The Unfilial Heir Who Tries to Kill Me Tempts Me - Chapter 49

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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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Episode 49.

“You memorized it?”
“Well, when they dragged me here, the sack had a hole in it. That’s how I could see the way.”
“…Didn’t you only see the route once, when they brought you to the Auction House?”
“I saw it twice—going in and coming out. When they sold me, I didn’t have the sack on, so I saw it more clearly that time.”
Jack spoke sheepishly.
“I have a good memory.”
Was such a thing really possible with just having a good memory?
Clearly, Kaius is the only one in this world hoarding all the self-awareness, because otherwise there’s no way Meri and Jack both lacked such basic self-reflection.
“Why are you staring at me?”
“I just think you’re an odd sort.”
“That’s a strange introduction.”
Kaius let out a derisive snort. Then he borrowed paper and charcoal from the restaurant owner and handed them to Jack.
“Think you can draw it?”
Jack nodded and immediately began sketching a map on the paper without hesitation.
And I couldn’t help but be amazed.
Jack not only described the intricate layout of the Auction House with perfect clarity, but was filling in every single fixture and object placed at each intersection.
“A…human map…?”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind. Keep going.”
Could a person actually be a human map?
Just how exceptional is his memory?
While I silently swallowed my amazement, Jack handed over the finished map.
And I was certain of it then.
If I couldn’t find the way with this, I’d be a fool.
Since I had no desire to be a fool, I carefully spread out the map Jack had drawn on the table.
“We have the map now. So we’ll hide Jack somewhere safe and infiltrate the Auction House together, Your Highness. We need to free the prisoners from the jail and apprehend the slave merchants all at once….”
“Wait, just a moment. Hide me?”
“Hmm?”
“Wasn’t I supposed to help too?”
Jack’s eyes wavered intensely.
“My sister is there. Liri—Liri is there, and I can’t just escape on my own….”
Kaius and I exchanged a wordless look for a moment. I bent at the waist to bring myself to eye level with Jack.
“I understand the feeling, Jack—wanting to save your sister. But you know as well as I do that it’s very dangerous in there. It’s best to leave such matters to the adults.”
“I—I’m small and have a good memory, so I’ll definitely be useful! Isn’t there something I can do?”
Moisture gathered in Jack’s large eyes.
“Mm….”
I was at a loss.
Jack was a child who’d crossed the Border with only his sister, no parents, before being kidnapped.
Right after his escape, Jack could have fled alone. But he didn’t. Instead, he hid in the crevices of rocks along the beach for nearly a week, trying by any means to bring his sister, until he came to ask us for help.
I could understand, to some degree, the anxiety and guilt and fear a child might carry.
This is infuriating.
Why does this tiny child have to be so overflowing with responsibility?
“Really, isn’t there anything I can do?”
…Actually, it’s not as if there’s nothing to do.
“Please.”
“…All right.”
I’m truly weak against children.
And even weaker if there are two of them.
With no other choice, I agreed while ruffling Jack’s hair.
Kaius, who had been observing us from across the way, then spoke.
“Slave traders typically operate in networks by region. Grab one and the rest will come tumbling out. I’d like to execute summary justice, but unfortunately I have no authority here, so we’ll focus on securing them as best we can.”
“Understood. Then Your Highness, you handle the apprehension of the slave merchants. Since we need to conduct the rescue and arrests simultaneously, we’ll have to move separately.”
“Do we need reinforcements?”
“Reinforcements….”
I thought for a moment, then shook my head.
“I’d prefer to resolve this as quietly as possible. I want to avoid officially mobilizing Lucifenia’s forces.”
This wasn’t simply a matter confined to the Slave Market. It was a complicated affair entangled with Dark Magic, a Crow of Sorrow, and high-ranking officials in Saltwich.
If I stirred things up carelessly, I’d only hand them a way to slip through my fingers—and worse, let everything spiral in a direction I didn’t intend.
Besides, this wasn’t Leoni’s job to begin with, was it?
I couldn’t help that circumstances had forced me to shoulder it, but there was no reason to go broadcasting that the Slave Market had been exposed by Lucifenia’s lord and his mage.
The smartest move was to handle this as quietly as possible and slip away fast.
Once I handed the slave traders over to the Imperial Court, Fabian would learn of the situation anyway, and after that, things would likely unfold much as they did in the original work.
“Quietly—think we can manage it?”
Kaius nodded.
“Yes.”
“How obedient of you.”
“Is that a problem?”
“Not exactly, but… you’ve been particularly respectful of my opinions, even just now.”
“What else can I do? You’re plainly more capable than I am in this arena.”
Kaius gave a slight shrug.
I caught myself smiling and forced my mouth back down. Being praised didn’t feel half bad, if I was honest.
Never thought I’d see the day Kaius would acknowledge me like this.
“Well, fine then. So…”
I opened my eyes with a glint of mischief.
“Before we slip in, there’s something we need to prepare.”

***

“Is this really our best option?”
“Yes, it suits you wonderfully.”
“I look like a proper fool.”
Kaius swept a critical eye over his own reflection. I stood beside him and clapped mechanically.
We’d ducked into a nearby clothier before the sun dropped too far. There we’d purchased outfits that were absurdly ornate and dripping with frills.
I wore a Black Silk Velvet Dress with shoulder puffs the size of a soccer ball, while Kaius was draped in a Cloak smothered in glittering jewels and crowned with a wide-brimmed Floppy Hat.
Standing together, as he’d said, we cut the figure of a pair of peacocks fresh from a circus.
“I’ve never worn anything so vulgar in my entire life.”
“That’s precisely the point. You need to be vulgar. Do you think people coming to an auction house to buy slaves dress with any subtlety? They dress like peacocks.”
Slave auctions operated under perfect anonymity.
Or so it was called—in truth, security assessed your clothes and bearing at the door and decided whether to let you in.
If you looked poor or even slightly suspicious, you weren’t getting past the threshold.
“We’re newlyweds from the Lebron Kingdom, beyond the Border. We came on our honeymoon to Saltwich, and now, out of foolish curiosity, we’ve come to buy a slave. Understood?”
“You should have been a writer, not a mage.”
Well, I was a writer, wasn’t I?
By the time we’d paid and stepped out of the shop, the sun was already sinking toward the western horizon.
I tilted my head back, gazing up at the crimson sky.
Really, even now it seemed absurd.
I’d never had any intention of getting tangled up in the original work like this.
To think I’d be the writer who stepped in personally and interfered with the original plot and protagonist—what kind of bizarre hybrid was I supposed to be?
“I wonder if Jack is doing all right.”
I’d given Jack a task only he could handle. It wasn’t difficult, so I hoped he’d finish quickly and lie low somewhere safe.
“If you’re worried about the boy, move fast.”
“Yes, it’s about time the auction house opened anyway.”
I extended my hand toward Kaius as I spoke.
“What is it this time?”
“We’re a married couple, aren’t we?”
If newlyweds walked in keeping their distance, the guards would never buy it.
But Kaius didn’t take my hand. Instead, he looked me over with a tilted head and a dismissive gaze.
What?
I knew this look.
It was that particular expression Kaius made when he was about to condescend to me.
“My, what poor retention you have, despite my personal instruction.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Come here.”
He smiled with easy confidence and guided my arm around his waist. Then, pulling me close, he pressed our bodies together.
It was a step beyond the posture he’d shown me at the checkpoint.
“What exactly are you doing?”
“This is what a married couple looks like.”
He tilted his head toward me with a deliberate flourish.
“A dark omen, madam?”

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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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