Ch.162Chapter 162. Occupational Hazard

[I know your true identity. Francesca.]

After returning to her room upon completing her business, Cheska discovered a note on her bed and fell into deep thought.

It wasn’t difficult to identify who had left it.

She had already thoroughly verified the abilities of the expedition members, including examining all of their handwriting.

‘This isn’t good.’

Indeed, this situation could not be considered good at all.

According to her original plan, she was supposed to assist him, who was called the most excellent hero in the empire, to gain an opportunity to approach the imperial leadership. But who would have thought the other party would identify her true identity first?

‘I need to keep my identity hidden until the decisive moment. I can’t gauge what they’re thinking or whether they’re friendly toward me.’

Fortunately, there were no signs of being enchanted by vampires, but she still didn’t know to what extent he had established relationships with the imperial court that had been consumed by inhuman beings.

In such circumstances, having her identity exposed was a painful mistake.

If she wasn’t careful, starting with her identity, her mission to save the empire could collapse in a chain reaction.

‘How much has been exposed… No, if they know my real name, they probably know everything.’

If they merely knew she was an automaton, that would be one thing, but if they specifically claimed to know her identity, they likely understood the empire’s hidden history and her activities as well.

The only fortunate thing was that there were no signs of being enchanted by vampires, which meant they were likely separate from the imperial court.

‘I need to figure out how to proceed from here… For that, I need to meet with this person privately.’

And if she determined they hadn’t revealed her identity to others yet, she needed to somehow get them to promise to keep her identity confidential.

She would need to persuade them without harming their social position… if necessary, she was prepared to sacrifice even her body and dignity.

‘Even if I have to… transfer ownership of myself to that person.’

The moment she considered this, she felt the magical core that substituted for her heart begin to pound.

Thump, thump. The sensation of energy coursing through her entire body.

For humans, this would probably be defined as “anticipation.”

‘Anticipation? Why would I feel that when the situation could turn out terribly?’

“Lady Flandor? Lady Flandor?”

As she was feeling confused, a voice called from outside the door.

Only then did Cheska come to her senses, tucking the note into her bosom and turning her gaze toward the open door.

Standing there was a familiar face.

It was Deputy Officer Sanson, who was in charge of commanding the expedition members.

“Did… you call for me?”

But the title he used didn’t resonate with Cheska.

Her identity was Francesca, the great anti-monster weapon, not the noble Flandor.

“Ah yes, I thought you might be hungry, so I brought something to eat during the banquet… Have I committed an impropriety?”

“…No, thank you for your consideration.”

Nevertheless, committed to her role, Cheska accepted the food Sanson offered and bowed her head in gratitude.

Yes, a noble had just bowed her head to a mere soldier.

“…Mr. Sanson?”

“Ah, yes, ah, it’s nothing.”

Cheska tilted her head, not understanding Sanson’s flustered reaction.

Sanson looked at Cheska glumly, then cleared his throat to break the silence and looked down at her again.

“Well, the banquet seems like it will go on for a while, and I wanted to consult with you about something…”

“Don’t worry about it. I plan to stay here for a day or two anyway, so please enjoy yourself to the extent that it doesn’t affect your condition management until then.”

“Yes, yes. I’ll relay that to the other members as well. Then, I’ll take my leave.”

Deputy Officer Sanson bowed his head and hastily left.

Watching him, Cheska quietly stroked her chest and let out a heavy sigh.

‘For me, who was created for humans, to be in a role above humans—it feels like wearing ill-fitting clothes.’

But now she had no choice but to go against her purpose of existence in this way.

Even though she was created for humans, if there weren’t at least two beings who could absolutely take humanity’s side, she had no choice but to pretend to be such a being.

‘Yes, I absolutely cannot be discovered.’

Automaton Rule #0: When the automaton judges that a being poses a danger to the existence of the empire and humanity, it shall prioritize the elimination of that being above all other clauses.

For the sake of that clause, Cheska, who believed her identity must never be revealed to the outside world, looked down at the note in her bosom again and strengthened her resolve.

‘Whatever demands come… I must accept them.’

Perhaps becoming his tool rather than remaining the head of a noble family would better serve her purpose.

With that hopeful expectation in mind.

*****

“So you’re saying you just gave me a letter written according to the prophet’s prophecy?”

“Yes, I didn’t know anything about your circumstances… So you’re like a guardian of humanity, and you woke up because you judged that humanity is in danger right now?”

“Y-yes, that’s right.”

After a moment of confusion, Cheska returned to her room and had a conversation with him to clarify the situation.

Although he claimed he was merely following a prophecy, since she had already confessed with her own mouth, she needed to make him understand to prevent him from speaking about it to others.

Yes, she would be permitted to explain the critical issues, such as the imperial court being occupied by vampires, while keeping certain details hidden.

“…Well, the world is a mess everywhere, so I suppose it makes sense for beings like you to awaken.”

Fortunately, he seemed to accept the current state of the world without questioning her role and mission too deeply.

Given that she couldn’t fully trust him yet, it was fortunate that she could spare the explanations.

As she was feeling relieved, he suddenly seemed concerned about something and posed a question to her.

“By the way, why are you, the guardian of the imperial court, acting as the head of a marginal noble family instead of being inside the imperial court?”

