Vol. 1 Ch. 188

Rebecca, through the Empire’s local bounty hunter black market, managed to find the location of the hotel where Martin's stepmother was hosting her birthday banquet.

It cost Rebecca half a month’s salary, and she demanded that the amount be deducted from Leon’s account after everything was over.

Leon said it was fine, as long as she could withdraw money from a dead man’s account.

Rebecca gave a smug grin and said, “If you’re broke, I’ll take it from my dad’s pension. I don’t do business at a loss!”

The old man, touching his wallet, which was emptier than his face, wondered if he should sell his donkey to cover Rebecca’s expenses…

Two days later, in the afternoon, six hours before the banquet officially began.

Leon and Rebecca had infiltrated the hotel staff and were helping set up the banquet alongside the workers.

Tiger stayed behind at Victor’s bar, continuing to keep an eye on him.

Inside the hotel’s main hall, the uniformed staff bustled about, working hard and paying attention to every detail.

After all, this was the birthday of a royal minister’s wife. Any sign of negligence could cost them their jobs.

On top of that, they’d heard that this minister’s wife was particularly harsh, judging by the worried expression of the young man in charge of organizing the banquet.

That young man was Martin, the minister’s youngest son.

In fact, he shouldn’t have been responsible for this task, but his stepmother had always been at odds with him. By putting him in charge, she was deliberately looking for an excuse to make things difficult for him.

Martin’s personality was on the softer side, and he didn’t dare to confront his stepmother, so he was forced to grit his teeth and carry out the task as best as he could.

Even though he knew that no matter how well he did, his stepmother would still find fault with him.

But what else could he do?

After what happened three years ago, Martin not only left the Dragon-slaying Army, but he also became more introverted and timid.

For the past three years, every time he faced his stepmother’s or others’ disdain and coldness, Martin couldn’t help but wonder: If the captain hadn’t died in that battle three years ago and their squad hadn’t disbanded, would he have been brave enough to stand up against the unfair treatment he was facing now?

But... reality doesn’t care for “what ifs.”

The Battle of the Silver Dragon ended in defeat, and they accused the captain of being a traitor, the one responsible for the deaths of countless comrades.

How could Martin ever believe that?

He had wanted to use his father’s influence within the royal court to clear the captain’s name, but his father had refused.

Then, he thought he could clear the captain’s name through his own efforts, to prove the captain wasn’t like that.

But by the time Rebecca contacted him and told him to stop trying to defend the captain, things had already changed.

Back then, Rebecca had already put on the uniform of the patrol team.

From that point on, there was nothing left in the Dragon-slaying Army to keep Martin there.

He chose to leave, returning home to live as the pampered son, occasionally reminiscing about the days he spent with the captain and Rebecca, and about the courage he had slowly begun to find in himself.

His thoughts wandered, and Martin shook his head, refocusing on directing the staff to arrange the banquet hall.

Suddenly, Martin felt something cold and hard press against his side.

He wanted to look down, but the girl beside him, wearing a worker’s uniform, warned him,

“Stay calm, little Martin. Don’t get nervous. If you get nervous, I’ll get nervous, and when I get nervous, this gun might just go off~”

Martin immediately recognized the voice. “Re-Rebecca?! What are you doing here...?”

“Your stepmom’s having a birthday. We came to join the fun,” Rebecca replied.

“We? Who else came? Victor?”

“Nope, the big star is busy right now. I meant… someone else.”

“Someone else… who could—”

Before Martin could finish his question, an arm draped over his shoulder, like a friend from school pulling him in close.

Martin didn’t dare turn around to see who it was, because Rebecca still had the gun pressed against his side.

He could only glance sideways to get a glimpse of the hand on his shoulder.

It was broad and heavy, covered in scars.

“Long time no see, Martin.”

At the sound of that voice, it was as if an electric current surged through Martin’s spine, paralyzing him with shock.

His eyes widened in disbelief. After three long years, he never imagined he would hear that voice again.

Martin would never forget the owner of that voice.

It was the person who once taught him to be brave, to discover the true meaning of courage, and to face his real self.

Without him, Martin would never have decided to go to the Dragon-slaying Academy.

Although after his ‘death,’ Martin’s courage had gradually faded away.

But now, hearing his voice again, Martin felt more than just shock. Deep within him, the small flame of courage, not yet fully extinguished, struggled to reignite.

“C-Captain... Captain!—”

“Shh~ There’s no ‘captain’ here. It’s just two hotel workers who happen to know you, stopping by for a chat,” Leon whispered.

Martin fought to suppress the overwhelming emotions and countless questions flooding his mind, taking a full ten seconds to calm himself down.

His hand gripping the railing trembled slightly, and he swallowed hard several times.

Once Martin had settled down, Leon, keeping things brief, explained the reason he had returned to the Empire.

“I’ve told this same story three times over the past two days. I’m starting to feel like I’m reading off a menu,” Leon joked at the end, trying to ease the tension.

Martin took a moment to process everything Leon had just said. After a while, he spoke,

“So, Captain, how do you want me to help you investigate the traitor? Just tell me what you need.”

“Hm? I thought you’d try to clear your name first,” Leon said.

After all, that’s exactly what Victor had done.

Martin gave a faint, somewhat forced smile and sighed. “You’re not the type to kill the wrong person just to be safe. I trust that you’ll make the right decision in the end. So there’s no need for me to defend myself right now. Just ask whatever you need to ask.”@@novelbin@@

Just like back when they fought together, Martin had unconditional trust in Leon and was always ready to follow his orders.

Martin had been a fan of Leon from the very start, and it was this admiration that had driven him to join the Dragon-slaying Army. After graduating from the academy with excellent marks, he was directly assigned to Leon’s squad.

He was like a fan who had successfully met his idol.

Leon patted Martin’s shoulder. “Well, in that case, I need to know—today really is your stepmother’s birthday, right?”

Martin nodded. “Yes, it is.”

Oh, so it wasn’t a trap after all. Just a simple coincidence.

But even so, Leon wasn’t about to let his guard down.

He had already planned out everything for tonight to ensure that he, their master, and Rebecca could escape safely, even if they couldn’t expose the traitor.

“Also, what’s your relationship like with your stepmother?” Leon asked.

“Uh…” Martin hesitated.

“Oh, if it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer,” Leon said.

Martin scratched the back of his head, looking a little uncomfortable. “It’s not that. My stepmother and I... don’t get along very well.”

“And has she ever given you any gifts?”

“Gifts? Captain, I’d be lucky if she didn’t kick me out of the house. Gifts? Not a chance.”

Wow, their relationship really was that bad.

Leon’s mind began turning over the information. “And have you ever given her a gift? Like... clothes, a bag, or maybe... jewelry?”

“No,” Martin replied, his answer firm and without hesitation.

Leon paused, then nodded thoughtfully. “Alright. I don’t have any more questions. But there is one thing I’ll need you to do.”

“Anything, Captain,” Martin said.

“During the banquet tonight, Rebecca will stay with you the whole time. Former comrades catching up at the party shouldn’t raise any eyebrows, right?”

“Is the Captain asking Rebecca to keep an eye on me…” Martin’s sharp mind caught on quickly.

“No, no, little Martin,” Rebecca said, pressing the gun into his back again. “This is way more thrilling than just surveillance.”

Martin, now visibly nervous, nodded slightly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead and nose.

But Leon understood.

It wasn’t about whether Martin was truly the traitor or not. Anyone would be sweating if a crazy girl was holding a gun to their back.

Now that everything was arranged, as long as nothing unexpected happened, tonight... it would all come to an end.