Sincerely, Vanessa [EN]: Chapter 95

To Teacher, From Vanessa 95

Gideon returned to the Special Task Force office after the joint meeting and immediately checked the Hornir [a magical communication device] on his desk.

There was ‘of course’ no contact from Colonel Liet, who had just left. His large hand regretfully brushed over the device before retracting. He wondered if Vanessa had arrived safely, but there was no way to know….

He sighed briefly and reviewed the reports that had been submitted.

The King knew that there were those who sought to destroy the magic circles of Bam Vandalu. There had been small successes in their meticulous plan.

However, he had no intention of immediately pulling in the net. The greedy King wanted to catch a whale as big as a house instead of small fry. He wanted to drag out those who lurked in the dark, their eyes gleaming, instead of the exploited illegal wizards or foolish priests. To do so, he needed undeniable, solid evidence.

Thanks to this, many departments within the Cabinet were working together behind the scenes.

They were all bound by magic related to maintaining secrecy and were prepared to lose their heads if they failed to perform their duties properly. The Minister of Justice was rarely seen in the castle.

Since last week, the Special Task Force had discovered one additional magic circle, bringing the total number of magic circles under the Special Task Force’s protection to 15.

However, before Vanessa fell into the cave and discovered the magic circle of Bam Vandalu, four magic circles had already been destroyed, as far as they could confirm.

No wizard could predict how many of Bam Vandalu’s magic circles needed to be destroyed for it to lose its effectiveness.

‘It has already been a thousand years. Even if they haven’t been destroyed, some of the magic may have faded,’ Dartua Dantar, the wizard of the southern border, had said. His eyes, which had lost their pupils and were only white, moved slowly.

‘We do not know how many magic circles Bam Vandalu left in total.’

Yes. That was the problem. Even if they won every battle, it would be as good as a defeat if the black monster awakened.

Gideon neatly organized the scattered documents into one bundle. He then cast a spell to store them in a space where no one could access them and left the Special Task Force building.

It was almost time for Count Alban’s carriage to arrive.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

The carriage, which had no insignia, had only a coachman and no horses. It didn’t need horses because it had a magic circle drawn on it that supplied power through mana stones. It was a trend in the capital these days, and its price was a whopping one large house, but Alban wouldn’t care about that.

Gideon slipped inside and waited.

Even after getting out of the carriage and entering the building, the person he was supposed to meet did not appear immediately. The considerable wait could have been tedious, but his expression did not change.

Thanks to this, the servants of the mansion, who passed by the open door, blushed for no reason. There were even those who deliberately lingered near the hallway, as rumors had spread.

Gideon, receiving light from the window behind him, had a picturesque quality. A beautiful man seemingly lost in thought.

Of course, if one were to look inside, Gideon was filled only with worry about someone, not with contemplation. He wondered if Vanessa had arrived safely in Veloce. He wondered if there would be any danger.

He could have intervened and chosen a more comfortable assignment for her, but if that were discovered, Vanessa would not leave him alone.

Still, it was too early of a dispatch. Leaving only a day after joining the Special Task Force, why was it always like this?

“Who might this be,” a voice said.

After a long wait, someone lightly knocked on the open door, drawing his attention. Standing before him was Eugenia Alban, smiling smoothly. As she entered, the door closed silently behind her.

Now, there were only two people inside, and the footsteps of people passing through the hallway could not be heard. Even though the two most outstanding men and women in Pydom were standing inside, a coldness flowed instead of warmth.

Gideon uttered indifferently, “You must have been very busy.”

“How many times would I make the great Valder wait? I must savor this moment….”

Even though Eugenia said that, she looked quite tired. The corners of her sleek lips were about to droop. It was clear that she had actually been swamped with work.

Since there was no time and they were both tired, Gideon spoke bluntly. “I know that your cousin has established himself in Vitola. Alban is trying to advance there.”

“You don’t mean to say it’s not allowed, do you? It’s rumored that Valder already holds the Jollir [a position of power or influence] of Vitola. Isn’t it a transportation hub?”

Gideon chuckled softly. His preemption of the Jollir was through perfectly legal means. Of course, there were none who could know what was hidden behind it.

“I don’t really care. However, the moment this story enters the joint meeting, I can already see those who will immediately rise up. There are so many who want to keep Alban in check, aren’t there? It will take quite a while to inherit the title.”

