Chapter 356

I Got a Fake Job at the Academy

Rudger walked through the streets of Leathervelk.

The mansion where Casey Selmore was staying wasn’t far from the city streets.

Steam cars and golem-drawn carriages moved along the roads.

Across the street was an artificially created park, where an old man sat on a bench feeding pigeons.

Rudger naturally sat down in the empty spot next to the old man.

The old man who had been feeding the pigeons spoke.

“Detective Casey Selmore is still staying at her residence.”

“Why?”

“She hasn’t been looking well since returning from the capital. Rather than having an actual illness, it seems she’s going through some kind of emotional difficulty.”

“Somehow fans heard about it and many came visiting with gifts. The small assistant girl who’s with her has been turning away all the visitors. That’s all.”

“Good work.”

Rudger took out a bill from his pocket and handed it to the old man.

The old man who received the money naturally got up from his seat and left the park.

He would now act like a pitiful old man somewhere else, listening to what others say and delivering information.

-Flutter!

As the person feeding them left, the pigeons all took flight at once.

Rudger stared intently at a second-floor window of a house visible from where he sat.

They must be growing plants, as bright green leaves flowed down like a waterfall from the second floor’s iron railings.

The homeowner wouldn’t have allowed that, so it must have been Casey Selmore’s unilateral action.

The fact that they’re leaving it in that state suggests she must be paying quite a hefty rent.

Rudger got up from the bench and slowly walked toward the building.

Just as he was about to enter, someone came out from inside.

“Really. Don’t people understand that sending so many items makes it difficult for those who have to handle them?”

It was a girl carrying an enormous pile of luggage more than three times her size with ease.

Though she appeared to be a small and delicate girl, she was actually an automaton doll made of steel and mechanical springs, with strength far surpassing human capabilities.

Code Beta, currently known as Betty, was the genius detective’s assistant.

Betty put down all the useless fan gifts addressed to Casey at the entrance and dusted off her hands.

“Hmm. This one might be worth keeping.”

Betty picked up a bouquet of flowers placed on top of the pile of luggage.

Apparently, Casey wasn’t the owner of the plants growing on the second-floor railing.

After organizing all the luggage, Betty was about to go inside when she noticed Rudger and stopped in her tracks.

“Oh?”

At first, she tilted her head wondering who he was, but Betty, who rarely forgot anything she had seen once, eventually recognized Rudger.

“Rudger Chelici! Right?!”

“Yes.”

“I saw you in the newspaper. Actually, I know about you because Casey talks about you often.”

To Betty, Rudger was someone whose name occasionally appeared in newspapers, or rather, someone Casey was strangely obsessed with.

“Coming here, did you perhaps come to see Casey?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm. What should we do? Casey isn’t in a state to receive visitors right now.”

“Is her condition that bad?”

“Her body is fine. It’s just that her mind is a bit strange. She was strange to begin with, but she’s become even stranger.”

Strange to begin with, she says.

Rudger couldn’t deny that statement and let out a small laugh.

“Still, since Mr. Rudger Chelici seems to know Casey, and I’m busy and need to step out for a while, I can let you in on the condition that you look after Casey in my place!”

“Is a condition necessary?”

“Of course! Casey is quite popular despite how she appears, and self-proclaimed fans visit almost every day. They don’t seem to realize it’s a nuisance though. Come to think of it, they’re fitting fans for Casey.”

“I see.”

“That’s why I turned them all away!”

Betty said this while striking a pose as if showing off her biceps.

Of course, to the eye, it was literally just a delicate child’s arm without a single muscle.

Knowing how strong her true power was, Rudger didn’t mock that appearance.

With Betty’s strength, she could probably crush even those sturdy industrial steam golems with her bare hands.

Rudger stared at Betty.

‘A successful work of the Steel Choir, like Arpa.’

Given that her name was Betty, her code name was surely Beta.

The child he hadn’t managed to find in that burning laboratory that day.

‘Then whose soul is residing inside this body?’

Rudger suddenly had such a thought.

Perhaps the soul dwelling within Betty’s mechanical body might be Shelli, Arte’s younger sister.

“Here!”

At that moment, a bouquet was suddenly thrust in front of Rudger’s eyes.

“Please take this inside and put it down.”

“Where are you going?”

