The three men went on and on about their upbringing and current circumstances, spilling all sorts of irrelevant stories until they shut their mouths under Eliya’s cold gaze.
Then they briefly, yet thoroughly, explained matters concerning Richard.
In short, they were thugs loitering in the city’s back alleys.
Not a threatening crime organization, mind you.
Robbery, pickpocketing, and home burglaries.
The level of crime they committed was about that much. A bunch of petty criminals.
They had been extorting protection money from weak businesses, with Richard’s orphanage being their target.
“To summarize,” Hermis, who was in charge of the interrogation, pieced it together.
“They received a fixed amount each month as protection money from the orphanage, and this month, the orphanage did not pay it.”
The three men nodded in silence.
“The extortion started about a year ago, increasing the amount little by little since then. They imposed an outrageous fivefold increase in this month’s protection money.”
“…….”
“The reason they gave is that Richard, being an orphanage alumnus, is a recruit candidate for the Bevel family’s knights, who serve the Sun Church.”
“…….”
“When they resisted the unfair demand, they threatened them by damaging the facility, and later, they resorted to violence against Richard when he came to complain…. Quite astounding.”
The three men didn’t rebut Hermis until he finished speaking.
Well, they couldn’t. It was all testimony from those men.
Occasionally, I glanced at Richard for confirmation, and he cautiously nodded his head, so it seemed true.
“It seems the atmosphere around here is particularly hostile to the Sun Church…. but this is rather extreme.”
Eliya nodded, looking at me.
“What will you do?”
“…Huh? What?”
I stammered at the sudden question.
‘Why are you asking me…?’
Regardless of my confusion, Eliya remained calm, as if it were perfectly natural to ask me.
I turned the question towards Richard.
“What do you think we should do?”
No matter how I thought about it, Richard should decide their fate.
“Uh…? Um, is it okay for me to decide…?”
Richard looked at me, his eyes darting anxiously toward Eliya.
Eliya continued to simply gaze at me, nodding her head.
“She says it’s fine.”
Richard looked back at the three men, his face quickly turning from dazed to furious.
“I want all the money you’ve taken until now back. And I hope this doesn’t happen again in the future. If possible, I’d like to completely uproot your organization….”
Richard spoke excitedly but trailed off at the end, seeming worried that he might be overstepping as Eliya had permitted him to speak.
Meanwhile, Eliya was nonchalant.
“Did you hear that?”
She asked Ria and Hermis briefly, and they both nodded simultaneously.
“B-but that money is already all….”
One of the men protested in a timid voice, and Hermis chuckled reassuringly.
“Don’t worry about that. There are many ways to retrieve the money already spent. The Bevel family has various means at its disposal for that.”
Despite the calm and benevolent tone, the content was chilling.
*
Eliya, Hermis, and Ria began to discuss various things.
It seemed they were deliberating on how to deal with those three.
Meanwhile, Richard, Argon, and I stepped back a few paces to talk.
“Are you feeling better?”
“I’m fine, just a scratch.”
“To think I’d see you getting beaten up like that.”
As Argon joked, Richard smiled weakly.
“Yeah, who would’ve thought. But what are you guys doing here?”
“We came by on a request from the nearby church. We happened to find you on our way back.”
“Lucky me.”
“And what about you? As far as I know, the orphanage isn’t nearby.”
“Oh, I had something to take care of…”
Richard glanced at the men kneeling like livestock awaiting slaughter before him.
Eliya was still in conversation with her subordinates.
Checking on that, Richard finally spoke.
“I knew about the protection money, but I only found out today that it had increased so much. So I came to confront those guys directly, but then I got beaten up and chased away.”
It seemed Richard truly cared about the orphanage.
He said he was busy every weekend because he would go help out at the orphanage.
He even mentioned that most of the income he earned from the training center’s requests went to the orphanage.
“Honestly, we can’t just throw around being from the Bevel family as we please. So, I thought I’d just take a beating and be done with it.”
Richard turned to me, giving a grin.
“Thanks to you, I’m still alive, Judah.”
“Ah, well…. It’s really more of Eliya’s doing.”
