Chapter 78
“Something important?”
While we were chatting, we had already arrived at the outdoor training grounds.
“Izana! Joseph!”
Oscar ran toward us with an excited look on his face.
“Izana, I heard from Lord Radd that you lost by just a little bit?”
I really wanted to ask Joseph what that “important thing” was, but now wasn’t the time.
I’ll ask him later, I thought, and turned my attention to the conversation.
“It was really close. I was so nervous because I thought I was going to lose,” Joseph said.
Oscar laughed and looked at me.
“I’ve never seen Joseph lose a game before. So for your first time, you did great!”
I appreciated the encouragement, but it made me a bit shy.
“Anyway, where were you hiding before you got caught?”
“I hid behind the door of an empty room. I figured no one would check behind the door. But I sneezed… and that was it.”
Soon, all the participants in the game gathered again in front of Lord Radd.
I glanced at Boris, who stood awkwardly with his arms crossed, stroking his dog Berry’s neck like he didn’t want to be here.
“…Where were you hiding, Boris?”
When I suddenly asked him, he looked a bit startled and his throat moved as if he was swallowing nervously.
“Why do you want to know?”
Same rude tone as always.
“Because I don’t want to hide in the same place,” I replied.
He twitched his lips, then quickly turned his head away.
Lord Radd looked around and frowned at something.
“What’s this?”
He was staring at Baron Sudden, who was still stuck in the trash can.
Now he even had a banana peel and apple seeds stuck to his head. Gross.
Sir Elain looked down at him with a pale face and sighed.
“Lord Radd, can you help get this fool out? He got in to hide, but now he’s stuck.”
Without hesitation, Lord Radd pulled out his sword and slashed the trash can open.
It made a loud crack, and Baron Sudden tumbled out, bleeding a little.
“Tch. I got angry seeing such a fool, so I might’ve used too much force,” Lord Radd muttered.
But surprisingly, Baron Sudden jumped up cheerfully and said, “My legs were cramped, but now I feel better! Thanks!”
“Good,” Lord Radd replied.
He snapped his fingers, and a large glowing magic clock appeared again in the sky.
“With the practice round over, let’s play for real now. This time, there’ll be real punishments. The taggers will get less time, and the hiding time will also be shorter.”
Then Joseph raised his hand.
“Lord Radd, I want to be the tagger this time.”
Oscar raised his hand too.
“Me too! Can Joseph and I be the taggers together?”
Lord Radd looked at both of them and adjusted his glasses.
“No reason you can’t.”
“And… can we also change the punishment for this round?” Joseph added.
The knights and Oscar immediately looked excited.
“I want the losing team to grant one wish to the winners.”
“Yes, please! Lady Izana can’t run 50 laps around the arena anyway!”
“Let’s change it this time!”
“Silence, you fools!”
Lord Radd growled at the knights, then stroked his beard.
“I wonder what Joseph wants so badly that he made this suggestion.”
“If you’re curious, then cheer for me to win,” Joseph answered with a charming smile.
Lord Radd looked pleased and nodded.
“Fine, I accept. But!” He held up a hand to stop everyone from getting too excited.
“You’ll also get the original punishments on top of the new ones, so think carefully before you play.”
Everyone’s shoulders drooped in disappointment.
What is Joseph planning?
As I was thinking, Joseph leaned in and whispered to me.
“If I win, I’m going to use my wish on you, Izana. So you better hide really well.”
I knew he was going to say something like that.
I bit my lip and whispered back, “If I win, I’ll use my wish on you. So don’t try too hard to find me, okay?”
“Oh? Now I’m really curious,” he said with a playful look.
“Then cheer for me to win,” I grinned.
Joseph laughed quietly, then took a step back and pointed at my wrist.
“I’m glad you found your lost bracelet.”
Bracelet?
I didn’t look down right away, not wanting to show I was surprised.
Instead, I gently touched my right wrist with my left hand.
The bracelet was still hidden inside my sleeve.
Did he recognize it just from the shape?
No… if he brought it up now, it was probably on purpose.
“Thanks for remembering. I’m glad too,” I said calmly, though my heart was pounding.
***
Meanwhile, Oscar took off his coat to begin the game. Right before he covered his head with it, he only looked at one person.
Boris.
Dark feelings of hatred and anger filled Oscar’s eyes as he stared at him.
Then he pulled the coat over his head and began silently counting to 100.
“Woof! Woof!”
Berry, tied to a post, barked sadly as Boris walked away.
Oscar clenched his fists tightly.
***
Where should I hide?
All the prey scattered quickly.
Because anyone who joins the taggers later becomes your enemy, you couldn’t trust anyone.
I went into the indoor training arena instead of staying outside.
The inside felt very different—more like an opera house than a colosseum. There were even private box seats.
Should I hide in one of those? I thought.
Since time is shorter this round, no one would have enough time to search carefully. If I hid behind one of the thick curtains, I might not be found.
***
“I’m going to use my wish on you.”
Joseph’s voice echoed in my mind.
What did he want from me?
“Does he want the Raglia bracelet?”
I looked down at my red, glowing bracelet.
The day I left the candle in the storage room… if Joseph found it, he’d know someone from the house had done it.
I don’t know how he figured it was me, but I couldn’t take chances.
If Joseph suspected the Raglia bracelet, I had to be careful.
I couldn’t hide in an easy spot anymore.
I had to find a place where no one would look.
The women’s changing room will be checked by Sir Elain…
After some thinking, I headed downstairs.
Below the arena was the sewer system.
No one would expect me to go somewhere this gross just for a tag game.
I held my nose and walked into the smelly sewer area.
Dirty water ran through the middle, and bugs crawled around.
I walked quickly and found a big round hole with water trickling out. I crawled inside and crouched.
Just need to wait a bit. This round is shorter anyway…
Suddenly, the Raglia bracelet on my wrist started glowing.
[“Ughhhh! What is this disgusting smell?!”]
A furious dragon voice filled the tunnel.
The powerful energy from Raglia scared off the nearby bugs—they all ran away, their legs scratching against the stone.
Even like this, a dragon is still a dragon.
I buried my nose in my sleeve and whispered, “I didn’t know you even had a nose.”
