Chapter 09
“If I recruit the author, my plan will go a bit more smoothly.”
She smiled brightly. It was as if the heavens were helping her.
She hadn’t even planned to go out today, yet an opportunity to meet him had presented itself.
Whether it was a simple coincidence or the intervention of some transcendent being, for her, this was a chance.
A chance to create her own intelligence organization!
But before she could rescue him from the thugs, Centilleon had already disappeared.
Shairin clicked her tongue. Had anyone made contact with Centilleon during this period?
She searched through all the memories of her previous life that existed in her mind—not many, but enough.
From that, she was able to make a rough inference.
‘…Was it Cashiretto? That criminal organization.’
A criminal organization that had controlled the slums and had tried to recruit Centilleon in her previous life, but failed.
So it seemed that Cashiretto was now trying to swallow up Centilleon.
Shairin praised her own foresight in having sent Rellina away quickly. She couldn’t possibly bring her younger sister to a dangerous place.
Meanwhile, the knights were bewildered by the princess’s declaration that she would go to rescue innocent citizens.
They had witnessed the earlier argument, but was it really serious enough to warrant a rescue?
Seeing their reaction, Shairin clicked her tongue inwardly.
While she understood they hadn’t grasped the severity, they were still defying their liege lord’s daughter.
“What am I to you?”
“You are the princess of the Rabandra Kingdom and our liege.”
“Then why do you not obey my orders immediately?”
“……”
“I judged that it was not a simple quarrel, and more importantly, I saw a mark on the necks of those thugs.”
In truth, she knew the knights had better eyesight than her, but she simply insisted.
“On their necks was a tattoo of a spider climbing a web.”
“A spider tattoo? Could it be…?”
“Is it Cashiretto?”
“That garbage organization that kidnaps people and engages in human trafficking?”
Cashiretto, a large criminal organization that had conquered the underworld.
They were a cancerous mass of the dark world, turning the shadows into an even deeper pitch black.
Kidnapping, violence, prostitution, smuggling—they were worse than trash, doing everything evil.
At this time, Cashiretto was still thriving, so the knights couldn’t possibly not know about them.
“Yes, that’s my assumption. The reason I want to intervene is because I believe those innocent citizens have been kidnapped by them.”
In truth, although she maintained a calm exterior, Shairin was quite anxious.
She knew that Cashiretto wouldn’t harm Centilleon and that he wouldn’t be broken by them, but she was still impatient.
Perhaps she wouldn’t feel at ease until she saw with her own eyes that Centilleon was safe.
Meanwhile, the knights, now serious, spoke with solemn expressions.
“We will root out Cashiretto. So, Princess, it would be best for you to return.”
“That’s right. If they really are Cashiretto, we may not be able to protect you.”
What were they saying?
She had to secure Centilleon herself.
She could never hand him over to anyone.
“Do you know where Cashiretto’s hideout is?”
“Huh? Well, that is…”
“I know it.”
“What? How do you know?”
“It came up as an agenda item during a state council meeting, so I investigated it personally.”
In truth, it wasn’t the state council but a report about Cashiretto she had seen in her previous life.
Because right after Centilleon conquered the underworld, everything about Cashiretto had been made public.
At that time, she had learned in detail their size, hideout location, number of members, assets, and various criminal records.
So Shairin couldn’t possibly not know Cashiretto’s current hideout.
“I know where it is, so wouldn’t it be good for me to go as a guide?”
“……”
“At the very least, I want to rescue the citizens who were kidnapped before my eyes. I believe that is the duty of royalty.”
Above all, there was no time to hesitate like this.
Time was of the essence in a rescue operation.
“I have no intention of bothering you, so don’t worry about me being a burden. I know my place.”
She only intended to guide them. And if she saw Centilleon, she would snatch him up.
‘Would it really be a nuisance?’
She had no fighting power, nor any particular abilities.
If she foolishly meddled and ended up as a hostage, it would be a loss for everyone.
The knights were swayed by the princess’s heartfelt words about wanting to rescue the people.
It was also horrifying to imagine what would be said behind their backs if they objected.
They would probably be ruthlessly condemned as those who do not uphold chivalry, as those unworthy of being knights.
‘I don’t know how she knows the location, but right now, the princess’s words are our only clue.’
Meanwhile, Shairin decided to deliver a decisive blow to the wavering knights.
“Wouldn’t it be good to earn some merit while you’re at it? If you crush them before they grow larger, His Majesty will remember you.”
After appealing to their emotions, it was good to offer a reward. That was how to handle people.
And there was something she hadn’t told them.
Cashiretto shouldn’t be allowed to run rampant any longer.
For now, they only operated in the slums, but later, Cashiretto would commit crimes throughout the kingdom.
They would take the lives of countless commoners and wouldn’t hesitate to target nobles.
The royal family in her previous life had realized this far too late. Shairin had been brainwashed, and those surrounding her were all jackals busy protecting their own interests.
The royal family only started scrambling after nobles began disappearing and dying. And they had to conclude the investigation without any results.
Because by then, Centilleon had already eliminated Cashiretto.
‘Before the Erosion appeared, those bastards were the cause of instability in our kingdom’s public order.’
She had to avoid conflict as much as possible, but if things got tangled, she also needed to consider reducing their power.
“Then, shall we go?”
“Yes, we will follow.”
After making sure her robe was secure, Shairin quickly took the lead.
Shairin followed her memories and entered a side street leading to the hideout.
Located in the slums, the environment was a world apart from the square they had been in earlier.
The ground was muddy and pitted, reeking of filth, swarming with flies and all sorts of insects.
Empty liquor bottles lay scattered, and the eyes of the people visible through the windows were hollow.
The silhouettes behind the curtains were embarrassing to see in broad daylight. Unwanted moans could be heard intermittently.
The knights frowned, but Shairin walked on without concern.
In truth, she didn’t even have time to notice such things.
“I need to snatch him up before he escapes.”
In fact, in her previous life, even if Centilleon was kidnapped, he escaped on his own.
Of course, that was fortunate, but it also meant that if she missed him, she would have put the knights through all that trouble for nothing and failed her objective.
“Hurry. We can’t be late.”
Shairin quickened her pace.
Beyond the crumbling, barely habitable structures, a single building came into view.
It was old and dilapidated, fitting for the slums, but that was merely a disguise.
The mercenary guards standing invisibly, the tough exterior that couldn’t be easily breached from the outside, and the building’s structure with no apparent escape routes.
It was almost puzzling how Centilleon had managed to escape.
“Is that the place?”
“It’s a complete fortress. It won’t be easy to rescue the civilians.”
“Isn’t that your job to accomplish?”
“Then, we’ll be off.”
“Alright.”
The knights immediately left. They began to secretly circle the perimeter, trying to secure an entry point.
Shairin decided to wait at a distance with her two escorts until Centilleon was rescued.
Even if they were outside Cashiretto’s immediate sphere of influence, moving carelessly could get them discovered.
She hid herself safely and stared intently at Cashiretto’s hideout.
As if staring might make the fortress crumble.
How long had she been waiting like that?
Suddenly, Shairin started running forward.
“Pr-Princess?”
“Where are you going?”
The two knights escorting her, and the others who had been attempting to enter, turned and ran back toward Shairin.
But ignoring them, Shairin quickly grabbed someone’s wrist.
“Thank goodness. We didn’t miss each other.”
“Wha, what? Who are you?”
The other person, flustered, roughly shook off her hand as if throwing it away.
His face was swollen as if he had been hit, his clothes were worn out, but his eyes were not dead.
He was Centilleon—the one Shairin had so desperately wanted to get her hands on.
