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Chapter 22
Four Pieces of Bread. When Whales Fight, Shrimps Will Get Crushed (4):
Edmund had been silent the whole time.
Ellie led him upstairs, sat him in a chair, and draped a thick towel over his head. She meant for him to dry his dripping hair, but Edmund just sat there blankly like a broken doll.
If she left him like that, he would just keep sitting there. Unable to stand it, Ellie reached out and carefully began drying his hair herself.
Though not as strong as Marlene, Ellie was also fairly strong.
Like a dryer channeling its spirit to dry a pet’s fur, she meticulously wiped away the moisture from his hair. She wiped his face, then the blood at his nape, and by then he looked somewhat presentable. She told him to take off his bloodstained shirt and put him in her own clothes instead. At least he managed to change into them himself.
“Let me take a look. Can you stretch out your neck?”
Edmund didn’t answer, just extended his neck.
“Luckily, the wound isn’t deep. The ointment I have is just ordinary, so you should have it properly treated again when you return. Should I bandage it too?”
“Yes.”
She had only asked out of politeness.
“I don’t think the wound is that serious.”
“Do it.”
The cut was long but shallow; still, maybe it hurt more than it looked. Ellie decided not to provoke Edmund, who appeared dazed.
He pierced through that muscular body like it was tofu. My soft, fatty body would be even easier to stab through…
Though he was one of the culprits who wrecked her shop, Edmund had repaired the damaged parts with just a wave of his hand.
If it all evened out to zero, then letting it go wasn’t so hard.
Besides, the way he quietly entrusted his body to her and closed his eyes made her feel like she had tamed a wild alley cat.
A wild cat that makes holes in people when it’s angry…
No, better to say it felt like taming a wild tiger.
She spread ointment over the wound, covered it with gauze, and wrapped it with a bandage a couple of times. The treatment was over quickly, but Edmund just sat there staring at her.
“You can go back now.”
“I helped you.”
“…What?”
Who? What?
“I brought you here so you could escape the woman you dislike.”
“That’s not called helping! You threw me here!”
“You weren’t hurt.”
“I never asked for your help.”
“Shameless. If you’re helped, you should repay it.”
“Who’s shameless here….”
She wanted to punch him. Noticing Ellie clenching her fists, Edmund tilted his head and laughed.
“I’m hungry.”
“…And what do you want me to do about that?”
“This house smells delicious. The smell comes from you too.”
“That’s because this is a bakery.”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve felt hungry. I’m hungry… and sleepy.”
His eyes were already half-shut, as if he really were sleepy. The drowsy, almost childlike tone strangely suited him, making the man before her look like an eight-year-old boy.
From tiger to child—he was someone who embodied many roles.
If I treat him kindly, maybe he’ll be moved and make me a fireproof oven thermometer someday?
Ellie sighed softly, found an excuse to be kind, and tugged him toward the bed.
Fortunately, she had aired out the blankets in the sun that morning.
She told herself the kindness she gave was just in hopes of receiving some crumbs in return, but in truth, it didn’t matter if she got nothing back.
The warmth of another person’s body was powerful.
The way it touched her without hesitation softened her heart too easily.
He’s not a person, he’s a character.
Someday, he would drive her out onto the streets, leaving her to starve to death.
That’s how she needed to think.
I mustn’t see him as a human being.
It was already enough to be entangled with only two characters: Elaine and the Duke.
She felt a little sorry for Elaine, but the Duke was someone she had to see as just a “character,” not a person—it had never been difficult until now.
Ellie didn’t want to know “characters” in depth.
Just that’s what they’re like, that’s the kind of person that exists. That was enough.
The golden-haired knight from the FM, the misanthropic Tower Master—
They had to stay as story characters fulfilling their roles, not people with warmth.
Finding idle chatter with Van enjoyable, being touched by Edmund’s flashes of sincerity, thinking his obsession with baguettes and his childish stubbornness was cute—those were all dangerous.
And now, not being able to push away this man who had only barely brushed against her skin… that was even worse.
Maybe it seemed silly to get flustered over such a little thing. But until recently, the closest living beings in Ellie’s life had been the yeast cultures in her sourdough starter.
