Elisha didn’t clarify that.
“Once the auction stopped, Carola, Arien and I went to the mayor’s office.”
“And?”
Elisha pointed to her shoulder nonchalantly.
“This made things easier.”
“What?”
“I told you before. The assailant dragged me into the storage room and tried to tie me up. The suspect must have been related to either Arien or Carola. This auction is so well known that they probably didn’t intend to kill me there. If things went wrong, they would have to take responsibility for it.”
The Seeds were terribly focused and listening to Elisha. She was typically taciturn, but as she explained, her timbre quivered with concentration and focus.
“Actually, it wasn’t that fatal. It was painful and I was dazed, but… … . It’s not a dire wound. As you all know.”
At those words, the Seeds choked up and cried,
“No, it’s not!”
“You bled so much!”
They seemed to want to insist that her wounds were severe. She didn’t understand why, but she didn’t argue the obvious fact, so she stayed quiet.
The Seeds wanted to hear more, so they became quiet again.
“So, what happened then, madam?”
“I pretended to be dizzy and grabbed the table and said the bleeding wouldn’t stop. Carola and Arien’s faces contorted.”
Carola and Arien looked like they wanted to stab her to death. But they knew that if Elisha died here, they would be held accountable. Besides, the Head was paying close attention to this auction.
‘Is this situation real? What if this crazy bitch really dies?’
Here, the two women began to lose their cool little by little. Arien was so anxious Elisha could see her whole body trembling.
“So I proposed a contest. The three of us decided to play a game to decide the winner.”
‘What will the Head say when he finds out that we have foolishly spent a fortune here?’
The Cartier family had so much wealth that it started to rot, but nonetheless, the family was crazy about capital. In a family that took killing for gold as a triviality, nothing more than a jest, wasting money was a crime punishable by death.
Carola then offered to play chess or a card game. Her scheme was obvious. Since Elisha was injured, her concentration would be lacking. Clearly, she thought she could win against her.
When Elisha heard that, her knees weakened, and she began to breathe heavily.
“So… … . You acted like you were dying?”
“Yes,”
she answered blankly as if it were of course. The Seeds looked at each other, at a loss for words.
Holding his breath, Lapis made eye contact with Corinne, who was stabbing his thigh with a look of not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
“They ended up agreeing to the game because they were afraid I would really die. So I proposed playing cards with the one who draws the highest hand wins.”
“… … Huh. But that would mean you’d have to rely on luck… … How did you win?”
“As soon as I entered the room, I scanned the table, and grabbed the table as if I was about to fall. While I was stumbling I drew a card. Luckily it was the Joker since I was bleeding a lot, there was blood on my palms.”
“Did you put blood on the joker card?!”
Lapis asked in an unsettled tone.
“Yes. It was easy because Arien and Carola’s minds were in a state of disarray. The cards were drawn in this order: Arien was a Clover 3 and Carola was a Queen. And I picked the Joker. Therefore, I bought the land at the price I wanted.”
“Hah- ha- oop… … .”
Lapis couldn’t keep his mouth shut, and Lazri was clapping silently. The rest of the Seeds also looked up in awe.
“Madam, I respect you,”
Corinne said solemnly with a heart heavy of sincerity.
After that, the Seeds boasted and praised her loudly. She was surprised at the earnestness of their words.
“Please stop it. I heard that the Black Lion Knights have a winning streak of victories. I’ve only succeeded once this time. Besides, compared to war, it’s trivial. So, if you keep saying that, I’ll be very embarrassed.”
Elisha was not used to such appreciation, as it was her first time receiving praise. So, without realizing it, she spoke severely with a bit of a chill.
But Elisha’s cheeks were faintly pink as she spoke. Upon witnessing it, the Seeds forgot the circumstances behind them and were moved by Elisha’s unexpected cuteness.
“Now, stop bothering her and leave.”
If Lucerne hadn’t spoken so irritably, evidently annoyed, the Seeds would have stuck by Elisha’s side forever. Then, resignedly, they left the room.
‘They are really naive. I guess even the Seeds, whose swords are soaked in the blood of the battlefield, have that kind of side.’
After all, you could only get to know people once you met them. The Seeds Elisha knew were undoubtedly pleasant, sweet people to have around.
Nevertheless, away from her eyes, as soon as the Seeds stepped out, their demeanour changed completely. Not long after, Lucerne also left the hotel room. They walked along with him with stern faces.
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