Eugenia sharply raised the corners of her eyes. “Lord Valder, let’s stop this. I don’t know why you’re beating around the bush when it’s just the two of us. Please tell me what you want.”

“If the Albano Bank is a tree growing straight in the sun, what about the branches that stretch out in the shade these days? I’m talking about the things you’ve hidden without putting them under Alban’s name.”

Eugenia smiled, but she couldn’t hide her annoyed tone. “You wouldn’t be able to come up with such a brazen excuse. Doesn’t everyone have dirty dealings like that? Do you want me to attack Valder’s weaknesses right now?”

Gideon lightly nodded. Eugenia was irritated by his attitude of not really listening, but she held back.

“The Albano Bank is known for reliably protecting the identities of those who entrust their assets to it. Didn’t it protect the King’s assets to the end even when it was predicted that the Freiba would lose the war in the past? But what about ‘those things in the shadows’?”

Eugenia narrowed her eyes. After a moment of silence, she regained her smile.

“Let’s put the story about Vitola in the joint meeting off until much later.”

“I will hand over the list. Check where the back money of these people has flowed and slowly tie up the money. Those guys don’t even know where they’ve entrusted their money.”

“They hid their names well. I control the rate at which the money dries up so that no one notices. Don’t worry.”

Eugenia roughly scanned the list she received. Quite influential business owners, nobles….

“Why don’t you simply handle it by His Majesty’s order?”

Gideon got up and put on the robe he had hung up.

“Official documents won’t do. We need to sweep them away all at once with proper evidence so that there won’t be any repercussions. I will prevent even the slightest leak.”

“Hmm, I really like the list. It’s always fun when competitors disappear.” Eugenia spat out honestly before adding a suitably packaged word: “I was born under the Alban crest, having sworn long allegiance to His Majesty, so it is natural to help. I only hope you win.”

Eugenia smiled. The moment the list was neatly tucked into her arms, the door behind her reopened, and the hallway was once again overflowing with people passing by.

As Gideon finished preparing to leave, Eugenia, who had been leaning comfortably against the back of her chair, suddenly opened her mouth. “Ah, I heard that Vanessa Rose has joined the Special Task Force.”

Eugenia laughed gleefully as she watched the man’s expression become subtle. “I talked to Vanessa about her fiancé last time. It was quite strange to see a young lady who wasn’t interested in such stories when she was at the academy listening with sparkling eyes.”

“……”

“She probably thought I wouldn’t notice, but how could I not? I thought you would hide her completely and protect her, but she’s been dispatched. It’s quite surprising.”

“She is strict about preferential treatment. She said she wanted to protect me, so I have no choice but to gratefully accept it.”

Eugenia hummed as Gideon smiled bitterly. How pretty those blue eyes under his thick eyebrows must have been when he said those words. Even she, who was only a senior from the same academy, was sometimes captivated by that sparkle, so the man must have easily fallen for it.

Eugenia smoothly raised the corners of her lips. “You are lucky.”

“Isn’t your lover the same?”

“Ah, my lover’s appearance is a bit ordinary, so there weren’t many competitors. Unlike Vanessa.”

Eugenia easily shattered the man’s composure. His footsteps stopped abruptly.

“The pretty and cute Rose was very popular. Even before I graduated, she had three or four followers, and after that, I heard that there weren’t enough fingers to count them. The library seat she often sat in was full of letters.”

The man was silent, but Eugenia guessed what he was thinking and smiled brightly. “By the way, it’s the same in the Cabinet. One in the Magic Department, one in the Finance Department on the same floor. Ah, someone is trying to find out who the lovely curly-haired lady they saw in the Second Castle Library is. Oh my, why do I even know these rumors.”

“…It doesn’t matter. And I warn you, don’t dig into her past. It’s not something you need to know.”

He tried to adorn himself with righteousness, but the man’s voice was seething with possessiveness that was barely revealed.

However, Eugenia did not stop. What could be more fun than teasing a man in love?

“Of course, it doesn’t matter to you. Because Vanessa Rose has chosen you now. But I advise you to reveal the truth as soon as possible, Patron Teacher. Ah, or not anymore?”

The man silently pressed down on his robe. Only the tip of his nose and lips were barely visible under the hood that covered most of his face, but that was enough. It could be seen that the corners of his mouth were firmly set.

Eugenia leisurely saw the man off. The last blow, disguised as advice, was quite satisfying.