Chapter 115: It’s Not Safe for a Girl Alone

“So? Why are you stopping me? I’ve got things to do—I need to leave.”

Peretti frowned, her tone full of impatience.

Her empty stomach growled audibly. Drinking blood could sustain her for days without needing food, but this time, she wanted to experience life like a normal person.

Fresh, steaming bread… sizzling roasted meat… just imagining it made her mouth water. She had no intention of missing the chance to taste human food.

The girl blocking her path stood tall, dressed in noble attire embroidered with silver patterns. Hearing this, she gave a flawless, textbook-perfect noble’s bow.

A perfectly measured smile curved on her lips, though her gaze carried a hint of scrutiny as she spoke leisurely:

“It’s nothing. I just noticed you seemed a bit flustered, miss. You must be new to Brest, aren’t you?”

She paused, her eyes sweeping over Peretti’s slightly unfamiliar gait before adding,

“It’s rare to see a young lady like you traveling alone.

Since the opportunity presents itself, I am Mara, a local noble. Would you grant me the honor of showing you around? Consider it my duty as your host. You may call me Miss Mara.”

Mara had already made up her mind.

She had noticed this white-haired girl from the street corner earlier.

Everyone who frequented this s*ave market was either a noble or a wealthy merchant—faces she had long memorized. Yet she had never seen someone with such striking white hair before, which meant this girl must be a commoner who had wandered in by mistake.

After seeing too many deliberately flirtatious demi-humans, she had grown bored—almost immune to beauty. But the girl before her, with her delicate features and that mix of innocence and guardedness, instantly stirred something within her.

The cloak concealed her figure well, but beneath it, her clothing was thin, perfectly outlining her slender curves. The faintly exposed line of her shoulder carried a subtle, youthful allure.

That restrained, almost ascetic charm made Mara’s gaze linger uncontrollably.

Peretti immediately sensed the ill-intentioned stare and frowned even deeper.

Under normal circumstances, if anyone dared look at her like that, she would’ve punched them without hesitation.

But after a moment’s thought—this was a human city. She had intended to travel as a commoner, so there was no need to cause trouble. Besides, encountering a noble like Mara wasn’t something she often experienced.

Without a word, she pulled her cloak tighter around herself, then lifted her gaze toward Mara—cold, sharp, and unmistakably warning.

That look was like a blade.

Mara’s heart skipped a beat, and she quickly withdrew her gaze.

“Ahem… my apologies. I was being rude.” She coughed lightly, masking her reaction, and put on a gentle smile again. “May I ask your name, miss?”

“Peretti.”

Brief. Cold. She had no intention of saying more.

“Peretti… Peretti… why does that sound familiar?”

Mara repeated the name, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu.

She searched her memory carefully—but found nothing.

She was certain this was the only white-haired girl she had ever seen. Someone this beautiful would be impossible to forget.

Perhaps it just resembled the name of someone she once knew.

Shrugging off the thought, her smile deepened.

“Miss Peretti, walking alone like this is truly unsafe. Some nobles in Brest lack basic manners—they might harass you, or even force you into things against your will.

But if I accompany you, I guarantee no one would dare lay a finger on you.”

She didn’t rush for an answer, instead standing with her hands behind her back, looking completely confident.

In her mind, a noble lowering herself to invite a common girl should have been met with gratitude and eager acceptance.

Only after a short pause did she ask again:

“Well? Have you decided?”

“Your offer sounds good, but I refuse.”

Peretti answered without hesitation.

“…Huh?”

Mara froze, her smile stiffening.

Had she misheard? What went wrong? Why wasn’t this girl following the expected script?

She had already planned which dessert shop to take her to, how to show off her influence…

“It’s simple. I don’t like being followed,” Peretti explained flatly, leaving no room for negotiation.

She had always preferred being alone. Having someone by her side only felt like a constraint—especially someone with ulterior motives.

“That’s it?” Mara asked in disbelief.

“That’s it.” Peretti nodded, unwavering.

Unwilling to give up, Mara tried a different approach—this time with a hint of threat:

“Aren’t you afraid some nobles might take a liking to you… and make you their possession?”

In her eyes, a common girl would surely feel fear hearing such words.

“They can’t.”

Peretti’s tone was calm—but it was the truth.

Her strength had already reached the Luminous Moon tier. Among humans, that was a high level. Even within the Tuning Squad, only team leaders had reached that tier—while the squad leader’s strength was unknown, it was certainly not weak.

Peretti absolutely had the confidence to back up her words.

Before the Witch Banquet, even with her vast magical reserves and high affinity with light elements, she could barely manage a single high-tier spell.

Below the Luminous Moon tier, the upper limit of magic use was completely locked—no matter how talented you were.

But after reaching it, a single Lumen spell capable of destroying buildings came effortlessly to her. She could cast it repeatedly without strain. Only after using the high-consumption Holy Heal did her magic finally run dry.

And that was only the first stage of Luminous Moon. Beyond that lay even greater reserves.

As long as she didn’t encounter ancient monsters who had lived for centuries, she could move freely within human society—almost without restraint.

Mara scratched her head awkwardly at Peretti’s absolute confidence.

She had wanted to show off a little—to display her superiority—but hadn’t expected the girl to be even more self-assured.

Still unwilling to give up, she changed tactics again:

“Even so, Miss Peretti… I must remind you. Recently, Brest… hasn’t been very safe. It would be better to have someone powerful by your side.”

Peretti raised an eyebrow, catching the subtle implication.

“By ‘not safe,’ do you mean escaped beastfolk slaves?”

“…What? How do you know that?”

Mara’s eyes widened in shock.

This wasn’t exactly top secret—but it was something mostly circulated among the city’s nobles. How would an outsider commoner know?

Peretti didn’t answer.

Instead, she tilted her head slightly and pointed a slender finger behind Mara, her tone calm:

“Well… then there are only three of them.”