Chapter 4
Simon’s eyes, green as if they held a forest within them, shone brightly with anticipation as he looked at me.
“I’m sorry, but I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about. Could you explain first…?”
I said that while lightly pushing him away.
Simon, who had been leaning toward me, straightened back to his original position.
Returning to his usual calm demeanor, he asked,
“When you first entered this shop, you opened the door without feeling anything unusual, correct?”
I nodded, recalling that day.
“The truth is, I was being chased that day, and I was injured. So before entering the shop, I sealed the door with a magic scroll. You broke that seal and came in as if it were nothing.”
“You were being chased? So you weren’t a robber after all!”
“We’ll get to that slowly. For now, just listen.”
Simon stopped me from interrupting and continued.
“So I suspected you, Miss April. I thought you might be a spy trying to dig into my affairs. I conducted a background investigation…”
Calmly, Simon explained how, while investigating me, he had come to sense that I possessed a special ability—and how he had handed me the magically sealed necklace box to confirm his suspicion.
This time, I listened quietly without interrupting.
“Normally, whether someone is a mage or not is determined in childhood. But very rarely, there are people whose abilities manifest after they reach adulthood.”
I subtly pointed a finger at myself, asking if he meant me.
“Yes. They appear suddenly, like mutants, without warning. They possess extraordinary abilities and vast amounts of mana, and are called geniuses.”
“Genius…”
I repeated his words inwardly, then looked at him again to confirm.
“You’re saying I have the ability to ignore locks—seals—and that I’ve been using it unconsciously all this time?”
“Yes. It’s surprising that you didn’t notice, but if it’s Miss April, it’s possible.”
He delivered that insult with a smiling face. Normally I would have bristled, but strangely, I felt nothing.
Just as Simon seemed about to comment on my unusual reaction—
“Kyyaaaaaa!”
I couldn’t contain the overwhelming emotion and screamed in delight.
“So I really am blessed? I can use magic? This is insane!”
“…You’re not concerned about the background investigation?”
“You hear that, you bastards from the Count’s house?! I told you! I didn’t steal anything! It just opened!”
“So you really can’t hear me at all.”
Whatever Simon muttered didn’t matter. At this moment, he even looked lovable.
I grabbed his hand and jumped up and down in excitement.
For three years working as a maid at the Count’s estate, I had been pointed at and called a thief and a loose woman.
But now there was someone who knew all of that had been a misunderstanding. And I could finally believe in myself.
It felt as if all the pain from the past had been washed away.
Simon gently freed his hand from mine and placed it behind his back.
“Ahem. So, what about my proposal to work together?”
Snapping back to my senses, I stepped slightly away from him and asked,
“That’s… something dangerous, isn’t it?”
He had suspected me of being a spy. He had been chased. There were too many suspicious details.
‘Well, I always thought he was suspicious to begin with….’
There was a world of difference between not caring what my employer did and getting personally involved in it.
I have a younger sibling to support!
I can’t join some shadowy organization already!
“I don’t even want to imagine what you’re picturing in that head of yours.”
“If someone as suspicious as you makes a secretive proposal like this…”
I trailed off and quickly hid behind a display shelf.
Peeking out, I added,
“Just in case, I’d prefer if you kept this much distance while talking.”
“You truly excel at pointless behavior.”
Smiling calmly as he criticized me, Simon leaned back leisurely into a chair set up in one corner of the shop.
It was an unspoken assurance that he wouldn’t harm me.
“I won’t kill you for refusing, so sit down and let’s talk.”
“…You promised.”
“Yes. In any case, I’m certain you won’t refuse.”
Resting his chin on his hand, Simon smiled faintly.
Once I sat in the chair opposite him, he began slowly.
“First, if we’re truly going to work together, we need to be honest with each other. I’ll tell you my ‘real’ job.”
“You don’t need to worry. I have some sense.”
At my solemn reply, one of Simon’s eyebrows twitched upward.
“…It’s probably far from the correct answer anyway, so I won’t bother listening. I don’t like letting conversations drift.”
“That’s harsh…”
Ignoring my mutter entirely, Simon continued.
“I am a member of the royal shadow knight order, ‘Utis.’”
“What? So it’s not a dark organization?”
“Yes, thank you for the absurd impression. Just as expected.”
“Ugh…”
A royal knight order…?
That was completely unexpected.
I had assumed he was hiding something—but obviously on the villain side.
‘He’s actually on the side of justice?’
Somehow, Simon looked a little different to me.
Relaxing slightly, I asked curiously,
“But if it’s a shadow knight order…”
“It’s an organization that operates secretly without revealing our identities or status. Among them, we handle missions involving the prevention of organized magical terrorism.”
“Organized terrorism?”
“To put it simply, we stop those who attempt rebellion or use magic to harm others for personal gain.”
Now his strange behavior made sense.
The reason he showed little interest in the shop, despite being its owner, must have been because it was merely a cover identity.
Wait. If this conversation was heading where I thought—
“Don’t tell me you’re asking me to join that knight order?”
Simon answered casually as I asked, stiff with tension.
“Yes. With your ability, Miss April, you could work alongside me in Utis as an informant. Though that’s not the ultimate goal.”
“Not the ultimate goal? What does that mean?”
“The job I’m proposing isn’t only about becoming a member of Utis.”
Simon’s faint smile deepened.
We had known each other for barely ten days.
But in that time, I had come to understand Simon a little.
And that smile was definitely… a dangerous sign.
“What exactly are you proposing while smiling like that?”
“Hmm… a job that makes a great deal of money?”
Standing, Simon tilted his head toward me.
“You and I are essentially alike, Miss April. I’m very interested in money too.”
I swallowed and waited for him to continue.
“While working as an informant for a royal knight order, you gain access not only to information about terrorism, but also to far more diverse and interesting information.”
“…”
“I pass that information on to those who want it—in exchange for compensation.”
“No way…”
The corners of my mouth trembled as I forced a smile.
‘This man is selling information he obtains through his job? I take back what I said about justice! He’s completely money-crazed!’
Simon shrugged at my horrified expression.
“As a rule, I don’t sell information related to official missions, so there’s no need to be afraid. Your safety will be guaranteed.”
Then he stepped closer and placed a hand on my shoulder.
“What you would do is very simple. Break the seals on the artifacts I bring. And do not be curious about what’s inside.”
It became perfectly clear.
Simon intended to use my ability to obtain information protected by sealing magic.
For more information—and more money.
“Is it really acceptable for a knight sworn to the king to do this?”
“Oh dear. If I shattered your illusions about the royal knight order, I apologize. But I have no grand sense of duty like that.”
Yes. That seems about right.
I answered inwardly, pouting.
“Now then, I’ve been completely honest with you, Miss April. What do you think? Would you like to work together?”
“I…”
I looked away from him for a moment and considered.
If I only listened to Simon’s words, there was nothing for me to lose.
He had revealed an ability I never knew I had.
And if I joined hands with him as partners, he would become powerful backing for my social advancement.
But a knight order was no child’s game.
Even if I only assisted Simon as an informant, there would undoubtedly be moments dangerous enough to risk my life.
‘Like the day we first met….’
As I sank into serious thought, Simon spoke lightly.
“Oh, I almost forgot something very important.”
“Important?”
“Compensation is important in any job.”
Saying that, Simon leaned in close and whispered something in my ear.
I steeled my gaze, determined not to be swayed easily.
“…That much.”
“…! I’ll do it.”
But once again, the amount he offered was far too large to scold him for trying to win me over with money.
