MPO

CHAPTER XlV

“Which family does this person belong to?”

“It’s likely from a branch of Schmidt Countdom. The father has fallen into gambling. To a man engulfed in gambling, even his own son would seem like money. How desirable would his son’s merchant group appear then?”

“Yes, I will exclude it from the list.”

“Especially since the items to be distributed this time are not common pearls. We’re talking about the distribution of rare black and pink pearls, previously unseen in the market. A merchant group affiliated with such a person would certainly be concerning.”

“Yes, understood.”

“Hmm……”

No sooner had Lucas finished speaking than he picked up another document and began humming contentedly as he flipped through the papers.

***

Leila arrived at an unfamiliar place, following Anna. Unlike yesterday’s late visit to the pub, she could leave today without encountering Amelie or Timo.

“It seems we’re here, Miss.”

Anna had correctly found the address heard yesterday. The building, smaller than expected, was closely located to the market. It was convenient for purchasing daily necessities.

“Ah, there are stairs here, so please hold my arm as we go up.”

“Okay, Anna.”

With a trembling heart, she ascended the stairs. After climbing the short flight of about seven steps, Anna took out a key to open the door.

Click— The thick iron door opened, but thanks to the well-oiled hinges, it made little to no sound.

“Miss, we’re going through a threshold, so please be careful.”

“Okay.”

Leila entered the building with Anna’s assistance. Swish, thump— No sooner had they shut the front door than the hustle and bustle from the market washed away as if it had never been there.

“Oh…”

Anna’s eyes widened in amazement as she looked around and said,

“Miss, the soundproofing must be really well done here. You can’t hear anything from the market either, right?”

“Indeed.”

She was pleased but didn’t show it yet. Throughout her life, she had tasted the bitterness of disappointment too many times.

There’s no such thing as unconditional kindness in this world. If someone claimed to help her without expecting anything in return, she suspected it might be fraudulent.

To Anna, she might have seemed overly soft-hearted, but Leila was more realistic and cynical than people might expect.

“You should be happier, Miss! Of course, I don’t fully trust him either… but he said he was enchanted by your performance. Fans do provide such favors.”

“Does the Duke really like my performance?”

“Why else would he lend us this building? Oh, look at this table, it’s so cute. There’s even a rabbit-shaped doll, Miss.”

While Anna was excited, Leila recalled Lucas from the day before with a complex expression. Indeed, as Anna said, she couldn’t think of any reason other than her performance for him to lend her such a well soundproofed building for free.

Thinking there might be some ulterior motive was ridiculous. She was an omega without wealth, power, or even a healthy body.

“Really, my fan?”

“Absolutely! I saw it with my own eyes yesterday. He looked at you with such passionate eyes, as if he was looking at his muse.”

“Isn’t it me who should find a muse?”

“Oh, wasn’t I your muse, Miss? Anna is sad.”

“Haha…!”

At the rare sound of Leila’s laughter, Anna was overjoyed. She thought back to Lucas, whom she met the day before. She never expected to actually meet the man she had only heard rumors about, but now she understood why those rumors existed.

Even in his plain commoner’s clothes, he exuded dignity, and his face was filled with melancholy. Like a god sent from heaven to oversee music and art, he seemed profoundly noble.

“Look, there’s a piano too!”

Not just that, the interior of the building was cool enough. There must have been a magical device that automatically controlled the temperature. Anna smiled, happy thinking her lady could relax and play music here.

Leila played the instruments as freely as she did when her mother was around. Not just the violin, which she had been playing since childhood, but she also played the piano fervently.

In the meantime, neither of them noticed that someone had entered.