Time Healer Ceres

Ceres narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Then I’ll find the three Keys and take them.”

“The Keys?”

Ben at least knew they existed. He still remembered the guild master getting worked up while talking about them once. But beyond that, he knew nothing.

“What happens if someone gathers all three Keys?”

“If you’re curious, ask your guild master.”

The three Black Keys weren’t just symbols representing the founders of Sky.

The intelligence guild had a separate vault where information was stored. Hidden secrets from across the continent, along with countless pieces of unreleased information, were gathered there.

Only the leader of the organization could open the door. Whenever a new leader inherited the position, they were required to swear a magic oath.

An oath of absolute obedience to the holders of the three Black Keys. Break it, and they would lose their life.

“Did we really need to make something like this? It’s not like we plan to keep Sky forever.”

“You never know what could happen. What if the organization we built betrays us first? At the very least, we should be able to control it while we’re alive.”

“I agree.”

It was one of the rare moments Artia and Kainel saw eye to eye, so Grace eventually agreed as well.

As a result, every leader of Sky had to make a blood oath using the contract Artia created. Anyone who refused was disqualified from becoming the leader.

After all, what use was the head of an intelligence guild if they couldn’t access the information vault?

Still, after three hundred years, I thought the oath would’ve lost its meaning.

But judging from the horrified expression the current leader showed before, the Keys still held power. Even after centuries had passed, Sky was still being maintained through that ancient oath.

It was hardly surprising. Back when the three of them managed Sky, an overwhelming amount of information had already been gathered at the vault. There was enough to pressure the Imperial family.

And it was only the beginning.

The hidden secrets of noble houses had continued to pile up over the years. A treasure trove like that wasn’t something people would willingly abandon just because time had passed.

If anything, the amount of information stored there had grown even greater.

“Do you know where all the Keys are?”

“I do.”

No, she did not. How could she know where Artia’s Key had ended up?

Though I do know how to find it.

In truth, unlike what she told Ben, she had no intention of gathering the Keys. This was simply a warning.

Besides, getting Kai to hand over his Key would be impossible.

Though she was a little curious how he’d react if she asked for it in this body. Would he draw his sword first?

“I’ll say this again. You are forbidden from speaking about this place.”

Normally, Ben only followed her as far as the cave entrance, but today, he had deliberately snuck inside.

Ceres couldn’t just pretend she hadn’t noticed. If word about this place got out, it would become troublesome for her as well.

“Fine. Whatever you say.”

Ben nodded. His mission was to follow Ceres around and uncover her identity, not report every little thing she did.

Absolutely not because he wanted to keep it a secret that she had seen through him.

“You’re not coming down?”

“I am.”

Ben had been lost in thought for a moment, but Ceres’s voice snapped him back to reality. He started walking again.

“While you’re at it, carry that too.”

“....?”

Ben frowned as he looked where she was pointing. There was a large water container sitting there, meant for the children.

“...Me?”

“Yes, you.”

Ceres left with that brief reply, slowly making her way down the mountain. Ben’s frown deepened as he watched her go.

“Seriously...”

He looked back and forth between Ceres and the water container before eventually picking it up.

Somehow, things had taken a strange turn.

***

“You son of a b*tch! What did you just say?!”

“Why? Was I wrong, you f*cking assh*le?!”

“You crazy b*stard! Wanna die?!”

Perhaps because Ceres hadn’t shown herself for some time, a fight had broken out again after a long while inside the stew shop.

“W-What do we do?”

“I know...”

Jay, the maid of House Drow, looked increasingly flustered as the commotion grew louder.

On the other hand, Mark let out a weary sigh like someone reliving an old nightmare.

A moment later, he quietly picked up a pen and paper. He needed to write down the names of the troublemakers responsible for today’s fight.

“Have you lost your damn mind?!”

Whoosh!

As the fight reached its peak, one of the mercenaries grabbed a chair.

“What? You gonna throw it?”

“—!”

At that moment, a calm voice cut through the shop. The entire place fell silent.

“Uh...”

Still clutching the chair, the mercenary slowly turned his head. He saw Ceres standing there with her arms crossed, staring straight at him.

Meanwhile, the man he had been fighting with already sat back down and buried his face in his stew.

This f*cking coward...!

He watched his companion pretend not to know him just to save himself. A bead of cold sweat rolled down his forehead.

“H-Haha... No, it’s just... the chair seemed a little loose, so I was trying to fix it.”

“Really?”

Ceres turned toward Jay and tilted her chin.

“Bring him a hammer, then.”

“Yes!”

Jay hurried over with the toolbox and handed it to the mercenary.

“Here.”

A bright smile spread across Jay’s face. The anxiety from earlier vanished as though it had never existed.

Honestly, Jay found it fascinating herself. Just seeing Ceres made her feel at ease somehow.

“Nothing happened while I was gone, right?”

“No.”

There was, but not anymore.

At Ceres’s casual question, Mark also smiled faintly. It had been a while since he last saw her, but Ceres was still the same as ever.

No matter the situation, she always remained calm. That steadiness alone reassured the people around her.

“By the way, where did you go? Why the scarf?”

Autumn was just starting. While the mornings and evenings had gotten chilly, it still wasn’t cold enough for scarves.

Both Jay and Mark looked at the scarf around Ceres’s neck with puzzled expressions.

“Did you catch a cold, my lady?”

“No, it’s not that. I just forgot.”

She came straight from the magic training grounds and forgot to fix her appearance first. No wonder it felt warm. She still had the scarf on.

“You really can be oblivious sometimes.”

“Be quiet.”

Feeling as though her disciple Enoch was mouthing off again, Ceres yanked the scarf off rather roughly.

Jingle.

At that moment, the front door opened and someone stepped inside. A silence different from before instantly swept through the shop.

Sensing someone familiar, Ceres turned her head. She saw Kainel staring directly at her.

“I-I’m done eating!”

“Me too!”

“The bill, please!”

“Keep the change!”

As always, the mercenaries hurriedly threw down their money before scrambling out of the shop.

Geez, would they ever get used to this? Why did they react like that every single time? Did they think he was going to devour them?

Step.

And you. I told you to come either early in the morning or late at night!

Why did he always insist on showing up at awkward times like this?

“Are you here for food?”

Ceres casually spoke first to Kainel, who was simply standing there watching her.

“I didn’t come to eat.”

“If you didn’t come to a restaurant to eat, then what did you come for?”

At her puzzled look, Kainel calmly pulled out a chair and sat down.

“To collect a debt.”

“A debt?”

What debt? Did the owner of this body really go all the way to the Persia Grand Duchy just to borrow money? What kind of nonsense was that?

At a small gesture from Kainel, another person waiting outside cautiously stepped into the shop. It was Del, Kainel’s aide.

When he saw Ceres, he greeted her with a polite smile and bow. Then he walked over and placed a thick stack of documents onto the table in front of Kainel.

What was that? Were they planning to handle official business here?

“They’re debt records.”

“All of those?”

Ceres stared blankly at the pile before looking back at Kainel.

“You too... no, wait. Don’t tell me you’ve been drowning in debt this whole time?”

What in the world had he been doing all these years? Where had all his money gone?

“They’re not mine.”

Kainel met her gaze.

“They’re yours.”

“...Mine?”

“Yeah. Yours.”

“......”

A sudden chill ran down her spine. Ceres slowly picked up the document sitting on top of the stack.

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