My Slain Dragon Bride

Chapter 92: Chapter 92

Chapter 92 - Praise

The second gift he received unexpectedly made Frank Fontaine spill everything he knew.

After hearing his testimony, Ferda and Isabella realized one thing.

"So, when she said she’d give us the Dandolo Trading Company, she meant she’d also hand over everything Tilda had prepared."

They had found it rather strange that someone would simply acquire and hand over the largest trading company in the Empire.

As Frank Fontaine poured out his testimony, the outline of the scheme finally became clear.

"If I cooperated, I was promised a position as an executive at the Dandolo Trading Company headquarters in a few years! In exchange, I was to hire and manage the assassins!"

"What a foolish thing to do."

Ferda had assumed that any merchant would carefully weigh profit and loss before involving themselves in something like this.

Then Stephan’s words came back to him.

Frank Fontaine had never risen through the ranks simply because he lacked ability.

And that incompetence was laid bare in this rebellion as well.

Even so, Frank Fontaine was not completely stupid.

He was foolish in some ways, but clever in others.

Although Frank Fontaine had taken the lead, he possessed documents proving that someone else had been the true mastermind behind the filthy scheme.

In the section confirming who had provided all the funding was Henri Dandolo’s official seal.

Tilda had prepared everything so that, in the worst-case scenario, the entire blame could be shifted onto the Dandolo Trading Company.

And Ferda could make use of those documents as well.

"So when Black Bandana hands over the Dandolo Trading Company, they intend to use these documents."

"Do you think that’ll be enough?"

"It will certainly damage the Dandolo family’s credibility, but forcing them to hand over the business is still impossible."

Regardless, thanks to those documents and Frank’s testimony, Ferda’s work had become much easier.

Tilda Pascal could be brought down in her own way.

Henri Dandolo could likewise be ruined.

Is Rico Dandolo really the client?

When the request had simply been described as protecting the business and his son from a worthless daughter-in-law, Rico had seemed like the most likely candidate.

But the moment these documents were handed to Ferda, it effectively meant abandoning his own son while preserving the company.

Ferda wondered if that was truly the choice a father would make.

"I don’t know how they intend to hand over the trading company to someone like Lord Ferda, who’s practically an outsider, but there will be tremendous resistance."

"There’s no need to worry about that."

Ferda possessed the most attractive asset of all—Magitech Engineering.

Countless investors were already salivating over it.

If it were offered to the Dandolo Trading Company, they would gladly welcome a new owner.

"Even so, I still can’t imagine any legitimate way of taking it over."

"From your perspective as Regent, would it be better to give up now?"

"It would greatly benefit our finances. How could I possibly quit? I’ll investigate acquisitions further and make preparations in advance."

"Very well."

Adjusting her glasses with a finger, Isabella smiled.

Since she frequently complained about their financial troubles, this proposal was certainly something worth celebrating.

While everyone else was pleased, Ferda quietly turned to Luri.

"More importantly, how about you?"

"What do you mean?"

As always, Luri’s tone remained businesslike and emotionless.

"I mean cooperating with a human’s plan. You don’t seem like someone who would enjoy that. Are you truly alright with it?"

Luri answered calmly.

"I do have my pride as a Dragon Spawn, but I’m not an idiot. There’s no point in letting my pride get in the way over something like this."

"Is that so?"

"If anyone deserves my resentment, it would be my Master."

Luri let out a sigh and grumbled.

"Unlike other dragons, my Master never hoarded treasure and lived like a carefree wanderer. That’s why we’re now forced to secure funds like this. Naturally, even a humble Attendant like me has to do my part."

"So you’ve been holding quite a few grievances against your Master."

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"No."

Even if she complained about her Master, she was still working for her Master’s sake.

How could that not be admirable?

"I’m simply grateful that you’re doing your best."

Ferda reached out toward her head.

Seeing his hand, Luri flinched and slightly lowered her head.

"Your Highness the Regent."

Just before his hand touched her head—

Isabella’s voice cut between them.

"What are you doing?"

"Weren’t you just about to pat Miss Luri on the head?"

"I was."

