Chapter 01
A Strange Question
One day, a man with the hood of his robe pulled deeply over his head suddenly came to my door and asked—
“Are you funny?”
So I closed the door.
What a strange person.
As soon as the door shut with a click, he knocked loudly on it.
“I’m not a strange person! Ah, well, I can’t exactly say I’m definitely not a strange person.”
What kind of person is he?
While being on guard against the suspicious man, I remembered hearing that a circus had come to Mouren, a small town below the village.
“Are you from the circus, by any chance? I don’t know what you heard, but I’m not someone who makes people laugh with my body. Of course, I have no intention of showing my face in front of other people either.”
I was trying to imply that I wanted him to leave, but the man applauded in admiration.
“That answer alone is already excellent.”
What exactly was so excellent about it?
Feeling that I shouldn’t get involved with him any further, I carefully locked the door and decided to finish making my sandwich.
I deliberately made the sounds of preparing food louder to show that I had absolutely no intention of talking to him, but the unwanted guest did not give up and raised his voice.
“You must have been very surprised by my sudden question. I am a suspicious… Well, I could be considered suspicious, but anyway, I’m not that kind of person.”
Because of the man’s endless rambling, I eventually sighed and stopped cutting.
“What exactly is the point of your question?”
Since the house was practically falling apart, even raising my voice a little could be heard outside.
Then the man’s serious voice came through the crack in the broken door.
“I want to recruit you.”
I thought he was going to say something grand after being so persistent.
Since it was nothing special, I started cutting again.
“I’m not someone who can make people laugh even when I’m given a stage… Find someone else.”
It was also my first time having someone come looking to recruit me. There had been people who came because they were attracted to my appearance, though.
“Do you happen to know the House of Duke Destain? If you do, explain it to me.”
What? Was he provoking me?
I gladly took the bait and explained everything in detail.
“Of course I know. His Majesty personally granted the title to Jervant de Destain, one of the three heroes who sealed the ‘Demon of Serael.’”
There wasn’t a single citizen of the Empire who didn’t know that.
He was a hero who had saved a world that had nearly been destroyed. It was only natural to grant him the title of Duke for his achievements, and no one objected to the decision.
“Then you know the Eclipse Guild as well.”
I considered ignoring him, but he seemed like the type who would become even more persistent if I did, so I answered honestly.
“Of course. It’s the guild that Duke Destain has been running since before he received his title.”
Hearing the name and the guild reminded me of something I hadn’t thought about in a very long time.
A romance-fantasy novel set in the world I was living in.
‘Jervant de Destain.’
The master of the Eclipse Guild and the Duke of Destain had been a villain in the novel I had read. Thanks to the female lead, he had reformed and risen to the ranks of the popular second male lead.
The name that I had thought about so often after a long time now felt strange.
“Since you know, this will be a quick conversation.”
“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about.”
“The reason I brought up the House of Duke Destain and the Eclipse Guild is because I am one of Jervant de Destain’s people.”
“An Eclipse Guild member in a remote mountain village like this? You’re the world’s greatest belly-button hunter. That was funny, so go home.”
I answered lightly, but I actually believed that he was a real member of the Eclipse Guild.
There was no one bold enough to pretend to be a member of the Eclipse Guild, of all guilds.
‘Even though I was reincarnated into a novel, I had never gotten involved with any of the original characters, so I had forgotten about them while living here.’
Why had he come looking for me?
Then, suddenly, a bad feeling ran down my spine.
‘No way… Did William hire the Eclipse Guild?’
Then I shook my head.
No. William doesn’t have that much money.
All kinds of ominous thoughts ran through my mind, but I tried to focus on my food.
I carefully placed grilled bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, and a fried egg on the sliced whole-wheat bread, then covered it with another slice of bread.
Then I cut it in half so it would be easier to eat, and the man seriously evaluated me from outside.
“I can tell even from our short conversation. Lady Titia is a very amusing person. You are exactly the person I was looking for.”
“I have to eat breakfast. If I don’t eat, I get anemia… But if you continue disturbing me at such an important time…”
I slammed the knife into the cutting board to show that even I didn’t know what I might do next.
Clink!
The sound of the vibrating knife rang through the kitchen.
“I can’t guarantee what I’ll do.”
I wanted to show him that I wouldn’t back down no matter how powerful an Eclipse Guild member he was, and hoped he would finally give up and quietly leave.
The outside became quiet. Just when I thought he had finally gone, the man’s face suddenly popped up from the kitchen window.
“It has to be you!”
“Ah!”
I was so startled that I screamed without thinking. I tightly gripped the knife with my trembling hand.
“Excuse me! How can you suddenly pop out like that! I had my hand on the knife… No, I mean, I have a knife in my hand!”
If I got startled and threw the knife, you’d die and I’d end up in prison!
“A knife like that is something I can dodge even with my eyes closed. Don’t underestimate the Eclipse.”
I had never underestimated you.
I slowly placed the knife back down on the cutting board.
“Since you keep refusing, I have no choice.”
The man brought his face close to the window and began listing my personal information one after another.
“Your name is Titia Anghela. You are twenty-one years old this year. Your only half-brother took over the Anghela Viscount family, and you were kicked out. No, to tell the truth, you ran away because you didn’t want to get married.”
“That man already has a child my age. Do you really think I should marry a man like that?”
“I also know that you always do strange exercises at night with the moonlight as your companion before going to bed.”
How did you know that?!
“It’s called National Gymnastics. For some reason, when I do it at night before bed, I fall asleep so easily… Wait, isn’t this an invasion of privacy?”
“We even know what the Emperor says in his sleep!”
“That’s quite impressive.”
“If I were to list more of your secrets and weaknesses…”
“Fine!”
I get it!
Annoyed, I suddenly opened the tightly closed door. The man confidently stepped inside.
“I never told you to come in.”
“Oh my. I see. Then I’ll just…”
Unlike how confidently he had entered, he slightly hunched his broad shoulders and lightly moonwalked back outside. I faced him from the doorway.
“First, let me introduce myself.”
The man took off the hood that had been pulled deeply over his head.
The first thing I noticed was his blue eyes behind his semi-transparent square glasses. His delicate features and green hair, which fell down to his chest and was tied into a single ponytail, made him look like a beautiful man. There was something familiar about him, so I stared at him.
He opened his tightly closed lips and gave me his name.
“My name is Veilt Ward.”
The moment I heard that name, my eyebrows twitched without me realizing it. His sharp eyes caught it immediately.
“You know who I am. I’m quite famous, after all.”
That shameless man was almost as famous as Jervant. He was a founding member of the Eclipse Guild alongside the Duke, his close friend, and also the vice-leader of the Eclipse Guild.
I never expected someone this important to come looking for me personally.
“Yes, so, Mr. Belt. What is it you want to say?”
“You know who I am, yet you boldly call me by the nickname I hate the most… How did you know that such determination was necessary to serve the Boss…”
No, I didn’t know.
