I AM THE AUTHOR

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

"wake up." Levi said, gently nudging me with a foot. "Huh?! we're here?!" I said, instantly opening my eyes and jumping to the window. Outside, was the ducal estate - and, of course, also just how I had imagined it. 

It was a lavish building - gold trim, fancy wallpapers, trimmed gardens. It was British, but that didnt make it less impressive. "Woooooooow. Cheers to the architects." I said, my face smushed against the window. "You still haven't answered my questions. What do you want to do here?" Levi asked from behind me. Ah. Another investigation session. "Come on, Levi, I'll tell you later. For now, we have to save Zal!"

"Who? that bratty duke's son?" Levi asked, confused, and I tried to hide my laugh with a cough. "Kind of. Also, the Ruthim empire is smuggling waste underneath the palace, so we have to use House Eur's power to stop it." I said as the cartridge turned to roll out a stop. "what? How do you know that?" Levi asked, but I just turned around and saluted him. Before anything more could be saluted, a doorman wearing a fancy suit opened the door, and I stepped out. Trumpets played a fanfare of music, and my shoes sank onto a red carpet. Servants bowed in a line, and I happily walked down the carpet. Completely used to fame. 

"Here we are! Ive been waiting for this!" I said happily. Luckily, Levi had taken the hint and wasn't pressing me about it. Good. Anyway, I dragged my sac down the hall. Of course, because Cordelia had previously lived here, she knew the directions to Zal's study. One left and one right, 3rd door down the hall, the one with the eagle crest. Easy. Levi was behind me, as well as a few servants. "Should we hold that for you, my lady?" One asked, and I flashed an innocent smile. Better to act like the pushover Cordelia was while I was here - the element of surprise would be good. "No thank you! I wouldn't want to cause you any trouble." I said. The servants exchanged glances, and instantly the room went from frosty to warm. As I turned right, I held out my finger to count the doors. "One, two, three, eagle crest. Here it is! Don't follow me and don't eavesdrop, got it, servants?" I said, swinging open the door, following Levi in, and holding a peace sign up before closing the door. 

"Hi! It's good to see you again! Nice house." I said passively, sitting down. Zal was standing in the corner. 

Yay! Hi again, Male Lead! Noice to see you. Your eye bags are as dark as ever. "Father? Could I have a word with Cordelia before we start?" Zal asked hesitantly, and the Duke held up a hand. "Of course. Only one minute, though. We have things to do." He said, pulling out a pocket watch. I cautiously followed Zal. As soon as we were alone, he rolled up a sleeve. Red welts and scratches were all over his arm. "This is what happens at House Eur. You can still run." Zal said, a desperate note in his voice. Oh. Well, I already knew that. Without thinking, I held out my arm to heal the scratches. Zal watched in surprise. I smiled calmly. "It's fine. I already knew that. Im here to save all of us~" I sang, opening the door and walking back. "wait-" Zal said, but I was already emptying the sack onto the table. Papers spilled out. "Here you go, duke," I said, picking up a random one from the pile that was now on the table. "Pray tell, what is this?" The duke asked, eyes scanning the paper. His eyes widened. "Yep. Every embarrassing thing House Eur had ever done. I have a friend who supplied it. Don't even think about killing me - if I don't write to them every week, their going to publish every. single. paper. the press won't shut up for years over this juicy gossip." I said. Of course, a bluff. I had barely managed to get my hands on these as it was. And then I leaned back, crossing my legs. 

"So. Now, we do this on my terms, or we don't do this at all," I said, smiling.