Ch.146Chapter 146 – The Back Alley Information Broker Guild

The first emotion I felt upon seeing Beatrice was irritation.

“Damn it, why did you jump out of the window wearing a hood?”

If she hadn’t come out wearing a hood, I wouldn’t have come all the way here.

At my words, Beatrice began to grumble.

“I was trying not to wake anyone up.”

Perhaps because I was irritated, there was annoyance mixed in her voice too.

“Anyway, who’s going to protect everyone if you come out?”

“What about you? Who’s going to protect the kids if you come out?”

“I didn’t think it would be you jumping out of there.”

At my words, Beatrice let out a deep sigh.

“Ah, I prepared the dummy for nothing.”

“Dummy?”

“After I left, I made a dummy and set it up to sound like I was breathing so the kids wouldn’t worry about me being gone. But you jumped out from the next room instead.”

So that’s why I mistakenly thought everyone was in the room.

Since I could hear all the breathing sounds from the room, I hadn’t even considered that Beatrice might be missing until I came here.

“If I’d known this would happen, I wouldn’t have come out on impulse.”

“Wait, you came out without a plan?”

“Yes.”

Her confident answer left me speechless.

While I was staring blankly at her in slight disbelief, she took out a cigarette from her pocket and lit it.

“Anyway, I’ve put up a barrier around our room, so it should be safe for now, don’t worry.”

“A barrier?”

“A magic that sounds an alarm if someone I don’t recognize tries to enter at night.”

I was about to say that magic didn’t seem to work, but then I realized.

“The condition is people you don’t recognize?”

“That’s right. You’re probably exempt from the magic.”

Because Beatrice recognizes my existence.

That’s why there was no sign of magic activating when I opened the window.

“…But you’re drunk. Can you be certain there were no mistakes?”

Beatrice, who had just finished her cigarette, tossed it behind her and grinned.

Then she immediately grabbed her head.

“Ow, my head. Even if I’m a bit drunk, don’t worry about that level of barrier spell. I don’t make mistakes with those.”

That actually makes me more anxious.

For now, since she said it was fine, I should let it go and ask what she intended to do by coming out.

“What were you planning to do out here?”

“I woke up thirsty, and since I was already up, I thought I might as well get some work done.”

“Work?”

Does she have other jobs besides driving the carriage?

At that moment, Beatrice narrowed her eyes and said:

“You thought my only job was driving carriages, didn’t you?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Don’t lie. I can read you like a book.”

Was I really that simple?

I unconsciously wanted to sit down in defeat.

Then Beatrice chuckled and said:

“Besides, I have another job. You know about it, right?”

“What is it?”

“Guess.”

Beatrice said with a grin.

The smell of alcohol and cigarettes emanating from her made me nod immediately.

“Drunkard.”

“Not that.”

“Chain smoker.”

“No, not that. You know, right?”

I’m not going to give you the answer you want.

Actually, I knew the answer, but I was deliberately giving wrong answers.

“…I see now, you’re intentionally giving wrong answers.”

Beatrice sighed and said:

“When you and I first met, you know.”

“Kidnapper?”

“Information broker!”

Beatrice said, showing a bit of anger.

Then, with a deflated expression, she continued:

“…Anyway, since I’m an information broker and couldn’t sleep, I thought I’d go get some information.”

“What kind of information?”

“Hmm… about places we’re heading to, and a few things I want to know.”

After saying that, Beatrice waved her hand dismissively.

“Now that you know, go back and sleep. It won’t take long.”

Beatrice said that and turned around, disappearing into the alley.

And I followed her as I watched her go.

“Why are you following me?”

“Since you said you’ll finish quickly, I thought it would be better to stay together and go back together.”

Beatrice gave me a strange look.

“Anyway, my head was hurting a bit and I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d get some fresh air too.”

“You… never mind.”

Beatrice let out a deep sigh.

Then she immediately grinned and said:

“Well then, shall we go find the back-alley information broker together?”

I nodded to Beatrice, who gestured toward me like some butler, and headed inside.

“By the way, how did you know there was an information broker here?”

“When I was buying alcohol earlier today, I noticed there was an information broker. I have some information I could sell too, so I thought I’d sell some and get some in return.”

Beatrice said that while glancing around slightly.

“Looks like we need to go deeper. By the way, information brokers have something like a guild too.”

“You seem to belong to quite a variety of places.”

She’s affiliated with the adventurer’s guild, the magic tower, and now an information broker guild.

If we dig deeper, I feel like there might be even more.

Beatrice grinned and said:

“A beauty like me is welcomed anywhere.”

