#26
I couldn’t take my eyes off Iria standing there confidently. I never expected to meet that person here.
Lightly tied hair. A face not strikingly beautiful, but impossible to look away from when smiling. An innate dignity that couldn’t be hidden despite looking like they’d thrown on just anything. I wonder how such a person managed to disguise themselves as a commoner and enroll in the school.
I’d wondered what I would say if I met Iria. I knew that a person you’ve just met shouldn’t run up and speak unnecessarily. One impulsive action from me could change the ending.
Still, I thought it might be okay to imagine various scenarios. Running up and shouting that I was truly happy because of them, or secretly giving them gifts they liked—I imagined all the actions I could take.
Just those brief imaginings made me happy; that’s how much I liked that person.
Both people who had been arguing until now frowned, apparently annoyed by Iria’s sudden appearance. One probably thought their business was being interfered with, while the other wouldn’t welcome talk of calling the guards.
“Guards? No! This is mine!”
“Really? It’s yours?”
“Yes!”
Iria put on a seemingly surprised expression at the man who was beating his chest indignantly while shouting loudly. The man holding the money pouch stood his ground and shouted.
“It’s mine, I tell you! Are you really calling the guards?”
“Yes. I’ll call them!”
“What is this person saying?!”
When Iria nodded and spoke, the rough-looking man burst out shouting. His anger at the mention of guards coming made him look guilty, and the surrounding people became increasingly convinced that the man was a pickpocket.
The more this happened, the more the man couldn’t control his temper, stomping his foot strongly and openly expressing his emotions. Despite facing a potentially threatening man, Iria didn’t even blink.
“There’s no proof that this money pouch is yours. I heard the guard station recently got a new artifact. What was it called? Something that finds traces of people left on objects? They say it can even tell how long the owner has had the item. Couldn’t we use that to find out whose money pouch this is?”
“What nonsense! Such an artifact doesn’t exist in this world!!”
The man, who had been using polite speech until now, couldn’t contain himself at Iria’s words and shouted loudly. As this new situation unfolded, the murmuring of the people quieted down.
“Fine. I don’t have time for this ridiculous tug-of-war! Hey! Stop touching other people’s things!”
“No, I’m telling you this is mine!!”
The man who had been shouting about calling the guards suddenly turned around as if retreating. The man who had been accused of pickpocketing tried to catch the quickly fleeing man while shouting angrily. But Iria moved faster than him.
Iria reached out, grabbed the hand of the man trying to run forward, and lightly pulled him toward themself, disrupting his balance. The man’s body, which had been leaning forward, tipped backward and tumbled to the ground. It was truly amazing how Iria had easily knocked down a man larger than themself without even using much strength.
As the man fell to the ground, his collar flapped violently in the air. Then, colored papers that had been tucked inside the folded part poured out.
“Oh! I’m sorry! Are you hurt?”
Iria squatted down as if to help the fallen man up, and picked up the colored papers from the ground.
“Oh, this. Isn’t this the same material as the colored paper that just came out of the pouch? May I check?”
“Ch-check what! I put one in the pouch! And kept the rest here!”
“Why in your collar with so many? They could fall out like this. It’s dangerous. You should keep them in your pocket. Oh, that’s right. You only kept one in there. Not all these many.”
Iria, still holding the colored papers, stood up and looked down at the man who hadn’t yet gotten up from the ground. The colored paper caught between Iria’s long fingers came up almost to their lips. Iria held the paper almost touching their lips, smiled brightly, and said to him:
“Isn’t that strange? As if you just put that one into the pouch you were holding?”
The man looked up at Iria from his fallen position and swallowed hard. As if to soothe the man, Iria held out the colored paper in their hand and pointed to the guard station that would be far away.
“It’s okay! Everything will become clear once we go to the guard station. Come on, let’s go together.”
Unable to hold out any longer, the man muttered a small curse and threw down the money pouch he was holding. Then he quickly got up and left the place at an astonishing speed. Behind him, the original owner of the money pouch shouted in shock, but it was beyond their ability to catch the man.
“Hey, you bastard! You won’t get away with this if I catch you!!”
Iria picked up the money pouch from the ground and dusted it off. They didn’t seem to mind getting their hands dirty. As soon as they held out the money pouch to the man, he snatched it from Iria’s hand without saying a word. Then he quickly checked his money inside.
Leaving the man frantically checking all his money, Iria lightly turned to leave. They didn’t seem to expect a thank you. It was as if, now that their job was done, they had no reason to stay.
The people around also lost interest once the matter was resolved. Iria blended into the crowd as if nothing had happened. The person who had been at the center of attention disappeared in an instant.
No one wondered where she had gone. Even the man who got his money pouch back only looked around a few times after checking his pouch, not making any effort to find her to express his gratitude.
That’s what it meant to interfere in someone else’s business. It was difficult to stand up for someone facing an unfair situation, and even when you helped someone, it was hard to receive proper thanks. And each time, many people felt disappointed.
But Iria was different. Without thinking about others’ stares, without expecting any reward, they helped whenever they could.
The public’s assessment of Iria was that of a “stupid protagonist.” They thought it seemed foolish to sacrifice oneself for others without taking care of one’s own interests. Some criticized the character as being too one-dimensional, wondering how a person could be like that.
But I liked that about Iria. Even if it meant suffering a small loss, they never stopped helping others. Because Iria was a king. Someone who endured their own pain and hardship to become a figure who cared for everyone.
“Did the guard station really have such an artifact?”
Yutis recalled the artifact Iria had just mentioned. I couldn’t help but chuckle. Even Yutis standing beside me was more concerned about what Iria had briefly mentioned than what they had just done. Acts of kindness for others were so quickly forgotten.
“No. There’s no such thing. It was a lie.”
It was just a moment of quick thinking to get out of that situation. That’s why the man who tried to frame an innocent person as a pickpocket shouted that such a thing didn’t exist. He must have used this kind of trick many times.
Shouting “pickpocket” to draw people’s attention, then pretending to check the money pouch while secretly slipping something in. Making people believe that the owner of the money pouch was actually the pickpocket, then threatening to call the guards, and finally demanding a small sum to forget the whole thing.
It was a method only possible in this world where forensic science and criminal investigation weren’t developed. Without fingerprinting or CCTV, he could make such bold claims.
I stood still, gazing at Iria’s back, now no longer visible. My heart, which had started pounding from the moment I saw her, was beating fiercely.
“…Young Master?”
“Yes?”
“Could it be…”
I looked up at Yutis, who was trailing off. It seemed as if he had decided to always frown when by my side, as a very deep line was now etched between his brows. He’s still so young, what if he gets wrinkles like that? Was beauty care included in the Duke’s family welfare? I pondered briefly.
“Never mind. If you’re curious, shall I investigate who that person is?”
He must have misunderstood my staring at Iria. I shook my head frantically.
“No! Nothing like that!”
“But, Young Master, your face…”
“Fountain pen, let’s go buy a fountain pen. If we don’t move quickly, the sun will set.”
I ignored Yutis’s words and entered the store. I had no idea what expression I had made to cause Yutis to react like that. I realized I needed to manage my expressions better from now on.
Meeting Iria, my favorite character in this game, must have made me too excited. I took several breaths to suppress the happy feeling that had risen to the tips of my hair. But once emotions rise, they don’t easily subside. All the fountain pens before my eyes looked the same.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
