DLRV 20

“This is…”

The man’s expression hardened as he recognized the crest of Roam.

He wouldn’t know whether the owner of this brooch was the eldest daughter, the second daughter, the youngest, or someone else entirely. But he must have realized at least that it was genuine.

“If you’ve recognized it, hurry up and call your superior.”

As I spoke coldly, the man hurriedly got up. However, there was no need for him to go call anyone.

Because before he could, a woman who had been listening to our conversation from behind the curtain finally revealed herself.

“It seems you weren’t satisfied with the staff member. Speak to me instead. I am Bellona, the owner of this shop.”

She was gaunt, with deeply wrinkled skin, yet adorned in extravagant clothing and jewelry.

As she took the seat the man had vacated, a heavy scent of cosmetics wafted from her. She looked older than I remembered.

“The crest is real.”

Just by glancing at it, she recognized that the brooch was authentic. I responded in an arrogant tone.

“Yes, I came under the orders of Duke Roam.”

“The Duke wishes to purchase all the items in our shop?”

Bellona’s voice was smooth.

“It’s my first time welcoming a customer this generous…”

Trailing off, she soon smiled and gazed at me.

“I haven’t received any separate instructions. Was there no letter or message?”

Compared to the staff member from earlier, Bellona’s demeanor was impeccable. But I could tell she was skeptical.

Of course, it was only natural. My father had never purchased goods in this manner before. Magic tool artisans would personally bring their wares, beg for him to buy them, and only then would they cross Roam’s threshold.

There was always a long line of magic tool makers waiting their turn. It was certainly out of character for my father—or for my sister, Frizian—to visit a shop in person.

But things are different now, aren’t they?

“A few days ago, the young lady was found in a nearby village.”

Feigning reluctance, I calmly spoke.

I am no longer a child of Roam, but I never said I wouldn’t use their name.

If they are going to use me, then it’s only fair that I use them too.

“She could have been safely retrieved, but the search party botched the job. Because of that, the Duke is furious.”

People like Bellona and others in the underworld wouldn’t believe the romanticized rumor that I had been kidnapped by a monster.

Rather than fabricating a story that aligns with public gossip, mixing lies with partial truths was the safer option.

“Oh dear, is that so?”

Bellona let out a small exclamation and widened her eyes. But her gaze didn’t waver in the slightest, and her reaction was exaggerated.

So, she had already heard about the search party.

“The young lady will soon appear in this city, so he ordered that no unofficial goods be left in stock. The Duke does not want her to be able to purchase anything. And when she does come, he wants you to keep her occupied by claiming everything is out of stock.”

“But if that’s the case, wouldn’t it be enough for us to simply say we have nothing available? There’s no need for you to go through the trouble of purchasing everything.”

“She was born and raised in Roam. Do you think she’d be fooled by a flimsy lie?”

Bellona must have heard plenty about how viciously I tormented Lilia in the past. If she lied about the stock, she must have thought I might throw a fit.

“…Then, should I prepare the goods right away?”

“Yes. Time is of the essence, so bring them out immediately. Price everything at full value and send the final invoice to the Roam estate—they will take care of it.”

Magic tools are expensive. Even with my ample funds, sweeping up the entire shop’s inventory would put a dent in my finances.

So, this was the perfect moment to rack up an enormous bill under the Roam family’s name.

My arm, still not fully healed, was an uncomfortable burden, but if this allowed me to extract compensation, it was satisfying.

“Of course, I am well aware of the Duke’s esteemed character, but as a businesswoman, how can I hand over all the goods without collateral?”

“That’s why I’m giving you this brooch.”

I gestured toward the brooch with my chin.

Bellona’s eyes finally widened in genuine shock, as if she hadn’t expected me to offer it as collateral.

“Or do you lack the insight to recognize its worth?”

This brooch was genuine. With it, she could go anywhere and claim Roam’s name as her own.

I was offering something that money couldn’t buy, so she had no reason to refuse. After all, no one would dare suspect that someone bearing Roam’s crest was lying.

I only hoped that when my family eventually got it back, they would understand my intentions. And finally stop spouting nonsense about the ‘lost daughter of Roam.’

