Chapter 135 128: Kick Into Motion, My Plans!
I followed behind the lady to find a maid, but a lot of them were already on the way to the lady's room. They awkwardly reached toward the lady and curtsied.
Seeing this, the lady sighed and walked back into her room with the row of maids following right behind.
"Stay here," she said as she entered the room, leaving me at the door. The maids entered behind the lady while sweating, yet they seemed to know exactly what to do. Half an hour passed like that before the maids stepped out and returned with a bucket full of rose petals. I closed my eyes and focused, the sounds of pouring water clear in my ears.
It had already been two hours since the time I had met her yesterday. It seemed rather odd for a routine, but I guess these things happened.
"Say, Eugy, will we have to see a pile of papers again today? Just how many mountains does she need to flatten?"
I sighed at Titania's words.
That stack was even worse than what I had seen Marquis of Hall with. It wasn't something that could happen overnight.
"Hopefully not," I muttered. "I have other plans for today."
"Right... I hope it works well."
***
In the knight barracks of the Acacia Estate in the capital city, two orichalcum adventurers had just returned after tussling with the knights and magicians of the estate.
In the empty room, Temporal Sword rested his legs on a chair while leaning back on another until its forelegs swayed in the air. The Sorcerer of the Swamps sat with her knees close to her chest, her stuff pressed close to her as her face was covered by her robes.
"Tempo," she called out. "Are you going to do it?"
Tempo winced and placed a palm over his head. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper.
"What is that kid planning? I know Dusk is smart, but what could this be."
"Do you think he fell for that lady?"
"Have you ever worked with Dusk before, Sorcerer?" Tempo opened one eye and glanced at the robed figure at the sides. The sorcerer shook her head. "I have. We didn't become friends then since he was still a newbie... But that kid. I would believe that he wanted to take over the duchy before believing he is doing this out of romance."
"It's in line with craziness though?" the sorcerer said. The contents of the note they had received yesterday were just that wild.
Tempo reached into his pockets and pulled out another letter.
It was one sent from the Vice Guild Master of the Adventurer's Guild.
[I don't know what's going on, but please cooperate with Adventurer Dusk on whatever he needs. Appreciate.
-Signed. VGM(working signature)]
The Vice Guild Master had been working on his signature for ages now.
They had even received word from their superior to help that kid out.
"Should we ditch?" Said Tempo.
"I mean, it's just the Vice Guild Master, who cares about his thoughts."
Tempo nodded and glanced at the paper again.
Then, his eyes fell on the small scribblings at the bottom.
"Oh no..."
"W-what?"
"It's also signed by the Head Receptionist..."
The sorcerer's staff fell from her hands.
"We're fucked."
***
The lady stepped out of the room eventually after all the maids left. She was donning a beautiful purple dress with a matching veil that highlighted the color of her hair. A beautiful scent wafted through the air with her every step.
She turned to face me, her mug completely covered by the veil. How irksome, there wasn't a way to confirm who looked better.
I was sure I looked better than both Dawn and Maria, there was no doubt in my heart despite not being able to see people.
In fact, if one was unable to see people forever and end up catching a glimpse just once, one would definitely find people to be ugly in general. I had no control group to match with, after all.
The lady suddenly spoke up.
"Your lips are too dry."
No shit. Shit, I was getting annoyed by her.
"It's because he hadn't had a drop of water since he met you."
Titania blurted out from the sides. The lady's veil didn't move but she seemed to have gotten slightly stiffer.
Soon.
She was going to admit soon that I was the coolest person she would see.
"Go eat something."
"I can't leave your side, my lady."
The lady stiffened again. In the end, she sighed and shook her head.
"Fine."
Without another word, she started moving through the castle again. This time, in a different direction from where her office was.
A smile was slowly creeping up on my face, but I held it in.
Now, she must be thinking she owes me something. Going without water for a day? I ended up spending more than four days in a row like that during quests, what was just one time I had stand still? But, it wasn't something she knew.
I achieved two things by standing out all night.
I confirmed she truly wasn't as strong as I thought she was. She wouldn't have stiffened up like that if she was at just the mention of something measly like hydration. It could be that she was kind-hearted, but signs didn't seem to point in that direction.
And another was creating a small, tiny sense of guilt toward me. It contradicted the first thing I said about a kind heart. But this depended more on trust than just having a good heart.
She didn't think she could trust me, and I was going above and beyond what others would do without saying a word.
It made her more tolerant of me, not worried, but tolerant.
And so, I could speak out of turn without problems at least once.
"My lady, are you stepping out?" I asked flatly, as if inquiring about my duties.
"Yes."
As I thought, she answered without getting annoyed.
I continued digging at the profile of the lady as I walked. People naturally felt a need to fill silence after they started speaking. It was an instinct to give justification.
Unfortunately, such a thing didn't exist for her.
I had my doubts about what could be causing her trust issues, but I didn't care. That was already an uncool point. Or was angst cooler? It didn't matter.
This was just the beginning.
There were a lot of moments left for me to show my cool side and completely overshadow her charisma.
We eventually stepped out of the castle and near the knights. The lady summoned Luther who came running over while grabbing his head and ordered him something. I maintained a small distance, though I could hear everything.
"Eugy, it's those adventurers."
Titania whispered in my ears and pointed at the two figures standing amongst the knights.
I adjusted my gaze along with her fingers and noticed a person in robes from head to toe.
Temporal Sword and the Sorcerer of the Swamps.
While staring at them, I summoned the biggest, kindest smile I could muster up. I hoped they did as I asked.
The two adventurers stiffened up and looked away, and so did most of the knights around them.
"My god, you look just like the devil."
Come now.
That wasn't very nice, my fairy companion.
Though, I guess it was slightly fitting.
Eventually, a carriage came over to us led by Luther along with two horses.
I gave the lady a hand and helped her climb on the beautiful carriage while Luther got on a horse, covering his face.
I was about to close the doors and take the second horse when the lady stopped me.
"Guard. Get inside."
"Yes?" I asked.
I wasn't her personal knight or aide, but just a person here for security. She was a lady from a duchy on top of that, it was highly unprofessional to get inside the same seat as her.
"Didn't you say you can't leave my side? Get inside."
"Um."
"I don't like wasting time."
Without a word, I got inside the carriage behind the lady and took a seat.
Well, this was better for my plans.
Though I was uncomfortable, it was better.
The carriage set off as Luther took the back. One of the horses went untouched and was returned to the stable.
In the end, only the lady and I remained in the lavish carriage that my personal carriage could never compare to. The quiet and comfortable ride began with the lady resting her head on her palm and gazing out the carriage while I sat idly in full alert, my chains ready to move.
We started coursing through the city and moved toward the lower districts as the lady began her business.
I gazed straight at her while in the carriage, hoping she would speak.
And it worked.
"I have just returned from the academy, there's a lot to do," she said.
Perfect.
There was definitely a lot to do for you, my lady.
I am going to have you kidnapped, after all.