Chapter 162
The surrounding air grew chilly.
It was an eerie coldness that couldn’t be attributed to the rain alone.
Isuel, who had been floating in the air, landed lightly in front of Hata.
Karha pointed his bloodstained sword at Hata.
“How can I trust your words?”
His gaze, filled with killing intent, bore straight into him.
Just as the blade’s tip was about to slice Hata’s face, Itar hurriedly intervened.
“His words are true! Doesn’t he have the seductress’s flower?”
It was as Itar said.
Hata was holding an umbrella made from a large flower.
It was clearly crafted with fairy power—a flower not found in nature.
Gaining courage, Hata spoke steadily.
“You won’t lose anything by believing Hata. Hata knows executioners are scary. Why would Hata lie?”
“……”
Karha pondered for a moment.
Hata, the owner of the hat shop in the underworld, was a beastkin who could make potions.
They’d thought he could only produce simple ones, but when he’d been dragged off by the inquisitors before, they’d visited the hat shop and learned the truth.
A hidden space behind the hat shop.
It was filled with all sorts of potions they’d never heard of or seen.
His skill far surpassed the beastkin under Kierne.
Originally, Hata’s fate should have been decided as one of two options back then.
Work for the master of the underworld, or die.
Kierne didn’t like situations beyond his control.
He wouldn’t leave an unexpected variable like a potion-making beastkin alone.
But Hata survived.
Because his owner was the seductress.
Kierne had always been strangely lenient toward the seductress.
That’s why Hata could continue living as the seductress’s dog without being dragged off or killed by Kierne.
Though he himself seemed unaware of these circumstances.
“So please follow Hata.”
Hata said to the twins with a resolute tone.
However, in contrast to his stern expression, his rain-soaked tail was wagging gently.
Karha and Isuel frowned simultaneously.
Their only encounter had been when they were in child form at the hat shop.
There was no way he could recognize them now in their executioner guises, yet it was baffling why he was showing such subtle familiarity.
While puzzled, the twins realized something.
They themselves were unconsciously feeling at ease with the hat shop owner.
As if reuniting with a runaway dog…
But such idle thoughts didn’t linger long.
They were facing a crucial moment right now, too important to be distracted by that.
“Lead the way.”
Isuel was the first to decide.
Hata glanced at Karha at the command given in a soft, melodious voice.
Karha furrowed his brows briefly but soon sheathed his sword without a word.
They were twins, after all.
Karha usually went along with whatever Isuel wanted.
The hat shop owner didn’t seem like the type to lie anyway.
Seeing Karha sheathe his sword, Hata visibly relaxed.
At that moment, Itar blocked Hata’s path.
“I’m coming too.”
Even after a trip to the inquisitor’s chamber, he hadn’t abandoned his obsession with the seductress Lichesia.
With two notorious executioners before him, Itar showed no sign of fear.
He seemed utterly immersed in the idea of meeting the seductress and proposing.
Having heard she was there, he wouldn’t back off until death.
“This time, for sure… To do that, adoption.”
Thwack!
A light impact sounded.
Aran had ordered the mage hired as an escort to strike Itar with magic.
Itar fainted on the spot.
The little princess stepped forward, breathing heavily.
Aran lifted her chin and spoke with dignity.
“…I’ll take responsibility for the aftermath. Don’t worry.”
Karha gazed down at her silently.
The princess who had hung around with Cheshire during the Little Saints’ Prayer Assembly.
The one Cheshire had sought out before the Basilians.
Jealousy naturally turned his gaze icy.
Even under that chilling stare, Aran didn’t retreat.
“You’re here on Count Basilian’s request, right?”
“……”
“Please… send Cheshire back home. My friend.”
The twins exchanged glances at the princess’s plea.
It sounded as if Cheshire wanted to go home.
But hearing the details from someone else’s mouth held no meaning.
The twins left Aran behind and followed Hata.
The underworld was quiet.
It was raining, but these weren’t the types to care about weather, yet there wasn’t a single person on the streets.
The shops were all brightly lit.
Half-eaten ordered food and scattered utensils remained untouched.
As if everyone had fled in a hurry.
Passing through the eerie scene, the twins arrived at a small hat shop.
<Hata’s Hat Shop>
In front of the shop, which exuded a warm atmosphere incongruous with the bizarre underworld, a man stood motionless.
His back, clad in a stylish coat and drenched in the pouring rain, vaguely resembled Kierne.
Isuel called out to him.
“Brother?”
Belzeon, who had been staring at the shop sign, turned around.
“Jahan told me to come here.”
Belzeon murmured, faintly furrowing his brows.
“…Said our youngest is here.”
His voice was thick with bewilderment.
Seeing the wavering red eyes, the twins stood beside Belzeon.
The three brothers of the Basilian family, in adult form, gathered together.
The three realized it had been an incredibly long time since they’d all been together.
They’d been scattered apart all this while.
At most, two would meet briefly to discuss work.
The rest of the time, they’d always been searching for Cheshire…
Feeling a slight unfamiliarity, a clear bell chime rang.
It was the sound of Hata opening the shop door.
“Come in.”
Hata ushered the customers inside with a proprietor-like composure.
The shop was a bit messy.
Not disordered, but it smelled of dust from long disuse.
When the seductress had vanished, her dog had closed the shop doors too.
It seemed cluttered from reopening after a long hiatus.
Inside the shop, where the counter should be, a red cloth draped from ceiling to floor.
Frowning at the cloth covering an entire wall, a voice came from beyond it.
“Hello.”
Belzeon murmured low, identifying the voice.
“…Seductress.”
The seductress let out a small laugh.
“It’s awkward to show myself right now. Please understand.”
“What are you playing at?”
“Who cares. The master greets guests like this too.”
When Kierne met others as the master, he draped a black cloth from ceiling to floor to hide his form and altered his voice.
The seductress pressed on, leaving Belzeon momentarily speechless.
“Is this really important right now? Aren’t you here to fetch my daughter?”
The three brothers couldn’t utter a word.
They were Cheshire’s family.
But the seductress beyond the curtain was her blood relative, sharing her blood.
Realizing only now the basic fact that they needed to make a good impression on the seductress, the three brothers softened their expressions just a little.
As if she’d cast a spell to see through the cloth, the seductress smiled faintly.
Her laugh carried affection.
Likely because they were the ones caring for her daughter.
Just as the atmosphere began to thaw slightly from the revealed goodwill, the seductress exhaled a small breath and said.
“Cheshire has lost most of her powers now. That’s why I was planning to take her with me.”
The three brothers’ faces turned expressionless simultaneously.
Without exchanging a single glance or word, Belzeon and Karha quietly placed their hands on their sword hilts, and Isuel prepared to draw up his magic.
Just as a chilling killing intent began to spread through the shop.
“Cheshire wants to stay with the Basilians. If it’s alright, can I entrust her to the Basilian family?”
The three brothers became docile again.
For some reason, the seductress continued in a voice that seemed to suppress laughter.
“But, um… I can’t just hand her over.”
She proposed.
“Let’s trade for the fairies.”
