"That makes me sound like a rotten retainer, young miss," he answered smoothly, though the corner of his lips twitched.
"Well, you are." My tone carried no inflection, no hesitation, just blunt fact.
"...Anyways," he continued, ignoring the insult with a professional ease, "I will take the young miss to her bed."
"Nope. Let's walk and talk." I gestured with a flick of my head, the unconscious girl shifting slightly in my arms. "Lead the way to little Tomato's room."
"...Okay, follow me."
"Kitsuna," Kayda interjected hesitantly, "shouldn't we change first?"
I glanced down. Oh. Right. Pajamas. A loose shirt and tiny shorts, nothing more. Meanwhile, Kayda sat up clutching the covers to her chest, her face reddening as she realized the same thing.
The butler's gaze flicked to her, then back to me. His mouth opened with a smirk. "I have seen more people naked than-"
"Shut up! We don't want to know that!" Kayda snapped, her voice flustered and loud.
"We'll wait outside for you," I sighed, cutting off whatever awful anecdote he'd planned to share.
"Hm, aren't you going to-" he started, only to pause as his eyes landed back on me. My outfit had shifted in the blink of an eye; my usual clothes, with a scarf wrapped snugly at my throat, were already in place.
"Yeah, I got skills," I said with a smirk.
"I see," he muttered, unruffled, before turning on his heel.
"Give me ten minutes," Kayda called, still hidden under the covers. I kicked the door closed behind us.
"So," I said, voice dropping as we moved down the hall, "mind explaining what's going on with the girl?"
The butler's silence stretched, thick and stubborn.
"You might want to tell us," I warned, tightening my hold on the unconscious girl slightly. "You never know what sort of connections we've built on our way here."
"I don't know if young miss wants to involve you two with the House of Anabald's problems," he answered politely, though guarded.
"House of Anabald problems?" I scoffed. "Heh. Do you really think something like the head of the house going missing is only your problem?"
"Yes," he replied curtly.
"Wrong," I snapped. "The Anabald are responsible for protecting the border. The kingdoms rely on them to do their job. But you've got a fourteen-year-old-whose training isn't even finished-forced to shoulder the entire territory? Madness. Stupid. Irresponsible."
"So you are saying to leave it to another fourteen-year-old?"
I hesitated, caught in my words. "...Ah, yeah, that doesn't make sense, does it?"
"Yes," he deadpanned.
"Well, leave it to Kayda then. She isn't as young as me."
Smack.
Pain thudded across the back of my head as Kayda's hand connected sharply.
"Don't say it like I'm old," she said, appearing from behind us in her usual clothes, glare fixed firmly on me.
"You're done? I thought you were going to take ten minutes," I muttered, rubbing the sore spot.
"Once again, I learned my lesson from you," she replied, her glare sharpening.
"What?" I tilted my head in confusion.
"Never mind," she muttered. "Mister Butler, lead the way."
"As you will," he said smoothly, turning and walking ahead.
"Now then," Kayda said after a beat of silence, "while we are walking, tell us what happened last night."
The butler sighed, long and weary. "I see you will not give up."
"Well, obviously not," Kayda snapped. "This is the purpose of my visit."
He adjusted his sunglasses slightly, his voice calm as he spoke. "We have been looking into the disappearance of milady for months now. A few weeks ago, we noticed something strange happening in the slums."
"A few weeks?" I cut in sharply. "When did the churches get destroyed?"
"Our intel told us it was connected to the church, so we dug deeper. We found... experiments. Cruel ones. The church was using the inhabitants of the slums as test subjects.
Kayda's eyes hardened. I let out a humorless chuckle. "I can already tell where the group is going."
"Yeah," Kayda agreed grimly, "so can I."
"After confirming, we made plans to raid them. Last night was the night we chose."
"Let me guess-it was a trap," I said flatly.
"Yes," he admitted. "We sent sixty high-ranking military men and women. Only three came back. They abandoned their duties. They even left the bodies of all fifty-seven behind." His voice curled with disdain.
"Abandoned their duties? What do you mean?"
"They ran away like cowards."
"I see," Kayda said coldly. "Let me guess-you killed them."
"Yes. On the spot."
She sighed, disappointment heavy in her tone. "Did you at least ask questions before?"
"They were traitors," he said flatly. "They deserved it."
