The Whipping Maid of House Calley - Chapter 114

“What? How are you here at this hour…?”

Fred, who had been absorbed in a game after exchanging one of the banknotes Cedric gave him, was startled when he spotted Ernest.

“You think I wouldn’t notice you avoiding me?”

Ernest, who’d finished work early and come chasing him to the casino, demanded an explanation.

It was only recently that Ernest realized Fred, who used to follow him around anxiously, had suddenly disappeared.

The moment he saw Ernest, Fred stood up from his seat without saying anything.

After receiving an enormous sum from Cedric that far exceeded anything he deserved, Fred had avoided Ernest for several days.

He feared that if he met Ernest before sorting out his thoughts and said the wrong thing, the rare fortune that had fallen into his hands might vanish.

Now Ernest followed him.

All the way back to his house, Ernest persistently asked what had happened, but Fred only repeated that the matter involving Sheila should be treated as if it never existed.

By the time their argument continued, they arrived at Fred’s hut.

“Hey. What do you mean by that? You’re saying you won’t send her to the Hayek family? You think you can just pretend it never happened now?”

“I-I told you, just accept it like that!”

“Listen, Fred. That was truly a good opportunity. Do you think a chance like that will come again?”

Ernest’s voice grew heated.

He said his younger sister would return in a month, and now he suddenly wanted to pretend it never happened.

Ernest, who’d hoped to profit greatly by arranging Fred’s sister’s marriage, couldn’t help but feel furious.

‘Do you know how much effort I put into this!’

In truth, all he’d done was lend Fred money a few times and treat him to drinks. But Ernest, who’d been spending more time with Fred recently while focusing on Sheila, thought otherwise.

“That’s not all. Didn’t you see last time? With a lump sum, you can win big. You need money to join the larger tables. And how long do you think the casino will remain open to people like us? As you know, in a year…!”

“Ah, don’t worry about that. I have plenty of capital.”

Ernest stared at him in disbelief. “What…? Is that true?”

“Of course it’s true. Have I ever talked nonsense?”

Fred had spoken nonsense many times before, but this time it seemed different.

Ever since losing everything at the casino, Fred had been living pitifully, yet now he looked strangely at ease.

Come to think of it, he had quite a bit of money at the casino earlier….

“What is it? Are you really going to act like this between us?”

Ernest openly expressed his hurt feelings.

Under Ernest’s persistent questioning, Fred’s resolve weakened.

Besides, this was the place where Fred and Ernest always talked freely. A place where no one would hear them no matter how loudly they spoke.

That familiarity loosened Fred’s guard completely.

“Fine… what would I hide from you? But understand, I made a promise with them, so I can’t just talk about it carelessly.”

“With them?”

Fred smiled with satisfaction as he spoke, “Sheila managed to seduce someone in that estate.”

“Even so, it’s probably just a servant or some butler.”

“Haha. It’s not that level.”

“No way… the count?”

As Ernest tried to narrow it down, Fred said, “Ah! Anyway, I can’t tell you the details, so just accept that.”

“Come on! You can’t stop halfway through. Either way, you received more money than what Baron Hayek would have paid and handed your sister over, didn’t you?”

In response to Ernest’s question, Fred held up two fingers. Then, with an arrogant smile, he mouthed, ‘Double.’

“N-no way… one thousand solids?”

Instead of answering, Fred gave a sly smile and said, “Well, anyway, you don’t need to know the details! I’ve got plenty of capital, so let’s lay down the cards.”

Ernest, who had been momentarily stunned, burst into loud laughter.

“Ha! Haha! Hahahahaha!”

Fred watched his friend’s delight with a smug smile.

“Seriously, when did something this fortunate happen?”

“Well, it’s been a while. About half a month?”

“You sly bastard.”

Ernest said it as if it were his own good fortune.

“So I finally get to benefit from my friend too?”

Fred left Ernest to his wishful thinking.

After all, he needed a partner until he could hit it big.

Besides, someone like Ernest, with wide connections and good information, was worth using.

***

Hearing voices outside the hut, Jerry secretly peeked through the window and spotted the two men.

Perhaps because he was with someone else, Fred had returned earlier than expected.

Fortunately, they didn’t seem to intend to enter the house and stopped in the yard to continue talking.

With only thin walls between them, Jerry could hear their entire conversation.

Of course, he was ready to escape through the opposite window the moment Fred showed any sign of entering.

The two men talked excitedly, never imagining anyone was inside.

Having just discovered the origin of the 1,000 solids he found earlier, Jerry cursed inwardly.

