Beast in the Woods, Deep in the Night - Chapter 27.1

Chapter 27.1

With trembling eyes, Christine confirmed once again what she was seeing.

There was a portrait of Edgar and his full name.

Edgar Richard. The grand duke’s son who was born thirty years ago and died at the age of seventeen.

The face in the portrait below that name was definitely the same as the man who slept with her. No matter how much a boy changes as he grows into a man, his attractive-looking face won’t change much.

‘Dear heavens. I knew he was hiding a secret, but…’

She had no idea the young successor was still alive, let alone active in the guild.

She had vaguely anticipated that he was hiding a great secret, but now that she knew the reality, she couldn’t figure out how to accept it.

She could hear someone approaching from outside, so Christine put the book she was reading back in its original place. She didn’t forget to take care not to leave evidence of which book she had picked up, like an elite guild member.

Soon, a group of people seemed to be getting closer, and the door opened.

***

As soon as Decius heard that the anti-theft magic had been activated near the library, he got up from his seat. He was in charge of the guild’s affairs on behalf of Edgar and Isaac, who were now away handling a commission.

“What’s wrong? Why is the anti-theft magic active?”

There was only one place in the library with anti-theft magic. The special management area where records related to Grand Duke Richard collected by the guild were kept.

Knowing this, Decius walked quickly towards the library, where an astonished Ein was waiting for him.

He was a guy both Decius and Isaac weren’t happy with because he had many complaints for someone who didn’t even know how to fight. He seemed to be interested in the chimeras’ affairs that had nothing to do with his work, so they were keeping a close eye on him.

“What in the world is it that’s causing such a commotion?”

“Well… The lock suddenly malfunctioned, and the woman was trapped inside,” Ein reported, fidgeting.

“Woman?”

He didn’t call her by her name or anything within the guild, but by the vague title of ‘woman’.

“Is she a member of our guild?” Decius asked, wondering.

“Ah, I don’t think so. She’s Edgar’s guest.”

“Christine?”

“…”

Ein lowered his gaze, unable to answer.

Of all people, the woman brought in by Edgar was suddenly trapped in a room where secret records were kept. Decius became more urgent because he knew that she was an elite member of the Golden Horseshoe Guild.

“Open it quickly.”

Hearing this, Decius’ subordinate activated the magic stone that unlocked the lock.

The door opened with a click.

At the same time, a woman’s voice, trembling from the intense emotion, was heard from inside.

“Wh-why are you doing this to me? Sob…”

Christine was crouching on the floor, her face a mess of tears. She was curled up in her cloak, sobbing, and she looked terrified at being suddenly trapped in an unknown place.

No one would have thought that she, who was wiping away tears with the back of her slender hand, would have been digging up information with an expressionless face just a moment ago.

“Miss Christine, this…”

Ein stared at her as if possessed while she cried, her shoulders moving slightly up and down, and tried to give some kind of explanation.

But Decius raised his hand and cut him off.

Seeing that Decius’ expression was dark, Ein closed his mouth like a clam and took a step back. He had been caught letting that woman in a secret space, so it was unlikely that he wouldn’t be punished.

Decius looked at Ein with cold eyes and said, “For now, it’s true that the anti-theft device worked, so I’ll have to do a body search.”

As soon as he finished speaking, his subordinates scanned Ein’s body. Ein did not steal anything, so he confidently complied with the procedure.

But something unexpected came out of his pocket—a shiny jewel the size of a fingernail.