The dawn wasn’t early when we walked away from Joane’s abode through the interlocked moist bricks of the pavement. Carriages ran along the busy streets more often than usual, so the sides of the pavements were more cramped up, making it a laborious journey. The market plaza was buzzing with activity despite the chilly winds, but commuters reveled in the peace they had taken for granted.

The rays of the sun glittered around the extended roofs of the shops, and we stopped outside my favorite bakehouse. The vegetable vendor opposite the bakehouse had more crowd, but it was to be expected as not many preferred bread so close to the afternoon. Foolish it was, I wasn’t interested in correcting their contrived notion, so we just entered the store in comfortable silence. Our bracelets clinked as my lady walked past me, which inevitably brought a smile to her face, and it disappeared as quickly when the commoner glanced at her.

“Rudolf it is,” Bayle said his usual greeting, though his hand subconsciously covered the steaming bread piece in his hands. Why were they treating me like a hound?

“Long time, Bayle,” I gave him a usual smile. “I can’t see Sharla today.”

“She went out shopping,” Bayle replied, watching my lady who was picking herself some cookies. Well, she did like them. “The brown ones with a hole in the middle and dry fruit topping are great, lady. The cookies melt in your mouth, mending the already rich flavor of flour with the taste of fresh aelons that is neither too sweet nor sour. It’s my newest recipe, and my customers love it.”

“Customers? Are they invisible?” I glanced at the empty round tables behind me with a grin while Bayle waved his head in annoyance.

“Business is slow in the morning, Rodoulf, but it picks up before evening strikes the capital. My bread is famous even among the guards, so don’t you dare question my competence.”

The door clinked again, and I glanced in the direction, moving closer to my lady for potential attempts for robbery or assassination. She was the villainess, so the world was always secretly conspiring against her. Extra vigilance never hurt.

“Ah!”

“AH!”

“Ah…”

“Do you smell money, Garlan?” I asked in surprise because his appearance right before our mission couldn’t be a coincidence. He was out of the city the past week and was supposed to return only next Merken, or Sunday.

“Oho!” he conveyed his crafty smile. “You got an exciting mission?”

“Later, Rudolf,” my lady interrupted us and pointed at the cookies decorated with dry aelons. It was a famous fruit in the capital, but I found it similar to pears, albeit its pink color. “Buy this one for me.”

I nodded and relayed her message to Bayle. He was quite used to my lady’s silence and her abstinence from involving in conversations with others, so he didn’t give her a repulsive gaze like those in the Academy did. Bayle was just a simple man with a bald head who baked the most delicious bread in the capital.

I brought myself two loaves of bread again, despite just eating them a few minutes ago, and Garlan followed my suit while my lady paid for all three of us. Garlan was surprised, but I reasoned that he was tagging along for the mission despite her resistance. She needed a guide and someone to converse with mortal women if any, and giving me up for the deed was almost out of the question for her.

We ambled out of the room, Garlan joining our company, as we busied ourselves eating and enjoying the pitiful warmth of the sun. I erected a [Ward] once we were done and nodded at my lady.

“How long does it take to reach Port Achlon, mutt?” she asked, her expression one of bliss after tasting the cookies in her hand. We hadn’t had our fill in Joane’s house, so this much was expected after being locked in the stuffy ball house most of the morning.

Garlan raised his eye at me before turning to Letitia. “Less than three days by horses, lady Letitia. Anything else will take longer, and carriages are painfully slow. Is this related to the new mission?”

“Kind of,” I pitched in. “But well, it’s a complicated one.”

“Hmm,” he held his chin in thought. “We can ask lady Casey for the horses. The heir owes you for paying their finances either way, so it’s a good opportunity to leech some profit out of lady Letitia’s kind deed.”

“What about horses from the public stables?” I asked though I had already guessed the answer.

“Those tired bunch won’t reach halfway before they start wheezing and coughing,” he shrugged and said the obvious. “Baron Volch has some good horses in the stable, and he would be more than happy to return the favor to us. But, do you think lady Casey will let you leave without any resistance?”

“They will be busy with the Academy project. We need commendation letters in less than twenty days,” my lady said, slowing her pace.

“Even my lady got a letter,” I paused, “but we have become a part of the legend that will go down in history.”

That earned me a giggle and Garlan’s grunt.

“So, what’s this mission all about?”

We stopped when we reached the end of the market, and we cut across the plaza to walk in the direction of Hesroeder mansion. A brief visit in the night hadn’t helped much to remember the streets vividly, but we already knew the address, so Garlan followed us without resistance.

“Are you sure you can handle it?” I asked him. “It’s worse than rescuing Casey’s family from the gallows.”

“I am Garlan, the undead, bas-Rudolf,” he patted my shoulder. “And if you didn’t know already, I abetted in killing the prince, so one more or a few more won’t really make a difference. My courage has grown tremendously after seeing your strength, my bread lad, so nothing can stop us anymore.”

Technically he didn’t, but I suppose he was the one responsible for the scum prince’s death behind the scenes.

