TVRC 14

Chapter 14

“Get me out of here? How would you do that?”

Contrary to her expectation that he would immediately be pleased, his reaction to the suggestion of leaving this place was lukewarm. He merely shot Leblanc a look tinged with scorn.

Even so, Leblanc didn’t mind at all. She already knew very well how to handle Ciesha. Instead of answering his question, she continued speaking.

“If you follow me, I’ll make sure you’re well fed three times a day, let you sleep in a warm bed every night, and fill your wardrobe with fine clothes you won’t be ashamed of. You can leave with me and live a new life—or stay here and have your wrist cut off. The choice is entirely yours.”

At the mention of having his wrist cut off, he flinched slightly. In truth, the answer was already all but decided. If he didn’t follow that woman, his wrist would be severed anyway—and unless she cut off both his wrists, there was nothing more he could lose.

Still, Ciesha, who had lived a harsh life and been through countless trials despite his young age, was not foolish enough to blindly grab the hand of a strange woman who suddenly appeared and offered him kindness.

“Why do you want to take me with you?”

“Because I need a loyal dog who’s willing to lay down his life for me.”

There wasn’t the slightest hesitation in her tone as she said it. She was telling him to devote his life to her—using the words “loyal dog,” no less. It should have been offensive.

Yet every instinct he had, honed through a lifetime of scrambling just to survive, was screaming at him to follow her. It wasn’t some clumsy sweet talk; it was her blunt honesty in telling him to give his life for her that greatly eased his wariness.

“…I’m expensive, and I eat a lot. Can you really afford me?”

“Well, that depends on how capable you are at taking care of yourself. But remember this—I’m the kind of person who likes to pay a fair price for true value.”

Even with the bars between them, it felt as though he were trapped in the palm of her hand. An inexplicable sense of ease overflowed from her demeanor and expression—confidence born of her unspoken certainty that he would follow her no matter what. Watching her, Ciesha snorted and shot back,

“So if I have no value, that means you won’t need me.”

“Of course. I’m looking for a knight, not running a charity.”

“And you expect me to follow someone who might throw me away at any time?”

“Or you could look at it the other way—so long as you prove your worth, I’ll never abandon you. Why? Don’t you have confidence in yourself?”

A brief silence fell between them. But rather than being offended, Ciesha seemed pleased by her provocative tone, curling his lips into a grin.

“What are you talking about? Confidence is the one thing I have in abundance. I’ll make sure you never regret pulling me out of here.”

“And you won’t regret following me, not until the day you die.”

Leblanc stared straight into Ciesha’s blue eyes.

The One-Armed Ghost, Ciesha.

That was what he had been called in the world before her regression. From the mountains of the borderlands, he had led an enormous band of mountain brigands, displaying swordsmanship so astonishing that no one would believe he was missing a wrist. Knight orders from multiple territories had been dispatched to capture him, all to no avail.

He cut off the wrists of the knights he defeated, making them just like himself. His infamy grew by the day, until even the imperial family was forced to half-give up on dealing with him.

That notorious reign of the One-Armed Ghost, which had continued for over seven years, was abruptly ended one day by Erkys, who had become the lord of the borderlands.

After that, he kept throwing himself at Erkys, desperate to defeat him—but in the end, he never won even once.

Leblanc recalled Ciesha trailing after her husband, begging him to teach him swordsmanship, and let out a small chuckle. The fearsome One-Armed Ghost had thus become Erkys’s right-hand man.

“This time you’ve got both wrists, so I’ll expect even more.”

Not understanding her words, he tilted his head in confusion.

“Man, it feels amazing to wash for the first time in ages! And breakfast was seriously delicious! If we go to the count’s estate, do we get to eat like this every day?”

The next morning, Ciesha, freshly scrubbed clean after a long time, shouted cheerfully. By the time they had escaped the detention facility together, it had already been well past midnight.

Left with no choice, the three of them had spent the night at a hotel in downtown Arnetio. After experiencing a luxurious hotel and a lavish breakfast—that is, after getting a real taste of money—Ciesha had already sworn his loyalty to Leblanc.

