Chapter 05
An Unexpected Encounter
“Looks like this life is ruined too.”
I pressed my forehead, overwhelmed by how bleak things were.
Realizing that Callier Esperos would kidnap Heidi and that my father was helping him… my first thought was just that:
This life was ruined too.
After all, Callier’s kidnapping plan was destined to fail.
Well, technically, he would succeed in kidnapping Heidi…
But then he’d be killed by Delphian when he came to rescue her.
“No matter how perfectly Callier prepares, the opponents are the protagonists of this world.”
He was just a disposable villain to start off the novel with a dramatic bang. He couldn’t harm Heidi, the female lead, and he could never defeat Delphian, the male lead.
Which meant… my father’s fate was also decided.
“But… Father didn’t die in this event.”
If I remembered correctly, Father survived.
Reviews said Crocan Piace showed up as a villain until the very end.
Meaning… he wouldn’t take responsibility for this kidnapping.
“If my guess is right… then I’ll be the one to take the fall for it.”
I felt chills running up from my toes.
It wasn’t just a feeling—it was instinct.
Father, who had never even allowed me to leave the house before, suddenly sending me out to this grand stage…
It must be to make me the scapegoat if things went wrong.
“Maybe I’m overthinking. But with Father… nothing is ever ‘too much.’”
I never imagined I’d die so soon in this life.
I guess my role was even more insignificant than I thought.
Would the novel’s Rebelia Piace have died before Volume 1 ended too?
“…God, this is so annoying.”
A hoarse voice leaked from my lips.
Dying of overwork in my past life was bad enough.
In this life, it was abuse and neglect.
And now, after enduring all that, my end was punishment for a crime I didn’t even commit. If gods existed here, they were cruel to me.
Biting my nails from anxiety, I wandered aimlessly.
I didn’t want to be used by Father and thrown away.
No—I needed to discard him first.
I had to prove I had nothing to do with this kidnapping plan.
“How… how can I do that…?”
“Zeroth is such a boring country.”
“Huh?”
“It’s like looking at a sword. Cold, stiff.”
“Ah, are you a tourist?”
A man with his hood pulled low answered lazily while chewing a candied fruit skewer.
His glimpsed silver hair and pale, almost lightless skin drew my eyes.
Silver hair wasn’t common here.
His odd aura kept catching my attention. I stopped walking and watched him converse with the vendor.
“No monster waves? Krakens? Not even Fenrirs?”
“Oh dear, those only happen in the cursed land—Hestonia. We don’t have things like that here.”
“Cursed land?”
“Ah, you didn’t know? They say the Grand Duke of Hestonia is so greedy that the gods cursed his land.”
“……”
“That’s why monsters appear so often there.”
Hestonia…
Hearing their conversation, an idea flashed through my mind.
A way to escape Father’s control and prove my innocence.
The problem was… how could I flee to Hestonia?
What if I told them about Callier’s kidnapping plan and requested asylum? But if Callier found out, he’d kill me instantly.
What if I informed Crown Prince Delphian and asked for protection?
“No… there’s no way I could even meet him.”
A sigh escaped. I’d been wandering the square for quite some time.
Looking around, I noticed the fruit candy the man was eating nonstop.
“But what if someone stole what the Crown Prince cherishes most?”
“Huh?”
“Say… the flower he treasures more than anything.”
“A flower?”
“Would he still be so peace-loving then, I wonder…”
“Two strawberry candies, please.”
My sudden voice cut off the man’s musings. He turned to me in surprise.
I glanced at him briefly, then turned to the vendor in urgency.
“Two strawberry candies, please.”
“……”
“As fast as possible.”
Both men blinked at me blankly. Just then, Beth’s voice called from afar:
“Lady Rebelia!”
“Isn’t it ready yet?!”
“Ah—no, yes, it’s ready! Right away!”
The vendor hurriedly wrapped the skewers.
The man scrunched his face and muttered:
“Is that service only for ladies?”
“Huh?”
“Didn’t expect discrimination here.”
“N-no, sir! Of course not!”
The vendor gave an awkward laugh while I bit my nails nervously.
I had wandered too far while thinking. If Beth reported to Father that I’d ditched her, it would be bad.
If they decided I’d tried to escape—like ten years ago—I wouldn’t be allowed out again before the ball.
The vendor finally handed me the candies. I smiled brightly.
“How much?”
“Huh? Oh, 10 pesos, my lady!”
As I reached for my coin purse, the man beside me handed over a gold coin first.
I frowned.
“I can pay myself.”
“…What?”
“You don’t have to pay for me.”
He blinked at me in confusion.
Seeing his odd reaction, I glared slightly. He smiled and said:
“Fine, pay then. I only paid for mine.”
“Huh?”
“Five pesos each, twenty skewers… that’s one gold, right?”
“Uh… yes, that’s correct.”
The vendor took his gold coin, glancing nervously at me.
I followed the man’s gaze to the huge pile of skewers in front of him, and my face flushed bright red.
“W-wait… you ate twenty candy skewers…?!”
“Technically, ten strawberry, five green grape, three mandarin, and two apple.”
I mumbled under my breath in shock, and he chuckled, counting on his fingers.
I slammed my 10 peso coin down.
“Here.”
“Ah, y-yes. Thank you!”
Burning with embarrassment, I grabbed my candy and turned to leave quickly.
The man laughed softly and followed beside me.
“You seem used to people buying things for you.”
“……”
“You just assumed a stranger would pay.”
“No one’s ever bought me anything.”
“…?”
“If anything, I’ve been the one buying.”
His eyebrows rose in surprise.
“Lady Rebelia! Where are you?!”
Hearing Beth’s voice again, I hurried away. The man matched my pace.
“So why don’t you buy for me too?”
“Huh?”
“I didn’t think you were the type to discriminate.”
His absurd words made me stop walking.
He smiled at me, tilting his head.
“Do I know you?”
“No?”
“Then why say you ‘didn’t think’ I was like that?”
“I’m good at reading people.”
What a crazy man. Seriously insane.
No silver-haired character in any story is ever normal.
I glanced him over, then turned away again.
He walked alongside me naturally.
“So if we get to know each other, will you buy for me?”
“……”
“Great. Let’s start with names.”
“No thanks. I don’t want to know you.”
“……”
“And if you keep following me, I’ll call the guards.”
I glared and turned a corner—only to stop dead.
“For the record, I didn’t follow you. You walked in front of me.”
“W-what is this…?”
“So, ready to tell me your name now?”
He pulled back his hood, revealing his face.
Silver hair that sparkled in sunlight. Gray eyes like moonlight.
No way…
“Lafer Wizard?”
“Ha, I knew it. There’s no way you wouldn’t recognize me.”
Hearing my whisper, his lips curled into a satisfied smile.
I covered my mouth in shock.
Lafer Wizard.
One of Callier Esperos’s closest allies—
And a major character in this novel.
