Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Loose Tooth and Dark Secrets
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Once again, I had Ed send the letter. I had no idea if the Magic Tower had received it properly, but judging from last time, the reply would probably come late again.
Having experienced it once before, I felt surprisingly relaxed about it.
With one task checked off, it was time for the next. I slowly scanned the to-do list I'd left out on the vanity.
It was a piece of paper I'd jotted down in code only I could understand, then neatly folded and tucked into my jewelry box.
Even if someone saw it, they wouldn't make sense of it, and if they got caught peeking, I'd accuse them of coveting my jewels and kick them out.
'Next up is that slimy creep.'
Jeb—Jebra, whatever his name was—hadn't shown up at the Morton estate lately, claiming he was busy with Horse territory affairs. But his relentless letters were giving me a headache.
I could use the letters as kindling, but I couldn't exactly toss Jeb Horse himself into a roaring fire. I needed a powerful way to get that guy out of my life for good.
'I was saving this method for a last resort.'
No matter how much I'd racked my brain, I couldn't come up with a peaceful or quiet solution.
Only someone who'd done shady stuff like this before could pull it off easily—unlike my pre-possession self, who'd lived a perfectly bland life.
As I stepped out of my bedroom and walked down the hall, my footsteps halted in front of Ed's door.
I took a deep breath and knocked. The stiff door creaked open halfway with a kiiik.
"Hic, La-Lami... sniff... Lady...?"
Ed peeked his head through the gap. His face was streaked with tears. Surprised, I stared at him, and our eyes met. He sniffled and swung the door fully open.
'Who bullied him this time?'
'Hah... I don't know who made these choices, but they're not getting off easy.'
I let out a quiet sigh and selected 3. I couldn't exactly yell at a crying kid to stop, so this seemed the least bad option.
"Wipe that snot first. Looks like you got bullied again?"
A cold voice slipped out, disinterested, like an annoyed adult scolding a crying child.
Ed hurriedly wiped his big, teary eyes with his sleeve and opened his mouth to speak.
But after bawling so hard, his throat was choked up; he just moved his lips without sound. As I watched quietly, something felt off.
'Huh? Something's missing.'
I couldn't see whatever should have been inside Ed's mouth.
"M-My... hic... fang... it's like this... here..."
One hand kept wiping tears while he extended the other. A tiny fang lay in his palm.
'His tooth fell out!'
Clearly a first for him, Ed's eyes filled with fresh tears, brimming with bewilderment. He wasn't just a little shocked.
No wonder—no adult around to explain baby teeth to him.
I should comfort him, tell him a stronger tooth would grow in after the baby one fell out.
'...He's too cute!'
Not the kind of thought you have about a crying kid, but Ed sniffling with his fang cradled in his palm was utterly adorable.
Maybe because one fang was gone, the instinctive fear I usually felt around him had faded a bit.
I pondered how to explain baby teeth. But it was all pointless.
'Let me have a normal conversation with Ed for once!'
I thought the same thing every time choices popped up, but my hand was already reaching for the screen.
To give Ed proper info, only one option worked.
"That's normal at your age—they fall out and new ones grow in. Didn't you know?"
Ed snapped his head up at my dripping-with-annoyance tone, blinking as he asked,
"Really? A new one will grow back?"
His golden eyes sparkled excessively, fixed right on me.
I read the choices without much hope, but my eyes widened at 2.
'Holy crap, a kid-friendly option for once?'
It was a bit different from the usual, but it might tickle Ed's imagination.
"Put it under your pillow and sleep. A monster will shove a new fang in the gap."
Once the words were out, sudden worry hit me.
'What if 'monster' scares him?'
Luckily, it was unfounded.
Ed clenched his fist around the fang protectively, dashed inside, slipped it under his pillow, and came back out beaming.
His face lit up with excitement, no trace of the earlier tears, a soft smile spreading across it.
The spacious carriage jolted along the road toward the village.
Having soothed and prepared Ed as best I could, we were on our way. Silence hung between us as we sat facing each other.
Ed chattered a bit on his own or exchanged simple words with me now and then, but worn out from crying, he soon dozed off.
'First time going to the village together.'
It was Ed's first, but I'd only been to the village a couple times myself, so it felt equally unfamiliar.
After passing through lush fields, houses appeared one by one, and the village came into view.
Houses built at regular intervals across the vast plain, sheep wandering freely between them, distant mountains and cliffs with cascading waterfalls.
