His mellow voice comprised a cold air, while the expressionless features of the man’s face sent shivers down my spine.
He spoke but one word, so why was there an overwhelming aura emanating from him? I froze where I stood.
‘Who is he?’
What called for the complexity of this situation was the identity of this man.
“Why don’t you speak? I didn’t predict a startled complexion coming from you, of all people.”
He replied in a nonchalant tone. It seemed he was meaning to joke around, but the mood and atmosphere didn’t call for it.
“You disappeared for three months and only abruptly made an appearance. Now you aren’t attending the salon.”
“Y… Yes.”
First and foremost, I must pretend to only recall till this point. Then I’ll claim to have lost my memory while absent-mindedly seeking his conversations that were supposedly foreign to me.
I nodded awkwardly, carefully positioning myself opposite the man.
The salon he mentioned was a gathering annually hosted by Serrine. The place where aristocrats boasted of their slaves. I don’t quite comprehend the reason for such gatherings, but these were details I noted from the novel.
“Not much outcome is earned lately due to your absence. It seems you found it, looking at your past actions?”
Found it? What was Serrine searching for? Should I say yes or no?
Sweat formed around my neck as I clenched my jaw.
“You.”
His ferocious eyes unraveled the menace that was masked deep within the man. His gaze indicated he had seen through everything.
“You aren’t Serrine.”
Thud. I felt my heart drop.
His gaze seemed to have truly penetrated through me.
‘H-how did he know?’
My heart was pounding, my hands dampening from the sweat. No, calm down. It could be something he doesn’t mean literally. Take it easy.
‘I’ll never be found out!’
He observed me slowly, like a predator eying his prey.
Honestly, what was he even saying. Let me correct him appropriately.
“What are you talking about? I’m Seri…”
“Tell me who I am.”
I can’t entirely do that. Who are you anyway? Unable to retort, I shut my mouth. The man looked at me while resting his chin languidly. No, rather than looking at me… Assuming he was observing me would be better of a description.
It felt as if his gaze was ripping me to shreds.
“She is not the type to say ‘yes’ to me. In fact, she wouldn’t go through all the trouble to sit and talk to me in the first place.”
…Serinne, what kind of personality have you accumulated? I can’t believe someone would think of you as a stranger if you did as much as sit across from them.
“I did imagine your absence was peculiar, but I now understand. How regretful. The money she provided was promising.”
The man didn’t affirm nor deny his suspicions, but it seemed he was already convinced. Even if I opposed his speculation, the man was likely to ignore my protests.
‘How the hell did he figure it out?’
Nonetheless, I couldn’t just say ‘That’s right, I’m not Serrine’ because that would, even more, strengthen his convictions.
Unbeknownst to my upcoming actions, I glanced at him cumbersomely. He lightly tapped his chin.
“Don’t worry. No one knows of your identity other than myself.”
How can you guarantee that? Your knowing is critical enough! This is why I didn’t like the witticism of aristocrats.
I eyed him suspiciously. The man smirked.
“I’m speaking the truth. It doesn’t make sense for two people to exist with identical appearances. Did she say your real name was Eishan?”
I widened my eyes in surprise. If he knew my name⋯ This man was already knowledgeable of the situation, right?
“You don’t have to be so astonished. To entertain myself, I’ve been participating in various activities. Well, in a way, you can think of it as acquiring people who act behind the scenes, arranging meetings, and things as such.”
Acquiring people and arranging meetings…
I recalled the conversation I overheard during my days as a slave.
A job that sold information over specific individuals, regardless of age or gender.
I lowered my gaze and relayed my thoughts in a calm tone.
“Sir, you are an informant. It is practically ‘illegal’ to spread information regarding someone discreetly.”
An illegal informant who auctions private details of a particular for money, regardless of means or methods.
For instance, exposing the whereabouts of a runaway slave, or conversely, informing the slave was to escape. Assisting the Imperial family by capturing the hidden rebels, the same as leaking knowledge of the Imperial family to the rebels.
In short, regardless of the identity of the subject, they would take part as long as the money was gained in closing.
“I don’t quite agree with the ‘illegal’ part of your definition. I simply provide the customer with the information they wish for.”
The man replied jokingly as he flicked his finger. The problem was that his tone and expression didn’t designate a playful atmosphere. It seems Serrine reached out to the man to determine her replacement.
Then, as she came to find me, she discovered me outside amidst the cold by chance and therefore achieved her goals.
“Hmm. I don’t know how long I’ll continue speaking to myself in this manner.”
