Chapter 8: Christy Raheel
Lumin knew two of the people called out by the voice and thought, "Lewis Lund... Hams Lawn... they're still in the club? Then who is the third person? Did he decide to withdraw before this trip?"
He sighed and then moved forward to reach the front.
He stepped over the damp ground while watching the people around him forming their teams. He was not surprised that his name had been called by the voice, since he had been a core member before leaving the club.
After five minutes of walking, he felt someone approaching him. He noticed a girl beginning to walk beside him.
He tried to ignore the girl for a few minutes, but in the end he gave in to his curiosity and turned his head to look at her.
He noticed that her golden hair was tied back, flowing down to the middle of her back, shimmering faintly under the sunlight. She wore a white women's dress with simple purple decorations intertwined into it, a dress simple in design but beautiful, and one that restricted quick movement more than it protected.
Her graceful body caught Lumin's attention, and without meaning to, his mind drifted for a moment as he thought, Beautiful.
The girl was carrying a large rectangular bag. Lumin ignored the bag and turned his gaze to her face, but he could only see one side of it.
He was even more surprised that she had joined a hunting trip like this. Her beauty made him think she was a noble girl, someone who had no place among forests and difficult journeys.
The girl noticed that Lumin was looking at her, so she gave a faint smile and then turned her head toward him.
Lumin was stunned by the clear burn mark in the girl's eye, but he hid his shock from his face. This was not the first time Lumin had seen deformities on people, but he had not expected such a beautiful girl to bear a burn like that.
He breathed calmly before speaking in a respectful tone. "I'm Lumin, from the northern district of Flansia City. I assume you're Christy?"
Lumin assumed the girl was Christy because her name was the only one the man had shouted.
The girl spoke in a soft voice and said, "Yes, I'm Christy Russell, from the western district beside Lonet Café."
"May I ask a private question?" Lumin wanted to start a conversation with Christy as one of the people chosen by Lomet and spend some time understanding her personality so he could know how to deal with her in the coming days before they reached the front.
Christy remained silent for a while, while her lips trembled as though she already knew what Lumin was going to ask.
"He acts respectful at first, but he is no different from the others. How foolish I was to think there was someone else..." Christy thought to herself before answering Lumin in a voice devoid of emotion. "Go ahead, you may ask."
"What made you come on the trip?"
Christy smiled, unable to control herself, then sighed and said, "Ah, are you not going to ask about the burn in my eye?"
Lumin replied directly and without lying, "I was going to ask about it... but I noticed your lips trembling a moment ago."
He sighed lightly before continuing, as though he understood what it meant. "I believe every person has their own circumstances. It is rude for any stranger to interfere in someone else's affairs, especially in something as painful as this."
"But as hunting companions, I think it is better for us to know each other's reasons so we can understand one another."
Lumin raised a hand over his shoulder and said in a light tone, "Maybe in the future I can ask about the burn."
Christy lowered her bag and said, "I don't know... in the past I would have said I wanted to prove myself, but that is a childish reason..."
Christy took a bow out of her bag and continued, "The Russells are a family that built their glory through archery skill... In the past I would have said I do not care what they think of me, and that I want to prove to myself that the burn will not hinder me... but no matter what I do, the burn will not disappear, and my past will not change. It came because of a whim..."
Lumin thought to himself while watching Christy's movements, "Clearly, she wants to prove herself... That will be difficult... That's why she is wearing this robe; she has no experience in close combat... and she lacks the money or the permit needed to take a rifle, or perhaps she is better at aiming than at shooting."
Lumin could not stop himself from asking in a calm tone that hid his suspicion, "Then wouldn't it be better to use a rifle? I assume you no longer belong to them... you know what I mean..."
Christy nodded confidently while putting the bow back into the bag. "Yes, that's true... In truth, the rifle is powerful within a certain range, and better than arrows... but it is not practical beyond its range compared to a bow."
Lumin thought to himself, "The bow is slower, but its range can reach many times that of the rifle... So she is telling me she exceeds 100 meters in accuracy? It's hard to believe that, even I struggle with targets beyond 30 meters... But even that should not make her wear such a robe. Something could throw off her balance if it gets caught..."
Christy interrupted Lumin's thoughts and spoke lightly, "What about you? What are you seeking from this trip?"
Lumin remained silent for a while before speaking. "I am looking for a group of people. I do not know where they are or where to find them. They disappeared suddenly... but it is hard not to find them here after the recent rumors."
Christy wanted to ask about the specifications of the people Lumin was searching for, but then she remembered what he had said a moment ago. From the expression on his face, she understood that he wanted to find them by himself, which made her refrain from interfering. Instead, she said, "I hope you find them."
She paused for a second to weigh her words before adding, "I know a girl who used to visit her boyfriend at a house rented from my father. Her name was Selina. I heard she disappeared a few months ago, and the tenant disappeared too."
She lowered her voice slightly and continued, "I wasn't close to him, but I know his family name was Hadevin. Could they have something to do with the people you are searching for?"
Hadevin? Selina? I do not know either of them... but they disappeared around the same time my sister did. I should ask about their features, Lumin thought quickly before speaking. "May I ask about their features?"
Christy nodded and said while beginning to walk toward the front beside Lumin, "I do not remember them exactly, but Hadevin was a tall man with black-brown hair and a short beard on his face."
This... he is similar to Litch... Lumin thought before Christy interrupted his thoughts. "Selina used to come to his house frequently. I think they were in a romantic relationship. There were weeks when she came accompanied by several people..."
They were in a relationship?.. Lumin cut her off and asked in a sharp tone, unintentionally, "Did Selina have a mole on her left cheek?"
