132 – Decoy – 6
“Cordelia?”
“Uh, huh?”
“Are you okay?”
“Oh, sorry. What were we talking about?”
“I was asking if you had any free time this weekend.”
Cordelia barely got out of her thoughts at Hestia’s voice. Hestia’s worried eyes looking at herself made her heart pierce for nothing.
“Sorry…. I think it will be a bit difficult.”
“I see… , there’s nothing we can do.”
Hestia shook her head in regret. She knew that she had deliberately made such an offer for her recent lack of energy, but Cordelia couldn’t possibly feel comfortable going out on a weekend under these circumstances.
It has been several days since Susan disappeared without saying anything. Thanks to that, Cordelia has been having nightmares every day for the past few days. She tried her best not to show off to others, but it didn’t seem to work out as well as she thought. Because she keeps trying to soothe me like this.
Actually, I had a nightmare today too. The content has always been the same. It is such a dream in which Susan, her eyes red and bloodshot, reaches out to herself, saying, “Why didn’t you come to save her?” The background, time zone, and other minor details continued to change, but in the end, the missing Susan came out and asked for her help as if resenting herself.
Why didn’t she come to the rescue? It was this question that had filled Cordelia’s mind lately. If she had no way to do it, if she really had to sit still and pray, would she have suffered this much? Cordelia shook her head.
Cordelia naturally recalled the day when she had followed Mikhail and she was almost caught.
“Well, there might be something I can help with!”
“What can I do to help? Hmm… Would you like to work with me?”
The day Lira helped her follow Mikhail and she almost got caught. Lira reacted to her random suggestion, thinking that she didn’t want to end it like this. She thought for a moment, and then she asked Cordelia for her role. She asked if she would be willing to help herself.
She was even more surprised by Cordelia, who was surprised that she actually did it without much expectation. She wondered what she could do for her.
“A decoy operation, so to speak.”
This is her explanation. If Cordelia herself goes to buy her medicine and is overpowered, she will come out and follow her, enter her base and wipe her out. After hearing her story, the first question Cordelia asked her was this.
“Isn’t this the most dangerous thing for me?”
“Yes.”
Isn’t that literally bait? After the fish bites the bait, there is no guarantee that the bait will be fine anywhere in the world.
But Lira said yes naturally. Cordelia froze at her so confident demeanor. Lyra added her explanation in a rather serious manner.
“It’s not something to fool around with lies. We have to be honest with you that dangerous things are dangerous.”
“That’s true, but….”
“If they have an idea, they won’t try to harm you by overpowering you. It sounds obvious, but it’s much better to inform the family, the academy, or anywhere else and receive a high ransom rather than venting your anger against you. However, nothing in the world is 100% certain. Of course, I intend to keep an eye on you to make sure that doesn’t happen, but…. Anyway, I can’t deny the fact that it’s dangerous.”
The more she listened to Lyra, the more confused Cordelia was. Is she persuading me to act as bait, or is she dissuading me from doing it?
Surprisingly, Lyra was giving her real, heartfelt advice. Ever since she was much younger than her Cordelia, the choices she makes have been her own responsibility. Of course, you can’t use the same standards, but Lyra thought Cordelia was old enough to make important choices. She was and she was there so there shouldn’t be an asymmetry of information, she thought.
To put it briefly, it was something close to an old joke that started with a kind of “When I was”. Anyway, in that sense, Lyra decided to disclose all information to Cordelia transparently.
“Incidentally, the original planner of this plan was Mikhail. I was the bait.”
“… But why didn’t you?”
“I told you, because it is dangerous. To be honest, I’m satisfied with my life now, and I really didn’t want to gamble considering the possibility of anything happening. No matter how low the possibility is, the risk is too high when caught on that low possibility. Besides, my identity is unknown, so I don’t know what will happen to me after being subdued.”
