episode_0075

When Laura brought Elena to me, it was as if she had been kidnapped.

Elena entered the room with Laura’s shoulder draped around her, and no matter how much she struggled to resist, it was no use.

Laura put Elena down across from me and sat down next to me.

“What on earth is this? Do you think a slave would dare kidnap a nobleman and get away with it?”

“That slave could easily kill you. Tsk tsk tsk.”

“Hee profit!”

Elena was so frightened by Laura’s playful threat that she shivered.

I chuckled because it looked kind of cute.

Elena, who had a pretty face and strangely resembled Veronica’s older sister, only looked like she was in middle school.

Elena, who had an unusual drill-shaped hairstyle, looked back and forth between me and Laura with very nervous eyes and gulped.

“Laura, please keep your jokes in moderation. It’s pitiful.”

“Surely you liked this young lady?”

“No, you’re too young. And I don’t think I can say anything in this state.”

With one sharp cut, I clearly showed that I was not interested in Elena.

No matter what, I am not so trash that I would touch a minor.

There was something subtle about Laura’s gaze when she looked at me like that, and I don’t know if she was satisfied with my attitude or if she didn’t understand my choice.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Elena. My name is Rebecca.”

“Uh, uh, how do you say my name…”

“I also have my own information network. But why did you come to the meeting place and not Baron Maxian, who sent the letter?”

“The person who sent the letter was not you, but me. I did that on purpose.”

Oh my, what a cheeky kid!

I was so nervous, but I never thought I’d just been fooled by a fake letter from a noblewoman who didn’t know anything about this world.

Suddenly, the tension was relieved and I let out a sigh.

“I’m sorry for lying. But I desperately need help. So I had no choice.”

Elena hastily apologized to me and complained of her desperation.

It didn’t seem like he was lying, but I felt uncomfortable thinking that I had been deceived from the beginning.

“If it’s something unbecoming, you’d better be prepared.”

“Well, it’s not like that. If you don’t stop my brother, the city will come to an end.”

“Really? What on earth can Baron Maxian do?”

“Brother studied monsters with people wearing strange masks. And soon, they plan to spread devil parasite eggs in the city’s water supply and infect everyone.”

Elena quickly exposed the crazy thing Maxian was trying to do without even taking a breath.

The fact that Maxian was in league with the maskers wasn’t particularly surprising, but what they were trying to do together was horrifying.

Until now, I had thought of Maxian as a crazy stalker who was spreading evil rumors.

However, if what Elena said is true, Maxian is not just a crazy person, but he is clearly a bastard who is worse than trash no matter what he swears at.

“For what reason?”

“Because it’s fun.”

“Yes?”

“Onii-sama is doing it for fun. Ever since I was young, I liked torturing weak animals and people, and since becoming a baron, I have also been committing murder as a hobby. And now I even want to slaughter for fun.”

“Star crazy…”

I was speechless.

If you’re going to go crazy, you have to go crazy in a good way, or I don’t know why you always go crazy like this and cause harm to many people.

It’s really the worst thing that a bastard who should have been locked up in a mental hospital for the rest of his life or sentenced to death has inherited a title and gone on a rampage, even trying to kill all the citizens he was supposed to take care of.

“That’s right. He’s definitely a crazy person. I tried to stop it somehow, but there was no way. When I fell in love with Veronica, I pretended to be normal, but after she married Brother Alon, my condition got worse than before.”

“I understand why you tried to kill Veronica.”

“Yes. My brother mobilized the Darius mercenaries, which he treated like a private army, but they failed. Thanks to you.”

Wow, it looks like the rumor spread farther than I expected.

If Maxian’s younger brother knows it, then Maxian obviously knows everything.

Wait, I heard that Maxian inherited the title by killing all his siblings and threatening to imprison his parents. Why is Elena alive?

“I knew well that Maxian was a crazy person. But who are you?”

“What does that mean?”

“I heard that Maxian killed all his brothers and sisters to inherit his title.”

“I didn’t kill him but imprisoned him because he was my only younger brother.”

“That crazy guy is just for that reason?”

I glared at Elena with suspicious eyes, and Laura growled and even threatened her.

Then, Elena was so embarrassed and didn’t know what to do, that she opened her mouth in tears.

“Actually, that’s… He said that I should have his child because I look like Veronica… He hasn’t laid his hands on me yet, but it wouldn’t be strange if something like that happened at some point.”

The words that came out of Elena’s mouth were so shocking that both Laura and I looked dumbfounded.

It would be nice if what she said was an outright lie, but judging by the atmosphere, it was clear that it was the truth.

No, what can I do with such a young child?

Absolutely fucking shit! You crazy, incestuous bastard.

I was so disgusted by what Maxian was trying to do that I felt like I was going to vomit, and I wanted to immediately wash my ears from hearing the dirty words.

“That’s enough. You don’t have to say any more. I was wrong.”

“Do you trust me?”

“Yes, if that was just acting, it could fool even the gods.”

“Thank you for trusting me.”

Elena took the new handkerchief I offered her and wiped her tears.

This is already the third woman crying in front of me today.

“I have been locked up since before my brother forcibly took over the title, but today I escaped from the mansion thanks to Alicia. And Alicia told me to ask for help because you guys are capable enough to destroy Darius’ mercenary group.”

“Why did Alicia ask me to do something that she could have told us directly?”

“Unni didn’t negotiate with my brother to get me out, but she secretly let me escape while my brother was confused by the mercenary group. Since my brother holds the real power of this city, Alicia, who has not yet inherited the title, cannot protect me properly with her power.”

what? Alicia’s power is weaker than you think.

