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The Villainous Noble Who Kept Rewinding After Death: The Story Somehow Changed When I Committed Suicide

Chapter 224: Reunion as Well

Having shifted near the building where the harmless executive, Jerym, was based, I cast the invisibility spell on myself once more and entered the building, layering on magic to block presence detection, magic detection, and sound.

(Hmm. Looks like they’re quite profitable. Not my style, though; it’s so nouveau riche.)

Inside the building, there were numerous paintings, vases, and strange statues everywhere, showcasing ostentatious wealth. This place fundamentally clashed with my simple taste in decorations.

(Nouveau riche types all seem to love the highest places. I bet that guy’s up there in the most expensive spot.)

Strangely enough, most villains do the same things and think alike. Once part of an organization, they tend to occupy the top room, and if they want to hide something, they create facilities underground.

And those who display valuable items like this usually have their room set in the highest spot, behind a lavishly decorated door.

(Just like this.)

The largest door at the end of the fourth floor.

The door had a golden doorknob with intricate gold detailing, which was indeed splendid but also so glaringly overdone that it exhausted the eyes just to look at it.

(Seriously, such bad taste. Well, he seems to be inside, so let’s just go in.)

Using presence detection to survey the room, I sensed Jerym and a few others he was with, so I teleported beyond the door and slipped into the room.

“So? How was that woman’s condition?”

“She hasn’t shown any particular changes. According to my subordinate managing the inn, she doesn’t seem to step out of her room at all.”

“I see.”

“Um, if I may… I really don’t think that Nagurai has betrayed us. Her contributions with her clan, the Venomous Claws, have been significant. Plus, even if she did betray us, she’d still be labeled a criminal, which would make her life harder. There shouldn’t be any merit for her to betray us.”

It seemed Jerym was suspicious of Nagurai suddenly staying in this country and was using his subordinates and the inn staff to monitor her.

“Naive, Boyman. It’s exactly because they are criminals that they can easily betray us. We have neither morals nor obligations. All we have is an insatiable desire. The desires for money, murder, lust, and possessions—our motivations as criminals are stronger than those of ordinary people. For the sake of satisfying those desires, we can sever even the longest of relationships without hesitation.”

“I still don’t quite understand that feeling.”

“You’re inexperienced in that regard. Once you’ve worked here longer, you’ll understand eventually. For now, continue to monitor Nagurai. Report any suspicious movements.”

“Understood.”

Was that the end of the discussion about Nagurai? Jerym propped his feet on the desk, bit down on a cigar, had his subordinate light it, and exhaled smoke.

“So? Did any of the slaves seem useful this time?”

“Somewhat. The group Nagurai brought yesterday seemed to have some former knights among them, so they might be useful, but half of them were just regular villagers. Then there are a few adventurers that Ciran brought just now, and I’ve heard there’s a B-rank adventurer among them, so I think they could be useful.”

“Oh ho, adventurers, huh? That’s promising. Make sure to give Ciran and the others a larger sum of money later.”

“I anticipated you would say that, so I already gave them more than usual.”

“Good to know. Now, about the other executives in the slave association. Given the situation with Nagurai, I instructed everyone to revisit their relationships of cooperation, but have there been any reports?”

“Not yet regarding that. They’re probably taking their time gathering information.”

“Got it. In that case, let’s wait a little longer. You’re free to go now.”

“Understood.”

Boyman, called such, bowed once and exited the room, leaving behind Jerym pouring himself another drink and me, floating invisibly on a water cushion.

(Hmm. He’s started drinking. That works perfectly for me. I’ll put him under hypnosis while he’s inebriated and search for some evidence.)

Initially, I considered killing him and creating a clone to buy time until the execution date, but if I could simply put him to sleep and not reduce the offerings for Fushiru, it would be a good deal.

Shortly after, I approached Jerym, who was quickly showing signs of drunkenness from smoking the cigar, and used hypnosis magic to put him to sleep.

“Just in case, let me cast soundproofing magic over the entire room.”

There was a possibility that a subordinate might return upon hearing any strange sounds, so I expanded the soundproofing magic throughout the room, then released the spells I had cast on myself and began ransacking the room.

“When it comes to the kind of stuff these guys hide, it’s the classics like secret rooms behind bookshelves or hidden safes behind paintings… Bingo.”

