Chapter 101: An Awl in the Pocket
- Reira ☾⋆⁺₊✧ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁
- Oct 26, 2025
- 7 min read
Updated: Nov 5, 2025
“So, in my opinion… huh? My lady!”
A smile spread across Fenrir’s face as they were talking.
Cher clicked his tongue as he watched Fenrir dash off like a chicken with its tail on fire.
Fenrir insisted there was no problem, but every time Cher saw him like that, he couldn’t help but worry that Fenrir might cause trouble again.
“I was looking for you, my lord, so I’m glad we get to meet right away.”
“Are you feeling alright? You didn’t seem well back then, so I was worried.”
“Thank you for worrying about me.”
“No, not at all. I just feel sorry that there’s nothing I can do for you.”
Fenrir spoke in a somewhat hurried tone.
Alicia smiled faintly and took out the wrapped cookies she had placed in the basket.
“It’s nothing special, but I’d like you to have it.”
“What is this?”
“These are cookies I baked. I wanted to thank you for helping me last time, so I tried baking them. Help yourself to one whenever you feel like a little snack.”
“Y-you baked these yourself?”
Fenrir’s voice trembled.
They were just cookies, but it already took his breath away.
What Alicia had given him weren’t just any cookies — they were ones she had baked herself.
“Yes. I’m not sure if they'll suit your taste, though—”
“They will! I'm certain they will!"
“...”
“Y-you see, I’ve loved sweets since I was little, so I can’t resist them!”
Seeing Alicia’s wide-eyed expression, Fenrir finally cleared his throat awkwardly.
He wanted to maintain his composure, but around Alicia, he just couldn’t.
Even with his eyes closed, the gaze he had met in prison kept flickering in his mind.
“I’m so glad you like them. I packed plenty so you could share it with the people around you, but I was worried you might not like it.”
“Not at all. That can't be true. I’m the kind of person who can’t live without cookies.”
"That’s a relief. Then, please enjoy them."
Alicia nodded lightly and turned away.
Fenrir watched her quietly until she had walked away, then hurriedly raised the cookies high in his calloused hand that had been suddenly extended.
“What are you doing now?"
“Don’t touch it.”
Fenrir shook his head firmly.
Cher flailed his arms to grab the cookies, but when they stayed just out of reach, he gnashed his teeth in frustration.
“Didn’t you hear her say to share them?”
“I didn’t hear that.”
“There are plenty, so don’t be stingy. You don’t even like sweets anyway.”
“I’ve come to like them today. And I’ll continue to like them from now on.”
Cradling the cookies as if they were treasure, Fenrir held them tightly to his chest.
At the same time, Cher’s face scrunched up.
・・・・・
“Don’t worry about it and just give your report.”
Cabelenus spoke calmly, but Gazeff couldn’t do the same.
Gazeff smiled awkwardly as he looked at his superior, who was glaring at the butter as if he wanted to kill it.
“Your Highness, what are you doing right now?”
“I’m baking cookies.”
“Cookies?”
Gazeff reflexively asked back, but not understanding, he slowly surveyed his surroundings.
He had been puzzled since Cabelenus called him to the kitchen, but the presence of all the cooking utensils and various ingredients around him was completely beyond his understanding.
“Michael asked me to bake cookies.”
“…Your Highness?”
“He even insisted that they had to be cookies I baked myself.”
Cabelenus gritted his teeth as he cut an appropriate amount of butter and placed it on the scale.
The cross-section of the cut butter was sliced more neatly than necessary.
"It’s a bit short. I’ll need to add more."
Cabelenus cut a bit more butter and placed it on the scale.
The cookies he baked with Alicia were perfect, but he hadn’t baked them alone.
As promised, he needed to bake the cookies perfectly on his own.
“...”
“What are you doing? You’re just watching and not reporting.”
“Ah, y-yes….”
Gazeff checked the report with clumsy movements, like a creaky, broken machine.
Even though he tried not to pay attention, the sight of his superior measuring butter was nothing short of shocking.
He barely managed to stop his eyes from drifting over several times, even while checking the report.
"We’ve been searching continuously, but the room the young master was in remains unseen. It’s vanished completely, as if it never existed in the first place.”
“Have you searched the entire castle?”
“Yes. We checked multiple times, but it was the same. The room no longer exists.”
“Could it be magic?”
“There’s a high probability that’s the case.”
Cabelenus’s eyes narrowed.
Right after that incident, he assigned an investigation of the room where Michael had been found, but all that came back was news that the room had vanished.
Not only was it hidden, but the room had vanished without a trace, making it extremely suspicious.
“I’ll have to check it myself. I need to see it with my own eyes.”
“Or perhaps, you could go with the young master?”
"Are you telling me to bring the child who was trapped there?"
"I mean, even if it’s not now, then at least later."
“Is that really necessary?”
Cabelenus tilted his head sharply.
The child had scraped the backs of his hands trying to escape from there.
Taking a child like that back to that very place was far from desirable.
