The Werewolf Count and the Trickster Tailor, Volume 2

by Yuruka Morisaki

  All those items he used to stuff into his room to hide them from Rock now served as decoration for Phoebe’s whole apartment. In return, his bedroom was outfitted with Rock’s tailored dresses and Phoebe’s favorite makeup and accessories.

  Every time Rock visited, she asked to hear about his life, and her father regaled her with stories of his exciting adventures. She also had him teach her how to apply makeup and perfumes, making spending time together as parent and child more fulfilling than ever before.

  The three of them were enjoying dinner together in that very living room Phoebe prided himself on.

  Tonight’s menu was three-bean stew, pickled cabbage, and chicken roasted on lightly baked bread. They were also having the pomegranates and apricots Rock had splurged on. She thought they should have a proper meal with the count in attendance.

  Phoebe also pulled out all the stops to make a first-class meal, which Ebel praised with every bite.

  “Your food is really fantastic.”

  “You honor me with your compliments, Your Excellency.”

  Phoebe gave a prim and proper reply, but Rock knew that was just to hide how shy he was to receive a compliment.

  “I told you it would be delicious. Father is an amazing cook,” Rock declared proudly.

  Phoebe grew even shier and looked away, earning an amused smile from Ebel.

  “I couldn’t have said it better myself. There is nothing better than delicious food served at a lively dining table.”

  Rock didn’t know how Ebel normally took his food. He was the last Mateus alive and had only a handful of servants, resulting in what must’ve been quiet mealtimes—well, maybe not with Johanna there.

  Since the maid came to mind, Rock decided to ask after her.

  “Are Johanna—and the others—feeling better?”

  “Yes, thank you for asking.” Relief clearly showed on Ebel’s face as he nodded. “Their injuries have healed, and everyone’s finally getting back to their normal routines. House repairs are also underway. There’s nothing for you to worry about.”

  “Really? I’m glad to hear that…”

  Rock was especially worried about Johanna, the maid close to her own age. She must’ve been left with such a scary memory after the incident with Guido Linus and had been physically injured too. It wouldn’t have been strange for her to take some time off, but she’d kept working at Mateus Manor like nothing had happened. Perhaps she was tougher than Rock gave her credit for.

  “Speaking of Johanna, she wanted me to invite you over,” Ebel said as if he’d just remembered the maid’s request. “Apparently, she’d like to serve you again since she couldn’t treat you to a good meal during your last visit. She incessantly badgered me to bring you home.”

  “Should a maid be badgering her lord…?”

  Phoebe sounded exasperated with them, but Ebel didn’t seem to mind at all. He calmly countered Phoebe’s snide remark.

  “Johanna is a hard worker with a good heart. I often haven’t a clue what she’s saying, but I have no complaint aside from that.”

  Apparently, even the count who’d hired her didn’t understand a lick of what Johanna was saying when she rattled on with stars in her eyes. Rock fully agreed with him on her pleasant personality and was also intrigued by how fancy a feast held at Count Mateus’s house might be.

  “So, how does a dinner party at my house next time sound?”

  Rock accepted without hesitation when Ebel extended a formal offer.

  “I would love to. I’ll come with my father.”

  “Me?!” Phoebe let out a rare flustered groan.

  “You don’t want to, Father?”

  “I’m not against it, but…it’ll be a headache deciding what to wear. We’d be going to a count’s mansion!”

  “Why not wear the same thing you did last time?”

  Phoebe looked bothered by Rock’s suggestion. Perhaps he was opposed to wearing a dress when officially accompanying Rock as her father.

  “Dress the way you feel most comfortable. It’s not a formal dinner,” Ebel said. Then his golden eyes gleamed mischievously. “But I must say I am extremely interested in how two tailors will dress up for the occasion.”

  Both Phoebe and Rock suddenly felt pressured to find the right thing to wear when they heard that.

  By the time they’d mostly finished dinner and had started on their after-dinner fruit, their conversation took on a serious air.

