I'm a Goddess to Be Devoured by the Protagonist - Chapter 14

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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 14
No, no. We’ll have someone pick you up on the way to the Count’s Estate. Where is the Inn located? I’ll inform the driver.
As the Count showed signs of preparing to leave the shop, Bluebird approached and gestured politely toward Sirius.
Could you spare a moment to speak with this gentleman?
Very well. I’ll wait outside.
The moment the Count left his study, Bluebird leaned in and whispered as though sharing a secret.
The Count certainly has deep pockets. At this rate, you could buy a fine house in the Capital and still have money left over.
A house in the Capital… I’d just come from a place where land was already scarce and people were crowded into the metropolitan area, so the sum felt staggering.
The Count’s all right with this, isn’t he? We’re not basically uprooting his house pillars to feed ourselves, are we?
No. This is the same as if he uprooted his own house pillars and handed them to us.
It was the Count who’d drawn a circle after the number.
You understand that you’ll need to come find me again after you’ve finished your business at the Count’s Estate, yes?
The Blue Feather Company takes a fixed percentage of the sale price as a brokerage fee whenever they mediate a transaction. That’s why they sometimes put on quite a show to inflate the selling price.
This time there was no need for that, though.
Since we haven’t yet received payment for the sale, we must return here after collecting the funds and pay the brokerage fee.
If you ever run away, I’ll chase you to the ends of the earth.
Bluebird said this playfully, but it didn’t sound like a joke at all. If I were to flee, an entire novel would emerge with the title “The Merchant Master’s Obsession With Me.”
I have no intention of running away.
You certainly look like it.
Bluebird smiled.
Sigh… If only all my customers were like you. How much easier life would be.
As she said this, her eyes held the look of someone recalling “customers who were nothing like Sirius.”
I wondered what had become of those who’d fled. The mere thought was terrifying.
You may go now. We shouldn’t keep such an illustrious person waiting too long.
Bluebird waved her hand, sending Sirius on his way.
The Count’s Carriage wasn’t far from the shop.
It looked extraordinarily expensive.
There were four horses, and their coats gleamed magnificently. I wondered if those horses weren’t treated better than most people in this world.
Was it really wise to ride something like this to a secret transaction site?
Even without any crest or emblem denoting his house, only a handful of people could afford to ride in such a carriage.
If I were Bluebird, I’d have shooed him away with a broom. Why advertise that wealthy nobility had anything of value worth visiting here?
Throughout the entire journey to the Inn, passersby couldn’t tear their eyes from the Carriage.
Beyond the Inn’s window, I could see Vega. The boy gazed at the ornate Carriage as though it were the most wondrous thing he’d ever seen.
He’ll be even more amazed in a moment.
I watched the screen with a certain anticipation.
It was the instant Sirius stepped down from the Carriage. Sure enough, Vega’s expression shifted dramatically. He looked like he wanted to ask, “Why is Sirius stepping out of there…?” with flowers blooming around his head.
Sirius entered the room where Vega waited and gently grasped his wrist.
I’ll explain everything later.
* * *
The two of them were shown into a luxurious Guest Room. Sirius gave Vega a brief explanation of what had transpired.
But it only deepened Vega’s confusion.
Y-Your Grace, why would you do such a thing…?
And at the end of the story, he murmured quietly, as though he couldn’t believe it.
Why was he so startled?
I couldn’t even begin to guess what Vega thought of me.
Sorry for making you wait.
Not long after, the Count returned to the room.
Before I give you the funds, there’s someone who wishes to see you. Will you meet with them?
I will.
A commoner could not refuse a nobleman’s request, so Sirius had no choice but to follow him without even receiving payment.
The Count walked ahead and stopped before a large, antique door. It was unmistakably the quarters of someone of high standing.
In the Count’s household, only two people could use such a room. Since one of them stood right beside me, the other had to be inside.
It was a meeting with a figure who should have already departed this world.
My heartbeat thundered in my ears. My interference had altered the novel’s progression.
Was I doing the right thing?
The weight of the fact that my actions could save or take someone’s life suddenly felt very real.
