Chapter 22

“Cheep cheep!”

I rolled around on the bed while Karhan and Doel sat at the table, exchanging conversation. After some time had passed, a small sound of knocking on the door was heard. The two stopped talking, and Doel gently rose from his seat to open the door.

Behind the door, an attendant carrying a tray of food was visible. The attendant glanced at Doel and took a step inside, lightly bowing his head and speaking.

“Your Excellency the Duke. I have brought tea and a light meal to refresh your palate.”

“Leave it here.”

Karhan tapped the table with his index finger as he spoke.

At this, the attendant stiffly walked in, carefully placed the food on the table, bowed his head, and hurriedly left. The delicious aroma of the food wafted over, and I flapped my wings to fly to the table.

As expected, the table was filled with foods that were to my liking. There was even steak! Although there wasn’t any specifically for me, and only Karhan and Doel’s portions were present, their shares were essentially mine, weren’t they? I chirped and laughed, spinning around in a circle.

Seeing me excited, Karhan smiled and picked up a knife and fork, cutting a small portion for me. I went right next to the plate and eagerly pecked at the small pieces with my sturdy beak.

“Chirp.”

Delicious. Hehe. I narrowed my eyes and displayed a smiling expression. Karhan and Doel must not have been hungry, as they took only a bite or two before setting down their utensils and sipping their tea.

By the time they finished their tea, I had delightfully eaten the delicious food, and my belly was fully stuffed, causing me to plop down on the table. My round belly protruded like a small mountain, making it difficult to move.

“Cheep… cheep…”

I exhaled laboriously and closed my eyes. It felt as if someone was poking my round body with their finger, but I didn’t have the strength to open my eyes, so I lay still.

“Chirp.”

Leave me be.

I flapped one wing with my eyes closed, signaling them to stop touching my precious belly. Only then did the hand touching my round belly disappear. Due to my relaxed body and mind, drowsiness deeply enveloped me, and my consciousness soon entered the realm of dreams.

We stayed at Lord Valdez’s residence for several days, spending very peaceful days. Of course, the peaceful days were from our perspective, while for the minor lord, it must have been a disaster with sparks flying.

Karhan requested various documents such as labor employment records, estate management, tax lists, and schedules for the past few months, causing the minor lord and his subordinates, who had many things to hide, to run around in a frenzy.

Karhan deliberately requested even unnecessary documents. Sometimes, when I went out alone, I saw the minor lord from a distance, furiously shouting about why on earth such things were needed. However, he never showed anger in front of Karhan, the duke.

Indeed, the strong prey on the weak. He could oppress the powerless vagrants, but as a marquis, he couldn’t dare show anger to a duke.

“Cheep cheep!”

Pathetic!

I flew around in the sky, spreading my refreshing voice throughout the mansion. Sometimes, when I woke up early in the morning, I intentionally kept chirping loudly in front of the minor lord’s bedroom door. Whenever I made such a commotion, the minor lord would angrily burst open the door in his sleepwear. Seeing that, I would wiggle my bottom at him and fly high into the sky.

Thanks to the angry face of the minor lord and the bright sunlight, I had an enjoyable walk today as well. I only circled near the mansion to avoid worrying Karhan if I flew too far. After observing the hardworking people, I swiftly entered through the open window of the room where we were staying. As soon as I entered, I saw Karhan examining documents.

Seeing Karhan working even harder here, I became worried. I wonder if he’ll go bald later at this rate. It’s my precious nest. To announce the arrival of the head’s owner, I perched on the window sill and cried out.

“Chirp!”

I’m here!

Soon, the silvery-gray eyes that had been focused on the documents shifted their gaze from the white paper to my white and round self. A slight hint of a smile appeared in his eyes. Karhan reached out his hand to me and said, “Did you have a good patrol?”

“Cheep!”

All clear! I stood upright in attention and reported to Karhan. I even wiggled my bottom at the minor lord today! Pleased with my action, Karhan placed me in his hand and gently stroked me. After caressing me for a while, he cupped me in his hand, placed me on the desk, and continued to tickle my head with one hand while flipping through the documents with the other.

He carefully read each page and drew lines with a pen. At some point, the hand that had been petting me stopped, and Karhan became fully immersed in his work. That’s when someone knocked on the door. At the light knocking sound, Karhan commanded them to enter.

“It’s Doel, Your Excellency.”

Doel gently opened the door, entered, pulled a chair in front of the desk, and sat down.

“The documents you requested from the ducal house a few days ago have arrived.”

He handed over a yellow paper envelope. Karhan took the envelope and examined it closely before tearing open the sealed portion. Inside were the documents I had previously ruined by spilling ink on them. Wasn’t this thrown away? I stared at the documents with puzzlement.

Karhan placed the ruined documents next to the ones received from the minor lord’s mansion and began comparing them. Although I couldn’t read the writing of this world and didn’t know the contents, judging from the identical letters written, they seemed to be the same documents. As Karhan meticulously reviewed the documents, he spoke.

