Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: Reunion (2)
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Before even arriving in Belpas, they had been coordinating schedules with the Kalia Merchant Group, so they could head straight there without needing to arrange a separate meeting.
The carriage passed through the city gates and soon pulled up to the inn where Elisa was staying.
They sent word through an inn staff member. Moments later, the staffer returned and led the two of them to the annex in the back.
"Hey, brother."
Lilia whispered into Galen's ear, lowering her voice so the staffer leading the way wouldn't hear.
"Is she the thrifty type?"
"She wasn't particularly extravagant... but she wasn't stingy either."
The innkeeper might take offense if they overheard, but honestly, this place wasn't exactly fit for a direct descendant of a prestigious family.
Of course, not all noble houses lived in constant luxury, but they generally didn't fuss over efficiency when it came to spending. They had the money, after all.
What mattered was how appealing it was. People were drawn to pricier things because they often came with more care and attention, but sometimes something unique and affordable caught the eye.
This inn, though, had no such charm. It was just your run-of-the-mill establishment.
If anything, it reminded him of the Bron Brothers' Haven where they'd stayed in Nijerte. The kind of place that offered solid value for money. Better facilities than the Brons', at least.
"If it's about saving money..."
Galen trailed off.
A direct descendant of a noble house scrimping on expenses? That couldn't be a good sign.
Either the family was in trouble, or she was.
Well, he'd find out by asking.
Knock knock knock!
The staffer arrived at the annex and politely rapped on the door. Shortly after, someone opened it.
It was a burly man. The kind you wouldn't peg as anything but a warrior.
And a familiar face, at that.
"..."
Rad, was it? Part of the personal guard. An elite warrior trusted for both skill and loyalty, tasked with protecting the family's key figures.
Of course, Galen had no personal connection to him. He'd just memorized the guard roster as a servant attending Jerbon.
"..."
Rad's eyebrows twitched, and his lips moved slightly as they locked eyes. He recognized Galen too.
But before he could react further, his eyes shifted sideways and spotted Lilia late.
Whether from a mage family or a warrior herself, a priestess was someone no one wanted to tangle with lightly, skills be damned.
In the end, Rad played dumb.
"...I heard you're from the Kalia Merchant Group."
"That's right."
Galen replied calmly. Rad masked his confusion and stepped aside.
"Come in."
The annex was small, so the living room came into view the moment they stepped inside.
A woman sitting primly in a chair rose to her feet.
As her eyes met Galen's, a flicker of hard-to-describe emotions crossed her face.
Joy, surprise, relief... Thankfully, nothing negative.
"Could you step out for a bit?"
Naturally, she wasn't addressing Galen but Rad.
"Pardon? I have to guard you, miss."
"That's why I'm asking you to step out just for a moment. I'll call you when we're done."
"B-but..."
"You don't think guests vouched for by the Kalia Merchant Group would come here to harm me, do you?"
"...No, of course not."
How was he supposed to answer a question that direct?
Agreeing would insult both the merchant group and the church.
At a loss for words, Rad bowed deeply and left the annex.
As Galen watched his retreating figure for a moment.
"...Galen?"
The tentative voice calling his name turned his head.
"...Miss."
His voice caught a little. Elisa gave a faint smile.
"It's been ages with Mary too, hasn't it?"
"About as long as with you, miss."
Galen smiled back and gave a light nod to the maid standing by Elisa's side. Mary dipped her head slightly in acknowledgment.
Thanks to how close Elisa and Jerbon had been as siblings, their servants Galen and Mary had built a rapport too. Fellow servants in the same line of work, after all. They hadn't had much time to chat amid serving their masters, though.
"And, um... Should I call you Your Excellency?"
"Y-yes? Oh, no, you don't have to! It feels too formal..."
"Then Bishop Lilia it is."
Caught off guard by the sudden shift in conversation, Lilia floundered. Elisa smoothly settled the titles.
"You knew about me?"
"I heard rumors about Galen, and yours came up naturally alongside them."
"Compared to brother, I haven't done much of anything..."
"The talk is all praise for you. They say you've saved dozens on the brink of death here in the city."
"Th-the rumors are exaggerated..."
Elisa, skilled in conversation, guided things smoothly, and the first meeting's atmosphere was off to a good start.
The three sat down, excluding the maid Mary.
After a brief moment of gauging each other, Elisa spoke first.
"Galen, you've gotten even more handsome since I last saw you. You must have been so busy as a servant."
"Well... Now I basically have free time all day."
To be precise, Lilia was dragging him into daily personal training sessions, forcibly getting him in shape.
But right now, he was far more concerned with how unwell Elisa looked than his own improved physique.
"Are you alright, miss? You look exhausted."
