The Forbidden Blade

Chapter 4: Beginning of the Search

Lexie turned her back on him and took a deep breath.

This man was seriously giving her a headache.

Without another word, she walked away, not even bothering to say goodbye to Kairo.

He could find her tomorrow... or rather, later today.

To her relief, he didn't stop her.

Good.

She was completely exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep.

Her eyes drifted to her scraped palms.

Right... she still needed to clean and disinfect her wounds before resting.

Meanwhile, as Lexie disappeared into the distance, a figure emerged from the shadows.

It was the man whose face had been concealed beneath a dark cloth.

He silently watched until Lexie was no longer in sight.

Then, in the blink of an eye, he vanished, leaving behind nothing but a cloud of white smoke where he had been standing.

---

When Lexie arrived home, she unlocked the door with her key instead of knocking.

She had actually brought it with her tonight. She'd simply forgotten it the previous evening, forcing her to wake Lily just to get inside.

She let out a long sigh.

Had she really made the right decision by accepting Kairo's offer?

She hadn't even asked how much he intended to pay her.

Her gaze landed on the mirror.

She slowly walked toward it.

The exhaustion on her face was impossible to hide.

She had been working nonstop for the past ten years without ever taking a proper break.

Perhaps this was finally her chance to rest.

Besides, searching for a sword sounded far less exhausting than working endless shifts at the factory.

At least she'd get to travel around a little.

After cleaning and treating the cuts on her hands, she went to bed earlier than usual.

Tomorrow, she planned to collect her final paycheck for the month and officially inform her supervisor that she would be taking an extended leave from the factory.

---

The following afternoon, Lily noticed that Lexie still hadn't gotten out of bed.

She had already checked on her several times, yet Lexie remained curled beneath the blanket instead of preparing for work.

Once again, Lily entered the bedroom.

"Hey! It's almost six in the evening!"

Lexie cracked one eye open before closing it again and lazily rolling onto her other side.

Lily frowned.

"Are you sick?"

"No," Lexie answered shortly.

"Then why are you still lying there? Aren't you going to work?"

Lexie sighed and slowly pushed herself into a sitting position.

"I went out earlier."

She rubbed her eyes.

"I picked up my final paycheck."

"Your final paycheck?"

Lily looked at her in disbelief.

After living together for years, she knew just how much Lexie loved her job despite how difficult it was.

"I told them I wouldn't be working there anymore."

"Why?"

"I was offered another job... one that pays a lot better."

Truthfully, Lexie had no idea how much Kairo planned to pay her.

She just hoped it would be enough to justify leaving her stable job.

"What kind of job?"

Lexie hesitated.

How was she supposed to tell Lily that she had quit her job to help search for a missing sword?

There was no way she'd believe that.

"I'm... sort of an assistant," she lied awkwardly.

"I'll just carry an attaché case filled with important documents while my boss handles everything else."

She secretly pinched herself.

If anything bad happened because of this lie, Lily would never let her hear the end of it.

Lily smiled brightly.

"Really? That's a great job! You won't have to come home completely exhausted every night anymore."

Guilt pricked Lexie's conscience.

Lily looked genuinely happy for her.

"So, when do you start?"

Lexie quickly avoided her gaze.

She had no idea how she'd meet Kairo again—or even what time.

"Probably tomorrow," she answered.

"I see. Come on, let's eat first. I made dinner."

"Okay. I'll be there in a minute."

Smiling, Lily left the room.

Lexie remained sitting on the bed, staring blankly into space before finally getting up to wash her face.

A few minutes later, she sat at the dining table while Lily finished setting the food.

She wasn't much help.

Her body still felt too sluggish to move around.

Suddenly...

Knock. Knock.

Both women turned toward the front door.

As Lily placed another plate on the table, confusion crossed her face.

"I wonder who that is."

Lexie merely shrugged.

She rarely spoke to any of their neighbors.

Most visitors were usually looking for Lily anyway.

She crossed her arms and closed her eyes, still feeling sleepy despite having slept for so many hours.

A few moments later, Lily returned.

"Someone's here asking for you."

Lexie's eyes immediately flew open.

"He refused to come inside, so he wants you to meet him outside."

"For me?"

She blinked in surprise.

"Who is he?"

"I don't know. He wouldn't tell me his name."

"Why didn't you close the door? What if he's dangerous?"

Lily smacked the back of her head.

"Ow!"

"i***t! He said he's the one who offered you your new job. I'm pretty sure he isn't dangerous."

Kairo?

"What does he look like?" Lexie asked.

Lily frowned thoughtfully.

"Tall... handsome... but he has a scary face."

Yep.

That was definitely Kairo.

But...

How did he know where she lived?

Had he followed her home last night?

"Hurry up and go talk to him before you lose your new job because you're taking forever."

Lexie quickly stood and hurried outside.

She looked around.

There wasn't a single person in sight.

Only a parked car.

Where did he go?

She turned to head back inside.

Thud.

She walked straight into something solid.

Rubbing her forehead irritably, she looked up.

It wasn't an object.

It was Kairo.

"Your job starts now," he said coldly.

"Follow me."

Lexie watched as he walked toward the parked car.

So...

It belonged to him.

Wait.

She hadn't eaten dinner yet.

If they spent hours searching for sword shops, she'd probably faint from hunger.

Scratching her head awkwardly, she rushed back inside.

She informed Lily that she was leaving, changed into something a little more presentable, grabbed the two boiled eggs sitting in a bowl, and hurried back outside before climbing into Kairo's car.

"It seems you weren't prepared," Kairo remarked.

"You look like you left in quite a hurry."

Lexie stuffed one of the boiled eggs into her mouth.

Without any water, she nearly choked.

"I didn't know you'd somehow figure out where I live. I never told you."

"I assumed you'd think I followed you home last night."

He started the engine.

"You'd be right. I did. I needed to know where to pick you up whenever I needed you."

The car pulled away.

Lexie simply directed him from one sword shop to another.

She still found his mission incredibly strange.

Most sword makers and collectors in town kept their workshops hidden from the public, selling only to serious collectors willing to pay high prices.

Kairo's grandfather must have been incredibly old.

Maybe he collected antiques.

Swords...

Old pianos...

Grandfather clocks...

Even those giant clay jars that looked like ghosts might crawl out of them.

"I've been driving for quite some time now," Kairo finally said.