Lily, however, was far from pleased with the sudden addition to their party. She had followed Leblanc’s orders, going in and out of the guild to track him down, but she honestly couldn’t understand Leblanc’s intentions. What on earth was so special about that snot-nosed, beggar-looking kid that she would pay such an enormous sum to get him out?

What was more, that fox-faced guy didn’t seem to know how to speak politely at all, casually addressing Leblanc in informal speech. Even stranger was the fact that Leblanc didn’t reprimand Ciesha for it in the slightest.

“Count, what are we having for lunch? I’m already so excited.”

“Just who do you think you are, speaking casually to our count over and over? Show some respect when you’re in front of her! And it hasn’t even been that long since breakfast—why are you already talking about lunch? Is there a beggar living in your stomach or something?”

Unable to hold back any longer at Ciesha’s casual tone, Lily stepped in front of him. Normally she was gentle by nature, but it was a different story when someone disrespected Leblanc.

More than anyone, she was furious on Leblanc’s behalf over all the hardships she had endured. But Ciesha, who had quite a temper himself, didn’t back down and snapped right back.

“What? The count herself isn’t saying anything—what’s it to you? And I definitely told you I need to eat regularly! And who are you, anyway, following us around since yesterday? Who do you think you are?”

“Hey! You’ve got some nerve! Count, there’s seriously something wrong with this guy!”

“That’s unfortunate! I was just about to say the exact same thing!”

As the two of them bickered noisily, Leblanc pressed a hand to her forehead and slowly shook her head. She had known Ciesha was talkative, but she hadn’t expected him to clash this badly with Lily.

A short while later, the three of them stopped in front of a boutique in the city. From the hotel to the boutique—one dazzling building after another—Ciesha gaped in amazement at sights he had never seen in his life.

“Wow, what’s this place?”

“I’m thinking of buying you at least one set of clothes. You can’t keep walking around dressed like that.”

“My mom made these for me.”

“…On second thought, they’re actually quite flashy and unique. They suit you well. Come on, let’s go inside.”

With a chiming bell, the three stepped in. The five-story boutique looked as though it carried every fashion trend currently popular in the empire.

Perhaps because it was still early in the morning, there didn’t seem to be many customers. One of the staff members spotted them and approached with a bright smile—only to freeze midway.

“Welcome—”

He looked Ciesha up and down with a flustered expression. Distracted by looking around, Ciesha didn’t seem to notice the man’s gaze, but Leblanc’s expression hardened at the rudeness.

“Why did you stop in the middle of greeting us?”

“Ah, w-well, that is…”

As he averted his eyes, flustered by her direct question, a sharp female voice rang out from somewhere in the distance.

“Oh my, aren’t you Count Leblanc?”

The middle-aged woman, with a rather severe appearance, seemed to be the proprietor of the place, judging by her dress and manner. Quick-witted as she looked, she immediately apologized for the staff member’s rudeness and then spoke to Leblanc in a warm, friendly tone.

“I’m terribly sorry. That employee only started working here recently… By the way, this is your first time visiting Arnetio since your marriage, isn’t it? I can hardly remember the last time I saw you.”

She shook her head as if genuinely regretful. Only then did Leblanc recall that this was downtown Arnetio.

Looking more closely at the woman’s face, she could vaguely remember her—she was one of the designers Leblanc’s stepmother, Berti, used to summon to the estate every quarter.

In other words, she likely had a rough idea of Leblanc’s position back when she was the princess of Arnetio. Berti would invite people to the estate each quarter and purchase heaps of luxury goods—clothes, jewelry, and the like—but not a single item was ever for Leblanc.

She hadn’t even had a debutante dress made, something every noble young lady was expected to have. There was no need to say how those who frequented the estate must have viewed Leblanc.

Tsk… of all places to come into.

Leblanc’s mood sank instantly at encountering someone connected to Berti here in Arnetio. Still, ever the businesswoman, the proprietor kept up a smile brimming with customer service, carefully watching Leblanc’s reactions. She was likely trying to gauge whether Count Leblanc would be someone profitable to deal with.

At the latest, by this evening, word that I was here will spread throughout the territory.

And that meant there was a very high chance that what happened here today would reach Berti’s ears as well.