“We are helping Prince Balar usurp the throne of Halurath Isles,” I said. “So, we need to reach port Achlon within the next four days.”

“[Ward]?” he asked as his eyes became as round as his face.

“What? You scared, mutt?” my lady scowled as I nodded with a smile.

“Are we thinking about the same Prince Balar?” he asked with evident surprise on his face. “How much are we getting paid, anyway?”

“A favor from the prince?” I glanced at my lady.

“At least ten thousand shins,” she chimed in. “That’s how much the bastard redhead pays his retainers.”

“Damn! I have never seen so much money in my life!” he rubbed his hands.

“I bet it’s in your tummy, bread lad,” I grinned.

“And yours too, Rudolf,” he grinned in return while my lady sighed. She rarely did, so both of us were taken aback.

“What about Yule? If lady Beth and Casey are out, who is taking care of that demon?”

He had seen me taking casual walks with the demon right before taking off on his long-term mission, so the story of my hound capture adventures had earned me six loaves of bread from my bead lad. He had baited me, but I trusted him enough with my stories. There were exciting mortals in all the ages, and Garlan, along with my lady, was one among them. Even Casey and Beth were fun in their own ways, but they hadn’t quite reached the level of Garlan. He was a self-proclaimed undead, after all. And a good one at that.

“My lady’s acquaintance will help us out,” I said, wiping my lady’s lips with my napkin. I handed it to her, but she just shook her head.

“Lady Latitia has acquaintances?! Apart from the two villainess’s girls and me?” Garlan’s astound expression was worth documenting.

“I’m certainly not as infamous as you, mutt,” my lady rolled her eyes. “Are you in?”

“Certainly, lady Letitia. Money is where Garlan’s heart truly lies, and not even women can help me quench my unquenchable thirst for shins.”

“If we get paid, that is,” I sighed. “Even if we help that little prince ascend the throne, stabilizing the kingdom will take time, so the payment might be delayed indefinitely. But the favor of the king doesn’t sound so bad because when we usurp this kingdom, we’ll have aids.”

They both stared at me for a good while, and the uncomfortable silence made me wonder if I had said anything irredeemable.

“What?!”

“Nothing,” they said in unison and ambled through the almost deserted streets as we reached the noble locality.

“For a moment, I thought you were joking, but I suppose you hardly say things that don’t make sense,” Garlan finally broke the stalemate. “What are your plans after usurping the kingdom, anyway?”

“After?” I scratched my head in wonder. “I haven’t thought that far. But if my lady wants, she can always appoint a ruler in her stead. Volch would do, or even you, if you promise to establish more bakehouses. Baron is raising the army as things stand, so the day when we see the kingdom in flames may not be far. Two or three years will hardly matter.”

“Ohh!” Garlan’s eyes lit up. “I can have money and women at the same time. And even bread. That would be amazing, indeed.”

“But it’s my call ultimately,” my lady pitched in with a smile.

 “That, I cannot deny,” I smiled.

The spikes atop the gates appeared sharper than the last time, but I credited the iridescent light escaping the dark clouds overhead. The guards recognized us instantly and opened the gates without any deferral, and one among them dropped her halberd and rushed inside the mansion to tell the maid about our arrival. I suppose the message reached Volch soon because, by the time we crossed the porch and opened the door, he was waiting for us with a broad smile.

“Welcome, lady Letitia,” he almost held her hand for a soft kiss when she pulled it back. “Ah, I’m sorry,” he apologized clumsily, wiping the back of his head. “Long time, Garlan and Rudolf.”

“We didn’t come here for the greetings, Baron,” Glarn waved his hand and went to the point. “We need some three sturdy horses–“

“Two, Garlan,” I said. “My lady can’t ride one yet.”

Letitia looked aggrieved, but she didn’t comment. Restraining herself probably took as much effort as my abstinence from eating bread took, but she managed to do it.

“We got many in the stables,” Volch pulled his ear lobe and looked at the guard behind us. The guard bowed immediately and turned leftward from the entrance before disappearing. “But I can’t guarantee that they are better than ones in the market. The guard will prepare the stables for you, so you can follow the maids through the mansion. I’m meeting the officials today,” his exasperated expression returned to his face, “so I won’t be of much help. Even Casey hadn’t returned yet. Beth’s with her, so I’m not worried.”

“No problem, Baron,” Garlan patted his chest. “If it’s about horses, then you can leave the job to me.”

Wasn’t it money just a few minutes ago?

Baron Volch nodded his head apologetically before rushing back to his room. He had his own problems to address, for the Hesroeder household were undoubtedly getting their heads closer to the guillotine each time the crown prince grew powerful. After all, the redhead knew about the internal corruption of Hesroeder family, and he was patiently waiting like a wolf in the wild to ravage the household from within once he ascended the throne. That was a must if he wanted to protect his kingdom.

For now, our stolen funds were helping him amass whatever small army he wanted. Even Garlan gave a small portion of his funds to support the household, which talked in magnitudes about his loyalty, despite his terrifying urge for money. I knew he would take back hundredfold in the future, but the end was still unseen. So, he was a good person for now.