Chapter 165: Undercover (1)

“Master Lloyd, a terrible accident has happened.”

“What?”

Javier spoke with a grim expression, and an old fluorescent light faintly shone behind his back. Lloyd rose up from a creaking bed.

“What’s going on?” Lloyd asked as he rubbed his sleepy eyes.

“It looks like we do not have enough to pay the rent for the rental room.”

“What…?”

What on earth is he saying? Lloyd asked, snappily coming to his senses. He looked up and found that he was in the room rental where he used to live back in Korea. Javier was standing against the wallpaper that had yellowed over the years. The sight was transcendental. Just then, Javier spoke, this time looking graver.

“Moreover, the news just reported that the convenience store will be raising the price of triangle gimbap to one hundred dollars.”

“Hey,” huffed Lloyd, “What are you talking about?”

“I am not joking. It’s an official law. And the United Nations announced it as a grave matter. It’s set in stone now. Among them, the Jeonju bibimbap flavor, which is your favorite, will jump to one hundred fifty dollars.”

“Hey, man. Are you out of your mind? Hello?” said Lloyd as he waved his hands.

“I am sound in mind. It is all because of him.”

Javier pointed behind his shoulder with a serious look. Just then…

Clack. The old door opened, and a man dressed in black entered his tiny room. It was Cannavaro, the philanthropist Lloyd had seen this afternoon.

“Nice to meet you. I believe this is our first meeting. I am the new manager of this rental building,” Cannavaro introduced himself.

“Excuse me…?” Lloyd was dazed.

“I heard that you will be behind on rent this month. Please vacate this room right away.”

“Oh, what are you talking-”

“And your grades are not quite good enough to get a scholarship,” Cannavaro griped, “Wahaha!”

“Wh-what? Excuse me?”

What in the world was happening right now? Lloyd was at a loss and scared. He wanted to find out why on earth he was back in this tiny room again. And why were Javier and Cannavaro staring at him like that? But what about the things he went through? Frontera fiefdom? Lloyd Frontera? Chills ran down Lloyd’s spine.

N-No! Wait a second! No!

He shouted in a hurry, that this wasn’t making any sense, that it was unfair. But his emotional bawling, which was almost a plea, didn’t come out of his mouth. As if a terrible nightmare was playing with him, Lloyd could not utter any noise. He would have remained in that state if it weren’t for a hand that jerked his shoulder.

“Master Lloyd?”

“Eh… Argh!”

“Are you all right?”

“…!”

Lloyd opened his eyes, bolting upright in his bed. This time, the expensive bed didn’t creak. And the faint fluorescent light and yellow wallpapers were replaced with dancing lights and a luxurious interior. Amid the light, Lloyd spotted the knight of the blood and iron, Javier.

“J-Javier?”

“Yes, it’s me. Is everything okay?”

“I…”

“I fear you had a bad dream. A terrible nightmare was haunting you.”

“…”

Dammit. It was a bogus dream. A terrible one, even. Lloyd let out a sigh of relief. It was pretty nasty for a dream. But it was quite real. Lloyd was terrified as he thought about it. He shook his head sideways, shaking the fatigue and nightmare off his mind.

“Anyway, when did you get here?”

“I just arrived,” Javier said, “I have something to tell you.”

“This isn’t about whether the triangle gimbap got more expensive, right?”

“What is a triangle gimbap…?” Javier threw a weird look at Lloyd.

“That’s what you said in my dream.”

“Did I appear in your dream?”

“Uh-huh.”

“And that is why you had a nightmare?”

“Uh-huh.”

“…”

“Anyway, so what did you need to tell me?”

“It pertains to Cannavaro,” Javier replied.

“Something suspicious?”

“Please see for yourself…”

Javier unpacked the bundle he was carrying on his shoulder. It contained four pieces of clothing. One coat that was considerably thick. Three comfy inner shirts. Each had a different color and shape, but there was one commonality. It was…

“Dragon head grim reaper embroidery. Where did you find them? Did you steal them from his house?” asked Lloyd.

“Not at all.” Javier shook his head. “I bought it at the market.”

“What?” Lloyd said, his brows quirking up, wondering what he was hearing.

“Since I went out this afternoon,” Javier continued, “I began the background check at the soup kitchen as per your instructions and looked into his manor. I dressed like a normal merchant and studied his behavior.”

“Did you hide your face?”

“Yes, somewhat.”

“So?”

“Several parts of his manor were protected by magical devices that prevented entry, just like any other rich man. But I did manage to roughly look around the rest of the estate. And I was able to continuously study his movements in the process. But…”

“But what?” hurried Lloyd.

“I did not detect any suspicious behavior in my hours of studying him. No, it was the contrary.”

“Contrary?” asked Lloyd, and Javier wore an expression that Lloyd found incomprehensible.

