“That’s a valuable way of collecting information. Plus, this stuff is perfectly legal to view and copy if you have the qualifications and status. Using it for unintended purposes can land you in deep trouble, but…I’d appreciate it if you could pretend you never saw that part. Let’s see here…” Hector turned the page. “Is this a victim report? It looks like she was a victim of fraud.” “What’s it say?” Nick asked. “The real estate agent she was working with when she was trying to open a classroom scammed her out of close to five million dina. She’s running a dance classroom now, though, isn’t she? She has to be getting money from somewhere,” Hector said. “Are you implying she might be in debt?” Nick asked. Hector nodded. “I highly doubt she got her money back from the scammer, so it’s possible. If she is borrowing money, we’ll want to find out how much and whether the lender is reputable.” Nick was getting worried. This was a lot of information for Karan to take in at once, and she might storm out to question Daffodil about everything directly. That was more trouble than he wanted to deal with. To his surprise, however, Karan remained calm and asked Hector a question. “Can you find out if anyone bad is following her?” “Of course. I’m just getting started here; the meat of my job is after this,” Hector answered. “And you didn’t see anything about a marriage or a family, did you?” “It’s possible she just didn’t submit a marriage certificate. Some people see submitting paperwork as unnecessary because of the marriage customs of their clan. I’ll look into that, too.” “Please,” Karan said, not letting herself get flustered. “I should tell you it’s more than possible this could turn out to be nothing. It’s far from unusual for a business owner to take out a loan. The fact that she overcame her troubles and is working hard is actually a sign she’s doing well,” Hector said. “You’re a surprisingly good guy,” Karan responded. “Right?” Nick agreed keenly. “Hey, what do you mean by ‘surprisingly?’” “Don’t worry about it,” said Nick. “What about the other two?” “There’s too much information about Jewelry Production to really glean anything. Finding the necessary information will be a challenge. Give me time. So…I’ll start with Garos.” Hector cast Bibliosearch again, but only one binder flew toward him, bringing up nothing but adventurer files. There was much less information on Garos than there was on Daffodil. “What in the world? There’s barely any info about him at all,” Nick said with some relief. Hector looked grim, however. “…That’s strange.” “Is anything bothering you?” Nick asked. “I know about Garos. You complained about his bad habits with booze and women all the time, and how he would take out advances from the party wallet before you received your rewards,” Hector said. “Yeah, I remember,” Nick replied. “A guy like him should be mentioned in more records. I’d expect to see that he got arrested by the Sun Knights after getting in a drunken fight or that he failed to return a loan and hurt his credit score. But I’m not getting anything like that.” “Is that really so surprising? I wouldn’t even expect the crooks living in the Garbage Heap would show up in many documents.” “The people in the Garbage Heap don’t emerge if anything happens to them. There’s usually a decent amount of info on them from before they move there, though. Garos is mentioned in my database even less than the average Garbage Heap resident.” “It still doesn’t seem that weird to me…” “Has he paid you any sudden visits recently? Strike it rich out of nowhere?” Nick laughed awkwardly, but then he noticed something—Hector was serious. He wasn’t joking around or trying to scare him. “Listen up, Nick. There are two types of people who have no public records: those who never go outside because of a sickness or some other reason and those who excel at hiding and falsifying information,” Hector said. “I wouldn’t expect Garos to fit in that latter camp… But he is cautious,” Nick admitted. “I’m disappointed I have so little info on him. I thought my records on adventurers were exhaustive.” “Getting no information still tells us something, though. You just explained how weird it is.” “That doesn’t make it any less frustrating. I pride myself on having a perfect library… I need more data,” Hector said. The word data reminded Nick of something. “Oh yeah, I have something interesting. I’ll lend it to you for you to read,” he said, fishing through his pocket and pulling out an item. “What’s that…? Oh, it’s a knowledge orb. What’s in it?” Hector asked. A knowledge orb was a gem with information from books and documents stored inside. This was the one containing past issues of Lemuria Monthly that Bond had given him. “Past issues of an occult magazine,” Nick answered. “Why would you waste a knowledge orb like that? Do you have any idea how much these cost?” Hector sighed as he took the knowledge orb from Nick. “I know it sounds crazy, but there might be some legit information in there. Analyze it when you have a chance,” Nick requested. “Eh, I guess I don’t mind. Anyway, are you gonna be okay? If Garos is guilty of what he’s being accused of, you’ll probably end up fighting him. Didn’t you say he’s