I Reincarnated as a Mob Villain in a Game World I Had Been Playing~ Using My Knowledge of the Game, I Lived a Carefree Life but for Some Reason I Became Famous Everywhere~ - Chapter 26 - Elusive Man

Chapter 26 – Elusive Man

After who knows how many days…

“It’s sad that I won’t be able to see you anymore. I already had a hunch since you didn’t come back to the inn yesterday.”

“No, I’ll just stop living at this inn, but I’ll still eat here. Just like right now.”

The man who had left his weapons and armor, which was why he was called “Jet-black,” at his residence was visiting the inn where he had been staying.

“You like the food here that much?”

“Yeah, it’s so delicious.”

“Ha ha ha, thanks a lot. I’ll be waiting for you anytime.”

The man was stuffing his mouth to the brim with a heaping plate of food.

What made it more delicious was the man was told that the “one million regils reward for anyone who gives information on where the Jet-black is currently lodging” had been removed.

As a result, the man was feeling more comfortable and was enjoying his meals.

‘Seriously, I wish we had more customers like this overflowing with enthusiasm…’

The owner, who secretly wished for such a thing, continued his words with a cheerful expression on his face, watching the man eat so happily.

“So, where are you planning to stay next? Depending on the location, I might be able to help.”

“No, I’ve been given a house and will be living there for a while.”

“Hmm? W-Wait. You’ve been given…a house?”

“Yeah. I was kind of hesitant, but the Duke gave it to me.”

“The D-D-Duke!? S-Seriously!?”

The owner could tell that the customer in front of him was secretive, not that he was bad at expressing himself.

Because of this nature, even if asked, the man wouldn’t reveal detailed information willingly.

“It seems like he was looking for me to thank me. It’s a really grand gesture…”

“…R-Right…”

The man wouldn’t tell why he was thanked, as expected.

On the contrary, it was uncanny how he behaved as if it were normal.

If it were someone, it’s 100% guaranteed that they would act proudly when thanked by the Duke.

“Y-You know… Just to make it clear, getting a villa from the Duke is a really big deal, you know?”

“It was quite spacious, that’s true.”

“That’s not what I meant…”

Some information appears to have been left out, but the owner guesses this was another sign of the man’s strict secrecy.

“You know that the number of villas symbolizes power, don’t you? If you don’t have land, you can’t build it.”

“Well, sort of.”

“So, in other words… The Duke himself thought it would be more beneficial to have a connection with you, even if it meant reducing his symbol of power.”

“Ah…”

“……”

The indescribable elusiveness of the man’s reply was truly uncanny. 

Even though the owner could tell the man was a good guy, he couldn’t help but still feel that way.

“S-Seriously, who are you?”

“I’m just a regular guy.” 

“There’s no way…”

There’s probably no one else but the man who would make such a retort.

The owner really wished that the man in front of him would tell a more believable lie.

“Ah, and take this. I forgot to give it to you earlier. Thank you very much.”

“Hmm?”

The man popped a cloth bag on his belt onto the table.

“What is this? It sounds kind of like money.”

“That is money. You really helped me when you hid me and gave me advice.”

“……”

The man who was thanked by The Duke was bowing. Although he shouldn’t have had any practice, for some reason, he seemed elegant.

“…I-I don’t want to take money from you. It scares me to death.”

“There’s nothing to be scared of.”

“Only scary people say that.”

“So if I say that you should be scared, will you take it?”

“I don’t like the sound of that either.”

The man looked at the owner like he really wanted the owner to take the money.

So this is how he explained it,

“I know it’s not a lot, but I can’t help but feel like I made you do something terrible.” 

“Terrible?”

“When you hid me from the Duke.”

“…Ha ha, I’m not gonna lie, I was sweating buckets.”

“R-Right…”

Having met the Duke, the man reluctantly agreed.

Still acting, the owner said—

“—Because I want to take care of my customers as much as possible.”

“I’m really glad I stayed here.”

“It’s cool, isn’t it?”

“Yes, I think it’s cool.”

“I was just joking, so deny it. You’re embarrassing me…”

This customer was really elusive.

But there was no doubt that he was a good guy.

A few minutes later.

The man clapped his hands together over his finished plate and said, “That was delicious. Thank you” and walked towards the doorway.

“Come back again.”

“Sure. I’ll be back.”

The owner looked at the man’s back who left on a happy note.

And like that, the man left the inn.

The moment he came out, the owner saw him with an indescribable expression talking to som people.

—For a moment, the owner thought those people were the duchess!

“……”

He saw them for a split moment.

“N-No, there’s no way… T-There’s no way…”

If it turned out to be real, the owner wouldn’t be able to concentrate on his work. 

As if to escape reality, the shopkeeper pulled the cloth bag left behind by the man and opened it…

“…Oi, is this guy serious…?”

What immediately caught the owner’s eyes were shining coins.

Taking them out one by one with trembling hands, it amounted to a tremendous amount of money. 

There were 10 regil coins worth 10,000 regils.

And 10 more regil coins worth 100,000 regils.

The amount exceeded the reward for providing information, a total of 1.1 million regils.

“W-Why does he have so much money… Ordinary people can’t afford this… And he even said it’s not much…”

The owner had no way of knowing that it was just a small fraction of the man’s reward from The Duke family.

And there was no way that the owner could ever know that the man would receive even more rewards.