Side Story 1: Unaccustomed
Chapter 7
“Long time no see, Narau.”
Pel greeted him with a wave.
And then, they started chatting, catching up on old times, asking about each other’s health, how the research was going. They were completely immersed in their own world, talking about things only they knew.
‘What? They know each other?’
Narau, the man in the pointed hat, didn’t even acknowledge my presence.
I figured they must be close and stepped back to observe them, when Pel suddenly nudged my back and said,
“Congratulations, you’re a new guild member.”
“What…!”
I was appalled by his absurd statement and turned around, but the playful smile on Pel’s face didn’t fade.
“You’re… the one who came earlier, right?”
Narau, recognizing me, asked cautiously. I nodded stiffly, feeling a surge of nervousness, and he chuckled.
“Mr. Pel, you brought another guest by force.”
He didn’t seem surprised, he was used to this kind of situation. He chided Pel,
“I apologize, miss. Our sponsor is… quite unique.”
“Sponsor?”
“Ah, you didn’t know? Mr. Pel is our guild’s biggest sponsor.”
So that’s why they had greeted each other so enthusiastically.
“Hehe, we’re eternally grateful for your generous investment in this failing guild.”
Narau’s nose was in the air, even though he wasn’t the one being sponsored. I glanced at Pel, who was unfazed by the revelation of his status as the guild’s biggest shareholder.
‘As expected, he’s rich.’
To confirm it, I asked Narau the same question I had asked Pel at the cafe,
“Is he… the lord of Gemin?”
“What…? No… Mr. Pel isn’t the lord of this place…”
He stroked his chin, his face serious.
Had I asked something I shouldn’t have?
I gulped, seeing his expression change rapidly. Narau’s gaze shifted to Pel, and he finally said,
“Mr. Pel, what do you do for a living?”
“Pfft… Hahahaha!”
His frivolous laughter echoed through the tent. Even I thought it was something that would make Pel burst out laughing.
“B-but he’s a very wealthy man. Don’t worry.”
Narau seemed to have realized what he had said after he had said it. He waved his hands, trying to reassure me.
I bit my lip, trying to suppress my laughter.
“It’s okay! Don’t worry! We’re so broke that we just accepted his sponsorship… Nothing bad will happen!”
Who was reassuring whom?
“…Is that… okay?”
“Yes, of course! Absolutely! You don’t have to worry. Absolutely… absolutely…”
Narau was now convincing himself, not me. His face was flushed red.
“S-speaking of which, where’s the man you were with? The really handsome one…”
He awkwardly changed the subject.
“He had… something to do.”
Narau, as expected of a scholar, had a good memory. And as expected of a scholar, he was clueless.
He should have just accepted my vague answer, but Narau, after bringing up the topic himself, seemed puzzled and looked around. He then looked at me and then at Pel, his eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“Ahem, well, it’s fine! Privacy is… important! That’s how everyone lives!”
Narau cleared his throat.
He seemed to be good at making assumptions too.
As expected of a scholar.
“That’s good to hear. Privacy is important.”
I didn’t have the energy to argue anymore. I hadn’t come here to have a comedy routine. My legs were aching, and I wanted to go back to the inn. I had gained nothing from following Pel.
The rose tea in Gemin was sweet. That was all.
“Would you like some tea?”
“Ah, no thanks, I’ve had enough.”
“I should be going now.”
I turned to leave, but Narau suddenly rushed over and shoved a piece of paper in my face.
“While you’re here, could you please sign your name here…?”
He had brought a document that read “Karina Magic Formula Theory Research Guild Membership Application Form” in large letters.
“….”
“….”
“I apologize…”
Narau, seeing me staring at the document silently, quietly withdrew the application form.
Pel, pitying the dejected Narau, patted his shoulder.
“Karina might be struggling, but the guild members are all skilled. Hmm, in other words, it’s a promising guild. They might even have a place in the royal palace someday.”
He was selling snake oil.
I politely rejected their desperate pleas.
“I only know the basics of magic formula theory. And I have no talent for magic… And besides, I’m not here for academic research. I’m sorry to refuse, Narau.”
“Ah, no, I apologize… But… I thought you might be interested in this field since you asked about Jean Emilia.”
“That’s… just because his name is unique.”
“A unique name…? Hmm, well, I guess… that’s…”
“It’s Sue.”
I filled in the blank for him, as he trailed off. Narau smiled gratefully.
