The whereabouts of the heart (2)
"Sir, is the bread here?"
"Your timing is perfect. It just came out. It's still hot, so try it."
The baker, who was handing over a loaf of bread with tongs, opened his eyes wide when he saw Baba.
"No, Peter, what's wrong with your face?"
People knew Baba as Peter, the son of Chase, a local resident.
A filial son who went to the capital to earn money and returned home after ten years to take care of his father who suffered from dementia.
So Baba's reputation was very good among the residents.
Baba scratched his head as if embarrassed.
His soft platinum blonde hair had turned into bushy brown hair, and his sharp nose had become blunt. He had changed so much that it was hard to remember his original appearance.
"It's just something came up."
"Could it be that it was done by outsiders? Did those bad guys pick a fight with you?"
"Yes, well..."
When Baba answered vaguely, the bakery owner became furious as if it were his own business.
"They were messing around here and there and they messed with you too? Tsk tsk tsk, are you okay?"
"Yes, it's gotten a lot better."
"If you're going to leave, then do It properly. Are you going to make people suffer until the end? And a good guy like you at that! Either way, they're a bunch of bastards who deserve to be punished."
"Those people left?"
"I haven't seen them in a few days. They suddenly disappeared as if they had evaporated. Maybe they left because they were done with what they wanted to do?"
"I see. I don't really know because I rarely go out of the house."
The bakery owner's expression became sad.
"You must have been busy taking care of your father, so you didn't know about the outside world. I should have told you in advance. Would you like me to give you some advice?"
"It's okay. I'm home."
Baba took a big bite of the bread the baker gave him and smiled sheepishly.
"The bread is really delicious. Sir, please give me just one bag."
"Here it is. Come up."
"Thank you. Sell a lot, sir."
Baba bowed, holding a bag full of bread in his arms.
Then he went up the stairs and opened the front door of the last house on the third floor.
The way he placed the bag of bread on the table looked natural as if he had lived in this house his whole life.
"Father, I'm here."
Chase asked absentmindedly, sitting in front of a sunny window.
"Who are you?"
"Father, I am your son."
"My son is dead..."
"I see you've forgotten your son again. Your son, Peter, went to the capital to earn money and came back a few days ago."
"No, he was attacked by a monster and died before he even reached the capital. When I heard the news... What did I do?"
Chase, who had been mumbling incoherently, suddenly became quiet. Drool flowed from his open mouth.
Baba, who had been watching the scene blankly, took out a handkerchief and wiped Chase's mouth.
"Father, eat and go to bed."
"Umm... Peter?"
"Yes, it's me. The bread was really delicious. Enjoy it with milk."
"Okay, thank you. You too, eat quickly."
Baba sat across from Chase and served him, wiping away any spilled food Chase had.
The first thing Baba did after changing his master to Millenia was to naturally infiltrate Eldern.
So he used the information to find someone he could disguise himself as, and he chose the Chase family from among the townspeople.
An old man with dementia and a son who died young. What's more, the villagers didn't even know that the old man's son had died.
It couldn't have been better for camouflage.
Even when Baba was alone with Chase, he played the role of son perfectly.
There were times when Chase's mind would clear up, but not enough to be caught.
The neighbors thought Chase had dementia and didn't even recognize his own son.
If he had just pretended to be sad in front of them, they wouldn't have suspected him, and he could have gotten double the bread like today.
Then, when Baba got bored and wanted to die, he thought of Millenia. Then, life became fun.
"Eat more."
Baba gave Chase more bread and milk and went into the bathroom.
He took off his stuffy wig, looked in the mirror, and sighed again.
"Oh, when will this get better?"
It was a wound he received when he entered the brewery disguised as a male prostitute.
The Windcatcher boss was a madman who enjoyed forcibly raping his unconscious opponents. He set up his men and let Baba escape Inside, then chased him around, like a rabbit hunt.
Baba, who knew the boss's tastes, ran away for a while, was caught for a while, and was beaten for a while.
In fact, compared to the missions, he's done so far, it wasn't that difficult. Baba got bruises and cuts here and there, but they weren't even that bad.
But still, he felt annoyed every time he looked in the mirror.
"I should have cut off that kid's hand too..."
Even though he crouched down as much as possible to cover his face, the wound remained.
He was so angry at that moment. Even after he cut off the boss's lower body, his anger didn't subside.
"Should I ask Rahon to treat me secretly?"
Even wearing a mask, the purple-colored eyelids and burst lips could not be hidden.
He was reluctant to meet Millenia in this condition, so he waited until he got better, but time passed so slowly.
"No, but why should I get hurt? The owner won't know anyway."
Millenia, who had lost her sight had no way of knowing that he was injured unless he started bleeding.
But Baba was still anxious. He thought Millenia might notice.
Isn't she the master who sees through everything? She may already know about Baba's condition.
So Baba was avoiding Millenia. He wanted to hide the fact that he had been a prostitute.
The mission was only a success if It was done properly, and he never cared about the method, but for the first time, he regretted it.
"Get better soon."
Baba was muttering to himself while looking in the mirror when someone knocked on the door.
"Is Mr. Chase here?"
It was a girl's voice. It sounded like Lucy, who worked at the fruit shop on the first floor.
Baba quickly put on his wig and went out. Then he opened the front door with a foolish expression.
"Lucy?"
The visitor was not Lucy, but a small, thin girl in her late teens.
The girl smiled brightly at him.
"Brown hair doesn't suit you."
"Vivi."
Vivi, second in line in Baba's assassination guild.
Before he could react, a stinging pain spread across his side.
Baba instinctively grabbed his side and stepped back.
In an instant, his pants turned bright red. Baba quickly started to sweat and his vision narrowed. He could tell that he was in a dangerous situation without even checking.
"This is a gift of betrayal from His Highness."
Vivi left without attacking any further.
The gift of betrayal was not death. The true gift of betrayal was to writhe in pain until the last breath.
Baba slumped down. A hollow laugh escaped his pale lips.
"Haha, you little fox."
Oslo had already noticed that he was suspicious. He had felt the eyes of surveillance on him for several days.
He didn't really care.
He wonders who Oslo will join hands with this time.
"It was Vivi...”
Honestly, Baba didn't know Oslo would come into contact with the guild's second-in-command.
What did you promise Vivi? Did you tempt her to kill me and take over the guild?
Vivi was a greedy child. She probably would have gone to Oslo without a second thought.
Even so, he didn't know that he would die 10 months later.
"Ugh..."
Baba slowly crawled and leaned back on the bed.
He has no regrets about life. It was a life he wouldn't regret even if he died right away.
But.
"I don't make sick people work."
As he waited for death, someone's image appeared before his eyes.
The face of Millenia, who was waiting for him, not knowing that he had been killed by Oslo.
"Ah. This is annoying."
Baba forced his sagging body up. He roughly tore the blanket and pressed it against his bleeding side.
Limp, limp.
Chase looked at Baba with dazed eyes as he walked out, holding his side.
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