♥ Chapter 7 ♥
“…”
“The Information Guild won’t tell you anything that could hurt them, no matter how much money you offer. But the Thieves’ Guild will. Isn’t that right?”
“When you put it like that, it makes us sound like we’re a bunch of criminals who only do evil…”
“Well, stealing is a crime. Or do you call it charity?”
“…”
The woman had nothing to say.
After a moment of silence, she slowly spoke.
“So, are you forcing me to answer? What if I refuse?”
“I’m not forcing you.”
“And then if I stay silent, will you have us all arrested tomorrow?”
“Of course not.”
I smiled and shook my head.
“I’m a businesswoman. I don’t do things like that. Arrest people…”
Would I really do something so crude?
Looking at her expression as it slowly relaxed, I smiled as well.
“Instead of arresting you, I’ll start collecting taxes from the Thieves’ Guild tomorrow.”
“…”
“And not just tomorrow’s taxes. I’ll collect the unpaid taxes from the last hundred years too. So don’t waste both of our time. Just answer my questions.”
I tilted my head.
“So? What will you do?”
The woman’s brows furrowed.
She glared at me for a while before sighing.
Then she put down the pen she was holding.
“My name is Zilda.”
The corners of her lips twitched as she forced out a smile.
I smiled back and adjusted my posture.
After finally calming her twitching expression, Zilda slowly asked,
“What information do you need? It must be important if you came all the way to a den of thieves.”
“You could say it’s important.”
Zilda tilted her head in confusion.
I looked straight at her and slowly spoke.
“The House of Ripton.”
“What about the House of Ripton…”
“…Its relationship with the House of Vozbon.”
I cut her off.
At my words, Zilda narrowed her eyes.
“I don’t understand what you’re asking. Well, both families are among the most powerful in the Empire, so I’m sure they’re connected somehow. But coming all the way here just to ask that…”
“So you’d rather have every coin you earn taken away in taxes?”
I smiled faintly.
“Judging by the way you’re trying to fool me.”
“…”
Zilda’s face twisted.
She stared at me, sighed quietly, and began organizing the papers on her desk before standing up.
Where was she going?
While I watched her in confusion, she pushed against the wall behind her.
The wall slid open, revealing a hidden passage.
Zilda disappeared inside.
Instead, the bearded man who had greeted me at the entrance walked in.
I looked at him in surprise.
He sighed, sat down across from me, and spoke.
“I’m Buck, the branch master of the Brilloksen Thieves’ Guild.”
“So the woman earlier wasn’t the branch master after all. I never expected the man watching the front desk to be the leader.”
“The best place to hide is right under someone’s nose.”
He chuckled and handed me a document.
“You asked something interesting, so I came to answer it myself. It’s not difficult.”
As he habitually stroked his thick beard, he searched for the right words.
Then he shrugged.
“I was going to explain it politely, but I’m not good with fancy words. So I’ll get straight to the point.”
“Ripton and Vozbon.”
After a brief pause, he casually said,
“The two families are bound together by an old engagement contract.”
Just as I thought.
My guess had been right.
Before returning to the past, I had never even considered such a possibility.
The two families barely interacted.
Their territories were so far apart that it took two full days on horseback to travel between them.
Yet they were connected by an engagement contract.
“About fifty years ago…”
Buck rubbed his beard again as if trying to remember.
“I don’t remember the exact year, but anyway…”
“At that time, the former Duke of Vozbon made an agreement with the Grand Duke of Ripton. Vozbon would provide large amounts of food, minerals, medicine, and clothing.”
“The reason was simple.”
“Illegal trade.”
His answer surprised me again.
The House of Vozbon…
Smuggling?
“Monster corpses sell for very high prices,” Buck continued.
“Mages, shamans, alchemists… they all buy them. Their blood is used to make medicines, while their muscles and bones are useful for making armor.”
Once he started talking, he didn’t stop.
“But monster corpses are scarce. Hermonia has countless monsters, but hunting them isn’t easy. Mercenaries hunt some, but there’s always a limit to the supply.”
“But as you know, the House of Ripton hunts monsters in Hermonia on a massive scale.”
“So where do you think all those corpses went?”
“Did they bury them?”
“Of course not.”
Buck grinned and shook his head.
“Those corpses are worth money. Selling them is the obvious choice.”
“But fifty years ago, the Imperial Family completely banned the illegal trade of monster corpses.”
“And the family that suffered the most from that decision…”
“…was the House of Ripton.”
I remembered reading about that law before.
Back then, many mages and alchemists had struggled because they could no longer obtain monster materials.
