On the third day I saw the opera, which was no fun at all. The fourth day I attended a concert that was tremendously boring. On the fifth day...
"No, get to work. You can't afford to be idle in this way, or your relationship with the assassin butler will be ruined and you won't get that information about Dian Cecht's relics. No matter how problematic this may seem, the possible outcome is definitely more threatening." Let's stop messing around. I had to get everything I could from my position as Viscount Weatherwoods, right? Let's look back at the third day.
The third day...
"Honey, wake up. There are people here to see you."
"Hmm?"
When I woke up from having fallen asleep while watching the opera, familiar faces were waiting for me. They looked at me as if they were a little embarrassed and then laughed awkwardly. "The play is a little... You must have been bored. Do you remember us? Yesterday we watched the Berkley Gratten duel together." "I was very surprised to learn you were Viscount Weatherwoods."
They were the sons of the newspaper president and the bank owner who had explained the Berkley Gratten succession situation to me. Their boisterous attitudes from yesterday disappeared and were replaced by rigid expressions and words. It seemed that my status as Viscount weighed on their minds. Well, if the person they were being so careless with was the known Viscount, then it seemed deserved that they were a little more conscious.
I yawned and tapped them on the shoulder. "How could I forget my friends? Yes, the blonde-haired gentleman is the son of a newspaper president... Sesh, and the black-haired one here is Kwin, the son of a bank owner."
"Well... our names are actually Yeager and Volkwin."
"Ahaha, I was just pretending to forget." Mmh, those names sounded good.
"Forgive me for not being able to introduce myself yesterday, I'm Viscount Gray Weatherwoods. This is my wife, Morian Serenier. Take it easy, my friends. Ah, or are we not close enough to be called friends?"
Yeager's eyes widened as he waved his hands. "What? No, of course we are, how can you say that?"
"I'm glad then. I don't want it to be uncomfortable. If you make me feel uncomfortable from now on, I'll leave immediately, haha."
"Do you really want us to speak freely?"
"I'll act as if your question just now was a mistake and move on." Yeager and Volkwin looked at each other with evident surprise. Then, they made a careful suggestion.
"If you say so... then, do you have any plans for the rest of the day?"
"I don't."
"Well, why don't you come with us then? We reserved some seats on the outdoor terrace to have some drinks and some empty places remain. Ah, with Mrs. Weatherwoods, of course."
It's okay to take me, but do you want to take Rue with us? If I take Rue... I hadn't forgotten the result of the game I played with him the night before. Rue had not been bitten even once while I lost against him twenty-three times in a row. Every time I got angry and frustrated, his smile seemed to become happier and happier. It wouldn't be much different in front of people. I could imagine Rue's cunning and me suffering from it in public while these two people watched. It would be horrible.
"No way."
"What do you mean you can't?"
I replied with a serious expression and turned to Rue. "My wife is so pretty it's dangerous."
"Oh... is that so?" Rue, who smiled shyly while covering his mouth with his hand, gave me a couple of pats on the shoulder with the other. "Oh, she's embarrassed." I felt shivers running down my back as he really seemed shy. Rue, perfectly imitating a lady without losing a beat, spoke with Yeager and Volkwin.
"I'm afraid I already have an appointment with someone. Please take care of my husband, you two."
"Oh, that's a pity. I look forward to the next opportunity."
Appointment? I had never heard of such a thing. I lowered my head and whispered to Rue, "Appointment? With whom?"
"Secret."
"Eh."
"You're plotting something." I had been thinking that he was suspiciously quiet the last two days. "Keep quiet and don't get into anything strange. Is that okay, honey?" I tried to ask him not to cause unnecessary trouble, but at that moment I was already being taken away. "...Well."
We left the opera and went down the stairs. There was a small hall on the middle floor of the back left of the Black Ragel, which was perfect for enjoying a cup of tea while looking at the sky. As soon as we sat down, Volkwin started talking. "Gray, can I call you Gray? You and your wife seem to get along very well."
"I was also very surprised. Serenier is one of the families with more history of the Kingdom of Astrosa, right? It wouldn't have been easy to get this far. Your wife really must love you." I looked at Yeager with a little surprise.
