Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: The Family Register and Secret Ledger
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Rachel, who had been walking right behind Enoch, bumped into his back.
“Why, Enoch?”
“I think I’ve found the Emporus family token.”
“Really? Then I’ll look for the family register, and you search for the token.”
“Yes.”
She ignored the murmurs from behind about how well the two of them worked together.
Enoch and Rachel approached the stacks of crates. Enoch carefully lifted down the tall piles one by one, while Rachel searched for the family register.
“Found it!”
Rachel reached out upon spotting the family register. At that moment, her hand overlapped with Enoch’s.
She turned her head to look at the large hand covering hers. She blinked as her eyes met Enoch’s.
“Why?”
“This is the token. I can sense demonic energy from it.”
Rachel paused in thought at his answer.
“That won’t do.”
Destroying the token could sever the Emporus family’s contract with the demon. But according to the plan, she couldn’t eliminate the family register just yet.
“No need to worry. For now, we show it to the priests as planned to keep the baron in check.”
“Let’s do as he says. As long as the token is in the temple’s possession, we can destroy it anytime.”
“Got it. Anyway, now that we’ve found the token, we can prove Uncle’s ties to the demon, right?”
“Hmm, no.”
Enoch answered Rachel’s question immediately. She stared at him with eyes demanding an explanation.
“If things are as Rachel described, the contract passed to Baron Emporus, but he hasn’t offered a sacrifice yet. It could be seen as his intent not to inherit the contract from his ancestors.”
“But he hid cursed items in our house! You saw them too, Enoch.”
“I did, but we already disposed of them. And there’s no proof it was him.”
Enoch explained in a quiet voice, sounding apologetic for not being able to help more.
Rachel felt indignant. Paris Emporus had clearly tried to offer her as a sacrifice, yet they couldn’t judge him because she hadn’t become one yet!
Still, she composed herself.
“But this will allow the temple to monitor him, right?”
Under the temple’s watch, Paris Emporus’s movements would be restricted.
No contacting the Black Sorcerer. No hiding cursed items in the mansion. Not even any future misdeeds.
Once he was immobilized, she could expose all his crimes and deliver them to Prince Pae, excluding Paris Emporus from this fight.
“And Rachel is no exception.”
“Huh?”
“According to the contract, you’re being targeted. Even if we destroy the token, now that he’s dabbled in black magic, he’ll likely turn to it again. Would it be all right if I stay by your side to protect you?”
His voice was soft, like a confession. Rachel’s face flushed.
What would cotton candy sound like? His tone made her heart melt sweetly, overshadowing the danger she was in.
“Yes. Knowing Enoch will protect me makes me feel secure.”
“I also… Never mind.”
Enoch started to say something but stopped. Rachel was curious about what he’d left unsaid, but seeing his cheeks and ears turn red, she didn’t press.
*He’s really shy.*
“We’ve secured the family register. First step accomplished.”
Abyss chimed in perfectly timed. He snatched the register from between their hands and flipped through it.
“This is a gruesome thing. Made from human skin.”
“You told me before. You used a special solution to reveal the hidden text.”
At Rachel’s words, Abyss mixed two vials as before and applied it.
“Let’s confirm the contents once more before we go.”
Abyss and Enoch sat on the floor, heads together, poring over the register. Rachel sat on a crate for a moment.
“Oh dear. Even showing this, the priests won’t arrest them?”
“The temple doesn’t apply guilt by association.”
“But don’t they place huge importance on bloodlines? Especially…”
“That’s enough.”
Enoch cut off Abyss. Since meeting him, he’d grown accustomed to interrupting others.
*He never did that to me. Does he not get along with Abyss?*
Unaware of Rachel’s thoughts, the two men continued their exchange.
“The knight doesn’t want his bloodline revealed, it seems. Honestly, that hair color alone makes it undeniable.”
“I don’t want her gaze toward me to change. I’m the same, yet because of parents I’ve barely met…”
Enoch trailed off and turned to Rachel. Pretending she hadn’t heard, she asked,
“Finished?”
“Yes… Yes.”
“We’ve confirmed it. Exactly as you said, miss.”
“Why would I lie about something like that?”
Rachel grumbled at Abyss. Enoch stood up as if nothing had happened.
“Now if the brothers catch the Black Sorcerer and we find the secret passage, we’re done.”
“And if we find the secret ledger instead of the falsified one, even better. Let’s head upstairs for now.”
“Agreed.”
The three climbed the stairs to the upper floor.
While searching in groups of three, they ran into other Holy Knights who shared that they’d found the secret passage.
They also encountered Evelyn.
“Did you find anything?”
“Should I say we did? While wandering the castle, I spotted a servant who hadn’t gone to the hall and followed them. They entered the library and hid this behind a bookshelf, so I snatched it.”
What Evelyn held out was a thick bundle of papers. Abyss’s eyes lit up as he took it from her.
“I skimmed it, but there are lots of numbers and hard words. Couldn’t make much sense of it.”
Abyss began flipping through the papers one by one, and Rachel peered over from the side.
Soon, both their lips curved up to their ears.
“This has to be it, right?”
“Yeah, it’s what we’ve been looking for.”
What Evelyn had found was the Emporus family’s secret ledger.
It was written in code to prevent easy reading, but Abyss was an expert in deciphering ciphers.
“Mom, you’re the best!”
In her joy, Rachel hugged Evelyn and called her Mom. Called Mom instead of Mother, Evelyn beamed happily.