So that law had dealt a devastating blow to Hermonia.
Buck continued.
“The House of Ripton had relied on selling monster corpses for income.”
“When that income suddenly disappeared, they found themselves in serious trouble.”
“The farmland in Hermonia was too poor to feed everyone.”
He paused to catch his breath.
I opened the document in my hands.
Everything Buck had just explained was written inside.
Then he continued.
“At that time, the former Duke of Vozbon approached them.”
“He offered to provide food and medicine.”
“In return…”
“The House of Vozbon would secretly collect the remaining monster corpses.”
“Ripton had received the unofficial title of Grand Duke one hundred and fifty years ago.”
“Vozbon was famous as one of the Empire’s founding noble families.”
Buck slowly brought both of his index fingers together until they touched.
Then he smiled.
“Imagine it.”
“The two families secretly trading monsters while ignoring the Imperial Family’s orders.”
“That would be a huge scandal.”
“So both sides decided to put chains on each other.”
“And that chain was…”
“The engagement.”
“Exactly.”
“At the time, both the Grand Duke of Ripton and the Duke of Vozbon already had adult children who were married.”
“So the responsibility for the engagement naturally passed down to the current Grand Duke of Ripton and Lady Bellietta.”
“Simple enough?”
“I understand…”
But something still bothered me.
I rubbed my chin and looked at Buck.
“Why would the House of Vozbon bother with monster trading in the first place?”
“That, even I don’t know.”
“Maybe they needed money?”
“But it’s hard to believe a ducal family would run out of money.”
“So if not money…”
“What benefit were they getting from secretly buying monster corpses?”
“That’s…”
“Some people believe the Duke of Vozbon has been secretly raising dark mages inside his family.”
“But no one has ever proven it.”
“The only people who know the truth are those inside the House of Vozbon.”
Buck laughed quietly as he stood up.
Apparently our conversation was over.
I raised my eyes to look at him.
“So?”
“Has your curiosity been satisfied?”
“A little.”
So…
The promise Aden mentioned…
This was what he meant.
“Oh, right.”
“I’ve heard another rumor lately.”
“What rumor?”
Buck tilted his head and frowned.
“What was her name again…?”
“The Duke of Vozbon’s daughter.”
“Bellietta?”
“That’s right.”
“I heard Lady Bellietta has developed a strong hatred for this engagement.”
“And ever since then, the contract has started falling apart.”
“They say that for several years now, the food and medicine that should have been sent to the House of Ripton and Hermonia haven’t arrived.”
“Of course…”
“It’s only a rumor.”
So that was the promise Aden had been talking about.
Buck continued.
“In the end, it isn’t a real engagement.”
“It’s only a contract.”
“So either side could cancel it.”
“But while Vozbon has little to lose by breaking the agreement…”
“Ripton seems extremely sensitive about it.”
“Well…”
“The side with something to lose is obviously Ripton.”
“So does that mean the engagement has already been broken?”
“If Vozbon has no intention of honoring the contract…”
“Then yes. You could say it’s already over.”
Buck smiled broadly.
I quietly organized my thoughts before asking,
“Can I trust this information?”
He shrugged.
“Believe it or don’t.”
“That’s your choice.”
“But since we told you something we’d rather keep secret…”
“Don’t go around saying the Thieves’ Guild told you.”
“And don’t start collecting taxes from us.”
“Business hasn’t been very good lately.”
Still smiling, he disappeared through the hidden passage.
I lowered my gaze.
Then I slowly rubbed the document in my hands.
The summer sky was beautifully clear.
There wasn’t a single cloud.
The bright blue sky made me feel refreshed.
It was a little hot, but I thought I could relax with a cold drink while sitting outside.
At least…
Until Bellietta arrived.
“What are you thinking about so deeply? Did something happen?”
Should I tell her that seeing her face first thing in the morning made me feel sick?
I never invited her.
Yet she kept showing up whenever she wanted.
She didn’t even bother telling me beforehand.
She acted as if this were her own house.
I answered her half-heartedly before glancing at her as she calmly sipped her cold tea.
My thoughts drifted back to the conversation between Bellietta and Aden two days ago.
An engagement…
I had never known.
No…
I had never even imagined it.
Bellietta had never once told me she had a fiancé.
And the engagement had never actually been carried out.
Until the day I died…
Bellietta had spent all her time stealing away every man I tried to be with.
Because of that, I had never once thought she already had a fiancé.
And yet…
“Bellietta had a fiancé.”
“And that man was the famous Aden Ripton.”
