YWPWYLFDM 21

Chapter 21

The boy panted heavily, bracing himself against the wall. Who would have thought that keeping up with a girl shorter and smaller than him could be this exhausting?

“Ah, no… What are you?”

His yellow eyes were full of astonishment and curiosity.

“That’s a random and rude question. What exactly do you want to know?”

Ayla responded, her voice tinged with incredulity.

The boy scratched his cheek awkwardly, realizing he might have overstepped.

“Ah, sorry. But… I’ve never seen such a perfect roll in my life. How did you do that?”

It was no wonder he was fascinated. A tiny girl in a white nightdress, adorned with frills and lace under a black robe, had just jumped from a high roof and landed lightly without a scratch.

Faced with such an unexpected question, Ayla blinked slowly. It was genuinely a difficult question to answer.

“…None of your business.”

Ayla’s cold reply brought a look of disappointment across the boy’s face.

The way he slumped looked almost as if she had committed a grave misdeed.

Perhaps because of that, despite her irritation and the inconvenience, Ayla found herself showing concern she normally wouldn’t.

“It’s dangerous for a child to wander alone at this hour. So go back.”

The boy stared at her in stunned silence. Who was calling whom a child?

Although the boy was quite tall, his youthful face made him look about twelve or thirteen. By actual experience, Ayla herself was older. But seeing her appear barely twelve, the boy had no way of knowing she was closer to eighteen.

“…Oh, yeah. Right, right.”

As the boy fumbled out a reply, an opportunity to lose him presented itself.

A man appeared across the alley, calling for the boy, drawing his attention.

“Um, young master!”

Seizing the moment as the boy turned, Ayla swiftly leapt onto the wall. Climbing from the wall to the roof was effortless for her.

“What on earth are you doing here? Why do you keep sneaking out at night without telling anyone? Something could happen and you wouldn’t survive. You know that.”

“Well… there’s a child here…”

The boy, aware of the scolding tone from the servant, glanced back toward where Ayla had been.

But no one was there. She was already hidden on the roof, watching the amusing scene unfold.

“Child? What child?”

The boy’s golden eyes blinked slowly, his face dumbfounded as if he’d seen a ghost. She had vanished as suddenly as she had appeared.

Watching his foolish expression was quite entertaining, but Ayla turned her gaze elsewhere. She had no time to waste.

Her attention returned to her original objective: the alley across the way.

‘Cloud still seems to be in that spot.’

Though hidden in the darkness, she could feel his presence.

As a master would, Cloud was skilled at concealing his movements, but he could not escape Ayla’s keen senses.

Despite a few setbacks, she focused all her mental energy on observation, determined not to miss even the slightest movement.

However, a conversation behind her kept breaking her concentration.

“Enough nonsense, go back at once. Why do you keep sneaking out at night?”

“Nonsense? How dare you!”

“Yes, yes. I am most guilty.”

It was like a comical scene from a play.

Ayla finally allowed herself a glance, seeing the servant drag the boy by the nape.

The hood that had hidden his hair slipped back, revealing smooth black hair—much like the hair of the father he longed for, Lordric.

‘…Not just Byron he reminds me of,’ she thought, smiling lightly as she lay flat on the roof, chin in hand, watching.

Despite the boy’s resemblance to Byron and the way he had interrupted her work, she found she did not dislike him entirely.

‘Well, I probably won’t ever see him again,’ she thought. It was just a brief encounter—a fleeting connection. Foolish, she realized.

Once the boy had been fully taken away by the servant, Ayla refocused on Cloud.

Hidden deep within the alley, she could sense his location but not his actions.

‘Originally, the plan was to move to the building across the street.’

The unexpected encounter had caused significant delay.

Ayla clicked her tongue and leapt back down to the alley she had just crossed. Fortunately, no one appeared this time.

She quickly crossed the street and climbed the wall again, hiding atop the building and peeking over the edge.

Cloud, unaware he was being watched from above, kept his gaze fixed on the opposite corner.

‘What is he looking at?’

Following his line of sight, she saw a grand building surrounded by high walls.

‘Is he watching that building?’

Frowning, Ayla examined it closely. Heavily armored knights stood in tight formation in front of the walls.

‘…As I thought. The one who fortified this city so strictly. He must be tailing that person.’

Who could it be? She had a strong hunch it was the “Young Lion” himself, or at least someone connected to him.

Discovering the person’s identity or status wouldn’t be difficult. This wasn’t a low-profile visit; it was conspicuous enough for ordinary people to notice. There would surely be clues.

But tonight, it seemed she’d have to leave. The wasted time from the boy’s interruption had flown by too quickly.

She didn’t know if she’d get another chance to roam the city at night like this, but she wasn’t in any rush. There would be plenty of future opportunities to follow the unknown person.

With that thought, Ayla left the oblivious Cloud behind. Not a single passerby even noticed her.

Back in the inn, Laura remained slumped in her chair, fast asleep.

It made sense—whatever effects the sedative had wouldn’t wear off anytime soon.

Ayla shook the wind from her cloak and hung it neatly back on the coat rack.

She then lay in bed as if nothing had happened, drifting off to sleep like she had all night.

The next morning, as expected, Laura had been too afraid of scolding to tell anyone she had fallen asleep.

She even brazenly lied to Ayla, claiming she hadn’t noticed her watching all night.

Though Ayla had been the one to ensure Laura slept, she let the girl believe otherwise, inwardly smirking at her own cleverness.

It was necessary—she had to continue putting Laura to sleep at night to move freely.

Of course, she couldn’t do it every night. The next night, Capella had kept watch, and soon after, they would leave Grunfelt for another city.

Moreover, even though Laura was young, using the sedative every night would raise suspicion. Repeated use could build tolerance, so Ayla had to be careful.

Thus, it wasn’t until a week after her first outing—after arriving in the second city, Bahait—that Ayla ventured out again at night.

Thanks to behaving obediently and catering to Laura, the girl was completely unsuspecting.

Once again, Laura drank the water secretly spiked with a sedative without a second thought and soon fell asleep.

Confirming that Laura was in a deep sleep, Ayla opened the window to survey the streets.

Tonight, she didn’t need to tail Cloud. She only intended to scout the city and see who had arrived.

Until she spotted the masked and cautious Cloud venturing out.

‘Should I follow him? It might save me some effort if I trace his path.’

Even to gather information, getting closer to the target would be more efficient. While she could theoretically identify him from afar, approaching offered the best chance for clues.

Perhaps passersby might even gossip, revealing the distinguished visitor’s movements. That would make her task effortless.

Cloud, vigilant as ever, kept glancing around to ensure no one discovered his purpose.

Unaware that someone was observing him from above, he continued.

After following him some distance, he arrived in front of another grand mansion surrounded by high walls, wandering about and inspecting the surroundings.