“Ugh! Mm—!”
“Shh.”
A strong force wrapped around my waist.
My body was flipped in an instant. I squeezed my eyes shut.
When I opened them again, I was tucked neatly into a corner.
The man who had pulled me into his arms raised a finger to his lips.
“If you don’t want to die, be quiet.”
I nodded without thinking, almost possessed.
Satisfied with my response, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
Through his long black hair hanging over his shoulders, I saw his bright red eyes.
Blink. Blink.
My eyelids moved rapidly.
What is this?
Why does he feel familiar?
An illustration I had once saved in my gallery flashed through my mind.
Around that moment, a familiar voice rang out.
“Damn it. Where the hell did that bastard go?!”
What the—
Why is he here?
I forced down the urge to jump out.
I knew I shouldn’t move right now.
Not that I could anyway—the man was literally pinning me in place.
As I stayed completely still, the hand covering my mouth slowly loosened. But his body still held me firmly down.
Through messy strands of hair, I could see red eyes again. When I glanced at him, our eyes briefly met.
“Hey, pull back for now. If we keep wandering around here, we’ll get caught. It’s all under control anyway.”
A familiar voice snapped me fully awake.
“Damn it. That one was top quality!”
“Then release more guys. We brought enough manpower anyway.”
Xavier Persher’s anger echoed nearby.
I strained my ears, and the voices became clearer.
Footsteps approached—heavy, deliberate.
Are they coming this way?
My body instinctively tensed, and the man holding me noticed.
Gulp.
I swallowed dryly as the conversation continued.
“You idiot. I told you to manage the restraints properly!”
“Ugh! That one was perfect for clean-up work…”
Clang—
Something was kicked.
A moment later, a can rolled near us.
“Tch. It was already annoying enough dealing with the higher-ups. Now this crap too.”
“Then what about that?”
“What?”
“The count’s family.”
“Oh, that? It’s going well. That Aria girl will pay it all off anyway.”
“…What?”
“Yeah. The count’s guarantee was basically your debt, right?”
“Yeah. That dumb girl knelt a few times and said she’d pay it back. Works out great for me. 20 billion isn’t small change.”
Weak nobles are worse than commoners. Laughter followed.
“What if she runs away?”
“She can’t. I already filed a curfew restriction on her. And the loan was taken under someone else’s name, so my name isn’t even on the documents. She’ll never know it’s me.”
“You’re ruthless.”
“Ruthless? It’s just karma for her stupid parents. And that girl? She basically worships her family. She’ll do anything to save the house.”
Clicking tongues followed.
“Aren’t you going too far with your own niece?”
“Niece?”
“She’s basically disposable.”
“Anyway, it’s only six months. I’ll clean up the market and make money properly.”
If I sell off the whole estate, I wonder how much I’d get?
Xavier Persher hummed cheerfully.
“Don’t worry. I don’t leave loose ends.”
Once this is done—
“He’s dead meat anyway.”
We just have to squeeze every last drop out of him.
Metallic sounds and faint screams followed.
As the footsteps slowly faded, I could feel they were leaving.
But my body still wouldn’t move.
“…Son of a b*tch.”
If I heard correctly, that bastard had just dropped a massive bomb on me.
So that guy was the guarantor?!
Then the debt… was because of him?!
My mind spun rapidly.
…That insane bastard. And he wants me to pay it?!
What kind of scum is this?!
No wonder everyone tried to stop him from guaranteeing it!
“Damn it… it’s all because of that bastard…”
I gritted my teeth.
I’ve been suffering all this time because of him?!
I knew he was trash, but I didn’t think he was this level of garbage.
The shocking truth stung sharply.
“You bastard…”
I rubbed my wet eyes roughly, tears suddenly welling up.
My nose stung.
Damn it… how humiliating.
My anger burned hot, then turned cold like water poured over it.
And what was that? He said he’d kill me?
Like hell I’ll stay quiet.
What’s the point of paying the debt if I still die horribly anyway?
No way!
Absolutely not!
I wiped my tear-soaked cheeks, my hand touching something warm.
At that moment, another warmth pressed against me.
“Ah—?”
My rage-shaken mind snapped back into place.
“….”
Blink. Blink.
I stared blankly at the man holding me tightly.
His arms wrapped around me like he was comforting me, holding on even tighter than before.
While I was still dazed, he suddenly lifted his head.
“….”
“…U-uh…”
W-what do I even say first?
I rolled my eyes and chose the most urgent thing.
“T-thank you for comforting me… but could you let go a little?”
“…Ah.”
He let out a short breath, lips parting slightly.
But he still didn’t release his arms.
Only after I spoke again did he slowly let go.
“Ahem!”
That was awkward.
I scratched my cheek.
“Thank you. For helping me.”
“…It wasn’t help.”
“Still.”
It definitely was help, even if unintended.
I gently tapped his chest where I had been pressed.
“And it looks like they’re all gone now.”
“Ah.”
Only then did he realize he was still holding me down and quickly pulled back.
“Phew.”
I slowly looked around.
We were in an alley just beyond the corner.
When I tried to move, pain shot through my elbow.
It must’ve been scraped when I was shoved into the corner.
“Ugh.”
I checked the injury briefly, then looked back at the man.
He was sitting on the ground, fiddling with something around his ankle.
“Hey.”
“?”
He blinked at me.
I hid my injured elbow and asked,
“Are you acquainted with those people earlier?”
He paused.
After a moment of thought, he answered:
“I’m the one they caught.”
“The one they caught?”
He pointed to the shackles around his ankle.
When I looked, I saw a familiar symbol.
A chilling skull mark.
That’s a slave mark.
“Hey…”
“…?”
“Did that pink-haired guy drag you here earlier?”
Nod. Nod.
He nodded.
—Damn it. Ruining noble dignity… what am I supposed to do about my business?!
Wait… that business he mentioned yesterday…
Was it a slave market?
Insane!
I swallowed a scream.
A chill ran down my spine.
Slave trading is illegal!
It used to be legal a few years ago, but due to legal issues it was banned. Even after the ban, it hadn’t disappeared, so the imperial authorities had been cracking down heavily since last year.
And yet it was still happening openly?
…Wait.
Then I might have just found a weakness.
My mind raced at the unexpected discovery.
If I use this properly…
Maybe I can bring that bastard down.
Either way, if things continued like this, I’d be worked to death and then die horribly. And he even planned to sell off the family I barely saved.
Like I’d let that happen.
If I didn’t want to be destroyed, I had to move first.
I glanced at the man still sitting dazedly beside me.
Right now, the only person who clearly knew Xavier’s crimes…
Was him.
“Do you have somewhere to go?”