Chapter 30
At Lian’s words, Troy rose from the sofa.
‘Please, don’t let those two talk.’
I desperately tried to keep them apart, but things didn’t go as I wished.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Troy Bairon, Lady Felice’s friend.”
“Friend…?”
Lian looked at me with eyes that seemed to demand confirmation.
“Yes. Lady Felice is my only friend.”
“Friend, huh…”
“And you must be Lian Luchellonia, Lady Felice’s older brother?”
‘How does he know Lian?’
Lian had lived secluded in the Magic Tower for so long that barely anyone outside of mages even knew what he looked like.
The fact that Troy recognized Lian’s face right away…
‘He must have investigated our family.’
That happened often in the game too.
The more obsessive Troy became, the more he investigated everyone Felice had even briefly spoken to, and used that to slowly tighten his grip around her.
“Yes. I’m Felice’s adoptive brother and childhood friend—Lian Luchellonia.”
Lian stressed each word firmly, as if to emphasize that we weren’t related by blood.
He stared coldly at Troy, and Troy smiled faintly, returning the stare.
‘What is with these two?’
Troy and Lian were practically having a staring contest. I cleared my throat, trying to redirect their attention to me.
“Ahem. Well then, I’ll be off. You two can continue your conversation.”
‘If you’re not going to leave, then I will.’
As I was halfway out the door, Troy finally broke eye contact with Lian.
“I need to go now too. Lady Felice, you remember our promise today, right? You have to keep it.”
“I know.”
“I’ll send a letter with the details. And… I’ll wait for your reply.”
“Okay.”
I answered absentmindedly, but Troy smiled, seemingly satisfied.
Lian, watching the scene, frowned slightly in displeasure.
“Felice, are you really close enough to him to be making private appointments?”
“Huh?”
There was something strange in Lian’s blue eyes.
“Of course. As I said earlier, we’re friends—very special friends. We might become even more special in the future.”
“Special relationship… Hm. You must not know what a truly special relationship is. Right, Felice?”
“Of course family is special. But what we have is different,” Troy replied smoothly.
Troy’s pale blue eyes and Lian’s deep blue ones locked onto me simultaneously.
Ding.
System Notification
Lian Luchellonia’s affection +5
Total Affection Level: 30
Lian is feeling jealous. Try provoking his jealousy further.
Rather than the notification sound, the words on the screen caught my eye.
‘Jealousy…?’
Lian? Feeling jealous?
He was never the type to feel jealousy in the game.
As I stared at him in confusion, Lian curled one side of his lip as if he had stumbled upon something amusing.
“Exactly. Felice and I are family—a bond far deeper than what she could have with anyone else.”
‘What is he even saying…’
Flustered by what seemed like an attempt to provoke Troy, I quickly stepped between them.
“O-okay, that’s enough. Lian, just give me the book and go. Lord Bairon, you should be leaving too.”
“I’ll bring the book to your room.”
“My lady, I still have more to say—”
As both of them tried to squeeze in one last word, I frowned sharply, and they both shut their mouths.
“Lian, give me the book. Now.”
With lips tightly pressed, Lian handed over the book, and I snatched it away quickly.
“Lian, move.”
He stepped aside from the door, and I slipped out of the drawing room through the gap.
Only silence remained between the two men left facing each other.
“Ugh.”
I placed the heavy book and the envelope of information on the table after returning to my room.
“My lady, you shouldn’t carry heavy things like this. Are you alright?”
Susan brought me a glass of water, concern on her face.
Bell stood hesitantly outside the door like a criminal, not daring to enter.
“Bell.”
“Yes, my lady.”
As she approached, sensing she was about to be scolded, her whole body—lips, eyes, shoulders, even her back—drooped in guilt.
“How did Lord Bairon end up buying this commission?”
“Well… I swear I’m innocent…”
“Innocent?”
“Yes. I clearly paid one gold coin as a deposit yesterday to buy the information. Uncle Tom said it’d be easy and he’d have it ready by today.”
“And then?”
“But when I went back to the information broker today, Lord Bairon was already there. He said he’d purchased the commission.”
“……”
“But since he’s your friend, my lady, he offered to give it to us for free. I really thought he was giving it out of goodwill! But then he insisted on delivering it in person…”
Bell’s voice trembled at the end, tears threatening to spill.
“Later I ran into Uncle Tom, who apologized, saying Lord Bairon paid twenty gold coins for the information… and he gave me two as compensation.”
Bell handed me a pouch containing eleven gold coins.
‘Well, it’s not like Bell did anything wrong.’
If there was a mistake, it was mine—for underestimating Troy’s information network.
Who would’ve thought he’d even know that a maid from House Luchellonia had visited the broker?
I let out a long sigh and nodded as if it was okay.
“Alright, Bell. But next time, don’t bring uninvited guests along. Got it?”
“Yes.”
“Haa… Now, let’s take a look. Bell, Susan, I have work to do alone. Please go rest in your rooms.”
Once the maids left, I pulled the envelope from beneath the magic book.
It was labeled “Irot Information Agency.”
Inside was a very thick stack of documents.
On the very first page:
These are the individuals who match your requested criteria.
With a racing heart, I turned the page.
Troy Bairon
“Troy’s first?”
‘Well, that makes sense…’
People had been curious about Troy ever since he entered high society.
Good-looking and immensely wealthy—he was now the hottest topic.
“Successor to the Bairon Marquisate. Heir to the Bairon Trading Company.”
I quickly skimmed through the things I already knew, moving to the next page.
“The next page… the Bairon family’s wealth?”
Since I already knew the basics, I expected a new candidate on the next page, but my guess was wrong.
‘This kind of financial detail shouldn’t be available to outsiders…’
It listed current business ventures and projected profits.
This kind of intel was way too valuable for just twenty gold coins.
‘Did he intentionally include this much…?’
Turning the page anxiously, I found a portrait and description of Troy’s appearance.
“Sunshine-like smile, puppy-like eyes…”
Troy’s looks, personality, reputation, family ties, preferences—everything was recorded in detail.
It was mostly glowing praise.
After flipping through a thick pile of what I considered useless information, I finally reached the halfway point.
“Haa… next is… Kainis Spencer. Eldest son of the Duke of Spencer. Heir to the Spencer Dukedom.”
Basic info like family, age, and affiliation appeared, but unlike Troy’s file, this one had a different tone.
“Cold, heartless personality. Known for rejecting many young ladies, which sparked rumors that he prefers men.”
‘Likes men?’
A baseless rumor spread by young ladies who were rejected by him.
‘What a ridiculous rumor.’
I chuckled at the contrast between his and Troy’s profiles and turned the page.
“Dustin Spencer… second son of the Duke of Spencer. Commander of the Imperial Capital’s First Knight Division. And… known for leaving a trail of romantic flings. Some women couldn’t forget him and suffered lovesickness.”
Along with Dustin’s reputation, a list of women he was rumored to have dated followed.
“Wow, that many?”
I skimmed over the densely packed names and reached the next profile.
Arjen Anisto Deros
XD
Troy definitely thinks he knows what she’s investigating, and is trying to tip matters in his favor