“That’s not wrong.”

Despite not wanting to admit it because of her usual behavior, she is definitely what you’d call a beauty in terms of appearance.

It’s her behavior that’s the issue.

“What? Isn’t this the timing where you’re supposed to criticize me for talking nonsense?”

“I should acknowledge what deserves acknowledgment.”

When I unexpectedly agreed, Beatrice turned her face away.

The slight twitch at the corner of her mouth suggested she was pleased.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she asked:

“Since we’re talking about me being a beauty, who among our companions is your type?”

“What are you, some old man? I’m exercising my right to remain silent.”

Beatrice was about to ask something more.

But her expression suddenly changed as she looked elsewhere.

“We were being watched.”

“……”

The previously joking atmosphere disappeared, replaced by tense vigilance.

After a moment, Beatrice relaxed and said:

“Seems they’ve stopped their foolishness after realizing we noticed.”

“Really?”

“They deal with information. If they’re slow to catch on, they die quickly.”

Beatrice looked around with a grin.

Then she opened her mouth.

“Who’s the Collector?”

Collector.

It was a title I’d never heard before.

‘Do they call them Collectors because they collect information from here and there?’

While I was thinking that it made sense, a man emerged from the alley next to us.

He was holding a lantern and wearing a hood.

“…Customers?”

“You could say that.”

“Follow me.”

Brief conversation.

But as if this was already familiar to her, Beatrice skillfully followed him inside.

As I moved my body inside following her, it happened.

[Oh right, I forgot to tell you.]

‘Huh?’

Suddenly, Beatrice’s voice echoed in my head.

Noticing my slight confusion, her voice echoed again.

[Don’t look around like a rookie. Just stand behind me without saying anything.]

When I looked at Beatrice, she just nodded slightly.

She was using magic to speak to me.

As if no response was needed, Beatrice’s voice continued one-sidedly.

[And I use the name ‘Ari’ with information brokers, so remember that.]

With that, Beatrice’s words ended.

‘She’s using an alias.’

If she had nothing to hide, there would be no need for an alias.

Besides, until I heard it from Beatrice today, I hadn’t heard that information brokers had a guild.

In fact, this information broker guild might be quite a dangerous place.

I tensed up a bit and carefully recalled Beatrice’s warning.

Meanwhile, after turning through several more dilapidated back alleys, we saw a tavern with a worn-out sign.

“Here it is.”

The man opened the door first and went in.

Then he approached the empty bar, went behind the counter, and spoke to Beatrice.

“So, your name?”

“Ari.”

The man briefly examined what looked like a register.

Then, narrowing his eyes, he said:

“Don’t you work in the capital?”

“I haven’t been attracting many clients lately. I was traveling around here on vacation.”

“Go back.”

The man said coldly.

“This isn’t your territory.”

“Come on, don’t be like that.”

Beatrice grinned and said:

“Times are tough, so let’s share what we can eat, okay?”

“What can you offer?”

Beatrice grinned.

When she gestured, the man handed her paper and a pen.

After writing a few words, she passed the paper to him, and he frowned slightly as he read the contents.

‘What could it be?’

[Various dirty stories about the Emiris Order.]

Beatrice spoke to me again using only magic.

[By the way, I left out the story about you and the test subjects, since there’s too little concrete evidence.]

Come to think of it, when I hired Beatrice as an information broker, she was also dealing with information related to the Emiris Order.

What I had asked for was to investigate people entering and leaving the Emiris Church in the capital.

“Is this reliable?”

“Yes.”

Beatrice answered confidently.

And when she smiled and wrote a few more words, the man’s expression became even more furrowed.

“So, how much will you give me for this?”

Beatrice grinned.

The man sighed once.

He seemed to be contemplating as he looked at the information Beatrice had written down.

Then he looked at Beatrice.

“What do you want?”

“Recent news from the capital, the latest news from here, and also the latest news from Florence or the kingdom, which I hear is in turmoil. I’ll write it down.”

“Make sure you write down proper information too.”

Beatrice nodded and gestured for me to step back.

Apparently, peeking is forbidden.

As I stepped back slightly, I saw them briefly writing down the titles of the information they wanted to buy and passing them to each other. From the way they were writing again, it seemed they were providing the information the other party wanted.

“Hmm, I see.”

“It was quite interesting information, but I can’t give you more than this.”

At the man’s words, Beatrice smiled.

And then.

She immediately reached out and grabbed the man by the collar.

“Hey, where do you get off trying to scam me?”

“W-what…?”

