A Korean Office Worker Who Became a Nuisance Villainess in a Zombie Story - Chapter 131

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 15. The City of Handsome Deception
“The Young Grand Duke has never visited our Sodom.”
“Never?”
Not uncertain whether she’d come or not—but definitively never come at all?
“Are you certain of this?”
“I am.”
The Lord of Sodom nodded his head.
Unlike his daughter Pochacha, even a single gesture from him radiated dignity and grace. The Lord continued.
“I apologize for repeating myself, but our Sodom is entirely encircled by towering fortifications.”
I know. Which is why whenever zombies appear, everyone rushes toward the castle gate, and I worry there’ll be a disaster from the crush of bodies.
Meanwhile, inside the city, there are no doors anywhere, so people get infected with nowhere to hide.
At least the lavatories have doors—I suppose I should be grateful for that.
“Everyone entering and leaving Sodom passes through inspection by the Guard Corps at the castle gate. Had a noble of such prominence visited our city, the guards at the gate would have noticed immediately.”
The Lord paused deliberately at that point. It was entirely intentional.
He resumed speaking.
“I would have received a report at once. Unless, of course, the Young Grand Duke entered under an assumed identity for some reason. If I may be so bold…”
Is your younger brother hiding something unsavory, having secretly infiltrated our city?
I responded lightly to his indirect question.
“My younger brother ranks among the highest nobility in the entire Empire. His characteristics and exploits are equally well known. Surely you’ve heard tales of him, Countess?”
“…Indeed.”
“Do you truly believe he possesses the intelligence for such deception?”
To hide his identity? Him?
The man can’t even properly conceal his own stupidity.
“I have no personal experience with him, so I cannot say. Though I must observe that the Noble Lady differs considerably from her reputation.”
“Don’t worry. He’s every bit as foolish as the rumors suggest.”
“Ahem.”
“Heh…”
“Pfft…”
…As I always say, Yujein, if something’s funny, you’re allowed to laugh.
I seized the moment while my companions were laughing, catching the Lord off guard, and pressed forward.
“The Lord of Gomorrah has already proven that my younger brother traveled there without incident.”
Strictly speaking, he didn’t prove it to me—I simply stole and read his letter myself.
“He revealed his identity all the way there and arrived just fine, so there’s no reason he’d suddenly hide it upon entering Sodom. If my younger brother never entered the city, then either something happened in that brief window, or…”
You’re concealing my younger brother.
Just as the Lord had done moments before, I let my sentence trail off deliberately.
The Lord, understanding perfectly, smiled with composure.
“I shall have the Guard Commander summoned to investigate once more.”
“I would be most grateful.”
“Please harbor no great expectations. Considerable time has passed, and the guards’ memories will have faded accordingly. You must not assume the intelligence of commoners equals our own, Noble Lady.”
What nonsense. Intelligence has a hierarchy?
“I’m afraid I must disagree.”
I gestured toward Melon, who sat across the room at some distance.
Melon, who had been whispering with her older sister Pochacha while glancing sideways at me, suddenly widened her eyes at the sudden attention.
I spoke while observing her crimson hair, divided equally on both sides and tied like dumplings.
“My younger sibling resembles me quite closely. Which is to say, we have rather distinctive appearances.”
The appearance of an Oriental—a rarity in this Empire.
Not quite as tall as Cyprus, but still quite imposing. Around 185 centimeters.
“Even the Local Lord’s daughter, who has witnessed countless rare things throughout her life and has been stealing glances at my face ever since we arrived out of curiosity, surely the guards wouldn’t have forgotten such a thing.”
So there was no need for such needless worry, I nodded to myself. Praha beside me lowered his head. He was smiling.
‘He laughs every time I act like a scrappy fighter. He must enjoy it.’
In any case, his tastes are peculiar…
“Oh, and.”
I drove the final nail into the coffin of the Local Lord, who continued smiling despite the assault.
“Our Saint here, Miss Yujein, is also a commoner.”
For the first time, the Local Lord’s expression crumbled.
“…Good heavens. I absolutely did not mean it in such a way…”
“You can apologize separately later. What I want now is a list of every Casino in Sodom.”
“That is…”
“I intend to search for my younger sibling myself. According to what you just said, Sodom is a well-managed city, so naturally you must have a list of the Casinos, yes?”
“…”
“Give it to me. Now.”
Hand it over.
* * *
“When did the Lord of Gomorrah ever provide such proof?! Did you meet with the Lord of Gomorrah separately without our knowledge, Yusara?!”