"Do you know my wife's family?"
"Well, when I was young I went to study in the northern union, and my God! The culture there was fantastic. In particular, the Kingdom of Astrosa was like the heart of the northern continent's culture, so there was much to study." Then he started talking for a while about his travels from his studies abroad. The intelligence and information power Yeager had as the son of a big newspaper company were truly amazing.
"You know, because of the North Deus Mountains, the cultural exchange between our Penrotta Empire and the United Northern Continent is not good, right? My father wants to open a branch there. The magic war is over, so if we go there first and take root, the momentum will definitely make it a success."
"...you must interact with people from the northern continent daily, right?"
"You could say that, haha. The number of professors we sponsor in the cultural studies department on the northern continent is more than twenty. Gray, make sure to contact me when you have a baby. Isn't the northern continent culture the only thing nobles worry about these days? It turns out I know a very popular foreign language professor from there."
A professor who studied the culture of the continental north. Then they would also be familiar with information about aristocratic families like Serenier. The Serenier family must be related to Rue. If he said there was no problem using their identity, then the connection between the two must be very deep. If I delved a bit deeper into this, I could find clues about Rue's identity. I asked naturally, as if it were just a passing comment.
"If you introduced us to one of your professors, I'm sure my wife would be ecstatic."
"Well, it's not that hard. Among friends."
"Oh, I'm grateful you say that. Speaking of which, since you spoke of professors, have you ever taken a lesson on treasure exploration?"
"Treasure exploration... are you talking about archaeology?"
"No, well, for example, Dian Cecht's relics."
At that moment, a weak sense of vigilance appeared in Yeager's eyes. Do you know something? It seemed that I first needed to lower his guard before getting useful information. I moved "Seven Mysterious Treasures of the Continent for Children" in front of them. Rue had been reading this at my side while I fell asleep. The lady's bag she carried was so small that I, as her husband, carried it.
"My wife seems to have taken an interest in this book. Since she's originally from a distant land, she must not find many things to enjoy here. I was thinking of making an exploration trip with her, if I could."
Only then Yeager's uncomfortable expression broke a bit. "Exploration? Oh God... Gray, you're so..."
"He's very pure."
"Yes, Volkwin. Our new friend Gray seems to be very innocent. To the point that I'm a little worried about him."
Are you kidding or ridiculing me?
Yeager, moving his chin as if worried, leaned in a bit and whispered, "In short, it's better to set aside the idea of these fun exploration trips with your wife. Dian Cecht's relics are dangerous. Well, to be exact, lately they've become dangerous. For some reason, they've been being attacked by dangerous people."
The target of dangerous people. This is it. Those few short sentences were enough to confirm my hunch. The dangerous people Yeager speaks of undoubtedly include the Client. In particular, it was more likely that the Client was snooping in other places besides the Weatherwoods family. Dian Cecht left up to five relics. It was eye-opening news, but I shouldn't express great interest. Yeager seemed to be exceptionally astute and could probably arouse my suspicions if I did.
Since I had heard a legend, I quickly extracted other information to seem a complete outsider to this business. "Target? No way... so, is it true that you become immortal if you gather the five relics?"
"I don't know much. Anyway, it's dangerous, so you should look for something funnier for your wife and yourself."
"Why is it so dangerous anyway? Sounds pretty exciting. So, who are these dangerous people? Is it the royal family? Or some secret organization?"
"Ahahaha, you sure have a childish side, Gray. Secret organization? I remember using those words as a child! Ha ha." Unlike Volkwin, who burst out laughing, Yeager's expression became strange. Volkwin lowered his voice with an inquiring look.
"What's wrong with you, Yeager? Is this really related to the royal family or some secret organization?"
That's it, Volkwin! Ask more! More! "That..." Yeager, who was about to say something, clapped and closed his eyes, letting out a long sigh.
"That's enough! Don't try to put me in danger. Even if I die, I'll have to die only after seeing my son get married."
"Ha! First you have to get married to say something like that, Yeager."
Get married? It happened that the perfect topic came up to say something. "What about Jean Berkley Gratten?"