IBMH 07

Chapter 07

Captured, but There is No Malice

Ivelyn, with her hood pulled up, lowered her voice on purpose and asked.

“Hello. Could you recommend a book?”

“Of course. What kind of book are you looking for?”

“I want a book that a man would like.”

The bookstore owner’s expression became strange.

“Did you come after hearing the rumor?”

“Pardon? Yes.”

She didn’t know what rumor it was, so she just answered vaguely. Then the bookstore owner clapped his hands excitedly.

“So you’re the first customer who came through a recommendation! In that case, I can’t just let this go. I’ll pick the best book for you!”

He then pushed the bookshelf behind the counter with his whole body. As the shelf full of books slid aside, hidden books were revealed.

It was a space-efficient design. Anyone who loved books would want a shelf like that.

Ivelyn became interested in the bookshelf.

“Fufu, we just got a new book in recently.”

『Lady Iello’s Elegant Days』

The book the owner handed her had a plain cover and title.

“Do men really like this kind of thing?”

From the title alone, it seemed more like something noble young ladies would enjoy. When she asked in confusion, the bookstore owner raised the corners of his mouth.

“That’s right. They really love it. We can’t keep it in stock! I swear on my name, I’ve never seen such delicate and intense writing in my life!”

He even swore on the book itself.

Well, times had changed. These days, even men who did embroidery or flower arranging were increasing.

‘I was biased.’

Feeling a bit ashamed, Ivelyn bought several books recommended by the owner and left for her next destination.

Her goal was the blacksmith. She planned to buy the key item for her plan there.

In the back room of the basement, the hooks and chains on the wall were still fine, but the handcuffs were not.

She didn’t know what had happened, but they were badly damaged, so she needed new ones. The duke could probably be imprisoned without handcuffs, but—

‘If something goes wrong, I might die.’

Dying while trying to save her benefactor was not an option.

So Ivelyn decided to steel her resolve. She already had a blacksmith in mind. It was also a place recommended by her grandfather.

Clang, clang, clang!

She knocked, but the loud metal pounding made it impossible to hear.

In the end, she hesitated and carefully went inside. A sturdy-looking old man was sitting in front of the furnace.

The old man, inspecting heated metal with tongs, turned around.

“Customer?”

He had a strange charisma, similar to her late grandfather. Ivelyn greeted him politely, remembering the past.

“Hello. May I buy something here?”

“I don’t sell to just anyone.”

She already knew this from her grandfather’s warning.

[That old man is picky. He doesn’t sell to just anyone, but there is a way to buy from him.]

And that method was introducing oneself.

“Let me introduce myself again. I am Ivelyn El Prilly, granddaughter of Baron Prilly.”

As she stepped forward gracefully and lifted her skirt, the old man scratched his chin with a large hand.

“Prilly. Prilly… I think I’ve heard that name before.”

Then suddenly, he jumped up like a lizard made of blades.

“Ahh! No way! No way! You’re that guy’s granddaughter?!”

Startled by the overreaction, she blinked.

The old man’s face twisted.

“It’s a lie! How could someone like him even get married?! Damn it, I thought everything was a lie to fool me!”

For some reason, her grandfather’s reputation was terrible.

The old man kept ranting for a while, then sighed deeply.

“Even if you’re his granddaughter, I won’t sell anything for free. You must pay a price. And I don’t take money.”

“Then what do you take?”

“Got anything strange you received from him?”

Something strange from her grandfather…

Ivelyn took out a coin she had been carrying just in case.

She didn’t expect much, but the old man laughed when he saw it.

“That. That one. That’s enough.”

What exactly was this coin?

The old man didn’t seem interested in explaining.

He took the coin and looked at it with an unreadable gaze, as if recalling long-lost memories.

Ivelyn quietly waited.

“Alright.”

After collecting his emotions, the old man put the coin away.

“What do you need?”

“Handcuffs.”

“Handcuffs?”

“Yes.”

“You really are that old man’s granddaughter. The things you need are all similar.”

“Fine. I’ll show you. Follow me.”

Inside, the walls were lined with weapons and various tools. Even to Ivelyn, who knew nothing, everything looked extraordinary.

“Handcuffs are over here. Can you tell me the gender and strength of the person you’ll use them on?”

“A man. And he’s extremely strong.”

“Then there’s only this.”

The old man picked up a pair of handcuffs.

They were made of dark metal, with something unusual on the inside.

Soft, deep pink fur was attached to the lining.

“It’s lined with the fur of a beast that lives in harsh lands. It absorbs impact, and when combined with metal, it becomes handcuffs no one can escape.”

He grinned and handed them over.

They looked like solid metal, but were surprisingly light. The metal itself seemed special.

“I don’t know who you’re planning to capture, but whatever you’re imagining—it’ll be worse than that.”

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. I just took what I should take and gave what I should give.”

The old man waved his hand.

“If you don’t need anything else, leave. I’m busy.”

She was practically kicked out of the forge.

When she stepped outside, it was already night.

Most of the preparations seemed complete.

All that was left was the duke—kidnapping her benefactor.

Could she, an ordinary girl from the countryside, really kidnap one of the strongest men in the empire?

It was like a small puppy challenging a giant monster.

Ivelyn closed her eyes.

‘Even so.’

She couldn’t give up.

If she failed to save the duke, her grandfather would never rest peacefully.

The voice she kept hearing in her dreams.

She couldn’t stop until that voice disappeared.

She opened her eyes and clenched her fist.

“Let’s do our best!”

There was still more to do.

In the capital, one of the most famous newspapers, Kass.

The newspaper had a popular section called the “advice corner.”

People sent in their problems, which were selected and published. Readers would then send answers, and the best ones were revealed in the next issue.

Useful answers were sometimes rewarded, making it quite popular among commoners.

At first, the questions were simple.

[What dishes can you make with potatoes?]

But over time, they changed.

[My fiancé is cheating. What should I do?]

The questions became spicier, and the newspaper kept raising the stakes.

Then one particular question arrived.

[How can an ordinary woman defeat a swordsmaster?]

A journalist reading the pile of submissions tilted his head.

“That’s a strange question.”

His colleague nodded.

“Yeah. There are only about three swordsmasters on the continent, right? One of them is in the Empire. That one.”

“Right! He’s staying in the capital. That’s why it’s interesting. Should we even publish this?”

Would the enraged Duke Gracius storm the newspaper office?

The journalists seriously debated it.

But both the sender and the possible answers were too interesting.

“He’s been pretty quiet lately, hasn’t he? And he’s never attacked a newspaper before.”

He had never destroyed a newspaper for insults—except for the really low-class tabloids. Those were wiped out for publishing nonsense.