Chapter 135: My Wife Is Here

I stared at Corbin Sears for a long moment.

I couldn’t figure out what he meant by that.

Still, something about it rang a bell.

“Do you need some Dried Cordyceps Pills by any chance?”

“Huh? I’m still perfectly fine!”

“Ah, not that?”

Prosecutor Sears jumped as if he had been burned.

It didn’t seem like the usual “scared of his wife because he’s whipped” situation.

Then was it something like Count Eddie Hewitt’s case?

That man had been terrified of his son’s psychopathic tendencies.

“Has your wife committed a crime?”

“N-no, of course not.”

“Then why exactly are you so scared of her?”

“She has a rather severe case of delusional jealousy. She even hires people to tail me.”

“Ah.”

Honestly, that was the last answer I had expected.

Corbin Sears was known as a model official.

Of course, I had no idea what his private life was really like.

It could be surprisingly messy.

But Prosecutor Sears was famous for almost never attending parties.

He was the complete opposite of Cordell McNeil.

So it’s a classic case of morbid jealousy.

I wasn’t a psychiatrist, so I couldn’t fix something like that.

All I could do was hope he overcame it on his own.

“You have it rough.”

“I thought it would get better if I just stayed careful, but it didn’t.”

“Have you tried asking the church for help?”

“She is already a follower of Aramid. Even so, her mind is filled with suspicion.”

“That sounds serious.”

“It’s all karma I have to bear. By the way, what brings you here?”

It was time to move past the small talk.

I tapped the trial documents with my fingertip.

“You’re in charge of the Eplin fraud gambling case, right?”

“Yes, I am.”

“It looks like you’re having trouble verifying the evidence. Come with me somewhere.”

“The investigation is nearly finished.”

“So did you recover the embezzled funds?”

“…No.”

Corbin Sears had answered confidently at first, but his face quickly fell.

He knew it too.

Most fraud cases left the victims suffering even after the trial ended.

I nodded.

“It was natural that you couldn’t find it until now, but that changes today.”

An old memory suddenly flashed through my mind.

At the same time, burning rage surged up.

Those vicious jeonse fraud bastards.

I had scraped together every last won through back-breaking work for a half-jeonse apartment in an old building.

The sense of accomplishment had been enormous.

Yet I was soon plunged into deep despair.

The real owner showed up and demanded I vacate immediately.

Only after investigating everywhere did I realize the truth.

I had fallen victim to a jeonse scam, and there were countless other victims besides me.

Even the real estate agent had been in on it.

How could anyone avoid getting fooled?

Naturally, the culprits had fled overseas before they were caught, and the money was never recovered.

Who gets scammed out of their deposit while working for the police?

Unfortunately, that had been before I passed the exam.

“What do you plan to do?”

Corbin Sears looked puzzled.

The underworld was masterful at cutting off tails.

They would probably throw out some low-level member who knew nothing and call it a day.

Fraud sentences were on the lighter side anyway.

But I had no intention of letting it end that way.

I would recover the money and crush the real culprit.

“To catch a tiger, you have to enter the tiger’s den.”

***

Perias outskirts, a desolate ruin.

The place looked so eerie that no one would want to approach, yet surprisingly many people were coming and going.

A burly guard stood at the shabby entrance while guests slipped inside quickly.

Watching from a distance, Corbin Sears shuddered.

“I never imagined you would suggest going to an illegal gambling den.”

“Sitting in an office and theorizing will never recover the stolen funds.”

“Even if we search the place, it won’t mean anything.”

“The money has probably already been moved, and if we can’t prove it was fraud gambling…”

“The court and prosecution headquarters will just look ridiculous.”

“It’s fine. I don’t think failing while trying to uncover the truth damages one’s honor. On the contrary, officials who do nothing should be more ashamed.”

“Cough!”

Prosecutor Sears turned his head slightly with a fake cough.

He seemed a little stung by what I had just said.

He had been planning to charge Viscount Eplin based only on surface evidence.

Even though he knew it would solve nothing.

“Let’s go.”

I started walking confidently.

But Corbin Sears hesitated.

“What is it?”

“If word gets out that I went to a gambling den, my wife will lose her mind.”

Ah, that delusional jealousy again.

Judging by his intense reaction, it was clearly severe.

Still, we had come this far. There was no turning back.

“That’s why we’re disguised, isn’t it? No one will recognize us like this.”

We were both wearing worn leather armor and carrying a crossbow and spear each.

To anyone looking, we were veteran mercenaries who had seen plenty of real combat.

As long as we watched our words and actions, we wouldn’t be exposed.

We had even smeared dust and soot on our faces for realism.

“Let’s stop wasting time and go in.”

“…Yes.”

Even after becoming a veteran prosecutor, it seemed his original timid nature had not disappeared.

I approached the guard at the entrance with Prosecutor Sears.

“Wait. Not just anyone can enter.”

The expected response came.

It was a secret illegal gambling den, so they had to be selective.

Even if society mostly turned a blind eye, it was still run by the underworld.