The possibility of something happening at least once in a while. Those words stabbed Cordelia in the chest. The odds seem extremely low, but literally, in the unlikely event something happens to you. Will I be able to see the faces of Mikhail, Hestia, and Lily? No, let alone straight, I wonder if there is something to see again.
“Or, I’d rather tell Mikhail… !”
“That was dismissed.”
“Why?!”
“Well, if Mikhail found out, he would try to kill me.”
It was half a joke, but the other half was the truth. I don’t think Mikhail really wants to kill himself or anything like that, but he’s probably quite upset that Cordelia is being dragged into this. In Lyra’s eyes, it seemed like overprotectiveness, but she didn’t have the confidence to convince it.
“It’s not like I didn’t think of that method. No matter how much I think about it, there is no one as perfect as you for the bait role.”
“Me?”
Cordelia widened her eyes at her words, the perfect bait. Why do you have to be yourself?
“First of all. You’ve already been in contact with drug dealers. Yes? And second, I’m sorry to say, but some of your friends are already seriously addicted to drugs. Even if you’re addicted too, it’s not without probability. Thirdly, unlike Mikhail, who covers his face with a mask and robe, and me, who is not even a student, you have a clear identity. If they knew she was the daughter of a duke’s family, they would think about extorting the ransom and would not do any direct harm.”
Lyra didn’t catch her breath, and she went on and on about why Cordelia was a good fit for this role. And she, somehow stung, did not forget to add one more word at the end.
“I said this, but I am not forcing you. Really! I’m not that bad b*tch.”
After saying something, it seemed like he was trying desperately to force Cordelia into her role as bait, which made Lira feel bad for nothing. What she wanted was, to the last, her choice by Cordelia’s will, and she’d be fooled by her own tongue and cool off.
“Anyway, it’s a little like that to me, but I think you’re the most suitable bait. But Mikhail turned on the light in his eyes and objected. Bait you… , No, I keep baiting, so I feel a little like that. It means that if you want to use manned operations, you have to keep them a secret from Mikhail.”
In fact, Lira thought the most rational strategy for her was to cooperate with Mikhail, she put Cordelia at the forefront, and then she and Mikhail wiped out her stronghold…. As she said earlier, she knew Mikhail would absolutely say no, so she decided to just give up.
Cordelia frowned.
“Give me a little, a little time to think.”
“It’s ridiculous to ask you to decide this right away. Think carefully and do what you really want to do. Not doing this doesn’t make you a bad b*tch, and even less does it make you a righteous person.”
And yet, Cordelia hadn’t given an answer.
Though she had plenty of time to think, the events of the day continued to run through Cordelia’s mind. Especially since she’s gone, Susan has been.
Lira’s last words, ‘do whatever you want’. Those words, which were not very difficult, continued to tighten her throat. Actually, if you think about it, after she entered the academy, she continued to do what she wanted to do.
She admired the female knight in the novel, so she took swordsmanship lessons she didn’t have to and made new friends. She had a lot going on in many ways, but during her vacation, she invited her new friend, not Hestia, to her house, and was invited again. She did everything she wanted to do, and she had no regrets about her choice.
But when she said that she would just sit still and wait, could she not regret this choice in the future?
Cordelia jumped up from her seat.
–
“Isn’t it true that you’ve been worrying a lot by yourself?”
“That’s right.”
Lyra asked Cordelia again, who had returned to her safe house for the number of times already. She sincerely hoped that Cordelia would not do such a dangerous thing out of her petty feelings. She was also worried about the girl she didn’t ask when she was still, and she didn’t want to feel sorry for Mikhail. Well, now that I’ve come this far, I should apologize.
“Just, when I look back later, I thought about whether or not I would regret it, and I thought I would regret it tremendously if I just waited.”
“Oh….”
Lira sincerely admired Cordelia’s words. If you look at what she usually says, she’s an absolute fool, but seeing her unexpected appearance like this, isn’t she rather more mature than her friend Hestia?
“What am I supposed to do now?”
“Don’t be too hasty. The night is long.”
Lia smiled sullenly.