"Why would you do something like that?"

Isabella’s voice became noticeably sharper.

Surprised by her unexpected emotional reaction, Ferda answered first.

"I heard that’s the most effective way to praise a child."

"That is indeed an appropriate way to praise someone younger. Which is precisely why you must never do that to Miss Luri."

"Really?"

"I assumed you hadn’t forgotten that Dragon Spawn possess tremendous pride."

Now that she mentioned it, it did make sense.

Ferda nodded.

Isabella continued.

"More importantly, Miss Luri is several times older than Your Highness. Though she appears youthful, possessing the immortal purity of an unfading blossom, you must not overlook the fact that she is an adult."

"Is that so?"

Although Isabella’s words were filled with rather biased compliments, there was still truth to them.

Ferda turned to Luri and questioned her with his eyes.

"That is correct."

Luri nodded.

"I’ve lived for several hundred years longer than you. Did you truly think I’d enjoy being praised like that?"

Although Luri seemed to agree with Isabella’s reasoning, a trace of dissatisfaction still showed on her face.

Ferda assumed it was simply because her pride had been wounded.

"My apologies. It seems my method of praise was inappropriate, so I won’t pat your head—"

"No."

The one who interrupted him immediately was Isabella.

"There is a solution."

"A solution?"

"As I said before, head-patting is how an elder praises someone younger. Isn’t that correct?"

"It is."

Adjusting her glasses once more, Isabella declared,

"Then wouldn’t it be perfectly fine if an older Dragon Spawn praised a younger Dragon Spawn in the same way?"

"...?"

"...?"

Both Luri and Ferda stared blankly, unable to understand what she meant.

Pushing up her glasses, Isabella continued.

"In other words, since I am the elder, I shall praise Miss Luri."

"Hm?"

"...What?"

A question mark appeared over Ferda’s head once again.

Meanwhile, Luri’s expression visibly darkened.

Neither of them could tell whether Isabella was joking.

"What exactly did you just say?"

"To put it another way, I intend to praise Miss Luri by patting her on the head."

The lenses of Isabella’s glasses sparkled.

She was completely serious.

Taking one step forward, Isabella approached.

Luri instinctively stepped back and assumed a defensive stance.

"Please do not come any closer."

"There’s no need to be embarrassed. As your elder..."

Her fingers slowly wriggled.

"I shall praise you as much as you deserve."

Her fingers moved with remarkable flexibility—far too dexterously for someone who supposedly spent all her time doing paperwork and casting magic.

They writhed like tentacles crawling up from the depths of the abyss.

Finally wearing an expression of complete exasperation, Luri fled from the spot as though escaping for her life.

"Ah..."

Isabella stared blankly at the empty space where Luri had vanished like the wind.

A moment later, her usual cold, businesslike demeanor returned.

Ferda spoke.

"It seems that wasn’t such a good idea after all."

"...It would appear not."

Isabella looked genuinely disappointed.

***

Black Bandana’s headquarters.

In reality, they had no permanent headquarters.

To maintain secrecy, their base was relocated every three months.

Even until the very day of the move, lower-ranking members had no idea where they were going.

Everything was conducted in complete secrecy.

Their current base was hidden deep within the mountains of the Eastern Region of the Cerdes Continent.

It had once served as the hideout of criminals who manufactured and smuggled narcotics before being wiped out.

Black Bandana had since taken it over as their own base.

It was rare for outsiders to be brought into such a secret location.

It was even rarer for those outsiders to immediately become the target of killing intent.

In that regard, Zed Swallow had become the first person in Black Bandana’s history to achieve exactly that.

"Zed Swallow. I’ve only ever seen your face in sketches before. First time seeing the real thing, huh?"

"Ha! Look at how smooth this bastard’s skin is."

Several burly men with hands as large as pot lids began feeling Zed all over.

His entire body stiffened as he forced out an awkward smile.

"Haha... Could you maybe not grab my face? I put an unbelievable amount of effort into maintaining it..."

"Oh? Then maybe we should check your backside instead. We’ve got a few fellows here who like men, and once they see that ass of yours—"

"My face won’t wear out just because you touch it! Feel free! Hahaha!"

