Chapter 8 (Part 5)

Born as the second son of a baron’s family, Georges Dupont had always been popular. He frequently received love letters, and sometimes young ladies confessed to him directly.  

“If not, then that’s good…”  

Just as Thomas raised the bottle to his lips, Georges exclaimed,  

“Wait! That’s the bottle I drank from!”  

Gulp, gulp.  

Ignoring Georges’ protest, Thomas emptied the bottle entirely. Wiping the droplets from his mouth, Thomas used the towel he had lent Georges to dry his hair.  

With the sun behind him, Thomas shook off his sweat, his large muscles rippling.  

‘Is he showing off his muscles in front of me?’  

Looking down at his own slender arms, Georges pursed his lips. No matter how much he worked out, his body never became bulky.  

While his lean build had its advantages, he sometimes envied Thomas’s solid physique.  

Hanging the towel around his neck, Thomas spoke.  

“Let’s stop this and get ready for the inspection.”  

“Do you think I don’t know that?”  

Springing to his feet, Georges dashed off at full speed, determined to finish preparing before Thomas. His intention was clear.  

“Some things never change, even from childhood.” 

Thomas said with a leisurely smile, pulling the towel taut between his hands.  

‘Thomas, what should I do? I knew I was popular, but I didn’t expect even His Grace to fall for me.’  

‘His Grace?’  

‘Your obliviousness is really your biggest problem.’  

‘…Right.’  

‘Well, it’s good that you understand. But the thing is, I can’t accept His Grace’s feelings. So what should I do?’  

Drunkenly pouring out his concerns, Georges’ face had been genuinely serious.  

Of course, Duke Richard had never given Georges any reason to believe such a thing.  

‘While the giver of the cake isn’t even thinking about it, here you are drinking juice all by yourself.’  

This little farce of Georges’ was enough material for a lifetime of teasing.  

“Dear Commander of the First Knight Order, shall we go together?”  

With an uncharacteristic joke, Thomas followed Georges, a constant smile on his face.  

***

When Therese entered the guild office, she was greeted by a mountain of paperwork piled on her desk.  

Victor had taken care of the urgent matters, but there were still tasks that required her approval.  

Among those rescued from Count Pablo’s hideout were some who turned out to be family members of clients who had made requests to the guild. Thanks to this, they had finally resolved an issue that had been troubling them for months.  

But this was just the tip of the iceberg.  

‘There’s still so much to solve.’  

Raising her hand to press firmly against her forehead, Therese let out a long sigh.  

“Victor, where is Roshan right now?”  

“He said he was handling business at the bazaar.”  

“I see.”  

The newspapers she routinely checked before starting her work still didn’t contain any noteworthy articles.  

‘The mercy of Emperor Felipe Morciani blankets the skies of Caspian.’  

“His Majesty personally distributed bread and medicine to struggling citizens.”  

Reading the article aloud, Therese shook her head.  

“How can this be?”  

With monsters wreaking havoc, what good were bread and medicine?  

The appearance of monsters was a matter of national security.  

Shouldn’t they be investigating whether there was a problem with the magic stones weakening their defenses, or if there were collaborators within the walls conspiring with the monsters?  

“Victor, what about the information I asked for?”  

“Here it is, Guild Leader.” 

Feeling skeptical about the lack of reporting on such issues, Therese had started looking elsewhere. Victor brought her a student-published newspaper.  

Though the paper was rough and the printing crude, it contained far more useful articles than the imperial newspaper, which was filled with nothing but praise for the Emperor.  

As she read about the death of a dock worker and the skyrocketing market prices, Therese’s eyes stopped at an article about disappearances and another reporting sightings of suspicious individuals.  

“Victor, we need to find the people who published this newspaper immediately.”  

“We’re already searching for them as you ordered.”  

Therese felt this was an issue that couldn’t wait.  

“We should go out and look for them ourselves. Tell Roshan to head there directly as well.”  

“Understood.”  

Therese’s carriage stopped near Oxford Street after her hurried preparations.  

“Are you sure it’s around here?”  

Dressed in men’s clothing, she asked Victor, who nodded seriously.  

“It’s been difficult to gather more information.”  

It was understandable since this newspaper was being published without imperial approval.  

At that moment, a group of imperial knights, fully armed, marched by. Therese wondered if they were searching for the same people she was.  

