“Eil, shouldn’t you be heading back soon? Looks like your target is waiting.”
Cheblin’s lips twisted crookedly, still stinging from the blow.
There had been something he wanted to say to Eil, but after getting hit on the head, he couldn’t remember it anymore. Tch.
“I’m going. More importantly, tell the captain to change the messenger birds. Crows drool too much.”
“Mm, Cherry doesn’t know about stuff like that.”
With a blunt expression, Cheblin shrugged, then abruptly stood up and hurried off, saying he was busy.
Anyone could tell he was sulking. Seriously, where did he leave his age behind?
“I should get it together too. Time to work…”
Now left alone, Eil rubbed her face dryly with a hollow expression.
The match should be starting by now, so it’d be better to hurry.
If she dragged her feet for no reason, Lis might end up generously handing over a pouch of gold coins to some beggar again.
Just imagining it made her dizzy.
“Young master, I’m back… Huh? The trash— I mean, the people are all gone?”
Not long after, Eil returned to Lis’s side, blinking her watery eyes as she looked around the now empty area.
As if they had evaporated, all those people had vanished without a trace.
“Eil, did you place the bet properly?”
“Yes! I bet on the person who looked the strongest. I have a good eye for people, you know!”
For a brief moment, she wondered about the strangely changed atmosphere, but she quickly answered Lis’s question with a bright smile.
A lie spoken confidently and shamelessly becomes truth the moment it leaves your mouth… or so Eil believed.
‘No matter who wins, they won’t be worth as much as this gold. Better that I cherish it instead.’
In a gambling ring full of rigged matches and scams, placing bets would only line the pockets of thugs anyway.
With that convenient justification, Eil smiled in satisfaction.
Beeeeep—
“Match over! Contestant number 3 wins!”
Right on cue, the signal announcing the end of the match rang out.
Contestant number 18, the loser, was being carried away on a stretcher, beaten into a pulp.
“Eil, who did you bet on?”
“Number 18. Oh no, I lost my money.”
“…Didn’t you say you had a good eye for people?”
Lis rested his chin on his hand and smirked crookedly as he watched Eil’s dry, monotonous reaction—like reading from a script.
Her lie was so obvious, yet she said it so confidently that it was almost absurdly amusing.
At his questioning, Eil shrugged as if wronged.
“My eyes are perfectly fine. That guy’s the one at fault. He should’ve won somehow.”
“…Maybe you’re right.”
Her shameless response came back without the slightest hesitation.
Unexpectedly swayed by her words, Lis frowned slightly where Eil couldn’t see.
A strange mix of irritation and amusement stirred within him, quickening his heartbeat.
Even though Eil’s waist pouch was noticeably bulging with gold coins, Lis pretended not to notice and looked away.
“No one here particularly catches my interest. Shall we head back?”
“Yes, it’d be better to leave finding an escort to Sir Demon.”
“Alright, I’ll do as you say, Eil.”
Before they knew it, the sun was setting. Eil gazed quietly at the sky dyed in shades of orange as she left the arena with Lis.
Perhaps because of the evening matches, the place was still crowded inside and out.
But then—
“Ugh… that oil smell.”
As soon as they passed the arena entrance, a rancid stench of used oil assaulted her nose, making her expression stiffen.
As they walked a little further, a disturbing sight came into Eil’s view.
“J-just a little more washing…!”
“Aaaagh! My eyes! I—I can’t see…!”
“G-give me more oil! Hurry… bring it now! Aaaagh!”
Between the drums filled with waste oil discarded by the arena, a crowd of people was swarming.
Some had plunged their entire bodies into the barrels, flailing wildly, while others shoved their faces into puddles of oil spilled onto the dirt.
‘I was wondering where they all went… Did they all lose their minds together?’
It was a scene too revolting to watch for long.
Feeling her stomach churn, Eil quickly turned her gaze away.
Most of them had been rude earlier, so there was no need to pity them—but something about the scene sent a chill down her spine, making her feel a fleeting sense of sympathy.
“…Young master, let’s go.”
“Okay, Eil. Let’s head back.”
Swallowing dryly, Eil quickened her pace.
Seeing Eil’s stiff expression through her silver hair, Lis’s lips curved into a crescent smile.
The outing had turned out far more interesting than he had expected.
“Eil, I’m worried about you.”
“Huh? The captain worries about people too?”
Eil looked at Des with curious eyes, and his neat brow furrowed sharply.
“You grew up in the assassin group from a very young age. Surrounded by nothing but men, it’s no surprise you’re rough for your age. You’re only fourteen, yet you act like an adult.”
“Oho, giving me compliments for once—”
“The problem is you talk worse than any street thug.”
Her brow creased at the sharp follow-up.
If you’re going to compliment me, at least finish it properly!
“Captain, I’m still a kid, you know. Comparing me to a thug is a bit much.”
“Kid? You only say that at times like this! Where did you even learn that shamelessness?!”
“Well, they say the water upstream has to be clear for the downstream to be clear. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
She patted his shoulder casually, and Des’s lips twisted dangerously.
After a moment, he took a deep breath and looked down at her calmly.
“Eil, I’ll say it again—don’t get attached to your target. The moment emotions get involved, our work is over.”
“That’s nothing new… You know me. I keep business and personal matters separate.”
“Exactly. That’s why I assigned this mission to you. I know you can do it.”
Des’s dark eyes softened like moonlight as they fell on the young member.
At the age of three, Eil had been sold off due to her father’s debt and ended up joining Black Rose.
From that moment on, it gave her a completely new life in many ways.
Des had practically raised her since then… so he was essentially family.
“Once this mission is over, the debt in your name will be cleared. When that happens, quit being an assassin.”
“Hmm, I don’t know. If I’m gone, who’s going to do the work? The others are busy, and you’re old—your body’s too stiff.”
“If you know that, show some respect to your elders, you brat.”
The love, touch, and sincere concern from another person—things she hadn’t felt since her mother’s death.
The bond she had gained through misfortune was more than she deserved.
“…Eil, you’re like a daughter to me. Whatever you do in the future, don’t ever get hurt.”
“Hm? I don’t remember ever having an outdated old man as a father.”
“What? Where did you learn to talk like that? It was Cheblin, wasn’t it?!”
Seeing Des reach for his dagger with veins popping, Eil burst into laughter and ran off.
Perhaps because of his overwhelming affection and concern, a corner of her heart softened.
“Eil?”
“…Ah! Yes, young master!”
At the sound of her name, she snapped back to her senses. She had been staring blankly at the ground and quickly moved back to Lis’s side.
Seeing a coin on the ground had made her think of Des for a moment—perhaps a little too long.
‘It’s already been half a month since I started this.’
It had been fifteen days since she became Lis’s personal maid.
A lot had happened in that short time, but if she had to pick the biggest problem…
