Chapter 43
‘I knew it. Lucien’s capable, but the problem is he’s an eccentric.’
Lucien wasn’t curious about every client’s identity, but once something caught his interest, he had a chillingly persistent way of finding out the truth.
‘And of all things, he’s decided to fixate on my identity this time. That’s the problem.’
Naturally, Cecil didn’t want Lucien to discover who she really was. So she spoke plainly.
“That’s none of my business. But if you try to pry into my personal life again, I’ll file a complaint with the Guild Council. Just so you know.”
“Ah~.”
The Guild Council was a sort of association that mediated disputes between guilds, or between guilds and customers.
Its power was formidable — it could impose penalties such as suspending a guild’s operations or even forcibly disbanding it.
And violating a client’s privacy was a serious offense, enough to warrant a long-term business suspension.
Perhaps for that reason, Lucien, though he sighed, became much more well-behaved and stopped asking probing questions.
“Please, have some more refreshments. I prepared them for you.”
Lucien flashed his business smile and gestured toward a plate piled with large, flat licorice candies.
Cecil took a bite of one, then put it back down.
“Well then, I think that’s enough for today’s report. I’ll see you next time.”
“Take care, my lady.”
Lucien escorted Cecil outside the guild office, then returned inside.
He picked up the licorice candy Cecil had bitten into.
“The beautiful lady has left her glass slipper behind.”
Examining the bite-marked candy, he sat down, crossed his legs leisurely, and muttered:
“My Cinderella is missing a tooth, it seems?”
Meanwhile, on her way back, Cecil — walking with her hood pulled low — suddenly started laughing.
“Pfft! Hahaha…”
[What is it? Did you suddenly think of something amusing?]
When Nibelung, who knew nothing, asked, Cecil discreetly wiped the corner of her eye with the back of her hand.
“No, I was just thinking how funny it is — Lucien must be all excited over the fake clue I dropped.”
[What? A fake clue?! What do you mean, Cecil? Explain!]
Nibelung pressed eagerly.
“That licorice candy he offered while prying into my identity. His scheme was so obvious.”
Cecil stretched lightly, breathing in the night air.
“He wanted my bite mark. Disguise magic only overlays an illusion over your appearance and feel — it doesn’t change your true essence. So if you eat something, the bite marks show your real teeth.”
[What?! Is that so?!]
Nibelung was shocked.
[That man is clever to think of such a trick — but you’re even cleverer for seeing through it! So, what did you do?]
“What else? I used magic to make bite marks completely different from my real ones.”
Beneath her hood, Cecil smiled mischievously.
“By now, Lucien’s probably looking for someone missing a fang. Let him waste as much time as he wants on false evidence.”
[Indeed! Cecil, you’re amazing! Brilliant, truly brilliant!]
Nibelung’s voice rang with excitement. Cecil just gave a small chuckle.
And she kept walking through the pitch-black night air.
It seemed Lucien really was wasting his time chasing the false lead, because from then on, every time they met, he looked more and more exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes.
‘He’s probably digging into the background of every person in the capital missing a fang right now.’
[No wonder he’s worn out!]
Nibelung snickered with glee.
Perhaps because of her earlier threat to take the matter to the Guild Council, Lucien no longer mentioned anything about her identity.
Cecil thought she could now safely receive the results of her commission and end her dealings with Lucien.
But she was wrong.
One day, when she visited the guild office as usual, she was met with an unexpected sight.
The office was in utter chaos.
Guild members were shouting and running back and forth, scrolls were flying everywhere, and stacks of documents that were normally neatly organized were crammed into boxes.
“What on earth happened here, Lucien?”
When Lucien saw her, he forced a smile.
“Ah, Carmen. It’s nothing serious, just…”
“Serious enough to affect my commission’s progress?”
She cut him off.
Lucien, looking troubled, finally confessed.
“Well, actually…”
What came out of his mouth far exceeded Cecil’s expectations.
“Truth is, we’ve been sabotaged by a rival guild. Our operations are completely paralyzed. They’ve been spreading false rumors about us to clients and even filed a false accusation with the Guild Council. The hearing is scheduled for next week.”
“What?”
Cecil was dumbfounded.
“Then you can’t continue my commission?”
“To be frank… no. At this point, I can’t even be sure our guild will survive.”
Lucien sighed. She had never seen him look so dispirited.
[What will you do? Wouldn’t it be better to hire another information guild?]
‘No. Aside from Lucien’s guild, there’s really no other guild capable of handling this information.’
Cecil’s thoughts were firm.
‘At eight years old right now, the only way I can obtain information about a black magic artifact… is through Lucien.’
She urgently needed to find information on the black magic artifact.
Unlike before her regression, she could now control Nibelung’s evil influence — but she had no guarantee how long that would last.
‘If I ever return to the state I was in before… I don’t even want to imagine it.’
Just considering the possibility made her body tremble.
‘So before that happens, I must find a way to separate Nibelung from my body.’
Her resolve hardened.
“In that case, I think I can offer you a little help to resolve this situation.”
Her voice came out calm and composed, as though she had never been afraid.
“Truly? I would be glad to accept any help.”
“But I expect payment for it. How about you cut my commission fee in half?”
“To turn my crisis into your opportunity — your thoroughness never fails to impress me.”
Though his words could be taken as sarcasm, Lucien’s face didn’t look displeased.
“With that sharp mind of yours, I can trust you. I’ll be counting on you, Carmen.”
Cecil gave a confident smile and spoke in a gentle yet firm tone.
“Alright, Lucien. But if I’m to help you, you’ll need to give me information. I want to know everything about the rival guild and this incident.”
The intelligence guild Shadow Union was notorious among other guilds for using underhanded methods to get ahead.
“Especially their leader, Orion. He despises me and has clashed with our guild frequently.”
Recently, slander against the Parchment Circle had been spreading among potential clients — rumors that they failed to honor contracts or engaged in shady deals.
“Because of this gossip, commissions have sharply declined, and some existing ones have even been withdrawn. But that wasn’t the end of it.”
Orion’s guild, Shadow Union, had filed a formal complaint against Parchment Circle with the Guild Council.
“I’m certain all the evidence is fabricated, but they’ll have prepared thoroughly. The Council’s response to false accusations is extremely strict.”
Lucien explained, puffing on a long-stemmed pipe.
Once Cecil felt she had extracted all the useful information she could, she stood up.
“I think that’s enough for now.”
“Shall I assign some of my guild members to support you? They could be quite useful.”
“No, I prefer to work alone.”
As she was leaving, Cecil glanced back at Lucien and said:
“Don’t worry too much about next week’s hearing, Lucien. When we meet again, I’ll bring you good news.”
