Chapter 54
“Countess, so… should I give you 100,000 gold right away?”
“Ah, no, there’s no need to spend it right now anyway. I’ll pay back the 100,000 gold first. So now, there’s 400,000 gold left?”
Since he had promised 100,000 gold as payment for helping with the previous matter, the remaining debt was now 400,000 gold.
In both her previous life and this one, she could not escape a life as a debtor.
Blaine had said to ask for anything she needed, and Helene had briefly considered asking for money, but she stopped herself.
This was a debt she had to repay.
“…You can pay it back slowly.”
Shakia said in a small voice.
Helene looked at him, unsure if she had heard correctly, but he continued while looking elsewhere.
“…I won’t even charge interest. I just want to be involved with the Countess for a long time.”
She had heard correctly.
Pay it back slowly.
Helene was probably the first among countless debtors to hear such words from Shakia.
“Did he think I was useful because of my last performance?”
Well, even in her previous life, bosses had liked her a lot whenever she did part-time work.
“Y-You’re not taking that back, right?”
Shakia nodded cheerfully.
Feeling happier, Helene quickly changed the subject, worried that he might change his mind.
“So, how is Beth doing?”
To protect Beth, the only witness and potential next victim, Shakia had forged documents and adopted her.
Surprisingly, Beth seemed to get along well with Shakia.
The Black Jack gang also genuinely treated Beth as the boss’s adopted daughter.
“She’s doing very well! Over there—she’s busy shopping at the toy store!”
Shakia pointed across the street at a shop.
Beth could be seen inside, holding five stuffed dog toys.
Beth waved when she saw Helene, who waved back.
“Wait, you bought her so many toys last week, and now she wants more? At this rate, the house will turn into a toy store!”
Shakia’s expression was rather serious.
While he wanted to buy Beth whatever she wanted, the hideout had been empty and used only for sleeping, and now it was overflowing with toys, enough to open a toy store.
The Black Jack gang also found Beth adorable.
Perhaps because of this, the men who used to fill up only on jerky and alcohol had started cooking proper warm meals.
It was no longer a criminal hideout; it felt like a normal family home.
Shakia found this tingling—he didn’t dislike it, but it was a strange feeling.
“Aren’t you spoiling her too much?”
“Right? I know, but when she looks at you with those round eyes and says, ‘Please…,’ it’s hard to refuse…”
As if to prove his words, Shakia’s face crumbled and he waved when Beth met his eyes.
“You have three daughters, Countess. Teach me a bit about raising children.”
Shakia was desperate.
He wanted to give Beth everything she needed, but he worried she might grow up spoiled.
Also, the criminal underworld was not an ideal environment for her education.
Once, Beth, with her innocent face, asked Shakia what “to pickle” meant—picking up the gang’s language too quickly.
Perhaps Beth needed a mother figure.
Shakia glanced at Helene.
“…Well, I’m not really in a position to give advice…”
Helene’s voice became quieter.
She recalled her recent quarrel with April.
Indeed, Helene had enough troubles of her own and was in no position to advise anyone.
“Sit her down and talk properly. Children understand if they know you’re speaking for their sake.”
Helene was glad she had quarreled with April.
After all, they had finally come to understand each other’s feelings.
“Helene!”
Beth, finished with her shopping, ran toward Helene, proudly showing off the newly bought stuffed dog toys.
Helene patted her head, finding her adorable.
She once again thought of April.
She really wondered how April was doing at the Tower of Magic.
April stepped into the Tower of Magic and swallowed nervously.
On the first floor, which was used like a plaza, many magicians had gathered to see the last human child chosen.
Magicians with small video orbs on sticks blocked April’s path.
“Oh! Finally, the last Raime appears. Let’s take a look! Red hair, around 8 years old? Ah, right? Quite cute for a Raime. Can we see your face properly?”
The magicians began holding their small video orbs close to April’s face.
“Thank you, Paladin, for the 200 stardust to heal the wound!”
“How do you feel about coming to the Tower of Magic, Miss Raime?”
“Have you ever used magic before, Miss Raime?”
Overwhelmed by the magicians’ barrage of questions and attention, April looked around helplessly.
When Chiwa raised her staff, the magicians holding video orbs quickly withdrew.
“What do you think you can do as a Raime!!”
“Damn, a Raime entering the Tower of Magic!!”
“Raime out!!”
Rough-looking magicians drinking alcohol shouted at April.
When Chiwa raised her staff, they immediately fell silent and drank.
“Even with magical amplification ability, can she really learn magic properly?”
“That’s prejudice. There are excellent magicians among humans too.”
“But she was just mid-level at the Tower, wasn’t she?”
Now scholar-like magicians gathered.
With academic fervor, they lifted their magnifying glasses and took notes, observing April as if she were a rare creature.
Again, when Chiwa raised her staff, the research magicians went back to their work.
Though intimidated by the magicians’ gaze, April found the Tower fascinating.
She never dreamed so many magicians existed in the world.
The term “Raime” was a derogatory term used by magicians toward humans.
Despite Chiwa’s repeated warnings, the magicians whispered and stared at April, so Lucael sighed and wrapped her in his cloak.
From inside the cloak, which was transparent outside, April could observe the Tower of Magic comfortably.
Selecting a candidate for the new Tower Master among human children was a secret known only to Lucael and Chiwa.
Magicians, who already treated Raimes as inferior, would never accept a Tower Master from the Raimes.
If the magicians found out that Lucael, whom they thought eternal, would disappear, it would cause a huge ripple in the magical world.
Chiwa could not imagine what would happen if they knew, and didn’t want to.
Shaking her head, Chiwa led April to a circular pillar.
Suddenly, a door appeared on the pillar, and Lucael and Chiwa walked through as if familiar.
The pillar room had glass walls all around and rose into the sky.
April barely restrained herself from screaming.
The pillar soon reached the top floor of the Tower of Magic, the symbolic 999th floor.
The number 999 was symbolic, not literal.
The tower could have any number of floors, so the actual floor count didn’t matter.
The topmost floor, called the 999th, was used exclusively by Lucael for centuries.
It was where the five children taken from the human world would stay.
When the door opened, children of April’s age were waiting, the last companions and competitors.
Chiwa, the Tower of Magic’s Education Minister, introduced April to the children.
“This is April. She will be the last child to learn magic with you.”
There were only four other children, but April felt intimidated.
Chiwa then introduced the children by name.
“From the right: Kevin, Aaron, Anna, and Lize.”
April memorized their names and appearances: Kevin with a dark, gloomy look, the bulky Aaron, the prim Anna, and the skinny Lize.
“Ah, hello… nice to meet you!”
April awkwardly smiled and greeted them.
But the children responded indifferently.
Some didn’t even look at her and continued talking.
It seemed life at the Tower of Magic would not be easy.
