Chapter 23: The Price of Pouches and a Fond Farewell

Hans Palmer decided to join the private Esper security firm run by the Moore family. Upon hearing the news, Marquis Douglas Moore was delighted and wished to keep Hans by his side. However, Bliss insisted that Hans, not having been assigned a proper matching guide, could not be placed near a civilian, and thus decided to keep him close instead.

Doctor Sera vehemently protested, arguing that Hans would be in greater danger because of Bliss. Yet, Bliss remained unyielding.

“Oh, dear. It seems His Excellency Marquis Douglas Moore intended to compensate Mr. Hans. Instead, he’s being placed beside an unstable S-rank Esper who could explode at any moment…”

“Well, it is true that my laboratory possesses matching test equipment akin to the agency’s official facilities, so if the reason is to find a matching guide more quickly, then perhaps it’s not so bad.”

As Doctor Sera murmured, sipping tea in the staff lounge, Philip shook his head.

“It’s rather difficult to assign Mr. Hans elsewhere, given that he hasn’t received professional security training. His Excellency Marquis Douglas Moore is constantly exposed due to his business and the royal palace, isn’t he?”

“It seems better for him to be by Lord Bliss’s side to avoid drawing attention.”

At this, Dale, who had been savoring his own cup of tea, offered a gentle smile. It was a knowing, significant smile, as if he understood everything.

Sera and Philip watched his face with curious eyes.

“…If everyone has enjoyed their tea time, perhaps it’s best to return to our duties. We’ll be heading back to Ashilton soon, and just organizing what to leave behind and what to take with us will be quite a task, won’t it?”

“Especially Lady Sera, I believe you ordered a great many instruments to be delivered here that couldn’t be kept at the Ashilton laboratory.”

Unfortunately, Dale offered no resolution to their curiosity.

“Dale! If you know something, please tell us!?”

“Dale, I am Lord Bliss’s personal secretary. I have a duty to know everything about him.”

“Haha, it’s not that I know anything, really. It’s just that lately, Lord Bliss has been spending quite a lot of time in the study with young Ethan.”

“…!!”

As the two briefly pondered Dale’s words, their eyes widened dramatically.

“Wait, just a moment! Dale, young Ethan is a civilian, isn’t he?!”

“Are you saying Lord Bliss is interested in young Ethan? But he’s supposed to share his emotions only with his Guide…!”

“Philip.”

“…Yes?”

“There’s something we occasionally forget, despite having served Lord Bliss for so long: Lord Bliss is also just a person. Are emotions ever truly so thoroughly planned?”

“Well, yes, but…”

“But Dale, this could become a serious problem. Lord Bliss is an Esper! No matter how pure his affection might be for a civilian, an Esper of Lord Bliss’s rank will treat a civilian like dirt the moment they meet their true Guide!”

“Lord Bliss can’t be unaware of that…!”

Dale ushered them out.

“Doctor Sera. ‘Dirt’ from an elegant lady such as yourself? Come, come, just consider it the delusion of an old man. What did I say?”

“You two are reacting as if Lord Bliss and young Ethan are about to start a romance right this instant. Let’s go. There’s much to be done. We also have a ‘treasure hunt’ to attend to.”

“…Oh, that’s right. The treasure hunt! That takes precedence over tidying up!”

Realizing she had overreacted, Sera sprang to her feet and hastily exited the lounge. Philip lingered a moment longer, but at Dale’s suggestion that he assist with his own tasks if he had nothing else to do, he quietly vanished.

After they had left, Dale poured himself another cup of tea and settled back into his seat.

‘Everyone treats Lord Bliss like a child left by the waterside…’

Clicking his tongue, he pulled a small, jade-colored pouch from his pocket, smiling contentedly.

He then murmured to himself, “Shall I go find another one?”

****

“Oh, my head is spinning!”

Ethan, having piled at least twenty pouches on Hans’s table for the ‘treasure hunt’—or rather, ‘pouch hunt’—collapsed onto the sofa. On the table, fabrics of beautiful colors, though not silk, were stacked, surely pleasing to Chilbok.

Having directly received Ethan’s guiding, Hans could now somewhat perceive the existence of the gwi that Ethan harbored. He had been shocked once by the realization that Ethan had perfectly deceived him all this time.

He was shocked again to discover that Ethan was a Guide capable of wielding power like an Esper.

