STM 54

Rick tilted his head as if he couldn’t think of anything.

“What could the reason be? From what I’ve heard, Adeye Lu hasn’t really changed at all. Didn’t I tell you before? That Adeye Lu was running around Lord Gumber’s villa, playing tag with men?”

“……”

“That’s not all. He apparently slipped right into the maze garden there. You know what that place is famous for, right? It’s where people go to do indecent things out in the open. People don’t change that easily, after all.”

Rick spoke excitedly as he spread gossip that insulted their enemy, but Tairok said nothing. He just turned his gaze back to the window.

“Maybe he’s sleeping with some guy again right now…”

“Are you interested in Lu?”

Rick flinched. The voice that cut him off felt colder than usual.

“No, sir! I don’t like people like that, the kind who live filthy and go crazy over men.”

“Then stay out of it.”

The look Tairok gave him was cold enough that Rick didn’t dare say another word.

How’s he supposed to ignore it when it’s their enemy? It wasn’t fair. Tairok stared at him like he’d done something wrong, and Rick couldn’t even show how frustrated he felt.

“Stop talking and keep following Zav. He might go to Adeye Lu.”

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Smack!

The palm hit my left cheek. A smack echoed as the force sent me to the floor.

My hands were still tied behind me, so I squirmed helplessly like a worm. One of the thugs grabbed me roughly and yanked me up.

“I’ll ask again. Where’s Sillian hiding?”

“I asked if you’re Torida.”

Smack!

Ah, that one stung. I rolled on the ground again, muttering to Mo as fast as I could.

‘Is this the Owik manor?’

[Based on the route from the underground cell to this room, the probability that this is the Owik estate exceeds ninety percent.]

Of course. Now that I knew where I was, the situation made sense. But I still couldn’t understand why Torida was treating me like this.

Adeye Lu’s from a powerful family. This was too reckless for someone just trying to find their money source. Was something else going on?

As I was pulled back to my feet, I studied Torida carefully. My stare made him frown in confusion.

“I’ve heard the rumors that you’ve changed, but I didn’t expect you to be this calm. You really do seem like a different person.”

“I almost died. That’s why.”

I said it out of habit, and Torida’s eyes lit up.

“So you really did encounter a monster at Ornod? At that resort?”

“Yeah.”

“Where’s Sillian?”

“Why would you ask me about your own partner? Oh, what, you tied her to a bed at that resort so she couldn’t move, and now that she’s gone, you’re upset? Are you mad that your wallet disappeared?”

My words must’ve hit a nerve because Torida’s brow twitched.

“Wallet? I stayed by Sillian’s side for over five years. I’ve earned that reward.”

“Then you shouldn’t have let her die.”

“What… are you talking about? Why would Sillian die?”

“Why else?”

I looked him straight in the eye.

“Baron Owik was eaten by a monster. Every last piece of her. Not even a strand of hair left.”

“B-bullshit.”

“I saw it with my own eyes.”

I thought I was a decent liar, but surprisingly, he smirked.

“Sillian’s alive. You know why?”

Another slap came flying.

Smack!

I hit the floor again, and his laughter filled my ears.

“If Sillian were dead, our bond would’ve broken. Sillian promised that monster spirit wouldn’t hurt me. And look at me, even after I locked Sillian up, I’m still alive.”

He sounded proud of that. I clicked my tongue inwardly and looked at him like he was pathetic.

“So what? You’re just making sure you die next. Even if my sister hates me, do you think Lantuya would just let this go? You’re killing yourself. Unless you’ve someone scarier than my sister backing you.”

Torida’s smile froze.

Yeah, I figured. He hadn’t kidnapped me just to get his money source back.

And there weren’t many people stronger than Adeye Lantuya. Maybe one of the heads of the divine beast families. The first bastard that came to mind…

Tairok.

But abduction didn’t fit him. If he wanted to deal with me, he’d just chase me down, kick me, or grab my lips again…

“Fuck.”

The memory of the maze garden came up, and I swore before I could stop myself. I owed him my life after that, so I should’ve just let it go, but for some reason, I couldn’t. It wasn’t like me at all.