“His actions were filled with goodness and kindness. To the point that I wondered if he was not the most generous person he had ever met.”

“But you just saw him for a few hours,” Lloyd pointed out.

“Surely, the hours aren’t much, but he… he nursed the patients in his manor after his work in the soup kitchen. Sick patients whose entire bodies were wasting away.”

“So?”

“He was carefully wiping down the pus spilling out of a patient’s body for hours. He never frowned once.”

Javier expounded the sight one after another, saying how clear it was in his eyes. What Cannavaro did went beyond normal human capacity. Who would, Javier had asked himself, do such a thing to a total stranger in this world? And who could put on a gentle smile without any expression of tiredness?

“He moved me,” Javier said with conviction.“That was when I felt regretful. Here I was sneaking behind him, doing a background check when he owns such an exemplary character. That is when I found it.”

“Found what?” asked Lloyd.

“There were patients in his care that wore these clothes.”

“So?”

“I struck a conversation as I changed a patient’s bandage, pretending to be one of the volunteers,” he explained, “as the conversation progressed, I threw out that the embroidery on his clothes looked interesting. The patient told me that I could buy it at the market.”

“Market?”

“That is right.”

Javier’s gaze moved over to the clothes. “It was true. Some merchants were selling them.”

“And you bought all of them?” asked Lloyd.

“No, just a portion of it. I saw dozens more at the market. That was how common the symbol was,” concluded Javier.

“Whew.”

Lloyd sighed at length. The print turned out to be so common that it was sold at a market. This changed things. Lloyd racked his brain as he furrowed his brows.

The dragon-headed grim reaper had been commercialized? That’s unexpected. But still, Cannavaro is surely the head of the dark magicians.

That was the case in the novel, and he surely had to be the leader. As such, Lloyd could not retreat like this. The investigation had to go on.

There’s no guarantee that he’ll move and do things exactly as in the novel. The chances are likely that he’ll behave differently. I might find myself in hot water if I only base my plan on what happened in the novel.

Knowledge of an enemy ensured unfailing victory. So, Lloyd decided to be more alert and vigilant in monitoring Cannavaro. Every piece of information, even small and trivial, like the number of forks in his house and the color of his underwear, had to be tracked until something suspicious came up. Once Lloyd chanced upon the smoking gun to prove Cannavaro’s evil scheme, he would report it to Count Namaran and have the man arrested. With such a plan in his head, Lloyd spoke.

“You’re not telling me you want to stop following him around, are you?” asked Lloyd.

“Surely…”

“Don’t stop here. Keep going.”

“But Master Lloyd.”

“I have a bad feeling about this one. Something is definitely going on here,” Lloyd insisted.

“…”

“Can’t you trust me?” asked Lloyd as he stared at Javier.

“I don’t.”

“Your responses are unusually fast during times like these.”

“You are mistaken.”

“I don’t think so.”

“…”

“Do trust me a little,” said Lloyd. “I get that you are reluctant to check on him behind his back, but we are just playing it safe.”

“Playing it safe?”

“Yeah. It’s not like me being right about this matter will hurt our fiefdom.”

It was true. If Lloyd was right about this, the Namaran incident would be prevented, and it could lead to discovering a future threat to his fiefdom.

“So, it’s an order. Keep digging for more information,” ordered Lloyd.

“Normally,” Javier replied, “People try to pull at their listener’s heartstrings instead of placing an order in this kind of situation.”

“Why should I do that?”

“…”

“Why try persuading or making a request when ordering works better?”

“…”

“I say jump, and you say how high,” said Lloyd nonchalantly.

“Whew. I shouldn’t have woken you up earlier.”

“Why,” asked Lloyd, “so I’ll suffer from my nightmare?”

“You know it.” Javier clucked his tongue as he got up. “I will take my leave then.”

Javier was already gone like the wind before he was done speaking. The only traces of his visit was a candlestick, opened window, and a swaying curtain. Lloyd was astonished by his speed.

Sword masters are truly amazing.

Lloyd was already a mid-level sword expert, but he couldn’t sense Javier’s movement at all. He didn’t notice that the latter left until he was gone. And that was the reason why Lloyd was relieved. There was nothing to worry about him spying on the man.

Time to focus on my job while he’s gone.

Closing the opened window, Lloyd sat at the desk and decided to leave the matter pertaining to the dark magician in Javier’s hands. Meanwhile, he would get ready for the construction project. He opened the design skill thinking so.

A few days passed, and Lloyd was able to flesh out his construction project.

It’s as I had thought before. I should use piles and anchors.

Since the city was supported by the sandstone slope, solidifying the facade wasn’t enough. There needed to be piles and anchors inserted deep into the slope to create a firm, steadfast foundation. But there was one problem.

I need to manufacture anchors.

