Chapter 43: Three Little Lambs, Elizabeth

"Understood." Diaz packed his luggage efficiently. "By the way, Mr. Chris, I will need to find a new hiding place for the money you entrusted to me."

With all his thoughts previously consumed by Nord, Verack had momentarily forgotten about the money. Now, at Diaz's reminder, his interest was piqued. "Where did you keep it before?"

"Right here." Diaz carried a stool into the bathroom, stood on it, pried open the ceiling panels, and pulled out a case containing five hundred and fifty thousand gold crowns from a narrow cavity.

"You modified this yourself?" Verack entered the bathroom, pointing at the concealed compartment in the ceiling.

"Yes, a makeshift job." Diaz pulled out the case and jumped down from the stool.

It had been less than a day since Verack handed the case to Diaz and placed it in his care. In that single day, Diaz had finished investigating twenty-four hotels for Verack, managed to construct a concealed compartment, and hidden the case away. Judging by his tone, this was likely just a preliminary arrangement; given more time, he would have concealed it even more securely.

"This is already quite impressive." Verack felt a sense of relief for his decision to employ Diaz.

From every perspective, Diaz was nothing short of perfection.

Loyal, valiant, and meticulous.

Possessing even one of these three traits was no small feat, let alone all of them.

"It's still not secure enough." Diaz was dissatisfied with the current hiding place. "Once we move to the Rovide Hotel, I'll find another place to store it. It shouldn't take long."

"I trust you. Go ahead and do what you must." Verack was unstinting with his trust.

"Thank you, Mr. Chris." Diaz still looked somewhat flattered. The way 'Chris' treated others entirely devoid of class barriers and distance deeply moved him.

"After you move to the Rovide Hotel, it will be inconvenient for us to meet. Therefore, we should maintain regular contact. Starting next week, I will pass by Clayton Gardens every day at six in the evening. If there is something to discuss, I will get out of the car to see you. If you see that I remain in the car, it means everything is fine." Verack arranged their future protocol for meetings.

Diaz noted it down earnestly: "Understood."

"I'll be going then. Take good care of yourself." Knowing that Nord was still alive and having arranged Diaz's subsequent matters, Verack was thoroughly content. Bidding Diaz farewell, he stepped out of the apartment.

Stepping into the stairwell, Verack did not rush down. Instead, he leaned against the wall, covered his face with both hands, and slowly squatted down.

While Diaz was present, he had restrained himself. Now, alone in the empty stairwell, he could no longer suppress the joy welling up inside him. Smiling through his tears, he wept—the first time he had completely lost control of his emotions since coming to Lezein.

Beneath intermittent, soft sobs, Verack wore the brightest of smiles as he wiped away his tears.

Returning to this place, gaining certain things and losing others, he finally understood the true weight each of those things held in his heart.

Nord mattered more than five hundred and fifty thousand gold crowns.

Learning that Nord was still alive was, by far, the best news Verack had received.

"You fool..." The sobs gradually subsided. Wiping his tears, Verack whispered a gentle reprimand to Nord, "As long as you're alive..."

After taking more than ten minutes to release and pacify his emotions in a rare environment where he could truly be himself, Verack finally stood up. He walked over to a window, using its hazy reflection to confirm that all traces of his tears were gone, before stepping lightly down the stairs and returning to the car.

Daniel sensed an unprecedented cheerfulness in Verack and couldn't help asking, "Did something wonderful happen, Mr. Chris?"

"Indeed." Verack leaned back against the seat, a wide grin spreading across his face, his eyes sparkling with light.

"May I ask what it is?" Daniel inquired with curiosity.

"Well..." Verack desperately wanted to share his joy, so he framed it as a story. "I read a particularly lovely tale once. It said there were once three little lambs who were the closest of friends. The second one believed that far away existed a world where one would never have to worry about a lack of grass, nor about violent storms and bitter winds, so it took the first and third little lambs and set out resolutely to find that world. Later, due to various hardships on the journey to find that world, the first lamb died, and the fate of the third lamb remained unknown. In the end, the surviving second lamb began to doubt itself. It felt that it was responsible for the deaths of the first and third lambs, and that perhaps such a wonderful world didn't exist at all—or even if it did, and even if it were found, being left alone would bring no happiness. Gradually, the second lamb felt it was forgetting who it was, forgetting where it came from. The sole purpose of its existence seemed to be finding that world. As for what would happen once it was found, even the lamb itself wasn't quite sure; it only knew that this was the only way not to fail the trust placed in it by the first and third lambs."

Daniel turned his head to quietly observe Verack, who sat in the back, beaming as though recounting a fairy tale.

"At that very moment, the second lamb learned that the third lamb was still alive. Far away from the second, the third was still trusting the second, still striving to catch up to the second's footsteps." Verack's eyes grew moist once more as he spoke, and he turned his head to look out the car window. "The second lamb came back to life. Every effort it made gained even greater meaning. It must press on, find that world, and then reach out a hand to the third lamb, which had followed behind it all along without a shred of hesitation... A nice story, isn't it?"

"It's wonderful." Daniel offered, whether genuinely touched by Verack's story or simply humoring him.

Yet that mattered little to Verack. He longed to tell the whole world, and above all, he longed to tell Nord: he would certainly succeed in reaching that longed-for world, and then turn around to pull Nord in beside him.

Yet he could not speak of it just yet, because right now, he was not Verack, but Chris.

"Alright, let's just drive around a bit and then head back." Verack composed his emotions, sitting upright.

"Very well, Mr. Chris." Daniel started the engine and began driving aimlessly.

For the very first time, Verack leaned against the car window with genuine interest, absorbing the scenery all the way.

***

That evening, owing to a charity gala, Verack did not dine at home. Instead, he returned to change into an immaculate, elegant formal suit, and after repeated instructions from Fletcher, set off for the venue.

The charity gala was scheduled to begin sharply at eight o'clock.

Verack arrived at seven-fifty-five. By then, many social elites had already gathered at the entrance of the Baihui Hotel, where the banquet was being held. Verack merged into the crowd with Daniel, presented his invitation letter to the attendant at the entrance, and was escorted into the hotel, leading all the way to the second-floor grand hall.

Although Verack had not possessed the opportunity to face such grand occasions alone in his past life, he had attended numerous charity events alongside the Carmine family. Thus, from the moment he entered the venue, he maintained a poised and graceful demeanor, politely exchanging greetings with the dignitaries he encountered.

"Chris."

Just as Verack seated himself at the attendant's direction, a soft call sounded from behind him.

"Hm?" Verack turned his head and froze.

The person calling him was Elizabeth—the very same woman Kellerman had mentioned, with whom Chris had once shared an unresolved romance.