The man spoke in apparent confusion.

And Beatrice was looking at him with cold eyes.

“I’m really dumbfounded. I asked for the latest news from Florence or the kingdom, but where did you get this nonsense rumor about a dead princess being alive and causing all this commotion?”

‘What’s going on?’

I looked at Beatrice, wondering why she was reacting so sharply.

But Beatrice didn’t say anything else and just glared at the man.

The man struggled to speak.

“The, the evidence…”

“Show me. Which princess, who, where was she sighted?”

As Beatrice coldly glared at him, he briefly rolled his eyes.

“Look at you rolling your eyes. You can’t answer because there is no answer.”

Beatrice chuckled and put the man down.

“This is the kind of baseless fiction that only little kids in the neighborhood would enjoy for its romance. You know, the story where a princess who had nothing gets caught up in a power struggle between her father and uncle, nearly dies, manages to escape, disguises her identity for survival, gets involved with someone, and after various events, they fall in love and get married. Is this small town so desperate that people buy this kind of story?”

‘That’s quite detailed.’

It was so detailed that I thought she should write a novel herself.

The way it came out so readily made me suspect she might have actually thought about such a story before.

“…Hah, so you caught me.”

The Collector laughed dryly, confirming it was indeed fiction.

And Beatrice laughed triumphantly.

“Did you think I wouldn’t be able to tell the truth from such baseless rumors?”

She said that, but her eyes were cold.

Was she not going to forgive him for trying to give her fake information?

But Beatrice soon smiled.

“Well, even Collectors make mistakes once or twice. Right?”

“…Hah, fine.”

The man wrote down one piece of information and gave it to her.

Only then did Beatrice smile with satisfaction.

“It was a meaningful exchange, wasn’t it?”

The man looked at Beatrice with displeasure, but soon smiled back.

“You’re not an easy woman.”

“The capital is such a rough place. You can tell by how well I do business.”

“Didn’t you say business was bad and you were traveling around on vacation?”

The man waved his hand with a smile.

“Get out of here.”

“It was a good deal, Collector~”

Beatrice smiled and turned around.

[Let’s go now. Don’t look around as we leave.]

Her voice echoed in my head once more.

+

“…So, it was a test in the middle?”

“Yes. It was information he made up on the spot.”

As we walked back, Beatrice explained what had happened earlier.

“No information broker gives all their information straightforwardly. When exchanging information, they usually mix in one or two fake pieces.”

“Did you mix some in too?”

“Ah, I only tell things that are true and certain. No lies, okay?”

I nodded at Beatrice’s words.

“So it’s the ‘I didn’t lie’ type.”

There’s that kind of thing.

Like when you complain that food described as delicious is too bitter, and they say since it has a bitter taste, saying it’s delicious isn’t a lie.

Beatrice laughed at my comment.

“You know it well? Still, since I didn’t actually lie, my credibility is quite high.”

“Isn’t it more like notoriety?”

Beatrice laughed at my words.

Still, she added reassuringly that she gives clients what they pay for, unlike information brokers.

“By the way, you seemed really familiar with that place. It felt like you’ve been dealing with them for a long time.”

It definitely didn’t seem like a day or two of contact.

At my words, Beatrice smiled coldly and said:

“…To deal with that Order and Somnus, you know. I needed to extend my reach to various places.”

Beatrice stopped there.

“That must have been hard.”

“It was.”

Beatrice hesitated for a moment.

It was somewhat awkward.

‘Come to think of it, it’s been a while since Beatrice and I talked alone.’

Usually when we talk, there’s always someone like Sera or Christina around.

I don’t think we’ve had many conversations just the two of us.

Beatrice seemed to have noticed this point too.

“It feels like it’s been a while since we talked like this, just the two of us.”

“A while?”

“Yes.”

Beatrice seemed to be thinking about the past.

“Seriously, I never thought we’d be traveling together like this back then.”

“I agree. How did we end up here together?”

Responding to Beatrice’s words, I decided to go through it step by step.

“First, a drunk suddenly came at me, then as an information broker, then as a kidnapper, and fighting at a terrorist scene…”

“…Hey, how are we really traveling together now?”

A moment of silence fell between us.

And soon the answer came.

“I guess we just went with the flow and ended up like this.”

“I see.”

Maybe it happened because it felt natural.

I was about to make such a joke when I saw Beatrice’s face.

She seemed to be contemplating something.

And as if she had made up her mind, she looked at me and opened her mouth.

“…Togu.”

“Yes?”

“What do you think about traveling with me?”

Beatrice’s eyes were serious.