  “How is Lord Linus faring?”

  Rock felt like she was touching an old wound when she brought up his name. Ebel’s expression briefly darkened, his fingers freezing around a pomegranate aril. He immediately strained out a smile and quietly answered.

  “He’s calmed down some, according to Michaela. She said he spent the first few days holed up in his room but has recently been joining her for walks in the garden.” Ebel brought the aril to his mouth and continued after he savored it. “But…he will need time to get used to being a werewolf, I’m sure.”

  “Yes, it can’t be easy…” Rock responded with a lighter tone than the complicated feelings she actually had. After all, she knew even Ebel hadn’t happily accepted that fate.

  “I’ve been going through my contacts to find out anything I can about those statues,” Phoebe said in a quiet voice as he peeled an apricot. “Sadly, I haven’t gotten any good leads.”

  Rock knew that her father was collecting information on the cursed statues.

  Unfortunately, they hadn’t found any since Guido’s. At least Lady Trilian promised to contact them if anyone sold her another one, but Rock doubted they’d find more just waiting for it to come to them.

  Oddly enough, what seemed like an endless deluge of hearing about one statue after another had now dried up completely, like a storm had passed.

  “I haven’t had any luck either. I’m still visiting antique dealers in hopes of finding one.”

  Ebel had sighed, but urgency had yet to enter his voice or facial expression. Perhaps he also sensed it—that when the time came, the statues would surely reappear in front of him. Like fate.

  “Please don’t push yourself past your limits, Ebel.”

  Rock could only worry about him.

  “Thank you, Roxy.”

  Ebel flashed her a delighted smile while Phoebe made a face.

  “What’s this, Roxy? You care only about His Excellency?”

  “What’re you talking about? I’m worried about you too, Father. Obviously.” Rock laughed then continued, as if to remind herself. “The same goes for me. We need to stay healthy and energized at all times if we want to take on supernatural curses and the like.”

  The curse strikes when you’re at your weakest, she thought.

  They learned that from Guido’s experience.

  “True. We’ll get the jump on it next time,” Phoebe declared, as if challenging the curse. Ebel nodded alongside him.

  “At least I’m not alone. I’m very grateful for that.”

  Rock felt the exact same way.

  She wasn’t alone, so she wasn’t going to lose to some curse.

  ♚♚♚

  AFTER dinner, Ebel and Rock said their goodbyes to Phoebe, as they were both heading out to their respective homes in the aristocrat district and the slums. Phoebe saw them off with a smile and—

  “Your Excellency, I humbly request that you see my daughter home untouched.”

  —a touch of his usual sarcasm, making sure to drive his point home.

  Ebel parried his quibble in the same vein.

  “Don’t you worry, I shall keep unscrupulous fellows far away from her.”

  Rock had a rejoinder of her own but wisely kept silent.

  The sun had set, and flames danced inside the oil streetlights dotting the sidewalks.

  The slums were a distorted, lawless corner of the imperial capital. People who were forced out of the capital for lack of citizenship had constructed shacks on the capital’s outskirts, starting the initial foundation of what
eventually became the slums. As the shacks grew in size and number, even the House of Lords and the emperor couldn’t ignore their existence.

  Thus, streetlights were put up along the intertwining alleyways, low-quality housing was constructed, and the constables patrolled the roads, albeit lazily. Some said that one day the walls surrounding the imperial capital would be destroyed, and the slums would be incorporated into the capital as another district. Others feared that the emperor would send troops into the shantytown to carry out a clean-up operation.

  Whatever the future might hold, people still lived on these overcrowded gloomy streets, and warm light filled the windows of their rundown houses.

  “I had fun tonight,” Ebel told Rock as they walked down the dimly lit street.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.”

  The corners around Ebel’s eyes softened when Rock smiled at him.

  “I would love to hear tales of your father’s adventures when I have the opportunity to visit his home again.”

