Chapter 39 - Any Clue?

*Creak*

" ...Are you done flirting with each other? "

" Y-Young lady! I-I...! W-We are not doing such a thing! "

Gissel suddenly opened the door, peeking at Zio and Julia with an annoyed look. Julia is startled as she didn’t expect their conversation to be overheard by the young lady. As for Zio, he suspected Gissel for eavesdropping on their conversation. Regardless, thanks to her ‘loud’ misconception, the situation turns awkward and embarrassing for both the young man and the maid.

" E-Excuse me! Young lady, Sir Zio! " Julia excused herself all while looking down to the floor, avoiding any possible eye contact. Leaving Gissel and Zio staring at each other.

" Tch. Playboy. " Gissel sneered at Zio, soon after Julia is out of their sight.

" Excuse me?! "

" Get in. "

Zio entered her room and casually sit on her absurdly comfortable couch and laying his head back without asking any permission or whatsoever. Gissel also didn't bat any eye nor spew any words. She indeed, has already gotten used to his overly-relaxed, or rather, crude behavior.

" Alright, go on. Fill me in. " Gissel said while sipping her jasmine tea.

" Hmm... Where should I start... Ah, what about that time when I see you being all messy and bruised? "

" Watch your mouth, 33rd place peasant. You're talking to the exam's runner-up. "

That terribly backfired at Zio.

" Tsk. Well, what do you want to know then? "

" Hm. Let's start with your magic aptitude and capacity test. "

" ...About that, it turns out that I might be good at alteration magic and a little bit of earth magic. "

" ...Is that all? "

She let out a smug face while crossing her right leg onto her left, which is quite irritating for Zio to see. But to tell the truth, there’s a reason for her sassy whims. A really good reason.

" I bet you're doing no better. "

" Ha. You wish. But too bad, the fact is that I'm much much much much more capable than you are. "

" Oh yeah? How many then? "

" All eight of them. With a notable specialty in water, earth, and inner magic. "

Zio was shocked. She really is much more capable than him. But of course, there's no way he will say that out loud, Zio held himself in high regard after all. And he would rather be dead than giving the bow to the woman in front of him.

Rather than accepting his inferiority, Zio started to find imaginary reasoning to his defense. He is sure that her result was due to her well-nurturing environment, so that she can develop a various affinity towards multiple types of magic. In short, they are not on equal ground to begin with.

Yet, Zio decided not to say anything.

" But we're not currently talking about myself, right? Everyone is already aware of my beauty and talent. " Gissel continues her bragging.

" Sure. But I feel bad for them, as they're not aware of your hidden, nasty personality "

" Wha-! Ugh... I'll let it slide for now. Tell me about what happened after that. "

" ...My magic capacity is 3227. But that's because this 'mana combustion' thing that chipped away my ability to exert more of my mana. "

She looks a little startled as she suddenly stopped sipping her tea. Seemingly puzzled by something that Zio has said, she put her teacup and touches her chin with her fingers.

" That's weird. "

" Why? "

" You're really far below the minimum criteria. "

" And the minimum number is? "

" 14.000 "

‘Fuck’. A simple quick-response reaction that emerges in Zio’s head as soon as he heard about the minimum number. But then again, to cope with the surprise, Zio withstands himself with a self-reassuring conclusion. ‘The underlined point is that I passed the exam’. That's that, and that's what matters, he thought. It doesn’t matter whether one win by a kilomeitel or a sentimeitel, a win is a win.

But still, he couldn't help but feel curious about the achievement of other participants.

" W-What about yours? "

" 23.000 "

It was an instant thunderstruck. It was at this moment that Zio realized that he was a real lucky dog. He couldn’t comprehend how can the difference gap could be that wide between him and the others. He even started to think that the others might have access to something that he didn’t have to improve their performance.

" W-What about that Alex Milan? "

" Regrettably, I don't know the exact number either. But I heard he is somewhere around 30.000 "

That's ten times of Zio’s number. This is so absurd to him. ‘They must be doing something unfair’, Zio came to his self-centered conclusion.

" Was there anything like a mana enhancing item or juice or something? "

" Are you implying that we cheated the test? "

" Damn right, I am. Your numbers are absurd. "

" Huft. What a sore loser. Although it's true that there are things that can improve the amount, quality, and output of your mana, but the examiners will know right away if we attempted any misconducted means. "

As much as Zio wanted to boast about his magic aptitude and capacity test, but it turns out that it was clearly his loss this round. Yet, Zio didn’t fret as he feels that he triumphed over the first test! So, he can safely call it a tie.

" Oh, I almost forgot. What did they say regarding that mana combustion? " Gissel asked.

" ...It's severe but fixable. Though I don't know the details of it. "

" Well, that's a good thing. The treatment should've been expensive, but we have nothing to worry about, the royal government will cover for it. "

After that, there's a long silence between them. The young lady just casually laid back on her swinging chair like an old granny, while Zio still has something in his mind.

" Uh... Gissel? "

" Yes? "

" Was that all you want to know? "

" Hmm. I pretty much already know all the following events that happened after you stepped out from the gate. "

" ...YOU WHAT?! "

Zio didn’t expect that the girl was watching him all the time. He is sure that she had gone home and crawling straight for her tea right after the test. ‘Did she sent someone to stalk me again like she did in the sewer?’ Zio asked himself.

If that was the case, then Zio believes that either his senses have grown dull, or the one who has been following him is the real deal, unlike Albert and Julia.

" To think that you are hitting it with Julia right after you sleep with another woman the night before... What are you? A lustful pig? "

" I-I didn't sleep with her! " Zio yelled in his defense.

