‘Right Ha-Yan?’

It was true that I had been worried about the tracking device on me, but it would most likely remain undetected since not even the magic scholar Hwang Jung-Yeon detected the spell. A tracking spell made using a catalyst still hadn’t been introduced to the continent and Jung Ha-Yan was becoming more clever as she kept getting stronger, so unless an archmage was with me at all times, it would be difficult to detect the spell. We did pass through a magic freeze zone, but the tracking device probably wasn’t going to stop working just because of that.

I was truly looking forward to the data Kim Hyun-Sung was going to bring, but there was a reason why I was desperately waiting for Jung Ha-Yan. The puzzle was nearly complete. The reason why I wasn’t able to move on to the next step was that the party that went on the expedition had the last piece of the puzzle and all I could do was wait for them.

‘When are you guys coming back?’

The big event that was going to take place in the city was my golden opportunity and I was getting impatient. Since I had nothing else to do, I could only talk with Lady Marilyn or Jo Hye-Jin, or manage the guilds that signed the contract with us. Of course, I was managing the key figures, like Song Jung-Wook of the Small Stone Guild. He continued to show his affection for Lady Marilyn, but it seemed like it wasn’t going well. Even though he was pledging his loyalty to me right now, when I considered his unique habit, it was quite possible that he was planning on using Lady Marilyn to backstab me.

‘I would want to backstab me, too…’

It seemed like I was preventing him from becoming a noble, but even if I wasn’t here, there was no guarantee that Lady Marilyn would pick him.

‘It’s none of my business.’

More importantly, Song Jung-Wook still had business with me, but I no longer needed him so there was no need for me to continue supporting him.

‘I also have Hye-Jin to take care of...’

It would be a waste to keep using my time on him.

Before the expedition party came back, I would exchange letters with the Blue Guild’s strategic planning team, discussed defense systems and siege warfare with Castlerock, and even discussed these matters with Jo Hye-Jin because she was more knowledgeable than I in this field. In the case that a monster wave did happen, I would organize Castle Rock’s military, so I had to constantly check the supplies and their quantities.

Finally, the expedition party returned.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young! Mr. Kim Hyun-Sung just came back.”

“Thank you for coming all this way to tell me, Lady Marilyn,” I said.

“I-It’s nothing. I only did what was right,” she stuttered.

“I’ll be right back, Lady Marilyn.”

“Okay...”

It may seem like a simple hunt to others, but their return meant a lot to me because Kim Hyun-Sung sounded like he wasn’t going to return until he had found enough clues, but since he had come back, it meant things were going to change in Castle Rock.

‘Good, good.’

When I walked out, I saw Kim Hyun-Sung and the rest of the members. Jung Ha-Yan was running toward me while Park Deok-Gu was waving. Kim Ye-Ri, Sun Hee-Young, and Hwang Jung-Yeon’s tired faces made me realize that the expedition had been a difficult one.

“Oppa!” Jung Ha-Yan yelled.

“Oh, Ha-Yan. Have you been doing well?” I asked.

“Yes, I-I’ve been doing well,” she answered.

“Did anything happen?” I asked.

“Well, I’m not sure if this is worth mentioning, but it seems like what the dude said last time was true,” Park Deok-Gu answered.

“What he said last time?” I asked.

“You know, the monster wave or whatever,” he replied.

‘They found something.’

“Is what Deok-Gu said true?” I asked Kim Hyun-Sung.

“Yes, Mr. Ki-Young. I think it'll be best to tell you the details later,” he replied.

“So it really was true,” I commented.

‘Of course, it should be true...’

“It was kind of difficult to tell all this time, but we found a clue through this expedition. I think I should meet with Count Castlerock about this first and then directly head to the office when I’m done. Maybe...”

“Yes, I’ll join you in a bit,” I said, finishing his sentence.

“All right…”

There was probably going to be a meeting sooner or later, so I decided to spend the remaining time with Ha-Yan.

“Ha-Yan, let’s talk,” I told her.

“Oh… okay!” she replied excitedly.

“Miss Hee-Young and Miss Jung-Yeon, I know you just got back, but please check the supplies and place an order for the items we need from Lindel. Miss Hye-Jin should know the details,” I told them.

“Okay, Mr. Hyun-Sung.”

When I left, Jung Ha-Yan followed me and even though she didn’t know what our talk would be about, she seemed happy just by the fact that I wanted to talk to her. Seeing her grab my hand with a bright smile made me smile as well.

‘How should I tell her?’

Right now, Jung Ha-Yan had no idea that I knew her secret. Since it wouldn’t be good to hide the fact that I knew about it, I thought it would be best to bring it up when she was in a good mood. When I waved to her after opening the door to my room, she ran like a child getting presents on Christmas. I didn’t know what she was expecting, but her face turned slightly red.

