TDVIATD 25

Leah decided to stop trying to hide it and face the situation head-on.

“Mr. Hönes, you run a gambling house, don’t you?”

He looked at her suspiciously.

“There’s a small one just a little farther down from here. It’s still a small place, but I plan to make it bigger.”

“In the near future, you’ll build the largest gambling house in the imperial capital. Just between us, I sometimes have prophetic dreams. That’s how I ended up knowing your name too. Ufufu!”

“You’re a pretty strange young lady…”

He scratched his cheek.

“You can just call me Werner. What about you?”

“I’m Leah Arens.”

“Arens? …Wait, don’t tell me you’re from the ducal family?”

“Yes, I am.”

Werner looked shocked.

“What’s a duke’s daughter doing in a place like this? What if slave traders snatched you up?”

(In my previous life, I was kidnapped at sixteen and almost sold—and you were the one who saved me!)

Leah looked at him with gratitude, which only made him more suspicious.

“What? I’ll walk you close to your house, so hurry up and head back.”

At first glance he looked intimidating, but he was actually kind. Leah’s smile widened.

“Hehe. Mr. Werner, you’re a good person.”

“No one’s ever called me that.”

His lips twisted into a sarcastic smirk.

“I’ve done plenty of things people can’t talk about openly.”

“What kind of things can’t you talk about?”

“Not something a young lady like you needs to know.”

Even in her previous life, he had never told her the details.

“I don’t know why you came to a place like this, but even if you’re a mage, it’s not completely safe. Some people carry items that can nullify magic.”

Leah was glad she had met Werner.

For now, she decided she should go home.

“Yes, then I’ll return for today.”

“For today?”

He frowned.

“You didn’t just get lost?”

“No. May I come see you again sometime?”

“Come see me? You mean me?”

“Yes. I’d really like to become friends with you, Mr. Werner!”

“Why?”

His face stiffened, and he looked at her as if she were a suspicious stranger.

“Because in the future, I might need to rely on you for many things.”

“Huh?”

Werner removed his hat and ran a hand through his chestnut-colored hair.

“This kid is seriously weird. Her magic feels strange, and the way she talks is odd too. She acts like she knows me… What’s with this prophetic dream thing… Should I press her about it? But she’s still just a kid…”

He muttered to himself.

Apparently she had made him wary.

(Maybe I shouldn’t have come after all. I wasn’t supposed to meet him until six years from now. If we meet here, will it change the future where I become an adventurer? If that happens, I might never meet that monster either.)

But once she began her journey, she didn’t want to die young.

She had wanted to make contact with him now, since he had special abilities, so she could consult him and prepare.

“Yeah… I should just send her home quickly.”

Having reached a conclusion, Werner put his hat back on.

“Miss. Go home.”

“Mr. Werner.”

“Hmm?”

“I know I’m strange… but in a few years, will you save me?”

Leah said it desperately, and Werner muttered to himself again.

“…She’s really strange. I should stay out of this…”

He plastered on a smile and replied,

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. But that’s why you shouldn’t be wandering around places like this anymore.”

Werner escorted Leah back to the front of her house, and then quickly disappeared.