“When a person has a guilty conscience, they tend to dig their own grave.”

His voice carried a hint of sarcasm. Continuing to examine the documents, Karhan clicked his tongue and said, “Even though I simply asked for the documents to be sent again, he got scared on his own and sent revised versions.”

Not realizing the hole keeps getting bigger. He carefully read each page, one by one. As I watched him concentrating on reviewing the documents, I grew a bit bored and turned my head here and there. At that moment, Doel, who was sitting in front, fidgeted his fingers. It seemed like he had something to say. Although Karhan had been focused on the documents without taking his eyes off them, he somehow noticed and spoke to Doel.

“If you have something to say, go ahead.”

At those words, Doel hesitated and slowly opened his mouth.

“Actually… while keeping watch, I noticed some suspicious movements.”

Since arriving here, Doel had been surveilling and following Lord Valdez. I also frequently followed the lord to tease him, but Doel went a step further and secretly tailed him whenever he went somewhere, recording each location. However, the lord’s range of movement was limited, only going back and forth between his office, room, and dining area.

According to Doel, while keeping an eye on the lord’s office as usual, he noticed an attendant periodically visiting the minor lord’s room and leaving with books. At first, he thought it was just to attend to book-related matters, but the attendant would come at regular intervals, stay for a very short time, and leave with one or two books each time.

Finding it suspicious, he followed the attendant and discovered that the destination was a warehouse in the corner of the minor lord’s mansion. It was too cumbersome for a regular attendant, and the visits were brief. Doing that every day? Doel fiddled with his sleeve as he spoke.

“There might be clear evidence of human trafficking, and we should investigate it once. If Your Excellency the Duke could just briefly tie up the minor lord’s feet, I think I could examine the inside as well.”

Karhan listened silently to Doel’s words and then closed the documents, saying, “We have clear evidence of embezzlement and labor law violations, so we can request an investigation from the imperial court. There’s no need to attract attention now and take on unnecessary risks.”

“But Your Excellency, there is no concrete evidence regarding human trafficking. The minor lord can escape at any time.”

Doel hesitated for a moment and took a deep breath. Then, clenching his fist, he said, “The fact that he has carried out such a large-scale operation means there’s a high probability he has connections in the imperial court as well. With the information we currently have, we can demand an arrest warrant and have him punished, but in the meantime, the core information about human trafficking might disappear somewhere.”

It was the first time Doel had spoken so rapidly. Perhaps because his request was at stake, he seemed quite desperate. After saying that, he licked his lips as if he had more to say.

“The lives of the currently missing people may be in danger. We need to find them as quickly as possible.”

Doel met Karhan’s coldly shining silvery-gray eyes without averting his gaze. Those eyes, staring intently, were infinitely clear. Karhan quietly looked at him and then spoke.

“If it’s discovered that you have improperly touched private property, the information we have gathered so far may also be deemed as illegal investigation and become useless.”

“Yes, I understand. Please trust me. I will ensure no harm comes to Your Excellency.”

From the perspective of Karhan, a duke, human trafficking was a serious matter, but removing the lord from his position as the minor lord, replacing him with someone else, and having him undergo an imperial investigation would cleanly resolve the issue. However, for Doel, finding the whereabouts of the missing people was far more important. If they delayed any further, there was no telling what might happen.

His eyes, gazing at Karhan, were filled with determination. As their gazes met, silence hung in the air.

Karhan’s silvery-gray eyes took in Doel’s appearance. After staring at him wordlessly for a while, he leaned back in his chair, folded his arms, and said, “When I brought you here, I said I would provide assistance. I must keep my word, so there’s no other choice.”

Permission was granted. Doel took a deep breath and responded with a spirited voice.

“I will return without any issues, as you have placed your trust in me.”

Perhaps because he had been surveilling the lord without any issues until now, Doel’s face was filled with confidence. Karhan, still maintaining a stoic expression, spoke to him in a warning tone.

“You must not get caught under any circumstances.”

“Yes. I will proceed carefully without getting caught.”

“Cheep cheep!”

I want to go too!

As I listened to their conversation, I flapped one wing like a child raising their hand to ask a question in school. When I eagerly flapped my wings in front, Karhan, who had been expressionless, curled his fingers and gently stroked me. With a slight smile on his lips, he said, “Do you want to go with him?”

“Cheep!”

Yes!

I nodded my head enthusiastically. Karhan was busy with work anyway and wouldn’t have time to play with me. I thought it would be more fun to go out and be like a secret agent with Doel rather than waiting idly here.

I looked up at Karhan with pleading eyes. After gazing at me with warm eyes for a moment, he nodded and held me out to Doel.

Doel gently grasped my body from Karhan’s hand and placed me on his shoulder. Perched on his unexpectedly sturdy shoulder, I raised both wings. Then, with a determined expression, I looked at Karhan.

I’ll do well and come back! Loyalty!