Chapter 9

With a flurry of hurried footsteps, Sora immediately flipped the cloth written with magic to make it look like a rug and started playing with a wooden knife.

No servant could read Japanese, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

As soon as Sora's painstaking concealment was complete, Lazzette opened the door and entered the room. When she noticed the wooden knife in Sora's hand, she tilted her head for a moment.

"I remember, you were still two years old, weren't you?"

Lazzette muttered softly.

After interacting with Sora, Lazzette had stopped recognizing him as a child.

"I plan to act like a two-year-old for almost another year, you know?"

Sora retorted.

"If that's your plan, please act more like a child."

Lazzette said with a wry smile and closed the door, but it opened again instantly.

The door, opened with great force, couldn't stop its momentum and crashed into the wall with a loud noise. To the sound of the collision echoing down the hallway, Mina burst into the room, panting heavily.

Sora and Lazzette froze at Mina's unexpectedly rough entrance, which was unlike any servant.

"Huff, huff, Master Sora, you've teamed up with the Wooddora Trading Company, haven't you!?"

Mina shouted at the stunned Sora and Lazzette.

Lazzette, like a cat doused with cold water, shivered and retreated. In contrast, Sora regained his composure.

"Lazzette, wasn't the Wooddora Trading Company a timber company?"

"Yes, it's a company run by the Zendo Guild Master."

Hearing Lazzette's response, Sora turned his gaze to Mina.

Mina, who seemed to be in a great hurry, was trying to suppress her ragged breathing irritably. Noticing Sora's gaze, she glared back.

"Master Sora, are you trying to ruin the second lottery so badly? Do you know what you've done?"

"Calm down. Don't lose your composure in front of a child. Though it's odd for a two-year-old to say that."

Sora calmly soothed Mina.

—Really, why does this have to involve me? Let them fight it out among themselves. My way is to skim the profits.

However, Sora was freely spewing venom in his mind, taking advantage of the fact that no one could see his dark heart.

To avoid complications before his two-faced nature was discovered, Sora asked Mina for an explanation.

"There's nothing to explain. The Wooddora Trading Company announced the lottery. As a result, the price of timber rose even further, making it unprofitable for the Kleinzelt family. Master Sora must have taught the Wooddora Trading Company how to run the lottery, right?"

Sora pushed Mina away, who was pressing him.

This was information that was too late. The fact that the lottery couldn't be held due to the price increase was none of Sora's concern.

"There's no way they couldn't copy such a simple business. The Wooddora Trading Company is doing it on their own."

"The problem is that they're doing it on their own. It's as good as stealing the Kleinzelt family's business. If it reaches the lord's ears, the Wooddora Trading Company will be punished. If that timber company is shut down, it will have other negative effects."

Mina said in a threatening tone.

Sora gave Lazzette a look, and she nodded slightly.

Mina's concerns were not entirely unfounded.

"Lazzette, why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't think they would host it under the company's name. If it was under the church's name, even the lord couldn't act rashly."

"I see. But are the Wooddora people that stupid?"

"Master Sora, you should know. You're working with the Wooddora Trading Company, aren't you?"

"Mina, don't interrupt. And there's no way I'm working with the Wooddora Trading Company. There's no profit or meaning in it."

"That's true, but..."

"If you understand, get out. You're in the way. And your face as a traitor is unpleasant. Next time, smash your face against the wall until it's unrecognizable before coming."

Sora's cold words made Mina open her mouth to speak, but she realized it was futile in the face of his freezing gaze and left.

Without even watching her go, Sora turned to Lazzette.

"Was Lazzette in a hurry because of what just happened?"

"N-no."

Lazzette answered in a slightly frightened voice.

She had never seen Sora directly insult someone before. In fact, the servants generally had a favorable opinion of Sora. Some found him eerie, but most thought he was a well-mannered and polite child.

Lazzette, who had always thought Sora was a smart and kind child, was shocked.

"If it's not about the lottery, why were you in a hurry?"

"It's about the relationship between the church and the Wooddora Trading Company."

Lazzette's throat tightened as she realized it was related to the lottery.

Sora, the heir of the Kleinzelt family, had the power to legally eliminate one or two commoners if he wished.

"Lazzette, you don't need to be afraid. As long as you don't betray me."

Sora leaned in and said to Lazzette, a childish smile on his face, but his eyes were not smiling.

"I understand."

"…Good, the act is over. Really, Mina. Eavesdropping. You should trust me a little more."

Sora clicked his tongue at the quiet footsteps retreating from the room.

Lazzette slumped into a chair, exhausted.

"I'm tired of doing things out of character. It's a good thing we had the eye contact signal."

"Yeah. I thought I might have been too early with the signal, but it worked out well."

"If we don't start immediately after the senior leaves, it will be suspicious. The timing was perfect."

Sora and Lazzette exchanged a high-five without a word.

Mina would likely investigate the relationship between the church and the trading company based on what she overheard and report it to Sora's father. If that happened, Sora's father, who would dislike a conflict with the church, would likely refrain from punishing the Wooddora Trading Company.

"For now, we can consider the chaos from the shutdown of the Wooddora Trading Company avoided."

"That's right. Senior Mina is quite capable, so she'll probably send a report to the lord in the capital soon."

After finishing the task, Sora wrapped the cloth written with magic around the wooden knife and put it away.

"Why are you wrapping a cloth around a wooden knife that can't even cut?"

"It looks like a secret scroll and is cool. It's romantic, romantic. Anyway, tell me why you were in a hurry. Did something happen to the street children?"

While hiding the cloth-wrapped knife among the toys, Sora changed the subject. Lazzette's expression immediately darkened.

"A few men attacked the place where the street children were storing firewood."