Episode 34

 

‘Guild Master?’

That made sense. No wonder he was so bold.

‘This man is the Guild Master of Oracle.’

I knew about the Guild Master’s background from the original work, but I didn’t know his appearance. He rarely appeared directly in the story.

At least now, I knew the face of the Guild Master.

‘So this is the main headquarters.’

The fact that the Guild Master himself dealt with a member of the Duke’s household suggested a lot.

‘The Duke might have a deep connection with Oracle.’

Given that they procured poison through this place, they might have been dealing for quite some time.

Despite this, Oracle seemed quite annoyed with the Duke’s household. They seemed to have some grievances.

‘If they were truly an important client, they would be more careful.’

Or maybe they were fed up with the Duke’s attitude?

‘Duke Reinhardt certainly isn’t a pleasant person to deal with.’

I looked straight into the eyes of the man who was still showing interest in me. His red eyes twinkled as he smiled.

“Tell me. Does the Duke’s household want to sever ties with me?”

“……”

“What would be the price? Perhaps the head of a mere maid from the Duke’s household?”

The man tilted his head as he spoke.

“You’re quite pretty, so cutting off your head might be satisfying. What do you think?”

‘…A dangerous man.’

My instincts warned me. Of course, I was surrounded by dangerous men all the time, so there was nothing new to fear.

‘But there’s no need to invite danger unnecessarily.’

I straightened my back deliberately.

“Enough with the threats. What do you think the Duke’s household will do if I go missing?”

“You think they’d care about a mere maid dying…”

“I told you, I’m here on behalf of His Grace the Duke. Hurting me is like challenging the Duke’s authority.”

“Oh.”

“You know His Grace doesn’t tolerate such things. What if he uses his connections with the Imperial Family to mobilize the Imperial Army?”

“……”

“Aren’t you concerned about losing the money from the Duke’s household?”

The man smiled broadly and tilted his head. It seemed the Duke’s household was paying them a considerable amount.

‘To buy Oracle over to my side, I’ll need funds.’

I wondered if there was any business I could do. While pondering, the Guild Master slowly opened his mouth.

“Then tell your Duke. If you want to claim there’s a defect in our goods, you should fix your own defects first.”

“……”

“Or send your defective goods to us. We can train them. They seem to think they can seduce the Grand Duke. We can at least turn your defective goods into something more… premium.”

“Guild Master.”

A voice interrupted our conversation. It was the doorman from earlier.

The Guild Master and I both turned to look. The doorman was hesitantly opening the door.

“Did I teach you to barge in while I’m with a client?”

“But…”

“…Is it a new client?”

My heart pounded at that voice.

I quickly lowered my head. I felt the Guild Master’s intrigued eyes on me, but hiding my face was more important now.

Behind the doorman, a figure as large as the doorman slowly walked out.

“You are the Oracle’s…”

‘Why is Chris here?’

The next moment, I remembered that I had mentioned Oracle to Chris.

‘Coincidentally, I also obtained some information. Let’s start with Oracle.’

‘Oracle, as in the information guild?’

Chris, too, had decided to act on the information rather than staying idle.

I started to quietly back away, trying to slip out. But then, Chris paused mid-sentence. The Oracle Guild Master raised an eyebrow and spoke to me.

“Where are you going in the middle of a conversation?”

“I have delivered the message.”

I quickly replied to the Guild Master and hurried out of the room. I felt eyes on my back as I left.

Shortly after the maid from the Duke’s household exited, the Guild Master turned to Chris. A lazy smile played on his lips.

“So, who are you, and what brings you here to interrupt….”

“I’ll come back another time. Excuse me.”

The man who had confidently entered also quickly left the room.

“Assad.”

As soon as both had left, someone appeared from the far end of the room.

It was a small man dressed like an ordinary servant.

“Shall I capture them?”

“No.”

“If we catch the woman now and dig for weaknesses, she might be useful.”

“Leave her for now.”

The red-haired man called Assad smiled.

“There might be more interesting developments soon.”

* * *

【Crossing Emotions 】

Chris arriving at Oracle was more than half coincidental.

‘I’ve discovered some dealings between the Duke’s household and Oracle.’

