Chapter 255 – 255: Elesia

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Haru slowly walked out of the alley. As he moved, the clamor of vendors hawking their wares and the chatter of the crowd filled his ears in a disorderly fashion.

Although it was just 6:00 AM, the simple town was already bustling with people.

Haru had anticipated this. Seeing the vast farmlands surrounding the town, it was evident that this was primarily an agricultural production town, quite common in France, a major agricultural producer in the EU.

And regardless of the country, most farmers start tending to their fields around 5:00 or 6:00 AM. That’s why the town was so lively at this hour.

Just then, Haru narrowed his eyes slightly—a faint fluorescent light gleaming in his deep gray irises. If one looked closely, they could see the figures of Altrouge and her group on the town’s main road.

The Black and White Knights, along with Altrouge leading Fou, split off from the main road, dividing into two groups and beginning to wander ‘aimlessly’ through the town.

Watching Altrouge, looking like an innocent little girl walking her pet, Haru chuckled softly.

“Right, after all, she’s an old girl who’s lived for nearly a thousand years. Her acting is impeccable.”

“But it looks like they plan to search for Roa separately?” Haru rubbed his chin, looking at the faint black aura clutched in the hands of Altrouge and Blood.

From eavesdropping on Altrouge and the others’ conversation earlier, Haru knew the identity of the black aura—it was the soul fragment Roa couldn’t take with him when he died humiliatingly, unable to reincarnate immediately.

———

Then, Haru stretched out his hand, blocking the path of an elderly white man passing by, and said sincerely, “Good morning, old sir. Could I trouble you for a moment? Could you help me with something?”

“Of course, young man. Eh!! Look at you, you must be from the East, right? To speak our local French dialect so well, that’s truly remarkable!” The white-haired old man looked at Haru with surprise, speaking with admiration.

“Yes, I’m a traveler who just arrived here. I wanted to buy a local specialty French bread for breakfast, but unfortunately, I don’t know the shops. So I took the liberty of stopping you, old sir,” Haru said with a light smile.

Haru vaguely remembered that Roa XVII should be—Ciel-senpai from Tsukihime—Having once seen information that she was the daughter of a baker, Haru specifically stopped a local elder to inquire.

“Local specialty French bread, huh? Then you’ve come to the right person! Old Horton here has lived in this town his whole life; there isn’t a bakery in town I haven’t eaten at!”

Hearing it was just a small matter of asking about a bakery, not some difficult problem, the old man immediately patted his chest confidently and began rattling off introductions to the various bakeries in town.

Although it was a small town, being in a European country where bread is a staple food, bakeries were everywhere. Checking them one by one would be extremely troublesome, so Haru chose to directly obtain accurate information from a local elder.

———

About ten minutes later, Haru stood before the entrance of a French bakery.

It was a three-story European-style building.

Judging by the clothes hanging out to dry on the top floor, it was likely a family-run bakery converted directly from their own residence.

In the middle of the red-painted wall was a glass door.

Posters of huge loaves of bread were pasted on both sides of the glass door; evidently, those two types of bread were the bakery’s signature products.

This bakery—located at a corner midway down the main road, was one Haru had specifically asked Old Man Horton about.

Ciel was said to be a mixed-race girl with an Eastern face, reportedly inherited from her mother, and sky-blue hair from her father’s side. And in this small town, according to Old Man Horton, only one bakery called “SKY” matched this description.

The father was a genuine town resident who met a Japanese woman studying abroad while he was in university. After falling in love, they returned to the town, opened a bakery, and had a lovely daughter—perfectly matching Haru’s impression of Ciel’s background.

“Although this shop’s daughter is named Elesia, not Ciel, she probably changed her name later,” Haru murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Haru closed his eyes, checking Altrouge’s location. Seeing her strolling in front of a pizza shop, a mocking expression appeared on his face.

If Haru used his own perception to investigate, there was a significant chance Altrouge would detect him. But using the Counter Force’s monitoring, as long as they were natives born in the Nasuverse—they couldn’t detect it at all.

How could natives who lived under the Counter Force’s monitoring from birth to death possibly sense its existence?

Because it was Omnipresent and everywhere—it was the easiest thing to ignore.

“Beneath the thousand years of experience bringing noble elegance, is there a pure maiden’s heart?” Haru covered his mouth, speaking with emotion.

In his deep gray eyes—under Altrouge’s noble and elegant black evening gown, a pure blue and white stripe pattern was clearly visible.

The previous surveillance seemed to have developed some practical function for Haru’s ability to monitor all things in the world using the Counter Force.

Casually admiring the scenery, Haru pushed open the bakery door.

———

“Welcome! What can I get for you?” A vibrant young girl’s voice suddenly rang out.

Ocean-deep blue hair tied back in a ponytail hung behind her head, appearing simple yet capable. An Easterner’s delicate face wore a vibrant smile, a pair of sky-blue eyes reflecting Haru’s figure.

She wore a pure white dress, but jarringly, an apron covered in breadcrumbs was worn over it.

From the charming and cute dress, one could infer the girl’s status at home. However, judging by the crumb-covered apron, the girl must have been busy for a long time. Waking up at 6:00 AM to help her parents manage the bakery—one could say she was an exceptionally filial child.

Focusing his gaze on the cash register nearby, Haru nodded slightly. The girl helping out in this bakery was undoubtedly the future Ciel, the current Elesia.

“Is this your first time here, customer? Haven’t seen you before. Would you like me to recommend our signature croissant?” Elesia said enthusiastically.

“Sure, give me one!”

Haru chuckled lightly. Coming into close contact with Elesia, Haru discovered that the girl before him seemed to have an inexplicable infectious quality, capable of instantly brightening one’s mood.

“Here you go, that’ll be 85 Euro-cents!” Elesia deftly used tongs to pick up a croissant from the rack behind her, placed it on a piece of parchment paper, wrapped it up, and handed it to Haru.

“Here, this is one Euro.” Haru took out a one-Euro coin from his pocket and handed it to Elesia, lightly touching her palm in the process.

“Your change is 15 cents… Hey, where did he go?” Elesia, who had lowered her head to make change, looked up to find the shop empty.

Elesia looked bewildered. Did she just see a ghost in broad daylight? But did ghosts also like her family’s bread?

“Om nom, mm, tastes good.” Haru, walking down the street, bit into the croissant, speaking cheerfully.

The secret measure was already in place.

Now just waiting for Roa to fall into the trap. Then, perhaps he could even meet that famously adorable White Princess everyone talked about.

Not far behind Haru, Altrouge narrowed her eyes, looking at the trembling black aura in her palm.

Her crimson eyes reflected Haru’s retreating back.

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep