Chapter 17 - A Life of Many Twists
My red eyes opened while it was still broad daylight.
The tragic news, whispered to me by the cautiously approaching Head Maid, had that much power.
“…Right. It couldn't have possibly ended smoothly.”
I gathered my slightly weary mind and got up.
Just yesterday, I had delved into the Scripture of the Dark Wheel and overexerted myself to perform one of the Six Paths.
Using the unique feature of the Skeleton Armor moving like my own body, I even succeeded in forming hand seals with skeletal arms.
I even managed to succeed in forming two hand seals simultaneously.
Before that, I had no time to rest from engraving the magic circle, and I hadn't slacked on my physical training either.
I had been living by cutting down my sleeping hours, and just when I was about to get some shut-eye.
“Tsk.”
News that made me click my tongue had arrived.
The materials had been stolen and the hired laborers murdered.
“Do they say they don't know who the culprit is?”
“It seems the Merchant Troupe has just begun its investigation. But since everyone who might know the inside story has likely been bought off.”
“Progress won't be easy.”
“The Merchant Troupe is aware of that and is moving on its own. According to Merchant Troupe Head Jubel, they can't continue the work until they deal with them.”
“It's not easy to move forward when the back of your head is tingling.”
It was typical of Jubel, but it was a matter that would take time.
Because he had to find the culprit within the Citadel and also consider another culprit who might be behind the culprit.
At this rate, we wouldn't be able to meet the production volume before the appearance of the Plague Demons.
More hands were needed.
“My older brother wouldn't act this early. Is this his butler getting ahead of himself?”
“There seem to be various possibilities. It could be other members of the family who heard the news.”
“If we don't know, we have to find out.”
I pushed my stiff body up and stood on the floor.
The red blood vessels branching out next to my red pupils spoke of the fatigue accumulated in my body.
“……”
The Head Maid, who had been watching me for a moment, rolled up her own sleeve.
Then she unhesitatingly held it out before me.
The scent of the Head Maid, a mixture of the faint poison in her flesh, the scent of blood, and the sugary smell clinging to her clothes.
It seeped into the nostrils of a bloodkin without resistance.
“…What is this?”
“I have heard that among the nobles of blood, human blood, especially that of a virgin, is most prized. I thought it might serve as a sort of stimulant.”
What she said was correct, but.
I pushed away the Head Maid's arm that was thrust before my eyes.
“Unlike you, sweets don't suit my taste. Your eating habits make your blood sweet too.”
“…How did you know?”
“I can tell just by looking at the desserts the chef consistently makes. I don't even touch them, but you keep bringing back empty plates, isn't that why?”
“I'm sorry.”
The Head Maid's head drooped low.
Behind her blonde hair, her bright red earlobes were conspicuous.
“I don't mind, so don't you worry about it either. More importantly, I need to go to the Citadel. Get Lubosch ready.”
“Are you not having breakfast?”
“Well. I don't think I'll have the time.”
“Shall I prepare something simple so you can eat in the carriage?”
“I'm not planning on taking the carriage.”
“Then….”
I took out some shabby clothes suitable for the Citadel from the wardrobe.
The same went for the sunglasses placed neatly on top of the clothes.
My red eyes, hidden behind the small shades, drew a long arc below them.
“I have to fly.”
***
The multi-purpose porter, Lubosch, tightly fastened his backpack, which was as big as his own body.
It was empty, so it was only a little uncomfortable, but the thought of driving for four hours since morning gave him a headache.
But whether it was misfortune or fortune, he was not the driver this time.
“Get on.”
“Pardon?”
A griffin with wings of immeasurable length spread out in the backyard.
Its wingspan, which looked to be about 10 meters, was impressive with its dense feathers and blood-like red color.
But a work of art is charming when you look at it; the moment you step inside, it becomes labor and pain.
The griffin, as beautiful as a sculpture, was no different.
.
.
.
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
A girlish scream echoed from behind my head.
It was coming from the porter who was clinging to my waist, just like the backpack he carried on his back.
“How do you manage to skewer people's bodies when you're this much of a coward.”
