Chapter 75
After finishing the necessary information gathering and doing some cleanup work, Johan spoke to me.
“Sena, the testimonies from the baker’s kids and the long-haired woman alone won’t be enough. To turn the tables, we need the testimony of that princess.”
“You’re right. And conveniently, it’s her engagement party, so it will have a big impact.”
“Then we should go and meet them last.”
“No.”
Stopping at my firm response, Johan paused and looked at me.
“Words alone won’t be enough to get their testimonies. We need evidence.”
In this kingdom, the saint’s position was solid. As close as I am to the dwarves, Snow White might trust me, but the prince would be different.
‘He would believe the saint over a bartender he’s meeting for the first time.’
So I needed evidence to reveal the true owner of the letter provided by the saint.
“Evidence, you say…”
“From here on, I can manage alone. Johan, you’ve worked hard these past two days.”
All that’s left are minor preparations to get ready for the main event. There’s no dangerous task of crossing into unfamiliar dimensions, and Silvia will be involved too, so there’s no need for Johan to join.
Of course, if Johan is willing to help further, there is something I could use his assistance with…
“We investigated together. Please allow me to help decorate the finale as well.”
“You’re busy, aren’t you? I’ve already taken up enough of your time…”
“It’s alright.”
“Still…”
“If you’re worried, then consider it compensating me for helping despite being busy.”
Johan took a step closer to me.
What compensation would he ask for? I have no way to satisfy a great lord.
“Give me your time, Sena.”
“Huh?”
His unexpected words left me dumbfounded.
“I mean, go on a date with me.”
A date?
Even though I knew Johan would smoothly make his move when I let my guard down, I was still a bit surprised.
I couldn’t understand his intentions.
“So, um, you mean to have a meal together?”
“Have dinner at a restaurant, get your dress fitted at a clothing store, and enjoy an opera performance in the evening.”
Just listening casually, it sounds like a standard date course.
“Johan, I thought all you wanted from me was… to be your bartender?”
“Must I only want that from you?”
“Well, no, but…”
Overwhelmed by Johan’s bold straightforwardness, I trailed off.
Keenly sensing my flustered state, instead of pushing further aggressively, he gave a wry smile.
“So, what can I help you with?”
With Johan being so proactive, how could I refuse?
Well, I don’t know. So I honestly told him the task I wanted to entrust to him.
“Actually, there is something I’d appreciate your help with. Though it might be a difficult request…”
“It doesn’t matter. Anything.”
Johan stated firmly. As if he truly meant he would help with anything.
“Will you escort me to the engagement party?”
Since it’s the prince’s engagement, it’s bound to be a grand event.
I would feel reassured to have a gentleman like Johan as my escort.
“Gladly. You needn’t have asked for that.”
“That’s great. My Unnie will be pleased too. Being escorted by a dashing lord!”
At that moment, Johan’s expression stiffened for the first time.
Somehow, it seemed like he had misunderstood.
But honestly, would I have struggled to make such a request if it was just about him escorting me?
“Unnie…you mean?”
“Please take good care of Sylvie Unnie!”
It was absolutely not meant to tease Johan. Since Sylvie and the saint are also entangled over a man, I had to nip any misunderstanding in the bud, lest things get unnecessarily complicated.
Who would think of someone like Cedric when Johan appears with me? They’d think the old car is gone and a new one has arrived.
A ripple passed through the blue eyes gazing at me.
“Then who will be escorting you?”
“Me? I’ll be attending the event in a different way, so I don’t need an escort.”
“A different way?”
“Ah, it’s nothing big…”
“You can tell me, can’t you? Knowing might help in case of any situations.”
He’s right. I can share the details of this operation with Johan, can’t I?
“Well, it’s…”
I began explaining calmly.
🫧
‘Ah, it’s getting late.’
But there was something I absolutely had to do today.
After sending Johan off, I rushed to the ‘Rose Mansion’ dimension.
At least I didn’t want to visit this dimension at such a late hour…
‘Huh?’
Upon arriving in the ‘Rose Mansion’ dimension, despite the surroundings being dark, no warning popped up. Moreover, the oddly stifling air had also cleared up.
