The Lazy Boy Is, In Fact, the Strongest and Most Brutal Assassin. - Chapter 12: The Girl Is Being Cornered.

The Girl Is Being Cornered.

“Peter, isn’t he a bit too late?”

Rimrim asked Shia while slumped lazily over the table.

Shia’s younger brother, Peter, had apprenticed as a blacksmith under a friend of their late father since this morning. Although Il had returned some time ago, Rimrim was still waiting for Peter to come home, which meant dinner was on hold. Of course, Shia had suggested she eat first, but it felt wrong to do so. It seemed a bit too selfish. Compared to Il, Rimrim was slightly more reasonable.

“Well, it’s his first day, so he might have a lot to learn,” Shia replied.

Almost simultaneously, as if perfectly timed, the sound of the front door opening came from downstairs.

“It seems he’s back,” Shia said, smiling as she stood up to head to the entrance, with Rimrim following close behind. However, at the entrance, they found Peter sobbing, clinging to the shoulder of a man standing beside him.

The man appeared to be in his late twenties. He was muscular yet short, giving off a somewhat clumsy impression. With his short, blond hair and a distinctly craftsman’s appearance, his flattened nose was particularly striking. Frankly, he could be categorized as quite unattractive.

(…Not my type.)

As these thoughts crossed her mind, Rimrim instinctively tried to shield Shia behind her, wary of the man. But Shia brushed past her, rushing over to Peter.

“What happened, Peter?”

As if reassured by Shia’s presence, the young Peter began to cry out loud, prompting the man who had been with him to speak up hesitantly.

“Miss, when I got here, the young master was crying in the shadow of the gate.”

“I’m sorry, Toruk-san,” Shia replied.

Rimrim retraced her memories. Toruk was the apprentice who had lived here not too long ago. Shia seemed to rely on him quite a bit, so perhaps there was no need to be overly cautious.

“Hey, Peter. Can you tell me what happened?”

Shia tried to ask as she hugged Peter, but all he could manage were sobs, making it impossible to understand him.

“It seems that debt collectors showed up even at the place where the young master was apprenticing,” the man said.

“What?”

“They’ve become quite reckless lately. Just yesterday, they came to my place, and it was a real mess.”

“I-I’m sorry. Toruk-san, I’m so sorry for the trouble…”

“No, it’s fine. I can handle it myself. Actually, I came here to apologize to you today,” he replied.

“To apologize?”

Saying this, Toruk glanced awkwardly at Rimrim. Shia understood the meaning behind his gaze and gently encouraged Rimrim, “Rimi-neesan, could you please take Peter to the living room?”

“I can’t just leave you alone…”

“It’ll be fine with Toruk-san. Please,” Shia insisted, her tone firm.

Reluctantly, Rimrim wrapped her arm around Peter’s shoulder and led him toward the living room. Once she was out of sight, Toruk hesitantly opened his mouth to speak.

“Actually, I mentioned before that we found a buyer for this mansion, but as negotiations progressed…”

“You discovered that the mansion is already mortgaged. Is that correct?”

“You knew about that?”

“A debt collector mentioned it the other day.”

Shia let out a small sigh. Selling this mansion would allow them to repay their debts and start anew together. At least, that’s what she thought, but now that option was slipping away. It felt as though every possible escape route was being preemptively cut off.

“Miss, I know saying this might anger the master, but what if we sell the ‘Method of Dark Green Steel’? At this rate, the young master will be thrown out too,” Toruk suggested.

“Toruk-san, I really wish I could, but I don’t know where it is,” Shia replied.

“Did the master say anything about it?”

“All he said, jokingly, was that he’d tell Peter where it is once he grows taller than I am…”

Shia’s shoulders slumped. Toruk’s expression turned serious, reflecting his genuine concern.

“But Miss, if we don’t find a way to solve this, you might end up having no choice but to sell yourself into slavery. I mean, someone as beautiful as you could easily earn enough to pay off the debts, but…”

“Sell myself into slavery?”

“Yes, while that would relieve Peter of his debt troubles, you would suffer terribly. Well, if this situation drags on and we can’t repay the debts, they might even capture both you and Peter and sell you into slavery.”

At that moment, Shia’s eyes widened. They could even sell Peter? Even if they were gangsters, she never imagined they would go that far.

“…I’ll find a way to get the money,” Shia said, her head bowed as she squeezed the words out.