“I will prepare everything immediately. Please wait a moment.”

“Oh, and while you’re at it, save me the hassle and gather all the goods from the nearby shops as well. Of course, make sure to calculate everything properly.”

“…Understood. I will do so.”

She gave a thin smile and stood up. I crossed my arms and leaned back leisurely.

A short while later, a small bag was placed in front of me. A compact crossbody bag connected to a subspace.

Naturally, it was packed with illegally circulated magic tools.

***

Before I died, I once secretly visited the Grand Library.

My reason for going in disguise was simple—

To find a way to cure my incurable disease.

Looking back now, it was foolish. Searching for a cure for a disease that never even existed—it was only natural that I found nothing.

At the time, I had been desperate. In turn, my despair was even greater.

Because I was angry, I think I vented a little. They called it a treasure trove of all the world’s knowledge, yet I remember getting mad that nothing was useful. Well, in the process, there was also some minor property damage.

Because of that incident, the proud imperial court-dispatched mages and researchers even sent an official letter of protest to Roam.

I ignored all of it, though.

The great library I returned to was still as massive as ever. As soon as I left the shop, I changed my appearance again and entered the building as an ordinary woman with dull red hair, green eyes, and freckles.

At the center of the building was a wide-open circular space stretching up to the ceiling, with various books neatly categorized.

[The knights seated at the round table are twelve, of whom two are forever lost in darkness, while the remaining ten wander without seeing the rest before them. The one to illuminate the chaos is the Captain.]

Nadav had definitely said that. There must be a reason he specifically referred to them as the twelve knights of the round table.

The problem, however, was that searching through the countless history books using only the keywords “round table” and “twelve knights” was far too broad.

It wasn’t something that could be done in a day or two—finding everything within today was impossible.

So for now, I decided to look up information about the monster known as Dullahan.

If I could understand how Dullahans were born, I might be able to infer something about Nadav’s past. Knowing their origins and habitat could be helpful.

When I reached the library section filled with books on monsters, I let out an involuntary sigh. There were so many monsters in this world—why did Nadav have to be a Dullahan?

If only he had a slightly more normal appearance, it would’ve been much easier to take him around. Or at the very least, if he had been smaller.

“Categorization…”

Not a beast-type, so a humanoid? Or should I search by attribute instead? Dullahans belong to the darkness attribute, right?

The monster section seemed to be quite popular, with people scattered between the bookshelves. I craned my neck, scanning the titles, but I couldn’t find what I was looking for.

The shelves in the darkness attribute section were filled with books about Black Dragons. Occasionally, there were mentions of undead and hellspawn, but there wasn’t a single book dedicated solely to Dullahans.

Even the titles were all ridiculously flashy, looking more like novels than research papers.

“Hah, the book organization is really…”

Terrible. Finding books has always been a nightmare, both then and now.

While the higher-ups have librarians fetching every book for them, the general public must locate and return books on their own in this open-access space.

As a result, books often ended up misplaced, and their condition was far worse than those reserved for the elite.

The fact that books were even made available to the public was revolutionary, but if they were going to do that, couldn’t they at least make it a bit more user-friendly?

And why were there so many visitors? This wasn’t some marketplace—shouldn’t they be limiting entry?

“These so-called librarians are just draining funds without doing any real work.”

I grumbled under my breath as I bent down to scan the lower shelves, clenching my teeth in frustration. It wasn’t like I expected to find it right away.

Still, at this rate, I wasn’t sure if I’d even manage to skim through a single book today.

By the time I had searched three bookshelves, my irritation was bubbling over. The thought that Samuel could arrive in this city as soon as tomorrow only made me more anxious.

I had planned to gather key information today and leave the city by nightfall.

As I bit my lip and glared at the bookshelves, someone suddenly spoke to me.

“Are you looking for something?”

It was a chubby man wearing thick-rimmed glasses.

“Would you like some help?”

His face flushed slightly as he asked, making his intentions painfully obvious.

I hesitated for a moment but soon nodded.

I wasn’t in a position to be picky—I had to use every method available.

“I’d appreciate that.”

Smiling sweetly, I effortlessly spun a story about a completely made-up family situation.