chapter 06
“Ah…”
Coming back to my senses, I quickly withdrew my hand and scrambled to change the subject to something a child would enjoy.
“You mentioned some kind of Alliance earlier, right? What’s that?”
“The Alliance is a club made by people who like Big Brother Seniel.”
“…Why does something like that even exist?”
“Because he’s handsome!”
If someone was handsome enough, did they end up with a fan club spanning the entire Empire? Even little kids joined?
The little girl looked at me as though I was the strange one for not understanding, then asked,
“Who are you, Miss? Are you Big Brother Seniel’s girlfriend?”
“We just know each other.”
“So you’re not his girlfriend?”
I nodded, then pointed at the heavy basket of eggs she was carrying with both hands.
“How about selling those to me from now on? If you do, you’ll be able to come in through the front gate. And if you’re lucky, you might even get to see Seniel.”
Her eyes widened.
“Really?! That’s awesome! I’ll raise my chickens extra carefully and bring you only the biggest, strongest eggs! My name’s Eribel, pretty lady!”
Apparently delighted by my offer, Eribel bounced up and down in place before proudly introducing herself.
Then she declared she had to check on her chickens immediately and scampered off.
I watched her disappear before sharpening my senses.
Three people behind me.
One is Orbis… but who are the other two? Seniel isn’t with them.
They had arrived midway through my conversation with Eribel and had silently watched the entire exchange without making a sound.
Pretending not to notice them, I picked up the map I had set down.
“Big Sis!”
Orbis called out from behind me.
“That was amazing! I’ve never seen Eribel look that excited before.”
Matching his voice perfectly, I feigned surprise and turned around.
“When did you get here? And… who’s this?”
One of the two strangers had a fairly ordinary presence.
The other…
The aura he gave off was anything but ordinary.
It was as sharp as a freshly honed blade.
Curious, I looked at him carefully.
He was a man I’d never seen before.
He possessed strikingly handsome features and blood-red eyes that stared directly at me, studying me with unmistakable scrutiny.
“I should be the one asking questions.”
His gaze never left me.
“Orbis. Who is she? Did you bring a woman into my house?”
“No, sir! She’s Seniel’s older sister. She needed somewhere to stay for a few days, so Seniel brought her here.”
So he’s the owner of this place.
As I studied the man, an odd sense of familiarity washed over me.
The moment he spoke again, certainty struck.
It’s him.
The man I ran into during my last mission.
Why is he here…?
Surely he doesn’t recognize me…?
Reason told me there was no way he would connect my current appearance to Prince.
Even so, my heart pounded violently against my ribs.
Whoever this man was, that alone was troublesome.
But the fact that he knew Seniel frightened me even more.
What if Seniel learned everything?
“I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere before.”
The man stepped closer, as though he sensed something familiar as well.
Looking straight into my eyes, he asked in a quiet but oppressive voice,
“Have we met?”
“No.”
I kept my expression calm and answered without hesitation.
“It’s our first meeting.”
Fortunately, he seemed to lose interest.
Without another question, he turned and headed toward the mansion.
“Big Sis, let’s talk later.”
Judging from the way Orbis hurried after him, the man’s status was clearly higher than Orbis’s.
Left behind, I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Yet the uneasiness refused to leave.
“Who on earth is he? What’s his relationship with Seniel?”
“…More importantly, it really was the guy from back then, wasn’t it?”
My thoughts became a tangled mess.
Why would the man who had come to steal the Master Thief’s map now be with Seniel?
I briefly considered hiring someone to investigate him.
Then I remembered Pendelic had gone out.
“I’ll just listen in on their conversation.”
For now, I’d bring them some tea and eavesdrop.
If I listened carefully, I should be able to figure out exactly what kind of relationship existed between that man and Seniel.
***
Once they had put some distance between themselves and Rosia, Roy, Vidler’s secretary, glanced back at her before asking,
“Your Highness… what’s gotten into you? I’ve never seen you show interest in a woman before—let alone speak to one first.”
“It’s not interest.”
Vidler answered flatly.
“She simply looked familiar.”
He narrowed his crimson eyes.
“Those bold, defiant blue eyes.”
“…Pardon?”
Roy blinked.
“She’s certainly beautiful, but I didn’t get that impression at all. If anything, she seemed gentle and elegant.”
“Gentle?”
Vidler snorted.
“Then you’re blind.”
With obvious irritation, he undid the top button of his tightly fastened shirt.
“Should I have someone investigate her?”
“No.”
He dismissed the suggestion immediately.
“She probably just resembles Seniel.”
Roy stole another glance at Rosia.
No matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t sense anything remotely similar to what Vidler had described.
“More importantly, Orbis.”
Vidler’s gaze shifted.
“Why did you bring Seniel’s sister here? This isn’t a playground.”