She went downstairs.
He said he was hungry… maybe I should make something simple to eat.
She had offered him sandwich bread, campagne, and baguettes when she had first visited with Maurice, but he hadn’t touched them.
Back then I thought he acted like someone who couldn’t swallow anything but liquids because his throat was so narrow.
Which was another way of saying he was irritating.
Still, at least now he seemed to have an appetite. That was something.
Thanks to Edmund, the walls and floor were intact again, but after the scuffle, baskets and tongs had fallen everywhere. Ellie quickly tidied up the shop.
She had to protect this paradise.
This little bunker she had finally gained after escaping her wretched home.
Like a snail’s shell, this place was her cozy shield that would protect her until everything was over.
Though right now, the one threatening it is sleeping in my bed.
But that was an irresistible force—a natural disaster.
It’s not like I even did anything to make the heroine hate me…
Ellie hadn’t harmed Elaine, had even given up the places she should have occupied, and had lived quietly—yet there was still a chance she might be hated.
In this world, a person’s goodness or wickedness could be determined entirely by the heroine’s favor or dislike.
Maybe that’s why seeing someone she thought she’d never encounter again stirred complicated feelings.
She had no interest or emotions toward Elaine herself, but when it came to this world—it was different.
Ellie hated this cursed world, and the future it had assigned her was horrific.
She even despised herself for being so cowed by it.
Then someone knocked at the door.
She had a feeling who it was, so without asking, she opened it.
There stood Van, looking like a drenched, dejected dog, carrying in his arms the items Ellie had gone shopping for.
“Didn’t you hear me tell you to leave?”
Her gaze instinctively fell to his waist. What was an injured man doing out and about?
“I got treated. You won’t smell blood anymore.”
“How could it be so fast?”
“I received help from a priest attached to the knight order.”
Wait a second—then couldn’t Edmund have healed himself too? With healing magic or something?
Ellie realized she had just wasted her effort and furrowed her brows. Van, noticing her look, spoke softly.
“I’m sorry, Ellie. I didn’t mean to harm your shop.”
“Come in first.”
If such a tall man stayed outside much longer, it would draw attention. When Ellie gestured, Van’s face lit up.
He looked like a dog.
Ellie pressed her eyelids shut. When she opened them again, it was still a man.
Van set the things he was holding on the table by the window and looked at her.
“Once again, I’m sorry, Ellie. I truly didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“Why were you so angry? Oh, don’t get me wrong—I’m not curious about what happened between you two.”
“I saw Edmund grab you on the street. He once had… trouble with one of my relatives. Since he hates me, I thought he meant to harm you, and before I realized it…”
Well, he did cause harm. Temporary property damage.
Ellie asked, out of pure curiosity:
“Even if Edmund had hurt me, what would that have to do with you, Captain?”
“…What?”
“Oh, unless you’re talking about not being able to eat baguette. I suppose that would be worth worrying about.”
Because my bread is the best.
“No, that’s not it—I was really worried…”
Van’s words trailed off awkwardly. He looked flustered.
If he had simply smiled and said, “I was worried about you,” she could have laughed it off. But his genuine unease made it worse.
Ellie stared at him blankly, then said,
“He never harmed me. You don’t need to worry, so please, go home.”
“…Ellie, Edmund did leave, right?”
“He’s asleep.”
“…What?”
“He’s upstairs sleeping. Said he was tired.”
“…”
Van’s mouth fell open. Ellie noted with detachment that even with a dumb expression, handsome men still looked handsome.
Recovering, Van suddenly grabbed Ellie’s shoulders.
“No, Ellie! You mustn’t let strange men into your bedroom so easily!”
“What strange man? At best, he’s a stray cat—or an eight-year-old child!”
“Men are beasts who can change at any moment. You mustn’t trust them so easily!”
Ellie looked at him coldly.
She didn’t trust anyone in this world.
Regardless of gender—no one.
And yet, hearing such advice from him made her want to laugh.
“Stray cat? That’s harsh.”
It was Edmund, coming down the stairs. Ellie caught her breath.
Van and Edmund’s eyes collided in the air.