'They say Switzerland's scenery is stunning. Probably looks like this.'
I'd never been, but the familiar sights from photos and videos unfolded before me.
I shook Ed awake and stepped out of the carriage. Eyes glanced our way, pretending not to but sneaking peeks.
Adults hurriedly herded playing children back home.
Considering Lami's reputation, it wasn't surprising. I just shrugged and kept walking.
Shepherd Boy's Lie.
The shop I needed to find.
It masqueraded as a normal trinket store, but it was actually run by an information guild.
In the original story, the heroine got info there; it boasted a long history and tradition, so it should still be around.
'Turn at Salad Alley, 2nd street, end of the farthest alley.'
As I headed toward the information guild, fewer beastkin passed by, and the surroundings grew dimmer.
Ed, walking obediently beside me, looked around uneasily and asked,
"Where are we going?"
Shocked by 2's bluntness, I quickly picked 1. Ed nodded agreeably and trotted after me.
<Shepherd Boy's Lie>
I'd worried it might be gone, but navigating the alleys as remembered, there it was.
Tucked in this dingy corner, yet flashy on the outside—vines climbing the walls, a gleaming golden sign catching the eye.
'I can't just meekly marry that zebra.'
I planned to uncover his weakness myself and shatter the engagement.
Swoosh—
The well-oiled door glided open smoothly. Beyond it, shelves brimmed with all sorts of trinkets.
"Anyone here?"
The shop was dead quiet—would've gone bust if trinkets were its main gig. A beastkin behind the counter jumped up to greet us.
"Welcome!"
His booming greeting got a return nod as we entered. He approached with a salesman smile.
I stared him down, pitching my voice as dignified and secretive as possible.
"The shepherd boy and a wolf."
"...Right this way to the upper floor."
Ed, distracted by trinkets the moment we entered, shot us a curious look at the cryptic exchange.
'Secret guild bases are usually underground in webnovels.'
Recalling all those stories I’d read, I climbed the stairs, leaving Ed to browse. At the top, another door.
"Through here."
He unlocked it, gestured inside, bowed, and headed back down.
Stepping in cautiously, I spotted a desk by the window. Someone sat in the chair behind it, back turned.
I strode up. The chair spun around, revealing a woman who met my eyes.
"What do you want to know?"
She cut straight to it. Cigar in mouth, hair piled high, she had that guild master vibe.
"I'm Lami Morton of the Morton Family. If you're a proper info broker, you know what I want."
Her eyes crinkled slightly at my words.
"Of course, Lady. For such a noble guest to venture to this back alley... bolder than the rumors suggest."
"Skip the chit-chat. Tell me everything you know."
"Yes, yes."
The guild master then spilled info on the Horse Family. Most of it, I already knew.
Sensing my growing boredom, she glanced at me, then lowered her voice dramatically.
"Heard the rumor? About where the Horse Family's massive funds come from."
"Rumor?"
"Our investigation turned it from rumor to fact."
That piqued my interest.
"Spill."
"But Lady, this info is top secret..."
She tilted her head apologetically, playing coy.
More money, huh. I slipped off my jeweled ring and slammed it on the desk.
"This enough?"
"How could it not be."
She pocketed the ring and vanished somewhere. When she returned, a single paper in hand.
'Spent more than expected.'
Cash I'd brought wasn't enough; I had to hand over my pricey ring for the info sheet.
'Better be worth it!'
Eyes blazing, I started reading from the top.
"Th-this...?"
The more I read, the wider my eyes grew in horror. I hadn't expected it to be this serious!
"Worth every penny, right?"
Her lips curved alluringly. I instantly got why it cost so much, why no one else had it.
"...Verified fact?"
I forced calm, keeping my face neutral, then glared coldly and growled low.
'This is way beyond what I can handle alone.'
Admiring the ring happily, she replied confidently,
"Shepherd Boy's Lie deals only in proven truths."
Just in case, I returned the paper after memorizing it all, then sauntered out.
"Lady Lami! Wait for me!"
Seeing Ed scurrying after me cleared the fog from my head.
'Ed might be connected to this somehow.'
Now that I knew, I couldn't sit idle.
'If I ship Jeb Horse off for good, the engagement crumbles naturally. No—beyond that, he doesn't deserve to stick around.'
I'll do my utmost to drag down the Horse Family.