Sebas was torn between whether to feign ignorance, lie, or deny it outright.
What if he said that she wasn’t in the residence? What if he said that he killed her?
Countless ideas ran through his mind but the possibility of them working was low. They would not retreat so easily. Though before that, he had to know one thing.
“But how did you come to the conclusion that it was me? Where is your proof?”
That was the part Sebas could not figure out. As long as he did not leave behind anything that would reveal his name or identity, there should not have been any evidence. Then how did they figure out this location? He was always careful of being followed whenever he was outside. He had trouble believing that someone who could tail him without him noticing existed in this city.
“The scroll.”
A flash ran through Sebas’ mind.
—The scroll that he bought from the Magician’s guild.
That scroll was definitely different from others in its impressive craftwork. Someone who knew what they looked like would recognize that his scroll was bought from the Magician’s guild. Then they could trace his steps and glean something out of it. A person dressed as a butler while carrying a scroll would be that much more conspicuous.
But even so, that still was not enough evidence to place Tsuare in this residence. He could argue that it was just someone who looked similar. The problem would be that things would get more complicated if they were to search the mansion. That’s right. They would be forced to admit that including Tsuare, only three people were living in this large mansion.
Sebas resigned himself.
“…It’s true that I brought the girl here with me. However, at that time the girl was severely injured and on the verge of death. I had no choice but to take her.”
“In other words you admit that you used money to trade for the girl?”
“Before that, may I speak with the man you arrested?”
“Unfortunately that will not be possible. We can’t have you two matching your stories.”
“Then—“
—I do not mind if you listen to our conversation.
As he was about to say so, Sebas closed his mouth.
In the end, this was a race that had been planned beforehand. There was little chance that the situation would improve even if he were to go to where the man was. Going on the offensive from this angle would only be a waste of time.
“…Then are you admitting to the fact that the girl was indeed a victim of those horrible injuries? From the government’s perspective, I feel that this would be considered worse—.”
“The work in our shop is pretty difficult. It can’t be helped if she were to get injured. You see that often with the mines and such, it’s the same.”
“…I do not think that the injuries you are talking about and hers are the same.”
“Hahaha, it’s the entertainment business but we get a lot of different customers. We try to be careful though. Well, I understand Sebas-san’s point. We will be a little— yes, a little more careful.”
“…a little?”
“Well, yes. Anymore and it costs money, here and there.”
At Sebas’ question, Succulent wore a mocking smile, the kind where only the corners of the lips curl upwards.
Sebas too, responded with a smile.
“—Enough.”
Stafan sighed deeply, like he was dealing with an idiot.
“My duty is to check whether or not there was a transaction involving slaves. Checking on how workers are treated is for someone else. It seems that this incident was not connected to slavery.”
“…Then could you tell me the name of the civil servant who is in charge of the working conditions?”
“…Hmm, I’d like to tell you but it’s complicated. Unfortunately, someone who interferes with another’s work isn’t very popular.”
“…Then please wait until then.”
Stafan grinned, as if he was waiting for those words.
“…I wish I could do that, I really do. But since the report has already been made, I have to arrest you people and investigate as soon as possible, by force if necessary.”
In other words, he had no time.
“Even now, looking at the circumstantial evidence, it’s obvious that you’re guilty. But the store wants to resolve the matter cleanly. Of course, there will have to be compensation depending on the agreement. And it’ll also be a little costly to destroy the false written report about the slave trading.”
“What is the breakdown, exactly?”
“Well, you see, we’re going to need you to return our employee to us along with compensation for the profit loss during the time she was away.”
“I see, and how much would that be?”
“In gold coins… let’s see here. Well, I’ll give you a discount, a 100 gold pieces and an additional 300 for compensation, making it 400 in total. How’s that?”
“…Quite a fortune, how is that broken up? What type of work does she do on a given day? How much of it?”
At that moment, Stafan interrupted him.
“Ah, wait a moment. That shouldn’t be all of it, Succulent-kun.”
“Quite so, I almost forgot. You mentioned that since a report has been filed, destroying the entry will require a fee even if we reach a settlement.”
“Of course, Succulent-kun. You can’t forget that part.”
Stafan grinned.
“…But.”
“Hmm?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
Sebas swallowed his words and smiled.
Succulent bowed his head to Stafan and continued his talk.
“Hmm, I apologize for that, Hevish-sama. Anyways, the fee will be a third of the compensation so a 100 pieces. In total, that will come out to 500 pieces.”
“I paid money back when I brought her here, is that part included as well?”
“What are you saying? Listen here, from the moment you agreed, you never bought a slave. In other words, the money involved in that transaction never existed. You probably dropped it somewhere.”
Did he expect Sebas to simply pretend that he dropped a hundred gold pieces? Well, they most likely already each took half.