The Arranged Suitor Was the Kidnapper

You don’t really intend to break it, do you?

They say the black wolves are great with their combat, but it’s an iron gate, after all.

Solike, who couldn’t voice his doubts, had his eyes shaking uncontrollably. Could it be?

Solike looked at Laria, who was thinking the same thing.

Is this a joke?

He asked with his eyes, but Laria responded with silence. Zenox had already broken a bank vault door before.

While opinions were leaning toward breaking the iron gate, a crow that had been sent for reconnaissance returned. Upon hearing the crow’s report, Solike urgently gestured with his hand.

“We might not need to break it!”

“How do we enter then?”

“It seems that individuals resembling Marquis Hashir’s subordinates are approaching the village right now. Let’s follow them in.”

Laria agreed with Solike’s suggestion, as it was better to enter without leaving any traces.

‘Should I use a concealment spell to hide our appearance when we follow them? It might cost a bit of jewelry with the three of us.’

As Laria pondered her options, Zenox, who had been silent for a while, asked Solike:

“How many of them are there?”

“What?”

“The people approaching the village.”

“Oh… It’s three.”

Solike replied hesitantly, and Zenox raised an eyebrow.

“If we pretend to be those people and enter the village, it should work. We can just take their clothes.”

Solike’s eyes widened. Not only was he strong, but he was also clever?

Zenox, who quickly understood what Solike was thinking, smirked.

“You’re not very cunning for a crow.”

Solike was initially shocked but then closed his mouth. If he had three lives, two of them had already been used at the auction house; he needed to be cautious.

With a rough plan in mind, the three of them immediately left the forest and headed toward the village.

Just as Solike had described, some suspicious individuals appeared.

Strangely, they were dressed in white robes with hoods. One of them inserted a large key into the gate’s keyhole.

Click!

A dull sound echoed as the massive iron gate began to open.

Now that their goal had been achieved, Laria tried to stun them with a spell, but they fell down all at once like straw dolls hit by a sword. Zenox struck the nape of the necks very quickly and accurately.

Laria and Solike could only watch in amazement as he effortlessly defeated all of them.

Zenox calmly removed the white robes, saying:

“I’ll handle anything that doesn’t require magic.”

“Are you not interested in mercenary work?”

You’re going to scoop up the money with a pitchfork.

Solike eventually revealed the greed he couldn’t hide.

“Do I look like I’m short on money?”

“Well, working together as lovers could strengthen our relationship…”

Zenox, who had laughed at Solike’s words, began to seriously consider it.

Solike, who figured out how to persuade Zenox, rubbed his palms.

“If you work together, our reputation will grow and your affection will become stronger.”

Laria, who had been watching quietly, couldn’t bear it anymore and intervened.

“Is now the time for this?”

Hearing her words, both of them quickly took action.

Laria stripped the white robes from the unconscious individuals and meticulously concealed their hair inside the hoods.

‘Wearing white robes might attract attention in the village.’

Why did they come dressed like this? Is there some special meaning behind it?

While they discussed, Zenox had completely opened the iron gate with one hand.

As they entered the village, Laria surveyed her surroundings.

Despite appearing peaceful from the outside, the village felt different once they were inside. The atmosphere wasn’t relaxed, but rather somber due to the absence of people. There were only middle-aged women on the streets, with no sign of men or young women.

‘They mentioned that the mine was closed, so maybe everyone left for work elsewhere?’

Despite the giant iron gate opening, the villagers paid it no mind. To them, Laria’s group was invisible due to the magic.

As Laria and her group entered a certain radius, the villagers noticed them and approached.

“Have you come already?”

“It hasn’t even been a month.”

As if they were acquaintances, the villagers were the first to strike up a conversation. Laria simply nodded her head, and the villagers bombarded them with questions.

“How is our son doing…?”

“When will my husband return…?”

Laria didn’t know the relationship between the robe-wearing individuals and the villagers. Based on their questions, it seemed like they might be informants.

Fearing that they might slip up, Laria remained silent. However, an elderly man scolded them.

“You don’t need to keep asking questions! Stop bothering them.”

Thanks to his reprimand, the villagers fell silent. After a moment of silence, a woman holding a child cautiously asked:

“But why have you come today? Most people have no reason to leave for work…”

Could they be intermediaries trying to secure jobs instead of informants?

While Laria was trying to grasp the situation, Solike stepped forward.

“We’re here for another matter. Please don’t worry about us.”

The people nodded in acknowledgment and soon dispersed to attend to their own tasks. Their trust in these newcomers seemed strong, as they didn’t seem to have any particular doubts.

Only a young girl, clutching a rabbit doll, remained behind as everyone else left.

“Mister, is my brother okay?”

Upon hearing the girl’s question, both Laria and Solike exchanged glances.

Under normal circumstances, Solike would have spoken up, but this time, he silently stared at the child as if searching for something in her face.

Laria, who had an idea of what Solike was thinking, decided to ask on his behalf.

“Your brother… Who was he?”

“My brother’s name is Jaden.”

Naturally, they had no way of knowing.

When Laria remained silent, the child mumbled sadly:

“He said he would come back after sleeping for ten nights…”

“I’m sorry. We’re newcomers. When did your brother leave?”

The child began to chatter without any suspicion.

“Oh, it hasn’t been a hundred nights yet… He said he’d come back with a lot of money. Last month, he even sent me this doll!”

“…Did anyone else leave to earn money besides your brother?”

The child blinked in surprise, as if wondering why they didn’t know. Soon, she must have remembered that Laria was a newcomer, nodded and replied:

“The guys who came before sometimes took people with them. Laura’s dad next door and Senette’s sister also went to work.”

“Who came back?”

“Uh…”

The child’s eyes widened as if she had realized something surprising.

“Um… No one?!”

A chilling sensation ran down their spines.

Laria instinctively looked at Solike. He had his hood securely in place, concealing his face, but she could sense something in his expression.

Solike clenched his fist, unable to contain his anger.

Zenox, who noticed that his condition was unusual, immediately pulled Laria to him.

Zenox, who had locked Laria in his arms, was on edge as if he would beat Solike down if he did something strange.

But Solike didn’t move.

Solike, who was chewing his lip until it bled, couldn’t hold back and swore.

“Those damn bastards…”

His anger seethed with every word he uttered.

When connecting all the pieces of evidence, it seemed that the people in white robes had promised job opportunities to the villagers, taking them away from the village.

As for the girl’s brother and the others, they might have become sacrifices for forbidden magic.

The child, unaware of the truth, still gazed at Solike with hopeful eyes, clutching the rabbit doll that she believed her brother had given her.

“…”

A feeling of extreme helplessness cast a shadow over them. Solike, who he thought had already moved on, was still haunted by his past.

-Brother Solike.

The voice whispering in his ear was so vivid.

“Hailey…”

Solike muttered a lovely and painful name.

It was both his sister’s name and the name of the only trace left behind by someone who no longer existed in this world.

As he uttered the name, he recalled the most unforgettable memory of his life, the event that had made him despise forbidden magic more than anyone else

The day when he became deeply entwined with Laria Rohan.