episode_0077

When I returned to the hotel, the first person to greet me was Elena, not Laura and Iris.

As soon as you open the door, it runs up to you, making you feel like a puppy greeting its owner after work.

Laura and Iris left Elena in charge of picking me up and welcomed me with lovely smiles from behind.

“Welcome! How about this? Does it suit you well?”

Elena wore a headband with decorations that looked like fox ears and showed it off to me.

The decorations are so well made that they look like real fox ears, so if only the original ears are covered with hair, people who don’t know her will be able to easily fool them.

“It suits you really well.”

“Heeheehee. Iris bought it for me. Since I need to hide my identity anyway, I’ll be pretending to be a fox from now on. Awww!”

“Elena, the beast people do not cry like animals.”

“I know. I just followed along.”

Elena looked slightly pouty at my point.

So I patted her head and kept saying cute things to her, and Elena’s face turned bright red and she got angry.

Ah, I’m so glad that I have a younger sibling who is much older than me.

“Stop touching me now.”

“Oh, something felt good so I kept touching it.”

“I don’t hate it either… But what did Alicia say?”

“Please say you are in trouble because you cannot find Maxian’s secret laboratory. So he asked me to cooperate.”

“It would have been nice if I had known the exact location.”

Elena knew of Maxian’s evil plan, but unfortunately, she did not know where his secret laboratory was.

According to her, Maxian always covered her eyes and ears, took her to his secret laboratory, and forced her to see it.

Elena says she saw a lot of really terrible things there, and judging by the description, it is presumed that it also included failed hybrids of humans and demons.

Maxian always boasted about what was happening in his secret laboratory, and Elena said it was very painful.

I felt sorry for Elena, who had suffered a lot of abuse because of her crazy older brother, and yet I thought it was amazing that Elena showed a lot of bright side.

“It’s not Elena’s fault. I think we have done enough just by making Maxian’s plan known to the outside world.”

“You always take my side?”

“That’s because I promised to do my best to protect Elena and stop Maxian.”

At what I said, Elena’s face brightened with joy and she smiled shyly.

I could tell she was grateful to me even if she didn’t express it in words.

I had a serious discussion about this issue yesterday with Laura and Iris.

Laura said that since it wasn’t usually dangerous, let’s just focus on protecting Elena, and Iris insisted that Maxian’s plot should be prevented somehow.

Laura and Iris, who always get along well, got into a fight this time and raised their voices.

The atmosphere was especially bad when Laura said why should we risk our lives for people we have nothing to do with?

From Laura’s point of view, this is true, but from Iris’s point of view, it would have sounded like she was telling her to abandon all the villagers who still remember and cherish her.

If Laura hadn’t immediately admitted that she had made a mistake, her relationship with Iris might have hit rock bottom right away.

After much thought, I decided to go on a dangerous adventure for the sake of the villagers who cherish Iris and the innocent people who live in this city, instead of choosing to protect only Elena.

Of course, I can definitely say that my personal vendetta had the biggest influence on my decision.

I wanted to make Maxian pay for tormenting Iris and trying to kill me and Veronica.

Laura reluctantly accepted my decision, and Iris admired my decision and declared that she would give her all to help me.

And just as we reached that conclusion, Elena gave me a surprise hug.

“Thank you.”

“Elana, you always say thank you.”

“I learned it from my parents. He said that when you receive help, you must show gratitude.”

“I see.”

I didn’t say much when Elena mentioned her parents.

Elena believes her parents are still locked up somewhere, but I think that’s highly unlikely.

Now that Maxian has inherited the title, he will no longer need his parents.

Still, for Elena’s sake, I hope her parents are still alive.

“Rebecca, I’m talking about research. Can’t I go too?”

“No.”

“But if you put on makeup…”

“People passing by may not recognize me, but will Maxian and his subordinates not recognize me?”

Elena ended up keeping her mouth shut at the seriousness of what I said.

He didn’t pout this time, but it was clear he was upset.

Still, I’m glad I didn’t insist on going.

If that were the case, I would still be worried even if I somehow stopped it now and went back to work.

Even though Elena was an aristocratic girl who didn’t know much about the world, she was quick-witted and I liked that.

“Sorry, I was being too immature.”

“Elena feels a great sense of responsibility to stop what Maxian is trying to do, so she feels she must do something.”

“But there’s nothing I can do. So I should listen carefully to what you say.”

“In the future, when this matter is successfully completed, become a Baron and provide relief to those who have been harmed. I think that’s what Elena would do.”

“Yes! I’ll do really well then. Anyway, since it was a crime committed by my family, I will take responsibility until the end.”

I patted Elena’s head one more time as she said something special.

In fact, it’s impossible for a commoner to dare to pat a noble’s head, but I kept putting my hand on Elena’s head, and she willingly stuck her head out to me.

I wonder what would happen if I accidentally end up stroking Elena’s hair in front of Alicia later, but I’ll have to think about that later.

“Rebecca, when will you start conducting the investigation?”

“I’m going out with you right now, so get ready.”

“Yes, Rebecca.”

I ordered Laura to accompany me, and she quickly prepared to go out.

I changed from my pajamas into suitable clothes, put on my magic armor, and checked the condition of my firearm.

Meanwhile, Iris came closer to me and made a sad expression.

“Rebecca, won’t I go with you?”

“You must protect Elena by your side.”

“Still, I’m worried about Rebecca because the opponent is Maxian.”

“It’s okay. It’s not dangerous because it’s just about finding the location of the secret lab.”

I comforted Iris with a deep kiss, who seemed to have all her worries taken care of.

Although it was just a familiar expression of affection, it was still a provocative scene for Elena, so she ran away, covering her red face with her hands.

At 15, you probably already know everything, but Elena seems really innocent.

