This House Has A Delicious Restaurant - Chapter 8 - Helper (2) - Part 3
“Why do you act so arrogantly, believing in something?”
“Well, my body, perhaps? Zerdan seems like the type to laugh it off. He might even enjoy making you frustrated.”
Khan, unable to firmly deny my comment, kept silent.
Yeah, you know your captain’s personality too, don’t you?
While I had an objective to see Zerdan, I also had a matter to discuss with Khan, so it was good timing.
There was no one around, and I assumed there wouldn’t be any CCTV here. Surely, they wouldn’t install listening devices in a place like this? Even if they did, it wouldn’t matter.
“It’s quite fortunate. I also have something to discuss with you, Khan.”
“Weren’t you here to meet the captain?”
“I have business with Zerdan and with you, Khan. You’re not too busy right now, are you? Let’s talk, Khan.”
“Should I call this audacity or recklessness…? I could kill you right here, you know. Aren’t you scared? What makes you act so arrogantly? If you’re just going to make jokes like before, I can kill you right away.”
“It wasn’t a joke… Don’t look at me so fearfully. I’m diligently carrying out the task Zerdan assigned me. If you were to kill me easily, do you think Zerdan would just leave you alone?”
Well, it’s not like Zerdan would impose a severe punishment or anything, but…
Khan seemed a bit concerned but couldn’t refute the point. He probably couldn’t interfere with what his superior had decided.
I gestured for him to sit across from me, and though Khan was annoyed, he took a seat on the opposite side.
“I came here to inform Zerdan of some information I managed to gather. But since the only way to contact you was through your shadows, I acted that way. I was uncertain, but fortunately, it seems this method of contact works. Can you hear voices, or is it only through written messages?”
“If I had used my ability on just one person, I might react to small things, but since I used it on multiple people, I don’t respond to voices alone. I reacted because I heard the captain’s name.”
“I see. Then, you wouldn’t hear sounds like when I take a shower or have s*x with Zerdan?”
“Why would I listen to such things? Besides, I can’t keep monitoring constantly.”
Khan’s reaction was quite indifferent, unlike how Terisier would have reacted with outrage.
Perhaps it was because he was older or because he knew about Zerdan’s relationship with me.
Khan’s response made me ponder for a moment.
From his answer and expression, it seems he hasn’t overheard the conversation from earlier at Obella’s house. It’s clear he doesn’t know about what happened with Anise.
“But I’ve been staying with Bella and his group, so wouldn’t it be better to keep monitoring? We might learn about their plans, abilities, or weaknesses.”
“I already have a good grasp of the abilities of the members of the hunter group. If something special comes up, we can gather information without needing you. Besides, those people wouldn’t disclose important information to an outsider like you.”
“Have you placed shadows on anyone else besides me?”
“No. To use my ability, I need to confront the person directly, and there’s no need for that.”
The fact that Khan could easily obtain information without setting up shadows suggests a lack of vigilance.
I smiled at the good news. It confirmed that this organization was unaware of Bella trying to recruit Anise.
Unless this was all a cunning lie… but judging from what I’ve observed so far, Khan didn’t seem like the type to lie skillfully. And his casual remarks made sense if we consider that someone else had been planted as a spy in Bella’s group.
Who could it be?
Excluding Bella, anyone was a possibility. It could be Terisier, or perhaps Phel from today, or even another ability user I haven’t met yet.
I wondered whether Bella knew about this or if he was just pretending not to know.
It was an intriguing situation.
“From what I’ve seen, Bella’s ability seems quite threatening. If they were to launch a surprise attack, wouldn’t it be dangerous here, even if there are many members of the organization? It looks like Bella is desperate to eliminate this place.”
“It would be a threat. But if you know in advance, it’s manageable. If you’re a spy, shouldn’t you be finding out such information and reporting it to us?”
