My Dream is to Get My Own House - Chapter 53

Episode 53

I raised an eyebrow.

[I have completed the tracking magic, so I will properly track that woman claiming to be “Diana.” What about you?]

“I will start with information gathering.”

Since earlier, I had been bothered by the fortune-teller who had been making strange prophecies about Diana.

The fortune-teller and Diana.

They had conflicting opinions about “Lady Diana.”

If the fortune-teller was a fake, then she was deceiving people.

If Diana was a fake, she was probably captivating people’s attention with dubious skills like black magic or curses.

I couldn’t make a hasty judgment yet.

Both of them could be fakes.

So, information gathering was necessary.

* * *

I knocked on Duke Saboia’s office door right away.

He had a contorted expression as if he had been agonizing over something for a long time.

“Duke, are you busy?”

“Oh, no, it’s fine.”

Without delay, I sat down in front of him and spoke.

“I’m curious about the fortune-teller you mentioned.”

“Oh… I’ve actually been thinking about that fortune-teller for quite some time.”

I discretely observed Duke Saboia’s reaction.

“Really?”

“I didn’t feel like she was lying. But all her stories about Diana were completely wrong, probably.”

I raised my chin and looked at his desk.

There were documents with information about Diana.

[1. Diana’s life record

-Born in the Imperial Calendar year 995 (currently 22 years old)

-Admission to Melic Academy: Graduated from the Department of Magical Administration

-Current status: Unmarried]

Certainly, what the fortune-teller said was different.

Then Duke Saboia mumbled, as if it was a joke.

“Haha, I don’t know if I can say this, but maybe she was right.”

Usually, this is when hidden thoughts emerge.

I perked up my ears and nodded my head.

“To tell you the truth, I keep having this strange thought that maybe the fortune-teller was right and Diana isn’t a fake.”

“Why?”

“Her memories are the same, and her appearance is similar. She passed my hypnosis, and that child proved she was Diana with the precious coral necklace of the family.”

“I see.”

“But maybe…”

Duke Saboia trailed off.

He didn’t say anything more, but I had a sense of what he wanted to say.

‘Like Claude, instinctively suspicious.’

I pondered deeply, raising my chin.

I had definitely caught the doubts on Diana’s side.

“No one can be objective when it comes to their own family matters.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

He sighed.

I decided to turn the topic to the fortune-teller.

“Then, do you happen to know anything about that fortune-teller?”

“Hmm… She seemed to like herbs. Especially fresh wormwood, which seemed to be something she liked.”

“Fresh wormwood…”

I tilted my head and added one more thing.

“Oh, by the way. Did she dislike people?”

“Come to think of it, she seemed a bit afraid of people. She probably had some trauma too. She was also a victim of the Million Theater Terror. Ah!”

“……Yes?”

“She dislikes people, but she enjoys getting a couple fortunes.”

That was enough information for me.

I turned my head, slightly tilted, and turned around.

Couple fortunes, huh?

What a stroke of luck.

After all, I am also a couple.

* * *

In front of Simon House, where the fortune-teller resided, Dylan walked briskly from the distant alley.

“I’ve come to get a couple fortune, so I left work.”

“Unauthorized early leave?”

“Unauthorized early departure.”

Dylan seemed to be resembling me more and more as an unplanned person.

“Yes…”

I awkwardly smiled and opened the door to the fortune-telling shop.

And I was taken aback when I saw the person standing in front of the door.

“I, I came to get a fortune.”

She was about 170cm tall.

A woman with disheveled silver hair sticking out in all directions stood in front of the brick house’s entrance.

An incredibly awkward dragon mask was loosely placed over her face.

Whenever she moved, strange herbs fell from her pocket with a rustling sound.

“Um, come in and have a seat.”

Dylan and I sat across the table he pointed to.

I could feel a chilling gaze beyond the holes of the mask the fortune-teller was wearing.

It felt as if I was being perfectly analyzed.

I stared at her intently and sniffed with my nose.

Even though it was clearly indoors, there was an intensely fresh herbal scent.

“The feeling of this room is definitely….”

It was then, as I was scanning the room.