“Come on, if it weren’t for you, would she have even listened to my request?”
“…….”
I wanted to deny it but couldn’t.
No matter how many times I thought about it, Richard’s words seemed correct.
How should I accept this reality?
“Thanks, Judah.”
Richard smiled as he patted my shoulder.
It was the first time I saw him smile so refreshingly.
I also had received various help from Richard during the time we’ve known each other.
From the moment I first stepped into this place, and several times thereafter.
Anyway, if my help had been of use, I was glad.
As we exchanged smiles, I suddenly looked at Eliya, who seemed displeased.
She looked a bit sulky.
It was a serious and deep-in-thought expression.
‘What’s with her?’
I was curious…
‘Oh, wait?’
Suddenly, Eliya strode over to me.
*
Eliya quietly thought.
She had only been giving simple advice or consent to Ria and Hermis from time to time.
Who the city’s mayor was, the familial and political relationships of that mayor, how responsibilities were distributed across the city, and so on.
She only presented simple words.
Other than that, there was nothing she could do.
Her thoughts, emotions, and consciousness were continuously sinking.
She sought out Judah.
Just that was strange.
From the moment she entered Selene, Eliya could pinpoint Judah’s movements exactly.
A rather inappropriate metaphor, but it was like a dog chasing its master’s scent.
Something like a thin thread fluttering in the air.
If she followed that cold aura, Judah’s trajectory would appear.
In the end, Eliya managed to locate Judah without any advice or assistance from anyone.
There were magical methods to track specific targets or pinpoint locations in real-time.
But the magic Eliya had learned was not one of those.
Why was this possible?
Looking back now, it seemed clear.
The sun and the moon.
The nature of trying to become one.
The first deciphered scripture Eliya had read said this:
The sun devours the moon to confine it within itself, and the two become one at last.
Could it be that was why she could find Judah so easily?
However, at the moment Judah was discovered, she had no time to ponder that question.
Judah was being grabbed by a massive man by the collar.
Upon witnessing that intimidating scene, a heat surged within her chest.
The only reason she didn’t incinerate those three men before her in a frenzy of rage was entirely due to Judah’s presence.
Was it because of the long interval?
Just being close made the delightful cold aura seep into her body.
Thanks to that, she could barely endure…
Then suddenly, she felt a gaze and looked up.
Her eyes met Judah’s.
Without hesitation, Eliya stomped over to him.
Before Judah could say anything, she seized his hand.
“Ah, A-Aga… miss…?”
She felt a chill pass through their clasped hands.
Now it felt as if she could breathe again.
She came for this from the very beginning.
Ignoring the stammering Judah, Eliya returned to her thoughts.
What she mulled over was precisely that part.
Judah, who had been grabbed by the collar.
The adult who had been about to hit him, scowling fiercely.
Why had her emotions been stirred at that moment?
As she quietly contemplated, she soon reached a conclusion.
Unlike the dull and simple Judah, Eliya was meticulous, crafty, and smart.
It didn’t take long to deduce the outcome of such an issue.
‘Projection.’
Narcissi and Eliya.
The version of herself that was bullied in the past reflected onto Judah’s image just now.
Like a mirror.
And the second projection.
In a place she didn’t know, one of her own was threatened.
Like her mother’s case…
‘…?’
Eliya briefly interrupted her thoughts.
She instinctively took a step back from the current situation.
Feeling a sense of crisis.
Like she was about to fall into weakness.
She contemplatively retraced her thoughts.
Had she just compared Judah to her mother?
Surely not.
That couldn’t be.
While it was true that Judah was a special person,
The term ‘special’ encompasses far too many meanings, from entirely different to strikingly similar.
She couldn’t place her mother and Judah on the same level. Definitely not.
And she must not.
If that were to happen, Eliya would become dependent on Judah.
Dependence would create a weakness.
Weakness is a shortcut to defeat.
While she didn’t deny that he was a special child,
He remained the only color left in her.
The child who sprouted anemones in a cage.
Simply different and slightly eye-catching.
Not something to depend on.
She must not depend on him.
