Elise Denarova, a warlock girl who had a bit of a falling out with Osian when he first took her on.
‘I never thought I'd see her here.’
That seemed to be the same for Elise, as her gaze beyond the mask did not fall as if it were nailed to Osian.
She didn't pretend to know him, and he didn't pretend to know her.
She was a warlock, but there was something odd about Elise Denarova herself.
'Even so, there are already two children here.’
The second and youngest.
Both were daughters, but their personalities seemed to be polar opposites.
The eldest, Marcy, was fierce and sharp, while the youngest, Maria, had a worldly innocence.
‘I heard Dyke was almost 80, but the youngest is younger than I thought.’Marcy’s age was in her forties, even with makeup, but she looked no older than twenty at the most.
If the second daughter had married early, she would have had children around that age.
Maybe that age gap was why they had different personalities, even though they were daughters of the same father.
"Maria, what happened to school and why did you come here?"
Marcy’s glare at Maria was not friendly.
Despite the stare, which was more like a glare than a sisterly one, Maria smiled and replied cheerfully.
"Today is my day off, and besides, I can't just sit around while my dad is sick, so here I am, bringing my friend!"
Saying "friend," Maria tapped Elise on the shoulder as she came alongside.
Elise flinched, but only Osian noticed.
The Mutants from the [Supreme] that Marcy had hired were quite shaken when they recognized Elise.
The fact that they reacted in such a way shows the power of the name Elise Denarova.
Maria's casual treatment of Elise, I couldn't tell if she was being bold or clueless.
‘Did she say friends? Considering they're the same age, it seems like it. It's not just a hiring relationship.’
Regardless, Marcy and Maria's conversation continued.
"You don't have to worry about it. He'll wake up healthy, and if there are any problems, it's my job as the second daughter to fix them. So you go to school and work hard, because that's what you're helping him with."
"How can I do that? It's everyone's business in this house that he's sick, and I'm here to help."
"Maria, what makes you think you know anything about this? This isn't some kind of child's play you think it is."
"I know the basics, which is why I brought my best friend!"
"Yeah, but only one. What are you planning to do?"
"Hmm. You don't know what you're doing. You could bring the truckload of people behind you and they wouldn't be able to beat her."
Marcy eyebrows shot up at that.
Just as she was about to say something to the effect that the youngest's nonsense had gone too far, her servant, who was waiting behind her, whispered softly to her.
"Lady Marcy, you may think the youngest lady's words are a bit immature, but the warlock next to her is the real deal.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Yes. Her name is Elise Denarova, and she is rumored to be a genius at the Warlock Academy. She's a member of the Warlock's Union, and she's been hired on occasion to help out, so she's got some experience.”
"How does she compare to the one we hired?”
"The Supreme is by no means a weak organization, but even so, these numbers can be deceiving.”
It was a whisper between the two of them, but Osian, with his keen hearing, could hear everything.
"......Have at it, though it's probably a waste of time anyway."
Deciding that there was no point in lingering and arguing, Marcy stormed off.
Of course, she didn't forget to glare at Sebastian as she passed.
"You. I’ll remember you."
Homer muttered as he walked past Osian.
It was an obvious threat, but Ossian didn't hear it.
"Mister! Hello!"
"Hello, youngest lady."
"I haven't seen you in a long time, but you've gotten bigger! Is it because you’re an orc? What do you eat that makes you so big? You're not really just eating people, are you?"
"Haha, of course not."
Sebastian laughed awkwardly.
He wondered if this bubbly young woman realized how rude that comment was.
Still, compared to Marcy, Maria's attitude was almost cute.
At least she didn't openly insult Sebastian.
"By the way, how long will you be working here?"
"What? Why do you ask.......?"
"Well, my friends say my house stinks because I have a big orc, and to be honest, I don't really know if it stinks, but my friends don't like it, so it's kind of a thing, right?"
"That's......."
"So they asked me when I was going to get rid of you, and since I can't really kick you out, I decided to ask."
Maria's innocent question underlined that her behavior was a refusal to see Sebastian, the orc, as her equal.
"......I'm in the service of Master Delan, and unless he sends me away, I'm staying with him until the end of time."
"He has unusual tastes. What is it about orcs that he likes?"
Sebastian could only listen in silence.
He had no right to be offended or angered by that comment.
"Wow, who is this handsome brother here?!"
Maria's eyes sparkled as she looked at Osian.
"He's a guest invited by Master Delan."
"Oh, right, does that mean you're fired now?"
Sebastian smirked, feeling like he was about to be.
There was no strength in his smile, and for a brief moment, his voice sounded tired.
"Oh, look at me, I forgot I had work to do! I'm going to go now, but I'll see you later if I can, come on, Elise."
Maria took Elise and disappeared like the wind.
In the silence that quickly followed, Osian wondered for a moment what to say to Sebastian.
Sebastian was the first to speak.
"I'm sorry, sir. I must have given you a bad look."
"Is that okay?"
