I Cured the Mastermind and Failed to Run Away - Chapter 13

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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 13

Lebelin returned to the Estate with her auction purchases in hand.
All the items were meticulously wrapped so that their contents remained a mystery—no trouble there.
It looked as though she’d simply bought a few display pieces from the Atelier.
To avoid drawing suspicion, Lebelin had deliberately purchased gifts for her father and brother on the way home as well.
The moment she arrived at the Estate, she headed straight for her father’s study.
“Lebelin, did you enjoy the exhibition? It’s such a beautiful day—I should have gone out with you.”
“Father! Did you hear the rumors about the Grand Duke Belharck’s secret balcony meeting?”
Count Etelion was a man of rigid principle, the sort who ordinarily paid no attention to unconfirmed gossip.
Which is why.
“Yes, I’ve heard.”
“Oh!”
If Count Etelion had heard the rumors, then there wasn’t a noble in the Capital who hadn’t.
She’d been so focused on raising her Purifier Grade lately that she hadn’t noticed such rumors spreading through society.
‘At this point in time, the gossip mill should be overflowing with stories about Sophia!’
In the original story, all the rumors centered on Sophia because of her awakening as a Grade 2 Purifier.
That runaway heroine!
‘Before anyone figures out that I’m the source of these rumors, I need to haul that heroine back and put her where she belongs.’
Lebelin handed over the gifts she’d purchased for her father and brother as an alibi, then excused herself by claiming she was tired and needed to rest, before retreating to her bedroom.
‘No one will come in until evening.’
The auction items the servants had carried to her room were waiting for her.
Lebelin unwrapped the package and began removing the contaminated objects one by one from the specially crafted Mage Tool that contained them.
‘There’s no good in keeping contaminated items in the bedroom for long.’
Objects saturated with Contamination could have adverse effects on the other residents of the Estate.
Lebelin immediately began the Purification.
Purify. Purify. Purify.
She cleansed several contaminated objects in succession, and it wasn’t exhausting in the slightest. In fact, she was moving quickly.
‘A Grade 4 Purifier is truly remarkable.’
It was nothing like when she’d been Grade 10. She could now understand why higher-Grade Purifiers received such preferential treatment.
‘Let me check my progress.’
Once she’d finished purifying the contaminated items, Lebelin retrieved a Mage Tool designed to verify Grade advancement.
Her heart raced.
‘What if I’ve reached Grade 3?’
At this pace, she could become a Grade 1 Purifier before the season ended—!
A shrill beep pierced through Lebelin’s fantasy.
And it read Grade 4.
“Hmm.”
The number hadn’t changed at all. Every time she’d purified Contamination before, her Grade had shifted!
Lebelin stared blankly at the unchanged number.
“Did I read it wrong?”
Lebelin checked again.
Another beep sounded.
This time, too—Grade 4.
“All right, one more time.”
Grade 4. Unchanging Grade 4.
“So it seems this won’t be enough after all.”
Lebelin put away the Grade verification Mage Tool and flopped onto her bed.
Purifying Contamination at this level wasn’t sufficient to advance her Grade.
Perhaps because she’d anticipated this to some degree, the disappointment wasn’t overwhelming.
It couldn’t possibly be this simple!
‘Becoming a Grade 3 Purifier requires a proportional amount of Mana.’
Tremendous Mana. In that instant, Chedwin’s image flashed through her mind.
‘If I were to regularly purify someone contaminated to that degree……’
Lebelin raised her clenched fist and brought it down hard on her own head with a Bang!
“Get a grip!”
Lack of magical power or not, that’s no excuse! How could I even think of such a person!
That was a close call.
‘Perhaps I should prepare a false identity after all?’
She recalled the method she’d considered at first—instead of entering the Contaminated Zone where she couldn’t conceal her face, she could use the Purification Center where contaminated commoners gathered.
High-grade Purifiers rarely visited, and only low-grade ones occasionally volunteered, so most people there had gone untreated, or so she’d heard.
If a Purifier was coming, the Center would accept anyone, masked or otherwise.
‘But to perform Purification at the Center, I’d need to verify my identity as a Purifier.’
So she’d have to fabricate credentials.
‘If I want to handle this discreetly, the Information Guild would be the way to go.’
She’d already made a point of researching the Information Guild beforehand, just as she’d prepared for the auction house tickets!
‘No auction house, no web novel. No Information Guild, no web novel!’
The problem was that when she’d visited last time, they’d already filled their annual quota of commissions and refused to take any more.
‘In novels, the heroines always manage to find these places and meet the right people. Meanwhile, I can’t even book an appointment without running into reality.’
Still, she couldn’t do nothing. At first light, she’d send a letter.
Lebelin, who’d been staring up at the chandelier, tapped the bed gently.
‘That ridiculous rumor will die down in a few days, won’t it?’
After all, the rumor had no substance. It would be buried by something else soon enough. There were always so many incidents in high society.
Lebelin lay back on the bed, willing her startled heart to calm.

