Chapter 44
If the former Elshez, who had once been possessed by him, had heard this, it would have been a deep wound.
‘As expected… he knew about Elshez’s feelings all along.’
He knew everything, yet treated his fiancée that way.
Elshez swallowed a sigh as she looked at Tezet.
She wasn’t angry. What Tezet had ignored were the feelings of the former Elshez, and he had always been that kind of person.
Someone indifferent to the emotions of others, and even if he noticed them, simply didn’t care.
Part of it was indifference, but fundamentally, he lacked emotions himself, which made it even more pronounced.
When Ruel first met Tezet, the young boy neither cried, laughed, nor showed anger.
Like a doll without feelings, incapable of feeling.
Ruel had tried to teach him human emotions, but Tezet never accepted them.
Or rather, he refused to accept them.
The world he had lived in was a survival-of-the-fittest world. In that world, emotions were utterly useless, even obstacles.
So perhaps, in a way, it was fortunate for him that Elshez’s love had ended.
“That’s right… I won’t bother you anymore from now on.”
Elshez spoke with a subtle accent on the past tense.
“And more importantly, I am assisting Your Excellency’s subordinate. If His Majesty knew, Your Excellency’s position would be rather awkward.”
“…….”
“So I think breaking off the engagement here would be best for both of us.”
“…….”
“The money my father borrowed is a large sum, so a one-time repayment is impossible, but I will repay it steadily with interest.”
Please… just agree to break the engagement.
Elshez looked at him with eyes that, despite her cold words, held a pleading sincerity.
Tezet, who had always looked at Elshez with his usual indifferent gaze, lowered his long eyelashes and quietly replied:
“Fine. Break the engagement.”
Finally hearing the answer she had wanted, the corner of Elshez’s lips curved slightly upward.
One of the two obstacles that had constrained her actions was now gone.
“Your Excellency, we’ve arrived.”
Elshez, leaning against the carriage and dozing off, jerked awake at the coachman’s voice.
‘Ah. I was just so sleepy…’
At the same time, her eyes met Tezet’s, who was sitting opposite her.
Against the backdrop of the sunset, his green eyes, tinged with red from the sunlight, looked at her silently.
Tezet said,
“If you’re sleepy, why don’t you head back first?”
“Oh, no. I think I rested enough just now.”
“I can see that.”
What did that mean…?
‘Did I sleep with my mouth open or something?’
Worried, Elshez subtly wiped her mouth. Fortunately, she hadn’t drooled.
The two of them got off the carriage and stood in front of the orphanage.
It was one of the larger orphanages in the territory, one of the last they would visit on their rounds.
Elshez knocked on the door and waited. Soon, a little girl, around seven or eight, peeked out.
Elshez bent slightly to meet her eye level.
“Hello. I’ve come to see the director. Is she inside?”
The girl looked carefully at Elshez and Tezet, then nodded.
“May we come in to see her?”
The girl silently opened the door instead of answering verbally.
Elshez and Tezet followed the girl inside. She scurried off somewhere, leaving the two adults behind.
While wandering near the entrance, Elshez noticed a cluster of potted plants by the window and approached them.
At that moment, a boy hiding behind a wall peeked out and softly said,
“Those are ours…”
Elshez realized the boy wanted to show off his plants and smiled.
“Oh, you all grew these yourselves?”
The boy nodded.
“We planted them. We water them and even get rid of bugs.”
“Wow, I’d be too lazy to do that. Amazing.”
Encouraged, the boy shyly smiled.
As Elshez patted the boy’s head, she suddenly felt the presence beside her disappear and turned to see Tezet had already walked deeper into the orphanage.
Elshez hurried after him.
“Where are you going? I think that girl just went to get the director.”
“I know where the director’s office is.”
Elshez finally realized why he knew the location of the office.
This was the orphanage where he had grown up.
Tezet hadn’t explained much, but she recalled him telling Ruel the name of this orphanage once.
‘It probably isn’t a good memory… considering he lived on the streets after leaving here.’
Elshez quietly looked up at Tezet beside her.
As usual, his face showed no emotion.
“Where are the guests—”
Just then, the little girl returned with a woman who seemed to be the director.
The director immediately recognized them as visitors and approached with a warm smile.
“I am the director here. What brings you to this orphanage? I assume it’s not for adoption…”
As she spoke, she glanced at Tezet and Elshez and subtly took Tezet’s hand.
“Oh my, I thoughtlessly left you standing there. Please, come inside and we can talk.”
Though she appeared friendly, her gaze and touch carried a subtle personal interest.
‘Oh no…’
Elshez, glaring like an axe-eyed sentinel, was about to intervene, but Tezet pulled his hand away from the director with his usual indifferent expression.
The director withdrew her hand, cleared her throat, and spoke to the girl standing beside her:
“Mia, could you go get some tea?”
“Yes.”
The girl who had opened the orphanage door nodded and left.
The three entered the director’s office. Tezet wasted no time and got straight to the point.
“Are you handing children over to traffickers?”
“Eh…?”
Without trying to probe, he bluntly asked the question, shocking both the director and Elshez.
‘Why do you ask so bluntly?! Don’t you know how investigation works? Even if it’s true, no one would admit it!’
Elshez pressed her hand to her forehead and sighed. He had never known how to speak indirectly.
The director, visibly flustered, forced a smile.
“Of course not. I’ve always raised these children with love.”
“They were the same before. Saying one thing, but punishing them and handing them to traffickers behind the scenes.”
Elshez looked at Tezet in surprise.
This was the first she had heard of his orphanage experiences.
“That’s why I killed that bastard.”
Even his voice and gaze, when recounting murder, were as emotionless as ever.
Yet his calm recounting made him all the more terrifying.
“You are the one who took the place left vacant by him.”
The director swallowed hard.
“Well, I wouldn’t do such a thing again unless I had no choice.”
“Of course. These are my children; how could I ever do that?”
The inquiry had already gone too far.
Elshez gave up and pulled parchment from her inventory, showing it to the director.
“Do you recognize these children?”
They were sketches of the boys Count Lort had killed.
The director flinched at the images.
“These are children who were here at our orphanage.”
“And now?”
Elshez asked, pretending ignorance while knowing the truth.
The director paused, then spoke:
“About two weeks ago, they went to Euten with a merchant recruiting sailors.”
“…Euten?”
“Yes, a small island country in the southern Karinth Sea.”
She continued to explain.
“They are both fifteen years old, and since it’s difficult to adopt older children, they usually prepare to live independently around this age. These two just set their path a bit early.”
“I see.”
“Why are you looking for them?”
Before Tezet could answer, the girl returned with the tea.
Elshez held his hand firmly, stopping him, and smiled at the girl.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
Feeling her warmth, Tezet stopped and looked at Elshez. She gave him a silent signal not to speak further.
It wasn’t good news for a child who had grown up with them like siblings.
After the girl left, Elshez answered the director’s question.
“I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but a few days ago, a group attempting to resurrect Mashin was discovered. The bodies of these children were found there.”
“Th-that can’t be…”
The director covered her mouth in shock and tears flowed from her eyes.
“I didn’t mean for this to happen to them… it’s all my fault.”
“We are tracking the perpetrators under His Majesty’s orders.”
Elshez handed a handkerchief to the weeping director.
After some time, the director regained composure.
“They must be connected to that merchant in Euten.”
She begged them to catch and punish the culprits and saw them out.
Once outside the orphanage, Elshez wiped away her smile from moments ago and, with a cold expression, looked back at the entrance.
“That woman is lying about the boys’ deaths.”
