VDBO 36

Chapter 36

It was only natural. To Shale, her first impression had been that of a thief, and the next, a beautiful lunatic. She was stunning enough to steal one’s soul at a glance, yet her behavior was utterly reckless and fearless.

Not only had she dared to steal what belonged to him right in front of Iskar, but even after being captured, she showed not the slightest hint of fear.

Since she was a woman protected by the Bay, it was true that the encounter had turned somewhat violent. Still, he had expected her to be trembling in fear, paying the price for stealing his belongings. That way, she would never dare do something so reckless again.

But he had been wrong.

“You could’ve brought me nicely.”

“You’re speaking casually…?”

“We’re the same age.”

“What?”

“You and me. Same age. So you can drop the formalities too.”

He was utterly dumbfounded. What kind of nonsense was this?

“What are you, exactly?”

“First of all, sorry about stealing the key. I didn’t have any connection to you, so I had no idea how else to reach you.”

That wasn’t all. Every word spilling from her cherry-red lips was astonishing.

“So you stole the key just to see me?”

“Yeah. Um, sorry, but—”

“What?”

“Do you have any clothes I could wear? I’ll pay for them.”

She was completely playing him. At first it was amusing, but gradually, irritation crept in. Getting rid of her outright would mean openly declaring war on the Bay, so he had planned to scare her a little and send her away.

Then—

“You’re looking for your mother’s keepsake, aren’t you?”

“What?”

Once again, the woman struck him squarely in the back of the head.

She knew exactly what he was searching for. She knew about his mother’s keepsake, something that now, not even a single strand of hair or thread remained of. She knew precisely why he had risen to the position of head, still searching for even the faintest trace.

How?

If she had intended to mock him outright, she would have used the Bay to do it. But that wasn’t the case.

She had waited for him to summon her, bided her time, and finally proposed a deal. And if he didn’t believe her, she told him to kill her?

What was she? Who in the world was this woman?

Even after leaving the building and returning, Shale wandered around like a madman for quite some time, unable to gather his thoughts. He even wondered if the person he’d met had truly been human.

As time passed, his scattered mind gradually cleared. If what she said was true, he wanted to know how she knew. And if it was a lie, he wanted to know why she would attempt something so absurd.

But the bigger problem was this:

Since that day, the face of that insane woman simply would not leave his mind.

This was insane.

It was days later, after behaving like a fool, that he finally set foot in the auction house.

“There’s no new information yet. Shall we start by reviewing the items from auctions three months ago?”

“Search everything. And stay on it until something turns up.”

“Yes, understood.”

Fortunately, on the second day after infiltrating the auction house, he heard that his mother’s pocket watch—the one the woman had mentioned—was being prepared for auction.

Her words had been true.

“Bring the bastard who brought that item to me.”

At his chilling command, it took less than a quarter of the time he’d wasted in a daze to round up not only the owner of the item but everyone connected to it.

Only after holding his mother’s keepsake in his hands did the simmering rage that had tormented him for so long finally begin to subside.

His mother, who had been used her entire life and erased without a trace, was a bruise on his heart that would never fade.

The pocket watch she had cherished so carefully in life, afraid it would be marred, was practically a symbol of her existence itself.

“Just who is she… really?”

Now that her words had been proven true, his curiosity only deepened. How had she known?

Investigating her revealed that she was using the identity of Blake Ariandel. For some reason, her real name couldn’t be uncovered. No doubt the work of Schvalt Rivacher.

If he dug deeper, there would be nothing he couldn’t find out—but hearing it directly from her didn’t sound like a bad idea either.

“Pick one smart kid and send them. A promise is a promise.”

“Isn’t that dangerous? It’s true we received help, but she’s still a person of the Bay.”

“So what, we just pretend none of it happened?”

At that, Toma stepped a bit closer, raising his palms exaggeratedly and shrugging.

“The First Branch and even headquarters were already turned upside down once. If we provoke them again, what then? Things are already awkward. We could just let it go.”