“I heard Adeye Lu was an idiot. I didn’t think you’d actually have a brain.”

I was pulled out of my thoughts as Torida spoke in a mocking and impressed voice.

“I told you. I nearly died.”

I spoke carelessly, but I started thinking about why the head of a divine beast family would go after Baron Owik. I didn’t have to think hard. Someone would give me the answer anyway.

[There’s a high possibility that the Owik estate contains an entrance to the Forest of Crimson Waves. Therefore, the one behind this abduction is most likely Borhumi Zav, who’s after the Sword of Silence. Zav’s mother’s family runs a loan business, so Torida is probably tied to them through debt.]

So it’s about money again. I sighed at how pathetic that was and asked Mo,

‘Can you find the secret room? Looks like Torida’s searching for it.’

[That will require direct measurement. By comparing the current structure with the blueprint, I can infer the existence of hidden spaces.]

“Then use that smarter head of yours and think. Where’s Sillian?”

Torida asked again. I pretended to think, giving Mo another order.

‘Did you finish scanning the area? Any weapons or tools nearby that can cut the ropes?’

[At your eleven o’clock, five meters ahead, there’s a small table by the wall. There’s a decorative plate on top of it.]

Good. The moment I got the answer, I felt my face burn in pain.

Smack!

“Keep your thinking short, got it?”

Torida warned. My cheek stung from being hit in the same spot, and I tasted blood in my mouth.

“I don’t know where Baron Owik is. You can ask all you want, but I’ve nothing to tell you.”

“Someone saw you leaving the resort with Sillian on your back. Which part of that is the lie?”

Damn, why do these people all have such good eyesight?

“Yes, I took her outside because she looked pitiful, but that’s it. I was being chased by monsters too. When I came back, she was gone. That’s the truth.”

“You still don’t understand.”

Torida glared at me and clenched his fist, then opened it again. He wasn’t going to slap me this time, he was going to punch me. Well, that was almost better.

“I’ll ask again. Where’s Sillian?”

“Hey, how much money do you owe? I’ll pay it back for you.”

Torida’s eyebrow twitched. I knew it. It was about money.

“It’s pocket change for me anyway. Wouldn’t it be better to take the money and disappear somewhere nice?”

“Disappear?”

“Yeah. Take the cash and live the rest of your life by the sea somewhere warm.”

A smile appeared on Torida’s lips, and I suddenly got a bad feeling.

Ah. He’s planning to get the money by using me. But he wasn’t planning to let me go first.

He swung his fist right at me.

The force sent me rolling across the floor. Before I could recover, I crawled toward the eleven o’clock direction.

“Haha, you think you can run?”

He laughed behind me. I must’ve looked so pathetic he didn’t even bother to chase right away. Thanks to that, I stumbled forward and reached my goal.

Crash!

Clang!

The small table fell on me. Broken pieces of the decorative plate scattered like snow around me. I curled up to avoid the shards, and above me, I heard Torida laughing again.

“Yeah, I’m planning to use you to get rich. I’ll take what I need from you first, then use your corpse to finish the job.”

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Beep. Beep. Beep.

The familiar alarm sound woke me again. This time I wasn’t drugged, so I immediately regained consciousness.

But just because I was awake didn’t mean anything had improved. My hands were still tied behind my back, and I was still in the cell.

Damn it, I actually passed out after getting beaten by Torida.

They must’ve thrown me back in here afterward. At least that meant they weren’t planning to kill me yet.

I wanted to stay down longer, but I forced myself to focus. Mo wouldn’t have woken me without a reason.

[Danger. Enemies are approaching.]

Enemies?

The room was too dark to see, so I focused everything on my hearing. From the corridor outside the cell, small voices reached my ears. Two of the thugs.

“……I’m telling you, it’s fine if we have some fun with him. He’s gonna die anyway……”

“Yeah, and he’s famous for being obsessed with men…… we could both..”

What? Both what? A shiver ran down my spine. This was indeed a crisis on par with fighting a monster.