Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Villainess: Peria Alperatz (4)
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The grand reception room in the lord’s castle of Bartus, the largest city in the Alperatz Marquisate.
As darkness fell outside the windows, the twinkling of stars shone through.
Kallife, the lead archmage of the Magitech Legion, now faced the marquis’s daughter with a complicated expression.
Gulp.
Before Kallife’s eyes sat a noble young lady with sparkling golden hair.
Peria Alperatz, proxy lord of the domain.
She was the true power governing the Alperatz Marquisate and widely regarded as the next head of the family.
“Nice to meet you! I’m Peria Alperatz, the one ruling Bartus!”
“……”
Kallife’s eyes fixed on the proxy lord, who couldn’t even observe basic etiquette.
Tremble.
His hand shook as he lifted his teacup.
Kallife’s expression as he faced Peria was far too grim to call pleasant, even as flattery.
It wasn’t because of the noble girl’s rudeness.
There was a far more fundamental issue with the girl before him.
—Something was deeply wrong.
That thought now filled Kallife’s mind.
From the moment he entered the reception room, a faint unease had stirred in his chest.
The ornate dragon decorations filled every corner.
Towering dragon sculptures of stunning beauty.
They seemed oddly purposeful for mere displays of wealth.
And now, with the proxy lord herself in the room—
The faint unease in Kallife’s chest had sharpened into clear shock.
‘What the hell is that monster…!’
Kallife’s trembling gaze shifted to the pure white creature perched on the marquis’s daughter’s shoulder.
A white magical beast that looked like a young, immature animal—
It appeared utterly harmless at first glance.
But the problem was its essence.
Whooooom—
Even with Kallife’s senses as a high mage, he could barely detect the faint rift unfolding behind it.
Traces of mana compressed to its limits were leaking from within the young beast.
‘How can she keep a monster like that under human control…!’
Kallife had come here intending to sweet-talk a naive noble girl out of some magitech artifacts.
But the moment he saw that thing, such thoughts had long vanished.
Even as the lead archmage, he had no confidence he could stand against it.
It was a monster.
One that could devastate the entire castle just by revealing its true form—
Before such a beast, Kallife’s concern wasn’t bribery, but his own survival.
“Investigator, is there something wrong with my outfit?”
Clink.
The sound of a teacup being set down echoed.
The noble girl who commanded this absurd monster gazed at Kallife with a calm smile.
Blink, blink.
Kallife’s eyes stared blankly at the marquis’s daughter for a moment.
Soon, he barely suppressed his fear and forced himself to continue the conversation with Peria.
“H-Ha… No, not at all. You’re so beautiful, proxy lord, that I lost my words for a moment.”
“Hearing that right in front of me… makes me a little embarrassed.”
Peria turned her gaze away with an awkward smile at Kallife’s flimsy excuse.
Just as Kallife began to relax—
Another remark slipped from Peria’s lips.
“To be honest, I thought you looked so grim because you were about to ask something scary!”
“……”
“But you seem like a kind person, investigator, so I feel a bit relieved. That’s a relief.”
Clatter.
Kallife’s arm froze mid-air, still holding the hot teacup, as he heard Peria’s words.
He had indeed planned to conduct an investigation.
Using a suitable pretext to lead her on and extract a bribe from the naive marquis’s daughter.
But after seeing the ‘monster’ on her shoulder, those plans had flown out the window.
‘What does she mean? A warning not to ask scary questions?’
He couldn’t fathom why the proxy lord had brought such a monster here.
But it was undeniably outrageous.
It filled his mind with the urge to flee this very instant.
Kallife wasn’t foolish enough to pursue bribes with that thing staring him down.
‘Better stick to formal questions and get this over with. Stirring trouble in this atmosphere will only bring headaches.’
Even bribery required reading the room.
That was the secret to Kallife’s long survival as the capital’s lead archmage.
“First, as an investigator dispatched from the capital, I’ll need to run through some simple questions.”
“Sure, that’s fine.”
“No need to worry. They’re questions you won’t find difficult to answer—”
Whew.
Kallife let out a short sigh.
Soon after, he began posing formal questions to the noble girl before him.
Questions any ordinary noble girl would deny outright.
It was a political gesture, pretending to exchange words just to end the meeting.
“First question. Are you acquainted with Begerton Antares, technical advisor to the Extremist Magitech Research Society, also known as the ‘Doctor’?”
Kallife asked about the Doctor without a care, directing it at Peria Alperatz.
Surely, the girl before him had no ties to an imperial most-wanted fugitive.
“Th-Th-Th-The Doctor…? I don’t know anyone like that…!”
“Yes…?”
But soon, Kallife’s face stiffened.
The marquis’s daughter had blatantly hinted at her connection to the Doctor.
Flustered, Kallife lowered his head to stare at his teacup.
His mind raced to analyze their recent exchange.
‘Does she have a connection to the Doctor—! But why reveal it to me so openly…?’
A chill ran down Kallife’s back as he pondered Peria’s political intent.
He had learned something far too dangerous.
But showing it here would surely mean he wouldn’t leave alive.
‘If I react now, she’ll kill me…!’
This was a test.
The marquis’s daughter’s scheme to test Lead Archmage Kallife Variant.
Tremble tremble tremble.
Tea overflowed past Kallife’s shaking teacup.
Feeling the hot liquid, Kallife gritted his teeth and forced a calm facade.
“Ah… Aha! So you don’t know Begerton Antares, proxy lord…!”
“Y-Yes! I don’t know who he is either…!”
“Haha, no problem! How would a busy person like you know such an evil imperial fugitive!”
Kallife managed to steady his expression amid the awkward acting.
