Moth to a Flame (1)
I genuinely turned the thought over and over in my mind. If Serin was so eager to see my face that she would stoop to such a shameless posture, shouldn't I just take off the mask willingly?
Yet I quickly steadied my wavering resolve. Thank goodness I had kept the mask on; had my bare face been exposed, a blush as red as an apple would have served as undeniable proof that I harbored indecent thoughts. The last thing I wanted was to disappoint Serin, with whom I had finally managed to become friends.
Just what kind of hellhole was the Imperial Palace to leave Serin neglected until she turned out like this?
Ugh... I am truly sorry.
Ever since that night, Serin had maintained a noticeably more modest demeanor. Every passing second felt like a desperate struggle on her part to make up for the harsh outburst I had committed, causing a heavy seed of guilt to take root inside me. At this rate, even if I told her I felt much more at ease with her usual lively self, it would hardly sound convincing.
And so, a pair hiding their true thoughts from one another stepped into the next town just as dusk began to fall.
Perhaps owing to its proximity to the Capital, the town was visibly far more prosperous than the ones we had passed through before. From streetlamps ready to be lit, to the lively chatter drifting from the marketplace, to specialty shops selling indulgences like pastries and desserts—it was a world apart from our previous stops.
"I've been to this town before," Serin murmured casually as she quietly took in the surroundings.
"You seem quite familiar with it."
"Yes, reasonably so. Do you see that massive building on the slope across the road? That's Baron Raden's estate. She's one of the few women in the empire who inherited a title of nobility."
"I've heard rumors that she is extraordinarily wealthy."
"She is. Her title may only be that of a baron, but even prominent count houses wouldn't dare act haughty around her."
Baron Raden was a familiar name to my ears. Roderick had clicked his tongue a few years back, grumbling that she had terminated her contract with our mercenary band. Because handling administrative affairs regarding contracts was outside my purview, I didn't know what the baron looked like.
"Besides, she's still unmarried, so there are plenty of men constantly looking for an opportunity to court her."
"Mmh."
"What's with that reaction? Are you interested?" Serin asked, a faint note of wariness creeping into her voice. Could it be that she held some admiration for the baron?
"Not at all. My thoughts merely drifted for a moment."
No matter how immense one's fortune was, maintaining a private army in territory so close to the Capital was out of the question. For that reason, Baron Raden had contracted mercenary bands to handle her security and local peacekeeping.
In other words, the baron was likely still purchasing brute force with her wealth.
It was hardly my place to judge, being the leader of the very outfit that had abducted Serin in the first place, but an overwhelming number of hired thugs treated basic courtesy like trash.
To prepare for any contingency, it seemed wisest to proceed with caution within Raden's territory.
"Then I'll take your word for it, Rian. The baron may have some years on her, but her beauty hasn't faded one bit."
"We have no business with her, so why worry?"
"Mmm! Well, the truth is, depending on your inclination, we might have business with her, or we might not..."
"My inclination, you say?"
"Yes. It might sound strange coming from an ordinary girl like me, but surprisingly enough, I actually happen to know the baron."
It didn't sound strange in the slightest, nor was it even remotely surprising. She had spent the entire journey failing utterly to conceal her noble upbringing; claiming to be ordinary was an impressive display of shamelessness.
"So, if you're fine with it, Rian, I think we could stay the night at the baron's estate!"
"If that is your wish, I will follow."
"Great! You won't regret it."
Well, considering how often we had camped out under the open sky lately, it made sense that she longed for a proper bed. Seeing her eyes sparkle like a milky way across the night sky was entirely understandable.
"Shall we go, then?"
Baron Raden's estate was the kind of place whose true scale only revealed itself up close. Seen from a distance, it had appeared to be an ordinary mansion, but standing before it in person, its grandeur far exceeded my expectations.
Before the grand gate that proclaimed the prestige of the baronial house, a burly, muscular giant stood guard in formal attire. The tailored uniform, worn awkwardly as if merely fulfilling a mandatory pretense, was characteristic of a typical underworld enforcer.
"Excuse me. We would like an audience with Baron Raden."
"The baron is not someone you can meet on a whim."
Contempt stirred beneath the man's flat refusal. It was a domineering attitude that would have sent any timid woman running with her tail between her legs.
"I am an acquaintance of the baron. She will know who I am the moment she sees me."
"I said no."
"Who are you to turn away the baron's guests?"
"My job is to turn people away, that's who."
"Ha...!"
As the lowly gatekeeper glared back with arrogant eyes, Serin's temper began to fray. Yet watching the man's brimming confidence, I felt a discordant sensation.
An employee turning away someone who might be a guest of the master?
Even if he were a regular servant of the estate, it would be problematic, and if he were an operative hired from an outside syndicate, it was worse still. A single member's reckless mistake could bring ruin upon an entire organization.
That was precisely why Roderick had placed such extreme emphasis on the discipline of our members. After all, the vast majority of our people were hardly individuals who could stand in the light of day.
"Serin. There is something I wish to ask."
"Hold on, Rian. This man keeps spouting nonse—"
"Is the baron someone important to you?"
"Pardon?"
Serin's eyes widened in surprise at the abrupt question. She rolled my words over in her mind, savoring them slowly, before giving a quiet nod.
