I Reincarnated Into A Single-Celled Organism! - I Reincarnated into a Single-celled Organism! - Chapter 121

I leaped up onto the balcony I had just seen the mysterious stranger jump through. As soon as my feet landed, I jumped again, rolling as a flash of silver appeared where I had just been standing. No sooner did I stand up when I felt another blade coming. This time, I used the palm of my hand to swat it away. This blade wasn’t thrown but was being held but the robed figure, who seemed to cry out in surprise in a feminine voice when I caused their entire body to twist.

Her hood fell back, revealing long curly black hair. My eyes widened as I realized I recognized the girl. She was the same woman I had encountered outside of town. It was the young Lady of House Stride, although I couldn’t remember if she had mentioned her first name. This time, with the form-fitting black suit and the light of the room, I was able to get a better look at her.

She was shorter than me, standing around five and a half feet. Her skin was like white jade, flawless and smooth. Her lips were red, full, and pouty. The woman had a slim face, a sharp nose, and large almond-shaped eyes, the color of which I couldn’t quite place in the low lighting.

My features were still obscured behind my hood, and she didn’t seem to have any recognition on her face. She jumped back, and the two of us ended up facing each other, the blade in her hand pointed in my direction as if she planned to throw it if I did anything threatening.

“You are the one who planted the tracking device. Why?” She asked boldly. “What do you want?”

“Aren’t I the one who’s supposed to be asking questions?” I asked, changing my voice just slightly just in case.

“Hmph, maybe if you had caught up to me in the street, but you’re in the Stride household now. If I merely shout, a dozen guards will be on top of you before you can even blink.”

“Then why haven’t you called them?” I inquired curiously. “Would they not approve of your extracurricular activities?”

“You…” She made a face. “Let’s just say it is your luck that I prefer to do things myself. Don’t think I won’t call out if you push my patience. I can’t seem to detect your mana level, but since you were able to follow me while appearing no more than a mortal, you must be powerful. Is tracking me down even necessary?”

“You’re going against the Capala household,” I spoke instead of answering her question. “You’ve been poisoning their fields?”

She put on a dark smile. “Why would I ever go against the Capala family? Such accusations require proof.”

“I imagine all the proof I need is right here?” I pulled the papers from my interstitial space, placing a particularly easily recognizable one to be seen on the outside.

As soon as she saw the papers, her smile slipped and she made a snarl. “Those fools! I told them to burn it all!”

“Don’t punish them too badly. They did as you asked. I was just quicker.” I began to lift through the pages. “I wonder how much Capala would pay for this information.”

“Which one?” she snorted.

“What’s that?”

“What do you want from me?” She demanded, lowering her knife. “You wouldn’t be showing me that if you didn’t want a trade.”

“I’ll give you these documents as long as you tell me why you’re going against Capala,” I told her.

“I’ll hold you to that.” Her eyes flickered. “Do you work for them? No… if you did, there is no reason you would be chasing me. Are you a Warden? No, impossible. They would hardly be so young.”

“Why do you think I’m young?”

“You don’t seem particularly comfortable barging into my room.” She responded. “You act more like the young nobles in town.”

“I’m not young,” I told her.

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “You asked me a question. Why? Why would I go against Capala? You may not know this, but the Stride family and this branch of the Capala family have a very close relationship. We raise alchemists, and the Capala family grows all of the plants that allow us to raise these alchemists. If we wiped out the Capala family, we’d only be destroying ourselves.”

I couldn’t help but frown. “Then, why are you helping destroy their fields?”

“Isn’t that a different question?” she shrugged. “I answered your first question. I’m not hurting the Capala family. Now, our agreement?”

“I’m not satisfied with the answer.”

“Hmph, isn’t that because you asked poor questions?”

“One more question, what does this have to do with the Lyn family?”

Her eyes flashed. “The Lyn family?”

At that moment, there was banging on the door. The young Lady Stride barely had time to throw a sheet around her body and hide the knife behind her back before the door burst open.

“My sweet, I heard a male voice. Are you alright- ah!” A man poked his head inside, but as soon as he saw the glowering lady draped in sheets as if she was hiding her body, he looked away. “I apologize.”

“We’ve already spoken about boundaries. You may be my fiancé, but we’re not married yet.” She spoke coldly.

“I was just worried about you.” He declared. “I thought I heard someone. If some man broke into your room and I did nothing, I’d never forgive myself.”

“Hmph, do you think I’m helpless? I’ll be evolving into a champion soon. If you take our marriage agreement seriously, should you be wasting time trying to sneak peeks?”

“I wouldn’t dare!” he declared.

“Get out!” she lifted a hand and pointed.

“Y-yes, sorry!” He shut the door, but as soon as it closed, his face warped into one much darker as he muttered under his breath. “Keep acting bossy. On our wedding night, I’ll put you in your proper place and you’ll be biting the sheets to keep from screaming.”

Her senses weren’t strong enough to hear him though. Instead, she looked to where I had been standing before the door opened. Of course, I had already fled the room, leaving the documents lying in the place I had been. A small smile formed on her lips, as she casually used the knife to clean her fingernails. After a moment, she let out a sigh and she reached out. A flicker of flame shot out from her fingertip and hit the documents, causing them to burn.

“Just who are you?” she muttered as she watched it burn.

I left the residence, and once I was back outside the wall, I couldn’t help but sigh. That had been a giant bust. After discovering someone going after Capala, I suspected that there was some connection to the powers that dragged down the Lyn family. After all, this was what I had promised Mara. She wanted revenge for her parent’s deaths, so I needed to find out who was responsible. The last question regarding Lyn had been the only one I cared about. Had she shown any expression except confusion and surprise, things might have played out differently. As it turned out though, this girl didn’t seem to know anything about the plot against their family, and it had nothing to do with her currently plotting.

I didn’t care about the problems plaguing the Capala family. They weren’t my problems to deal with. It was true that Mara was currently staying with them, but if she experienced trouble, I’d just recover her and leave. I was only leaving her there temporarily so I could investigate more freely. No one liked an escort quest. It was merely a temporary abode for her while I did what I had to do. Mara understood this as well. We had both discussed it. I had also left her with various means to protect herself, although I was glad to see she didn’t need to use it.

Either way, I could already sense that she was alive and safe. If at any point she felt threatened, she could summon me. Since she hadn’t done that, I’d continue to keep my distance. That was for the best. As I thought that, I couldn’t help but see my sister’s eyes once again. I shook my head. This wasn’t the same thing. I wasn’t abandoning her. I was helping her. If I remained by her side constantly, she’d only ever be some damsel in distress. Since she wanted revenge, she needed to walk on her own feet eventually.

In the meantime, I just needed to find the culprits, and when the time came, we’d wipe them out. The thugs had ended up leading nowhere, and I didn’t even get a profit. However, I had one other plan I had thought up with Grandmaster Bai. There were plenty of people willing to speak. You just needed to have your ears open.

As my colors shifted back to something more human, my face changed just enough that I’d be difficult to recognize by anyone who had seen me before. Then, I headed to the bar. It was time to learn the town gossip.