The Tin Knight-Chapter 17: The Tin Knight and The City of Pleasure (11)

Turning back the clock hands, around the time when the auction house was heating up with intense excitement.

The girl who had escaped from the cage was walking through the interior of the building, following the bone mouse.

Click.

The bone mouse proved to be a skilled guide.

It adeptly found routes without people and quickly warned when it sensed someone approaching.

The girl suddenly wondered.

...Are its sense of smell and sight still intact when it’s just bone?

Click?

Perhaps sensing the girl’s stare, the bone mouse tilted its head.

It was an unnecessarily lively movement for something made entirely of bones.

The girl shook her head.

If she started questioning things now, the very fact that a creature with neither muscle nor connective tissue was able to move would be the first mystery to solve.

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Click!

When the bone mouse gave a warning, the girl quickly hid her body in a nearby shadow.

Soon after, voices could be heard nearby.

“Damn it, I can’t see anything. So what was that purple smoke about?”

“Don’t know. Maybe some idiot was secretly making a midnight snack or something.”

“If you ate food that produced that much smoke, you’d probably head straight to the afterlife.”

“How should I know? They say nothing’s missing, so let’s end the search here.”

The girl, who had been eavesdropping on the staff’s conversation, felt puzzled.

Nothing missing? That shouldn’t be possible since I’m here.

Come to think of it, it’s strange that I was left alone in the waiting room.

Although the girl pondered, no answer came.

As the staff’s presence faded away, the bone mouse once again took the lead and guided the way.

And finally, the outside scenery greeted the girl.

“Gasp.”

The girl forcefully suppressed the exclamation that nearly escaped involuntarily.

Though she had succeeded in escaping from the building, she couldn’t say she was completely out of danger yet.

Carefully, cautiously, avoiding others’ eyes, she crept along a secluded alley.

Oh? Isn’t the route a bit strange?

Just as the girl was about to feel suspicious and doubtful, wondering if this was truly the right way, the bone mouse suddenly dashed ahead with urgency

As the girl hurriedly chased after the bone mouse, a familiar face came into her view.

The girl’s eyes widened.

“Ronnie?”

“Young Lady! I’m truly sorry for being late. Are you hurt anywhere...?”

Ronnie’s words trailed off as the girl threw herself into her embrace, hugging her with all her might.

Ronnie wore a flustered expression at the sudden embrace, but noticing the girl’s trembling body, she gently patted her back.

“It’s alright. You’re safe now.”

In a glamourless, dark alley within the city of pleasure, two victims of its cruelty consoled each other’s wounds.

***Watching Ronnie embracing the golden-haired, violet-eyed girl, you recalled Dorothea’s words.

— Ronnie. Hide in an inconspicuous place near the auction house with the stone I gave you. Then your master will find you on her own. There might be times when you need to use force, so take this guy along as well. As for you, hmm. Assist her as you see fit. When it’s over, meet me at the carriage.

You felt complicated emotions.

Fortunately, the girl had returned safely.

If comparing tragic endings and happy endings, you were firmly in favor of the latter.

However, the fact that she had returned without pursuers was far from ideal.

Why wasn’t it good?

Because it robbed you of the opportunity to block the girl’s pursuers while delivering the classic line, “Leave this to me and go.”

Whether you had the ability to speak or not was irrelevant at this point.

Your broad back would have looked cool, after all.

If Ronnie and the girl, who were in the midst of an emotional reunion, knew your inner thoughts, they might look at you with cold eyes thinking, “What’s wrong with this crazy bastard?” but they didn’t know the truth.

It was another moment proving that silence was golden.

“Um, who is this person...?”

“This is the knight who cooperated in rescuing you, Young Lady. I’ll give you a detailed explanation after we move to a safe place, so please trust me for now.”

You, who had been looking around wondering if there might be any late pursuers, assassins, or hunting dogs, turned your gaze at the conversation heard from behind.

Perhaps thanks to successfully reuniting with the “young lady”, Ronnie’s expression was very bright, and the girl appeared to be in generally good condition except for her slightly swollen eyes.

The auctioneers, likely believing that good packaging was necessary to sell at a high price, had dressed her in such luxurious clothes that it was obvious at a glance that she was a young lady from some noble house.

Ronnie seemed to notice this as well and took out a prepared robe to wrap around the girl’s body.

After confirming that the girl’s appearance was completely hidden, you drew your sword and started walking in the lead.

“Huh? What are you—eek!”

As you moved through secluded alleys, you sometimes encountered shady-looking groups, but they were quick to run upon laying eyes on you.

You, who had been secretly hoping for special combat during the escort mission, were disappointed.

Even when making eye contact, they didn’t pick a fight but just ran away, showing less courage than bug-catching kids.

Arriving at the destination without any particular commotion like that, what was waiting for you was Dorothea, already sitting in the driver’s seat of the carriage.

[The 'Tin Knight' declares the rescue operation a success!]

Dorothea shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s only a success when we get out of this city. Save the hot air for later and drive the carriage quickly.”

After addressing you, Dorothea turned her gaze to the other two.

“You two, to the luggage compartment. Don’t forget to change into the clothes I prepared. Young Lady, close your eyes when passing through the checkpoint. If they ask why, insist that you’re blind.”

It was a unilateral notification, or rather, an order.

Unlike Ronnie, who was already accustomed to Dorothea’s speech and mannerisms, the girl seemed bewildered, however, Ronnie soothed her and helped her climb into the luggage compartment.

Sitting in the driver’s seat, you asked Dorothea.

[The 'Tin Knight' asks if Dorothea has acquired her desired item!]

Dorothea took something out from her waist and showed it to you.

It was a key made of pitch-black stone with a strange luster.

