I Am The Villainess With A Maxed-Out Luck Stat - Chapter 140
Only Noblemtl
140. A dark plot that rolled in like a vine?
“… … !”
When the manager looked back, the man who had been following him hurriedly hid behind an alley.
‘Did you notice someone following you?’
The man clutched his pounding heart.
Although I would have liked to return to the Knights immediately, I could not ignore Marquis Balton’s orders.
Aiden Carter.
A knight-errant in the Imperial Guard, he was a distant collateral relative of the Margrave of Balton.
Although his background as a marquis would have been a strong supporter, unfortunately he was only a half-aristocrat.
Born to a father who was engaged and a mother who was a maid, he was never recognized as a member of the family throughout his life.
As time passed and he joined the Imperial Guard, his humble origins always held him back.
Then one day, Marquis Balton came to see Aiden.
[I will accept you and your mother as members of the family of authors.]
Then the Marquis handed Aiden a portrait of a man.
He said that if he could only run a simple errand for the man, he would accept Aiden as a member of the family.
Aiden couldn’t refuse the offer.
From that day on, he monitored the man’s every move.
Normally, he would send someone else, but on a day like today, he came out of the palace himself.
‘But no matter how I look at it, I can’t see anything suspicious.’
The man was a servant of the Duke of Serteia.
The routine was simple, and I rarely left the house.
Except for his tall stature and handsome appearance, he looked no different from any other servant.
Why on earth does the Marquis tell us to chase after this man?
Aiden followed the man steadily, curious about his intentions.
“… … .”
The man, sensing the presence of people, looked around for a long time.
Aiden held his breath and watched the situation closely.
If anything, he was thinking of knocking the man unconscious and running away. That was the moment Aiden reached for the scabbard.
The man continued walking again, seemingly unable to find Aiden.
Aiden breathed a sigh of relief as the man completely disappeared from the alley.
‘I guess I should call it a day.’
It was the moment he turned to the corner of the alley.
“… … !”
A cool breeze touched Aiden’s neck. A sharp dagger was pointed at his throat.
“Who are you?”
The man I thought had just escaped the alley was now right in front of me.
Sharp eyes looked down at Aiden.
“Oh, how… … !”
Aiden flinched and shook his shoulders.
I didn’t even feel your presence. When on earth did you come near me?
“Who are you and why are you stalking me?”
The man asked with a frown. When there was no answer from Aiden, the man brought the knife closer.
A sharp pain dug into Aiden’s neck.
“Eight!”
Aiden hesitated for a moment, then roughly shoved the man back with his shoulder.
thud-
The man was pushed back as he slammed into the ground with his weight.
“Ugh.”
The hand aimed at Aiden’s neck slammed into the wall.
During that time, Aiden snatched the dagger and disarmed his opponent.
Then he immediately kicked the man’s legs and knocked him down.
The situation changed in an instant when Aiden climbed on top of him.
“Ugh, ugh.”
The man was agile enough to surprise even the most skilled knights, but he could not overcome the difference in his natural size.
As Aiden pressed the dagger against his chest, the administrator raised both hands in surrender.
“You, who the hell are you?”
But the manager just shrugged his shoulders.
“That’s what I want to ask. Who are you that you’re following me?”
“… … Just let them know that I came at the command of a great man.”
“okay?”
The manager responded indifferently and pushed back Aiden’s robe hat.
“What are you doing now!”
“What? You were a relative of the Marquis of Balton. Did the Marquis of Balton order you to follow him?”
“How, how did you… …!”
The manager smiled playfully at Aiden, who was lost in thought.
“Because my hobby is reading people’s faces.”
At the same time, he looked at the system window floating in the air.
【WARNING! Abnormal access detected!】
[Execution of mission failure penalty is delayed.]
[The ‘Death’ event of ‘Cayenne’ is currently suspended.]
Unfulfilled death flag in the hunting festival.
The time was approaching to start moving the regression timer that had been forcibly stopped again.
“… … !”
The administrator grabbed Aiden’s wrist. The sword in his grip glowed eerily.
