Dada!

Giggle!

Winley only got up when it was already late evening. Looking at her with concern, Davey asked, Are you feeling better?

Of course, Big brother. Your younger sister is quite healthy.

Nonsense.

Me! Red Ribbon slept, too!

Bl Blue Ribbon, too!

It was still shocking to hear that swords could sleep.

Davey didnt know what the children were laughing about, but the children ran around the room, giggling joyfully.

Its fascinating. I dont know if its because of those children, but I feel a lot better than usual.

Aside from feeling well rested, Winleys amount of mana had probably increased too. She was also a mage, so she wouldve absorbed some of the power the two children, who were balls of energy, had released.

Thats a relief. Hey kids, do you want to go play outside for a bit?

Okay!

After the children answered simultaneously and scuttled out of the room, Davey turned to look back at Winley. Are you okay now?

Yes, thank you for your concern.

How long did it take you to travel here? I wouldve gone instead, if you had contacted me.

HHow could I? Youre busy, too Looking like she was going to cry, Winley lowered her head.

Okay. Explain it to me.

Winley nodded with tears in her eyes, and she finally revealed the severity of the situation. We first brought priests, but they said that it was an illness incurable with holy power So, we called the doctor, and they said that they couldnt cure it either

They couldnt cure it?

Comforted by Daveys presence, Winley began sharing her concerns. She revealed that Portna, her bodyguard and close friend, had been shot with a poison arrow by the thieves instead of herself. Because Winley had fallen into a trap after chasing the thieves too far, she wouldve been severely injured or maybe dead if Portna hadnt taken the shot for her.

What about an antidote?

The priest did remove the poison with an antidote spell, but blue-black spots began showing up after that And she keeps coughing up blood Sob Weep

The real problem only showed up after Portna had returned to the camp after being detoxified. She began suffering from a high fever, and blue-black spots started showing up on her body. From then on, she began coughing up blood and gradually losing a lot of weight.

It seemed that the priest who was treating Portna had mentioned that an extremely high-ranking priest with a stigmata might be able to fix her while they were trying to find a way to deal with this disease, which wasnt treatable with the power of a regular priest or the art of medicine. That was probably what had brought Winley here to the Heins Territory in a hurry.

-Davey?

Perserque called out in puzzlement, since Davey was just quietly listening to Winley.

-Why do you look like that?

Nothing. Its just that the symptoms are familiar.

When Davey couldnt think of any words to comfort Winley, who began crying from emotional distress again, all he could do was just silently stroke her vibrant green hair. He murmured, It mustve been hard for you. No ones perfect from the beginning. Take this mistake to heart and make sure that it doesnt happen again.

Sob Weep Big brother, what do What should I do? Because of me, Portna Weep Sob!

Davey patted Winley on the back as she sobbed in his arms.

The symptoms manifested about two weeks ago. This unknown poison, which first made Portna lethargic, began to continuously harm her even after it had completely left the body after detoxification. It was a disease. Blue-black spots began showing up on her body, she was coughing up blood, and she constantly felt languid. Winley had heard from the priest that this disease couldnt be treated with holy power, so she had turned to the art of medicine. Unfortunately, even the doctors hadnt been able to find out just what the disease was.

Feeling sorry for Winley as she was falling apart, one of the priests had said that maybe the power of the stigmata could cure Portna. Of course, Davey was the only person with a stigmata that Winley could ask for help from. Like she was grasping at straws, she had come to the Heins Territory straight away without rest, since the only person who had a stigmata she could possibly ask was Davey.

Dont worry. Ill take a look at her, Davey said.

RReally?! Winley did want to hear that Davey was going to treat Portna. It probably pained her so much that the person she was fond of was dying because of her mistake.

Davey had no choice but to comfort Winley until she calmed down. Then, he called out, Royal Attendant Bernile.

Yes, Your Highness.

In the quiet office, Davey, who was organizing documents that had records of the various matters of the territory, spoke quietly. There should be an intelligence guild in the territory. Find the most trustworthy and informative one, and get me the branch leader.

Yourwish is my command. Although Bernile couldve found Daveys orders to be ridiculous, Bernile just bowed his head silently to carry out his orders.