Realizing he had misspoken, Zed hurriedly tried to laugh it off.

Smiling on the outside, he silently lamented his life.

Why the hell did I have to come all the way here just to be treated like this...?

He hated Garnet for dragging him here.

But even more than that—

He hated Ferda for selling him off.

Was a little money really that important? Was a knighthood really worth this?

He thought about it for a moment before answering himself.

...Yeah. It actually was, damn it.

All Zed could do was keep smiling obediently.

"Boss, I’ve been wondering something."

"What?"

"Why is everyone so obsessed with getting their hands on this guy?"

"Huh? You haven’t heard?"

The man grinned before repeatedly smacking the top of Zed’s head.

"This bastard violated our young lady. Don’t tell me you’ve never heard that famous story."

"Huh? I think I’ve heard something like that before... Wait, it was this guy?"

"Yep. Him."

"Oh... How dare he... How dare he lay a hand on our young lady..."

Even the innocent-looking man suddenly burned with Bloodlust.

Zed hurriedly waved both hands.

"Wait a second! The whole ’violation’ part has been seriously exaggerated!"

"Then start talking."

"That day we’d just finished a really difficult Mission. We were both exhausted, comforting each other, and... well... a man and a woman ended up alone in the same room. The atmosphere felt right, and I figured it’d almost be rude for the man to back out at that point..."

"So did you take responsibility like a real man?"

"Well... if I’d known she belonged to a family like yours..."

"I asked if you took responsibility."

"...I ran away."

"Then how’s that any different from violating her, you pretty-boy gigolo?"

The hands gripping his face suddenly became much rougher.

They firmly restrained Zed.

"Haha... W-What are you doing, brothers?"

"We’re not asking for much. Just one little scar across that pretty face of yours. Then you can repent and marry our young lady."

"Hahaha! C-Could you maybe put that dagger away!? I really don’t appreciate jokes like this!"

"To you it’s a joke. To us it’s reality. Boys, hold him tight."

"What are you all doing?"

A rough woman’s voice echoed through the crowd of sweat-soaked men.

"Oh, Boss is here. We were just about to give him a proper welcome."

"He’s not even one of us. What kind of welcoming ceremony is that? Besides, you’re not supposed to do it with a dagger."

"Come on, Boss. We should all work together like one big family, shouldn’t we?"

Zed desperately signaled with his eyes for her to save him.

Letting out a sigh, Garnet drove the men away.

"Stop wasting time and back off. No matter what, Zed is still His Highness the Regent’s Knight."

"Tch. Lucky bastard."

"We’ll inspect that backside of yours next time."

At Garnet’s command, everyone dispersed.

Having trembled like a gazelle surrounded by predators, Zed looked at Garnet and spoke.

"Thanks for saving me."

Garnet responded by slapping Zed across the cheek.

Smack!

"Ow! W-Why!?"

"That’s your punishment for the stupidity you pulled at Castle Valdrova."

"Fair enough. I deserved that. Other than that, you’re not still holding a grudge, are you?"

"Not at the moment. I do have some resentment toward you, but not enough to let it interfere with work."

"What? No woman has ever said something like that after experiencing me..."

"...Want me to make you burst?"

"My apologies. Please continue."

Having not seen each other for years, there were many lingering emotions between them.

They could have gone straight to business, but instead chose to talk about everything left unsaid.

"So you’re shamelessly still using the name Swallow."

"And aren’t you the same, Pindteeth?"

"Don’t call me by that nickname."

"Why not? It brings back old memories."

"Didn’t I break your nose the last time you called me that?"

"And I kept calling you that even after you broke it."

Zed grinned slyly.

The moment Garnet saw that grin, she growled like a rabid beast.

"Don’t smile like that. Loose women might like it, but it just irritates me."

"Yes, ma’am."

Zed immediately wiped the smile off his face.

Taking a deep breath, Garnet spoke in a calm voice.

"I need your help with this operation."

"What exactly do you need?"

"You’ll have to infiltrate a place and retrieve an item."

