~Chapter 06~
I fidgeted with my lips and spoke in a cautious voice.
“I know you’re busy. I’m fine. I’m not a child, I can go home by myself.”
Cedric, who had been silently listening to me, sighed.
“Do you not realize how embarrassing it is for a lady of the Marquis family to return home alone from every tea party?”
Ah, I suppose that would be embarrassing.
For a moment, I felt relieved that I understood the reason. But then I flinched at Cedric’s arrogant voice.
“If it’s embarrassing for your family to pick you up, then try convincing the Duke.”
“Embarrassing? No, I’d rather have you pick me up than the Duke.”
What am I thinking? Ask Ricardo to come pick me up?
I could never do that. The thought of his mockery eyes made my head ache, and I struggled to breathe.
Feeling uneasy, I hastily continued.
“I just… I don’t want to bother you, brother. But if it’s not trouble, I like having you pick me up.”
Just don’t bring up Ricardo.
Please, don’t!
I gazed at Cedric with pleading eyes, but he didn’t spare me a glance.
…But surely he could hear me, right?
I let out a sigh of relief and turned my gaze toward the window.
Oddly enough, until we arrived home, I didn’t hear the sound of Cedric flipping through his newspaper.
Ding, ding—.
The sound of bells rang out early in the morning, followed by the faint sound of a rhythm.
I covered my ears with my pillow, but eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore and sprang out of bed.
The moment I tugged on the bell pull, Emily entered my room.
“Miss, are you feeling unwell? You’re up early today.”
“I didn’t exactly want to wake up either,” I muttered as I pointed toward the window.
“Is there a party I don’t know about in the capital?”
“If you weren’t there, it wouldn’t be a party, Miss,” Emily replied with a small laugh.
“It’s the return ceremony today, remember? I told you about it before…”
I gaped in shock at Emily’s words.
How could I forget the return ceremony? How could I forget such an important event?
“Do you know what time the knights will be returning?”
“I think it’s around ten o’clock.”
I quickly checked the clock.
It was already nine o’clock.
There wasn’t much time left to get ready. I grabbed my hairbrush and quickly combed through my hair before speaking to Emily.
“Emily, can you get me some comfortable clothes?”
“Yes, Miss!”
Emily, who had become familiar with my delays, helped me prepare swiftly and perfectly.
I threw the robe she handed me and hurried out of the mansion.
The return ceremony. It was an important event in the original story as well, marking the episode when the last of the three male leads made his full appearance.
The last male lead, Peril Edwin.
He was the master of the Magic Tower.
A wizard said to possess a natural talent for magic, and he was over a thousand years old.
With his vast knowledge of magic, he might even know about my grandfather’s illness.
In the original story, Peril’s personality was described as unpredictable. Of the three male leads, he was the strangest, according to the narrative.
But well, I’ve been alive for just over twenty years, and my personality is already pretty sharp, so I guess after living a thousand years, it makes sense that he would be strange.
That seemed like a reasonable thought.
The area near the capital leading to the royal palace was bustling with people.
“I can’t see anything…”
I groaned, standing on tiptoe, but the crowd was blocking my view of the road.
Still, it’s Leon’s return today; I should at least catch a glimpse of him.
As I tried to peek through the crowd, Allen, my knight who was standing beside me, whispered quietly.
“Miss, would you like to ride on my shoulder?”
“Your shoulder would break.”
I answered seriously, and Allen responded with an urgent tone.
“No! You’re as light as cotton, Miss!”
“…Uh, thanks.”
This boy is talking nonsense.
At that moment, the cheers from the crowd erupted as the returning knights appeared.
“Leon! Leon! Leon!”
I couldn’t let this iconic scene pass by like this!
I wanted to push my way through the crowd to get closer, but I couldn’t move an inch due to the sudden influx of people.
“Miss, let’s head to a place with fewer people first. I’m worried you might get hurt.”
Allen, his face as white as a sheet, spoke urgently. He looked like he could faint any moment.
I decided to follow Allen’s advice.
After all, the place where Peril would make his appearance wasn’t in the street.
“You’ll be able to see Leon soon enough, so there’s no need to stay in such a dangerous place.”
I let Allen pull me along silently, and for some reason, I found myself rubbing the back of my head.
…I hope Leon won’t be upset.
“You’re going straight home, right?”
“Of course not. Now that I’m out, I need to take care of some things.”
Allen let out a small sigh, as if he had expected this.
“Welcome!”
A woman greeted Allen and me with a bright smile. Allen, upon entering the shop, was busy admiring the antiques displayed around.
The shop, filled with rare antiques, easily captured Allen’s attention since he had a hobby of collecting old items.
Of course, my business wasn’t with antiques.
I cautiously approached the woman.
This was the so-called “Sun’s Shop.”
It was the only passage to the Moon’s Shop. The Moon’s Shop could only be accessed with an invitation from the owner of the Sun’s Shop.
While the Sun’s Shop was always open, the Moon’s Shop only opened on nights when there was a full moon.
The owner of the Moon’s Shop, that person was the one I had to meet.
And that person was none other than Peril Edwin.
Yeah, this guy is a cross-dressing male lead.
He was a master of magic who was skilled at concealing his appearance with magic.
Today, the day of the return ceremony, was the day Peril, who had been asleep for the last fifty years, would wake up.
I assumed that Idette must have awakened him, so this time, the Moon’s Shop event would be managed by Peril himself, not by a representative.
The woman smiled brightly and asked me:
“Are you looking for something?”
“I’m not looking for something, but someone.”
“Hmmm, if you’re looking for someone, maybe you should visit a detective agency.”
“I heard that people are bought and sold at this shop.”
At my words, the woman’s face immediately stiffened. Her eyes turned sharp, like a snake’s, in an instant.
The “shop where people are bought and sold” I mentioned referred to the Moon’s Shop.
During Peril’s thousand-year existence, slave auctions were a regular occurrence. Although they were now forbidden, it wasn’t hard to see why the woman would react like this.
The woman, skilled at managing her expression, smiled at me despite my mentioning of the past’s shameful business.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I must have been mistaken.”
I shrugged lightly.
“Anyway, this is the place that finds people, right?”
As I slowly looked around the shop, the woman’s smile faded instantly.
“…I don’t think this is something we should discuss here. Please, come inside.”
She led me to a room in the back.
As soon as we entered the room, she asked me in a sharp voice.
“What’s your business?”
“I’m looking for someone named Babe.”
It was the fake name Peril had used fifty years ago.
The name no longer existed, but the people who managed the Sun’s Shop were Peril’s disciples, so they would understand what I meant.
As expected, the woman flinched visibly. But she quickly sneered.
“You’re saying things I don’t understand.”
“You should be able to understand what I’m saying.”
Since I’m not Idette, I won’t have another chance to meet Peril in person. Peril was someone who had to remain hidden from the world.
So, I had no choice but to take a risk.
I didn’t have much time.
“Babe will wake up soon.”
“…!”
“If that person wakes up, could you pass on a message? That someone who knows of his existence has appeared.”
I threw out the bait.
I wasn’t sure if it would catch a big fish, but it was my only option.
