Chapter 56: In Search of Clues
Chapter 56: In Search of Clues
From a distance, the innkeeper, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation, quietly approached and hefted a heavy sack with a grunt.
“Goodness, you folks brought quite a lot.”
“Could you help distribute it for us, sir? If we go door to door ourselves, people might just shut their doors and run away. They’re already wary of outsiders. I’m sure they know how to grow corn, and this one here is taro.”
“Understood. Either way, if it yields well, that’s what matters. I’m tired of cooking with the same ingredients all the time.”
Raphael, staring at the gently bubbling pot unlike the day before, asked calmly, “Innkeeper. Last night, you turned off the fire, right? You swapped out the contents and cleaned the pot?”
“…”
The innkeeper’s lips curled into a sly grin beneath his beard as he silently began moving the sack. In the meantime, his wife, like a perfect match, pretended to sprinkle spices into the pot.
Raphael wailed in dismay.
“Why… why does no one ever answer me?!”
Everyone else burst out laughing, some more boisterously than others.
— — —
The next morning. It had been three days since they arrived, and still, they hadn’t found a single clue.
Though they’d planned to stay at least a week, aside from Lucius, the other three were all people of significant standing within the capital.
‘Especially the Crown Prince. Queen Rania must be anxiously awaiting his return.’
While Kassel and Raphael also held noble titles, they were knights, and a delay in their schedule was somewhat more acceptable. But considering how much Queen Rania adored and relied on Astein, the sooner they returned, the better.
‘There has to be a better way to… oh.’
When she looked up, her view was filled with eyes glittering like grains of sand. It was Astein.
“Uh…”
“Miss Fay, what are you thinking so hard about?”
She couldn’t very well say, I was just worrying about the prince getting back safely.
Especially not to someone who had trained hard with a sword and come all the way here with a short sword on his belt. That would be cruel. No need to shatter his illusion.
Fay, well aware of what it felt like to be treated like a child or dismissed, just smiled and shook her head.
“It’s nothing, Ast.”
Because his name was somewhat unique, they had agreed she would just use the first syllable. Hesitantly, Fay gave it a try. Astein smiled brightly and got to the point.
“The innkeeper said even with the seeds we handed out, it’ll be hard to win the locals over right away, right?”
“Well… yes.”
The carefree prince who had been so excited when they left was nowhere to be seen. The young man before her was serious.
“To get them to open up, we’ll need to show some more tangible results.”
“Do you already have something in mind?”
Astein’s eyes twinkled mischievously before he dropped a bombshell.
“Just a bit from here, there’s a hideout where some old bandits have been holed up for years.”
“…What?”
Lucius, sensing the suspicious direction of the conversation, quietly drew closer. Sitting behind Fay and glaring, whether Astein noticed or not, he enthusiastically shared what he’d learned.
“They’ve been based around here for over thirty years. When the older ones got too weak, they’d replenish their numbers with new mercenaries or blades-for-hire. Apparently, they’ve managed to keep their power that way. Shouldn’t we check it out?”
“Where did you hear that?”
There were no guilds here, and the locals avoided that area. So who would’ve told him?
“The innkeeper!”
Oh no…
Fay pressed her fingers against her throbbing temples. As soon as Astein mentioned bandits, Lucius’s expression darkened. He spoke up.
“Shouldn’t that kind of thing be handled by the local lord? If not, he should at least hire mercenaries. They haven’t even made a move against us, poking the hornet’s nest could just drag us into a huge mess.”
“Lucius is right, Ast. Even if we want to help, jumping into something no one else wants to touch often ends with us cleaning up the mess.”
‘Do the dirty work first. Be a kind neighbor. Help others and live virtuously, and you’ll be rewarded.’
Adults call it a life lesson. But if you follow it to the letter…
Fay gave a wistful smile.
I’d rather no one else know what it feels like to have the ideals you were taught turn out to be lies.
“…Miss Fay, what kind of life have you lived?”
A soft, worried voice came from the side.
Ah. Sir Kassel… He’d been nearby?
Fay clamped her mouth shut, throat tightening. She didn’t cry just thinking about the past anymore, but saying it out loud? She wasn’t sure she could hold it in. Especially not in front of Kassel.
Lucius noticed the shift in her mood and stepped forward, blocking her from view. Then, in a tone unusually gentle for him, he lightly scolded Kassel.
“Why bring down the mood like that?”
“…”
“As for the bandits, sure, the lord should’ve dealt with them. Letting them build up and reinforce their numbers for decades is hard to believe.”
When Fay didn’t respond, Kassel wisely changed the subject, though his eyes remained full of concern for her.