This place was the hidden headquarters of the knight order directly under Vidler’s command.
The study alone was filled with confidential documents.
Its location could never be exposed.
Shrinking under Vidler’s reproachful stare, Orbis hurriedly defended himself.
“I… I only followed Seniel’s decision.”
“I’ve watched her for several days now. She’s really innocent—almost naïve about how the world works! She’ll only be staying a few days, so I don’t think it’ll become a problem.”
Then he added earnestly,
“Please just overlook it this once. I’ve never seen Seniel this happy before.”
“…Hmph.”
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Vidler strode forward and pushed open the door to Seniel’s room.
Seniel was reviewing documents.
Sunlight streamed through the window, glimmering across his silver hair as he brushed it back and greeted Vidler with an easy smile.
“You’re back.”
“You knew I was here and didn’t even bother coming out?”
Frowning deeply, Vidler looked down at Seniel, who sat casually on the windowsill.
Without warning, he reached out, grabbed Seniel’s chin, and turned his face from side to side.
“You look healthier already.”
“I’m on vacation.”
“I never approved any vacation.”
Seniel merely smiled brighter.
“There’s nothing urgent going on. Give me a break.”
“It’s urgent now.”
The smile vanished instantly.
“What happened?”
Seeing Seniel become serious in an instant, Vidler finally released his chin.
“Raven’s Queen is dead.”
“There’ll be changes in the guild rankings.”
“It could even escalate into a power struggle.”
“What?”
Seniel’s eyes widened.
“Out of nowhere? Was she murdered?”
“We don’t know yet.”
“Then who’s becoming the next guild master?”
“Prince.”
Vidler answered without hesitation.
“Assuming nothing unexpected happens.”
“And that’s not all.”
“Seundel has started making suspicious moves.”
“It looks like they’re after the map.”
“…Why…”
Seniel buried his face in his hands.
“…Why does everyone decide to cause trouble the moment I try taking my first vacation?”
Vidler merely shrugged.
“In any case, your vacation is canceled.”
He pulled the leave request from his pocket.
Then, right in front of Seniel’s eyes—
Riiip.
He tore it cleanly in half.
Seniel didn’t flinch.
Instead, he calmly reached toward the bedside table.
“I knew you’d do that.”
He produced another stack of leave requests.
“I prepared extras.”
“I have the right to rest too!”
“Seniel!”
Finally losing his patience, Vidler grabbed Seniel by the collar.
To an outsider it might have looked violent.
But after surviving countless battlefields together, this hardly even qualified as a quarrel between them.
“My sister is here.”
Seniel met his gaze without yielding.
“This is one thing I can’t compromise on.”
“I saw her.”
Vidler’s voice turned cold.
“Don’t you find it suspicious?”
“Why would she suddenly appear after all this time?”
For a brief moment, Seniel swallowed hard.
The movement of his throat was obvious.
“You’ve been separated for ten years.”
“Don’t trust her completely.”
“She’ll use you while hiding behind the title of family.”
“Don’t slander my sister.”
The warmth disappeared from Seniel’s eyes.
They became ice-cold.
Seeing that look directed at him, Vidler let out a mocking laugh.
“Slander?”
“Then where was she all these years?”
“Why did she leave you in someone else’s home?”
The truth was, there was a hidden story behind Seniel’s adoption.
Afterward, Seniel had been forced to continue fighting wars in place of the true heir of the Edel family.
Time after time, he had brushed against death.
Each time, he and Vidler had survived together by the narrowest of margins.
Rosia knew nothing of that history.
Gripping Seniel’s collar even tighter, Vidler spoke quietly.
“Don’t forget.”
“You belong to me.”
“You swore you’d obey me.”
Vidler had little attachment to possessions.
But when it came to the people he considered his own, his possessiveness bordered on obsession.
There were fewer than five people he ever referred to as mine.
Among them, the one he trusted most was Seniel.
To him, calling Seniel mine was nothing unusual.
But the instant the words left his mouth—
Crash! Clatter!
A loud noise erupted behind them.
Both Seniel and Vidler turned simultaneously.
“What was that?”
Through the door Vidler had neglected to close completely, Rosia’s face came into view.
The source of the noise was obvious.
A teaspoon had slipped from the tea tray she was carrying.
Behind Rosia’s frozen expression stood Orbis.
He had both hands over his face—
Though his fingers were spread just enough to peek through them.
“I… brought tea…”
Rosia’s wide eyes darted back and forth between the Crown Prince and Seniel.
Seniel was sitting on the windowsill.
Vidler stood far too close, his face only inches away.
Seniel’s shirt had come partially undone.
Vidler still had a firm grip on his collar, leaning over him.
Every single detail…
…was perfect for creating one spectacular misunderstanding.