Eliya obsessively repeated that to herself.
She had to remain perfect, alone, at all times.
She tightly clutched the reins of her emotions, which were trying to cross a line, and controlled them.
Surely, the fact that it was projected was true.
Structurally, it was just like back then.
‘Right, that’s exactly it.’
It was just the mix of the two projections that had her feeling so irritated.
It didn’t help that she hadn’t been receiving Judah’s cold aura for long either.
So there was no other way.
Other than that.
No other reason. Truly none.
From the outset, Judah belonged to her.
It was only natural to feel displeased when others touched her possessions.
Thus Eliya reached her conclusion.
Judah was looking at her with a hardened expression.
Unbeknownst to him, some justification was happening beneath Eliya’s serious facade.
Because it was a justification, even Eliya herself didn’t realize it was a justification.
*
Things were handled swiftly.
To be precise, they were bound to be handled swiftly.
The return of the protection money Richard’s orphanage was unjustly made to pay.
And the eradication of the gang responsible for disturbing the peace in the vicinity.
Those two were the core issues, and Eliya decided to personally write a letter to the mayor of Selene in her own name.
Richard felt dizzy witnessing the unfolding events before him.
Something he couldn’t possibly achieve by his own means was getting resolved just by Eliya’s simple words.
And beside him was the accomplice who made it possible.
Judah.
“It’ll take some time.”
Eliya said offhandedly, and Richard quickly bowed his head.
Even if it took time, he didn’t mind.
As long as it could be resolved, he would wait endlessly.
“Thank you.”
Judah spoke first, and only then did Richard finally manage to voice his gratitude.
Argon, who had been gauging the situation, bowed as well.
“Th-thank you.”
He wanted to return as soon as possible to the orphanage to share this news.
In the interim, Judah asked the question he had been curious about.
The question he had wanted to ask first upon seeing Eliya.
…She hadn’t let go of his hand, still holding it.
“Miss, may I ask why you’re here…?”
Eliya couldn’t readily provide an answer.
It was a question she didn’t need to answer.
To question her actions would be considered rude.
So, she could simply dismiss it, saying it was none of their business.
However, Eliya deep in thought contemplated why she was here.
Why indeed.
It felt strange.
Did she come simply to absorb that cold energy?
To feel with her body that the first scripture she interpreted was indeed the truth?
Or was it something else?
Eliya gazed intently at Judah’s face.
As they locked eyes, he averted his gaze, seemingly realizing his rudeness.
Perhaps he had learned a fair bit about etiquette by now.
Yet, if that were true, it was somewhat disappointing, but then again, not entirely.
If he understood etiquette, he wouldn’t have made such a ruckus with those men earlier.
If anything were disappointing, what would it be?
Reasons started to tangle like a net.
Eliya’s reason for being here.
There was nothing grand about it.
She came to see Judah.
Thus, Judah was the reason and purpose of her visit.
But that felt odd and unfamiliar.
Could a person be both the reason and purpose?
To her, people had always been a means, a tool.
For ‘people’ to become a purpose in itself, other explanations had to follow.
Removal, abduction, threats. Those sorts of things.
Yet, Judah was far removed from such terms.
So what was it?
Her clever mind quickly concocted a plausible answer.
‘Utilization.’
The chilled aura she felt from Judah even now.
That which stabilized her mind and body was what she needed.
Since she sought it like a patient would see a physician when hurt, she needed that from Judah.
Thus, she was merely using him. This was simply not dependence.
Her subconscious had haphazardly concluded there was no difference between necessity and utilization.
Ultimately, the answer Eliya arrived at was simple.
Her thoughts were profound, yet arriving at the conclusion was quick.
“…Simply.”
Judah nodded quietly.
There was no need to pry further.
Eliya had said she simply came, and it would be absurd for him to question it.
She must have other business to attend to.
That was how Judah took it.
However, Eliya showed no signs of wanting to leave.
She simply stared at him blankly.
An awkward atmosphere settled around them.
Eliya, the one with the highest authority, said nothing as she gazed at Judah, while the rest were left at a loss for words.
Hermis and Ria stepped back from this bizarre situation.
