Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Newcomer Welcome Ceremony (4)
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Nix was receiving her morning rations.
After the ordeal she'd endured last night, she cautiously scanned the cafeteria.
She glanced up and peeked into the kitchen.
The sight of the warden personally dipping slices of bread into an egg mixture.
Beside him stood a blue-haired beauty she hadn't noticed yesterday.
Her face was sullen and expressionless, yet her hands moved with expert skill as she prepped vegetables.
'The meals here are way better than down in the Holy See's underground...?'
"Warden, sir, we're almost out of onions."
"Yeah, I was planning to go shopping this weekend."
I was grilling French toast as I answered flatly.
Things had improved at the prison enough that we could even sprinkle on some sugar now.
Even Anje, who'd only eaten apples before, had taken a liking to this.
And lately, for some reason, she'd been peeking into the kitchen more often.
As if she wanted to learn how to cook.
This was a very good sign.
It meant she was starting to take an interest in things beyond the scriptures.
Imagine her learning to cook, settling down with a decent husband, living an ordinary life.
Sure, her personality meant she'd probably keep her partner on a short leash, but in exchange, the world would be at peace.
"Now that the prison's finances are stable, maybe it's time to hire a cook."
"That sounds good, but the more outsiders we bring in, the weaker our security gets."
You could tell just by looking at the new inmates who'd arrived yesterday.
It was clear that various factions in the empire were starting to take notice of me.
With both the princess and the Grand Elder backing us at the same time.
And with a major promising talent selection tournament right around the corner, they'd be watching even closer from here on out.
"True, especially after receiving Her Highness the princess's favor lately. Lots of eyes on you now."
Clea Rockhart said this while eyeing the freshly grilled French toast.
"Want to taste it?"
"Sweet and nice."
Clea took a light bite of the bread I handed her.
Nix watched the scene with wide, round eyes.
'What, are they a couple? They do both have that prickly look that kinda suits each other...'
Suddenly sensing a sharp killing intent, she slowly turned around.
She gulped hard at the sight of Anje staring daggers at the vice warden and warden.
"You won't even need to cook yourself much longer."
Nix returned to her table, passing by the saintess's meaningful mutter.
She sat down next to Fred, whose mind had cleared up.
"What's the prison vibe like?"
"It's weirdly normal. The empire's worst prison has better chow than the Holy See."
"Still, don't let your guard down. They might just be putting on a show."
"Agreed. Probably acting nice to throw off the church's suspicions."
The candidates had been treated worse than criminals up until now.
The harmonious prison atmosphere felt utterly alien to them.
And then, the person who drove that awkwardness to its peak appeared.
Damas Angard.
His lips were grinning all the way up to his ears at the arrival of his first juniors.
He approached with the smug, sleazy expression of a rich kid.
To those who'd spent their lives in the Holy See's underground,
"...?"
the two went blank-faced at the unexpected prisoner.
Undeterred, Damas gracefully took a seat across from them.
"Newbies, huh?"
"That's right."
Fred replied in a cold voice.
But Damas extended his hand first, offering a handshake.
"Nice to meet you. I'm your senior inmate. Call me Damas."
The two prisoners stared in bewilderment at this polar opposite of the monsters they'd met last night.
Why was a golden retriever like this in a place crawling with Anje and succubi?
They stared at him as he casually struck a pose in front of his juniors.
"Uh, yeah... So, what do you want with us?"
"Just worried about the newbies. This place can be pretty dangerous."
Nix gave no reply.
He didn't look the least bit trustworthy, judging by his face and behavior.
'Why did Anje let this punk live?'
Still, the two were desperate for Berryhill intel.
Damas was a survivor here, so they had questions for him.
"I see. How have you managed to survive here so long, senior?"
Nix, trained in lady-like etiquette, asked politely first.
Receiving proper respect for once, Damas got a little emotional.
"Heh heh... Yeah, that's a fair question."
He wiped his nose and nodded.
Then, crossing his arms alone, he declared confidently.
"I've earned the prisoners' recognition as one of their own."
Nix's eyes went as hollow as a moth's.
Fred's too.
They doubted any info from a guy like this could be legit.
But soon, they had no choice but to focus on his words.
"Want me to let you in on it? How to avoid pissing off the inmates."
It was a vital offer for them after last night's humiliation.
They decided to hear him out calmly.
"Alright, see that girl sitting over there in the corner?"
Damas subtly pointed out Myoran, proving his accumulated know-how.
Her black straight hair framing her as she nibbled on bread.
"Gasp...!!"
Fred began trembling all over the moment he recognized her.
He froze up without realizing it.
"She looks super pretty, but watch out. Her yin energy is no joke."
"Yin energy... Agreed."
Fred gravely concurred, recalling the lewd silhouette from last night.
Damas chuckled at his tension and added,
"Of course, she's also my swordsmanship master now."
"...?"
Both prisoners looked puzzled.
Their personalities seemed total opposites—how could that be?
"Myoran likes diligent people. She won't mess with you if you're focused on training."
He proudly held up a finger and continued.
"Today, she only gave me that pitiful look twice. And she even tossed me some sword advice on the way by."
"So she's a swordswoman from the East?"
When Nix asked sharply, the golden retriever nodded.
"Yeah. She's got the title of Sword Sage. That's Swordmaster level in our Western terms."
"To think a frontier prison like this had another one besides Anje..."