Tax evasion was the bare minimum, so they were being extra cautious.

But a gate like this was no obstacle.

Ting—!

A clear ring accompanied a beautiful golden arc.

The guard caught the gold coin and twisted his lips.

He looked like he was barely holding back a laugh.

“You ever seen a mercenary tied down to one spot? Don’t be so strict, pal.”

“Mercenaries really do speak the same language. You know the rules—no fighting inside.”

“We don’t want any trouble in Perias either.”

“Good. But that friend of yours looks a bit green.”

“He’s a rookie. C-rank.”

“Ah! So you brought him to show him the ropes. Enjoy yourselves quietly.”

“Thanks.”

I bumped fists with the guard and strolled inside casually.

As we walked down the corridor, Prosecutor Sears’s voice reached me.

“How do you know the inner workings of these places so well, Your Grace?”

“I’ve run into them quite a bit here and there.”

The real reason I knew the underworld so well was simple.

I had observed Jaren Burgess’s men closely back in Nordenark.

Fortunately, this place was not much different.

Deeper inside, a rather noisy space appeared.

Each table had partitions, and an organization member immediately led us somewhere.

“Please exchange your chips first.”

“Sure.”

I untied the pouch at my waist and set it on the table.

Thud!

A heavy sound rang out as several gold coins spilled from the loosened opening.

The member’s expression brightened instantly.

“W-will you be exchanging all of it?”

“Of course.”

“Please move this way for now. Our staff will bring the chips separately.”

The room we were led to had a completely different atmosphere from the entrance.

It was quite luxuriously decorated.

The outside noise did not reach inside, so the soundproofing seemed excellent.

Not bad for a criminal organization.

No wonder low-ranking nobles like Viscount Eplin and Baron Lamont frequented the place.

A drinking table was set up in one corner in the blink of an eye.

I casually poured wine and downed it in one go.

“Krgh!”

Normally, people did not enjoy grape wine this way.

The wine-drinking culture of the Enpher Empire was far stricter and more complicated than expected.

Even the angle of tilting the glass and the number of swirls had rules.

But right now I was disguised as a mercenary.

Following proper etiquette would have been stranger.

I gulped it down crudely, and fortunately the organization members did not seem suspicious at all.

“Here are your chips. We will find opponents for you shortly, so please wait a moment.”

“Ah, thanks.”

Ting—!

I flicked another gold coin to the member who had guided us.

“Th-thank you.”

The man could not hide his grinning face as he hurried away.

Just before the door closed, I strained my ears.

“We’ve got a proper sucker. Looks like a drifter—get a player in quickly and bleed him dry…”

Since I had openly shown I had money, the reaction came immediately.

Prosecutor Sears, who had apparently heard it too, whispered quietly.

“Is this really okay? You seem to be spending quite a lot.”

“It’s fine. Consider it an investment in realizing justice.”

To me, that amount was basically pocket change.

Besides, I was not going to lose it anyway.

No matter what happened here, I planned to take everything back.

Slide!

“Ah, nice to meet you. So the wilderness gamblers have arrived.”

After a short wait, someone opened the sliding door and entered.

“Ugh!”

Corbin Sears sucked in a sharp breath.

Shockingly, the opponent was Viscount Eplin himself.

I had to admit it was a little unexpected.

I had not thought I would meet the man this quickly.

Good. This is even better. The sooner we finish, the better.

He was pretending to be a player even while under investigation?

Just how many fraud gambling sessions had he run until now?

There were probably countless victims besides Baron Lamont.

“We playing with three?”

“No. More will join soon. It’s not much fun with few people.”

“I see.”

I examined the table and cards carefully.

They were very similar to trump cards but without picture cards.

Only red and blue numbers from 1 to 10 were printed.

Looks like a simplified version of poker.

The rules were ridiculously simple.

Each player received two cards, and the one whose numbers added closest to ten won.

Numbers that were too high actually put you at a disadvantage.

Slide!

“Hello?”

While I was silently memorizing the rules, someone appeared and greeted us.

Surprisingly, the owner of the clear voice was a woman.

She wore heavy makeup and a large hat that covered most of her face.

Judging by how freely she came and went to a place like this, she seemed to have quite a bit of money.

Probably a nobleman’s wife.

“If everyone’s here, let’s start. I’ll get drunk just waiting.”

I shook the cheap wine bottle and spoke slyly.

But then I noticed something strange beside me.

Corbin Sears’s leg was shaking violently.

He had followed along fine until now—what was wrong all of a sudden?

I turned my shoulder as if stretching and gave him a light nudge.

It was a signal to calm down.

Prosecutor Sears, his face deathly pale, whispered in my ear.

“Something seems very wrong.”

“What? Why?”

All we had to do now was uncover Viscount Eplin’s fraud gambling method.

With the super senses honed by the Beast’s Heart, I could detect anything suspicious.

But Prosecutor Sears’s next words left me utterly stunned.

I nearly gasped out loud.

“The woman sitting across from us… is my wife.”

Wait, delusional jealousy?

What the hell is going on?