Chapter 18
“Shouldn’t you say thank you first?”
“Thanks for saving me, but… my face…”
I expected it to be badly hurt. I felt disappointed and suddenly wanted to cry, which wasn’t fair to the person who saved me. So I stopped talking. The man stared at me.
“Thanks for saving me.”
“…Yeah, even if it’s late.”
“Sorry… I was out of it.”
The man nodded, still not looking too happy, but like he understood.
“Well, it makes sense. You got beaten up pretty badly.”
“…So, who are you…?”
“Keith Hayden Brien. We met before, a long time ago.”
Just hearing his name, I could tell he was a noble. I stared at him carefully and held my breath. He smiled.
“You don’t remember?”
“…Sorry. I lost my memory from the last five years.”
“Well, now that I told you my name, relax. I’m not taking you back to the marquis’ house. Want some soup?”
The man—Keith—seemed like someone whose actions matched his looks. Even though I shouldn’t judge someone who saved me, he seemed light and easygoing, not serious. But it was true he found me hurt and helped me. I swallowed hard and took the warm soup he gave me with both hands.
Warmth spread to my fingertips. The soup was hot, but I was so hungry I just drank it straight from the bowl without using a spoon.
“You probably don’t need this spoon then.”
Keith looked surprised as he took my empty bowl.
“You finished it before I could say anything. What if it had poison in it?”
“Why would you poison me now? You already saved me when I was about to die. It’d be weird to doubt you.”
My full belly gave me the strength to talk. I looked around. Keith noticed and handed me a mirror.
“I fixed you up carefully. You can be impressed.”
“…Thanks.”
It was a small hand mirror. I’d never seen a man carry one before.
“You really… fixed me well.”
There was a red bruise on my right cheek, but the bones were fine, and my swollen eye had healed. I touched the inside of my cheek with my tongue—no pain. Keith said:
“Sorry, but even I couldn’t fix your missing molar.”
He must’ve noticed I was checking my mouth. Like he said, one of my right molars was gone. But there was no more bleeding, and missing one tooth wasn’t a big deal. I nodded.
“It’s okay. Thank you.”
“You’re more… hmm.”
“…?”
Keith rubbed his chin with his finger.
“Should I say calm? Or just relaxed… You’re not even scared.”
He didn’t seem suspicious, more like curious. I thought I shouldn’t trust him just because he helped me. I still didn’t know who he really was.
“Should I be scared? Want me to scream?”
“…You’re no fun.”
“I just escaped something really scary. I don’t even know what else to be afraid of now. Honestly, I’m so happy I could go crazy.”
Keith looked at me and then looked around like, This? Really? I laughed.
“Yeah, this.”
“You’re really weird.”
“Call me anything you want. As long as you don’t send me back home, I’m not scared of anything.”
Whether it was the Baldwin house or Seymour house, I didn’t want to go back. Keith smiled slyly and leaned in close. He whispered:
“You shouldn’t share your weaknesses so easily.”
“You saved me.”
“…If you’re thanking me…”
“You said you wouldn’t take me back to the marquis. I’m not the kind of person to doubt someone who saved me. And even if I did, it’s not like I could do anything.”
I looked straight into Keith’s eyes. That color… it was just like Lila Green’s.
“…You’re saying you trust me? Someone you just met today?”
Keith smiled gently. It was such a beautiful smile anyone would feel butterflies. But I didn’t react. No one could beat Linus in looks, and I was too tired to care about feelings like that.
“Because you saved me.”
“Wow, I didn’t know the wife of Marquis Baldwin was such a simple person.”
“Don’t call me that!”
My voice came out sharp and loud, even to my own ears. Keith looked surprised. I looked down and mumbled:
“Call me Florence…”
“…Sure, okay…”
Keith stepped back to give me some space.
“I treated your serious wounds, but your body still needs to heal. You shouldn’t move too much. Rest for at least three or four days.”
“But I…”
“Don’t worry. Even the best knight commander wouldn’t search the slums. Luckily, there’s no tracking magic or skills on you.”
“They might use spirit magic…”
“Don’t be silly. Do you know how big the slums are? And those clean, holy things can’t come into a place like this where people are rotting.”
Keith picked up the empty bowl and stared at my face.
There was a moment of silence. Then Keith suddenly smiled, grabbed his sleeve, and gently wiped around my mouth.
“The patient should sleep now.”
“…Thank you…”
“You can think about how to repay me after you’re all better.”
“So I do have to repay you…”
“Did you think a thank-you was enough?”
“No…”
“Alright, no more talking.”
Keith walked out.
It would’ve been better if he had just left for good.
I closed and opened my eyes for what felt like a short moment, but it looked like I had been asleep for a long time. My body felt weak and relaxed. Keith came back with some children—two girls and one boy. The kids looked at me carefully, then changed the kettle on the fire and cleaned up the bloody bandages and dirty cloths. One of the girls came near me and hesitated.
“Marie, what are you waiting for? Just take it off.”
“But… please leave the room, Sir Keith.”
“I already saw everything while treating her.”
“Still!”
She wasn’t hesitating because of me—it was because Keith was there. The towel in her small hand had warm steam rising from it. It must be hot.
“Kids, take Sir Keith outside.”
“Huh?”
“Let’s go. Please, go.”
“You need to leave.”
The two kids, only as tall as Keith’s waist, pushed him out of the room. He could’ve easily resisted if he wanted, but he let them drag him out as if he had no choice. From behind the slightly closed door, I could hear the kids talking loudly. Sunlight came in through the cracks—it was daytime. Then how long had I been asleep?
“Um, I’ll take your clothes off now.”
“Ah, okay. Thank you…”
The girl, Marie, smiled shyly and helped me take off my top. It was a man’s shirt—long and big enough to cover down to my thighs—but it was old and torn in places. At least there were no bloodstains, and my skin underneath was clean.
My shoulder and arm that had been burned still showed rough marks, but they didn’t hurt anymore. They looked like old scars.
“You were sweating a lot, just like you were bleeding. This was the only decent piece of clothing we had…”
“I’m already thankful for being saved. I won’t complain about clothes.”
“But this isn’t really proper for someone like you…”
“I’m not really someone special.”
Marie opened her eyes wide in surprise as she gently wiped my arm. She looked messy herself—maybe she hadn’t even cleaned her own face. But when she had kicked Keith out earlier, her voice was strong and confident.
She seems like a nurse. I smiled faintly.
“Where are we?”
“This is Yenikel Street.”
It was one of the poorest areas in the slums.
“There seemed to be more kids here.”
“They’re all abandoned kids, living together. It’s just easier to survive that way…”
“Is that man taking care of you?”
Marie touched my shoulder. The scar didn’t hurt, but she frowned like it was painful for her.
“No. He came with you, miss. You were covered in blood—we were so shocked.”
She gently pressed my shoulder with a cloth, and after checking it was okay, wiped it a little harder.
“How long have I been here?”
“It’s the fourth day now. He said if we hid you, he’d buy us food and give us money.”
“Even though we’re strangers? What if someone comes looking for me?”
“It’s better than starving to death.”
Marie continued in a calm voice.
“Getting beaten to death is actually lucky. At least it ends quickly. But starving is too slow. It drives the people around you crazy too. Honestly, killing someone quickly is more merciful.”
“…”
“Even if we die tonight because of you, at least we’ll die with full stomachs. So, it’s okay.”