“Ye, yes?! I can't hear you weeeell!”
“I can hear you just fine, so stop screaming.”
“Ca, can't we go a little slower?!”
“If we were going to go slow, why ride a griffin instead of a carriage.”
Most of it was buried by the sound of the wind, but the porter knew his words had been rejected.
If the Youngest Son had agreed, there wouldn't be a wind so strong that it was hard to even open his eyes, right?
The only thing he could do here was to hold on to something so he wouldn't fall off.
“My, my lord! It's too cold!”
Due to the continuous wind and the flight breaking through the clouds, his nose was causing an unseasonable flood.
He couldn't tell if what was entering his mouth were tears or snot.
“You're a handful. Just bear with it a little longer, we're almost there.”
The Citadel was visible below the clouds.
We landed nearby, just as we did when we came by carriage.
“Uuuuurk…!”
The porter grabbed a tree trunk and emptied his stomach.
In the midst of it all, his expression became much more relaxed, as if he couldn't be happier to be on the ground.
“Lubosch.”
“Yes, yes.”
“It's time to pull yourself together. Weren't you tired of mopping?”
“Th-that's right.”
“While we're in the Citadel, you'll be saying goodbye to such things. I heard from the Head Maid that you were entrusted with an important mission.”
At the words ‘important mission’, a light returned to Lubosch's eyes.
Surrounded by old grime, vine-covered walls, and dust, he had momentarily forgotten, but he was strictly an agent dedicated to a direct descendant.
A thrill shot through the hand holding the backpack, and a pleasant tension filled him.
“I will absolutely not disappoint you.”
His expression and eyes were nothing short of resolute.
So much so that the girlish voice he had let out on the griffin was forgotten for a brief moment.
“Follow me. There's a place we need to go.”
“Then, what is my main mission in there?”
Lubosch's heart pounded at a pleasant rhythm as he spoke.
The excitement was palpable even to the listener.
Just a single mention of an important mission had quickened his pulse so much that it could be compared to a puppy in front of a snack and a walk.
So what could I do?
As the master, it was my duty to throw him a bone.
“Let's just say it's an escort.”
“An escort…. Understood. I, Lubosch, will ensure that not a single sword tip reaches you, my lord.”
His resolve was good.
Though I didn't know if a critical situation that would reveal such resolve would arise.
“But my lord. Where are we going now?”
“D-District. I'm going to the Branch Manager who won the bet.”
***
D-District 3rd Squad Branch Manager, Edwin Hacid.
He wasn't righteous, but he wasn't particularly edgy either.
He wasn't good at flattery like others, but he wasn't bad at social life either.
He didn't have the immense talent of some geniuses, but he wasn't considered a mediocre talent.
A man perfectly suited to be a Branch Manager.
Edwin Hacid thought of himself as just that, and he intended to spend the rest of his life as a Branch Manager without any ups and downs.
If luck followed, he might even aim for Stationmaster.
Yes. Stationmaster was doable. He had to be a Stationmaster to live without worries in his old age.
He went to work at the branch office with happy thoughts.
In the morning, he continued the regular meeting with the other Branch Managers in the Stationmaster's office.
It was an ordinary day, just like any other.
It would have been even more ordinary if not for the warning the Stationmaster gave to the Branch Managers.
“You must have received the report about the terrorist attack on the Maxman Merchant Troupe last night.”
That terror attack took place in E-District.
E-District, like the nearby G-District, had many factories and was a region where it was easy to hire laborers.
The Stationmaster summed up the terror attack as follows.
“Don't pay any attention to it, and if the merchant troupe or anyone else tries to ask about it, just say you don't know. Keep a tight lid on the atmosphere in each branch. Got it?”
He could give a warning, but its intensity was unusual.
D-District was adjacent to E-District.
With this one fact, the Branch Managers knew why the Stationmaster was acting this way.
─This bastard took a bribe.
A bit of dissatisfaction filled the faces of the Branch Managers.
Information was where the money was in situations like this.
But he was telling them not to dig into it and not to sell the information.
Wasn't he telling them to throw away a chance to make a buck as a Branch Manager for nothing?