“That’s…”

“No, I think I understand without you explaining.”

Before she could offer a prepared excuse for why she, the empire’s guardian, was pretending to be a separate person rather than directly belonging to the imperial court, he seemed to come to his own understanding and gave a bitter smile.

“In a world where even a clone can rebel against its original to the point that the inside and outside are so misaligned, I suppose you’re not much different.”

“…Clone?”

“There’s something like that.”

Whatever it was, his words revealed sympathy and a sense of kinship.

Just hearing that was enough for Cheska to set aside her suspicion that the man before her might be a pawn of the imperial court.

Yes, their interests merely aligned; he was certainly not in league with them.

“By the way, so you’re an automaton.”

But that only meant avoiding the worst; the possibility that he harbored ill intentions toward her still remained.

He might have followed the prophet’s prophecy, but he must have sought the prophecy with his own agenda in mind.

“That’s perfect. No… this might be much better than I expected.”

Yes, perhaps his current muttering was with such considerations in mind.

“Cheska.”

As she felt her throat go dry with tension toward him, he called out to her.

Cheska stiffened her body and, with her head bowed, replied to him in a strained voice.

“Yes, yes. Please speak.”

“Now that I know your identity, I was wondering if I could ask you for a favor…”

The moment had finally come.

Having already prepared herself for this, Cheska faced him as he finally voiced his desire.

“Would you accept me as your disciple?”

“Yes, yes. From now on, I’ll serve you as my mas— What?”

“As I mentioned earlier, I sought advice from the prophet to find a way to become stronger.”

His voice was desperate enough to cut off her response.

As she stared at him blankly at this unexpected question, his face began to take on a more serious color.

“Your knowledge about orc habits—is that insight you gained from facing many inhuman beings while protecting humanity?”

“Yes, but…”

“Including that, could you teach me things that would help me grow stronger? I’ll pay whatever compensation I can within my means.”

“Yes… to help you grow stronger.”

It was a reason anyone could understand.

Whatever the reason, the result of growing stronger is something commonly seen everywhere.

And she herself was hoping to help his advancement to reach a position close to him, and use him as a means to get an opportunity to enter the imperial leadership.

Naturally, this situation where he was asking for her help was an opportunity she should seize.

“…Are you threatening me?”

But his purpose couldn’t be purely innocent, and what she had initially considered might happen someday.

“Are you using my weakness in a difficult area for your purpose…”

Cheska carefully placed her hand on her body and looked up at him with anxious eyes, her face flushed.

“Since you know I’m female and you’re requesting a negotiation, perhaps you want… my body…”

“No, that’s not it at all.”

But in response to her worried and expectant words, he simply waved his hand dismissively.

“Whatever the case, it would be troublesome if your identity was revealed, right?”

“Yes, yes. That’s right.”

“Then keeping it secret is the right answer. It would be troublesome for me too if it spread around and became difficult to manage.”

He wouldn’t touch her because he was afraid of the consequences.

Certainly, after knowing her identity, it would be wise not to touch her carelessly, but she had revealed her identity to him with resolve and even undressed, yet…

Shouldn’t he show at least some sign of wavering?

“So don’t worry. No matter what happens, I will ‘never’ lay a hand on you.”

“How can I believe that?”

Still showing her suspicion, thinking he might be hiding something, he casually smiled and immediately gave her an answer.

“Well, I prefer older women.”

“What?”

“I prefer someone more mature who listens well to me, like an older sister… Well, for that reason, I don’t feel anything like that toward you at all.”

-Snap.

Something broke in her mind at that moment.

His current statement was not at all welcome to Cheska.

“Are you saying I don’t look like an older woman?”

“Of course not. I was a bit surprised when you undressed earlier, but someone as small as you… Cheska?”

“Let’s continue this conversation tomorrow.”

-Bang!

Cheska left the place, shaking off his confused calls.

After returning to her room and locking the door, she sighed deeply and roughly removed the glasses covering her eyes.

“Small? Are you treating me, who has shared history with the empire, like a child?”

A thousand years of living as an automaton.

Even though she had spent most of that time asleep, she had achieved mental maturity by constantly reviewing her experiences during that time.

For someone like her, being told she looked young was enough to hurt her pride, especially given her serious sense of mission to serve humans.

“Fine, I’ll show you. How reliable and dependable I can be.”

-Rustle, rustle.

Cheska took off her clothes one by one and unraveled the threads to create new clothes on the spot.

As she put those clothes on her body, Cheska didn’t doubt for a moment that her actions were wrong.

Believing that as long as she became his close aide, it would help achieve her purpose.

*****

The next day, after what happened last night.

As soon as I left my room to find Cheska to discuss what had happened the previous night, I found myself staring blankly at the girl standing before me.

“Um, excuse me. Who…”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Hero Hyoseong Woo.”

The girl in a maid outfit curtsied, lifting the hem of her skirt to greet me.

Then, after arranging her long blonde hair, she opened her blue eyes languidly with an air of haughtiness and greeted me.

“I am a servant dispatched on the orders of Lady Flandor, who has returned to her family home, to help the expedition as her representative…”

“And from now on, I will be serving as your exclusive maid, ‘Flan’.”

Wait, you’re Cheska.

What on earth are you trying to do?