  “Please do ask him about it. His stories are so riveting,” Rock boasted, as if talking about herself. Then she bashfully told him, “…To tell you the truth, he asked me to live with him.”

  “As father and daughter?”

  “Yes. He said he wants to live together as long as we still can, since we went so long not being part of each other’s lives.”

  After she said that, Rock suddenly realized Phoebe had said that because he was planning for a future where she’d move away. It was only natural for a child to eventually move out to live their life, but it was embarrassing to say such a thing to Ebel, given their relationship.

  “What might happen in the future plays less of a part in my decision than wanting to be a good daughter,” Rock quickly amended, lest Ebel misunderstand.

  “I see.” Ebel chuckled, hinting he knew what she was trying to beat around the bush about. Then, his expression softened. “I think it’s a great idea. Family should be together as long as they can.” His voice darkened as he muttered, “I can’t be a good son now even if I want to be…”

  Rock gasped and pressed her lips together.

  She stole a peek at his face beside her. His eyes were staring off into the distance.

  Rock only knew what Ebel had told her about his father. She often wanted to ask him about what kind of man his father was and what their relationship had been like. But she felt like those were old wounds for him, and she didn’t want to go poking at them.

  They walked for a while in silence.

  Rock’s apartment wasn’t that far from Phoebe’s. Whether they spent the time chatting or walking in silence, they would arrive in no time. At the end of the road, where the streetlight flames swayed, Rock saw the storefront of the familiar antique shop and immediately wanted to extend their time together.

  She stopped in the middle of the road and timidly offered, “Um…would you like to come up for tea?”

  Ebel stopped in sync with her, his expression puzzled.

  “How should I interpret your invitation, Rock?”

  “I-I didn’t mean anything by it! I just wanted to offer you tea!” Rock insisted, but her voice cracked, betraying her intentions.

  Ebel’s golden eyes gleamed in the night, seeing right through her. His gaze accelerated her embarrassment.

  “You don’t have to…if you don’t want to…”

  Was that move too bold…? Rock wondered, doubting her decision.

  Ebel slowly leaned toward her. Her breath caught in her throat as his shadow cast on her face.

  “Your offer is most tempting,” he whispered in her ear. “But you have a guest to deal with first.”

  Rock’s head shot up at that unexpected answer.

  Ebel’s golden eyes were fastened on the road ahead. Someone was standing in front of the spiral staircase leading to Rock’s room beside Lady Trilian’s shop.

  It was the silver-haired tailor, Krister Gionet.

  “Hey, Rock. Thanks for your help this afternoon,” Krister casually greeted her. His eyes widened when he saw she was with someone, but he immediately cracked a smile when he recognized the face. “Oooh! You’re still with my gallant hero!”

  “Hero…?”

  “You saved me this afternoon, remember? Thank you very much, Count Mateus!”

  Krister stuck out his hand toward Ebel. Ebel answered him with a smile that didn’t leave his lips.

  “I only did what anyone else would have. By the way…why are you here?”

  Rock snuck in a glance at Ebel to find his golden eyes weren’t smiling at all. Whether Krister realized that or not, he replied with a toothy grin.

  “To offer my thanks for this afternoon, Your Excellency.”

  “To thank me?”

  “Nay. I am a lowborn man of the slums, and you are a noble and highborn count. I’m too lacking to even dare offer a meager word of thanks to someone so great, which is why I came to bring my overflowing words of gratitude to your acquaintance, Rock Floria!” Krister spouted pleasantries as he gripped Ebel’s hand. His theatrical display made him look drunk on his own words.

  Rock’s opinion of Krister grew frostier the more he kept speechifying.

  As a saleswoman, Rock was accustomed to using some flattery on her customers. But Krister’s word choice was overly embellished and deliberate, having the opposite effect of putting the person off.

  Case in point, the corners of Ebel’s lips were twitching. He seemed to be trying not to let his displeasure show.