The anchors were to be planted into the foundation rocks after countless holes were bored into the cliff slope. However, this job involved more than sticking metal bars inside. Moreover, logs and bamboo sticks weren’t enough. To succeed, Lloyd needed a modern version of anchors.

That’s how I can fasten the anchors inside the holes bore in the slope. The force from the foundation rock to the facade will prevent the cliff from crumbling down. But to do that, the anchors have to be properly fastened first.

And so, once he was almost finished with the design, he visited Count Namaran.

“Please introduce me to the most competent blacksmith in the city,” Lloyd said.

“A blacksmith?”

“That is right.”

Lloyd unraveled his general outline for the construction and anchors. In particular, he showed the blueprint to the count, as he explained his plans for the anchors.

“This construction requires this object,” Lloyd explained, “And to do that, I need the help of a competent blacksmith.”

“To make these anchors?” asked Count Namaran.

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

Actually, this anchor Lloyd designed was closer to the “wedge lock bolt” used in South Korean construction fields. The basic principle went like this…

A large nut will be attached to the end of a long cylindrical bar. I’m going to push the bar deep into a hole that is burrowed as far as the foundation rock. And once I twist the nut at the end, the bar will expand once it penetrates inside, and as it does so, the bar will be completely fixed inside the hole.

It was a magical stick that thickened as the nut rotated.

Anyway, I need to carve spiral grooves into the nut to make that structure.

The spiral grooves would function as a bolt. Only the best and most competent blacksmiths would be capable of creating them to their exact size.

It’s not like I can call Corgidus here.

Corgidus was most likely pounding down on the metals that would be used in the apartment complex today. Lloyd couldn’t make the busy man come all the way here.

“So,” Lloyd said, “I need the best blacksmith in the city. We can’t properly carry out the construction otherwise. And without the construction, the cliff will collapse. If the cliff collapses, you will be very sad. If you become very sad, I will be very sad as well.”

“Haha, really?”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

“I expect it will be an amusing sight.”

“And that means…”

“Of course, I shall introduce you to the best blacksmith in my city.”

“Thank you,” Lloyd said.

“No need to thank me since we signed the contract. I will have the administrator get to work, so follow him.”

Lloyd stepped out of the office, hearing the count’s laughter, and the administrator appeared as he waited in the corridor. Lloyd was then led out of the manor through the city district, passing by countless ordinary citizens under the early autumn sun. As he did so, he paid close attention to his surrounding.

Every piece of evidence counts.

Lloyd wondered if Javier was doing a good job. It had been days since he left his room. Lloyd was passing the plaza with the administrator, wondering if Javier was doing a good job when he spotted something extraordinary.

“Whew. I see the rumors are true. There are too many people crowding the soup kitchen.”

The administrator, who was walking ahead, paused and spoke. Surely, there were more people around the soup kitchen than before. Curious, Lloyd stopped as well.

“Is it because the number of refugees has increased?” asked Lloyd.

“Oh, that is not the case I heard.”

“Then, what is it?”

“I heard that a beautiful lady started volunteering in the past few days.”

“A beautiful lady…?”

Lloyd tilted his head, and his reaction invited a more passionate and joyful response from the administrator.

“Honestly,” he started, almost spitting, “I have not seen her with my own eyes. But the rumors tell me she is breathtaking. One of a kind. I heard her beauty is so pristine that even the stars and constellations are jealous of her. Ha… That is likely the reason why so many people, who are not refugees, have been flocking to the kitchen.”

“To take a look at this beautiful lady?” asked Lloyd.

“Why else?”

The administrator shrugged, and then, he stole a glance at Lloyd as though he was testing the latter.

“Speaking of, how about we stop for a moment and take a look at her? That is if you are not too busy…”

“…”

Lloyd paused for a moment to decide what he should do. He was curious as well, but not because he wanted to take a look at this ravishing beauty the administrator just described.

I might come across a clue that’s related to the dark magicians.

The appearance of a belle when the Namaran incident will take place soon? This wasn’t in The Knight of Blood and Iron. Something didn’t seem right. Lloyd nodded.

“Good,” Lloyd said, “Let us go take a look.”

The administrator grinned ear to ear, and the two squeezed their way into the crowd. They shoved, squeezed, and wiggled inside the crowd to get some space, making Lloyd recall the times he had to fight his way through the train station to find a seat during rush hour. Finally, after some struggle, they managed to get in, and the soup kitchen appeared in their sight. Everyone’s gaze focused on one point. And there, he saw beauty. Though she wore a modest apron, her eyes glimmered like dazzling stars, and her straight silver hair flowing down looked like a constellation. And this belle, this enchantress with a ladle in her hand was…

Javier?

Lloyd, who was rubbing his eyes, almost poked his eyes with his finger at the sight.