“I’ve heard that magic used to hide something usually requires certain conditions to be met before it can be seen.”
“Are you saying that Michael is that condition?”
“At the very least, it’s certain that it has something to do with the young master. Otherwise, there’d be no reason to lure him there.”
Gazeff offered his opinion while carefully watching Cabelenus’s expression.
Judging by his superior’s expression, he clearly wasn’t keen on the idea.
A capable aide knew that it was precisely at times like this that he should present an alternative.
“If you’re really not inclined, how about going with the young lady?”
“With Alicia?”
“There’s just something that personally bothers me.”
“Something bothers you?”
“Why was it the young master, I wonder?”
“What do you mean by that?”
Cabelenus tilted his head to the side.
“If the monsters were showing interest in the young master because of the monster blood within him, then they would have reacted to Your Highness as well — but they didn’t.”
“...”
“On top of that, the young lady knew the ancient language.”
“The ancient language?”
“I heard she learned it from her mother.”
“Her mother wasn’t from the Empire. Where did she learn the ancient language?”
Cabelenus’s brows furrowed.
“I found that strange, too. Prime is the state religion of the Empire, and the ancient language is taught only to the upper class. It’s not knowledge a young lady raised in isolation in the south would be expected to know.”
“...”
“Moreover, the god Prime grants wishes. And the young lady possesses the same power.”
Gazeff paused for a moment to catch his breath.
The great god Prime, whom the Empire had revered all its life, and the princess of a fallen kingdom were a completely incongruous pairing.
For that reason, he had naturally dismissed it, believing there was no chance of it being true.
But there were things that kept bothering him.
“The young lady’s maternal lineage, the Noitraira tribe, is also called the vessel of a god. If the god spoken of in the temple and the one the Noitraira tribe worships is the same—”
“Do you realise that’s a dangerous statement?”
“Yes. I am aware.”
“If you’re confident you can take responsibility, then go on.”
Cabelenus set the bowl he had been holding on the table.
Gazeff reflexively swallowed hard.
"If you think about it, the Temple of Prime is the state religion of the Empire, but in mythology, it encompasses the entire continent.”
“...”
“Moreover, names are usually adapted to the culture or environment people live in, often being rendered in different languages or terms. Thinking that way, it’s not entirely impossible. After all, the same people can be divided and develop different cultures.”
“So?”
“I don’t believe the monsters are reacting to the young master because of the monster blood inherited from Your Highness.”
Gazeff’s eyes hardened.
The one who seemed obviously connected to the monsters was Cabelenus.
So it was only natural to assume he was the cause.
But in retrospect, it was strange.
Until the monsters disappeared, Cabelenus had always been at the forefront of the hunt.
He had faced countless monsters, yet they had never shown any special reaction to Cabelenus.
Like with everyone else, they merely bared their teeth in caution and hostility.
“To be honest, this is nothing more than my speculation. Even if there are some overlaps, I can't be certain. Isn't it strange that the being the temple so fervently worships could turn out to be the bloodline of a mere minority tribe?”
“...”
“But if the young lady can find that room, my speculation will be confirmed.”
“Speculation…”
“Of course, I understand that Your Highness wishes for the young lady’s secret to remain quiet. However, in my humble opinion, it should be verified.”
Gazeff looked at his superior with a face full of tension.
He knew Cabelenus wouldn’t be pleased, but he couldn’t help feeling suspicious.
If the monsters’ reaction wasn’t because of Cabelenus, the only possibility left was Alicia.
Yet Cabelenus’s expression seemed unshaken, almost calm. No — rather, he appeared lost in thought.
“Come to think of it, the god Prime is an extraordinary being, capable of achieving anything. Isn’t that right?”
“Yes. That’s what the temple is saying for now.”
“In that case, it’s for the better.”
Cabelenus’s mouth twisted.
They had tried every supposedly nourishing remedy, but Alicia’s condition hadn’t improved.
Rather, her worsening condition day by day only gnawed at the man’s nerves, like a tiny bug.
To solve the problem, a different method was needed.
Cabelenus roughly swept his hair back from his forehead.
He had hoped to just forget it and let it pass quietly, but it was no use.
An unresolved secret was like an awl in the pocket.
No matter how well it was hidden, it would always suddenly poke at the skin.
“Investigate it. I don’t care what methods you use. Whether it’s the Temple of Prime or the Noitraira tribe, dig up every story connected to the god.”
“...”
“What’s wrong? Didn’t you want this kind of answer?”
“Well… honestly, I thought Your Highness would be unsettled. After all, you’ve never been fond of the monsters.”
Gazeff gave an awkward smile.
Even if he tried to phrase it gently, everyone knew that Cabelenus’s feelings toward the monsters were ones of disgust.
“Now’s not the time to talk about nonsense like that.”
“...”
“Whether it’s a god, a monster, or even a demon — it doesn’t matter.”
“As long as she can be saved.”
Cabelenus’s voice rumbled low.
Only then did Gazeff realise that Cabelenus wasn’t calm.
He was simply enduring it silently.
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