It hasn’t even been 5 minutes since I decided that I wouldn’t use this so-called [Favor].
“Ha, haa…… .”
“…… .”
An awkward silence corrupted the space.
Surprisingly, Vinter was standing on the same spot I last saw him before I left.
My face lit up bright red at his surprised ultramarine eyes.
Thank goodness I’m wearing a mask.
“……Please come in after you close the door.”
Vinter who was staring at me in surprise, soon moved out of the way so that I could enter.
“Ehem.”
‘Shoot, how embarrassing.’
I cleared my throat and quickly closed the door from the embarrassment.
I looked at the door to see the dark alleyway, but Derrick was nowhere to be seen.
‘Did he lose me?’
Even if he did, it was too soon for me to relax. I’m doomed if he goes back to the mansion and finds me missing.
“Sorry that I changed my mind so suddenly, but I’m still allowed to make one wish, correct?”
“Of course.”
“That wish, I’ll use it now. I want you to take me to Hamilton street. Right now.”
I got straight to the point. I had to get home before Derrick does.
Vinter should have a way for that as he can use magic.
“If its the Hamilton street…… .”
He seemed to be thinking where it was.
‘Where, huh.’
It was a street a block off from the Eckart mansion.
He already knows who I am, so it’d be much easier if I asked him to take me to my room.
But I decided to continue to act as if I didn’t know he didn’t. I wasn’t going to see him again after today anyways.
“It’s hard to reserve a carriage due to the crowd.”
I spat out an excuse a second after that.
“Didn’t you bring a bodyguard with you?”
I could see that his eyes have turned serious through the small holes on the rabbit mask.
I thought of my one and only bodyguard at the mansion.
Eclise is a bodyguard by the title, but I wasn’t going to use him like one.
‘I need to treat him more carefully and seriously as if I treat a baby, now that he’s the only hope I have.’
I shrugged and answered him with a lie.
“……There’s always a secret or two that every ladies have.”
He erased the curiosity in his eyes. Vinter seemed to have understood a little of what I was saying.Then he took out his staff from his clothes and he reached his other hand out towards me.
“May I ask you to lay your hand on mine?”
It looked like he was going to teleport me there as expected.
‘Thank goodness.’
I laid my one hand on his, feeling relieved. The squeezed my hand soon after.
That moment, a white box appeared right in front of me.
You have used<i> [The Sorcerer’s Help 1 use]</i>.
Teleporting to <i>[Hamilton street]</i>.
“It may be a little dizzy.”6
With that said, the white light blinded my eyes.
***
Vinter and I were standing in an alleyway with very few people that was located by a familiar street.
We moved instantly to Hamilton street with magic.
‘Great. I’ll get to the mansion earlier than Derrick does now.’
I smiled when a question popped up in my head.
We used Vinter’s magic to teleport, but the feeling of it is…… .
‘……similar to when the system teleports me.’
I tilted my head in curiosity.
“You can let go now.”
Vinter spoke from beside.
“Hm? What…… .”
“My hand that you’re holding onto.”
I lowered my gaze at his words.
I saw my fingers interlocked with his.
“Ack!”
I shook his hand off, jumping in surprise.
‘What the. Since when was I holding onto his hand this tightly?’
I only freaked out for a short moment until I saw his hand returning back to its spot and realized that I may have gone too far with my reaction.
Ignoring that, I sincerely thanked him since he did help me out.
“……Thank you for your help.”
Vinter shook his head politely.
“It’s nothing. I am happy to be able to return the favour.”
“I guess the trust is rebuilt between us again.”
I let out a small laugh. Vinter was a marquis, a man with a high rank.
Seeing that he can lower himself like this for his informant group proved him to be loyal to his character title as the ‘odd sorcerer’.
Vinter stared at me with an absurd look at my joke.
“Then are you going to visit our base again?”
“……I wonder.”
My smile faded as I looked straight into his eyes.
“Will there be a reason we’ll meet again in the future?”
There was a moment of silence with a cold breeze.
The two of us hiding our identity with a mask on, staring at each other, even though we both know who each other are.
‘Though he’ll never be able to guess that I know who he is.’
It would be the best to continue to act as if I don’t know who he is. For him who will soon encounter with the heroine, and for me as well.
Since we both hold the secrets of each other that will benefit neither of us.
“Bye.”
I turned my back towards him with my farewell. Then I was just going to step out of the alleyway.
“……If a reply comes back from the person who the lady sent the gifts to.”
Vinter’s voice made me stop in my tracks.
“After I deliver them to that person for you…… .”
“…… .”
“Is it fine to deliver those to you?”