"Yeah, it's just the way......I’m treated at home, so I'm used to it."
"Well, judging by your reaction, it's not been a day or two, and you're still here."
"It's all thanks to my master, Delan, who took me in, without him, I wouldn't be where I am today."
What kind of man is this Delan that Sebastian would show such blind loyalty to him?
Osian tried to imagine a third person he had yet to meet.
The first image that came to mind was of a kindly man, somewhat glazed over or crooked.
A kind person who didn't discriminate based on race and treated people according to their abilities.
When Sebastian arrived at the office, he knocked on the door.
"Master Delan, I'm here with the fixer you mentioned."
"Come in."
An acknowledgment came from inside.
He opened the door and stepped inside to see Delan Goldiron sitting at his desk.
"You're here?"
Delan glanced at Osian and asked in a cold voice.
‘Well, this is another surprise.’
Osian had expected Delan to be a glazed over or friendly man but in person, he was quite the opposite.
Sharp, piercing eyes and features, a stiff, businesslike tone and voice and all-back, neatly slicked back hair.
He looked to be in his thirties, the age between the oldest daughter in her forties and the youngest in her twenties, but he was a cold, intellectual man.
"There you are. You're the fixer?"
"I’m Osian."
Sebastian's eyes widened in surprise when Osian answered.
He didn't think he'd be able to talk back to his employer but to his surprise, Delan smirked, as if he didn't even care.
"It's nice to see you're confident. I hope your skills match your attitude."
"You won't have to worry about that. So why did you call me?"
"Why else would I hire a fixer? A request, of course."
"I'd like to hear a little more about the request."
"Sebastian must not have explained it well enough."
"He just told me about the ghosts."
The conversation never goes anywhere.
For some reason, Sebastian felt like he had two owners.
Delan got up from his seat and walked over to the couch to sit down.
A small table in front of the couch held a pre-prepared cup of coffee.
"I'd say you've got the basics down."
"The ghost story?"
"I don't know where to start. Well, I guess I'll start with the old man in my house who suddenly collapsed."
‘The old man in my house.’
That must be his father, but Osian wondered if they didn't have a good family relationship.
"He was correcting himself in a way that didn't fit his age, and suddenly he collapsed. We thought there might be a chronic disease that we didn't know about, but when we called the doctor, he said it wasn't anything like that. He just collapsed in an inexplicable state.”
"So it might not be an illness."
"Yeah. I thought it might be magic, dark magic, or some other curse. Otherwise, there's no way the old man wouldn't wake up after a few days."
Delan lifted his cup and sipped his coffee.
"Someone was after the old man, that's the only way to look at it."
"Any suspects?"
"First of all, I'd say no, but I wouldn't take that at face value. No one's safe, and there's no such thing as safe, because everyone in this house is a potential suspect."
"That's honest."
"Anyway, the problem came next, when suddenly, in the middle of the night, we started seeing strange apparitions."
Ghosts.
Sebastian had said it before, but it felt odd to hear it again.
"It literally felt like a ghost. It was draped in something like a shroud and held a large blade resembling a scythe in its hand. In a way, you could call it a Grim Reaper."
"Reaper......."
"Anyway, the mansion was trashed after he showed up. No victims have been claimed yet, but there have been many witnesses and quite a few people who have fainted at the sight of it. An apparition in the form of the Grim Reaper that appeared after the old man collapsed. I've heard people talking about the curse on the house."
After the apparition, rumors began to circulate within the mansion.
Dyke's days were numbered and that the ghost had come to take his life in person.
"A renowned priest or whatever, it was useless. They said the creature was unfazed even in the face of holy power."
"You didn't see it yourself?"
"I saw a high-ranking priest step forward, claiming he would handle it alone, only to flee in terror."
‘Flee in terror.’
What a powerful ghost.
Delan glanced at Osian and smiled coldly.
"It seems you're wondering if it was a lie or if I might have been hallucinating."
‘Not exactly.’
Osian was listening intently.
His face showed no emotion, though, so Delan wouldn't have been wrong to assume he didn't believe him.
"Well, I'm not going to try to convince you with a few words. Follow me."
Delan drained his glass and rose from the couch.
He led Osian and Sebastian to a garden near the mansion.
"This is it. This is where the priest confronted the ghost, was defeated, and fled."
Delan tilted his chin to one side as he said it.
"You'll need proof, at least, and that's it."
To one side of the garden was a fountain carved from pure white marble.
The fountain, which should normally be spouting cool water, was not working.
The fountain had been cut off at a diagonal, as if it had been slashed by something.
"It was left by a priest fighting a ghost. It looks like a one-sided struggle, though."
Osian studied the marks closely.
It was a massive assault.
The marble fountain, and the floor around it, had been swept away but even more disturbing to Osian was the mark it left behind.
The water still pooling in the fountain was frosty and frozen along the cut.
"This is......."
"Is it interesting?"
Delan asked, and Ossian shook his head.
"It's a trail I know."