"Infiltration? Come on. What kind of ability do I have for something like that? I can’t do it."

"You’re the most suitable person for this job."

"And what makes you say that?"

"It’s the conclusion I reached after considering both your recent actions and the days when you worked as a mercenary."

"When I was a mercenary? What exactly did I do? I don’t remember doing anything special."

When Zed continued pretending ignorance, Garnet sighed.

"Do you remember the battle at Castle Palestine?"

"Of course. It was brutal."

"All of us were captured except you. Everyone thought you’d escaped."

"But instead, you secretly slipped back into the castle and got us all out."

"I was just lucky that time."

"You had that kind of luck seven different times."

"No one else noticed, but I did."

"I know you moved around without anyone realizing it and saved us."

"You’re giving me way too much credit..."

In truth, Zed himself had never thought much of it.

He never considered it infiltration.

He had simply done what he believed was natural for the sake of his comrades.

Since secrecy was necessary, he’d acted quietly.

He had never considered it anything remarkable.

When Zed stubbornly refused to acknowledge it, Garnet decided to use her last resort.

"Are you really going to make me bring up the fact that you’re the last surviving descendant of the Red-Eyed Clan?"

Zed’s expression immediately stiffened.

"I’d rather not make things uncomfortable with something like this, but right now I—"

"That information..."

"What?"

"Who else knows?"

Unlike before, Zed’s face was filled with killing intent.

Meeting his gaze head-on, Garnet answered.

"Only me."

"If you’re planning to protect someone, don’t."

"Even if we’re old comrades, I can’t overlook something like that."

Garnet frowned and snapped at him.

"You idiot. Who do you think has been managing all the information about you this entire time?"

"I’ve personally kept everything about you under control."

"My information?"

"You really believe you’ve hidden yourself that well?"

"You think living like some pretty-boy gigolo has kept you hidden?"

"You fool."

"If it weren’t for me, you’d already be dead."

"Do you understand?"

"They’ve all figured it out."

"They’d have captured you alive and put you on display like a monkey in a zoo!"

As Garnet fumed, Zed awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

"I-Is that so? I always thought you hated me enough to kill me."

"Why would I ever kill you?"

"No matter what happened, you’re still a comrade who fought alongside me through life and death."

"Oh."

"Of course, those idiots over there really do want to kill you."

"Uh..."

Zed forced a smile, but his face had turned pale as cold sweat streamed down his forehead.

Seeing his pitiful expression, Garnet couldn’t help letting out a small laugh.

"So, what exactly is the job?"

"You’ll infiltrate a mansion and locate the medium for the Garden Contract."

"The Garden Contract... I’d rather avoid getting on a Witch’s bad side these days."

"Your name’s already been written in her kill book several times over."

"So what’s one more?"

"It has?"

"Are you actually an idiot, or are you just pretending to be one?"

Looking at him as though he were hopeless, Garnet returned to the matter at hand.

"We believe our target has formed a contract with Yor Phyliaz."

"I think you’re the best person for this mission."

"What do you think?"

"Honestly, it’s the right decision."

For someone of the Red-Eyed Clan—known as the Mage Killer—dealing with magic users was easy.

If it were a genuine Witch, it might be troublesome.

But their opponent was merely a wicked woman imitating one.

"Then show me the blueprints of every place I need to infiltrate."

Garnet placed a thick stack of documents before Zed.

As he examined them, a complete image began forming in his mind.

The blueprints.

The locations of every identified object.

Using that information, he pinpointed where the item they needed to steal was located and mentally began constructing an operation.

Once the entire plan became clear, Zed looked back at Garnet.

"By the way."

"What?"

"This mission doesn’t absolutely have to be done entirely through stealth, does it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I’m asking whether it’s alright if I do something a little... embarrassing."

Garnet looked completely exasperated.

"...Don’t tell me you’re planning to seduce Tilda Pascal?"

"No. Why would I go through all that trouble?"

"Because that’s exactly the sort of thing you’d do."

"Heh. You claim to know me, yet you still don’t."

Zed flashed a wide grin.

"You see, jobs like this..."

"...Are solved by making as much noise and chaos as possible."