As I peered at the bookshelf next to the desk and checked behind the wall-hung painting, I felt a slight groove where the painting touched the wall, instinctively recognizing it as a hidden safe.

However, there were no handles or keyholes to open it, so I continued my search within the room and noticed a small statue holding a sword placed atop a shelf.

“Could it be this?”

It turned out the statue was a magical tool, and it could be activated by channeling magic of the same wavelength as the initial magic that was infused into it.

“Which means that magic is Jerym’s.”

I touched the soundly sleeping Jerym to analyze his magic, then shifted my own magic to match his wavelength and flowed my altered magic into the statue.

Then, its eyes glowed purple, and it lowered the sword in its right hand, producing a clicking sound as the lock behind the painting clicked open.

“Ha ha. Quite an elaborate mechanism, huh?”

Removing the painting to inspect the previously hidden spot revealed a black door embedded in the wall, and this time it had a classical dial lock.

Since guessing the combination without any hints was a tough task, I made Jerym, still dreaming, have a vision of choosing a number, and he mumbled the number in his sleep.

“0…4…0…8…”

“0408, got it.”

Turning the dial as per the number, the lock clicked open to reveal documents related to connections with various adventurer guilds, permits and contracts for selling illegal slaves across different countries, and even a contract summarizing the rewards negotiated with the king of Saramāju after conquering the empire.

“That’s sufficient evidence. Just in case, I’ll leave a duplicate.”

I stored all the acquired documents in my storage, placed the fake documents I had created using a magic application to make a clone inside the safe, locked it up again, restored everything to normal, and then lifted the soundproof magic I had cast in the room.

“Now that I’ve got all the necessary evidence, it’s time to head back to the underground facility.”

Judging that there was nothing more to gain here, I vanished from Jerym’s room using teleportation magic and returned to the underground facility where Iris and the others were.

“What’s going on?”

The underground facility was surprisingly noisy even at night, and I could hear voices arguing at the entrance.

“Welcome back, Luna-san.”

“Thanks, Lily. By the way, it sounds awfully noisy over there; what happened?”

“Well, um…”

When I asked Iris what had happened, she hesitated with a look of disgust on her face, which was rare for her, and averted her gaze from the commotion.

“Mize. What’s going on?”

“Actually, there’s been a quarrel between the newly brought adventurers and the ones who were already here. The cause seems to be about Karirro’s former knights and guild staff who came with us.”

“Oh, right. They did have quite a rough time today too.”

The former knights and guild staff who had engaged in wrongdoing at Karirro were receiving treatment such as violence and food deprivation, but thanks to the ongoing healing magic I had cast, they were physically doing fine.

However, it seemed the newly brought adventurers couldn’t accept that situation since they didn’t know about it, and they were either criticizing the adventurers and villagers doing such acts or defending the former knights.

“So, you’re saying that the newly arrived adventurers are protecting them without understanding the situation?”

“Well, sort of. If you put it that way…”

“What’s wrong? Is that not the case?”

Milia, who had been replying calmly until then, suddenly grew hesitant and seemed to be unsure of how to explain, prompting Sharueina to start explaining.

“It’s true they’re protecting them. The adventurer’s claim is, ‘It’s not good to label someone as evil without evidence,’ and ‘We should listen to these people first.’ It’s perfectly reasonable logic for someone unaware of the circumstances.”

“Yeah, a bit too self-righteous, but it makes sense if they don’t know the situation.”

“Right. Up until that point, their claims were sound. However, afterward, when one of the villagers asked if mere evidence was sufficient, that adventurer said, ‘If there’s evidence of them being evil, I’ll take care of them. I will eradicate evil from this world. Therefore, I want you to leave it all to me.’ Their incredibly self-centered declaration built up stress and anger in the adventurers and villagers, ultimately leading to the argument.”

“What the hell is that self-serving logic? It’s disgusting enough to make me want to puke… No, wait.”

Suddenly, struck by a feeling of déjà vu from those self-righteous words and actions, coupled with the disgust on Iris and Milia’s faces, I was hit by a wave of dreadful premonition.

“Mize. Tell me honestly. Is the newly arrived adventurer that one…?”

“…Yes. It’s the young man named Shudo that you previously told me to investigate, Luna-san.”

The moment Milia mentioned Shudo’s name, my thoughts came to a complete halt because I had not anticipated such an outcome, making it difficult for me to weave my next words together.

 

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