DNCTFB 21

<Episode 21>

Winnie looked as tired as always, darkness under her eyes and exhaustion on her face. Even though it was early—she must have worked late again.

I should just check. My father must still be outside the barrier—but I need to check once.

If he had crossed inside, the pendant would glow yellow—then the temple would have taken him. Its glow had never left red since he disappeared.

But she wanted one peaceful month. She’d come just to check.

“I came to pray. Everything okay?”

“Something’s happened. There’s a rumor that the magic-tool maker went into the Duke’s mansion.”

Melody’s eyes widened.

“You mean me? How did that get around?”

“Some noblewoman claimed she saw a ghost near the mansion. People whispered it must be because the Duke never left the temple—then they realized it must be the magic-tool maker, who recently visited.”

The rumors were twisted—but true.

“Hands out for such a handsome Duke, they all wanted to hire a magic-tool maker. I heard three already hired someone.”

Nobles, excited by the idea of hiring a magic-tool maker, had gone to the mansion and signed contracts.

“Did the temple allow it?”

Melody asked, surprised—they’d basically threatened her to leave.

“Yes. It’s not a bad thing—they’re part of the temple after all. But it’s not giving you away entirely—just a few days a week at a noble’s home. The noble pays the temple. The maker gets a performance bonus. The temple knows how to make money.”

Since then, her workload had doubled. Winnie sighed.

“Any new mages in here?”

“None recently. Looks like the Holy Knights are still stationed here—they come back now and then.”

That was good news. She’d gotten what she needed here.

“Oh! Someone asked for you.”

“The Holy Knights? What did they need?”

“They said it’s about the tool you made.”

The Holy Knights were elite warriors with holy energy—and they were in charge of capturing mages and maintaining barrier stones. Even knowing they served the temple, Melody felt uneasy around them.

She avoided them as much as she could.
She’d fixed a few of their tools before—but that was it.

“If they come back, just tell them I left and won’t return.”

“That’s what I told them, but they insisted—can’t stop asking for you.”

“What’s so special about my tools they keep coming for two months?”

“Beats me.”

Melody thought her tools weren’t faulty. Some people were just strange.

“Winnie, get the order sheets. Why are you so slow?”

A voice barked behind them. It was Onello Raewood, the rough, chunky manager of the tool department.

Owner by self-appointment—nobody dared challenge him.
He was the only noble at the temple. Other nobles hated monsters, so the staff were mostly clever commoners.

Even Melody couldn’t ignore his unreasonable commands—and he skimmed a bit of her pay for “training costs.”
She couldn’t fight back while her father was still missing.

“Hey, is the Duke’s magic-tool maker here?”

He narrowed his eyes contemptuously. He’d once treated her as a refugee—but now he called her “of the Duke.”
That name irritated her.

“I was just leaving.”

“Perfect timing. Take this.”

He handed her a magical crossbow-like tool.

“What’s this?”

“What do you think? Something I made. If you don’t know it, your skills must still be hopeless—and you couldn’t copy it either.”

He gave it to her with buggy spells inside—so she’d fix them. He tried to prevent her—but she couldn’t just leave it be.

“Deliver it to the Duke. It’s for killing monsters.”

Melody examined the tool. It looked carefully crafted—but the spells were poorly written.

“Actually, I was doing you a favor.”

“What do you mean?”

He, who treated her directly like a cockroach, said he was helping her?
It made her want to laugh—and cringe.

“It’s obvious what will happen. With your weak skills, the Duke won’t be satisfied—you’ll be chased away. And he’s known to be hot-tempered—he might punish you! So I thought I’d help you first.”

“But its magic code is wrong.”

“Where? Damn, check it properly once. Stupid people—you don’t have skill.”

All the junior makers looked alarmed.

His own spells were fundamentally flawed—from the design phase.
Melody’s eyes narrowed.

“Even makers can make mistakes—but not if you’re foolish. People get hurt.”

“Finally, you make sense. Fix it, then deliver it to the Duke—tell him sooner is better. He was kicked from the throne, so he’ll be hunting monsters forever— your noble mansion’s way better than the temple.”

His mocking words still rang in Melody’s ears. She gritted her teeth, fury rising.

He didn’t deserve to work in the tool department—or anywhere. She had to make sure he never made another tool.

The crossbow would help her do that.

“Show me how it works. If the Duke owns it, I must demonstrate it.”

“Give it here. I’ll show you.”