Richard mustered his courage and spoke.
“Um, if it’s not too much trouble, may I take my leave now?”
“W-Where are you going?”
Argon asked anxiously.
He too wanted to flee this uncomfortable place.
“I need to return to the orphanage and share the good news.”
“Ah, yeah. That’s a good idea.”
“Then may I accompany you?”
Judah asked, directing his question at both Richard and Eliya.
He wanted to escape as well.
To begin with, Judah never even thought Eliya had come to see him.
“If we all go together, that’d be best for me.”
“Then, I’ll excuse myself…”
Just as Judah was about to subtly let go of her hand.
“Go together.”
Eliya tugged on his hand more firmly.
As if saying she wouldn’t ever let go.
“…Huh?”
Judah, Richard, and Argon all responded in unison, astonished.
“If you go, then…”
Eliya gazed at Judah.
It was quite entertaining to watch the stunned expression on his face.
He was always brash and audacious in any situation,
Yet, before her, he often appeared bewildered.
That reaction, for some reason, filled her with delight.
With a soft smile, Eliya continued to speak.
“I will also go.”
“……”
The three of them fell silent.
They simply exchanged glances before accepting Eliya’s words.
After all, none of them had the authority to decide.
The group split up as they moved forward.
Originally, the cart that Judah and Argon had ridden in took Argon and Richard.
Meanwhile, Judah boarded Eliya’s cart.
With such a natural guiding hand, there was no room for protest.
Sitting down felt incredibly natural too.
Eliya sat next to Judah.
Ria and Hermis occupied the opposite side.
Before the cart even set out, Eliya held Judah’s hand again.
Judah stiffened entirely.
Even if they had hugged and slept together in a half-asleep state before, this kind of approach was too much.
On the other hand, Eliya felt no shame as she leaned her head on his shoulder.
Her heart was unmoved unlike Judah’s.
She felt no reason to be.
She simply enjoyed the cold aura seeping through their clasped hands.
It felt as if the foreign elements that clung to her mind were finally washed away.
“Ah, miss…?”
Judah cautiously called her.
Eliya remained silent.
When he glanced over, she had closed her eyes.
Her breathing was slow, as if she were sleeping.
Though it was absurd, seeing her sleep so demurely kept him from speaking.
He resignedly offered his shoulder.
At that moment, Hermis shot him an inquisitive look.
He rapidly glanced back and forth between Judah and Eliya.
‘What the hell is going on here?’
Judah shook his head briefly.
‘Don’t ask, I don’t know either.’
Then Ria looked at Judah and Eliya with a troubled expression before closing her eyes.
*
They arrived at the orphanage where Richard had lived.
As Eliya got off the cart, she stared intently at the orphanage building.
I shared a similar sentiment.
In such a shabby place, nurturing children.
The sloppily patched wooden house didn’t seem habitable at all.
It looked more like a derelict building where a homeless person would stay.
Could this truly be called home?
“Could people really live in a place like this…?”
Eliya muttered softly.
It was fortunate that I heard her just barely.
If Richard had heard, he might have been hurt.
Having grown up in a luxurious environment all her life, it was no surprise that she found the sight astonishing.
I understood her shock.
“Ah, um. Here it is…”
Richard introduced awkwardly.
A building that could only be called shabby and worn.
It wasn’t a suitable place to introduce to a high noble like her.
“It’s still winter, so they should all be inside…”
“Coming to think of it, is it too sudden for us to be here?”
Argon questioned.
“Doesn’t matter? As long as you’re not coming here to stay.”
Richard replied with ease.
I had my own worries, but his attitude made my heart much lighter.
However, Eliya, who was still quizzically observing the orphanage, was unsettling.
Knock, knock, Richard rapped on the door.
“It’s me.”
With no reply, the door burst open.
The door was ajar, but no one was there.
“Big Brother?”
A little child, barely taller than Richard’s chest, appeared before him.
“Yeah, it’s me.”
“Big brother’s here!”
The child shouted.
A ruckus of footsteps rushed out from inside.
Like a mini earthquake, several kids came running out all at once.