"...Yes. She is someone important to me."
"Understood."
It seemed high time this hired outfit was cleaned out. Having reached that conclusion the moment Serin gave her confirmation, I released the dark mist beneath my feet—a power I had kept sealed away for quite some time.
Shhh.
For convenience, I had named this black mist Poh. Slithering silently across the ground like a serpent stalking its prey, Poh snapped its jaws around the man's ankle in an instant.
Crack!
The sound of shattering bone echoed through the air. The giant collapsed pathetically, throwing his head back in an agonized shriek.
"Aaargh...! Ugh, aaaaagh! My ankle!"
The tables turned in the blink of an eye. The man who had held his chin high, looking down his nose at us, was now planted flat on the freezing cobblestones, gazing up at us in terror. Taken aback by the sudden development, Serin asked in bewilderment,
"What on earth just happened...?"
"Who can say? When luck is truly wretched, a person can twist their ankle simply by standing, can they not?"
"Well, that might be true, but... isn't this a bit much...?"
Before she could examine the situation too closely, I quickly made a suggestion.
"We should inform the baron at once and recommend that he receive medical treatment."
"Ah, yes, of course. Though I don't really know what happened, serves him right!"
She must have been genuinely vexed by the gatekeeper's behavior, for a subtle trace of delight lingered at the corners of Serin's lips.
She is remarkably easy to read at times like this.
Was it because she was wearing a headscarf and playing the part of a common village girl? Her thoughts seemed altogether ordinary.
"Haa, how refreshing."
A gentle breeze blew past.
She strode lightly across the lawn bathed in evening twilight. Unlike our usual pace, she took the lead on her own this time. Perhaps because of that, my eyes naturally drifted toward her back—a view I had never been able to look at directly.
Her raven-black hair fell past the small of her back in soft, rippling waves. Whenever the breeze parted that darkness like a curtain, the pale white curve of her nape peeked out shyly. Moreover, the long lines of her legs, which had flustered me earlier with that shameless posture, traced an exquisite curve up to her waist.
Whenever she turned around to check if I was following properly or if I had lost my way, her lovely eyes would capture my reflection. If I had to describe them, they were like aquamarines. Just as my mother had once told me, her eyes were a vivid, breathtaking blue.
"Rian! You haven't spaced out, have you? It's hard to tell with that mask on."
"I am following right behind you."
"I have my doubts, but no way to verify them. Wouldn't it be so much simpler to just take it off and clear up the misunderstanding?"
"Not a chance in the world."
"Of course. What did I even expect?"
She chuckled softly.
It was not the refined smile of a noble lady raised in a glass greenhouse to flaunt her radiant colors. Instead, an untamed vitality reminiscent of a wildflower blooming in a verdant field flickered across her playfully crooked lips.
I feel guilty toward Serin, but I may have just told a lie.
Because my attention had been so thoroughly absorbed by her, the splendid scenery of the baron's estate was nothing more than a blur in my memory. My sense of time had warped so thoroughly that I didn't even realize how long we had walked until we arrived at the main building.
While I quietly chided myself, Serin boldly pushed open the grand double doors of the manor.
"My goodness."
An exclamation greeted us from in front of a sculpture that looked ruinously expensive at a single glance.
"I came down because of the commotion outside, but to think that here of all places, the Prin—"
"Hold on, Baron-nim!"
"...Nim?"
"Yes, nim!"
Evidently, the baron had seen through Serin's identity in an instant. The bewilderment in her voice the moment Serin used honorifics with her made that abundantly clear.
Seeing Serin stubbornly commit to the charade, the baron deduced that some complicated circumstance was at play and gestured for us to step inside.
"For now... please come in. That is to say..." The baron pondered the proper form of address for a long moment before letting out an almost resigned sigh. "Young lady, and her suspicious gentleman companion."
An Imperial Princess accompanied by a masked oddity—from the baron's perspective, it had to be utterly baffling. Had the imperial family launched a public search for Serin, the woman would likely have fainted on the spot.
"I apologize for dropping in without any prior notice, Baron."
"How could you say you are sorry to the likes of—ah, a slip of the tongue. It is quite all right, young lady."
The baron nearly tumbled over herself offering obsequious deference before smoothly correcting her speech. Honestly, I couldn't shake the impression that Serin was acting a bit like a thug shaking someone down.
"Thank you. We didn't have anywhere suitable to stay tonight, so I ended up imposing on you out of the blue."
"You are always welcome here, so please do not worry. I shall have a bedchamber prepared and hot water drawn for bathing at once."
"Phew, what a relief that you're here, Baron."
"You flatter me."
Past the baron's shrugging shoulder, a man dressed in the exact same uniform as the brute at the front gate walked into view. Serin instinctively furrowed her brow, though the baron, looking in a different direction, failed to notice.
And so, trailing behind the two of them, I alone had the vantage point to observe the man who was casting sidelong glances at the baron.
Just as I thought.
It was remarkably easy to find the missing puzzle piece that explained the gatekeeper's thuggish behavior.
As the man walked past with a feigned, polite bow, his warped gaze was crawling with a greed that gnawed away at every shred of respect owed to his master.