"That's not what I asked." Kayda frowned deeply, but he didn't elaborate.
"We are close," he said instead, halting before a grand door.
"These guys are as dumb as it comes," I thought bitterly, narrowing my eyes.
"He isn't telling us everything," Kayda whispered to me.
"You don't say that, haha," I chuckled quietly to myself.
"Anyways, what are your plans now that your raid failed?" Kayda asked.
"We sent an investigation team this morning. They should return in an hour or two with a report," the butler answered as he pushed the door open. "This is the young miss's sleeping quarters."
"Great. Then open up so I can put her on the bed," I muttered, clicking my tongue.
Inside, the room screamed of teenage indulgence. Pink walls. Three enormous mirrors crowded one corner. A neon-purple bedspread is buried beneath at least thirteen stuffed animals. The massive walk-in closet loomed like a shrine to vanity.
"Yep. Definitely a teenager's room," Kayda observed, bemused.
"Now this is how a fourteen-year-old bedroom should look," I said as I approached the bed. Pulling back the covers, I set the unconscious girl down and tucked her in gently, surprising even myself with the softness of the gesture.
"She should be out for a day at least," I murmured, turning only to find two pairs of eyes on me, staring strangely. "What?"
"You can be that gentle," the butler said, visibly baffled.
"You actually know how to treat someone younger than you nicely," Kayda added with a teasing grin.
"Ugh. Whatever," I grumbled, annoyed.
"Hehe, just teasing," Kayda laughed softly.
"Anyways, Mister Butler," I said, snapping my focus back, "are you certain the church kidnapped the head of the house?"
"...I did not say anything like that."
"Don't play dumb," I growled. "Since I am from a demon house, the obvious first suspect would be those who oppose demons."
"In the beginning, we thought so," he admitted. "They had started expanding toward our territory. But..."
"But now, an unknown entity is attacking the churches," Kayda concluded for him. "You've figured out it wasn't them."
"Yes," he confirmed with a nod.
"Well, lucky for you, you won't have to start from scratch," I said with a smug smile.
"And what might you mean by that?" he asked cautiously.
"Simple," Kayda said smoothly. "We already suspect who kidnapped her. But we don't yet know their goal."
"We have suspicions, but nothing concrete," I added while crossing my arms.
"I see," he murmured. "Might I be briefed?"
"Nope." My answer cut through his hope before Kayda could even open her mouth. "I don't trust you at all."
Chapter 121:
"Kitsuna, he is the head butler," Kayda informed me, her voice low but tinged with confusion, as though she couldn't quite grasp why I was treating the man so dismissively.
"Yeah, and? I don't give a shit." I shrugged, letting my words hang in the air like they weighed nothing. "I'll only tell the tomato girly, and she can tell the rest if she feels like it." My eyes slid over to the butler's face, and as expected, he didn't react. Neutral, unreadable, the perfect mask of a servant.
Kayda sighed heavily, the kind of sigh that spoke of defeat. "Fine," she said, throwing in the towel with a tone that said she knew better than to keep arguing with me.
"Anyways," I continued without missing a beat, "let's go find that captain from yesterday. I think he might be of help."
Kayda raised a brow at me, skeptical. "Are you sure about that?"
"Not really," I admitted bluntly, scratching the back of my head. "But what else are we going to do here? Sit around and twiddle our thumbs? Oh, and Mister Butler-" I turned my gaze back to him, my tone shifting just enough to make it sound polite, even though the sharpness never left my eyes. "Do tell us where this place you tried to raid is located."
Before he could respond, Kayda cut me off with a sharpness that made me blink. "No. We are not going there, Kitsuna," she said sternly, her tone leaving no room for negotiation.
"What? Why not?" My surprise was genuine, my ears perking slightly at the refusal.
"It's far too dangerous to go there." She shook her head, her long hair shifting with the motion, eyes narrowing at me in that way she had when she was trying to act like the responsible one.
"Hmm, you might be right," I conceded with a slow nod. My lips curled in thought. "But we do need to see the place eventually."
"We are not going in." Her voice was iron, her glare daring me to push further.
I lifted my hands innocently. "Yes, of course."
She kept her glare, not convinced.
"Fine, please tell me the location," Kayda finally said, turning her gaze back to the butler, who had been standing silently through our back-and-forth like a statue in the summer heat.