I thought he would be higher than a baron because he was the heir of a lord, but in any case, it seems that without a title, there is bound to be a difference in power even among the same noble.

And since Maxian is also the mayor of Rizerca, he can be said to be the most powerful person, at least in this city.

In other words, it means that Alicia cannot control Maxian until she ascends to the position of lord.

And the reason Maxian goes on a rampage even in front of the lord’s successor is probably because the current lord is neglecting him or taking his side.

Otherwise, there is no way Maxian could continue to reign as mayor of this city despite continuing all kinds of inhumane evil deeds.

In the end, I think Alicia is trying to outsource the problem to me because she cannot solve the problem within the existing framework.

I already feel like I’ve fallen into a dirty political trap.

“So, Alicia’s power is limited in letting Elena escape, and then Elena has to solve the problem herself, but Alicia happened to introduce us, right?”

“Yes. He said you guys could at least get me to a safe place. But I want to stop my brother from killing all the people in this city for fun. If killing my brother is the way, I will gladly do so.”

“Elena, I can understand the noble meaning at the time. But if you hire us, you need a fair price. You can’t risk your life just out of a sense of justice.”

I conveyed my true feelings truthfully.

I feel sorry for Elena, but I have experienced first-hand that working with the masker is a very dangerous thing, so as I told her, there is a price to pay.

Of course, I don’t think we can just sit by and watch innocent people, including the villagers who cherish Iris, be massacred.

So, in part, I asked Elena for a reward to see how seriously she was considering the situation and whether she could show sincerity.

“First of all, I will take responsibility for all the sins you committed while helping me. And when my brother dies, his title and property will all be inherited by me, and I will also transfer them all to you.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Yes! I must stop my brother at all costs. If you ask for my body too, I will gladly…”

“Stop! Don’t say things like that anywhere. Cherish your body. All I want is no legal liability and enough money. I don’t need anything else.”

I ended up raising my voice against Elena, who was showing unnecessarily high resolve for a girl who was still quite young.

No matter how greedy and perverted I am, it would be impossible for me to do something so shameless as to demand sex from Elena, who is a minor.

Also, no matter how things progress in the future, I have absolutely no intention of trying to add Elena to my harem.

She’s too young right now, and even if she were over 20 years old, I don’t think I would feel any more feelings for her than a younger sibling.

“Then are you really going to stop your brother with just that?”

“It’s not something I can decide alone, so please give me some time.”

“Do you also consult with slaves?”

“Of course. Because they are the people I love.”

“Ah… I see. I’m sorry.”

Elena apologized while looking at Laura’s eyes.

I never thought I would see a noble lady being so scared and irritable towards a slave.

I unconsciously reached out and stroked Elena’s hair.

Elena looked a little surprised at first, but then obediently accepted my touch.

“If you decide not to fight Maxian, don’t worry, we will take you to a safe place. And please stay with us until the work is completed.”

“Is that really okay?”

“Of course. You can get a good reward from Alicia later.”

“Thank you, Rebecca.”

Elena said with a cute smile.

I felt better because I felt like I had a younger sibling who was much older than me.

I will definitely put an end to Maxian, who harbors obscene desires for such a cute girl.

“Elena, let’s eat first.”

“Oh, no. are you okay. I’m hungry.”

“If you want to live with us, lying is prohibited.”

“Actually, I was extremely hungry. I haven’t eaten anything since morning.”

Elena said with a shy expression.

It’s like when I first saw Iris.

“Then I will buy it for you, so eat it with peace of mind.”

“Thank you. I will definitely pay you back next time.”

I don’t know how the person who said he would give me all his assets once the work was done could say that he would repay me for the expensive food.

Well, I really don’t plan on taking all my money, so I guess I can repay the food expenses as much as I want.

‘First of all, I’ll have to meet Alicia tomorrow and discuss this issue further. And looking at the contents of the letter that Elena sent, it looks like Alicia knows what I brought from the mercenary group. Maybe it’s what Alicia wanted. ‘It would be nice if I could use it as a negotiation card.’

Although I was worried, I smiled when I saw Laura eating well as always, and Elena eating just as happily as Laura.

It might be dangerous to take Elena tomorrow, so let’s leave it to Laura and Iris.

After we finished eating, we made sure to hide Elena’s appearance and went back to the village where Iris was playing.

Iris was chatting with her friends, but as soon as she saw us, she said goodbye to her friends and got up.

When I saw the regretful eyes of my friends, I felt sorry for coming so early.

“Rebecca, you arrived later than expected?”

“The letter was not sent by Maxian, but by this young lady.”

When Iris looked puzzled, I showed her a glimpse of Elena’s face.

Then Iris looked very surprised and her eyes widened.

“Lady Elena? Is this really Elena?”

“Yeah, it’s been a while. Iris.”

Elena said a little shyly and Iris hugged her.

Then Elena carefully raised her hand and hugged Iris.

From the looks of it, the two of them used to be quite close.

“I’m so glad you’re safe. I thought he passed away like everyone else.”

“I’m really glad you’re alive too. I’m sorry, you and your parents went through that because of our family…”

“No. It’s not for Lady Elena to apologize. You tried to protect us somehow.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“Miss, how did you send the letter?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Elena briefly explained to Iris what had happened so far.

When Iris heard that we might go to stop Maxian, her eyes became fierce.

It was clear that he was looking for revenge, but he asked me first whether I had time to care for the opposite sex.

“What do you want to do, Rebecca?”

“I came to get you so that we could discuss the matter together. Let’s go back to the hotel and talk about it.”

“Yes, Rebecca.”

Fortunately, Iris complied with my wishes, and after giving her enough time to say goodbye to the villagers, we headed to the hotel with everyone else.