Chapter 20: Young Lady Voulstridge

"Excuse me. I came from the Locksmith Guild."

"You must be Silvester. Come. Lord Voulstridge is expecting you," said the butler named Victor.

’How did he know my name?’

Earlier, as I approached the entrance, he was standing there as if he knew of my arrival. He is old, but Ignatius is much older.

I followed Victor upstairs. The interior architecture was truly that of a noble home. From the elegant chandelier down to the marble floor, they were wealthier than the Lerwicks.

I don’t know how many minutes we walked because the place was so vast, but I couldn’t see any maids or servants. That puzzled me.

After a long silence, we finally stopped in front of a door. It was made of gold plating, and two suits of silver armor decorated both sides.

"I will be staying outside, my Lord. Please enter the room. Good luck." Victor guided me into the room.

The room was full of swords and shields on the walls. The elegant furniture spoke of how much gold was spent on it.

My eyes locked onto the people inside the room.

A man in a white coat stood near the window, where some gardeners outside were busy trimming the plants.

A girl in a white dress who was somewhat around my age sat on a couch with a wooden doll in her hand. She had white hair and cold blue eyes. She had to be this man’s child; they shared the same features.

I bowed my head as a sign of noble respect.

"Good day, Lord Sebastian Voulstridge. I am—"

"Please be casual, Silvester, and take a seat." Lord Voulstridge smiled and guided me to my seat.

Confusion started to spread across my face.

"Don’t worry. I already know who you are because Lord Sterling recommended you to me. He is quite fond of you."

"Thank you, my Lord. If I may, I would like to do my job. So, where is the safe?"

I was really not comfortable. The girl in front of me was staring as if she were judging my soul.

"Hahaha. I like your eagerness. Arielle, please guide Silvester to the supply room."

"Father, I don’t like him. Just request another locksmith."

That made my eyebrows go up. She might be one of the bratty nobles in this district.

"My love, we have already hired many locksmiths and no one could even open the chest. Let’s just try. Maybe he can." Lord Voulstridge knelt in front of Arielle.

"But he is just a child like me. He can’t do it. He looks like a fraud," Arielle reasoned.

My temper flared, and I stood up.

"If I open the chest, can I pinch her red cheeks?" I didn’t want to get killed for slapping this child, so pinching her would do.

"Hahahahah. You’re quite funny, Silvester. Arielle might end up liking you as well." Lord Voulstridge smiled from ear to ear. He seemed like a good person. I was starting to like him.

"Go, my love. Guide him."

Arielle stood up with annoyance on her face. She didn’t say a word and quickly walked out of the room. I looked back at Lord Voulstridge, who was starting to light his cigar.

"Please have patience with my precious daughter. She’s been like that since her mother died, but don’t worry, kid—she’s a good child." He finally puffed his cigar and breathed out smoke into the cold room.

"I will try my best, my Lord. I’ll excuse myself then." I bowed slightly and started walking out of the room.

I quickly ran down the corridor to catch up with Arielle, who was walking downstairs.

"Ahem. Can I ask what kind of safe I will be opening?" I had no choice. I needed to ask a stupid question just to break the ice. She looked at me with her cold eyes and didn’t say a word.

"Wow. That was a great speech," I murmured. I caught up with her again and tried to start a conversation a second time.

"So... Miss Voulstridge. Why are there no maids or servants around? Is there a prob—" She stopped and looked me in the eyes. Sadness filled them. She looked like she wanted to say something, but didn’t bother opening her mouth. She just continued walking.

I didn’t try to talk to her again. I think I had just pulled a lever that shouldn’t be touched.

We stopped in front of an old wooden door behind the kitchen. Inside was full of old things: cabinets, rusty chandeliers, a broken grand piano, and some cleaning equipment. We walked a few steps and stopped in front of a chest. It was not the kind of chest shown in the poster, but an incredibly unique one.

It was made of ice crystals and was so cold that the table it rested on was frozen, filling the room with icy air despite the summer heat.

"It was my mother’s personal chest. I... I want to see what is inside." Arielle cried silently, almost gasping for air as she spoke.

"Please do not cry, my Lady. If anyone sees us together while you are crying, they might think I made you cry. So just wipe your tears and let me handle your request, okay?" I said in my most sincere voice. I was honestly not good at comforting people, but I didn’t want to see a child crying over family.

"F-fine. Just open it." She wiped her tears with her tiny hands.

I didn’t say a word. Instead, I activated my skill.

Locksmith’s Eye.

My vision began to change. The air filled with white mana threads concentrated on the ice chest. But that wasn’t what shocked me.

The mana threads filling Arielle’s body were concentrated, smooth, and tight. There was no black mana in her—just pure, dense white mana.

At such a young age, Arielle had already managed to refine her mana threads, making her a powerful mage despite having no formal training.

I stared back at the ice chest. It must truly be hard to open this thing. This wasn’t just a regular chest. Its lock was embedded with ice mana. Its mechanism was just an ordinary lock, but the mana threads made all the difference. It was identical to the mana coming from Arielle, who was staring at me.

It was a synchronized mana chest. To open it, the exact same mana frequency had to be fed into the runes. I could open it in just ten seconds, but it would be nice if Arielle could open it herself.

"I can’t open it."

"Huh? Are you kidding me? You just said that you could—"

"You can open it, Arielle." I smiled at her. I could tell she was as powerful as her mother. The rune left by her mother on the chest and Arielle’s mana threads were synchronizing perfectly. It was as if they recognized each other.

"See? You’re just a fraud. I already tried before, but—"

I offered my hand to her.

"Take my hand, my Lady. I’ll show you how."

Her pale face began to turn red.