Meanwhile, the very man who’d sparked this situation, the innkeeper, approached and confessed.
“Technically, you’re right. But it’s not that simple, dear guests. Our domain is on the edge of the Empire. Outsiders come and go all the time. It’s hard to wipe them out completely. Don’t you have at least two knights among you?”
“There should be some at the manor, too.”
The innkeeper quickly shook his head. Though they were his only guests, his voice dropped to a whisper.
“They only care about patrolling the manor and the borders. They don’t give a d**n about what happens inside. People leave the territory, smuggle suspicious carts back in, and no one says a word.”
“They don’t stop people from going out?”
“Exactly. That’s why there are rumors they’re taking bribes to keep quiet.”
Suspicious carts? That meant they were looting deeper inland?
“Now’s the time to deal with them. Their numbers are down. Haven’t taken in new recruits in years. And lately, they’ve been acting up again.”
“What did they do?”
Kassel asked, and the innkeeper found a chair and sat down.
“West of here, there used to be a noble house, Karris Viscounty. Burned to the ground overnight not long ago. If it weren’t for a group of trainee priests staying at the inn, no one would’ve even buried the remains. Everyone’s too busy to care.”
“…Karris Viscounty?”
A noble family, wiped out overnight by fire?
“Mhm. Want to hear the rest?”
The innkeeper had the air of a seasoned storyteller. Fay, still clueless, nodded.
“Yes.”
“That bandit group I mentioned, ten of them, tops. Nothing like before. Take them down, and I’ll tell you everything I know. After all, those trainee priests stayed here. No one knows more than me.”
“Fine. Let’s just go check it out ourselves.”
Lucius gave a chilly smile, prompting the innkeeper to wave his hands urgently.
“Now, now! No need to rush! You folks look like you can handle yourselves. Why not take care of them while you’re here?”
The innkeeper was practically begging now.
“Back in the day, even the lord’s manor put a bounty on their heads. Get paid, do some good, and get valuable intel, what could be better?”
“Don’t tell me you tried this pitch on those trainee priests, too, and they turned you down?”
Lucius asked, eyeing him skeptically. The innkeeper scratched his head.
“Well… I did ask. But they said something about avoiding unnecessary killing.”
“…”
“What do you think? Just decide if you want to do it or not.”
Lucius looked at Fay.
Roughly ten bandits, maybe fewer. Could she take them?
Fay wrestled with her thoughts. She’d trained extensively in magic but had never actually cast lethal spells on real people. The prospect of real combat was daunting.
‘Capturing them won’t be easy. And… before I think about relying on Sir Kassel, Lucius, or Raphael, I need to ask myself if I’m ready to do this alone. Hmm.’
“…”
‘What’s this now?’
Kassel noticed the way Lucius was silently watching Fay. Something about it didn’t sit right.
He knew Lucius was affiliated with the Mage Tower. He hadn’t said much, but Fay’s dragon familiar clearly deferred to him. That alone meant Lucius was no ordinary mage. Supposedly, he was a 7th-circle master, a powerful ally.
‘But why’s he looking at her like that? Don’t tell me…’
Was he seeing her as a woman?
Lucius’s calm, deep gaze never left her pale green eyes. It wasn’t lecherous or creepy, but Kassel still felt an unexpected flicker of anger.
And confusion.
‘Why am I getting angry over who Fay spends time with?’
He’d long acknowledged that he cared deeply for her. It wasn’t romantic, at least, not exactly. He just wanted her to be safe and happy. That’s why he had tried to keep her from being alone with Raphael.
Maybe he’d been too suspicious after nearly mistaking Lucius for a dragon once.
‘No… Ancient dragons, described as arrogant in every tale, wouldn’t bother disguising themselves as a mere 7th-circle mage.’
Kassel had come close to the truth, but missed it again.
‘Unless he’s the previous Tower Master who supposedly shattered a mana gauge… but no, there’s no way this Lucius is that Lucius…’
“I’ll do it.”
Fay’s quiet declaration snapped him out of his thoughts. At her decision, the innkeeper’s face lit up.
“Ohh, really? You mean it?”
“What if there are more than ten of them? Have you thought about what to do with that old man if he’s lying?”
Lucius gave her a pointed look.
Wide-eyed, Fay asked, “Huh? Should I have?”
“Of course. Do you have any idea how many times people have accepted a job that sounded easy, only to walk into a den of elite thieves for pocket change?”
She lowered her voice.
“Lucius… have you been tricked like that before? When?”
“Hmph.”
……
T/N: Kassel just said Lucius’ identity hahahaha