I have no desire to join in with your gibberish. Keep speaking to yourself!
“In truth, I don’t prefer speaking to myself.”
The man stood from his seat.
“Shall we head out and have a conversation regarding the lady with everyone? In particular, how you behave like a different person as of late.”
“What in the world!”
Flabbergasted, I jumped from my seat. He, in turn, raised his chin.
“It seems like you have the heart to speak now.”
This, this… unscrupulous.
“Please sit down.”
The man nodded and comfortably rested on the sofa. My mind was filled with endless drawbacks. I could no longer act oblivious to someone who knew my name.
“Are you going to tell the others?”
“I don’t prefer losing my toys to other competitors.”
Toys… This was the essence of aristocrats, after all. Be tolerant, be tolerant. I am at a disadvantage as of this moment.
I pressed my fingers to cover my wrinkled forehead and faced him.
“What do you want?”
“If I voice my desires, you’ll have to listen to everything.”
He seemed to enjoy the current situation.
‘I don’t like it!’
The man rested his chin on his hand as he replied with a cynical smile.
“It’s not bad to see someone with the exact face as hers flustered in such a manner.”
What a perv.
“She was a customer of mine, so I will not threaten the lady using her as a weakness. Don’t worry.”
Oh? Surprisingly, he has a conscience. I thought he’d pressurize me.
Right, they told me not to judge a person by their appearance. He may seem like a delinquent at first glance, but the truth was…
“Of course, until there are no disputes. Unfortunately, the lady disappeared, having left her balance unsettled. So you must solve that.”
This man was a first-grade villain. One couldn’t conclude by appearance alone. He was worse than he looked!
It was better not to involve myself with this person. It was Serrine’s business, anyhow.
Besides, I had nothing to lose.
“Of course, that is a dire problem, as you said.”
I took a light sip from the teacup placed before me and continued.
“However, I don’t happen to be the person who reached out to you, therefore, I don’t have much of a reason to fill in for the lady.”
At my rebuttal, he smiled and signaled for me to continue. He seemed solely relaxed.
“If you want to receive the appropriate payment, that would be a matter discussed with the party involved. Seeing the sir is an informant, that wouldn’t be much of a problem for you.”
Good, a perfect response. Was it because of his feral gaze? My teacup quickly emptied from its contents.
“I don’t want to go through such trouble. In addition, the person sitting in front of me remains ‘Serrine’, whether she was the party involved or not.”
The man flicked his finger and continued to gaze at my empty teacup.
“However, as you said, there is no way that you are capable of handling such a large scale.”
Well, it seemed he was someone who could communicate well. I imagined all nobles were clueless on that matter.
“It would be nice if you could do me a few favors in return for the balance.”
Or not. As expected, there’s no way we could successfully communicate. My beliefs were never wrong.
‘You said there would be no issues, but there was this, Serrine.’
I pressed down on my scrunched forehead. It wasn’t that I didn’t understand. She would die in six months. Why would she care about such worrying matters?
‘Should I just deny what he’s saying?’
There was no evidence that Serrine asked this person for information anyway.
Yes, let’s do that.
“Do you have evidence? Proof that she asked for information?”
I’m going to push ahead recklessly, so I won’t require to address this man using honorifics henceforth. There’ll be no need to speak formally.
He hasn’t been speaking respectfully to me since earlier, so I didn’t have to either.
“Oh no, I must have caused you to misunderstand.”
He pulled a piece of paper from his inside pocket and settled it over the table.
“I asked for a favor, but I never provided you with a choice.”
Serrine, who threatened by kindly giving me an option, and this bastard who asked me but gave no choice.
Nobles were all and the same.
At the top of the paper lay the word ‘contract’ written in bold letters.
‘Damn it, they even signed a contract.’
“I brought this in case the lady refused to pay the balance. I didn’t know I’d use it in this way.”
I was furious at the sight of the man before me. He spoke as if amused with the whole thing. Why was he so meticulously prepared?
“I don’t know. I’ve never written such a contract. *Cut my stomach. Cut my stomach!”
TL/N: ‘Cut my stomach’ is an expression that has a very strong and negative feeling against someone’s request.
As soon as I finished my words, he beckoned his subordinates, whom I forgot existed for a passing moment. One approached me silently. The long scar on his cheek worsened my impression of him.
‘W-why is he approaching me? Will he truly finish me off?’
I gazed at the man in bewilderment. He tilted his stance and held his chin, his face expressionless.
***