“The ‘Opium Key’. It’s a master key that can open any lock. It’s also one of the eight treasures possessed by the kingdom in its heyday.”

Its ability was simple yet powerful.

[The 'Tin Knight' infers that it must be extremely expensive!]

“Compared to its actual value, I bought it relatively cheaply. But then again, while convenient, it’s an item that’s awkward for rich, high-ranking people to actually use.”

Whether it was a safe in the house or a lock on a door, the original owner naturally had the key to open it. So a master key wasn’t necessary.

One might say it was worth its price at the point where one didn’t need to carry around multiple keys and could simply carry one, but to begin with, high-ranking people rarely had to manage or carry such things themselves.

So they didn’t feel much inconvenience. Only the servants who had to attend to them felt the inconvenience.

To properly use a master key, one needed to use it to open locks that weren’t originally theirs, but such actions often veered into theft.

It could also be used to open treasure chests hidden in ruins or such places, but how often do rich, high-ranking people go to such places in the first place?

Of course, there was value as a collectible, and there were people who wanted to buy it thinking of various ways to use it, but their enthusiasm wasn’t very great.

It wasn’t a competition that Dorothea, who possessed numerous gold coins “given” by the evil bandit Colombo, couldn’t overcome.

[The 'Tin Knight' laments that clearing the first goal felt anticlimactic!]

“Isn’t it enough to have clashed with a major bandit group several times?”

[The 'Tin Knight' argues that cutting the neck of the city ruler would be more rewarding than such small fry!]

“You’re talking like a madman. Isn’t it good if things end peacefully? Why is your way of thinking so violent?”

As you and Dorothea bickered, the carriage smoothly progressed along the road, and finally reached the city gate.

“Stop! We need to conduct a brief inspection!”

The atmosphere at the checkpoint was very chaotic.

The soldiers all seemed to be pressured by something, and manpower also seemed quite lacking.

“May I check the luggage compartment?”

Perhaps due to the influx of nobles coming to participate in the auction, the gatekeeper’s words were polite. With this, Dorothea nodded compliantly.

The inspection process was swift.

There was no complex luggage search, just a quick glance inside the luggage compartment.

“All clear. You may pass. Next carriage! Please wait!”

Leaving only a ceremonial greeting, the gatekeeper quickly hurried to the next carriage, clearly overwhelmed.

Thus, your carriage was able to exit the city without incident.

[The 'Tin Knight' wonders why it seems so perfunctory!]

After ensuring there were no prying ears nearby, Dorothea said, “It can’t be helped. They’re likely preoccupied with hunting down the Colombo bandit group members right now.”

[The 'Tin Knight' demands a detailed explanation!]

“I controlled the bandit group by turning the bandit leader and his close associates into undead, but that’s just a temporary measure. Their true nature would have soon been discovered and the remaining bandits will rampage again. There might be some who harbor grudges against us and come seeking revenge. Even if that weren’t the case, they’ve robbed the domain once, so they might repeat the same thing. So I used this opportunity to clean them up once and for all.”

The lord’s power and authority within Albert were absolute.

If one attacked the lord using Colombo’s undead, that anger would be poured out on the entire bandit group.

[The 'Tin Knight' questions if it wouldn't have been better to do that after safely escaping!]

“If I get too far from the undead, detailed control becomes impossible. I had to initiate the plan while I was still in the city.”

[The 'Tin Knight' points out the risk of the city gates being closed!]

“That would be the case normally. But they can’t do that now. Nobles are flocking in for the auction, after all. At most, they’ll check if there are carriages with several men hiding. Even if the inspection was strict, blonde hair is common, so as long as the violet eyes aren’t discovered, it wouldn’t have been an issue.”

You marveled at Dorothea’s ability to answer questions so readily.

Thinking about it coolly, there were various gaps here and there, but for a single individual to simultaneously trick a vicious bandit group and the lord of a huge city was impressive enough.

You gave Dorothea a thumbs up.

[The 'Tin Knight' praises it as a villainous and vicious strategy worthy of a female executive in a real evil organization!]

Clang!

The staff Dorothea swung struck your head.

***“Hmph.”

After imposing sanctions on the disrespectful familiar’s remarks, Dorothea wore a sulky expression.

For Dorothea, who had taken her infamous teacher as a negative example, remarks like “villain-like” or “evil” were one of her landmines.

It was for the same reason that Dorothea, who had the powerful necromancer “Wicked Witch of the East” as her teacher, rarely used magic that would terrify others.

It’s not like I raised an undead army to sweep through the city like my teacher, unleashed a plague, or cursed people into a state where they can neither live nor die. I just made the bandits fight each other a bit, calling it vicious or whatever is going too far.

...Well, there were cases when what Dorothea herself considered “reasonable” veered into the realm of morally dubious in the eyes of others. However, this much could only be attributed to her poor upbringing.

With her legs crossed and one hand on her chin, Dorothea fell into thought.

She had safely secured the first treasure, annihilated the bandit group that had become hostile to cut off future troubles, and even pocketed a fair share of money.

After some time passed and the fake “young lady” disappeared, the lord would be furious, but there was no evidence to suggest that Dorothea was the culprit.

Even if he harbored a grudge based on suspicion alone, there was almost no practical threat unless she openly returned to Albert City.

Moreover, she hadn’t even received compensation for rescuing the “young lady” yet.

Despite the domain’s current, precarious state, as the saying went, even a rich family could last three generations in decline, it was worth expecting compensation.

Surely they wouldn’t be ungrateful after saving the family’s only heir?

Dorothea’s expectations were reasonable.

“From now on, our main family will manage Friedel territory. We can’t entrust its future to an heir who was nearly sold off by mere bandits.”

That was, until the “heir of Friedel” became “the rejected-used-to-be”.