The Stationmaster, as if reading their expressions, sighed and continued.
“I know how you all feel. I was once a Branch Manager myself, so how could I not know. But this time, it's because it's really dangerous.”
The Branch Managers' eyebrows slanted.
─This fat pig. Looks like he's trying to eat it all by himself.
Nevertheless, the worry on the Stationmaster's face did not disappear.
“It seems like some big shot is involved. To be able to throw money at not just me, but all the Stationmasters of the districts bordering E-District….”
As the Stationmaster went this far, the Branch Managers couldn't help but swallow their saliva.
Although the pig before them was filled with greed, avarice, and fat, his survival instinct was outstanding.
That's why he could be a Stationmaster in the Dusk Citadel.
“Everyone, just close your eyes and ignore it this time. This isn't a fight that ends in the Citadel. Small fries like us will get involved and won't even be able to find our bones.”
The morning regular meeting concluded like that.
Even though the matter was not related to him in the slightest, Edwin trembled with a fear that felt like he had seen the part of the iceberg that lay beneath the surface.
“Hoo. There's no need to overreact like this. Just like the Stationmaster said, if I don't get involved, nothing will happen.”
He reached into his pocket for no reason.
The gold coin he had been carrying with him ever since that day was taken out.
He didn't want to use something he had obtained by betting his life carelessly.
As he held the gold coin, which had become a lucky charm, his uneasy heart seemed to calm down a little.
Drrrrk─ Thud─
The carriage arrived at the branch office.
Now it was time to work.
“Branch Manager. It seems we have a visitor.”
“A visitor? I don't have any scheduled appointments.”
“I knew that as well, so I was about to send them away, but they said you would understand if I said ‘the reverse side’….”
“…Where is the visitor?”
“I've shown them to your office for now.”
“I see. Don't worry about it and go about your work.”
Letting out a deep, long sigh, he struggled to turn the doorknob of his office.
Kkiiiiiik─
Two people were sitting in the visitor's chairs.
One was an unfamiliar face.
The other's red eyes behind the sunglasses were very familiar.
“It's been a while.”
It was the Youngest Son of Millesdusk.
***
I explained the publicly disclosable details.
The cooperative relationship with Jubel Maxman.
The mysterious group that attacked the recently established workshop.
I needed any rumors or information circulating about them.
The Branch Manager listened quietly to the story and then nodded his head.
“It is truly a regrettable incident. However, I am merely a Branch Manager. Although E-District and here are close, I know nothing. I am sorry that I cannot be of help.”
Thump. Thump.
His heart was beating irregularly.
Unlike Edwin, the bloodkin shook his head.
“You're lying.”
“I-it's true. What would a mere Branch Manager like me know.”
“Did the Stationmaster tell you to say that?”
“Ha, hahat. Such terror attacks happen quite often in the Citadel. It's not a special event, so there's no way the Stationmaster would give a warning.”
His heartbeat was disorderly, jumping all over the place.
It seemed the Stationmaster had given him a very firm warning.
Then the Stationmaster too had sensed something unusual, and if the Stationmaster was making a fuss, the opponent was also a big shot.
However, there was no way that big shot was the Fourth Son.
It was a conviction based on knowing his temperament.
‘It means there’s something else.’
The tail one could catch in the Dusk Citadel was literally just a tail.
The case would be closed only after following the tail to find the body, and smashing the head on top of the body.
For now, figuring out the outline of the tail was the priority.
“Branch Manager.”
“Yes, yes. My lord.”
“How about dreaming big?”
“D-dream, you say? Why so suddenly….”
“In my eyes, you don't seem like someone who will stop at just being a Branch Manager. You're a talent who can at least rise to the council. In fact, it's strange that you're not yet a Stationmaster.”
The Branch Manager gave a hearty laugh.
“Even just the words are gratef─”
“If you just cooperate on this matter. What do you want right now?”
“W-want, you say.”
The crimson eyes behind the sunglasses, which had seemed only playful, shone gloomily.
“Shall I pin a Stationmaster's badge on you?”