“Richard oppa!”
“Hyung! You okay? Didn’t you go to fight those adults earlier!”
“Of course. Did you see me lose?”
Richard skillfully interacted with the children.
After a brief chaos, the children turned their gazes to Richard’s back.
And that’s where they looked at us.
“Who are those people?”
“They’re my friends. That freespirited guy over there is Argon.”
“What? No, uh… Let’s see… I’m Argon.”
“And the grumpy-looking guy next to me is Judah.”
“Hmm. Ah hello, guys.”
I didn’t correct him, as technically, he wasn’t wrong.
The children naturally directed their gazes further back.
“Who’s that big sister?”
There stood Eliya, observing the children intently.
Her red eyes were focused.
What on earth was she looking at?
“Ah, um…”
Richard hesitated on how to introduce her.
At that moment, someone hurriedly walked out from inside.
With larger footsteps than before.
The actual person who appeared was an adult.
“Richard?!”
A blonde woman clad in shabby commoner garb.
‘…I’ve seen that face before.’
She looked shocked to see Richard, then began to smack his back.
“YOU! Always running off without telling anyone—!”
“No! Benny noona! Stop it!”
Richard’s face reddened in embarrassment as he glanced at me and Argon.
The woman, introduced as Beninita, turned to us.
A brief exchange of simple introductions ensued.
She introduced herself as Beninita, the operator of the orphanage.
“Sometimes it can get overwhelming on my own, but it’s a relief that Richard comes to help out from time to time.”
Then, she went through the same process of looking at us as the children did.
Beninita discovered Eliya.
In a flash, she recognized that Eliya was not an ordinary child.
Her tone shifted to one of caution.
“Who is this person…?”
Eliya de Bevel.
The youngest daughter of the Bevel family who governs the Bevel Principality.
A noble of considerable rank, yet in this world, there are many who might not have the chance to know the actual ruler.
There are no portraits, and even if there are, no means to spread them around.
It’s hard to know even if one wishes to.
‘…Wait a second. How did those men recognize Eliya at once?’
My curiosity was interrupted by Ria’s calm voice.
“She is Lady Eliya de Bevel, the sixth direct descendant and the youngest daughter of the Bevel family.”
“Ah…!”
Beninita immediately knelt.
“I-I’m sorry…!”
Perhaps she was apologizing for her ignorance of etiquette.
As Beninita bowed her head, the children seemed unnerved.
They sensed the odd atmosphere.
Not completely innocent and naive, but rather observant kids who quickly picked up on the situation and kept quiet.
They must have grown up nurtured in that kind of environment.
Eliya dismissively waved her hand.
To her ear, Ria mentioned it was time to get going.
Nodding, Eliya grabbed my fingertips and spoke.
“I’ll be going now.”
“Please take care.”
Upon receiving my farewell, she smiled faintly.
A cat doll hugged tightly in her arms.
Though it was winter and beginning to warm up, she never parted from the red blanket around her shoulders.
Those two elements stirred something uneasy in me.
Once Eliya left, Beninita spoke again.
“And why did the young lady come here…? Richard, did you get into some trouble?”
“Anyone who hears it would think I only get into trouble all the time.”
“Isn’t that the case?”
Complaining, Richard explained briefly to Beninita.
They would be getting all the money they had paid up until now returned, and that it wouldn’t happen again.
“Eeh…? You’re joking, right?”
Beninita couldn’t believe it.
“Why would I joke about something like this?”
“Then… you’re for real…?”
Her voice trembled and she began to tear up.
“Really, truly…?”
“Of course.”
Gradually, tears filled her eyes.
They glistened and eventually fell.
She began to sob, hiccupping between her cries, and eventually, she wept uncontrollably.
The children followed her lead and started to cry as well.
For reasons unknown.
The sight of a grown-up bitterly wailing created a different resonance than that of the children’s cries.
Richard silently comforted Beninita and the children, while I and Argon waited until they calmed down.
“Aaah… This isn’t ideal… I shouldn’t be like this in front of guests…”
Sniffling, Beninita chuckled sheepishly.