“We’re out of food so I’m going to buy ingredients for meals. I’ll also pay the utility bills on the way.”

“…You’re capable.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you!”

Betty left those words with Rudger and disappeared like lightning.

Judging by her unusually light footsteps, she seemed slightly happy about passing off the troublesome task.

‘Well, well.’

Rudger shook his head.

Despite everything, it was Betty who had continued to look after Casey who had shut herself in her room.

Letting Rudger in like this must mean she judged him to be trustworthy.

‘It seems she hasn’t heard about what happened between her and me in the past.’

There was a high possibility that Casey hadn’t told her.

Rudger entered the building carrying the bouquet.

Casey’s room was on the second floor.

Rudger climbed the carpeted wooden stairs and knocked on the door.

-Knock knock.

There was no response from inside despite the knocking.

It’s not that no one was there. From what Betty said, Casey was definitely inside.

Rudger tried lightly turning the doorknob just in case.

-Creak.

The door opened too easily, being unlocked.

What if a thief came in?

Such thoughts of Rudger’s disappeared when he saw the scene inside.

‘What is this? A pigsty?’

Piles of books, stacks of documents, bundles of newspapers, and all sorts of odds and ends scattered everywhere.

It’s not that it wasn’t being cleaned. There were clear traces of that.

Betty probably did the cleaning too.

However, the fact that it was still this messy despite that meant she must be making it messy faster than it could be cleaned.

An acrid smell that stung Rudger’s nose.

Did she conduct chemical experiments in her boarding house?

Rudger moved his feet while avoiding the garbage strewn across the floor.

Normal people might think a beautiful woman’s dwelling would smell fragrant or be clean, but this place wasn’t like that.

Rudger looked at the bed placed in the corner of the room.

Someone was lying down covered by a blanket.

The water-colored hair peeking out from under the white bedding slightly revealed who the bed’s owner was.

Rudger placed the bouquet on top of a nearby drawer, then pulled up a chair and sat down.

‘Somehow this feels like it happened recently too.’

Who would have thought he’d have the fate of nursing sick people in this life.

Rudger looked around the room.

Perhaps because of the red patterned wallpaper laid over the woodwork, the room’s atmosphere looked quite serene.

On the shelves were mysterious medicine bottles, statues from who knows where, and glass pottery whose purpose was unknown.

It truly felt like she had bought all sorts of things while traveling around the continent.

Rudger glanced at the bulging blanket and lightly lifted the edge of it.

Casey’s peacefully sleeping face was revealed.

The fact that there was no reaction even when the blanket was lifted meant she was in that deep of a sleep.

‘Or maybe she’s that mentally exhausted.’

Quite some time must have passed since returning from the capital, yet she’s still like this.

Rudger examined Casey’s complexion.

Despite being deep in sleep and probably not having washed her face, her skin was spotless and clean.

Perhaps because she handles water, her skin is constantly kept moist?

While having such idle thoughts, he carefully observed the dark circles under Casey’s eyes.

Though asleep, Casey’s complexion wasn’t very good, as if she was having a nightmare.

She’s sleeping now, but even that isn’t proper sleep.

While her body might be comfortable, her mind isn’t.

Thus, no matter how much she sleeps, her mind remains tired, her head dizzy, and she keeps lying down.

Rather than a curse, it’s a sign of experiencing psychological trauma or enormous pressure.

It’s ridiculous. Casey Selmore?

Trauma didn’t suit her at all – she who had an inflated ego and was called a genius detective.

‘But everyone has their own past that others don’t know about.’

Near the pillow was a torn medicine envelope.

It seems she got medicine prescribed because it was too difficult.

‘At least it’s fortunate she hasn’t fallen into cigarettes or hard drugs.’

-Ugh.

At that moment, Casey frowned and began to moan.

She tossed and turned a few times and started breaking out in cold sweat.

“……”

Rudger looked around for a moment and discovered a washbasin and a wet towel beyond the clutter.

He lightly extended his hand and used “Telekinesis” magic to float the towel, wring out the water, and bring it over.

Rudger wiped the cold sweat from Casey’s forehead with the wet towel.

-Swish. Swish.

Those movements were both meticulous and gentle.

It must have helped quite a bit as Casey’s complexion improved noticeably.

“Wa, water…”

He wondered what she was mumbling with parched lips, but she was asking for water.

Rudger found this situation almost laughable.