* * *

Days passed, and the Noble Council convened. Several agenda items were discussed, and as the official session wound down and everyone prepared to leave, Pailr strode forward.
“Count Etelion.”
Pailr approached in great strides and blocked Etelion’s path.
“We need to talk. Now.”
“Count Pailr, your color looks rather poor today.”
“Count Etelion, that agenda item today—’In the event of a Contaminated Zone that threatens security, high-grade Purifiers shall be forcibly assigned by Council Judgment’? You were the one driving that vote, and you call that reasonable? When we can barely protect high-grade Purifiers as it is, you’re talking about sending them into the jaws of danger! How could you propose such an absurd measure?”
“Absurd? Did you not see the many names on the list of co-sponsors, Count Pailr?”
“I know you have the nobles’ leashes firmly in hand. They’re all men with debts to you!”
Count Etelion’s expression remained unmoved as he regarded Pailr steadily.
“I see. Isn’t it only natural that high-grade Purifiers cleanse major Contaminated Zones? If not, then why does the Empire grant high-grade Purifiers such privileges and favorable treatment?”
“Today’s vote failed. Mark my words—at the next Council session, I’ll ensure that measure is defeated, one way or another.”
“Ah, was it not your daughter who is a Grade 3 Purifier? I confess, I momentarily forgot about her.”
When Etelion mentioned his daughter, Pailr’s previously rigid expression softened at once.
“Indeed. Your own daughter is Grade 10, so perhaps you wouldn’t understand, but Purifier assignments for Contaminated Zones are already handled well among the Purifiers themselves. If we entrust such assignments to Council Judgment, there’s a risk that protests will rain down—complaints that only high-grade Purifiers are being favored.”
“Protests? What sort of protests are you referring to?”
“Currently, Purifiers receive compensation proportional to the contamination level each time they cleanse a Contaminated Zone. To Purifiers in need of coin, it might appear as though only high-grade Purifiers are being offered special privileges.”
“All the more reason the measure is necessary.”
Etelion withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his hands briskly.
“Count Pailr, as you yourself said, we can barely protect Purifiers as it is. We must prevent low-grade Purifiers from risking their lives for a pittance, entering Contaminated Zones beyond their Grade.”
“You really are—”
“And I’d rather not see certain high-grade Purifiers who pick and choose only the safest assignments.”
“Are you speaking of my daughter now?”
“Oh, so you yourself know what your daughter has been doing.”
Etelion cast the handkerchief down onto the cold marble floor and stepped forward toward Pailr, grinding the cloth beneath his heel roughly.
“Then do you also know that your daughter nearly killed mine during the Academy graduation examination?”
Pailr’s face hardened like stone.
“Mind your words, Count Etelion. It was an accident, in every respect.”
“Then you acknowledge you knew of that accident. An accident I learned of only days ago, and even then merely from hearsay among the knights.”

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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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