a skilled fighter?” Hector asked. Leon’s words resurfaced in Nick’s head. What stood out was his unusual fighting skill…and how comfortable he was with killing. “…Yeah. I can vouch for his strength,” Nick answered. “This is a shady situation you’ve gotten mixed up in. Be careful,” Hector said. “You don’t need to tell me twice.” Nick suppressed a shudder. The sun was setting when Nick and Karan left Hector’s office. Streetlights were beginning to pop on, but the scarcity of lights around the detective office, the red sky, and the shadows cast by the surrounding buildings combined to create a strange, dark atmosphere in the immediate area. It was still early for dinner, as was apparent from the amount of pedestrian traffic made up of people leaving work. Nick and Karan had been on their feet all day, however, and couldn’t wait for restaurants to open at night, so they bought food at a stall and ate as they walked. They were both carrying a grilled octolegs as a snack. It was made by covering the legs in a mixture of wheat flour and water, then grilling them. The food was beloved by everyone in Teran, from the rich to the poor. “Man, if you dunk one of these in some soup and smother it in cheese, it’s so damn good,” Nick remarked. “Isn’t it? A stall on Hammer Alley pioneered that recently,” Karan said. “Ah, that’s hot…,” said Nick, gasping as he burned his mouth. Karan laughed at him. Nick could tell that Karan was worried about him. She was being kind, but not in the simple way she was earlier when she was worried about what she should say; she knew she didn’t need to say anything and was comfortable with that. “You’ve matured a lot recently,” Nick said, causing Karan to choke. “Wh-whoa, are you okay?” “Th-that was your fault! Don’t say things like that out of nowhere! Geez…” Karan swallowed the rest of the octolegs in her mouth and collected her breath. She then timidly asked Nick a question. “How have I matured?” Nick looked away, too embarrassed to answer honestly. “Uhh… Well, Hector comes across as kinda shady, but you were able to remain calm and give him what he needed to know.” “Oh, that…” Karan sighed, sounding both disappointed and relieved. “I really mean that. Can you not tell how much you’ve grown?” Nick asked. Karan put a hand to her chin and thought. She spoke slowly when she realized how to respond. “You told me to imagine humans having tails and think about how they would move.” “Yeah, I did.” “So I followed your advice and tried it. I thought about how his beast ears and tail would move if he had them. Imagining that as I talked allowed me to put off my feelings for later.” “For later, huh…?” “I thought that smart people, and cunning people like Leon, were totally different creatures than me. But…then I realized that everyone has things they want to do, things they don’t want to do, and things they want to do but don’t understand. Once I figured out that everyone has that in common—even people who are nothing like me—I became able to picture how humans’ ears and tails would move. I was focusing all my attention on watching Hector’s.” Karan’s words sent a chill down Nick’s back. He’d had a similar feeling at Pot Snake Cave—that Karan was breaking out of her shell. He wondered at the mystical moment when she would finally cast it away entirely; would she emerge as someone brilliant and promising or as someone strong and terrible? “How did Hector’s ears and tail move?” Nick asked. “He had the tail of someone who was disappointed their hunt failed but didn’t want anyone to know it. He was trying to keep it high but couldn’t stop the tip from drooping,” Karan answered. “You’re making him sound weirdly cute,” Nick said, chuckling. Karan wasn’t trying to be funny, though, and she continued speaking. “I think…he felt a little embarrassed, too. You helped him in the past, right? He saw a chance to repay the favor, and when his search failed, he was hiding his disappointment.” “I dunno if Hector’s that considerate of a person…,” Nick said. But I don’t feel like she’s that far off the mark. Karan might not have been right about every detail, but Nick thought it was likely that some unconscious part of Hector did feel guilty. He’d complained to Hector about Combat Masters a decent amount, and the literary-minded detective had always agreed with his feelings. It was probably true that Hector felt sympathy for Nick when he was kicked out of the party and thought about either offering help or trying to place him in his debt. But then something unexpected happened—Nick formed a new party with surprising speed and resumed work as an adventurer. “We’ll have to make good use of him, then,” Nick said. “Yeah,” Karan agreed. “So, Karan. How’s my tail…?” Nick trailed off, deciding that no good would come of asking that question. Would he be able to lead Karan if she saw his feelings of hesitation? His feelings didn’t matter anyway; they knew what they had to do. Find the demon-god worshipper selling counterfeit tickets and catch them. Shit, that’s exactly what Leon was talking about. My softness will get me killed if my goal is to catch them, Nick thought. He couldn’t show mercy, even if the demon-god worshipper turned out to be Garos. No, especially