Someone who could drink water even in a desert if she wanted was asking for water.

Perhaps it was aegyo she only showed to Betty who usually took care of her.

Seeing that, he could tell Casey’s condition was really serious.

Rudger brought a glass of water and used cold magic to make it cool.

The straw was a bonus.

“Here.”

When Rudger held out the straw, Casey started drinking the water through it.

-Slurp slurp.

It somehow felt like feeding a baby bird.

Casey seemed to have moistened her dry throat enough as she removed her mouth from the straw.

Rudger placed the half-full glass on the table and reached his hand toward Casey.

‘I’m not sure if this will help, but.’

As he lightly summoned energy, a faint force gathered at his fingertips.

The extended energy enveloped Casey’s body.

It was a miraculous healing power that’s difficult to even implement with modern magic.

Though it’s a power that can even erase old burn scars, even Rudger didn’t know if it could restore an exhausted mind.

However, it wasn’t entirely meaningless, as Casey’s complexion noticeably improved.

It meant it worked properly.

It was then that Casey’s closed eyes dimly opened.

“…You.”

The moment those bluish eyes looked this way, Rudger thought she would shout while blushing.

Or maybe get angry while cursing.

But Casey’s subsequent reaction was something even Rudger hadn’t expected.

“…I’m sorry.”

Her first words were neither anger, questioning, nor reproach.

It was an apology.

“Because of me, you had to flee while bearing false charges…”

Rudger’s pupils greatly dilated.

Why are you apologizing? You don’t need to say such things to me.

Before he could say those words Casey apologized.

“I’ve wanted to say I’m sorry all this time.”

“……”

At the same time, a tear rolled down her cheek.

─No.

All sorts of thoughts roughly swirled in Rudger’s mind.

─You don’t need to apologize to me.

Rather, it was I who used you and led you to take that action.

The one who should apologize is not you, but me.

He could just convey those words as they were.

Even if she didn’t believe that truth, there would be meaning in conveying it.

But the words that came out of his mouth were the opposite.

“It’s okay.”

“…!”

“I accept your apology.”

Rudger answered thus while carefully wiping her tears with the wet towel.

Casey opened her eyes wide, then soon smiled in relief and gently closed them again.

The now stable breathing indicated that this time she had fallen into a deep sleep.

And this time, into a sweet and gentle sleep without any nightmares.

-Tap.

Rudger used magic to open the window and ventilate the stale air inside.

Then he quietly got up from his seat so as not to wake Casey and went outside.

As he came out the entrance, he ran into Betty who had just returned from shopping.

“Ah! Did you meet Casey?”

“Yes.”

“Casey’s condition isn’t very good, right? I’m sorry. Even though you came all this way.”

“It’s fine. And she’s much better now, so letting her get plenty of sleep should do.”

“Huh? Really?”

Betty’s expression brightened at those words.

She immediately ran up to the second floor to check on Casey’s condition.

Rudger watched that sight with a faint smile before leaving.

It was evening, when half a day had passed and the sun was starting to set, that Casey woke up from then.

“You say we had a visitor?”

“Yes. Didn’t you know?”

“I don’t remember well. I feel like I had a good dream though.”

Casey asked while removing the hair stuck to her cheek with her fingertips.

“So who came to visit?”

“That person! The one Casey often talks about.”

“Who do I often talk about?”

“Rudger Chelici!”

“…What?”

That man came to visit?

But I don’t remember seeing him…

‘Uh…Wait, could it be?’

Casey’s face turned red in an instant.

She staggered for a moment before falling back onto the bed.

“Casey? Your face is red. Are you sick somewhere?”

“No, just. Suddenly feeling a bit dizzy.”

Casey answered like that while looking around the room interior.

Having such pointless thoughts like whether that man might have stolen something.

But there weren’t any decreased items in the room, rather something that wasn’t there before had increased.

In particular, what caught her attention was the bouquet placed on top of the drawer beside the bed.

“Betty. What’s this bouquet?”

“That? The visitor brought it.”

If it’s the visitor.

There was only one visitor who came here, right?

‘M-more importantly, isn’t that flower a hibiscus?’

Hibiscus flowers with passionate red petals.

The flower language it carries is.

‘Love kept secret from everyone…’

-Poof!

Casey’s face turned completely red and steam burst from her head.