Chapter 178
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 178
Chapter Title: The First of Two Chances -1-
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Someone fast on their feet, skilled at hiding their presence, and capable of installing and using magic tools.
Around Philip, who had been summoned by Isaac and come to the capital alone, there wasn't a single proper person capable of pulling that off.
The one connection he'd hastily called in was posted elsewhere to avoid any blind spots in his field of vision.
In a situation like this, where he had to keep making quick moves, having no assistant at his side to handle the grunt work was an absurdly shitty setup.
Philip, crouched in an empty room as he prepped a magic tool, grunted through the setup, finally finished, then stood and stretched his back.
Thinking that all this hassle was just to make some rich kid's embarrassing delusion come true...
A voice thick with resignation and emptiness burst out on its own.
"Aigoo...! This is so filthy I can't even—damn it for real."
Given the target, the preparations had to be thorough to the point of overkill.
Experiences he never wanted to remember again.
Through them, Philip had some grasp of just how dangerous the "monsters" wearing human skins could be.
With one of those monsters potentially tangled up in this job, he couldn't be too careful, no matter how many times he double-checked.
An inexperienced fool might say something like:
No matter how amazing the Empire's Five Knights are, they're still just one person.
If you keep enough distance and hide thoroughly, they won't even notice the gaze peeking through a magic tool.
Philip's cautious moves might seem like a waste of time and mental energy.
But Philip, aiding Isaac's batshit crazy plan, thought otherwise.
Even from afar, observing Eclair Dreitna's mansion with a magic tool felt dangerous—sheer gut instinct made him scrap that fast and find another way.
At the very least, he exploited the habit of noble daughters attending the academy: they stuck to main roads, avoiding alleys.
Philip had mapped out the limited routes Chloe could take if she left the mansion. He was waiting indefinitely far ahead on one such street.
"Phew..."
Couldn't even light a cigarette while working—just in case. Pure agony.
To clear out the blockheads he'd gathered in the capital as quickly as possible and finally relax, he couldn't afford a single break.
The job's content was childish enough for kids to scoff at, but its scale was no joke.
"Ahem!"
A dry cough chased off the drowsiness. He rolled his neck once, then refocused.
The target, Chloe Dreitna, had a look that stood out sharp.
Academy dismissal time.
Even in that teeming crowd, a mere glance would snag men's eyes—she had that kind of presence.
He'd tracked Chloe hurrying back toward the mansion from afar using the magic tool, but now he was on standby.
'Here she comes...!'
Didn't have to wait long. There she was, changed clothes and all.
Her hurried pace had him hyped already.
The short wait felt like a good sign that things were kicking off right.
'Next building.'
The cylindrical telescope Philip had was top-notch, as expected from a magic tool sourced from the Maloy Count House.
Thanks to the rooms Isaac had bought out with cash, overlooking the main street from up high gave a crystal-clear view—smooth sailing.
'At this rate, the chance will come... Can probably use and ditch them today.'
The dimwits holed up after renting out a whole inn—better use them quick before they tripped him up or blew up in his face.
Sky-high egos, decent muscle, but brains in overwhelming deficit.
The best way to wrangle them without drama? Simplicity.
Tell them anything complex or tricky, and they'd barrel ahead without understanding, too proud to ask.
Better to handle it himself than trust those idiots.
If he just sat and waited, he'd be too paranoid about their fuckups to even rest.
All to sculpt the lady-obsessed young master's deranged fantasy scenario.
Philip cracked the window just enough to tail and observe Chloe through the gap.
'Where's she headed?'
Her usual leisurely pace was gone; those steps were hauling ass.
"Ooh! Damn!"
Watching her walk from behind, yeah—no wonder that money-flush researcher type would lose his shit over that violently stacked body.
'Wonder if I'll ever get to hold a woman like that in my life...'
The way she covered up max only made the vibe leak out even raunchier.
Saliva gulped at the occasional hip outline peeking over her long skirt.
Such prime meat going to waste on that stamina-lacking mage young master.
'Arrived?'
The target halted and started chatting with someone.
The natural next step: swivel the tool to check her convo partner.
"...?!"
Clatter!
For the first time, terror hit Philip like a truck. He flung the magic tool glued to his eyeball and flattened prone.
'W-what the hell was that...?'
Eye contact with the jacked guy next to the target.
Too dead-on for coincidence.
Even if the guy knew, from rice-grain distance, curtains drawn, hiding behind the window?
The guy's eyes snapped straight to the magic tool—gazes locked in a spine-chilling clash.
