Chapter 32

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 32

Chapter Title: The Stolen Gold Pouch

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“So, she took the seal and the key?”

“Yes. The Pascal Merchant Group needed to verify her identity.”

“Hmm.”

Kaian’s expression grew subtly complicated as he received the report from Liam.

It hadn’t been long since she’d requested a mountain of Poretta leather from the duchy.

He’d been frustrated by her refusal to share her plans, and now this—suddenly demanding her royalties.

What on earth is she up to?

Frowning with his arms crossed, Kaian tossed out a casual question.

“Did she go alone?”

“She went with a maid.”

“I see.”

Kaian nodded once, then drummed his long fingers on the edge of the desk.

Once Liam had finished his report and left, Kaian pulled something from a drawer.

An exquisite accessory emblazoned with the Brail family crest.

It was the ring passed down through generations to the head of the Brail ducal house—one that could alter the wearer’s appearance.

Bonita scooped gold coins into the sack we’d brought from the ducal castle, her face beaming with utter bliss.

I wasn’t all that different.

More than I expected.

The gold coins, reflecting faint light and sparkling brilliantly, were an impressive sum at a glance.

I’d heard rumors that the manga was selling like hotcakes, with people hunting it down everywhere, but I hadn’t imagined this much.

For a fleeting moment, I toyed with the idea of scrapping the investments altogether and just retreating to some quiet countryside...

But no, I quickly shook it off.

Money was always better in greater quantities.

While I lost myself in pleasant daydreams, Bonita filled the sack—big enough to hold a person’s face—until it bulged, then stepped back without a hint of strain.

“Not heavy?”

Bonita flashed a sly, meaningful grin and whispered,

“No, it’s enchanted with a lightweight spell.”

“...You’re always so prepared.”

As expected of Bonita.

Nodding with satisfaction, I turned to leave.

The merchant lord, eager to host such esteemed guests, had offered tea on our way out of the vault, but I politely declined.

As an introvert with a packed schedule for the day, time was already tight.

“Th-this is my first time handling so much money.”

The moment we stepped outside amid the Pascal owner and staff’s effusive send-off, Bonita muttered in a dazed tone.

“...Mine too.”

Even I could hardly believe it—the fortune I’d only ever seen on paper now cradled in my arms.

All that was left was to hop in the carriage and head to our next stop...

But just as I lifted my foot, a sudden ominous feeling washed over me.

“Huh?”

‘Beware of pickpockets near banks or ATMs.’

Why had that popped into my head?

Seized by a wave of unease, my gaze flicked to the money sack in Bonita’s hands.

“Hey, Bonita. Wait—”

Too late—I tried to reach out, but it was already over.

Tatata!

A black shadow shot forward like an arrow, snatching the sack in an instant and vanishing.

“Oh my!”

The receding sack and Bonita stomping her feet in horror with empty hands played out in my mind like slow motion.

What just happened?

“I, I...”

Pickpocket!?

It finally clicked.

Had I grown too complacent in the safety of the duke’s castle?

I couldn’t hide my shock at how utterly unprepared I’d been for something so predictable—two unguarded women falling victim to a thief.

“It’s a pickpocket!”

I yelled at the fleeing shadow, but none of the onlookers stirred to help.

Bonita, her face crumpling in despair, clutched her billowing skirts and dashed a few steps forward, but there was no catching up.

My hard-earned blood money!

Should I chase after it myself?

As I wrestled with the dilemma, an unexpected commotion erupted from the gathered crowd, and a unfamiliar figure leaped out.

“You alright?”

Flutter.

The man’s hood slipped off in the breeze.

His ash-gray hair gleamed under the sunlight, almost blinding, and his golden eyes shone with crystal clarity.

Huh? That face...

For a split second of confusion, I locked eyes on his face—and my own widened in shock.

Duke... Your Highness?

...No, someone else.

Hair and eye color are different, but he looks that similar.

Stunned by the man’s striking resemblance to the duke, I barely registered him bolting off after the thief.

It had all happened so fast that I stood there dazed as a teary voice reached me.

“M-miss... I’m so sorry. I was such an idiot, getting distracted...”

Bonita hovered nearby, not daring to approach, clearly blaming herself for the mess.

“No, it’s fine.”

There was no reason to fault her. This was something I should have anticipated from the start.

In the middle of the street, right in front of what was essentially a bank, carrying an obvious sack of money—we’d gotten off lucky with just a pickpocket.

Had we run into highway robbers while blissfully unaware, things could have gone far worse.

“Let’s go find the city guards.”

“Sniff... What if we lose the money forever? I’m really, truly sorry, miss...”

Tears welled in Bonita’s eyes; she couldn’t shake her worry in the slightest.

In truth, even as I suggested the guards, I doubted they’d catch a thief who’d already fled.

I tried my best to soothe her while feigning calm...

We’re screwed. Totally screwed.

We’d greedily stuffed one sack to the brim, leaving precious little in the vault.

It wasn’t nothing, but factoring in hiring help and everything else, we’d likely fall short.

“...Hah.”

I pondered our options for a moment.

Clink!

A loud thud echoed as something hit the ground.

Instinctively looking down, there it was—the very sack stuffed with my gold coins, right in front of me.

“Gasp!”

Bonita let out a cry too, spotting it.

“Took longer than expected. Handing the pickpocket over to the guards held me up.”

“You... you’re the one who helped us...?”

The man looked impeccably clean, without a speck of dust, despite supposedly subduing a criminal and turning him in. He was the same one I’d briefly mistaken for the duke.

“It’s your stolen property. Best check it.”

“Ah, y-yes.”

I peered inside the sack in a fluster, confirmed everything was intact, and hurriedly expressed my gratitude.

“Th-thank... you.”

I’d never imagined a total stranger would step in like that. It was downright moving.

The world still had some warmth left!

To think I’d encounter someone with such integrity right here on the street.

Back in the Salt Kingdom, I’d toiled like a slave and racked up enough betrayal experience points to hit 999 at least.

That made it all the more touching—he’d not only caught the pickpocket who stole the pouch but returned it intact, when he could’ve pocketed it himself.

How should I repay him?

“Um, is there... anything you’d like...?”

“Hmm.”

Ah, had I been too forward?

Mentioning a specific sum might be awkward. He wasn’t a fool; he’d have peeked inside the pouch.

“Y-you can name a high price. I really want to show my appreciation...”

“I didn’t do it expecting payment.”

“Pardon?”

“Just take my thanks. I’ll be off, then.”

His completely unforeseen response left me staring blankly at him.

But he seemed serious, already turning to leave.

“Uh...”

Wait a second.

Letting him go just like that felt like such a waste!

A stranger who showed this kind of honesty on first meeting? I had to snap him up somehow!

Was the overworked ghost of Liam possessing me for a moment?

Seized by the urge to recruit talent, I grabbed him without thinking.

“W-wait!”

“... ? What is it?”

“W-would you... ever consider working as my escort knight?”

As a noble loosely related to the Duke of Brail—or so my cover went—hiring a guard wasn’t strange at all.

With bated breath, I fixed my gaze on his lips, awaiting his answer.