Bang!
At that moment, a loud noise echoed, startling me out of my thoughts.
W-what was that sound? What happened?
I only knew the sound had come from inside the room, though I didn’t know whether the broadcast supported 3D audio.
Has something happened to the Countess? I snapped my gaze toward the Count in alarm.
But his reaction was nothing like I’d expected. His eyes held a peculiar mix of longing and affection.
The Count stopped his hand mid-knock and instead grasped the door handle, pulling it open. The interior of the room came into view.
A scene I could never have imagined met my eyes.
The walls bore unmistakable marks—fist-shaped indentations punched straight through the plaster.
And standing before them was a woman.
-Madam…
The Count called out to her in a voice thick with emotion. I wondered if he might actually be crying over the ruined wall.
At the sound of his voice, the woman turned her head. She appeared to be roughly the Count’s age.
-My strength has returned!
She seemed to regard this fact as far more significant than the mere fact of having risen from her sickbed.
I felt somewhat guilty toward the Countess, but I’d genuinely expected to find a dying woman. Instead, she looked like someone who’d never been ill a day in her life.
-Madam…
The servants’ eyes glistened with tears at the sight of the Countess’s vibrant energy.
-Ah, so that person brought me the apple?
I’d discovered another peculiar thing about the Countess: her manner of speech was utterly without formality. She bore no resemblance whatsoever to her dignified, noble husband.
The Countess approached Sirius and grasped one of his hands, shaking it vigorously up and down.
-Thank you so much! Thanks to you, I’ve regained my strength!
As his arm was being waved about, Sirius appeared to pause, as though carefully choosing his next words.
-Now, come—supper will be ready soon. Let’s dine together!
Before Sirius could formulate a response, the Countess had already dashed off merrily to who-knows-where. The Count seemed quite accustomed to such behavior.
-The lady was apparently a knight of adventurer stock.
So how did that gatekeeper behave so disrespectfully toward someone who was an adventurer’s wife?
The more I thought about it, the more that gatekeeper seemed like a hopeless case.
The two of us followed the Count toward the Dining Hall.
As the couple carried on their pleasant conversation, dishes began to appear atop the enormous table. Sirius cut Vega’s steak into manageable pieces, since Vega was awkward with the knife.
-Might I ask your name?
-Sirius.
-Ah, Sirius. How did you come by that apple?
-I was fortunate.
-Ha ha. That’s the adventurer’s life for you. What’s life about, after all? Either you obtain a fine item like you did, or you find a good companion like I did—and that’s all you need.
The Countess stabbed her enormous steak with a fork and shoved it into her mouth. Unlike the Count, her lack of formality was oddly charming.
-Oh, but how did you know I was ill? I should have asked that first. I have a feeling this will be an interesting story.
I wondered why she hadn’t asked sooner.
I waited to hear what Sirius would say. He answered without a flicker, entirely composed.
-A great person sent word to me.
I’m not great. But he can sell it that way if he wants.
-Ah ha ha ha! Now that’s a fun tale! I suppose you won’t tell me who this great person is?
-That is correct. However, rest assured that this person means you no harm.
-Fair enough. They won’t poison me after healing me.
Though what if I suddenly turned around and poisoned you right now? Why laugh so heartily at a prospect like that?
As various topics came and went, dusk gradually deepened, and the meal drew toward its close.
Yet the Count and Countess showed no sign of rising as the table was being cleared.
I wondered why, but the answer came shortly after.
-Payment, then. You’re welcome to verify the amount right here.
Servants appeared, pushing a trolley laden with gold coins piled high.
-Here—consider that a gift. Put the money in this and carry it with you.
A servant approached Sirius and presented him with a small, elegant pouch—or rather, offered it to him with great ceremony.
So that’s a Spatial Pouch. I never thought I’d see an essential fantasy adventuring item with my own eyes.
Though what truly mattered was all those gleaming gold coins.
In truth, if we’d put the apple up for auction instead of selling it to the Count, we might have earned considerably more.
Though there could well be someone more desperate and far wealthier than what appeared in the novel—someone I’d never heard of.

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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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