Kyle’s expression grew even gloomier when he saw my grimace.
“I thought this was the best coffee I’ve made this year…,” Kyle muttered dejectedly.
“You don’t have to force yourself to drink it,” he added, trying to retrieve the cup with a truly regretful look on his face.
Could this be a test from the guild?
Was my patience or the sincerity of my visit being evaluated by whether I could drink this coffee?
The information I had was from a year or so in the future. Perhaps there were unique procedures at this point in time that I didn’t know about.
If that’s the case…
I needed to pass this test.
I reached out, stopping Kyle from taking the cup.
“No, it’s fine. I can drink it.”
I braced myself and pulled the cup back toward me, and Kyle’s expression brightened.
For Connie!
I closed my eyes tightly and downed the coffee in one gulp.
Ugh.
It felt like drinking muddy water or dishwater. The only silver lining was that the coffee was only a couple of sips’ worth.
I managed to transform my grimace into something resembling a neutral expression through sheer willpower.
“You actually drank it all!”
Kyle beamed with joy as he glanced at the empty cup and then offered me a piece of cake as a special service.
I eyed the seemingly delicious cream cake suspiciously.
Was this also part of the procedure?
It looked tempting enough, but what if it tasted like eraser shavings? Or worse, something unimaginable?
Still, my taste buds were already ruined by the coffee.
I resolutely picked up the fork like a knight heading into battle and cut a small piece from the corner.
Should I just take a big bite at once?
But my body, traumatized by the abominable coffee, rejected the idea of a larger piece.
Just this much, for now.
I closed my eyes again and put a small piece of cake in my mouth.
It’s… good?
It wasn’t divine, but it was reasonably tasty.
I took a larger bite this time, hoping to wash away the lingering taste of the coffee.
Kyle smiled contentedly as he watched me eat the cake.
“It’s good,” I said, omitting the “compared to the coffee” part.
“Thank you, ma’am,” Kyle replied, his eyes crinkling into almost invisible slits.
Even after I finished the small cake, Kyle lingered around me.
Is it time?
I took a deep breath and whispered the guild’s password to Kyle.
“The blue hawk flying in the sky has guided me here.”
Please let it still be the same.
Kyle didn’t respond right away. I glanced up at his face to see his previously smiling eyes droop again.
“Oh, you’re that kind of customer.”
He sounded genuinely disappointed, as if being a member of the information guild was less exciting.
Kyle’s demeanor shifted dramatically as he adopted a more business-like tone.
“So, what brings you here? Buying or selling?”
Feigning confidence, I replied, “Both.”
“Hmm, an unusual customer,” he said, stroking his chin as if weighing his options. Finally, he nodded.
“Let’s hear about what you have to sell first.”
At least he was willing to listen. I took a deep breath and handed over the documents I had prepared.
“This is what I’m selling.”
Kyle examined the papers carefully, understanding their contents with a single glance.
“These are records showing the manipulated financial documents of Duke Camelot and his vassals.”
“Yes, they’ll need verification, but they should be mostly accurate.”
Kyle smiled, lifting only the corners of his mouth.
“Good. It’s valuable information, I’ll give you that.”
He placed a hand on the stack of papers.
“But I can’t offer you a high price.”
He tapped the documents lightly with his finger.
The generous café owner who gave me free cake was gone, replaced by a shrewd businessman.
“This kind of information is bound to be discovered eventually. Its value decreases as time passes. You’ll have to accept a lower price because of that.”
I nodded, agreeing with Kyle’s reasoning.
“That’s a valid point. The Emperor’s investigation team will likely come to the same conclusion within a week. I acknowledge that.”
They were just as capable as I was, and they had numbers on their side.
My advantage was knowing the direction of the investigation thanks to the story’s plot.
“And I’ve already worked on these documents before.”
“But in a situation where every minute counts, getting the information even a few hours earlier can be worth a fortune.”
I placed my hand next to his on the documents.
A full-on bluff.
Kyle chuckled, clearly entertained.
“You’ve got a knack for negotiating.”
Yes!
“I believe the Emperor will choose to strike before Duke Camelot can cover his tracks.”
My bluff seemed to work, but Kyle’s expression suddenly hardened.
His posture straightened, and he took a step back from the table, eyeing me warily.
“I must have been too excited to meet the first customer who drank my coffee.”
He quickly forced a smile, as if trying to mask his previous demeanor.
“Huh?”
I blinked in confusion, trying to understand what he meant.
“Are you from the Renkel family? It seems unlikely you’d have another source. Carolina Diaz.”
“How do you know my name? I don’t understand what you’re saying…”
I was baffled. Why was he mentioning Count Renkel?
Kyle sighed, almost in disappointment.
“Answering questions with questions isn’t a good habit,” he chided gently.
It felt like he was suggesting I should answer his question first.
I was completely under his thumb.
“So, why did you mention Count Renkel? If you tell me that…”
I could try to give you an answer.
Kyle sighed loudly, making sure I could hear.
“How did you know the guild was connected to the Emperor?”
He then spoke as if explaining to a slow student.
That’s what he was asking.
“Well, the password was ‘the blue hawk flying in the sky,’ right?”
Even without my past life’s knowledge, I would have figured it out from the password.
The emblem the Emperor used when he was the Grand Duke was a blue hawk.
My parents had a simple philosophy: as long as I stayed out of trouble and grew up healthy, that was enough. They didn’t drill me on noble family emblems and other minutiae.
But the blue hawk was famous.
As a mark of disrespect, the former Emperor had given the blue hawk emblem to his nephew instead of the divine symbols reserved for royals, marking him as a lesser branch of the family.
“That’s all it took?”
Kyle seemed deflated.
“Well, no one else uses the blue hawk symbol, right? If only one person uses it, it’s easy to deduce.”
I tried to be diplomatic, pointing upwards discreetly.
Kyle burst out laughing.
‘I didn’t mean the deceased Emperor…’
Even as I felt embarrassed, Kyle couldn’t stop laughing.
When he finally regained his composure, wiping tears from his eyes, he spoke.
“You’ve turned a guess into a certainty.”
He didn’t seem too upset, just slightly taken aback.
“Alright. Now it’s time for you to tell me what you want in return.”
Kyle’s smile was inviting, signaling that it was time to discuss my terms.