The manager stabbed the knife into my heart with great force.
“What, what are you doing!”
As Aiden pulled out his sword with all his might, a red liquid gushed out from the manager’s chest.
The manager’s pupils dilated.
“It hurts… … .”
My eyes were spinning and all the strength left my body.
“Hey, hey! Come on!”
Aiden was terrified and shook him hard, but the manager’s face grew increasingly pale.
“Hee, heek!”
Aiden hurriedly took off his robes. Underneath the black robes, his silver knightly attire was revealed.
Although he tried to stop the bleeding later, the man had already turned into a cold corpse.
* * *
“Come on, release Viscount Blaine!”
“Yes, Miss!”
At my command, the duke’s knights moved in unison.
They quickly freed the bound Count Blaine.
Freed from his bonds, Count Blaine collapsed helplessly under the chair.
He seemed to have not eaten or drunk anything for a while.
He was half-conscious and just gasping for breath.
“father!”
Seraphine burst into tears as she looked at her father like that.
“Father, are you okay? What on earth happened?”
“… … Let’s move to a safe place first.”
Viscount Blaine’s complexion was extremely bad.
Thinking that he might die if left like that, I quickly moved him to the carriage.
Even after being carried to the duke’s residence on a stretcher, he still did not come to his senses for a while.
Seraphine stayed close to him, watching Viscount Blaine anxiously.
How much time has passed like that?
“… Seraphine?”
A faint voice leaked out from Viscount Blaine’s mouth. Seraphine’s eyes opened wide.
“Oh, Father!”
She jumped up and examined Viscount Blaine’s complexion.
His complexion had improved compared to when he was locked in the cold warehouse.
Only then did Seraphine sigh with relief.
“Are you okay, Viscount?”
“You… … .”
When I asked, Count Blaine looked up at me in bewilderment.
“You are the princess of Serteia.”
“Do you know me?”
“I know. News about the princess can be easily found in the newspaper. Recently, there has been news about my daughter as well.”
“okay.”
I asked the whole story on behalf of Seraphine, who was still sobbing.
“How did you end up in a place like this?”
“Actually, I was attacked while I was trying to leave the capital after parting ways with my daughter.”
“A raid?”
“Yes. I remember being hit by a blunt object, but when I came to, I was in a warehouse.”
“That… … . I have no idea who did it?”
“When you live a wandering life, you often encounter difficult situations.”
Count Blaine nodded grimly.
He was wandering the streets with his identity unknown, so he would have been far from safe.
In the original work, he died without a sound, so this time too, he was probably involved in a crime like human trafficking or kidnapping.
―I was just trying to convince myself.
“But there is one thing I am suspicious of.”
“What is it?”
“I quit my job a while ago. Someone might have a grudge against me.”
“yes?”
You’re kidnapping and imprisoning me just for quitting your job?
Then, Count Blaine glanced at Seraphine.
“What on earth have you been doing?”
“It’s not a very honorable thing, but… … .”
“What is it?”
He opened his mouth with difficulty at my urging.
“Actually, I was working as an errand boy for a secret organization that I had been a part of for a long time.”
“yes?”
What kind of black talk is this?
* * *
“The debt was growing like a snowball, and there was no place to take me as a fugitive… … . In the end, I had no choice but to go into the shadows.”
Count Blaine calmly told me his story.
In short, it appears that he was working as an information gatherer or transporter for a secret dark organization.
That’s how he managed to barely make a living and keep his identity hidden.
‘Well, someone wanted by the royal family would have to struggle like that to survive.’
“But there was a rule that once you were in the organization, you had to risk your life when you left.”
“Oh my god. Then… … .”
Seraphine covered her mouth.
“I barely managed to escape the organization, but I don’t think they’ll let me go.”
“There is a high possibility that this incident was the work of an organization.”
“That will happen.”
Viscount Blaine’s face became haggard.
‘Hmm.’
I, who had been listening to the story silently, suddenly asked a question.
“You said that organization was based in the South?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Then, are you connected to the slave trade?”