* * *

Theres this thing called intuition. In life, there are times when people suddenly feel a premonition even without any clues or evidence. This thought popped into Daveys head, because he did get that feeling from the moment he heard Winleys story.

Ah I keep feeling like something big is going to happen.

-Dont you always manage to turn it into a huge gain?

That is true, but Davey answered bitterly and sighed. He calmly rose from his seat. The increase in the number of patients isnt something to be appreciated Theres one illness that I know fits the symptoms.

-Theres reallyan illness like that?

The problem is that theres no way that specific disease would be on this continent.

-Hmm? What does that have to do with getting the intelligence guild?

Confused by Daveys words, Perserque tilted her head.

Theres something called causality; theres no such thing as a result without a cause. Portna was shot with a poisonous arrow, and she received an antidote spell, but she became sick the next day. She seems to be suffering from an unknown illness, one that not even the priests and doctors know of It makes no sense.

There was no way that the barbarians, who had to live off of thieving and attacking the outskirts of the kingdom because they didnt have their own territory, could get their hands on that kind of poison. And it couldnt be just any ordinary poison if the priests and doctors had given up.

-Then, in that case

Someone gave the barbarians a poison with a special kind of virus Davey, who trailed off, sighed and then continued, Or theres a possible cause of the illness that Winley didnt mention.

Although, I feel that its the first one.

Whatever the illness was, Davey needed to know the cause to discover an appropriate treatment. This was one of the first things he had learned when he had been taught the art of medicine: understanding the overall situation.

Come in if youre here. Davey threw the documents that he was reading while standing onto his desk. And dont try to discern me.

If someone else saw Davey, they wouldnt know who he was talking to. As he mumbled into the emptiness, a man wearing a black mask soon appeared in front of him with a faint presence. Looking over, Davey thought to himself, He seems quite skilled.

The man who silently bowed to Davey was wearing a black uniform and mask. The only body parts that Davey could see were the mans strong, large hands and sharp eyes.

Regular people would probably instinctively freeze up at the mans hidden killing aura, but Davey wasnt really tense at all. After all, he wasnt particularly impressed by the mans concealment skills.

I heard that theres something you need, the man said after a short silence.

Yes, I apologize for making you come and go when youre busy.

Its an honor that you have asked for me.

Sit. Davey offered the man the seat that was in front of him. He sat down, but the man chose to remain standing.

The mans gaze seemed to suggestnervousness. It was probably inevitable that he felt that way, since Davey had found him right away despite his usage of concealment skills to hide his presence. By nature, assassins were extremely wary of people who could find their location.

Ill be straightforward with you. I want to buy some information. How much can you offer? Davey asked.

Everything The man answered without an ounce of hesitation. Has a price.

Of course. Nothing is free.

Then, you can get me anything if I pay the right price?

If you pay appropriately, we can get you information about the underwear color of the kingdoms princesses. If you want, we can also get you the underwear itself

Tsk, what would I do with such a dirty thing? Davey chuckled hollowly at the mans calm but confident voice. The man did promote his guilds information gathering ability and drive, but

What a weird way to express it.

As Davey looked at the man in shock, Perserque crossed her arms and pouted as if displeased. A short silence surrounded the office.

A lot of intelligence guilds in the Rowane Kingdom were exceptional, but they were still just minor intelligence guilds of a small kingdom. However, Davey could strongly feel that this mans guild was a part of something bigger; it seemed like they worked continent-wide.

Of course, Davey wasnt surprised since his territory was getting the spotlight and becoming a site of exchange as several merchant companies, wizard towers, and schools of alchemy were gathering. However, it was inevitable that the shadows grew alongside the light; intelligence guilds were known to sniff out money better than merchants.

It was safe to say that Daveys territory had new information to be discovered every single day, so it wasnt weird that an intelligence guild that worked on a continental scale had an eye on this place. That pretty much meant that they probably had the ability to get Davey what he wanted fast.

Davey could see the man's serious gaze when they made eye contact. The man wouldve heard about him if he wasnt an idiot, and so, the man probably knew that he wasnt going to say anything lighthearted. Furthermore, Davey wasnt a well-known person, but had seen through his concealment skills.

Davey kind of felt bad. He could see how tense the man had become, but he still had to ask for what he wanted.