  Even Rock wanted this nuisance to hurry up and get lost.

  “We don’t need your empty thanks, Krister,” Rock said curtly to get rid of him. She pried Ebel’s hand free of Krister’s and purposely treated him coldly. “You’re only being a nuisance, coming at this hour. Go home.”

  “What the hell? And here I was tryin’ to bring you a good job.” Krister leaned forward and lowered his voice suggestively. “You okay if I just leave and take one of your favorite things away: the chance to make good money?”

  Rock was always up for a good business deal, but she trusted Krister less than she loved money.

  Phoebe often said, “The better a job sounds, the bigger of a catch it has.”

  “I’m not interested in any jobs coming from you.”

  Krister seemed unfazed by Rock’s glare.

  “Don’t be that way, buddy! I’ll introduce ya to my customers.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “To tell ya the truth, I’ve been busy handlin’ a huge order from a wealthy customer.”

  The way he bragged about it only incensed Rock further.

  “So, I’ve been turnin’ down most of my regulars, and I still can’t keep up with all the work. I’ll start sending all my other customers your way.”

  What’s more, he was even acting like he was doing Rock a favor when he was really just making her life more difficult.

  “No good will come from dealing with your customers,” Rock snapped back.

  Krister didn’t even seem to hear her.

  “Don’t hold back on my account. Now ya know what’s up, so handle the rest on your own!” he announced and turned on his heel, hot-footing it away from them.

  “Hey! Krister!”

  Krister didn’t look back even when Rock shouted after him, disappearing into the black of night faster than a sewer rat fleeing a hungry cat.

  Basically, he’d come to push all his problems onto his rival.

  “There he goes, making my life difficult…!” Rock groaned, but there wasn’t much she could do after he’d left.

  As it was, she wouldn’t be able to make a profit off of his customers, so she’d be turning them away at the door anyway. She wanted nothing to do with bad customers who’d complain about the price, comparing it to Krister’s, only to get the evil eye from Phoebe until they ran away with their tail between their legs, cursing her business.

  “He isn’t trustworthy, is he?” Ebel asked, frowning.

  “That he i
s not. Anyone coming by way of his introduction isn’t worth doing business with.”

  Rock sighed, but Ebel meant his question another way.

  “I’m more bothered by the man himself. Did you see his eyes? They were bloodshot and his face was withdrawn.”

  Rock didn’t notice since she was trying not to look at Krister’s annoying face. He did say he was busy working on a huge order.

  “I’m most concerned that he knows where you live.”

  “Ah, now that you mention it…”

  Rock had no personal relationship with Krister beyond knowing his face and name as a business rival. She doubted he felt as fondly of her as his attitude had implied, and Rock would turn right around and leave if she saw him eating at Justia’s bakery when she meant to go inside.

  So it was more than a little strange for Krister to visit her house.

  “…How did he know where I live?” Rock tilted her head, puzzled.

  “Want me to tail him?” Ebel quietly offered.

  “Tail Krister?”

  “Yes, I’ll sniff out the details. He might bring trouble to your door after all.”

  Krister had already dropped a bucket full of trouble on her, but Ebel’s concerns seemed to lie elsewhere.

  “That’s dangerous! There’s no reason for you to go so far—”

  Rock tried to stop him, but Ebel only smiled before leaping onto her rooftop from the road below. He turned around after he softly landed and nodded down at her.

  “You needn’t worry. I’ll stay in the shadows.”

  “B-But you don’t have to do that, Ebel!”

  “I do for you, Rock Floria,” Ebel said, winking at her. “I’m off! I’ll let you know right away if anything comes up.”

  Ebel took off at a run without waiting for her answer.

  Rock’s eyes followed him as he nimbly leaped from rooftop to rooftop. She was swamped with loneliness the moment he was out of sight and sighed.

  “Damn you, Krister…” she cursed.

  Her first chance at a date with Ebel after everything they’d been through was ruined by her obnoxious rival.