“Go to Nefi’s room… steal the key?”
Yan Wei Fu’s words made Iyue pause as she was about to put on her helmet.
“What’s wrong? We came here to steal, after all. Now that you’ve followed me this far, you’re not going to back out at the last minute, are you?”
“It’s not that.”
Iyue felt a slight dizziness and shook her head.
“Why didn’t you tell me about this beforehand?”
“I just found out today.”
Yan Wei Fu said sincerely.
“Lady Nefitalia will be out all day today.”
“Even so… wouldn’t she carry something as important as the Treasure Vault key on her?”
“I wouldn’t know. She’s your sister, not mine. You should know better than I do how she stores important things.”
“…I don’t know her that well. So you’re not sure where the key is either?”
“Exactly. I’m not that lady’s personal attendant, so I can’t confirm whether she keeps the key on her person or in her room.”
“What if it’s on her?”
“Then you’ll have to go ask her for it. Or wait around near her residence and steal it from her when she returns today.”
“…Can’t we enter the Treasure Vault by other means?”
“As the person who has illegally infiltrated this family more times than anyone else in the world, you should know very well what happens if you try.”
Iyue fell silent… she knew Yan Wei Fu wasn’t lying.
The strictness of the family’s defenses and the severity of their exclusionism could be seen from the magic armor bound to its users.
Not to mention a place like the Treasure Vault that stored relics…
“I understand. So first I have to sneak into her room, right?”
With resolve, Iyue put on her helmet and lowered the visor.
The metal closed, and her field of vision narrowed.
She had a strange feeling… that she had once again become one of the imperial Guard Knights, using cold armor to isolate herself from the world.
‘If the key is on her, even if I have to meet her again, I must get the relic. She’s still waiting for me in the palace… I can’t drag my feet out of cowardice and hesitation anymore.’
Iyue glanced at the empty holster Yan Wei Fu was holding—she had taken it off when changing into her armor.
“You’re quite aware. Did I say I’d leave my things with you?”
“Ah, sorry. It’s a butler’s occupational hazard.”
Yan Wei Fu started to return the holster, but Iyue waved her hand.
“Just hold onto it for now. Lead the way.”
Yan Wei Fu nodded, then turned and stepped onto the spiral staircase.
As they climbed upward, the platforms connecting the staircases to each level grew larger.
On the platform above, Iyue could hear the murmurs and footsteps of idle people, along with the clanking of metal similar to the armor she wore.
“There are people up there.”
“This level is the storage area. Those are guards and servants taking inventory. Don’t make a sound, just act natural.”
This platform had corridors connected to the walls, several times more numerous than the levels below.
On those corridors were guards wearing armor like hers, as well as servants pushing carts loaded with warehouse goods.
What was in those carts… Magic Crystals?
Iyue immediately recognized what the carts carried.
Magic Crystals were essentially Magic Stones, a general term for all minerals mined from the Earth Veins that contained immense magical power.
In the past, mages only knew to extract their powerful magic to fuel spells and rituals.
But as the Industrial Revolution intensified across the Empire, mages and scholars had developed new technologies and inventions to use these minerals…
The price of Magic Stones rose with these innovations, and mining output increased dramatically.
The quality of these Magic Stones wasn’t bad.
Was the family really storing this many Magic Stones in their underground warehouse? What were they planning to do with them?
As Iyue wondered, the two of them left the platform. Yan Wei Fu nodded slightly to the guards, and they responded in kind.
…Well, whatever the family planned to do with these things, it had nothing to do with her.
“They seem familiar with you. Do you come here often?”
Rather than the purpose of the family’s Magic Stone stockpile, Iyue was more interested in Yan Wei Fu’s true identity.
In the family, guards weren’t ranked, but those who managed affairs were.
Judging by the extravagance of his clothing and the breadth and depth of the information he had gathered, he was certainly not a low-ranking butler.
“Yes. I’m one of the several people in charge of these warehouses.”
Yan Wei Fu answered briefly.
“In charge of warehouses full of Magic Stones… That must mean you hold a high position in the family, right?”
“Is that how it looks to you?”
Yan Wei Fu let out a soft chuckle.
“You really don’t know anything about the family.”
“…I never wanted to, either.”
After passing the platform, everything went smoothly.
If they hadn’t been questioned in the underground Forbidden Ground, no one would suspect them in the general areas above ground on the Giant Tree.
They stopped at a large lift platform and rode it up with the many guards, servants, and maids there.
This was a device Iyue had never seen in her memory.
When she had come here before, reaching the upper levels had always meant climbing the long staircases between each level.
As the lift rose, people working and sightseeing inside the Giant Tree continuously got on and off.
But after reaching a certain height, only Iyue, Yan Wei Fu, and a few elves dressed in the same clothes as Yan Wei Fu remained on the platform.
“We’ll be at the Kinship District soon. Have you been here before?”
Yan Wei Fu steered Iyue aside, avoiding the others who were obviously his colleagues, and whispered to her.
“…I only came here when the guards escorted me.”
“I’m sorry for bringing up unpleasant memories. But I want to remind you that once we enter the Kinship District, you can’t take off your helmet… The lords and ladies there have very good memories, and there are many guards. If you need some air, it’s best to do it now while there aren’t many people around—”
“There are others here. And I don’t need you to worry about me. I’ve worn armor like this for longer than you can imagine.”
To avoid any mishaps, Iyue ultimately did not remove her helmet or lift her visor.
Soon the lift stopped at the Kinship District, and after everyone had disembarked, it descended.
“This is the highest point the lift can reach. To go to the higher canopy areas, you still need to take the stairs and corridors.”
Yan Wei Fu explained. The few butlers dressed like him had already left, and he led Iyue deeper down a corridor.
This was the Kinship District… the area where only the blood relatives of the Nereve Family and honored guests could live.
Looking at the ancient and solemn furnishings around her, Iyue’s memories surged back uncontrollably.
Countless times in the past she had tried to break in here, but she had only succeeded twice.
Once when she was dragged before the Family Head, and once when she was dragged before her Aunt Lai Wei An Se.
The humiliation and resentment had long since disappeared into the river of time… but this vast family residential area had left no good impression on her.
‘It’s terrifyingly quiet here. If Mother is locked up in a place like this, how lonely must she be? And these bastards escorting me don’t look like they enjoy conversation…’
That was her impression the first time she entered. And now… all that remained was an empty sorrow.
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