“Victor, quickly find out if there’s a place nearby where they could be printing newspapers.”  

“Yes, understood.”  

Studying the map carefully, Victor directed the coachman. The carriage, moving toward the outskirts of Oxford Street, stopped in front of an abandoned shop.  

“This seems like the most likely location.”  

“Dismiss the carriage and keep watch at the entrance.”  

“Understood. Be careful.”  

The interior of the shop, which seemed to have once been a bookstore, was littered with faded books. As she ventured further inside, the smell of ink grew stronger.  

‘This must be the place.’  

Passing through a hallway connecting the shop to its interior, she found an entrance covered by a black cloth. Carefully pulling it aside, she saw someone in the dimly lit room.  

“Who’s there?”  

Sensing her presence, the person shouted. Therese raised both hands to show she was unarmed.  

“I mean no harm.”

The interior was so dark that it was impossible to make out the other person’s face. Judging by the rough outline, the figure seemed taller and slimmer than Therese. He was applying ink to a wooden printing plate and pressing something onto paper.  

When the man noticed the stranger, he stopped what he was doing and drew his sword. However, Therese didn’t stop approaching him.  

“I’m coming closer, so please don’t attack.”  

Her voice became urgent, as there was no time to waste.  

“I’m here to help you. The Imperial Knights are patrolling Oxford Street right now, so you need to leave quickly.”  

“What proof do I have that you’re not with the Imperial Knights? And why would you help me?”  

His suspicion was understandable.  

After all, how could he not find it suspicious that a complete stranger wanted to help him?  

But Therese was sincere. She wanted to assist someone doing what she herself couldn’t, and she needed to save this man to uncover the truth behind the current situation.  

As she stepped closer, the light of a candle near him illuminated Therese’s face.  

“I can’t join the Imperial Knights.”  

She carefully removed her hat, letting her wavy silver hair cascade down. The man’s eyes widened in surprise as he saw her face.  

*Whistle!*  

Victor, who was keeping watch outside, whistled sharply, signaling danger. Therese became even more desperate.  

“They’re close. Are you planning to stay here?”  

“W-wait a moment.”  

The man set fire to the wooden printing plate he had been working on, tucked the completed newspapers under his arm, and led the way.  

“This way.”  

Feeling along the moldy wallpaper, he pressed something, revealing a hidden door.  

When Therese stepped outside and looked back, the door they had come through had already disappeared without a trace. It was as if by magic.  

At that moment, the sound of heavy footsteps and spears striking the ground echoed nearby.  

“Capture the traitors who defame the Empire!”  

“Extinguish all lights immediately!”  

They had escaped by the narrowest of margins.  

“This way.”  

The man led the way through a narrow alley, and Therese followed him in a rush. They were about to emerge onto a main street.  

“If we blend into the crowd on Oxford Street, we’ll be fine.”  

Therese planned to hide among the students and then escape the area in the carriage Victor had prepared.  

But two soldiers inspecting the alley spotted them.  

“You two there, stop for a moment.”  

The two of them, their clothes disheveled from running, looked suspicious.  

“I suppose we’ll have to run.”  

Pretending not to hear the soldiers, they naturally turned and began running in the opposite direction. The soldiers immediately gave chase.  

“Stop right there!”  

After running for some time, they found themselves cornered in a dead-end alley.  

“You little rats! Come out quietly and surrender!”  

Panting heavily, Therese assessed the two soldiers. If she could take them down, they might still escape.  

“Do you know how to handle a sword?”  

Drawing a dagger hidden in her coat, Therese asked the man. He didn’t respond.  

It would be difficult for her to take on two soldiers alone, but she had no other choice.  

“Come here, you scum!”  

“Step back.”  

As one soldier lunged with his sword, the man stepped in front of Therese.  

Despite his frail appearance, he displayed remarkable swordsmanship, and the clash of blades rang out.  

However, his lack of strength caused him to falter quickly. Taking advantage of the confusion, Therese moved to the side and stabbed one of the soldiers in the back.  

“Argh!”  

Enraged, the other soldier swung his sword at Therese, but arrows suddenly rained down from somewhere.  

*Thwack, thwack!*  

The arrows struck only the soldiers with precision, and they collapsed to the ground.