The Guide Played Her Role as a Stand-in a Little Too Well - Chapter 215
Thinking about her ruthless demeanor when working, I couldn’t help but feel grateful that Shaelock was on my side.
“I didn’t expect even the emperor to be in on this,”
Shaelock muttered, while Christopher, who was hovering around her, cleared his throat to remind everyone of his presence.
“If Shaelock hadn’t summoned me in advance, it would have been a disaster!”
Shaelock replied, picking her ear nonchalantly.
“Yes, yes, thank you.”
“If you understand, you should visit me more often…”
Christopher said, sounding a bit hurt. Ignoring their bickering, I finally got a clear view of Cayden’s face.
…His bruised face hardly resembled Cayden at all.
He looked filled with rage.
“…Did Lord Esban hit you?”
Realizing that Cayden had orchestrated everything, it was understandable to be angry. I was just surprised because I didn’t expect it from Esban.
“…Absolutely not!”
Seeing my face, Esban vehemently shook his head, looking quite indignant.
“That was me.”
Christopher, standing behind Esban, raised his hand.
“I couldn’t bear to see my descendant disgrace the family name. It’s a good thing Esban was there, or who knows what might have happened.”
Christopher slowly turned his head towards Esban.
Esban avoided Christopher’s gaze and cleared his throat. His ears were bright red, indicating he was genuinely embarrassed by the praise from the ancestor of the Cairoze family.
“I didn’t do much to deserve such high praise.”
“No, I don’t think so. It’s clear that the time has passed when successors were chosen solely based on bloodline. We must not view it that way anymore.”
Christopher, thinking Esban wasn’t taking his words seriously, continued passionately.
“Christopher, if you want me to summon you more often, resolving the current situation should come first. Understand?”
Shaelock, unable to watch any longer, stepped in from behind.
“Ah, understood.”
At Shaelock’s words, Christopher finally came to his senses and nodded. Seeing Christopher’s dejected face made me smile even in this serious situation.
Shaelock, concerned about me, kept checking my condition.
“Karina, are you hurt anywhere?”
“I think you should check on yourself more than me, Lady Shaelock.”
Shaelock nodded at my words.
“That’s true. I did ingest poison.”
“What?!”
“I always knew my foolish father would cause trouble someday, but I never expected him to try and backstab me by teaming up with Cayden Cairoze.”
Shaelock muttered in a grim voice.
“Anyway, it seems we can use this opportunity, Cayden Cairoze.”
Shaelock turned her gaze towards Cayden, who was leaning against the wall of the adjacent building.
“No matter how powerful the S-class espers are, it won’t be easy.”
Despite his battered face, Cayden replied with the same defiant tone.
“That might have been the case for the old us.”
“……”
“Before we met Karina.”
…Why is my name coming up here? I blinked in confusion, not understanding.
“We had indeed grown accustomed to monsters far too weak compared to our abilities,”
Pheon said, having approached us unnoticed. Around him was a barrier of blue flames, creating a state where approaching was impossible due to the intense heat. A truce had been achieved.
“Training for a long time wasn’t for nothing,”
Esban muttered, holding his sword and staring at Cayden.
“I will somehow make amends for my father’s mistakes.”
His words conveyed a strong resolve.
“It seems that Hedonia and I will have to play the biggest roles,”
Shaelock said, stepping forward with her hand raised. Her summoned creatures gathered around her.
“I will send my summons all over the country,”
Shaelock continued in a clear voice, as if explaining the plan to Cayden.
Honestly, I was surprised hearing that.
Could Shaelock’s summons really travel across the entire country?
Noticing my astonished face, Shaelock looked at me and smiled.
“I told you, I’ve been working hard.”
“…I didn’t know it would be to this extent.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
Shaelock smiled broadly.
Hedonia placed a hand on my shoulder from beside me.
“Your role is more crucial than anything, Karina.”
“I’m ready.”
