CH 20

What would it take to stop the world from ending? Eisel had been thinking about this since he learned of the future. After much thought, she realized that it was impossible to stop the end of the world.

So the only thing left to do was to save up and buy an island and hide out.

However, 8-year-old children’s preparations were not always possible. There were also many restrictions, so Eisel had few options.

“What are you doing here, kid?”

The famous three-story building in the capital was a tavern frequented by the nobility. Only alcohol was sold there, so Eisel stepped inside. Eisel looked up at the man who stopped her. The young barmaid, who seemed to know nothing, quickly scanned her.

Cautious that he might be the scion of a noble family, he bent down to recognize her.

“Are your parents here?”

“No.”

“Then why are you here? Do you know where this place is?”

Eisel smiled at the waiter’s gentle question.

Oh, he didn’t know.

The clerk sighed. Just then, a middle-aged woman who had been watching from behind walked up and tapped him on the shoulder.

“What happened?”

“Oh, a beggar came in, and I think he took a wrong turn.”

“Is he a beggar, then kick him out.”

“He doesn’t look like a beggar.”

The waitress looked at Eisel with her horse’s tail. Without saying anything, Eisel looked away from the conversation and back into the store.

It sounded something like this.

[“I haven’t slept with Nine Tails since I was a kid. When I was younger, I worked at a famous tavern in the capital. This is the kind of place where people with money and people who want to break the bank go. When you work there, you hear all kinds of stories about the stars. That’s where Nine Tails started.”

Eisel searched her memory, barely remembering what she read so long ago. The lines weren’t exact, but she was sure it was a famous bar in the capital.

It was the only Information Guild located in a bustling, tidy place, unlike the others, which were in dreary, dark places. She figured she hadn’t misremembered.

Ignoring the two people still bickering in front of him, Eisel looked around the interior and spotted a man busy serving.

He was tall, with light red hair that fell to his back and cascaded down his shoulders. He was unusually good-looking for a waiter, and the ladies sitting and sipping their drinks gave him sidelong glances.

“So, just to be clear, ……, where are you going?”

The waitress, who was chatting with a middle-aged woman, spotted Eisel walking away and called out to her. However, Eisel had already started walking and headed towards the busy man.

The man, who loaded empty plates and glasses onto a trolley, spotted Eisel and smiled at her.

It was a gentle smile that matched his kind face.

“Can I help you with anything?”

Eisel smiled back, pleased to hear the man use a polite honorific instead of calling her a child. The man smiled at her and tilted his head.

Eisel reached up and tugged at the man’s leg.

The man leaned over and tilted his head. Eisel cupped his hands together, brought them to his mouth, and whispered softly.

“Are you Bessmere Winston?”

“You know me?”

I said. Eisel smiled at the man’s wide-eyed reaction.

Eisel immediately grabbed Bismarck’s face and brought his ear closer. She wondered what he would say, but he smiled and said nothing. Eisel paused for a moment, then slowly spoke.

“Nine tails.”

“…….”

“You’re Nine Tails, right? Nine tails who will do anything for money.”

At the slow voice, Bethmere raised his head. His face, which had been wearing a friendly smile a moment ago, turned cold, and his dark eyes flashed with dangerous light.

“Follow me.”

Bethmere snatched up the eyeglasses and sped away. The waitress and the middle-aged woman who had served him watched in horror as he disappeared, shouting “Where are you leaving?!” at his back, only to be met with stunned silence.

•

BANG!!!

Slamming the door roughly shut, Besmir slowly turned to look at Eisel in the chair. Staring at Eisel with harsh, piercing eyes, he loosened the tie around his neck and frowned, wondering what the hell he was doing.

This was only a child. He wondered if he should have brought such a child here to set the tone, but then he made up his mind and approached Eisel.

“Who sent you?”

“Eisel Letania.”

“And who is that?”

“Me.”

“…….”

Bethmere’s mouth dropped open at the blunt answer. After a moment’s hesitation, Bethmere regained his composure and frowned again.

“You can’t be serious, can you?”

“I’m not kidding.”

“Yeah? I’ll ask again, why are you here?”