He remembered Mindia whispering this the last time they met.

It was as if she was telling him to leave everything to her.

However, Chris had no intention of letting Mindia bear all the burdens alone.

To Chris, Mindia was a young lady much younger than himself, having just recently reached adulthood.

Moreover, she had to bear the pressure within the Duke’s household alone with her small frame.

No matter how capable an informant Mindia was, it was unfair for her to bear the burden of investigating and managing everything alone, from Chris’s perspective.

At the very least, he should share some of the burden.

‘But openly searching for an information guild…’

If rumors spread and reached the Duke’s ears, that would be a problem.

While contemplating this issue, he overheard a conversation between young nobles in a high-end tavern he visited alone to get a feel for the capital’s atmosphere.

Coincidentally, it was related to Aria Reinhardt.

‘Ha, to find information on Lady Aria, it has to be Oracle, right?’

‘Ha, a man going to a guild for a lady’s information?’

‘I heard Oracle’s main base is on Realm Street.’

‘Really? It’s supposed to be a hidden building, hard to find. Only those who know can open it.’

‘And Lady Aria is a real noble lady. Unlike that fake…’

‘We, as lower nobles, cannot covet her position. But that fake one, maybe.’

‘I heard the fake one is promiscuous. Maybe try seducing her…’

Thud.

Chris slammed his arm on the counter amidst the giggling young nobles.

‘Gasp….’

The young nobles hiccuped in shock. Realizing it was the Grand Duke, they didn’t even think to rebut his rebuke.

‘Innkeeper, here’s the payment for the drinks.’

‘Oh, it’s an honor to have Your Grace the Grand Duke here….’

‘And be more selective with your customers.’

‘Pardon?’

‘There are customers who dare to insult Lady Reinhardt.’

Realizing they were talking about Aria, the innkeeper looked at the two young men coldly.

Leaving behind the sight of their red faces, Chris impulsively headed to Realm Street.

Realm Street was a slum where all the buildings looked similar and indistinguishable. Honestly, he doubted Oracle was really here. He didn’t expect to find it right away either.

However.

‘…It’s built like a fortress.’

One building stood out. It was excessively narrow and tall.

Chris, having learned defensive architecture to repel monsters in the North, recognized it. Any architectural style, as long as it was effective in defense, was of interest.

And this building had a fortress-like design he had read about somewhere. The entrance was extremely narrow, with a spacious interior.

The only difference from a fortress was that the building’s exterior looked like an ordinary house.

“……”

He kept his eyes on that building.

Knock, knock, knock.

Without thinking, he approached and knocked on the door. A small window opened in the door.

‘Password?’

A strong sense of certainty hit him.

‘This is the place.’

He didn’t expect to find it so quickly. Chris hid his surprise and maintained a composed expression. His expressionless face radiated an undeniable authority and power.

‘I am a new customer.’

‘…How important of a customer are you?’

The doorman asked, involuntarily tensing up.

Instead of answering, Chris showed the handle of his sword, which bore the Grand Duke’s insignia.

‘……!’

After some chaotic murmuring inside, the door cautiously opened. He was then led straight to the Guild Master’s room.

Upon entering, the Guild Master was already in conversation with someone.

For some reason, he kept glancing at that someone.

Despite the shabby maid outfit, he couldn’t help but be certain.

It was a certainty similar to when he recognized the Oracle building.

‘Mindia Reinhardt?’

If she really was Mindia, this place was extremely dangerous for a woman to be alone.

The next moment, he met her yellow eyes through her tinted glasses.

‘…….’

It seemed she had come here alone to resolve this matter. Chris silently watched her.

He hoped she would wait until his conversation with the Oracle Guild Master was over, so at least he could accompany her back. Realm Street after dark was notoriously dangerous.

However, Mindia hurried out of the room as if fleeing.

“So, who are you, and what brings you here to interrupt….”

“I’ll come back another time. Excuse me.”

Having discovered Oracle’s location, he could come back later. He had already seen the inside of the building, so there was no rush.

Right now, ensuring her safety felt more urgent.

“…….”

However, upon exiting the building, Mindia was nowhere to be seen.

As Chris heightened his senses and looked around, a loud voice rang out.

“Stop right there!”