"I'd love to say yes... but honestly, not really."
Elisa gave a wry smile.
She'd lost a noticeable amount of weight since he'd last seen her, and fatigue showed plainly on her face.
"Body's worn out, mind's worn out... Haven't been home in over a year. My choice, though."
"Pardon? What on earth happened in the meantime?"
Galen asked in surprise. Elisa glanced briefly at Lilia. Guessing her intent, Galen added,
"Feel free to speak freely. I know the gist of things, and my lips are sealed tighter than they look."
"Tighter than they look?!"
Lilia's protest was buried as Galen slyly averted his gaze. Elisa nodded and began.
"After the funeral, once you left, the family set up a temporary task force to investigate the assassins. Rius directed it personally."
"...Young Master Rius?"
Galen asked dubiously.
Rius, Tarina, Raven. The three siblings from his first wife's children.
Not as directly accusatory as the second and third toward Galen, but the eldest had gone along with it tacitly.
He'd been the acting family head, after all—the one who'd decided to boot Galen out without a single coin in severance. To Galen, all three were much of a muchness.
So, indifferent Rius had ordered a dedicated assassin investigation unit? If he'd cared that much about Jerbon's death, why not sooner?
"It was all for show, of course. Who knows what they got up to out of my sight, but... somehow I doubt it. Even what I saw didn't look diligent."
As expected, Elisa replied with a cynical smile.
"So I investigated within the family myself. Thankfully, the steward cooperated a lot. He knows all the ins and outs, so he was a big help."
"The steward always thought well of you and the young master. But still... you suspected it was an inside job?"
"Assassination is the vilest tactic out there—roundly condemned by all."
Elisa answered Galen's cautious question matter-of-factly.
"Why target Jerbon with such an extreme measure? He was the youngest, with the least influence in the family. Go for a bigger fish. If you're taking the hit to your reputation anyway, make it count."
"You're right."
"Sure, there could be irrational enemies who just dumped their grudge on our weakest sibling... But that's exactly why I had to check inside. If it wasn't internal, I could wait for the irrational perp outside to slip up."
"And the results...?"
"Unfortunately, not clean."
Elisa sighed.
"Just a faint clue after digging and digging, but its mere existence meant we weren't spotless. I was heading to the mainland to trace it further... but they told me to handle it myself."
"Handle it yourself?"
"They said the existing team was already on it—why butt in? Leave it to the tracking experts. If I insisted, I could do it personally, but no support."
"What shameless bastards!"
Galen burst out. Elisa wore a bitter expression.
"Can't argue when they're not wrong, though. Calling out the team for slacking wouldn't stick anyway."
"So you really investigated alone, with zero support?"
"Yes. Blew through my savings, took mercenary gigs when money ran dry... Being a mage, plenty of calls for that."
She said it jokingly, but Galen couldn't laugh.
How tough must it have been for a sheltered noble lady to turn to mercenary work just to make ends meet?
"Fortunately, not entirely fruitless. Got a rough outline of the culprits."
"Who?"
"Guessing an assassin guild based in the southeast."
Obvious, really. Assassination wasn't something done in the open, so assassins kept a low profile too.
But the world was full of scumbags willing to commission hits, so assassins formed guilds for steady business.
Those were assassin guilds. Shadow families, you could say.
"Couldn't get further, though. My deductions point to them, but for solid proof, I'd have to subdue them by force... and I'm not strong enough."
"Family still no help?"
"Bring proof they're the ones, they said."
"...You get proof by beating them down, don't you?"
"Exactly."
"Wow, just... wow."
Galen let out a hollow laugh.
If Elisa was right about someone inside Oceanis commissioning it, they'd naturally be in cahoots and unwilling to assist.
Infuriating, but not exactly wrong.
The southeast nobles wouldn't welcome Oceanis—a southern powerhouse—sending forces their way.
They might squeak by on the pretext of avenging direct kin, but if Elisa fingered the wrong group, it'd be a huge mess.
"Hiring mercenaries? Even throwing money at it, no one jumps to raid an assassin guild..."
"Money's no good if it costs your life. Silver's iffy; Gold might work... but Gold-rank mercs are rare."
"Yeah. Bluntly, I can't even afford Gold."
Gold-ranks started at hundreds of gold coins. No way a half-exiled noble like Elisa could swing that.
"I was about ready to give up... then I heard rumors about you. Hard to believe, but a powerful Gold-rank mage."
Elisa's voice grew smaller, her face ashamed.
"I know it's shameless, but I thought maybe you'd help a little, so I reached out blindly... Sorry. For saying something weird."
"Nothing to apologize for."
Galen brushed it off.
"I nearly died to those bastards too."