Later, when the day comes that Elena is dating someone… Why do I feel like I have to go out with a shotgun?

It’s only been a day since we’ve known each other, but I already think it’s ridiculous that I’m making such a fuss.

“Rebecca, you need to change your clothes too.”

“Oh, look at my mind.”

I thought about something strange for a moment, but as soon as Laura pointed it out, I quickly took off the uncomfortable dress.

Alicia gave me the dress as a gift, but I don’t know how many times I will wear it in the future.

Anyway, I decided to think about it later and changed into comfortable, comfortable clothes and packed all the necessary items, including magic armor.

“I also like clothes like this. Iris, I’m sorry for taking on such a difficult task, but I’ll still ask you to take care of me.”

“Yes, just leave it to me. I’m used to taking care of Lady Elena.”

“If you are attacked by an enemy or an emergency occurs, run away straight to the special store and go to Sister Veronica’s mansion.”

“We’ve already secured an escape route, so don’t worry.”

“Yes. Then I’ll come back.”

Laura and I hugged Iris once.

And then I hugged Elena, who appeared in front of me again and stretched out both hands, and then I closed the door to the guest room and left.

As soon as Laura got out of the hotel, she reached out and grabbed the sleeve, not even my hand.

Is there something you want to say? If not…

“Laura, are you jealous of Elena now?”

Laura did not answer my question but just nodded.

Her cheeks turned red, perhaps because she was embarrassed by the current situation of feeling jealous of someone much younger than her.

I just loved Elena like I would a younger sister, and Laura seemed to be jealous of that.

“Rebecca, am I a bit pathetic?”

“No, it’s just lovely.”

“Don’t make fun of me.”

“It’s not like that. On the contrary, I am grateful that you tolerate my jealousy so well.”

I grinned while stroking Laura’s hot cheek.

Then Laura leaned into my arms and buried her face in my chest.

“Rebecca, why are you always so kind to others? Sometimes I hate it because it seems like there is no difference in the way they treat me. It’s natural for Iris, but for others…”

“That’s because of the personality I was born with. If possible, I don’t want to say bad things to others and I want to spend my time smiling. I guess it’s because I have a lot of unnecessary sympathy and a weak heart.”

“I still hate Rebecca risking her life for Elena. No matter how much you insist that you have received enough compensation, in the end, you are driven by a sense of justice.”

“Laura, you always see into my inner thoughts. That’s right, money is just an excuse. I can’t forgive Maxian for trying to kill Veronica, and I can’t ignore the tears of Iris, Elena, and countless other people who suffered because of Maxian.”

“Rebecca is not a warrior. You clearly told me that you wanted to live as you pleased, differently from when you lived in your hometown. But why do you want to take the lead in such a dangerous and difficult task?”

“No matter what the cause, stopping Maxian somehow is what I want to do most right now. I’m already living as I want, just like you said.”

Even in my own opinion, I said something that bordered on sophistry.

People who want to enjoy their new life and live to the fullest are suffering because of their desire for revenge.

It’s understandable that Laura is worried about me.

However, I feel like I have to kill Maxian at all costs to be relieved.

Veronica and I almost died because of that crazy bastard, but if I just let this go, I’d be a really pathetic, brat.

I will kill Maxian whenever I feel like it.

I clenched my fist in revenge, and Laura stretched out her hand and wrapped my fist tightly.

“I understand Rebecca’s thoughts. So, I will not complain anymore and will actively follow Rebecca’s wishes.”

“Thank you. I will also be as careful as possible so that you do not become disappointed or sad.”

“Don’t worry, I will be by your side and protect you thoroughly.”

As always, Laura was opposed to my decision, but when I made a confident decision, she immediately became loyal.

This is something I have been ordering from Laura for a long time, so there was no reason to feel bad about it.

Unless you’re a superhuman, I think that if you surround yourself with yes men, it’s only a matter of time before you take the shortcut to destruction.

That’s why we always entrust difficult roles to our loved ones.

I’m sure Laura won’t be at peace, so I think I’ll have to physically comfort her after today’s work.

Hmm… then it would be better to get a separate room, right? Because you can’t have sex openly with Elena around.

“Then where do you want to go first?”

“Wait a moment.”

I set the route to the closest place among the addresses I uploaded to the map window early on.

At first, I thought all but one of the addresses had nothing to do with Rezerka, but thanks to Veronica, I was able to find out that they were all addresses within Rezerka’s walls.

There are a total of six addresses on the real estate deed, excluding the house where Iris lived, and one of them is Maxian’s villa, which has the highest security.

Just looking at the atmosphere, it seems like there is a secret research lab in the basement of the villa, but the atmosphere itself could be a deception, so I think I’ll have to look around everywhere else first.

‘If all the places, including the villa, are not related to the secret laboratory, then you are doing the right thing, but there will definitely be a place among these that is connected to the secret laboratory.’

I am convinced that, as Alicia shared, Maxian has set up a secret laboratory somewhere on Rizerka and is managing it himself.

If there was a secret lab outside the city or an entrance to a passage leading to the research center, Maxian would have been seen frequently going out of the city.

However, according to Alicia and Elena, Maxian is a person who has almost never been outside the city in his life.

Therefore, even if there is no secret laboratory among these addresses, it is certain that a secret laboratory exists somewhere in Rizerka.

So Alicia asked me to investigate the address on the real estate deed, but also said she would conduct her own investigation into other suspicious areas.

“I have a feeling that there might be a secret research lab in Maxian’s villa, but just in case, let’s look at other places first. I’ll show you the way.”

I held Laura’s hand and walked side by side with her.

It’s not like I’m going on a date, but I’m going to work where I could be exposed to a dangerous situation at any time.