The shock of learning he was a multi-guide was equally profound. Yet, once Ethan had divulged his secrets, he began making pouches for Bliss right in front of Hans, like an unbridled colt.

“…Ethan, aren’t you being a bit too obvious?”

Hans watched the exhausted Ethan, who had suddenly expended so much energy, with his arms crossed. His voice carried a fond exasperation, as if asking, ‘Is this why you finally confided in me, you rascal?’

“Lord Bliss Moore is offering 300,000 gid for each of Chilbok’s lucky pouches to whoever finds them. We’re returning to the capital tomorrow, so everyone will likely be searching all night for this ‘treasure hunt’ or whatever it is.”

“I need to get my share too! That way, I can earn enough for their food…”

“I told you I’d help with that. Since I’m now receiving your guiding, I no longer need to frequent the private agency, so of course, I should take care of it.”

“And it’s a much smaller expense. Your savings have also been secured by the sponsorship…”

However, Ethan was resolute.

“The more money, the better, Uncle Hans.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Oh, it’s wonderful that you know now, Uncle Hans. Our house feels like a secret hideout. I can feed the kids without worry. At the mansion, I had to be so cautious.”

“Oh, by the way, what about the relocation applications and such?”

Excited energies shimmered around Ethan as he subtly changed the subject. Faint fluttering and yipping sounds could be heard from somewhere.

“…Mr. Philip needs to remain by Lord Bliss’s side, so Mr. Dale has decided to stay here a little longer to handle things together. Doctor Sera will also be staying for a bit.”

“Since the mansion won’t be completely vacated, even if it’s hard for Lord Bliss, others will likely continue to come and go. But Ethan.”

“Yes?”

“You’re not planning to present twenty pouches and expect six million gid, are you?”

Ethan, with a slightly flustered expression, forced a hearty laugh.

“Ha, haha… I’m certainly tempted, but I know better than to do that. I’ll scatter ten and only take ten for myself. By the way, Uncle Hans, the villagers still don’t know, do they?”

“Of course, there’s no benefit in me announcing I’m going to Ashilton first. Ten, all by yourself?”

“…Uh, is that also, a lot?”

“Indeed it is.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

“……”

‘Damn it.’ Ethan muttered a low curse, grabbed five for himself, and trembled slightly.

‘I shouldn’t have made so many.’

****

“It seems like… someone is packing a lunchbox.”

Bliss murmured, looking down at the colorful small pouches nestled in a box. Scattered throughout the garden and mansion with Ethan’s ‘blood, sweat, and tears,’ these pouches, which had brought joy to the staff, were more numerous than any found in the mansion before.

“Ah, haha. Isn’t that great? This mansion ghost seems incredibly generous.”

“It’s as if they knew I wouldn’t be coming here for a while.”

“I-is that so?”

“You found the most, didn’t you? Five of them. And among those, the larger ones.”

Ethan, who had wondered if taking larger ones might earn him a bit more money, hid his flustered thoughts behind a laugh.

“Hahaha, they recognized me because I’ve been offering them tributes from the very beginning!”

Unable to say there were no such things as ghosts anymore, Bliss chuckled softly and surveyed the study.

“Dale will return the books borrowed from Morapolio City Library. I’ll leave the remaining materials here, so if you need anything, call Philip or Dale.”

“We don’t plan to vacate this place entirely.”

“Thank you. I’ll ask when you come down, if possible. How was it for you, Lord Bliss? Although this is a small village, wasn’t it good for a retreat?”

As Bliss closed the box lid, he paused, his movements halting at Ethan’s casual question.

“…Indeed. It was a proper retreat, more so than I expected.”

“Huh?”

Ethan questioned Bliss, who was reacting with surprise despite a retreat being his original purpose. Their eyes met.

As the blue and ash-grey heterochromatic eyes gazing at Ethan softened, Ethan’s heart seemed to plummet.

“So, we’ll see each other again in six months, then?”

“Uh… you’re on vacation now, but Mr. Philip said that in six months, Lord Bliss would be so busy it would be almost impossible to see you…”

This time, Bliss’s lips curved into a gentle smile. Ethan swore it was the first time he had ever seen such a mild expression on Bliss’s face.

“I’ll see you in Ashilton, six months from now.”

Ethan wondered why he suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

It was not long after Bliss left and the semester began that Ethan was horrified to hear that Bliss’s bodyguard, Hans Palmer, had taken up residence at Bliss’s private estate, citing ‘close protection’ or some such reason.