Chapter 10
“Pardon?”
Book’s face was full of bewilderment.
I could feel his gaze lingering on my plain hat and dress, and I clicked my tongue.
Oh dear, for a shop owner, his thinking sure is narrow. Does he have no idea how vast and boundless the world of luxury is?
Instead of adding any further explanation, I opened the door and walked out.
From behind, I heard Book call out a polite farewell.
The wide-brimmed hat I wore not only concealed my face but also kept out the harsh early-summer sunlight.
It’s already getting hot.
The sun blazing down felt like it was urging me to hurry and stock up on some thin summer dresses.
I silently gave thanks for my naturally pale skin that didn’t burn easily, and glanced around. Since there was still time before the incident, I figured I should get something to eat.
I took a step toward the shade behind a nearby building.
I felt hungry, but nothing in particular appealed to me. I wandered aimlessly, scanning here and there, when I turned a corner—
And there, a small child lay flat on the roadside, begging. His clothes were filthy and tattered.
I stopped in my tracks.
Ah.
The Empire—the setting of the novel—was a country with fairly well-developed welfare.
Maybe in the provinces it was different, but at least in the capital, it was rare to see a child so young begging because of hunger. Honestly, this was the first time I’d seen it.
And then it hit me—this child was the device to bring Ivelyn and Arwin together.
That’s right.
Ivelyn didn’t get caught up with thugs for no reason. There was a catalyst.
The heroine, while out strolling in the marketplace, spots a starving child and, out of pity, gives him money.
The problem was that the money happened to be a gold coin. And when the street thugs saw the beggar boy with a gold coin, they pressured him into revealing where it came from.
Then, to rob her of all her money, they surrounded and threatened Ivelyn.
I stared at the child lying on the street for a moment, then stepped into a nearby bakery.
After the event with Arwin, the child would end up in an orphanage or a free shelter without incident, but seeing him like this in front of me made me feel like I had to do something.
I’ll have you know, I used to be a regular UNICEF donor.
People are naturally weak to things right before their eyes.
I bought a warm cup of milk and some bread and placed them before the child. Seeing him wolf it down stirred an odd pang in my chest.
I went back inside the bakery, nibbling at juice and salad, and looked out through the wide window.
Phew, now I just had to wait for Ivelyn.
I needed to get involved at just the right timing, so my eyes were sharp, scanning the street ahead.
Normally, I’d hide in an inconspicuous alley and watch this event like it was a movie with popcorn. But this time, I had to throw myself into it.
Why? Because I needed to get close to Ivelyn.
After all, people who face danger together develop a sense of camaraderie. That’s all I was aiming for, chewing on greens instead of popcorn.
Come on, my pillar of support.
…!
I don’t know how long I waited, but my wish seemed to have reached her—there she was, Ivelyn, handing the child a gold coin.
Her face was hidden under a hood, but I could see glimpses of a delicate, pretty jawline, slender hands, and the decisiveness to give money to a beggar without hesitation—who else could it be but Ivelyn?
I silently cheered and stepped out of the bakery.
I had to make it look like a coincidence.
I calculated the distance, then “accidentally” bumped into her.
Pretending to be startled, I apologized, then paused mid-sentence with, “Oh? Aren’t you…?”
Ivelyn tilted her head, puzzled by my abrupt stop.
I met her eyes from under her hood and lifted the brim of my hat.
Once my face was fully revealed, Ivelyn gasped.
“Ah! That… nost—”
She reflexively stopped herself mid-word, covering her mouth with her hand.
What? Nostril?
Even though she didn’t finish, I had a pretty good idea what she meant.
Yeah, I get it. That’s probably the only thing I remind you of. You didn’t even know what popcorn was, after all.
Still, the fact that she blurted it out the instant she saw me meant I’d left quite a strong impression.
When I just stared at her, she looked flustered.
“A-ah, no, I mean…”
“We met in the garden yesterday, right?”
I took the initiative.
Her face lit up and she nodded.
I clapped my hands in feigned surprise and beamed.
She blinked, then awkwardly smiled back.
This was off to a good start.
“I was in such a rush yesterday that I didn’t get to thank you. You really saved me.”
“O-oh, it was nothing.”
“I mean it. If you hadn’t helped me, I might’ve died yesterday.”
“…”
She waved her hands at the word “saved,” but didn’t deny the latter part of my sentence.
That silence felt like quiet confirmation, and it hit me hard.
Wait—was I actually about to die yesterday? That lunatic Kennith really was going to cut me down?
No wonder evelyn had thrown herself in front of me. My intact neck suddenly felt like a blessing.
I steeled my resolve to cling to her even more.
Shaking my head to chase off the thought, I moved to exchange names.
“Come to think of it, you saved me, but I don’t even know your name. May I ask?”
“Oh, I’m Ivelyn Dot. Just call me Ivelyn.”
