Chapter 113 Mr. Aaron, You'Re The Bad One...!!
About 3 weeks had passed since the subjugation of the Unique Individual Nord.
In the mansion of the Caduceus family, one of the Four Great Families of the Seals.
It was late at night, and the servants had all gone to bed.
"Almost... almost..."
A girl muttered to herself in the dimly lit room.
Despite the mansion's large size, the room was not spacious. The walls were lined with bookshelves, giving the space a somewhat oppressive feel. The window was small, and even during the day, it didn't let in much light.
This was not a room for living.
To put it simply, it was a study.
At this hour, when everyone was asleep, the only person in the study was the girl. The ceiling light had been turned off, and the only light source was a small desk lamp.
In the midst of this, the girl sat at her desk, writing furiously.
"I'm not bad... I'm not bad, I swear..."
She was probably a bit older than a teenager.
The girl with long black hair tied in a ponytail. The light from the desk lamp reflected off her glasses, but her eyes, which peeked out from behind them, were a distinctive golden color.
Her name was Chloe Caduceus.
"The bad one is... the bad one is...!!"
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
Unconsciously, perhaps. She was pouring all her energy into writing on the paper.
As Chloe wrote quickly, her eyes gleaming with excitement, she smiled, showing a faint, cracked smile that she usually kept hidden.
"Mr. Aaron...!!"
Her face was twisted in a crazed expression.
"Mr. Aaron, you're the bad one...!!"
Chloe continued writing.
If Aaron Gale were to see this, he would be furious.
No, it would be better if he just got angry. He might even try to kill Chloe. But even knowing that, Chloe didn't stop writing.
"Mr. Aaron knows... My secret... How dare you say that!!"
This was what Aaron said to Chloe, separated by a barrier, after suddenly falling from the sky n*ked in the middle of the Abnormal Nord Extermination Mission.
――I know your secret.
A secret that not even Chloe's real family, anyone in the Caduceus household, or the servants knew. A secret that absolutely could not be exposed.
It was unclear how Aaron had found out about this secret.
What did he plan to demand from Chloe now that he knew? Was he going to use this secret to force himself on her, like that perverted guard who was with her at the time said? Was he going to take advantage of her now that she couldn't resist, and do whatever he wanted with her body?
Thinking about this, Chloe anxiously waited for Aaron to make contact.
However, 3 weeks had passed since the mission ended, and there was no sign of Aaron getting in touch.
Had her secret already been exposed?
No, there was no sign of anyone finding out. If her secret had been exposed, she would have been called by her foster father. The fact that this hadn't happened meant that Aaron was keeping quiet.
――Why?
It was scary not knowing what Aaron would demand, but it was also scary that he was keeping quiet. She even thought that if he had a demand, he should just say it already.
These days were mentally exhausting for Chloe.
Before she knew it, Chloe started to hate Aaron.
She thought that it was all Aaron's fault that she had to live in fear every day.
So――this was her revenge.
"Hahahahaha...!!"
And then, after some time had passed.
The sound of the pen scratching on paper in the study suddenly stopped.
It was unclear how many days had passed since she started working on it. The thick stack of papers that she had written with a burning sense of resentment was finally complete.
"I did it... I finally did it, yeah!!"
Chloe looked down at the completed papers with a twisted smile.
Then, she put it in an envelope and stored it in the storage ring.
"Mr. Aaron... if you don't do anything, everything will be too late, won't it...?"
"There are still a few days until the 'promised time'."
If Aaron takes some action during that time, maybe the tragedy that will befall him can be avoided.
However.
In the end, Aaron didn't make any contact with Chloe, and time passed by――.
* * *
A few days later.
Late at night, in a corner of the Caduceus mansion.
In Chloe's own room.
"Time's running out, isn't it..."
Chloe muttered in the dark room with all the lights turned off, sitting on her bed.
The night had worn on, and it had been about an hour since the date changed. The servants were all asleep by now.
Despite the late hour, Chloe wasn't in her pajamas. She was wearing a plain black robe with a hood that covered her face.
In this suspicious-looking outfit, she took out a long staff from the storage ring.
It was a special staff that specialized in supporting space magic.
Chloe was planning to sneak out of the mansion without anyone noticing and meet someone.
"Let's go...!"
Chloe was about to cast a teleportation magic――but suddenly tilted her head.
"Wait, where was the meeting place again?"
The person she was meeting was someone she usually exchanged letters with through a cipher, and when they needed to meet in person, they would change the location and time each time.
