A brief commotion broke out inside the room.
When the door to Elias's room swung open,
Charlotte was met with a forced smile plastered across her brother's face.
Elias had one hand gripped tightly onto the doorframe, his body blocking most of the entrance.
"What are you doing in there?"
"What was all that noise?"
Charlotte narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
As she spoke, she stood on her tiptoes, trying to peer over Elias's shoulder into the room.
Charlotte's gaze swept across the room.
She felt an indescribable sense of eeriness in the air.
It felt like an old house that hadn't had its windows opened or seen sunlight in years.
Yet, strangely, it lacked the characteristic smell of rot and mold found in such places.
Instead, a faint, cloyingly sweet and strange fragrance permeated the air.
What was even stranger was that the window was clearly open for ventilation.
The moment she inhaled the scent,
an inexplicable sense of lightheadedness immediately clouded Charlotte's mind.
She recalled the mysterious dizziness she had felt just passing by Elias's door yesterday.
Charlotte couldn't help but feel a deep sense of unease.
Of course, only Elias, standing there drenched in a cold sweat, knew the truth of the matter.
It wasn't an ordinary fragrance at all.
It was the scent of dreamlily powder from the Dream Prayer Ritual he had performed last night, which hadn't fully dissipated yet.
"What exactly are you doing in your room?"
Charlotte rubbed her throbbing temples, trying to clear her head as her gaze fell upon the desk.
"I'm reading."
Elias didn't even blink as he lied, naturally stepping aside to allow her a limited view.
He pointed to a heavy book resting casually on the desk.
It was the 《Legends of the Seven Gods of Velen》.
This book was so common that a copy could be found in almost every household in the Kingdom of Velen, holding a status similar to the Bible in Western Europe in his previous life.
It was a total commoner's item.
Charlotte followed his finger, her delicate brows furrowing as her expression became even more peculiar.
"Reading?"
"Since when did you start taking an interest in this?"
"Didn't you always say these legends were for children?"
"You wouldn't even touch it before!"
"People change, Lottie."
Elias chuckled, trying to laugh it off.
"After going out to sea and witnessing the power of nature, I've suddenly developed a sliver of reverence for the gods."
Charlotte pursed her lips.
She actually felt that Elias was being sincere.
Sincere, yet laced with a hint of absolute nonsense.
Next, her gaze swept past the book and locked onto a pile of items on the desk he hadn't had time to clear away.
"And what are those on your desk?"
Charlotte extended a slender finger, pointing directly at several thin metal plates sitting on the edge of the desk.
Those were the base materials for crafting spirit-conducting charms.
There were gold, silver, and several polished copper and iron plates.
These were the only items Elias had failed to hide in his frantic scramble.
However, as Elias followed her gaze, he breathed a massive sigh of relief.
Thank goodness.
Luckily, only those ordinary metal plates were left on the desk.
These items were at least within the realm of common human understanding, so he could easily explain them away.
If he had been half a second slower and Charlotte had seen that sea cucumber elemental gun,
he truly wouldn't have known how to explain it.
He couldn't exactly claim it was a seafood souvenir from his voyage, could he?
"Oh, those."
Elias's expression instantly relaxed.
"Those are some precious metal plates I need for my work."
"Your work?"
Charlotte's frown deepened at his words.
"Why would you need precious metal plates?"
The moment she asked,
her spirit sense instinctively sent out a faint warning.
It once again dominated Charlotte's perceptions.
But Elias, a veteran who had survived years of social maneuvering, had long since mastered the art of poker-faced deceit.
"Lottie, you wouldn't understand."
Elias adopted an air of supreme shrewdness.
"These plates have a very important use!"
He began to spin his web of lies without missing a beat.
"Look, I'm an official employee of the Wayland Shipping Company now."
"I'm planning to use these plates to print a set of high-end business cards for myself!"
"Business cards?"
Charlotte was stunned.
"Exactly!"
Elias continued persuasively.
"Think about it."
"When I'm sailing at sea or unloading cargo at the docks, don't I often run into representatives from major chambers of commerce?"
"Rich cargo owners and potential clients?"
"If I can hand over a glittering metal business card when I meet these big clients,"
"it'll leave a lasting impression. Wouldn't that make all those big shots remember me?"