“I see. evelyn, I’m Latte Ecktry. You can just call me Latte.”
“Alright, Latte.”
Good. We’d gotten past the name stage.
I racked my brain for a topic that might make her drop her guard and take a liking to me.
If I’d known, I would’ve studied some Ancient Language in advance.
evelyn had traveled from a distant country to learn ancient script—though she didn’t actually study much.
In the original, one of the male leads learned the language purely to get close to her, and readers liked him more for his effort.
Did the crown prince confess using that in the end, or not? I can’t remember.
Anyway, that’s not important.
Ugh, I couldn’t think of anything suitable to talk about. Everyone knows the more you talk, the faster you get close to someone.
As I was silently fretting, a rough voice came from behind her.
“Hey, you in the hood! You’re the one who gave this brat a gold coin?”
Oh my! That rude line—could it be?
I turned my head at the same time as Ivelyn. Sure enough, there they were—thugs, radiating menace from afar.
Weren’t these the ones who would push the heroine into danger—only to fail to lay a finger on her before getting beaten up?
I admired their classic entrance and looked at the one who had spoken.
A big, burly guy with a nasty face—looked like the type who’d pull a knife on someone in an alley for fun.
Ow—why does my gut suddenly ache?
Still, despite his threatening appearance, Ivelyn showed not a flicker of fear, only anger.
“Did you… take money from that child?”
“Yeah? And if I did, what are you gonna do about it?”
The lead thug tossed the gold coin up and down in his hand.
Hey! Don’t treat the precious 10-gold piece like that! What if you drop it?
While I was fuming for that reason, Ivelyn was furious for another—yelling at the thug.
“Give it back immediately!”
“Ooh? Pfft! Who do you think you are, giving orders? Don’t you get the situation?”
It seemed he’d realized her gender from her voice, changing his insult from “punk” to “bitch.”
Somehow “bitch” felt worse, and even though I was a man, I wanted to throw it back at him.
You burly bitch! Go home and shave. You look like your beard smells, you bitch!
Of course, I didn’t say it out loud—otherwise, I’d get punched before Arwin could even show up.
When it comes to me, I’m firmly anti-violence.
“Your life is in our hands now, got it? I’m telling you nicely—hand over all your money and get lost, alright?”
Why do they always say “nicely” when they’re threatening someone for money? Is giving money supposed to be “nice” because you get to walk away alive?
So what would “not nicely” be? Something like: ‘You fing piece of s*, hand over all your money, f***! And even if you give it, you die, f***! If you don’t, you die too, f***! Either way, you’re dead, f***! Now give it, f***!’*
While I was thinking nonsense, the thugs had gotten a lot closer.
Oh—oh my! When did they get this close?
Their silent approach startled me.
Up close, their vile faces were even more frightening—perfect for scaring people.
Ugh, they really looked like they’d stab someone for no reason. Creepy.
But Ivelyn wasn’t sharing my fear. She stood firm.
Facing the thugs, she declared, as befitting a heroine:
“What do you think you’re doing? Stealing from a child wasn’t enough, now you’re threatening an innocent person? How utterly disgraceful. Are you not ashamed, grown men?”
Yes, that’s my evelyn—what a great line.
Hearing her scold the thugs, I knew Arwin’s appearance was just around the corner.
In fact, this was more than just a scolding—it was basically the summoning chant for Arwin.
From afar, Arwin, who had been observing, would now take interest and appear.
I quelled my inner craving for popcorn.
No, there’s no popcorn here.
The thug leader seemed briefly thrown by her boldness, but then scowled in anger.
He strode over menacingly.
Standing right before her, he looked down with a filthy expression.
Even I flinched just seeing that face out of the corner of my eye.
“You crazy bitch! What did you just say?”
If it were me, I’d have chickened out three times over, but Ivelyn stayed composed.
“I said that acting without basic decency at your age is shameless. Why? Should I repeat it for you?”
“This bitch is out of her mind!”
Wait—was Arwin’s entrance always this late?
The thug’s raised fist was perfectly positioned to hit Ivelyn’s face, and I frowned.
Something felt off.
In the original, Arwin appeared before the thugs could even get this close.
If she actually got slapped, it’d be too late.
And in the original, the thugs lived to run away—if they hit the heroine, I doubted they’d survive.
What’s going on? Why isn’t Arwin here?
“Need a few hits before you get it?”
The thug’s hand went up in the air.
Ah—wait a sec.
On impulse, I grabbed the side of his clothes and yanked hard.
“…What the hell?”
He was far too big for my pitiful strength to move, but maybe because it was so sudden, he actually staggered a little.
He stopped mid-swing and turned to see who had dared interfere.
Our eyes met as his head snapped around, and I let out a frightened squeak, stepping back.
Wow, his face is seriously terrifying.