The location and time were specified by the other person, but since they had met dozens of times already, the number of secret meeting places was considerable.
Even when she tried to remember, she couldn't recall it. Maybe it was because she had been pulling all-nighters until that thing was finished, but she seemed to have forgotten the meeting place.
But Chloe didn't panic.
She had taken notes, and she had done it in a way that no one else could see.
(――Brain Support Interface, activate)
She whispered to herself in her mind.
Suddenly, Chloe looked forward about a meter――into empty space with her golden eyes.
But, as expected, there was nothing there. Even if there was something, it wouldn't be visible in this darkness.
Despite that, Chloe's eyes were clearly fixed on something "invisible".
(Schedule management... Ah, that's right. It was here)
She nodded to herself, as if convinced of something.
(The location should be registered... Hmm, let's see, display teleportation coordinates)
Chloe's gaze moved rapidly, as if reading a series of characters.
(I found it... Shall we go?)
With a swift motion, she got off the bed and stood up, and began to flow magical energy into the staff she was holding.
(Coordinate specification, teleportation magic formula load... deployment, activation)
The magic activated silently, and Chloe vanished from her room.
* * *
The narrow alleyway where Chloe instantly teleported to was shrouded in darkness.
It was a space between tall buildings, but if one looked up at the sky, they could see the lights of the city illuminating the night sky.
This place was near one of the red-light districts in Necronia, and the lights from there were faintly illuminating the night sky.
The lights of the red-light district never went out until morning. If someone listened closely, they could hear the lively atmosphere from here.
But Chloe's destination wasn't the red-light district. She walked a short distance down the dark alleyway and turned a corner.
Then, a building with a light leaking out appeared nearby. Chloe approached it without hesitation and opened the door to enter.
The interior was dimly lit with warm-colored lights, creating a quiet and calm atmosphere. It was a small bar with table seats and counter seats, but there were only a handful of seats.
There were only a few customers.
The shop owner behind the counter glanced at the new customer, but didn't greet her. The other customers were the same.
A woman with a voluptuous figure, evident even under her robe, sat alone. In any other tavern, she would have been hit on immediately, but not here. That's because this place is "that kind of store".
"......"
Chloe looked around the store, her eyes scanning the room until she spotted her target.
At the far end of the counter, the woman sat, dressed in a sharp business suit. Her straight back and poised demeanor made her look beautiful.
For some reason, Chloe thought she seemed like a capable woman.
As always, she looks like she can handle her job with ease, Chloe thought, without any basis for her assumption.
Chloe sat down beside the woman, who was quietly tilting a glass of amber liquid.
The woman then ordered from the store owner.
"Master, a hot milk for her."
"......alright."
The store owner replied with a displeased expression, but obediently heated up some milk in a small pot.
As Chloe watched, the woman turned to her.
"Lady Rose, is the item ready?"
"...yes. Here it is."
Chloe pulled out a thick envelope from her storage ring and placed it on the counter.
The woman pulled the envelope towards her and took out the contents. She flipped through a few pages of the thick stack of paper, then quickly put it back in the envelope.
"I've received it. I'm sure it's perfect, as always, but I'll double-check the details later. If any corrections are needed, I'll send you a letter as usual."
"...yes."
Chloe nodded.
It's finally done. Now, there's no going back. The die has been cast.
"I'll deposit the payment into your secret account as usual. If there are no corrections, it should be done in 2 months. And...Lady Rose, here's this."
The woman pulled out something from her bag.
The contents were invisible, hidden in a cheap brown paper bag.
"T-this is...a bit more than last time, isn't it..."
As Chloe reached for the puffed-up paper bag, the woman smiled elegantly.
"Ah, it's getting more and more every time. As expected of Lady Rose."
"......"
Chloe looked down, hugging a heavy paper bag tightly.
And then, without thinking,
"Hu, huuuh..."
She forced a smile onto her face.
After all, she was convinced that she wasn't wrong.
Anyway.
She had accomplished her purpose for coming here. When the tavern owner handed her a hot milk a bit late, Chloe took it and gulped it down, then immediately stood up.
"Thank you for the treat."
"Oh, you're leaving already?"
"Y-yes... My being here mustn't be known to anyone, so..."
"That's true. Be careful... but I guess that's unnecessary concern for Lady Rose, huh?"
"Yes. I-I'll be right back..."
She bowed lightly and turned on her heel.
She quickly left the shop and walked a bit before blending into the darkness, then activated her teleportation magic.
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