It was truly a strange occurrence. That man didn’t even recognize that he was Lina.

‘Why.’

Could his words and actions be exactly the same as what he did to me in the past?

Lina approached closely and looked at the man who was panting with hot breath.

How much had he drunk? The sharp scent of alcohol that irritated the tip of her nose every time the man’s breath reached her made her head spin.

Lina, slightly frowning at the strong smell of alcohol, took a step back to avoid the Duke.

Tight, hardened lips and twitching eyebrows.

The man standing before her wore an expression as if he was about to scold her at any moment.

‘So, why?’

She’d only encountered the Duke here a couple of times. Was it guilt for having hurt her, or something else?

Lina shook her head, clutching the hem of her trousers.

‘Does he vaguely notice that it’s me?’

Recognize me. No, don’t recognize me.

Her heart was a whirlwind of conflicting and complicated feelings.

“……Get out.”

The Duke sighed and moved away from her. Valige seemed to know the expression hidden behind the boy’s thick glasses.

Twitching at even the slightest noise, not meeting his eyes properly, just like…

‘Tsk.’

Valige clicked his tongue briefly at Lina’s face that resurfaced again. Then he muttered in a mocking tone.

“Why? Don’t want to leave?”

At that, the hurried boy quickly left the room.

Valige, left alone with the sound of the closing door, ruffled his hair with one hand along with a low curse.

“Damn.”

He himself didn’t know why he was acting like this, even going to the trouble of telling the employee to leave.

Valige, slumping on the bed, splashed water on his face and tilted his head back.

“It’s just that the wound is bothering me.”

Yes. Just bothered by the red blood on his blade. Sympathetic to the young one working with an untreated wound.

Only. That was why.

When he turned his gaze, the now cold soup caught his eye. Along with it, the image of the boy who had brought the soup.

The careful gesture of placing the soup down, and the tense, stiffened shoulders. Every single action of the boy was vividly imprinted in his mind.

As if he was trying to find someone in the boy.

“I must have finally gone mad.”

Or on the brink of madness.

Was the weariness in his voice, as he muttered to himself, an illusion?

“Lina…….”

The woman’s corpse he had checked at the security force earlier in the day.

The decayed corpse, so far gone that identity was difficult to ascertain, possessed physical characteristics eerily similar to Lina’s.

Ominously so.

An unfathomable dread continuously tugged at his ankles.

‘There’s no way, there’s no way that corpse was Lina’s.’

But contrary to his efforts, the image of the mutilated corpse vividly appeared in his mind.

And then the terrible headache returned.

“Ugh.”

He stared listlessly at the soup the boy had placed down, then threw the still steaming soup into the trash.

As if he didn’t want to think about anything anymore.

(This is a time separator.)

The next day. Valige, Laurence, and Count Philip Morris stood in front of a tavern in Piretga.

“Here?”

“Yes, this is the tavern that the wizards usually frequent. Since today is the monthly magic tool auction, many wizards should be gathered. We might be able to get the information we want.”

Count Philip Morris replied, and Valige toyed with the unidentified black stone he had picked up in the Scotus Forest.

Unlike Festius, in the Regnator Empire, one could only meet a wizard in the imperial palace.

Considering the attack in the forest, the likelihood of a wizard being involved was high. Therefore, before leaving this place, it was essential to identify the black stone.

“Let’s go in.”
Valige’s hand, clutching the black stone as if making a vow, grew tense.

When the three people entered the tavern, contrary to Philip’s words that it would be crowded, it was rather quiet.

But, as if already expecting this, Philip approached a man who was wiping glass cups at the bar.

“Four pieces of olive in a hot martini.”

As he spoke in a low voice, the bartender, who had been watching Philip with a slightly guarded eye, handed over a coin marked with the number 59.

“To the basement.”

He who lightly flicked the received coin with his finger led the two people and moved inside the tavern.

“Festius may be open to wizards, but wizards are quite eccentric.”

Philip said, winking one eye.

“Where do you know this kind of thing?”

“There’s a way, Lawrence.”

As they went down the worn wooden stairs, gradually the noise of murmuring began to be heard.

And when they opened the door at the end of the stairs, there were people who were spitting and shouting with hot heat.

“It looks like the auction has already started.”

It was when everyone was heating up over the items on stage as the auction was in full swing.

“It seems that the goods are won with the number written on this coin.”

People were shouting numbers written on coins. Valige, who had been staring intently, said to Lawrence.

“Lawrence, put this black stone up for auction.”

“Yes? This one?”