“Come in,” I told her.

“Okay, oppa.”

I heard a click after Jung Ha-Yan entered.

‘Why did she lock the door?’

I had no idea what she was thinking, but the way she quietly sat down after I patted the seat to me made her look funny. She looked up at me and said, “W-Why did you call for me?”

“I have a question.”

“A-A question?” she asked.

“Yeah. Well… do you…”

“Yes?”

“You’re not hiding anything from me, right?” I asked her.

“Yes!” she instantly replied.

I started to panic when she lied so confidently so I decided to be more straightforward.

“I really need to know, Ha-Yan. You know where I went when you left for the expedition, right?” I asked.

“Excuse me?”

“On the day you left for the expedition with the others, you know where I went. Isn’t that true?” I asked again.

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about. How could I…” she stuttered.

“You know I’m not trying to blame you, Ha-Yan,” I said to reassure her.

“I-I’m not sure…” she said.

It must’ve been difficult for her to look at me when I stared at her because she quietly turned her head away. Basically, she couldn’t look at me because she wasn’t a good liar.

“I already know everything, so you can tell me comfortably. I’m not trying to question you. I’m asking because I genuinely want to know,” I told her.

“I-I don’t know. R-Really….” she mumbled.

‘It’s obvious…’

Jung Ha-Yan was obviously lying because she was doing her best to hide it. I decided to pressure her even more because otherwise, there wouldn’t be an end to this.

“Ha-Yan.”

“Y-Yes?”

“I hate liars the most,” I said.

“Oh…”

“I don’t care about everything else, but I really hate liars,” I told her again.

“Th-That’s…”

I wanted to end the useless fight here, but I couldn’t help but pity her when she started trembling. She started crying like a child who had been caught lying to her mother.

“Hiccup.”

She even started hiccuping…

“Hiccup.”

I knew she was going to be kind of scared of me, but her reaction was worse than I thought.

“Hiccup.”

“You know where I went, right?” I asked again.

“...”

“I knew a long time ago that you used a tracking magic spell on me, Ha-Yan,” I told her.

“...”

“One, two…”

“It’s true,” she said.

When I spoke in a slightly threatening tone, she dropped her head in defeat. Seeing her tears streaming down her cheeks broke my heart a little, but her reaction was kind of fun to watch. I wanted to tease her a bit more, but asking about the situation was more important so I patted her head while talking. “I’m not mad at you, so don’t worry. I didn’t like it at first, but I know you did it all for me, right?” I asked.

“Y-Yes!” she exclaimed.

“You used that spell in case I was in danger, right?” I asked.

“Yes… a little…” she answered.

“You were worried that I was going to get attacked,” I added.

“Th-That’s right,” she said.

“The way you did it was wrong, but I can understand because you did it all for me,” I told her.

“Oh…”

‘It’s actually helpful…’

Her tracking spell was the most reliable insurance for me since outside threats could harm me at any time due to my poor stats.

‘It can be used when I get kidnapped… and I can use it in situations like this.’

There will be a problem regarding my privacy, but it was fine for safety reasons.

“It’s okay as long as you don’t lie. Of course, I’m not saying what you did was right. You know what you did was wrong, right?” I asked.

“Yes… Oppa,” she replied.

“I’m not trying to scold you so stop crying,” I told her.

“Okay!”

“Alright, let’s look at the map together,” I suggested.

“Yes, Oppa!”

Jung Ha-Yan seemed relieved because she thought she was going to get scolded, but the situation ended smoothly. She probably realized she was being helpful and seeing her being happy made me think for a moment whether it was okay to just let it end like this, but since I pointed out what she did wrong, I thought it was fine.

‘She won’t lie from now on…’

Of course, I couldn’t say that for sure though.

“Can you point it out on the map?” I asked.

“I-I don’t know the exact location because I don’t know much about Castle Rock’s geography,” she said.

“It’s okay.”

“I’m certain it was about 500 meters to the left from here…”

Despite not knowing the exact location, it was scary how she knew the exact route I took. I thought it was really like her to explain her stalking methods with a smile while her face was covered in tears.

‘She’s really…’

“There was a magic freeze zone here, but the spell I used on you won’t be affected by it because I upgraded it… hehe,” she explained with a chuckle.

“Oh… I see…”

“It’s strange because this area is blocked. I’m certain you went this way… and… after stopping here, you went underground,” she explained.

“Don’t worry about the blocked path and keep showing me where I went,” I told her.

“All right.”

“From here, you went here…”

“Okay…”

“And then here…”

“Yes...”

“And then here!”

I couldn’t help but smile when her soft finger pointed at a special location.

‘It was within the city.’