“I came to see you.”

“How did you find me, and who sold you the information?”

Eisel Letania sold that.

Bethmere’s mouth dropped open and he frowned as Eisel answered bluntly. When she realized Eisel mocked her, she waved the bowtie in her hand in front of her eyes.

“Child, I don’t know what you’re thinking, but if you don’t tell me the truth, you could be in for a very big surprise. I don’t want to show you what it’s like, so answer my question.”

“I answered you right, why don’t you believe me?”

Eisel slid down from his chair and approached Bethmere. Bethmere stepped backward, frightened by her sudden approach.

Normally, a child would have burst into tears ten times over, frightened by the darkness of the room and the harshness of the atmosphere. However, the girl in front of him remained calm, her expression unchanged.

“I’m the one who found out who you are, I’m the one who found out you work here, and I’m the one who came here because I needed you. Do you think I’m lying?”

“Nonsense…….”

“Speaking of nonsense, some people say you’ve been buying and selling information for a living since seven.”

Eisel smirked, and Bethmere stiffened. It was a history he’d never told anyone. Most of the people who knew him back then had long since passed away, accessed for impure purposes. The fact that any of them knew it at all…….

“What are you? How do you know that? Are you…… a god?”

A god? Eisel tilted his head, then remembered that Besmir was an ardent follower of Keleum, the god of daggers, beer, and betrayal.

“The name Nine Tails comes from the nine tails of a wolf raised by Keleum.

Eisel was stunned to realize that Besmir had always said Keleum protected him. Normally, he would have asked if anyone who knew him was still alive, but instead he asked if he was a god.

Purely in awe of Bethmere’s unorthodox speculation, Eisel smiled, suddenly realizing that this wasn’t going to be easy.

“I don’t need to explain the situation then.”

As soon as Eisel finished the calculations in her head, she spoke.

“Kellem, I’m here on a revelation from him.”

A lie, but a revelation, yes. You’ve read the novel, so it must be from the author.” Unaware of Eisel’s thoughts, Bethmere slowly opened his mouth.

It was as if a messenger of the gods appeared in front of him. This was an orphan who spent his entire life walking the streets of the marketplace and believing in Kelem.

As he gazed at the tiny Eisel, he slowly fell to his knees, his trembling hands clasped around his face, and tears streamed down his cheeks as he sobbed softly.

Eisel felt a pang of guilt at the sudden weeping, but shrugged it off as something he could not help.

If the world ended right now, I’d be the first to die, so what’s the point in feeling guilty?” Eisel walked up to Bethmere with a brazen face and grabbed his shoulders in her tiny palms. Looking up through his sobs, Aizel met his eyes and smiled softly, stroking his red hair.

“You’ve been through a lot, Bethmere Winston.”

“Aah……!!!”

Hot tears welled up in Bismire’s eyes again, and he pulled Eisel into a fierce embrace. The momentary embrace elicited a ragged cough from Eisel’s mouth. However, she could not break free from Besmir’s embrace for several moments.

“Ahhhhhh!!!”

“Please don’t cry in my ears.

Eisel turned away, carefully covering her ears with her fingers.

•

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were like that and I was rude.”

Bethmere snorted, her eyes red from crying so much. She dabbed at her eyes with her handkerchief, took a long breath, and smiled with relief.

When he calmed down a bit, Eisel slowly opened his mouth.

“I want to ask you for a favor.”

“Just say the word. I will help the lion with everything I have.”

“Don’t call me Lion, call me Eisel.”

“Oh, I’ll have to keep that secret.”

The way he nodded with determination, like some secret society, made him look holy in Eisel’s eyes.

“Was this the character?

Eisel struggled to retrieve the information buried in his mind and gave up. I must be misremembering, she rationalized, grabbing Bethmere’s shoulder and flashing her eyes.

“The world is in danger.”

“The world…… you mean?”

“Yes. The world may soon be doomed, and I’ve come to you to stop it.”

It’s the kind of story that would have caused someone to call him crazy.

But Bethmere’s jaw clenched at Eisel’s words, and he looked very serious.

‘Do you believe this?’