“Yes, Sue. Thank you for visiting again. It was nice to see Mr. Pel again. This must be… the blessing of His Highness Pheilik.”
His Highness Pheilik was the name of the crown prince, who would soon be crowned king. The crown prince of this country seemed to be a capable ruler, as the people of Lokor often mentioned his name. So I had become quite familiar with his name in the past six months.
Narau, as if reading my thoughts from my expression, added,
“The Lokor Kingdom will prosper even more under His Highness Pheilik’s rule. Definitely.”
He said it with pride.
***
Well, it didn’t matter to me whether the king of this country was a wise ruler or a tyrant.
The only thing I had gained from my brief tour with Pel was the rose tea I had had at the cafe. I felt like I would have been better off reading the guild brochures I had worked so hard to collect.
That scammer. I would ignore him from tomorrow.
I was standing in front of someone’s door, my mind filled with those thoughts.
Who was “someone”? Who else could it be?
I was pacing back and forth, a paper bag of tea leaves in my hand, debating whether I should knock or not.
It was already late at night when we returned to the inn, but I felt like I couldn’t just go to sleep.
My plan was to give him the gift and then try to talk to him. I didn’t know what to talk about, but I just wanted to hear something from him.
“I had fun today, Woo. …Oh.”
But before I could even decide whether to knock or not, before I could even take a deep breath to prepare myself…
The door to Woo Acrea’s room creaked open.
“You’re… Sue, right? Sue Byron.”
A face I didn’t want to see.
The red-haired woman. Celine.
I made eye contact with her the moment the door opened.
The moment she said my name with a relaxed smile, I turned around and ran down the stairs.
I reached my room and hurriedly locked the door. I didn’t even care about the loud bang as the door slammed shut.
I tossed the tea leaves I had been holding onto a corner of the room. I finally felt a little calmer after collapsing onto the bed.
‘…Why did I run away?’
I covered my eyes with my arm, trying to think calmly.
Come to think of it, had Woo been with Celine?
Had he seen me?
If he had seen me, why hadn’t he come after me? If he hadn’t seen me, where had he been?
…I couldn’t remember. I was ashamed of myself.
‘Regardless of what Woo did, I just don’t know what I’m thinking or feeling.’
I pulled the blanket over my head.
Yes, if I thought about it calmly, it was just a coincidence.
They had just been… having tea. And they must have been chatting.
Hadn’t we socialized with other people during our travels? Yes, we had. This was the same thing. Just a coincidence. A trivial matter. That was all.
…But why couldn’t she stop thinking about it? She tossed and turned in bed, but the scene she had witnessed wouldn’t leave her mind.
“…Ah… I want to go home…”
Those were the only words I could utter, my voice weak. Even though I didn’t even know where home was anymore.
***
I woke up in the morning, washed up, and immediately opened the door. The empty hallway greeted me, as usual.
The person who had always been waiting for me outside my door was gone again. It had only been a day, but it felt strangely familiar.
I silently climbed the stairs and stood in front of his room. I was about to knock when I suddenly stopped breathing.
‘She’s not here this early in the morning, is she? …No, wouldn’t it be a disaster if she was?’
My hand, which had been raised to knock, slowly lowered.
I stood there for a long time, my heart pounding, then finally calmed myself down and called out his name cautiously,
“Master Woo? Are you there?”
But there was no answer.
Had he gone out again?
He seemed to have ‘personal matters’ to attend to.
I lingered, unable to leave, when I felt a presence next to me.
“You came up again today, Sue.”
It was Pel. He greeted me cheerfully.
“Are you here to see me?”
“….”
“Haha, I guess not.”
His hair, which had been messy yesterday, was neatly combed today.
“Let’s go to the restaurant.”
He offered me his arm, escorting me, whether I ignored him or not. I stared at him for a moment, then gave up on ignoring him and smiled. It must have been a pretty convincing smile. It was the same smile she had often worn in Lohn.
“I guess I have no choice. Let’s go.”
As soon as I entered the restaurant, I saw Woo sitting next to Celine. And our eyes met. It was a brief moment. I quickly put on my usual expression before he could look away.
Pel, nudging my back, whispered,
“Don’t worry about it too much, let’s just eat.”
“…I’m not worried.”
“Really? Then that’s good.”
I’m not worried. I’m not worried. I’m not worried.
‘It’s just… a sense of responsibility.’
The responsibility of having brought him all the way here.
That was all.