You Were Planning to Screw Us Over from the Start!
The moment I gave her the same look one might give a cat staring at a chicken—pure, unfiltered contempt—it must have been obvious. Audrey immediately flipped the script and started yelling at me in righteous indignation.
Well… she wasn’t entirely wrong. Even if I hadn’t done anything technically wrong, I had still stabbed them in the back. I’d taken a young con artist who was teetering right on the edge of crossing the line and “reformed” her. The method just happened to involve lies and betrayal. A little resentment was probably justified.
I clicked my tongue, thinking to myself.
‘So that’s how Lady Hennessy found out so quickly that I’d gotten a sponsor…’
I frowned slightly at Audrey’s sudden appearance, then realized what had happened. Her sister, who had been working in Romania before moving to Britannia, must have passed the information on to the young noblewoman. Considering how long we had stayed in Romania, if they had moved a week earlier, the timing would line up perfectly.
‘Well, they were going to flee the country anyway. Guess they decided to latch onto Lady Hennessy, who actually appreciates their value.’
Besides, I was in Sargadis too. If it was Catherine, she would have quickly found out that the adventurer Nord lived here. After all, my name had apparently spread overseas without me even realizing it.
“Did you two come to Sargadis through Lady Hennessy? You closed up shop in Romania and decided to set up a whole new base here?”
“………W-what are you talking about? Britannia—grammar very difficult—?”
Audrey tried to play dumb, acting like her earlier outburst had been a lie, but to me, that clumsy denial was as good as a confession. It was the classic noir trope: a thief or con artist who pulls off one big score, then takes the money and runs to another country. My gaze grew lukewarm, and Audrey shook her head wildly.
“Oh, is that so?”
Well, if they had a decent nest egg saved up, life would certainly be easier. And unlike those lottery winners who blow everything and end up back in crime, having a stable job greatly reduced the chance of relapse. It was admirable, really. Since I could see genuine signs of reform, I decided to let it slide this time. I was a relatively merciful master’s degree holder—except when it came to professors and murderers.
Anyone who steals the fruits of another person’s labor is a professor in my book. These girls had stolen from nouveau riche scumbags who were basically professors themselves and distributed the money to graduate students—er, the poor of Romania. That gave them some room for leniency. They existed somewhere in the gray area between phantom thieves and righteous outlaws.
“Anyway, if you’re living honestly, it’s none of my business. Where’s your sister?”
“She came with me, obviously. She was complaining about how the information guilds in Britannia are practically nonexistent. Pffft.”
Information guild? Just hearing the name sounded cool enough to make a macho man’s heart race. It was the kind of word that made you want to say it out loud.
‘Since I’ve never heard of it, it probably isn’t a universal organization.’
Foreign affairs were outside my area of expertise, so it wasn’t strange that I was hearing about it for the first time. Back on Earth, plenty of foreigners from other East Asian countries had no idea about Korea’s unique delivery culture. My own daily life revolved around Britannia, so if I wasn’t interested, there was no way I’d know.
Still, for sisters, they seemed unusually close. Even so, as the older sister, she couldn’t help but laugh when talking about how hard her little sister was working. Siblings were the same no matter if it was this world or Earth.
“Anyway, you came here today to commission some custom work, right? You didn’t even know I was here, did you?”
Audrey spoke casually as she plopped down in a nearby seat. Seeing how nervous she had been during our greeting, it seemed she was genuinely trying to work diligently. Still, I felt a twinge of suspicion. Did this girl actually have any talent for processing leather equipment?
“I want to make equipment out of this leather. Think you can handle it?”
I handed her one of the sheets of leather I had taken out earlier. It was the fresh troll hide I had kept to test a blacksmith’s skill. Audrey took it and immediately began inspecting the material. She at least had some professional demeanor.
“Tsk… Is this the leather from those giant bastards Catherine mentioned?”
“Here’s the blueprint.”
“Let me see.”
Audrey flipped through Franc’s blueprint, front and back. It was a cloak similar to a poncho raincoat—basic equipment for our Franc. She quickly narrowed her eyes.
“It’s a sleeveless coat. Something that half-dwarf would wear, huh?”
Oh? Her eye was pretty sharp. A blacksmith would naturally be able to tell from the measurements, but her speed was impressive. She had reached that conclusion in less than two seconds.