"I will get a written version for you right away," he replied smoothly before turning and jogging down the hallway. His sandals slapped against the polished floor as he disappeared around a corner.
I raised an eyebrow. "You think he'll really give it?"
Kayda only shrugged. "Don't know."
"Well," I said, turning back to glance at the sleeping tomato girl sprawled comfortably under her covers, "anyway, let's leave her to sleep in peace."
"I guess we can do that," Kayda said softly, her eyes softening as she followed my gaze.
"Oh right-what's the tomato girl's name? She never told me."
The silence that followed was suspicious.
"..."
"..."
"Aaah, I forgot," Kayda admitted suddenly, glancing away as if the floor had become the most fascinating thing in the world.
"You... forgot her name?" I said, utterly stumped, my tail twitching in disbelief.
"Uh, it was on the tip of my tongue, but I forgot it." She gave a weak smile that was more excuse than explanation.
"I see. "We will ask her later," I said, dismissing the issue, even though the absurdity lingered.
"Okay. Oh-here he comes back." Kayda straightened as the butler returned, a neat stack of papers in his hand.
"Great, took him long enough," I muttered, stepping forward to meet him halfway.
"Here you go," the butler said, his voice still maddeningly polite. "As requested, here is the location of the suspect along with additional information about the place." He held the papers out toward Kayda.
"Thanks," Kayda said, taking them without even a glance and immediately handing them to me.
I raised an eyebrow at her. "Thanks, I'll read through them later," I said, sliding the papers into my storage space with a flick of my hand.
"You?" the butler questioned, his eyes flicking between us.
"Her analytic ability with some things is better than mine," Kayda explained with a sly smirk, "but her common sense isn't perfect yet."
"Are you praising me or dissing me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at her.
"No comment." She crossed her arms and looked away with that smug little grin that always made me want to pinch her cheeks-or set something on fire.
"Right. I will take my leave then," the butler said quickly, nodding once before striding away with a pace that suggested he couldn't get out fast enough.
"You wronged me," I called after him, annoyed.
"No comment," Kayda parroted again, turning on her heel and heading toward the exit of the mansion.
"Hey, you need to pay for that," I said, darting after her.
"I do?" She looked at me over her shoulder, baffled.
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes, you do."
"I do."
"Right, I thought so. But I'll keep that in my pocket for later." I smirked, watching as her defeated expression twisted into confusion.
"...What?" Kayda asked, brow furrowed.
"I'll dish out your punishment at a later date," I said with a grin that could only be described as sadistic.
"Dealing with the devil is so troublesome," she muttered, sighing as though resigning herself to her fate.
"Ho, ho, ho," I chuckled darkly. "But don't forget, I also still need to get back at you for peeking on me for a month." My grin widened, sharp and gleeful.
"Troublesome," she repeated louder this time. "I tell you, troublesome."
[3 hours later]
"You want to know where the black market is, do you?" The captain from yesterday leaned back against a post near the docks, his eyes narrowing as he studied me.
"Yeah. I need some info, money, and connections. You know, the normal things," I said with a careless shrug, my voice light even as my eyes locked on his.
"Why don't you use that body of yours?" a passing drunk muttered crudely, his grin splitting across his face.
His head hit the ground before his words even finished echoing.
"Man, what a mood killer," I said lightly, snapping a small fireball into my palm and flicking it onto the body. Flesh and bone went to ash in seconds, the sea breeze carrying the acrid smell away.
"The usual things, you say?" the captain muttered, his eyes narrowing even further. He didn't flinch at the body that was burning to dust, didn't even move. Instead, he chose to ignore the burning body, which was unsettling in its own way.
"You don't need to worry," I said, giving him a toothy grin. "It's nothing that'll put a bounty on your name or damage your reputation. Promise."
"I'm not worried about that." He snorted, folding his arms across his chest. "Why would a fourteen-year-old kid be asking me for this kind of stuff, even when their guardian's standing right behind them?" He gestured toward Kayda, who stood just behind me.
"Guardian? No, she's my partner." I waved him off without hesitation.
He blinked at me, then at her, then back at me. "I'm not judging, but if she isn't the same as you, isn't the age gap..." He trailed off, eyebrows twitching.
"Oh, I never thought about that," I said, tilting my head, my tone far too thoughtful for his comfort.
"Hmm, me neither. Luckily, you look older," Kayda added casually, shrugging like this was nothing.