The fortune-teller glanced at the crystal bead on the table and smirked.

“Hehe, heehee.”

“Why are you suddenly like that?”

The fortune-teller wrinkled her forehead and flicked the fan.

“Um, first, tell me your name.”

“Ishael Odette. I recently received a self-made rank.”

The fortune-teller pursed her lips and then placed her hand on the crystal bead again.

“Hmm… Then, the person next to you.”

“Dylan. I’m a knight of the palace.”

“Show your true status.”

I narrowed my eyebrows slightly.

‘Is this guy a complete fake?’

What if it’s not Diana but this person who’s the imposter?

Hmm, I made a sound and looked around the table.

There were counterfeit red diamonds, strange bone-like toys, and boxes filled with herbs scattered on the floor.

“It’s quite suspicious.”

I turned my back and looked towards the fortune-teller.

Just like how I saw strange illusions in Dylan, I could see peculiar illusions in the fortune-teller as well.

I couldn’t exactly tell what my ability was.

But I started to think that my current awakened ability was revealing people’s true nature.

“Excuse me, fortune-teller.”

“Hmm?”

She stared at me intently.

Being stared at so intently was incredibly uncomfortable.

“Why do you keep staring at me?”

“M-Me, when did I!”

After quickly wiping away the drool from her lips, she flicked the crystal bead in front of her.

“So, you have some questions?”

“Yes. It’s about Duke Saboia and Lady Diana.”

“Puhoo!”

“Why are you suddenly spitting?”

I put on a sullen expression and narrowed my eyes, pretending to be upset.

“From what I heard, you made various prophecies about Lady Diana.”

“Well, um…”

“Those prophecies, they’re fake, right?”

She almost rolled his eyes to the point where only the whites were visible.

“What nonsense! I never make false prophecies!”

“Are you sure? The actual Lady Diana is completely different from what you predicted. She’s not married, and she doesn’t have an obsessive husband.”

“What? Ha, unbelievable! Then that self-proclaimed Diana must be the fake one!”

‘Is this bastard telling the truth?’

I tilted my head and tried to determine the truth.

“…Is that so? Is the prophecy correct?”

“Yes!”

Observing the fortune-teller’s mask and the interior of the house closely, I suddenly got lost in a strange thought.

“It’s strange. It feels like I know something about this existence.”

But it was right at that moment.

The fortune-teller pointed at the crystal bead with a bewildered expression.

“I was going to read your fortunes, but ha! Look at this!”

I stared at the crystal bead he pointed at.

The crystal bead was burning so hot that it seemed red.

“It’s a red crystal bead.”

“It was originally blue!”

“Hmm?”

“As soon as I think of you two, it’s burning! It means that one of you is having dark, gloomy, and immoral fantasies every night!”

Instantly, my face turned red.

Since Dylan wouldn’t do that, could it be me who’s having immoral thoughts?

As I felt a prick in my conscience and rolled my eyes, I caught a glimpse of Dylan’s ears turning red.

He had undoubtedly sensed my immoral nature as well.

“But his body is cheating, Dylan.”

I gently patted the back of his head.

The fortune-teller pounded the table and began to scold Dylan.

“Hehe, heehee. It’s really serious!”

“Hmm?”

“This, this scoundrel! He used to be different, but he has become more and more corrupt, a piece of trash with increasingly filthy desires!”

“What?”

“It’s getting worse! This, this calls for summoning a god!”

What is he saying? He’s been saying the same thing all along.

The fortune-teller took out a white powder from his pocket and scattered it towards Dylan.

“Oh, gods! Please save this pitiful human-!”

I couldn’t bear it any longer.

“No, Dylan is not the kind of person you’re making him out to be!”

The fortune-teller stared at me with resentful eyes and suddenly stood up, kicking her feet in frustration.

“I told you everything for your sake!”

She exerted supernatural strength and dragged me and Dylan outside.

“Get out immediately!”

Bang!

The door closed in front of us.

I stood there with a bewildered expression.

“That crazy bastard. Talking nonsense! Right, Dylan…?”

Surprisingly, his face was red.

“…Hmm, Dylan?”