Tauriel roamed near the castle entrance, her steps slow, almost hesitant. The crisp morning air did little to clear the storm brewing within her mind.
She had spent the entire night haunted by the events of the previous day.
The words exchanged.
The dominance he exuded.
And—more than anything—those eyes.
'Why was he… so terrifying?'
Her fingertips twitched, resisting the urge to grab her head. Even after an entire day had passed, the image of Einar refused to leave her mind.
Those soulless, dead eyes.
'He was supposed to be an incompetent noble. A deadbeat. Someone easy to manipulate. Not… whatever that was.'
No matter how much she tried to rationalize it, she couldn't ignore the shift in him. His dead terrifying gaze, the way he effortlessly crushed Olie's (the demonic maid) rebellion, the sheer cold detachment he had displayed.
It wasn't normal.
It wasn't something a mere deadbeat noble should possess.
And it unnerved her.
'Can I even control him?'
Doubt crept in, slithering through her thoughts like a venomous snake.
But she shook it off.
No.
She had to.
For her revenge, for her goals, she would do anything.
'He is a man at the end of the day. He will surely fall for me. If he doesn't, I will make him trust me—make myself indispensable to him. A reliable asset.'
Her fingers curled into fists, gripping the hem of her maid outfit as she turned toward Einar's chambers.
However—
"Excuse me."
A soft, polite voice stopped her in her tracks.
Tauriel turned, her gaze landing on a young man in a tailored suit.
Brown hair.
Light brown eyes.
Pale skin.
And an unmistakable air of innocence.
Not at all what she imagined a debt collector would look like.
Tauriel's brows furrowed slightly. "Yes?"
The man offered a disarming smile, his voice carrying not a hint of malice.
"Miss, could you call Madam Laura, please? I'm a debt collector, and she usually handles this matter."
His words were laced with sincerity, so unlike the cutthroat figures Tauriel had envisioned.
She bowed slightly in response.
"Of course. Please wait a moment. Would you care to sit while I fetch her?"
The man's eyes glimmered knowingly.
"Oh, of course. Please do hurry, though. I'm in a bit of a predicament."
Tauriel nodded and turned to leave, her footsteps swift as she set off to find Laura.
As soon as she disappeared into the castle halls—
A pale hand rested lightly on the young man's shoulder.
He jerked in surprise, his body immediately tensing.
Turning swiftly, the debt collector found himself face-to-face with another young man.
Obsidian-black hair.
Lean, yet commanding physique.
And the most striking feature of all—
Deep, blood-red scarlet eyes.
A wave of chilling presence radiated off of him, but his expression was calm, almost amused.
The collector blinked, his heart still pounding. "Who… are you?"
The stranger merely shrugged, raising his hand in a casual greeting.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Einar Sanguis—Lord of this realm."
A beat of silence.
Then, the collector exhaled sharply, relief washing over him.
"Oh. That's good, then." He let out a nervous chuckle. "I didn't recognize you, my apologies. Madam Laura usually does all the paperwork and debt payments."
Einar waved a hand dismissively.
"I was what you'd call an 'incompetent lord' before. But now that I'm making changes, I thought it was only right to meet our business partners personally."
The collector chuckled.
"Business partner? I'm just a debt collector."
He straightened slightly, offering his hand. "Jonas Kanio. Pleasure to meet you."
Einar took the handshake, his grip firm but relaxed.
"No, no. You helped the town a lot. If it weren't for you, our only source of trade would have collapsed. People here would have starved to death."
Jonas's cheeks flushed slightly, caught off guard by the unexpected praise.
"I-It's nothing special… If you put it like that, I might get embarrassed."
Einar simply patted his shoulder.
"That's not something to be embarrassed about. That's something to be proud of."
His gaze flicked to the nearby sofa.
"Why are we standing? Let's sit."
Einar gestured first.
"After you."
Jonas let out a small smile before sitting. Einar followed suit, settling beside him.
…
"By the way, Jonas," Einar started, crossing his legs. "We've gathered enough materials to clear our debt in full."
Jonas's eyes gleamed.
"That's fantastic! Did you manage to fix the income problem?"
Einar let out a dry laugh.
"No, not quite. I simply hunted enough creatures to cover the debt. Laura will show you the materials."
Jonas's mouth fell open slightly.
"Hunting? That many creatures?" His voice carried genuine astonishment. "You must be incredibly strong."
Einar shrugged.
"I don't think I am, actually. I'm merely a mortal."
Jonas chuckled. "We're all mortals, technically. Though I'd say I'm bottom-tier compared to most."
Einar's brows quirked in intrigue.
"Bottom-tier? Why is that? Someone as good as you should be higher ranked."
Jonas scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.
"Hahaha, unfortunately, just being a good person doesn't get you promoted."
Einar made a lamenting expression.
"That's unfortunate. Does this have anything to do with us?"
Jonas hesitated, before sighing. "Yes and no. Debt collection isn't just about gathering payments—it's also about advertisement."
Einar's head tilted slightly. "Advertisement?"
Jonas nodded. "Promoting services, selling goods, or even spreading emergency notices. When people respond to the promotions, the debt collector responsible gets reputation points—eventually leading to a promotion."
Einar's expression softened.
He placed a firm hand on Jonas's shoulder.
"Then let me help you get promoted."
Jonas's eyes widened, caught off guard by the genuine offer.
"Y-You don't have to—"
Einar cut him off.
"No. I won't take no for an answer. You helped my realm. Let me return the favor."
Jonas swallowed, his chest tightening at the sincerity in Einar's voice.
"You… you really think of me as a friend?"
Einar blinked, then let out an overly dramatic sigh, his eyes dimming slightly.
"Are we not? You don't want to be? That's… unfortunate…"
Jonas panicked.
"N-No! That's not it! I just… I don't usually meet lords who act like this."
Einar laughed, patting his shoulder once more. "Then I guess I'm a unique specimen."
Jonas scratched his head, shaking it with amusement.
"I wouldn't say specimen. You're just… a good person."