Elias's logic was seamless, one point leading perfectly into the next.
"Think about it. If a lowly sailor like me can use these high-end social tactics to win over clients the company otherwise wouldn't get,"
"wouldn't my performance skyrocket?"
"I'd be noticed by the supervisors in no time, and then it's promotions and raises all around!"
Elias delivered his final trump card.
"Once I'm promoted, I won't have to go out to sea anymore!"
"I could just apply for a transfer and work right here in the city."
"Then you and Arthur could finally stop worrying, right?"
As she listened to Elias's grand speech,
Charlotte was completely dazed.
Her once-sharp spirit sense was practically short-circuited by this seemingly flawless worldly logic.
"But..."
Charlotte stood there bewildered for a long while before finally spotting a hole.
"Printing business cards... why not just use paper?"
It was an excellent question.
One that struck at the heart of the matter.
"My silly little sister."
A mysterious smile tugged at the corner of Elias's mouth.
"Think about it."
"When I meet clients dealing in tens of thousands of gold crowns,"
"and I pull a crumpled piece of paper out of my pocket, what are they going to think of me?"
"What would they think of our company?"
Elias thumped his chest confidently.
"But if I hand them a card made of pure gold, or at least gold-plated metal!"
"Imagine the scene—the sun hits it, and it glitters with gold."
"They'll be thinking to themselves, 'Wow, this kid has some serious resources!'"
"'The company has real depth!'"
"I can't go around embarrassing the company, can I?"
Charlotte was completely spun around.
She nodded blankly.
Her spirit sense was still faintly whispering that something was wrong.
She felt that there was a major problem with Elias's words, that he was spinning a massive tall tale.
And yet, she couldn't find a single flaw in it.
After a moment of silence,
Charlotte finally sighed and cautioned him.
"Al, I know you have a proper job now and you're earning money."
"It's good that you want to climb the ladder and work hard."
"But you shouldn't just throw your money away!"
"Even copper plates are expensive!"
"Don't worry, Lottie."
Elias quit while he was ahead, offering her a very composed smile.
"I know what I'm doing."
"When it comes to money, you have to be willing to invest in yourself to get a bigger return."
"Wealth is earned with your brain, not saved by being stingy."
He took the opportunity to usher her out.
"If there's nothing else, I'm going back to working on the layout of my business cards."
"Alright then."
Charlotte had no reason to stay, so she turned and left with a sigh.
"..."
Smiling, Elias closed the door with a slow, gentle motion.
With a flick of his wrist,
he swiftly locked the door again.
It was so quiet that not a single unnecessary sound was made.
"You're living like a goddamn thief in your own home."
Inside his mind,
Old Ed couldn't help but let out a snide, mocking laugh.
"It's a damn waste of talent that you're not a professional con artist with a mouth like that."
"What else could I do?"
Elias leaned back against the door and spoke helplessly.
"Living under the same roof as a little monster with such a sensitive spirit sense... it's too damn hard."
On the other side of the door,
in the hallway,
Charlotte tapped her head in frustration as she walked downstairs.
"What is wrong with me..."
she muttered to herself.
She didn't understand why she had been so high-strung lately.
She just felt that Al had become incredibly strange since he returned from his voyage.
Even though his usual way of doing things hadn't seemed to change,
it just felt different.
She didn't even know what she was suspicious of.
She had tried to follow him this morning, but she had lost him at the very first corner.
This only made the clouds of doubt in her mind grow darker, her curiosity spreading like wildfire.
Even though she had tossed and turned last night, thinking that following her own brother was wrong,
she just couldn't stop herself from wanting to uncover the truth.
Inside the room,
Elias waited until he was sure there was no more movement outside.
Then he leaned down to pull out the temporary storage box he had frantically hidden behind the door.
He was ready to get back to his unfinished charms.
The moment his hand gripped the handle of the box,
Charlotte's voice drifted in from outside the door.
"Al, I'm heading out now."
"I'm going to visit Ms. Cecil."
The sound of her footsteps echoed as she went down the stairs.
In the room,
Elias froze, his hand still on the handle.
Ms. Cecil...
Ms. Cecil?!
"..."
Unlocking and opening the door in one fluid motion.
"You... you're not allowed to go!"
Rate on N.U.