" Sigh. Control yourself a bit, will you? It seems I was right for not letting you stay here. "

" Seriously, I swear I didn't do anything to both of them! "

" Ugh! Stay away! Be at least ten meitels away from me! " Gissel kicked Zio’s face when he slammed the table, trying to cut a distance between his eyes and hers in hope she can tell that he’s not lying.

After that, Zio walked away and standing in the corner of the room as Gissel insists him to.

" There you go. Satisfied? "

" Hmm... To be honest, it would be much better if you are curling up towards the wall. Oh, maybe I need to buy myself a whip also. It would be better to have something to lash you with, in case you lose control of yourself. "

"I'm not your plaything! "

Zio would love to leave the room right away. But he needs information from her, so he will need to do as she says for now.

" Sigh. Alright, if there's nothing else, then it's my turn now. First thing first, you said you know everything that happened after the exam. "

" Mmhm. Pretty much. "

" Tell me everything you know about the noble family’s affair in the underworld. "

" Now that's a great demand. What will you give me in exchange? " Gissel sharply glared at Zio. But of course, Zio knows that there's a price in everything. Thus, he didn't come with the suggestion empty-handed.

" Premium Esylonian Tea. "

" W-Wha! "

Zio smiled at his victory after looking at Gissel’s sparkling eyes and drooling mouth. Seeing the golden-eyed lady easily fallen to his lure like a puppy, reminded Zio of Ana and her love for sweets.

" A-Are you being serious? " Gissel walked hastily towards Zio and quickly grabbed my shirt in trembling excitement.

" I-I'm a man of my words! Anyway! Aren't we supposed to be ten meitels apart?! "

" I-If you are lying, I won't forgive you! " She pushed her face close to Zio. The young man glad she was nothing like Bella or Julia. Else, her 'assets' would have touched him by now.

" Y-Yes! J-Just stand back a little! "

After Zio pushed her away, she sits back on her chair, regaining her composure.

" Uhm. W-Well... I think it's a fair trade. "

Truth be told, Zio actually doesn't have the item in question on him. The reason that makes him dare enough to propose the terms was because he saw Sir Frey and the doctor who took care of him in the Academy are sharing their tea time in the middle of my check up on the other day.

During that time, Zio ended up joining in their conversation. Talking about tea and stuff. That's how he came to know that their tea was of an exquisite quality. Who would ever thought that it would help Zio in such an unexpected way?

" Listen. This is an open secret between nobles. There are some of us who deal with the underworld. But the notable big players are Kamille, Souza, and Gustav. "

Zio kept himself quiet, listening carefully to what she has to say. Every word is a clue. Though the names she mentioned are the same ones as what Cecilia had told him beforehand.

" The main family doesn't know -or rather- pretending to know nothing about what their branches family are doing in the shadow. "

" There are twelve districts in Tel' Almus. Currently, Kamille owned three, Tursil, Arlys, and Solas. Meanwhile, Gustav owned four, Ilsburn, Olworth, Shetra, and Elsus. And finally, the Souza family, they owned the rest of all of the districts. "

Zio highlighted the terms 'currently', as it means that it doesn't always stay the same. The way Gissel chooses her words implies that there might be a turf war between these big families. Now that Zio knows that the Souza family is the biggest player around, he feels glad that he had made the right call to ask her.

" What about the cities outside the capital? "

" Hmm, I don't know the details but it's possible that there may be territorial disputes over those cities also. "

The shady activity under the kingdom’s brilliant light is truly structured and massive. But certainly not imperishable. Zio thinks that he only needs to bring powerful evidence to the surface and he’s sure the queen will take care of the rest given the prominent chance.

Yet, again, he’s thinking about how does the thought could even come upon his mind in the first place, when he himself certainly believes that he is not a hero from a fairy tale that went to shower dark with his light.

" ...What, how, and when are they doing the business? "

" Loan, shark, smuggling, 'fairy dust', black market, and so on. They mainly operate during the night in an old underground tunnel beneath the city, and some even make their base in the sewage. I'm sure that Bella girl knows a lot more about the details. "

Gissel has a point. Even though Zio had lived in the sewage for more than a year, He has hardly explored the entirety of it, because he had Ana to protect. But as for Bella, she occasionally told him that she's quite famous in her line of trade. Hence, Zio can surely dig something out of her.

" Okay, last set of questions. There's this kind of magical marking on the... Uhm, lower body of the girl that I met yesterday. Do you happen to know anything about it? "

" Ha. You sure 'explored' her well. " Gissel looked at him in disgust.

" Goddammit, just answer the question will you?! "

" ...I've heard of it before. It's a way for them to tag their 'possessions' right? I think the lecturers in the academy might've had a better idea about it. Or you can look for the one named Morgan. "

The heiress of the Rennes family is truly rich in information. A name is the greatest clue he could’ve ever ask. Now Zio knows what he must do. Yet, it would be nice if he had more light on his guy. Information such as; his hobby, temperament, way of speaking, health condition, and anything else that could help him get closer will be invaluable to learn.

" Got any advice on him? "

" Hmm... He's a little 'different', but extremely capable. Don't worry, you'll be fine. "

Although 'don't worry, you'll be fine' doesn't give Zio anything worth knowing in particular. But Zio guesses he can rest assured and rely on her testimony.

" Thanks, Gissel. Although that one wasn't a part of the trade, so I'm not obliged to give you any compensation in return. "

" Double the tea, or I'll work yourself to death. "

Zio sighed and wondering why the girl in front of him always have everything go as she wishes it to be. If the gods do exist, he would love to give them a lot of face slaps for the difference of treatment between him and her.