He’d thought her a mere innocent girl, but she was a dangerous woman with a viper’s cunning inside.
The rumors swirling around the marquisate weren’t entirely baseless, it seemed.
Rustle.
Having finally calmed his arm, Kallife continued the interrogation toward the marquis’s daughter.
“Second question. Have you ever heard of a dangerous secret society trying to summon monsters from beyond?”
Kallife’s second question emerged.
A simple one, answered with a single “I don’t know.”
This time, please just say you don’t know—
With that prayer in his heart, Kallife quietly raised his arm to sip his tea.
“A s-s-s-secret society…? I don’t know anything about organizations full of dangerous people like the Doctor…!”
“……”
Ah.
A sigh escaped Kallife’s lips.
He was now certain the black-hearted young lady before him surpassed his comprehension.
‘Why is a noble girl like you involved in such a dangerous secret society…!’
Moreover, he understood she had already decided to kill him.
Otherwise, there’d be no reason to flaunt it so openly.
Execution target of the secret society—
From the moment Kallife entered the reception room, his fate was sealed.
‘I want to live…!’
Tremble tremble tremble.
The shaking from Kallife’s grip intensified.
Hot tea splashed onto his robe.
Yet Kallife showed no sign of pain, forcing the words out through bloodshot eyes pressed to his lips.
“You have no connection whatsoever to the secret society! As I thought—!”
Peria, facing such a Kallife, voiced concern for the tea-stained investigator.
“Investigator, are you okay?! Tea’s splashing on your clothes!”
“It’s fine! A fire mage like me sometimes cools off with water like this…!”
“Oh, that’s what it was! I misunderstood!”
“Good that the misunderstanding’s cleared up…!”
Kallife’s pupils dilated hugely as his eyes met Peria’s.
Hurry and ask the last question, then get out—
That thought dominated his mind.
“Proxy lord, have you ever… seen the corpse of Castle Lord Corios Baklaire, one of the Seven Pillars?”
Kallife’s final question spilled out.
Right after, he poured the remaining tea down his throat in one gulp.
To prevent any suggestion that he finish his tea before leaving.
Gulp, gulp.
As Kallife’s throat worked frantically—
Peria gave an oddly awkward response.
“E-E-E-An elf corpse? I’ve never seen one…!”
“Kehek—!”
Pffft—!
Tea sprayed from Kallife’s mouth onto the floor.
* * * * * *
Immediately after the meeting with the Magitech Legion investigator, Kallife.
Returning to her office, Peria frantically rummaged through the box for the crystal orb.
The magitech gift from Lua, a member of the secret society—Polaris No. 1.
She activated it urgently to contact her comrade.
“What do I do, what do I do…!”
Peria’s trembling hands quickly manipulated the crystal orb to connect.
Her face, touching the orb, was deathly pale.
Since childhood, Peria Alperatz had never been good at lying.
That’s why her lies were always seen through by those around her, including her brother Philip.
Thus, over the past few years, Peria had strived to avoid lying whenever possible.
Even she hadn’t expected to be this terrible at it.
“I’m sure he saw right through all my lies…!”
Ziiiiing.
Peria’s crystal orb continued emitting the connection tone.
Soon, a familiar face appeared on the other side of the gleaming orb.
Tap.
On the opposite side of the crystal orb emerged a researcher wearing a monocle.
—“I wondered who it was, and it’s Miss Peria.”
The Doctor, Begerton Antares.
Technical advisor to the Extremist Magitech Research Society and imperial most-wanted responded to her call.
—“I heard a Magitech Legion investigator came to the territory. Did the meeting go well?”
“D-Doctor…! I think I made too many mistakes—what should I do…!”
At the sight of the Doctor on the orb, Peria hurriedly explained her situation.
From her meeting with Lead Archmage Kallife to his probing in the reception room.
Even his extremely darkened expression as he left—
She recounted every event at the castle to the Doctor.
In response, the Doctor smiled calmly, as if it were no issue.
—“Oh, it seems you’ve run into some trouble, miss.”
“The investigator seemed to notice something… How can I fix this?”
—“No need for you to worry. I anticipated something like this and made preparations.”
The Doctor assured Peria there was no cause for concern.
Relief washed over her at his words.
“Wow, Doctor…!”
The Doctor she knew was incredibly smart.
He had a quirky personality, but whenever brains were needed, he was always helpful.
Fortunately, he was stepping in personally this time.
Peria let out a sigh of relief, easing her worries a bit.
—“I’ve arranged things my way to erase the investigator’s memories. Your mistakes won’t be exposed.”
Kekekekeke.
The Doctor’s quirky laughter burst from the screen.
But to Peria now, even that laugh felt utterly reliable.
“Thank you, Doctor! I was so worried my mistakes might get everyone in trouble.”
—“Well, we help each other when in trouble. I, Begerton, have such a warm heart—I can’t just stand by seeing a friend in distress.”
“Of course! If you ever run into trouble, Doctor, tell me anytime!”
Hmm.
As if on cue, the Doctor seemed to have his own dilemma.
A somewhat troubled voice came from the screen.
—“Come to think of it, my experiments are short on budget lately—”
“Oh, I can help with that!”
—“Excellent! You truly have great magnanimity, miss.”
“It’s such a small repayment compared to all the help you’ve given me!”
Fortunately, Peria could resolve the Doctor’s predicament.
Their warm, harmonious conversation filled Peria’s office.
Exchanging kind words and mutual support.
Amid that scene, Peria beamed brightly.
‘The Doctor’s helping—thank goodness!’
She prayed the Alperatz family’s harmony would last forever.
Cherishing that wish, Peria looked forward to tonight’s library meeting.