I’m Della from the information office.”
Della revealed that was the exact reason she had come to the mansion.
She then pulled out a small envelope sealed with wax from her pocket.
“Please deliver this to your parents.”
“What’s this?”
“A reward for giving the opportunity to buy rare poisonous mushrooms…”
Della glanced at Solace and winked.
Ah…
Solace began to suspect the woman before him might truly be Madam Della.
“This is a small gift from Madam Della, the owner of the information office.”
“Money?”
“Information as valuable as money.”
Della said.
“It’s fresh information analyzed just yesterday at the mage tower. It will definitely be of great help.”
A few days later.
Monitos, the legal advisor for Lubeo, visited the flower farm.
He had a rough look, as if he would curse immediately if someone accidentally brushed his shoulder.
Though middle-aged, his muscles were so well-developed that his suit strained each time his arms moved.
When he arrived at the farm, the Plaud couple was startled and dropped the bottle of alcohol they were holding.
Monitos glanced at the broken bottle, then took out his business card, revealing himself as Lubeo Corporation’s legal advisor.
“I’ve brought the contract.”
He pulled out a thick contract from a square leather bag worn by time.
“Since this will be done as a startup investment, the contract will take effect as soon as you apply to withdraw the investment funds from the bank.”
He continued explaining in a deep voice.
The contract was simple.
If the Deiamore family invests a large sum, the Plaud couple would establish a research lab and generate profits based on it.
Lubeo would assist in the process.
“The main contractor is the person who developed the liquid fertilizer that keeps flowers from wilting…”
“That’s me, the developer.”
Mrs. Plaud quickly answered.
“Then please review the contract carefully before signing.”
“Do we have to sign now?”
“As I said earlier, you should review the contract carefully before signing. But you can only receive the investment funds if you submit the notarized contract to the capital bank.”
“I see…”
The Plaud couple exchanged glances and promptly signed the contract.
Of course, they carefully scrutinized it.
To be precise, they carefully scrutinized the large investment amount written in the contract.
Monitos silently watched as they counted the digits on their fingers one by one.
“When can we get the notarization?”
“Fortunately, I’m qualified as a notary, so if you want…”
“Please do it now!”
“We want to set up the lab as soon as possible. We want to give our daughter a proper home and proper treatment…!”
Thus, the notarization was done on the spot.
Having completed his task, Monitos left the farm.
The Plaud couple escorted him and hastily shut the door.
“……”
The lawyer in the carriage took his eyes off the farm that was gradually fading away.
He drinks similar alcohol to me.
40-year-old whiskey.
Parents who want to give their sick daughter a decent home and proper treatment probably shouldn’t be drinking this.
“What a windfall!”
“I never thought the contract would really succeed…!”
That night.
The Plaud couple packed their bags.
As if they were about to run far away.
“Who would have thought that poor orphan girl would help us.”
“I never expected things to go so smoothly. I guess one really must live kindly.”
“I told you! If you let her live, she’ll be useful, whether for soup or bread!”
The couple praised themselves crudely, peeking at the farm through the window.
“…What are they talking about now?”
The husband, roughly done packing, asked.
“Why? To praise her?”
“We have to deal with it first. It’d be a big problem if she’s found alive and talks about us.”
“……”
The wife hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
“That would only make things worse.”
“If we kill her, the Deiamore family would chase us.”
“If we kill people, the saint might even get involved.”
“The saint too?”
“An old man I used to work with said she was really crazy. She’s the woman who killed the former emperor and chancellor.”
“Wasn’t that just a rumor?”
“That old man mercenary fought in the war 40 years ago for money, and he saw the saint kill people himself.”
Silence followed.
It was a terrible stillness as if an invisible blade was pressed against their necks.
“…Right. What good would it do to make things worse?”
The husband said loudly without reason.
“If we leave her alone, she’ll starve to death anyway.”
“Right. Let her be.”
“This is mercy. We made money thanks to her, so we could kill her but we didn’t.”
“A natural death, a natural death.”
“From now on, let’s live leisurely without getting involved in dangerous things!”
The couple finished packing and headed for the capital as soon as the sun rose.
When the old carriage carrying the Plaud couple disappeared from sight.
“……”
“……”
The people hiding in the forest revealed themselves.
Dressed in black clothes and masks covering their faces, their eyes fixed on the flower farm where the Plauds had come from.
“Start.”
At the command, the masked men broke into the farm building and began searching inside.
Among them was one slightly out of place.
“…Are you really going in yourself?”
Deter glanced suspiciously at the old warehouse on the farm and at the figure in his arms.
Nibelia was wrapped there.
Like the others, she wore a black outfit and a mask embroidered with cat whiskers.
She nodded.
“It’s Nini’s investment. Nini has to check.”
“I can’t believe the mistress and the elders allowed you to take on such a dangerous task.”
“My grandmother said experience is important.”
“Even so, I think this kind of experience is better avoided…”
“Let’s hurry!”
Unable to refuse the owner’s urging, Deter sighed lightly and stepped into the warehouse.