‘Damn it.’

Without needing to hear it, Jerry knew the one who made the deal with Fred was Cedric Calley.

Her so-called brother had sold Sheila to him for 1,000 solids.

“Since when did the guild interfere in matters between a man and a woman?”

Bill’s words from the day the Young Count visited the guild replayed in Jerry’s mind.

‘Sheila, do you know about this too?’

No. If she knew, she wouldn’t have rushed to the guild with the money.

Jerry grew anxious.

He needed to tell Sheila immediately.

But there was something even more important left to do.

The moment Fred finished talking and parted ways with Ernest, Jerry quickly slipped out through the opposite window and quietly closed it.

Unaware that someone might be watching him from afar….

***

Jerry entered a narrow street lined with shops.

It wasn’t difficult to find the pub called ‘White Shadow.’

After entering and taking a seat, a server approached Jerry.

“What can I get you, sir?”

“One‑eyed centipede.”

At Jerry’s reply, the server calmly guided him.

“This way, please.”

In the private room, two members of the assassination organization were already seated.

“The meeting will be in two days in the evening, at a pub called “White Shadow” in the old commercial district. It’s an information guild location remaining in Broden. When you ask for the menu, say “One-eyed centipede.” I’ll inform the contractors as well.”

Following Bill’s instructions before leaving, Jerry was guided to them as promised.

Both men wore masks and had their hats pulled low.

“Lost face.”

Another cryptic phrase left Jerry’s mouth.

“At the first meeting, say “Lost face,” which symbolizes them. Then they’ll reply with our slogan that you know.”

Just as Bill instructed, once Jerry gave the code phrase, the men finally spoke.

“Money is thicker than blood.”

Only after confirming each other did Jerry sit and urgently explain the situation.

“The situation has changed significantly. The client no longer needs this job carried out. Please return for now. I’ll inform the guild master and contact you again.”

The two men exchanged glances, then one of them said, “Very well. We’ll do that. But understand that the advance payment will not be returned even if the job is halted.”

After the guild’s thirty percent brokerage fee, the contractors’ share was 140 solids. Half of that, seventy solid, had already been paid as an advance.

Even if the job was canceled now, the contractors would earn seventy solids without doing anything, so it was a guaranteed gain for them.

“Then we’ll suspend it for now. Inform us whether it will proceed or not.”

Having stopped the assassination, Jerry hurried toward the train station. If he moved quickly, he could catch the last train.

***

Early in the morning, Sheila heard about Jerry’s visit from Molly, not Lucika.

“Sheila, you’re just coming out.”

“What is it, Molly?”

She was on her way out, having finished attending to Cedric’s clothes at the crack of dawn.

“It’s nothing serious. Someone is looking for you at the front gate. They said they came from your hometown. Isn’t it that hometown younger brother who visits sometimes?”

“Hometown younger brother?”

Jerry already…?

Sheila’s heart dropped heavily.

“Yes. He asked me to call you out for a moment. I would’ve ignored him if he seemed suspicious, but he said he’d heard a lot about me and even knew my name. It’s him, right?”

“I think so. I’ll go out for a moment.”

Sheila hurried down the stairs.

Extreme tension made her breath catch in her throat as she headed for the front gate.

“When it’s done, I’ll send Jerry one last time to inform you of the situation.”

Only four days had passed since she requested the job from the guild.

She thought it would take at least a week….

When she stepped outside the front gate on trembling legs, Jerry wasn’t there.

As Sheila looked around, she heard the sound of a pebble rolling from the corner of the wall.

‘There he is.’

As she turned the corner, she finally saw Jerry’s face, completely devoid of its usual playfulness.

‘Is he still sick from eating something bad last time?’

Sheila forced herself to think something trivial.

Thinking about asking about Fred made her unable to calm down.

She even felt like she might burst into tears from the tension.

Holding back her tears, Sheila said, “Hey, is it already over…!”

But Jerry grabbed Sheila’s chin, stopping her words.

“What happened to your face? Did something happen?”

Wouldn’t there be?

“No… you must’ve eaten something bad, right?”

Jerry, remembering that Sheila looked delicate but was rarely sick, assumed it was a stomach problem.

Sheila slapped Jerry’s hand away from her face and said, “You’re the one who ate something wrong.”

Sheila bit her lip.

“Just tell me why you came.”

She couldn’t bring herself to ask directly and waited for Jerry to say something.

Jerry, snapped back to his senses after having his hand slapped, spoke quickly, “Let’s run away, Sheila!”