9

When in South Harbor, it was common to see the nobles from Seath Castle bringing their servants to the shops for shopping. They were always accompanied by someone who was clearly different from regular attendants but certainly not the master.

These individuals seemed to have a similar appearance - stern, serious, and meticulous. They all shared the characteristic of being knowledgeable scholars. Rather than being considered attendants of the nobles, they were more like advisors or counselors.

In the shops, whenever the nobles took a liking to a fine item, they would have these advisors carefully assess it. Only after receiving a positive response from these advisors would the nobles willingly open their purses. In the young boy's impression, these individuals never accepted bribes. He had seen the shopkeeper secretly slip money to maids or stewards, but never to these advisors who held a higher status than the maids and stewards.

The shopkeeper informed the young boy that these individuals were true scholars, with many even owning their own businesses. Just like the young master, Mr. Madeld, who was once a renowned noble's private secretary in Seath Castle. In South Harbor, many merchants established connections with nobles in this manner, as it was the quickest and most direct way to access the upper echelons of society.

The young boy was quite curious whether Audrey was also a successful merchant or of a more noble lineage. Audrey exuded a noble air, unlike Mr. Madeld. Audrey's expertise in horsemanship and swordsmanship was exceptional, skills that ordinary merchants wouldn't focus on. Merchants preferred traveling in carriages, as riding horses was not their preference. As for swordsmanship, it was reserved for duels, something merchants avoided by resolving issues with money.

Due to these observations, the young boy became increasingly convinced that Audrey was a descendant of a fallen noble family. The shopkeeper mentioned that these individuals, as noble private secretaries, were highly respected due to their noble lineage and often served as political advisors to the nobles. Their astute political guidance was something merchants lacked.

Audrey seemed intent on grooming herself as a noble offspring, evident from the difficulty and breadth of her history and politics courses. Seeing Audrey's satisfaction with his progress, the young boy finally mustered the courage to inquire about her intentions.

To the young boy's surprise, Audrey did not use the cane on him for asking. She revealed the organization's true nature - Mr. Hyde was the head of the Thieves' Guild in the sixteen southern provinces of Francia, known as the "Boss." Audrey was the orchestrator of the deceivers, known as the "Player," while Pam oversaw the city's thieves and Bazz was their leader.

Upon learning the organization's secrets, the young boy felt a chill, never expecting to fall into the hands of thieves. Despite his initial doubts about Bazz and the others, the sight of numerous books in Pam's room dispelled his suspicions. He realized he was caught in a tightly woven web.

Feeling overwhelmed, the young boy's training over the past month had ingrained most things deeply in his mind, making his actions almost instinctual and preventing major mistakes.

As he lay alone in bed at night, the young boy grew increasingly fearful. He knew he had to escape, feeling as though someone was watching him through the door crack or a knife-wielding figure was waiting by the window for him to fall asleep.

"I can't stay here any longer; I need to find a way to escape," the young boy thought to himself.

Quietly getting up, dressing, and opening the balcony window, he carefully climbed down the balcony railing. Upon nearing the ground, he made a silent landing. Contemplating whether to lead out the horse he had become familiar with from the stable first, he decided against it. Stealing Audrey's horse after all she had taught him would be unjust. Instead, he headed towards the back of the house, where a door was left ajar from the inside, eliminating the need to climb over the iron gate.

As he turned around, he suddenly saw Audrey and another middle-aged person standing expressionless behind him. They were dressed immaculately, indicating they had been waiting there for a while.

"Your patience is commendable; we've been waiting here for some time," Audrey said in a teasing tone.

With a creak, the door opened, and the butler emerged from inside wearing a nightgown.