“I don’t know what it is, but seeing you so happy makes me glad.”
“It’s what I was looking for. I had no idea how to find it, but you saved me, Mother.”
Having secured the secret ledger she’d aimed for, Rachel asked one more thing.
“Did you catch the Black Sorcerer?”
They’d found the family register as evidence against the baron, and the Holy Knights had discovered the secret room. All that remained was the Black Sorcerer Crow.
Rachel assumed Evelyn, skilled in detecting presences, wouldn’t have missed him, but Evelyn shook her head.
“I searched everywhere, but no sign. Seems he’s already fled.”
Evelyn answered with hostility toward the Black Sorcerer she’d never even seen.
“He already escaped?”
Rachel was taken aback by the unexpected variable.
“So it seems.”
*It’s changed.*
Originally, Crow had been in the castle and captured by the suddenly appearing Holy Knights and priests, then judged.
Rachel’s mind raced to analyze the situation.
*He didn’t ignore the sense of déjà vu.*
“What’s wrong?”
“Are you all right?”
“The Black Sorcerer who just fled might become a problem.”
“Is it because you’re scared of the Black Sorcerer? Don’t worry.”
It wasn’t just fear of him. By defying a fated outcome, Crow would use the sense of déjà vu as a buoy to check the altered future and seek its cause.
As Abyss had said, he might trace back through time to reach her.
But Rachel looked at Evelyn before her and Enoch at her side. Seeing them eased her anxiety.
*Right. This time, I won’t go down easily.*
Hadn’t she recruited Abyss early into the party? She didn’t trust his stamina, but she trusted his brains.
“Yes, I’m not worried. So, we should show Mother what we found.”
Rachel handed the family register to her mother.
Thus, the Emporus family register passed from Rachel’s hands to Evelyn’s.
***
“Where did you find that?”
The baron couldn’t finish asking where it came from. Seeing her husband’s stiffening expression, Lady Emporus grew anxious as well.
He soon recalled that the register looked like an empty book. Assuming Evelyn couldn’t read its contents, he regained his composure.
“What is that?”
“Oh, you don’t know?”
“No idea. It looks like an old book from the outside.”
“I see. It’s the Emporus family register. Reading it revealed some rather troubling contents.”
“You read it?”
“Why? Is there a reason it couldn’t be read?”
Of course there is! It looks blank at first glance…
Paris Emporus swallowed his near outburst. He’d almost revealed in excitement that he knew about the register.
“I see. At first, it seemed blank, which puzzled me, but applying a special solution made the text appear.”
Evelyn opened the book. The yellowed pages, which should have been empty, were densely filled with writing.
“Beyond this, a secret passage was found in the castle. It contained a contract circle that hasn’t been used yet. Do you know nothing about it, Baron?”
“No.”
Admitting knowledge would put him in a bind.
Evelyn replied with a blank expression, “I see,” then turned and slammed the sheathed sword at her waist onto the floor.
Thud!
The heavy sound echoed through the hall. All eyes turned to her.
“Please gather for a moment.”
Evelyn called over the priests and Holy Knights.
Paris Emporus couldn’t stop her.
Evelyn showed the Emporus family register to the assembled clergy. They sensed the demonic energy from it, and she calmly explained its contents.
When her explanation ended, Priestess Peace spoke.
“I see. The Emporus family has contracted with demons for generations.”
Her gaze turned to Paris Emporus. Her eyes blazed as if shooting divine power.
Priestess Peace slowly approached him.
“But the current head has not yet formed a contract.”
Her soft voice echoed gently through the hall.
The priests and Holy Knights remained silent, but the Emporus household servants grew restless and murmured.
Thoroughly trained not to act rashly before their master, they couldn’t help but be shocked at the possibility of his demonic ties.
“Darling, you didn’t know anything, right?”
“I didn’t.”
At Priestess Peace’s words, the baroness clung to her husband and asked. Paris Emporus answered that he didn’t know.
He had to, or he’d be in danger. He must claim ignorance of the demonic contract.
“However, those who attract a demon’s interest are easily exposed to black magic. Thus, the Church will protect those bearing the Emporus name from demons.”
At Priestess Peace’s declaration, the baron’s face hardened. Evelyn approached him.
“This is good, Baron. I was worried how to tell him if you were involved, but fortunately, you’re not.”
“Y-Yes. Glad to clear up the misunderstanding.”
Paris Emporus’s stomach churned. Protection? It was surveillance, plain and simple. It would cripple many of his shadowy ventures.
But Evelyn wasn’t finished.
“Yes, truly fortunate. And don’t worry about protection costs! Considering my ties to the Church, they’ll do it for a modest fee.”
The baron clutched the back of his neck at Evelyn’s cheerful words.
Church protection wasn’t free.
Even if he refused, the Church would deem him a risk factor and force protection upon him, billing him for the expenses.
“Having the temple protect us puts my mind at ease. Thank you.”
The oblivious Lady Emporus and Chris thanked Priestess Peace.
At the sight, Paris Emporus repeatedly wiped his dry face.
***
In a sealed room without windows, Rachel and Abyss were buried in piles of documents.
Rustle. The sound of turning pages and the scratch of pen on paper continued, until—
“I’m dying.”
With a groan, Rachel collapsed face-first onto the desk.
Only then did Abyss’s relentless pen stop.
“Just a bit more.”
At his half-hearted reply, Rachel glared at him through slitted eyes.
“Haven’t I been hearing that for two days now?”
Her expression was sullen as she shot back.