“That’s right. That’s why I’m trying to get close to Bella. But since I also need to secure an escape route in case I’m discovered, I’m paying attention to your abilities. If I’m in a dangerous situation, can you come if I call Zerdan’s name? Or can you watch over us through the shadows?”
“If I wanted to watch over you, I could do it, but it would require using my ability strongly, which would increase the chance of detection.”
Khan moved towards the window and stared outside as if he had noticed something.
“If you came to see the captain, I can show you the way. Are you ready to go?”
“I’d be honored if you could guide me.”
Although I wanted to know more about Khan’s abilities, he seemed unwilling to provide more details.
It would be suspicious to dig too deeply, so I accepted Khan’s offer and stood up. The fact that he wasn’t constantly monitoring me was a significant gain in itself.
As I followed Khan out of the office, I saw a staircase.
There were two doors in the room, which I found odd, so this must have been the passage leading underground.
Descending the rusty iron stairs, I began to feel the damp air and a slight smell of blood as we went lower.
I don’t know how long we descended—perhaps the equivalent of two floors.
When we arrived, I saw many people lined up against the wall. As I approached, I noticed they were packed so closely together that it was uncomfortable, to stand in an unnatural straight line.
Their staring straight ahead was eerie, and on their chest below the collarbone, there was a golden flower pattern.
A familiar pattern.
It was the same kind of symbol that was branded on Diswen’s chest when he was affected by Zerdan’s abilities.
All these people had become puppets of Zerdan.
In the midst of them, I could also see Diswen.
“If the hunter group were to invade, they would have a hard time dealing with all these ability users.”
Khan muttered.
Obella had said that there were about five times as many ability users in their group compared to theirs, but that was a mistake. Far more ability users had become puppets, targeting their necks.
This was indeed Zerdan’s stronghold.
I went closer to Diswen and stared at her intently, but she only blinked her eyes and showed no other reaction. She didn’t seem surprised, so she must not have forgotten my face.
“She’s already a puppet brainwashed by the captain, so she doesn’t react.”
“Is she dead?”
“Yes. She was turned into a puppet before she died. She only follows orders and has no emotions or thoughts.”
“But Zerdan told Bella that Diswen wasn’t dead. Was that a lie?”
“Did the captain say that?”
“Yes. I heard him using the body of a puppet to talk to Bella. He said that he hasn’t killed her yet.”
I brought my fingers close to Diswen’s nose, but it didn’t seem like she was breathing. Her chest and body were completely still.
Did Zerdan lie?
If so, why? Perhaps to lure Bella and then deal with him?
It was a plausible thought.
However, I felt that Zerdan wouldn’t go through such trouble to deceive and would have just said from the start that Diswen was dead. If he wanted to find a body, he would have invited him or done something similar.
Khan, who seemed to understand my thoughts, approached and looked at Diswen. He hesitated, as if unsure whether he should speak.
“Well, you can ask him directly when you meet him.”
“…It seems like it’s not entirely impossible. Since you’re not outright denying it. Diswen doesn’t seem to be breathing right now, can you control such things?”
“I said you should ask him directly when you meet him. Don’t bother me.”
“If it’s difficult to answer, then there’s nothing I can do. Where is Zerdan? I don’t see him around.”
“He should be arriving soon. I’ve received a message.”
A message? I didn’t see him talking to anyone while I was out…
“So, Zerdan has a shadow attached to him as well?”
“…Sometimes you seem like the female version of the captain.”
“Is that a compliment?”
“Not exactly. It’s equally annoying.”
At that moment, a large shadow appeared on the floor in front of me.
Seeing Khan casually walk towards it, I followed, thinking it might be Zerdan.
As expected, a large shadow took shape, revealing two men: Zerdan and a man I hadn’t seen before.
They looked at Khan, who was in front of them, with familiarity, but when they saw the unfamiliar person behind him, they looked surprised.
Only the stranger seemed surprised; Zerdan was smiling.
“It’s nice to see a familiar face in our home.”
“Welcome back.”
Ah, this is soothing.