if they turned out to be Garos. All he needed was the resolve to do what needed to be done. If killing was his last resort, he wouldn’t get the job done. He needed to be like steel and make killing the goal. How much damage would it do if he made Karan anxious because she saw his lack of resolve? Nick felt a wave of embarrassment and looked away from Karan. “Never mind. Let’s go back to the inn and rest.” “Nick,” Karan said. “I said it’s nothing,” Nick answered without turning around. “Hey! Nick!” Karan called out, grabbing his shoulders and pulling him back. Nick stopped walking but didn’t turn around. “Hey, what gives? That hurts.” “I’ve…always wanted to know what you’re thinking,” Karan said. “It’s not anything important. Let’s go home,” Nick repeated. “I act like an awkward, clumsy fool around you all the time. Not even my parents have seen that side of me,” Karan said. “Where the hell is this coming from?” Nick didn’t hide his irritation, and Karan faltered for a moment. But she didn’t stop talking. “I’m telling you that I have nothing left to be embarrassed about. I was tricked and left to die, and even then I thought it must have been some kind of joke. Who would be that stupid?” “Come on, Karan! How many times do I have to say it?! You’re not an idiot! Don’t use that as an excuse to justify the things you can’t do!” Nick shouted. “Then look at me!” Karan shouted back. “What do you want?!” Immediately, Nick regretted raising his voice. He calmed down, afraid he might have hurt her feelings. “Wait, huh?!” But as soon as he relaxed, Karan reached out and grabbed his arm. She was imitating Nick’s signature move, which he’d used to lock Nargava’s arm joints. “Hey… Amateurs shouldn’t try joint locks! You’ll break something!” he yelled. “Then teach me how to do it!” “Is this really the way to ask me?!” “Please teach me!” “Okay, okay! Let me go!” Karan released Nick, and he cursed. He took a breath and lifted his head to find himself looking right into Karan’s eyes. They were beautiful, reminding him at once of jewels and flames as they quivered before him. “I have nothing left to hide. Nothing I’m scared of other people learning about me. Are you okay with learning other people’s secrets but not sharing yours? Do you suddenly think of yourself as some kind of hero?” Karan accused. “You’re the one who’s been pushing me to become a hero all this time,” Nick shot back. “I only meant you should become a hero if you have the opportunity. I’m not searching for a hero anymore anyway,” Karan declared. She startled at her own admission, but then she met Nick’s gaze again and continued. “You’re not a hero. You’re just a regular person.” “…That’s right. I’m just one fragile man.” “Yeah. You taught me how to lie. How to see through a lie, too. You even taught me how to cover it up when you get stubborn and make a mistake. You’re a dishonest person who can’t do anything on his own. You and everyone else.” “So?” “Say something.” “Say what?” “I don’t know. I have no idea what you’re thinking or hiding. Share something with me.” Nick’s instinct was to tell her to back off, but he couldn’t say it. Her eyes scared him as she stared straight into his. “You always keep your worries inside. You try to do everything by yourself, even when Tiana gets mad at you and I tell you not to charge ahead alone. I was wondering why you do that. So I wasn’t trying to act mature just now. I was thinking about how I want to know more about you,” Karan said. Nick had a realization at that moment. “I don’t want you to just lead me around by the hand all the time. I want us to be true partners,” Karan continued. He knew that Garos, Leon, Nargava, and all the other liars he had met wouldn’t have been able to withstand those all-seeing eyes Karan was giving him. Nick also realized he was at a fork in the road. There was a line on this dark and shabby street where they were standing right now, snacks in hand beneath an evening sky changing from blue to red. If he crossed that line, there was no going back. The road to becoming a true liar was so tempting. He could ignore the things he didn’t want to see or excuse his way out of dealing with any kind of undesirable situation by saying he simply didn’t notice it, that it wasn’t his problem. If he put all the skills he’d cultivated to use, he could race off into the night and continue turning a blind eye to his own pitiful flaws. “…I know I’ve always talked a big game with you. But that doesn’t mean I’m gonna share everything. There are things I don’t want to share, specifically because of our friendship,” Nick said. “How could I have known that?! Actually, I’ve known that for a while!” Karan responded. Like Karan said, Nick had no right to act this way after all he’d said to the party. He’d never had any qualms in the past about setting aside his pretensions and showing them the most pitiful sides of himself. “I figured… I think everyone’s the same way,” Nick said. “We all have something we try to keep to ourselves, no matter how obvious it is to others. Even if our secret’s exposed, we keep lying and pretending we’re doing just fine. We even take pride in our ability to get by with lies. Life is easier that way.”
Chapter 70
15 min read