I slightly tilted my head towards him in the spot. The man wearing a rabbit mask standing in the alleyway creeped me out a little.3
“No.”
I couldn’t imagine what kind of expression that the face under that mask would be making right now. However.
[Interest 15%]
The rising interests despite my cold rejection was a little unexpected.
***
I immediately headed to the mansion after parting with Vinter.
More specifically, to the tall mansion walls that were surrounding the mansion.
“I’m sure it was around here somewhere…… .”
I was focused on searching around the walls. It was to find that escape hole.
The wall wasn’t only tall but wide, too, which made it harder to find it.
Around when I was starting to panic with the thought of Derrick might come soon.
“Found it!”
I was finally able to find the hole.
I crouched down. The hole was small so I had to crawl in through it.
And the moment I started to shove my head through.
Step, step. With the sounds of the footsteps-.
“Penelope Eckart.”
The icy cold voice ringed in my ears from behind.
“So, it was you.”
I froze in spot.
‘Please…… .’
I called out to all gods I knew in a single second.
‘Please say that I’m hearing things.’
But there was no such thing as ‘gods’ in this crazy game.
“Get up immediately.”
I jumped back up at the sound of him gritting his teeth.
His eyes that gave me a deathly glare was shining more clearly than the [Interest 13%] did above his head.
I wasn’t able to think of the words to say at this situation.
“Ho, how…… .”
“There’s no way I wouldn’t realize it when there’s only one girl to walk around, wearing such a hideous mask.
Derrick, being sharp, understood right away what I was questioning him, as he answered while smirking.
‘How dare you call it hideous!’
I felt my anger rise at the mockery, but soon lowered my head.
It was because the bar above his head has started to glow.
“Just, why are you doing all this?”
Derrick frowned and forced me for an answer.
“Speak.”
“…… .”
“I let go of the case of when you complained that you wanted to go to the festival late at night. I even let go of the case of when you brought a slave, who we don’t know what his goal is, to be your bodyguard.”
“…… .”
“But just what is the problem for you to act this way again?”
The ‘act this way’ we mentioned meant me escaping the mansion without a single guard.
Sadly, I’ve got nothing to tell him no matter how he forces an answer out of me.
“……I’m sorry.”
I apologized to him.
All this felt unfair to me but there was no other choice. I couldn’t tell them that I was doing this to find a way to live through all of you.
“I’ll take any punishments you give me, first young master.”
“Punishments, punishments, punishments.”
Unfortunately, this method didn’t seem to work on Derrick any longer. Derrick, hearing my words, frowned deep.
“All you ever do when you see me is ask for punishments.”
“That is…… .”
“Do you want to be punished that bad?”
I panicked at Derrick’s furious look.
‘Who in the world would be wanted to be punished like this.’
Of course I didn’t want to be punished.
He took my hand roughly before I could say anything after him.
“Follow.”
“Huh, uhh…… .”
I was almost dragged by him when he started to walk in a fast speed.
‘What’s up with him! J, just what is the punishment he’s going to give me!’
I felt fear at the scary aura he was letting out.
I never knew this kind of contact would be made with him, who hated Penelope to death, and me.
“……Where are we going?”
“…… .”
“First young master.”
I asked, staring above Derrick’s head in unease. No answer came from him though.
‘Ha. What’s up with today’s luck…… .’
Do I need to kneel and beg now?
I was deep in thoughts now at the unexpected events happening.
‘No way. Though I am his hated step-sister, there’s no way he’d stab me like the crown prince would just because I left the mansion for a little.’26
I tried to think it positively. But that didn’t last long.
‘……Well, probably now with a sword, but he would kill me in other ways, isn’t he.’
For instance, dragging me into the mansion and introducing the ‘hideous’ looking-me to all the people in the Eckart mansion.
Making the smallest mistake I made into something big, and chasing me out from the mansion.
Even more so on the duke who was the one who brought Penelope here in the first place.
These sorts of things were what they were good at when I made the wrong choice in the game.
‘Whew. Yeah, do what you want.’
I decided on giving up.
It’s not like anything would change even if I were to beg now.
I was used to all this things from the incidents in my previous life, so this sorts of things, I always dealt it this way.4
Unlike Penelope who didn’t know how to control her angers.
I gave up on everything and followed Derrick.
As expected, the place he lead me to was the mansion’s main front gate.
The guards who were guarding by the entrance, spotted Derrick and bowed.
Until then, I definitely thought that he’d drag me in.
“Huh……?”
However, Derrick straight on passed the metal gate.
‘Just where’s he taking me?’
I stared at his back with wide eyes.
The unease that I trapped within me has started to explode within me again.