The intel on yet another Swordmaster prisoner after Anje.
Nix's face grew serious as she took it in.
"Any other info? She's scary, so I wanna prepare ahead."
"Hmm... She's still 19, and seems to have had a rough school life. She was staring hard at my old graduation album uniform."
Fred's lips parted slightly.
The girl from last night was still a teen? Eastern continent girls developed that fast?
"That's kinda humanizing."
"Right? So I'm trying my best to talk to her."
Nix quickly sorted the info on Myoran.
Maybe she could even recruit her to the church and pull her into the Holy See's ranks.
"What about Prisoner Number One?"
"Lady Anje, huh. She's still tough for me to figure out. Hard to read what she's thinking."
Damas racked his brain to look reliable for his juniors.
"But I did learn one key thing recently."
"What is it?"
"Lately, every time the warden heads to the well for water, she peeks out the window?"
"...?"
Their eyes screamed, "What's important about that?"
Damas added in what he thought was a grave tone,
"Not just once or twice. She only does it when he goes out for water. And then, like she'd been waiting, she starts sketching away."
"Sketching?"
The blond man leaned in and whispered.
"Yeah. Looks like she's plotting something big against the warden. Poison, maybe?"
"Doubt it."
Nix tilted her head.
Anje's gaze on him yesterday had felt more friendly than hostile.
"... ."
The saintess silently watched them whispering.
In truth, it was a sketch of him with his white shirt wet from drinking water, but something she could never tell anyone.
She wanted to hurl Damas out the window herself, but held back for now.
She couldn't let her classmates—who only knew her haughty side—see her grinning creepily while drawing.
Thanks to that, they continued their chat uninterrupted.
"Got it. Can we ask you more if stuff comes up?"
"Anything. I'm thrilled to meet some normal people after so long."
A lifetime of having his ego crushed by overwhelmingly stronger women.
Finally, juniors he could play the reliable senior for—Damas was over the moon.
Fred and Nix watched him with bright smiles.
Thinking they'd secured a useful intel source, they left the cafeteria.
"... ."
After they left,
Damas casually stood and headed straight to the kitchen.
"Warden Derek."
"Oh, you talked to them?"
The smile vanished from Dark's eldest son's face.
He spoke with a face identical to the Grand Elder who'd once ruled the emperor and empire.
"They're definitely digging hard for intel on this place."
"You didn't give them anything useful, right?"
Since pledging loyalty to my side, he'd gotten serious.
True to his past as an army commander, he replied calmly.
"No way. Just fed them bullshit to build their trust."
"Good. Keep a close eye—make sure they don't pull anything weird."
Since the northern nobles swore fealty, Damas's attitude had shifted a lot.
Like his father, who seized opportunities fiercely, he was a cub lion ready to pounce.
"Of course. I can't stand shady groups like the Holy See either."
I peered intently out the window.
Outside, Fred and Nix were lightly strolling the prison grounds.
"At least they won't cause as much chaos as Anje."
I'll loosen the leash a bit and see how they act.
Pets show their true nature when left alone, after all.
"Not sure if we should be letting prisoners roam like this."
"Better this way. Let's scout the area and map some escape routes while we can."
Fred, his mind restored, spoke energetically.
He seemed recharged now that he was away from Myoran.
"Start with the back of the prison?"
"Sure."
The two set out to gather intel.
Fred in particular hustled, eager for payback after last night's humiliation.
They arrived at the prison's rear.
There was a small training ground and a vegetable patch.
"Security around here's pretty lax. Once the guardians arrive, it'd be perfect for a surprise attack."
As they cautiously surveyed,
they spotted a farmer in the field.
Wearing a straw hat, quietly tending tomatoes.
White smoke wafted faintly, like he was smoking a cigar.
"Local resident near the prison?"
"If he's local, he'll know the lay of the land. I'll go talk to him."
Fred strode boldly over.
Nix watched silently, noticing nothing off yet.
"Hey, you. Got a minute?"
One hand clutching a gold coin.
True to his ace candidate days, his voice was confident and overbearing.
"Any shortcuts to this prison? Help out, and I'll make it worth your while."
The farmer looked up at the offer.
That instant.
"Huh...?"
Nix, watching from afar, realized the straw-hatted man was an old guy.
And suddenly, a prison rule flashed in her mind.
The old man with the cigar in his mouth lightly tipped his hat brim.
His intense gaze fixed on him—not at all like an ordinary farmer.
"Hey, Fred... That guy's giving off weird vibes."
Her dazed mutter didn't reach Fred.
He just smirked at the old man's blank face and waved him off.
"One not enough, huh?"
Fred pulled out another gold coin from his activity funds and shoved it at the old man.
"This should do it? Not something a country bumpkin sees every day."
The old man's handsome face reflected in the gold coin.
Deep shadows fell over his sharp eyes.
Like a pride leader eyeing a gazelle that dared enter his territory.
"Looks like the young ones have gotten real lax on discipline while I've been away."
Grand Elder Dark.
The political heavyweight who'd been practicing farming nearby while his son was in the camp.
He could bend nobles to his will, but these tomatoes wouldn't listen, already frustrating him.
Now this Fred shows up, and his eyes gleamed ominously.
"Don't kids these days know to greet their elders?"
The boy froze at the familiar overwhelming killing intent.
It felt just like last night's.
"Huh...?"
Only then did he recall Prison Rule #3.