I gave a friendly smile as if to say not to worry about it.
“But why…? No, how?”
“Hmm. That’s…”
When Richard’s gaze met mine, he gave a grin.
“He’s the reason.”
“Eh…? Judah, was it? How could he…?”
“Judah told the lady. Because of that, the lady decided to take charge of things for us.”
Suddenly?
The ball was being thrown back into my court?
“Really…?”
Beninita looked at me.
I scratched my cheek awkwardly.
“Uh, it’s not entirely wrong if I say that….”
“Um…? Well, really? Thank you very much, though what’s your relationship with Lady?”
“…….”
It’s a natural question to ask.
What was I that Eliya came personally to resolve this matter?
Unlike me, Hermis smiled slyly.
A mischievous grin that was downright evident in his intentions.
“This Judah is, after all, a very precious and special….”
I hurriedly covered Hermis’s mouth.
“N-not really. It’s just that, uh, thankfully, the lady has been a bit… well, I mean….”
As I spoke, the atmosphere became even stranger.
What on earth was this regarding Eliya?
What should I say about myself?
I regretted jumping in.
I should have just let him speak and ignored it.
As I fumbled over my words, Richard and Argon began to chuckle mischievously as well.
“Umm, yeah… So, I happened to offer assistance to the lady once, and, thankfully, I’ve been receiving help in return.”
Fortunately, Beninita did not find my reaction odd.
Although, Beninita…
That name felt familiar.
“Really…? It’s true, isn’t it…? Thank you…”
As I avoided her gaze out of embarrassment, Argon patted my back.
A gesture suggesting pride.
As if to say I should be proud of myself.
I simply smiled back at him.
“This wonderful lad!”
Beninita suddenly pulled Richard into a hug.
“I was always worried he’d get into trouble again, but now he’s made wonderful friends! Oh, you’ve grown up!”
“W-What the heck…! Why are you suddenly hugging me!”
“What’s so sudden about it? You used to hug me all the time!”
Richard blushed and flailed.
Though he denied it, there was a struggle to disguise his rising smile in that chaos.
‘…Wait a second.’
In an instant, I felt a mental arrow fly through the air.
Like a bolt, a realization struck me.
That was a memory from a certain day.
Richard persistently probing me about my preferences for dramatic romances.
‘Could this guy…? Is that really what this was?’
And I recalled the future.
I knew Richard.
The figure who would later be called the Knight of the Lion.
He would have a wife.
That name was none other than Beninita.
[Hidden quest, ‘Absolute Loyalty’ completed.]
[Please choose your reward.]
*
Shylock, currently working under Balak’s orders, had become Judah’s double agent.
Sighing as he scanned his newly arrived commands, he muttered.
‘Seems he has no intentions of leaving the kid alone….’
A new order from Balak arrived.
The operation to isolate Judah within the training center was not going as planned.
It wasn’t just because Shylock had returned to Judah’s side.
Judah was adjusting remarkably well to life in the training center, more than Balak had anticipated.
Above all, the bonds he had formed with his roommates were exceptionally strong.
No matter how much one tried from the outside, if the closest one was friendly, it would prove fruitless.
But Balak was insistent.
The first order had failed.
And now, the second order arrived anew.
‘As soon as Judah returns, I must inform him.’
*
“Hm.”
On the weekend.
Dillon stayed back at the training center, honing his skills alone without going on requests.
After jogging around the training grounds, he fixed his gaze on one side.
Recently, he learned there were strange rumors floating around the training center.
Namely, unfounded slanders concerning Judah.
By the time he realized it, the overheated rumors had started subsiding.
Nonetheless, Dillon dug into the source and found himself at the end of a lead.
Envinil. The twelfth recruit of the 5th Room.
That recruit was mingling with a knight.
‘Is that person… Sir Gaston?’
He was someone he didn’t know much about.
They weren’t alone either.
Figures of other 5th Room members trailed along behind them.
‘This feels strange. That guy in the center… his name is Salaman.’
Dillon felt an uncomfortable sense of unease at the sight of that group.
Soon enough, he sensed an unfounded sense of looming crisis.
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