But just because she had quick thinking from her phantom thief days didn’t mean her craftsmanship was equally good! Audrey seemed to notice what I was thinking and placed the blueprint on the table.
“If it’s this simple to process, why don’t you just leave it to me? If you don’t like the result, I can rework it later. For something this basic, repairs later would be a piece of cake.”
“Heh. Look at you talking big. You confident?”
“Don’t you remember how you roasted the item I poured my heart into making for your woman last time? This time I’ll make something so insanely high quality that you won’t be able to say a single word.”
“Well, well.”
I chuckled. Come to think of it, she had been criticized pretty harshly for the shoddy work on that phantom thief item. If her pride was on the line in addition to the money, it was more than enough reason for her to be extra motivated. And like Audrey said, a coat wasn’t difficult to repair or rework. I might as well give her a shot.
When I nodded positively, Audrey spoke again.
“But why not ask that half-dwarf? If you’re going to doubt someone else’s skill, wouldn’t it be better to leave it to her?”
“Her name is Francesca. Not ‘that half-dwarf.’”
“Ah, right. Anyway, doesn’t Francesca have dwarf blood too? Couldn’t she just make it herself?”
“She doesn’t have the tools. How is she supposed to work on leather this ridiculously tough?”
No matter how strong Franc was, this wasn’t the kind of leather you could handle with just a needle and thread. It would require professional magical tools and even alchemical solutions. That would be too much of a production. Franc hadn’t learned that level of advanced technique yet, so it was simpler to just spend some money. After all, the twenty-four hours of a rich person who buys other people’s labor and an ordinary person who does everything themselves were not the same.
“Ah, that makes sense. Alright. Leave it to me.”
—Grin.
Audrey quickly accepted it and twisted the corner of her mouth into a smirk.
“All the clothes we used to wear were my work, you know? As long as you pay the material cost properly, I’ll make you something amazing.”
“Fuck. So you were the one who made those clothes too.”
She wasn’t Spider-Man, but she was running around in a homemade suit. It was the equipment of a poverty-stricken hero who couldn’t pull off a Bat-rich-guy move. Thinking about teasing her for it, I realized I wasn’t in any position to talk. After all, my Arthur Wayne costume had been made by Franc.
Thinking about it now, it was pretty funny. A hero fighting in a costume made by his girlfriend? There really were all kinds of heroes out there.
“Come back in five days—no, three. I’ll have it finished by then.”
“You work crazy fast. Don’t half-ass it, okay?”
“Are you really asking me that? I’m just fast with my hands, you suspicious bastard.”
“Then we’re good.”
I waved my hand dismissively and paid the amount Audrey requested in a lump sum, cash on the barrel. Even to someone like me who didn’t know the market rates, it seemed reasonable. Unless she was completely brainless, she wouldn’t try to scam me.
“Where is your sister staying?”
“Why? You want to commission an investigation or something?”
“Yeah. I’m looking for someone.”
“Hmm.”
Audrey casually scribbled on a piece of paper with a quill pen and handed it over before the ink had even dried. I dried the ink with heat and looked at the address, then let out a small laugh.
Children of Mutarat
It was an inn I knew well. The world really was a small place.
“Did you get kicked out of the house after cheating on your wives?”
“It’s been a while and that’s the first thing you say to me?”
I frowned as I received a scolding from Beynya, the innkeeper. Why did everyone treat me like some womanizer? Sure, I had quite a few women, but I thought I was doing a pretty good job of keeping them satisfied. Why? Why?
“I’m joking. Did you come to buy alcohol?”
“I’ll buy a bottle on my way out. I heard someone I know was staying here, so I came to visit for a bit. Everything going well for you?”
“Business is good, and we have no problems. Sorry for seeming like I was forcing you to buy.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got some money these days.”
“Oh? Really? As expected, Francesca chose her man well.”
Anyway, since everything was fine, that was good enough. After chatting with Beynya for a bit, I went to find Catherine.
“Hiiieeeeek?! Sir Nord?! Why is Sir Nord here?!”
She had been reading documents in her room. When she heard the knock and opened the door, she freaked out as if the Grim Reaper had smashed through the wall completely naked.
“You didn’t come here without knowing I was staying here, did you? Your sister told me you were here, so I came.”
“I-I see. I didn’t know you had already returned.”
After an unexpectedly early reunion that could hardly be called an emotional one, we each took a seat.