“Do I look like that much of a bastard to you?”

The curse flew out instantly, and Toma flinched, bowing his head.

“I’m sorry!”

“And besides, it’s interesting.”

“Y-Yes? Pardon?”

At Toma’s foolish response, Shale grinned as if he’d never been angry at all.

“It’s interesting. Do you think this came to us for free?”

“No. I don’t think so.”

“Exactly. It’s fascinating. How did she know?”

Shale’s gaze returned to the pocket watch. His fingers gently traced the finely crafted Saint Diamond.

“Well? Am I supposed to move myself?”

Moments ago he’d been stroking it tenderly, but now Shale’s eyes sharpened.

“N-No! I’ll select someone right away!”

Thinking to himself that his master’s moods changed like boiling porridge, Toma hurried out.

Not long after, information Nina had passed along came in.

“She asked us to look for a child in orphanages across the capital and the eastern region?”

“That’s what it says.”

“……Why a child, all of a sudden?”

“That wasn’t specified. A boy, around six years old, with heterochromia.”

“That’s not difficult. Send people out and handle it.”

“Yes. And this was returned as well.”

Toma placed a small box on the desk.

Shale’s eyes narrowed. He couldn’t possibly mistake it—he had packed and sent it himself.

“She didn’t like it?”

He’d chosen the largest one he could see. Was it still not enough? It suited her flashy looks, and it certainly wasn’t lacking.

What he had sent was a gemstone of the highest grade, nearly as difficult to obtain as a Saint Diamond.

“No. That’s not it. There’s a note asking us to keep it for now. Or, if possible, to convert it into cash…”

“……What?”

“She said so.”

“Hah. She wants this turned into money?”

“Yes. It says either to keep it or just exchange it for cash.”

Toma handed the note directly to Shale.

Shale accepted it with a sour expression. He’d sent it expecting at least some reaction—maybe not jumping for joy, but surprise, at least. Yet there was nothing.

What a truly strange woman.

With a sulky face, Shale shoved the box aside.

“So if we find the child, we’re supposed to keep him for a while.”

“Yes.”

“……It’s not her own child, is it?”

Even as he thought it absurd, the request to scour the entire region made it suspicious. And he couldn’t understand why he was so invested in this at all.

“If it were, Schvalt Rivacher would surely know as well.”

“That’s true.”

“Yes.”

Shale let out a breath of relief without realizing it and stuffed the box into his pocket. If she asked him to keep it, then so be it.

“Alright. You can go. Bring the child as soon as you find him.”

“Yes. I’ll report back immediately.”

Toma left.

Hearing the news, Shale thought that this time, they might finally have a proper chance to face each other and talk. Even without any transactions between them, another mad conversation like before wouldn’t be so bad.

“No matter how I think about it, it’s interesting.”

A whole month passed in the blink of an eye.

In that time, I went out only twice.

Both times were outings with Mr. Schvalt. When I complained about feeling stifled, he said he’d let me get some fresh air and accompanied me.

Sitting in a café with a guardian by my side—honestly, it made me feel like a little kid.

After going out like that twice in a row, I stopped suggesting outings altogether.

It was my first time experiencing such excessive protection—enough to make me break out in hives—but even being stuck indoors, I gained quite a bit.

“Miss, may I come in?”

Nina knocked on the door.

“Uh, just a moment.”

The biggest gains were twofold. One was a letter that had arrived from Jury del Chartre.

The other was the news that Duke Ludwig had been behaving himself ever since that day.

I didn’t know whether my threat had worked, or if Mr. Schvalt had stepped in further, but either way, it had been effective.

He never did a single righteous thing, yet his life was full of guilty secrets, so he naturally became cautious.

That didn’t mean he’d stay quiet forever, but for now, he would lie very low.

In any case, he too was on Luchelai Ludwig’s list of vengeance. Even if I stopped others from dying, I had no intention of intervening in his death.

Nina, waiting outside, was silent.

“Come in.”