Chapter 42
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 42
He felt like a fool for even hesitating.
“What, are you going to buy me a new set from wherever you bought that shabby bag?”
“That’s not it…” Abel muttered, squeezing his eyes shut.
“Forget it. You don’t have the first clue how much those clothes cost.”
“Will this be enough?”
At her question, the Gold Digger instinctively paused. With pale, bloodless fingertips, Seo-ah opened the clasp of her worn-out bag.
She forced open the flap, stiff from the cold, and pulled out a single sheet of paper bearing Barbara’s seal.
“The clothes he was wearing would have cost about this much.”
The amount Barbara had written down was staggering. Oscar’s clothes had always looked luxurious, but she never imagined they would be this expensive. As someone trying to avoid using the money Oscar provided, she had hesitated at the frankly bewildering sum, but Barbara had stamped the check without a second thought.
Still, looking at it again, the amount was so substantial it weighed heavily on her heart. Just then, Abel abruptly leaned in. The sudden closeness made her flinch, and she held the paper out to him. Abel took it as if he’d been waiting.
Tick, tock.
It was as if she could hear the second hand of a clock ticking in her ear.
After a moment’s pause, Abel whipped his head around to stare at Seo-ah.
“Barbara wrote you a check?”
“Yes.”
Abel’s gaze snapped back to the paper. His eyes scanned to the left, as if counting the zeroes. Seo-ah watched him cautiously before speaking.
“Is it… not enough?”
“And if it isn’t?”
Not enough? he thought. You’ll never be rich thinking like that.
“I’ll speak to Lady Barbara and get more.”
As if he couldn’t comprehend her words, Abel stared blankly into space, then at the check, then back at Seo-ah. His eyes narrowed. Then, as if struck by a thought, he began striding toward the main building.
Seo-ah hurried to follow, offering a small protest.
“I didn’t steal it.”
“Of course you didn’t.”
His agreement wasn't a show of faith in Seo-ah, but a statement on the impossibility of robbing Barbara Wald’s vault.
The manor staff watched as Abel Sting practically ran toward the main building, with the Outsider struggling to keep up.
Among the onlookers were the master of the manor and Barbara.
Oscar was leaning his shoulder against a window frame, looking out, while Barbara offered him a hot coffee, complete with a saucer.
“…And so, I was unable to stop them. It seems better to have them stay in one place rather than wander about. I will triple the number of Backup Team members and ensure they can avoid the crowds.”
When Oscar didn’t take his hands from his gown pockets, Barbara placed the coffee back on the table and bowed her head.
“It seems they’re looking for me. I’ll go down for a moment.”
As she exited through the door connecting the bedroom to the office, Simon was waiting. As the two people who served Oscar most closely, Barbara offered him a quiet warning as soon as she saw him.
“He’s in a foul mood.”
Simon shrugged.
“It seems he took a cold bath last night and then showered several more times.”
Oscar often washed in water so cold it would give a weaker man a heart attack. But in truth, he used the water less to cleanse his body and more to cool the emotions boiling within him. Showering that many times meant he was in turmoil.
Simon’s face crumpled.
“He has a full schedule until tonight.”
“Is he entertaining?”
“He’s the one being entertained.”
Barbara clicked her tongue.
“If you have anything to report regarding Count Jerome or the Marchioness, read the room and do it tomorrow.”
“Understood, ma’am.”
Barbara passed by Simon, who gave a slight bow.
The office led to the reception room, and beyond its doors was a resplendent hall. The noblewoman in the black dress crossed the hall with hurried steps and descended the magnificent staircase. As she rounded the landing and reached the main floor, her eyes met Abel’s as he walked toward the doors that had been left open for ventilation.
Seo-ah stopped between the wolf statues at the manor’s entrance while Abel ascended the main building’s steps alone. Behind him, she could see Lady Barbara standing with a ramrod-straight posture.
It seemed Abel was uncomfortable holding such a large sum of money himself. If that was the case, it was probably better for him to speak directly with Lady Barbara.
Seo-ah took a shallow breath and turned her gaze away from them. Her eyes fell absently on the life-sized wolf statues.
The wind that blew past the statues was cold.
Seo-ah turned toward the annex. The open garden came into view, and the sight of it allowed the complicated thoughts cluttering her mind to recede, if only for a moment.