Absurd enough to chalk up to chance, but...
Philip never ignored the instinct that'd kept him fed all these years.
"..."
Breath held, cold sweat pouring, he hid out a good long while.
Belly glued to the wooden floor, he wriggled like a worm out of the empty room.
From the instant Chloe ducked into the shop, he quit observing.
Handed off shop watch to the subordinate in another room to plug blind spots.
Philip headed straight for Isaac, waiting on his report.
"...A man? Who?"
His expression gave it all away.
Isaac's face crumpled like a wadded-up paper.
Watching the hot-blooded, emotional kid, Philip started worrying the fallout might splash his way.
"First time seeing him, but my experience and gut are screaming warnings. Young master... best to shelve this for now—"
Shatter!
Isaac chucked the cup in his hand in a fit; silence crashed over the wide room.
"You meatheads with shit for brains, scraping by on muscle and too dense for theory—you always spout that crap! 'Intimidating aura,' 'bad vibes,' shoving intangibles you can't even eyeball while dodging with zero solid proof!"
"..."
"Was that guy whipping out an aura that slices giant buildings like slime right in front of you?"
"No..."
"Then was he some high noble even you'd recognize? One I'd have to bow to?"
"Don't think so..."
The formal retainers aiding the busy Maloy family got drilled in memorizing noble faces from socialite spots.
No ferocious-aura dude like that in the roster.
"Point is, we deal with their fuckups to clean 'em up. Who gives a shit who the opponent is? No need to pussy out beforehand."
Best play here: bow and take it.
Knowing more words would just get shot down, Philip clamped his mouth and weathered Isaac's tantrum.
"...You're absolutely right."
Swallowing the rage bubbling inside, Philip forced a nod.
"Have the guys use our idiots to give that man a proper thrashing. They're all getting axed anyway—no limits on the mess. Get your ass moving on prep."
"Understood."
If he didn't bail now, a sigh might slip out right in front of him. Philip bolted from the room.
'What the fuck are those sketchy assholes?'
Sometimes dudes like that popped up, motives a total mystery.
Lately had been weirdly quiet, honestly.
Maybe no trouble 'cause he wasn't prowling streets, just holing up with his girls.
Almost charged over to crack their skulls on the spot, but ditching Chloe—practically vibrating with excitement—would've been cruel.
He softened his face to meet Chloe, waiting patiently.
Not her academy uniform, but a neat outfit she'd clearly put effort into.
Perfectly matching her aversion to skin-showing.
That just made her draw men's stares even harder.
"Dressed up cute, huh?"
"H-huh, e-eh...! Uh... Th-thank you!"
She jolted like an overloaded gear, creaking through stutters before mumbling straight-up thanks.
'Reaction's off from what I pictured.'
Knew she'd freak, but not like this—nothing like his mental image.
This growth spurt in freakout level topped even the practical class where she'd sprayed blood.
Original Chloe always shot down full self-acceptance.
"We could hit a new spot this time or stick here—where you wanna go?"
"I... like here!"
Her voice lit up obvious as day.
That positive shift of voicing her pick clear? Wanted to hear it straight from her lips.
"Wanna head in?"
"Y-Yes!"
He held the door till she went first. Finally clocking he was waiting, she scurried past into the shop.
The space they were ushered into.
Chloe and Roman both clocked the air feeling subtly off from last time.
Icebreaker time for Chloe, eyes averted, fingers fidgeting.
Pushed the menu her way to shatter the quiet.
"Chloe. Why do folks eat dinner proper compared to breakfast? Just 'cause they wake up groggy and keep it light?"
Casual toss to thaw the stiff vibe stiffer than last time—but Chloe pondered it dead serious.
"Um... Maybe it's their reward after grinding the workday, for powering through?"
"Not wrong. Gives motivation to slog through the drudgery."
"Brother's take different...?"
Her eyes sparkled with pure curiosity about his view.
"Goddess up in the sky shuts her eyes, darkness rolls in. Time to splurge—no one's catching you."
Straight nonsense off the dome.
But one perk of his girls, Chloe included: they'd laugh at bullshit like this.
Like right now.
Grateful as hell to Chloe giggling, eyes crinkling into moons at his lame-ass line.
"Brother's views are always so unique and fun. I-I think yours makes more sense...! Bad stuff happens in the dark or at night, after all..."
Spotting the vibe soften plush, he grabbed the spare menu nearby.
"Right? So this hour's for luxuriating wild, no eyes judging."