Christy nodded and said, "She did... and her hair was white. Is she one of them?"
"Yes... I think so. May I ask you to speak with your father? I would like to rent the house for one day if possible."
Christy replied directly, "You can come without renting it. My father passed away two months ago, and I inherited his position and his property as his only daughter."
Christy did not mind giving Lumin a chance to search the house, which might lead him to Hadevin. She allowed it because he was one of the few who ignored the burn on her face.
Fortunately, I met her here... Mr. Richard might be able to uncover a clue about them through his abilities, Lumin thought before speaking. "Thank you. When can I come?"
Christy replied at once, "There is no need to thank me. I did nothing... You can come to Lonet Café any morning and we can go there."
She paused briefly before continuing, "Last night, a special police unit contacted me to carry out a search operation in the house. I refused their request because they had not issued a search warrant. The earlier I come, the better."
Could the church have linked Litch's identity with Hadevin?! This morning I spoke to them about Litch and told them about him, and in the evening they went to search Hadevin's house even though he disappeared months ago!! Lumin connected the reason for the police's sudden visit before speaking. "Are there any situations that prevent them from searching the house?"
Christy remained silent for a few seconds, as though reviewing her thoughts, before saying, "There is one situation that prevents them... The count must buy the house for it to fall under his authority."
Lumin was shocked by the count's involvement, which made him say in a surprised tone, "The count?! What does the count have to do with this?"
Christy drew a slight smile and said, "It seems your relationship with him is bad. In truth, the count does not play the main role here, but as a third-rank noble, he has special privileges over the commoners."
"Only the nobles' association can search his property. That is a privilege every count has. If the count buys the house, neither the police nor even the church can search it, even if it is abandoned and no one visits it. Only the association has the authority to search it..."
"Fortunately for you, there is no noble building here. The papers will take a considerable amount of time to move from the police office to the nearest noble office, and the noble office may not even accept the search request."
Lumin could only sigh and think, How can I persuade the count to intervene... Do I really no longer have any choice but to become his assistant?
Heh... I avoided becoming his assistant so I could search for Litch, but now I must join him to find any clue about Litch.
Lumin remained silent for a while before speaking and asking Christy, who had returned her bow to the gray bag, "Where did you get this information?"
Christy remained silent for a few seconds before taking a bronze medallion from her simple dress.
She hid the medallion lightly beneath the sleeves of her dress, preventing anyone other than Lumin from seeing it.
A bronze medallion engraved in the Foden language: 'Russell Barony.'
Christy spoke sincerely. "I used to read some books when I was young."
Lumin froze in place. He did not expect Christy to reveal her nobility here, in the middle of the crowd. There are many people on this trip—some of them criminals and greedy people. If word spreads about the medallion...
Why did she show me the medallion? She could have simply told me she had received a good education without taking it out... Is there something she wants to hint at, but I did not catch it? He stayed frozen for a few seconds to think before speaking and changing the subject so no one would notice anything strange between them while he looked at the sleeves of her white dress. "This is your first trip, isn't it?"
Christy nodded and said after noticing Lumin's gaze on her dress, "I know the dangers of wearing a dress in a place like this, but... let's say I had nothing else." She paused and added in a low voice, "The bronze medallion does not have many privileges since it is issued to a baron, but even a baron is a noble... To search his house, the police need a warrant. I told you this was a special unit, but even they need a search warrant. I do not know when the warrant will be issued, but try to persuade the count as quickly as possible..."
Christy continued directly without giving Lumin a chance to respond. "What do you think of the rumors about the unicorn? Do you think they are true?"
Lumin was silent for a moment before saying in a low voice, "I do not think so. If you found a box full of pounds, would you tell anyone? Of course not. I assume Lomet is the one who spread them."
Christy answered and gave her opinion after Lumin fell silent. "What if the rumors are true? Imagine that Lomet does not know exactly where the box is, but he knows it is at least in this area."
She lowered her voice and said in a calm tone, "He will place spies in every team that works with him..."
A heavily built man approached them and interrupted Christy's words in a rough voice. "Are you Christy and Lumin?"
"Yes. Did we arrive late? You recognized us immediately as soon as we arrived thanks to the descriptions Lomet gave you, right?" Lumin tried to be playful in his reply to the man so it would not be revealed that they had been talking about Lomet.
The man replied in a loud voice, carrying clear contempt toward them, "We already distributed the roles. The two of you will be at the front to discover the place."
Christy said without getting upset, "I cannot go to the front. Do you not see the bag in my hand? I would be better suited to the club if I were in the archery position."
The man was silent for a few seconds before saying in a harsher tone, "Those who are injured must go to the front while the rest of us work hard. I do not have time to spend debating your role among us."
Quickly, Lumin glanced at Christy and thought about what the man in front of him had said: Injured...
He felt as though the word had clamped itself in his chest.
Christy wanted to answer the man, but Lumin cut her off by speaking. "Did Lomet participate with you in distributing the roles?"
The man turned his head and walked away from Christy and Lumin without answering Lumin's question.
Are those who arrived late not entitled to know what happened in the meeting? That is not Lomet's style... Lumin remained where he was, watching the man's back as he walked away.
After a few seconds, Lumin grabbed the shoulder of one of the people beside them and asked in an angry tone, "What is that person's name?"
The man was shocked by Lumin's sudden intervention in the argument and said without realizing, "W... What?"
Lumin tightened his grip on the man's shoulder until the man cried out in pain. "L... Leth, his name is Leth."
Lumin moved closer to the man's face until their eyes met and said in a cold, sharp voice, "And who is he?"
The man replied immediately while in pain, "He is one of Lomet's leaders and a member of his club... please stop, I can't... endure it."