The manor’s servants came and went around the dormant fountain. The wind shook the trees lining the estate, their leaves rustling with a roar.
Swoooosh, swoooooosh.
Today, it sounded just like the crashing of waves. That made her think of the sea. The sea, in turn, made her think of her grandfather, and the quilted clothes he used to make for her.
“You’ve grown taller this year. You’ll be needing new clothes.”
Though she had nowhere to wear them, her grandfather always made her a complete outfit, proper enough for an outing.
“You must dress warmly and stay healthy this winter, all right?”
It was a warm memory, summoned by the cold wind, one that had just begun to melt the ice of self-loathing and guilt that had frozen her heart.
“Ack!”
Suddenly, a strangled cry came from the direction of the main building. It was unmistakably the sound of someone choking, and it sounded like Abel’s voice.
She whipped around toward the entrance. But all she could do was tilt her head in confusion. Though she could only see his back, Abel looked perfectly fine.
A moment later, however, when Abel turned to face the outside of the manor, Seo-ah’s curious eyes narrowed.
Abel Sting, who had just cried out as if he were being strangled, who had shuddered at the very sight of her and spewed all manner of insults…
…was now smiling with a terrifying brilliance.
A chill ran down her spine. A thousand different thoughts flashed through her mind.
What’s wrong with him? Is he laughing at how shameless I am?
Abel strode toward her. Seo-ah stumbled backward until she was stopped by the edge of the steps leading to the garden. All the while, her mind was a tangled mess.
Is he laughing in disbelief? I suppose it must be hilarious. It must look like I’m trying to solve everything with money. No, that’s exactly what it is. And it’s not even my money…
“You said there was somewhere you wanted to go earlier, right?”
She stared blankly up at Abel Sting, who had stopped right in front of her. His eyes curved as he gave her an incredibly affectionate look. There was a limit to how fickle a person could be. He’d cursed her, gotten angry, and was now suddenly laughing—she couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
“To the department store?”
Swoosh… In the middle of the magnificent manor, where the wind sounded like crashing waves, the Gold Digger’s professional instincts flared to life, and he practically began to wag his tail. The Outsider’s eyes trembled as she watched him.
The department store.
Lady Barbara, who had initially said there was no need to compensate Abel for his clothes, had finally relented after several earnest requests.
“You should be able to find his clothes easily at the department store,” she had said.
And thankfully, Abel seemed quite pleased with the suggestion.
Where on earth was this place called a department store? She climbed into the carriage with a mix of anxiety and curiosity, but it turned out not to be far.
There was a cathedral not far from the manor. The cathedral, said to be over a thousand years old, was named Saint Roel Cathedral, and the department store was built directly across from it.
The square in front of the cathedral was bustling, with one line of people heading into the sanctuary and another into the department store. The crowd was far larger than any she had seen at the market. Seo-ah, who had assumed the market would surely be the most crowded place in the world, was stunned by the sheer number of people.
The cathedral, its exterior undergoing renovations, had a roof that was visible from afar, hinting at its height. But seeing it up close made her jaw drop. The pointed roof seemed to pierce the very heavens.
“It’s a feast day,” a sudden voice said.
She turned to find Abel smiling at her.
“There are fireworks later. We should watch them together.”
Seeing him so happy, she felt a pang of guilt, as if she had done something terrible to him over the past week.
When she managed a faint smile and a nod, Abel’s grin widened.
The carriage stopped before a set of incredibly ornate doors.
This place called a department store was a different world from any she had ever known. If someone had told her a king lived here, she would have believed them.
After passing through a revolving door, men in suits offered a light greeting.
“Welcome to Vies Department Store.”
But she forgot to even greet them back. Beyond the door, another world unfolded before her very eyes.
The dazzlingly opulent sight overwhelmed her senses.
Perhaps because the center of the building was a wide-open atrium, its sheer scale was palpable. She felt like a tiny ant.
The interior was a symphony of gold. The pillars, the railings, even the walls were covered in it, making her wonder if everything had been cast from molten gold. Red flower baskets hung from every railing, creating a spectacular harmony with the gilded surroundings.
Unaware of the stares she was drawing, Seo-ah was completely overwhelmed by this unfamiliar civilization. The inside of the department store was so astounding it shattered every notion she had ever had of what a building could be.