"I'm a little nervous…"
"It'll be fine. Just relax."
Arcus sat on the sofa in the drawing room.Beside him, Catherine Monvoisin clutched a miniature model of the carriage they were using as a sample, holding it close as if it were precious.
She kept letting out small sounds—"mm…", "uh…"—clearly just as nervous as she claimed to be.And truth be told, Arcus was no different.
Even as he told her to relax, his own tension refused to fade.
After all, the people they were about to meet were high-ranking nobles—and Catherine's parents.
(No, no…)(I'm nervous because this is an important business meeting. That's all.)
The adventurers acting as advance escorts had arrived over an hour ago. By now, his father Alan and Keith should be handling the formal reception.
That awkward stretch of waiting made time feel unnaturally long.
Long waits only heightened anxiety.
"Deep breath… in… out…"
Catherine inhaled and exhaled slowly.
"Leave it to me," Eleonora said, boldly stepping forward.
"No. Stay out of this," Arcus cut in immediately.
Just as an argument seemed about to break out between Arcus and Eleonora, a quiet knock sounded at the door to the drawing room.
At that moment, both Arcus and Catherine rose to their feet.
Keith opened the door, and guided in by Alan came an elderly couple with calm, composed expressions.
They wore elegant yet modest clothing. To those who knew them, they were unmistakably nobles—but to strangers, they would have looked like nothing more than a wealthy old couple.
(That's a surprisingly elaborate disguise.)
Arcus had heard they were only in their early forties, so the illusion alone was impressive.
But—
"Huh…?"
—It clearly hadn't fooled Catherine.
"Father… Mother…"
At her whisper, the elderly couple removed their disguise and smiled at her gently.
"Cathy…"
"Oh, thank goodness…"
Their eyes brimmed with tears.
Catherine, meanwhile, was utterly overwhelmed.
Shock.Joy.Confusion.And a faint sense of urgency.
Her gaze flicked back and forth between Arcus and her parents, filled with emotions that seemed to ask Why would you do this?
Arcus merely shrugged and gave a wry smile.
"Oh? What a coincidence. I didn't expect our business partners to be Lady Catherine's parents."
"Please don't play dumb."
A hint of anger flickered in Catherine's eyes—and understandably so.
She had tried to keep her parents out of this, to avoid bringing trouble to House Monvoisin. If they had come all this way, all her efforts might be for nothing.
Worse still, depending on how things went, even the Viktor family could be dragged into the fire.
(She's too kind for her own good… though I guess I can't really talk.)
Arcus felt a quiet admiration for Catherine—angry not for herself, but out of concern for others.
Still, this time he had no intention of backing down.
Just like during her exile, Catherine had a habit of believing she should bear responsibility alone.
But reality didn't work that way.
The mistaken belief that "If I endure it myself, everything will work out" had to be shattered here and now.
For her sake.
And for his.
Now that he was involved, Arcus had no intention of treating her lightly—or letting her become a scapegoat.
That meant it was time to destroy her misguided sense of success through self-sacrifice.
"Lord Arcus—"
"No need to be angry. You want to tell us to leave so we don't get in the way, right?"
He stuck out his tongue playfully, motioned Alan and Keith toward the door, and reached for the handle.
"That's not what I meant."
Catherine's voice stopped him.
"Arcus," Alan said gently, as if scolding him.
(Yeah… that might've been a bit too much.)
Arcus sighed softly and turned back to face Catherine and her parents.
"Lady Catherine—just one thing."
He paused, drawing all three pairs of eyes to him.
"You were never abandoned by the world.And you never abandoned the world either."
With that, Arcus bowed respectfully and left the drawing room with Alan and Keith.
Outside the room, he was greeted by servants who had clearly been eavesdropping.
Arcus let out an exaggerated sigh.
"Listening in like that is rude, you know."
The servants laughed awkwardly and quickly dispersed.
Spotting Rita, Arcus stopped her.
"Rita. Let me know when they're done talking."
She nodded quietly.
As Rita took her place by the door, Arcus turned to another person he'd been looking for.
"Harrison. I want to meet the adventurers."
"Figured you would. I've got 'em waiting outside."
Harrison flashed a thumbs-up. Annoying as he was, he really was competent.
He led Arcus to the mansion's front entrance.
Outside stood a group of four adventurers with a very distinct air about them.
A male shield-bearer.A male cleric.A female mage.A female scout.
An evenly balanced party—frontline and backline, men and women alike.
When the large-framed Arcus stepped out, the adventurers tensed for a moment—then relaxed upon recognizing Harrison.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
Arcus smiled and offered his hand.
All four froze for a brief moment, before the shield-bearer stepped forward and returned the handshake.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Arcus Viktor, heir to the Viktor family."
"The pleasure's ours. I'm Ian, leader of the A-rank adventurer party Steel Lion."
"So you're them! We've heard quite a bit."
"You flatter us."
(I see… No wonder the Marquis entrusted them with escort duty.)
A firm grip. Polished speech.Without question, they were a high-ranking party.
In fact, Steel Lion was well known throughout the principality.
It seemed the Marquis had escorted his family personally by ship, then gone so far as to hire adventurers upon arrival.
Thorough, as expected of great nobility.
And of course—
(They're not the only escorts.)
Sensing multiple presences, Arcus subtly scanned the area.
Great nobles never relied on adventurers alone.
(Looks like they're quite capable… as expected.)
While Arcus's attention drifted, Ian furrowed his brow slightly.
"So… what business does a viscount's household have with us?"
Arcus quickly refocused.
Ian's tone wasn't rude—but something about the phrasing felt off.
"Oh, nothing serious. I simply wanted to meet you."
He shrugged lightly.
"We're out in the countryside, after all. Not many chances to see adventurers."
Behind him, Harrison struggled to suppress laughter.
"That's a huge lie."
"Shut it," Arcus muttered, elbowing him before turning back with a smile.
"Thank you for taking the time to accompany us."
In truth, both Arcus and Harrison were half right—and half wrong.
Arcus really did want to meet them.
But he'd met adventurers plenty of times before.
What he hadn't seen were top-class adventurers.
There was only one reason he wanted to meet them now.
How capable were the adventurers chosen by a marquis as escorts?
Demand for materials from the Demon Forest would soon increase. When it did, people would be needed to gather them.
Processing and refinement mattered—but so did collection.
Arcus and the knights couldn't shoulder that burden forever.
That was why his attention turned to adventurers.
(They'd make a good match for our knights. Promising.)
If they were truly A-rank, they could deliver real results in the Demon Forest.
That alone made this meeting worthwhile.
Which was why—
"We'll need two or three days for negotiations. Please wait at an inn in the city."
The four adventurers exchanged puzzled looks.
Then—
"Lord Arcus, may I ask something?"
Ian faced him directly.
There was a faint spark of challenge in his eyes.
"…When they say 'young master'—are they referring to you?"
Arcus frowned slightly at the probing tone.