“Miss Yujein, are you alright? Should I have hit him once for you?”
“He’s… someone who gives off a bad feeling…”
“There’s nothing particularly unusual about the list.”
It had been quite some time since I’d experienced this kind of overlapping audio.
After finishing our meal, we returned to our respective rooms.
‘Respective rooms’ was merely a formality—since the rooms had no doors, we were essentially in one space.
I’d declined the offer of servants to attend us, but precisely because there were no doors, every word we exchanged seemed destined to leak into the Corridor.
In Praha’s brief absence, Cyprus and Tangerine stood guard at the entrance. That’s when each of us spoke in turn.
Yujein’s face flushed upon hearing my question.
“Yes, I received an apology. He said it was absolutely not his intention… that since I’m a Saint, I’m different from other commoners.”
“What nonsense. And then?”
“I was going to tell him that I’m not actually a Saint, but… it didn’t seem worth the effort, so I just said I understood and moved on.”
“Good call.”
Then it was my turn.
“I’ve never met the Lord of Gomorrah. Instead, I read a letter he sent.”
I briefly explained the letter I’d discovered while searching through my Younger Brother’s Study before leaving the Capital.
It felt embarrassing to reveal that my younger brother was mentally and physically frail and our household was in disarray, but I did my best to act as though nothing was amiss.
“So you stole the letter?! That must have been entertaining!”
Tangerine, who mercifully focused her interest elsewhere rather than on the state of our family’s affairs, exclaimed brightly.
“Stole it? No—leaving the letter there was an act of kindness, an invitation for me to read it.”
1)
“Then it’s almost certain that the Young Duke was here!”
“Exactly. I suppose we’ll have to venture outside and make inquiries. What about the casino list?”
I turned to Cyprus to see if he’d discovered anything.
Standing upright, Cyprus flipped through the papers with practiced efficiency.
“The Lord of Sodom appears to be a meticulous man. He has categorized every casino in the city by funding scale and the social status of their patrons.”
“So he really does manage everything.”
“Of course, but there’s nothing written like ‘human trafficking occurs here!’ or ‘this is the casino where the Young Duke disappeared!'”
“I suppose not.”
If my missing younger brother’s situation didn’t involve slave trading in Sodom, I wouldn’t be this worried.
What if he simply couldn’t repay his debts and is somewhere having his organs harvested or forced into labor?
“You mentioned earlier that the slaves from Promé were being sold to a region called the ‘Circus,’ didn’t you?”
The admission token to the Sodom casino left behind by the Promae Lord’s Son also bore the Circus insignia.
“Is there perhaps a casino with ‘Circus’ in its name?”
“There is not.”
“…I suppose that would be too convenient.”
Things were never this simple.
“…Sigh.”
[What we must accomplish in Sodom]
1. Confront him about why he ignored my messages when he was perfectly fine.
2. Determine whether the Lord of Sodom is involved in human trafficking crimes and resolve the matter.
3. Find clues about the zombies (though we haven’t spotted a single one yet).
4. Help Muffin and Cheese find their families.
Bonus. Find my younger brother.
“First, we should help Muffin and Cheese find their families, and then conduct our inquiries.”
“What should we do about the zombie problem?”
“We can discuss that further once Praha arrives… Oh.”
As I was speaking, Praha returned.
…with Pochacha slung over his side.
Pochacha, who had been clinging to the much larger Praha as they walked, now sat on the floor beside me and Yujein, with Cyprus standing and Tangerine beside him. She blinked at us.
“Well then, I’ll be going now, Your Highness. Don’t forget your promise, all right?”
Pochacha glanced over us briefly, then smiled sweetly at Praha as she spoke.
Her demeanor was still not particularly graceful, but it was spirited and endearing as she bade farewell and hurried away.
Gone was the sullen, pouting attitude from when Praha had scolded her earlier.
Since I could only blink in confusion, Cyprus asked on my behalf.
“…What promise did you make with that child, Praha?”
“…She invited me to her morning grooming ritual.”
“…She invited you to what?”
“…Her morning grooming ritual.”
“The one where nobles start in their undergarments, then choose a dress, apply makeup, style their hair, and drape themselves in jewelry…? That one?”
“Yes.”
“She asked you to watch from the side?”
“Yes.”
“….”
“….”
“….”
[A guest room in Sodom Castle that mercifully has a bathroom door]
-Yusara, Praha, Cyprus, Yujein, Tangerine, Muffin, Cheese, Cheese’s Younger Sibling (Alive)
1) Kang Shin-jae, 【The Young Zelkova】

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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