It seemed just like an ordinary dimension.
“Strange……”
Muttering that, I followed the exclamation mark. Ever since completing the quest, that exclamation mark had been conveniently guiding me. Even now, it was leading me to the people I was looking for.
“Ah.”
Following the exclamation mark, I arrived at the Rose Mansion. The mansion, which was nearing completion, was half-destroyed with ‘No Entry’ tapes around it.
‘Did the original work of this dimension progress while I was wandering through other dimensions?’
Recalling the horrific murder case that took place in the beautiful mansion sent chills down my spine.
As I tried to leave the mansion quickly, whispered voices caught my ear.
“That cop apparently took a huge bribe? He pretended to be a good person…”
A cop? Ah, come to think of it, there was a police officer among those invited to the Rose Mansion.
“You don’t say. The opera singer I liked kidnapped children. This must be divine punishment!”
Right, there was an opera singer too. Wait a minute?
Listening to the revelations pouring out, I finally realized.
Those invited to the Rose Mansion were criminals.
Could the owner’s objective have been to kill them one by one and expose their misdeeds?
“Newspaper!”
As I lingered in front of the Rose Mansion, a boy wearing a deep hat offered me a newspaper.
“I don’t have any mon…”
“It’s okay!”
The boy insisted on giving me the newspaper before leaving. Dumbfounded, I looked at the newspaper, which listed in detail those who were invited and their misdeeds.
I urgently looked up to see the boy who had already walked far away. Only the camera lens hanging around his neck glinted in the moonlight.
‘Ah, that! The same camera appeared in the illustration. It’s the player’s camera!’
That kid seems suspicious. Could this be the plot twist of ‘the main character being the culprit’?
While curious about the truth, I had no intention of breaking through the daunting difficulty to clear the ‘Rose Mansion’.
“A mansion that kills criminals and enacts justice……”
As I slowly flipped through the newspaper, I realized Alex was missing. Instead of the reformed Alex, it seemed another bad guy had taken his place.
‘Just as there are people like me who need reward money, there must also be people who need to enact justice.’
The previously stifling air probably cleared up thanks to those bad guys being taken care of, right?
“As they say, you can’t live by committing crimes.”
I quickened my pace again.
My destination was where my assistants were. Entering the familiar plaza, just like when we first met, they were gathered at the same table, chattering away.
“Hey? Isn’t that our bartender!”
“You came at just the right time. I was about to go look for you to have a drink, but the place was closed. Come, sit down quickly.”
They welcomed me and made room for me.
The only thing different from when I first saw them was their brightened faces.
“Actually, I came because I need your help.”
“Well then, we’re your assistants, aren’t we? Ask us for anything. Who do we need to investigate?”
“Things have been going so smoothly since you came. There’s nothing we can’t do for you!”
“It’s not about investigating people…”
It was fortunate they were all enthusiastic. I handed them the poisoned apple I received from Sylvie, as well as the papers with Sylvie’s and the saint’s handwriting.
Even though it’s called a poisoned apple, it’s not actually poisonous! To prove that, we just need to analyze its composition!
To find the true owner of the letter given by the saint, we just need handwriting analysis!
“You want us to analyze the composition of this apple? My wife’s sister majored in chemistry. Let me ask her.”
“My friend’s husband cheated, but we had no evidence, so we were stumped. But when we went to a private investigator, they revealed everything! They can probably do handwriting analysis too. Leave it to me.”
Indeed, a group of victims with diverse ages and genders. They could flexibly handle even these kinds of problems.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
🫧
Around 5 PM in the evening. The desert heat was gradually dissipating, and a pleasantly warm sunlight poured down.
It was the perfect time for a stroll, so I was walking around the oasis with Sylvie.
“An engagement party?”
“Yes. To clear your name, it needs to be an event that garners that level of attention.”
I briefly explained the past events to Sylvie—from investigating the fairy tale dimensions to the saint’s scheme to take Sylvie’s place.
However, what caught Sylvie’s interest wasn’t anything like that.
“You said someone you know will escort me?”
“Yes, a very handsome person. Your eyes will light up the moment you see him!”
🥂
Thank you for reading! ♡
