ATPE 16

Chapter 16

After the Escape Was Over

A huge promotional poster for the Capital Grand Theater proudly advertised that Ain Leberon was starring as the lead actor.

In other words, if he revealed his full name here, it would not take long before his profession was exposed as well.

And if that happened, she would realize that everything about him pretending to be a host had been an act.

Then…

“At the very least, I feel like she’d slap me.”

That would be troublesome.

Even though today was a holiday, he still had to stand on stage tomorrow.

If he appeared not only with bruises on his chin but even handprints on his cheeks, the makeup artist would probably faint foaming at the mouth, and the theater owner would surely grab him by the collar.

“…No.”

That was not the real problem.

He did not care whether there were handprints on his face or not.

The makeup artist would still cover them with powder while panicking, and the theater owner would still drag him onto the stage on time.

He simply wanted to tell her after the play ended.

His job.
And his name.

Anyway, only four more days remained until the play The Young Duke Razkal finished its final performance.

After completely escaping from the role of Razkal—no, the fake Rascal—he wanted to confess everything.

Because he did not want her to look at him and think of someone else, even for a moment.

Because he hoped she would remember him as at least a little less fake.

Even if it was all just his selfish wish.

Even if, by then, the young lady became furious at his confession coming too late and threw not a slap, but a sword at him.

Holding all those thoughts inside, he remained silent.

In front of him, Serenia kept letting out dry breaths.

“Hah… hah…”

“No, seriously, why would someone hide their family name? What, is he the descendant of some family destroyed for treason or something?”

Then suddenly, she froze.

“…Huh?”

The thought that crossed her mind strangely made sense.

“W-Wait a second. Surely… maybe… no, right?”

At her question that lacked both subject and context, Ain awkwardly answered, wondering if she had somehow figured it out.

“Pardon? What do you mean…?”

“Does your family perhaps have someone who was arrested for treason…?”

“……”

“W-Why aren’t you answering?! You’re making me nervous!”

Panicked, Serenia even stuttered as she pressed him for an answer.

But despite her urging, Ain only narrowed his brows and kept his mouth shut.

Meanwhile, Serenia’s face kept turning pale and white repeatedly.

Just as she was seriously wondering whether she should tear up the contract and run away right now—

Step.

Ain suddenly took a large step toward her.

The distance between them instantly became close enough for them to feel each other’s breath.

Already flustered, Serenia became even more confused by his sudden approach.

Leaning close to her ear, he quietly whispered:

“Young Lady.”

“W-What? W-Why? Why?”

“Have you perhaps made enemies with the Gallute Family?”

“……What?”

Serenia tilted her head, unable to understand why the name of a violent organization she had only vaguely heard about suddenly appeared.

But the next moment, her expression stiffened immediately.

She sensed many presences approaching from far away, slowly surrounding both her and Ain.

Not openly hostile, but certainly not friendly either.

Rough and dangerous presences.

Twenty… no, perhaps even more than that.

Serenia had inherited the talent of her father, once called the Kingdom’s Greatest Sword.

At the very least, her senses were sharper than most knights.

Without needing further explanation, she immediately understood the situation.

Ain quietly whispered:

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing…?”

“If this isn’t because of you, then it’s probably because of me.”

At his answer, Serenia’s eyes widened.

“D-Don’t tell me you actually made enemies with the Gallute Family?”

“Yes.”

“Seriously?! How did that even happen?!”

“One of the people close to their boss suggested I come work at Salon Gallute. I rejected it rather harshly.”

“What?! How harshly did you reject them?!”

“I told them I don’t work under chicken heads…”

“WHAT?!”

“The Gallute Family’s symbol is a rooster.”

“Ah.”

For a moment, Serenia almost understood.

But she quickly came back to her senses and scolded him.

“No! Even so, you can’t say things like that! Do you have two lives or something?!”

“That’s why I regret it now.”

“What’s the point of regretting it now?!”

While the two whispered with their faces close together as if embracing, the rough-looking men gradually tightened the encirclement around them.

“Daaamn. That’s a nice picture.”

“Meanwhile, we’ve been suffering all night long, and this bastard’s over here flirting with a woman.”

“Seriously, this is enough to make a man cry.”

Half embracing each other, Serenia and Ain exchanged glances.

The rooster tattoos on the backs of their hands, necks, and foreheads made it obvious.

They were definitely from the Gallute Family.

But if they had truly come targeting someone specific, their behavior was strangely typical.

Like common thugs looking for trouble.

After quickly judging the situation, Ain suddenly turned around, shielding Serenia behind him while pretending to be an ordinary civilian.

“W-Why are you doing this? If there’s anything I can help you with, just tell me.”

“Hah?”

“This coat, my wallet, my watch—I’ll give you everything. Just please let us go safely…”

The moment Ain mentioned “letting us go safely,” the already irritated gangsters became even more annoyed.

“This bastard really knows how to hit a sore spot.”

“Pardon?”

“Damn it. Did you really have to remind us that if we don’t find her by today, we’re the ones getting dumped into the river?”

While Ain tried to understand those words, the gangsters began grumbling with irritated expressions.

“Damn it. Do they even know how huge Shedron is?”

“Seriously. How are we supposed to find some woman who intentionally ran away within three days?”

“No matter how you look at it, there’s no way we’re finding her today.”

Curses immediately broke out from all sides.

The man standing at the front laughed bitterly before spitting on the ground.

“Since we’re probably dead anyway, let’s at least have some fun before we get thrown into the river.”

The moment he finished speaking, the man beside him grabbed Ain’s shoulder hard enough to crush it.

“You said you wanted to help us, right? Then leave the woman and get lost. We don’t feel like wasting strength beating up another man.”

Ain’s eyes instantly turned cold.

“Oh? What’re you glaring at us for? You’re tall, sure, but you look so skinny you’d fly away if I blew on you.”

The thug threatened him while grabbing him by the collar.

At that moment, a white hand suddenly appeared from somewhere and lightly covered the thick hand marked with the rooster tattoo.

Then—

Crack.

The sound of joints twisting echoed through the riverside at dawn.

“AAAAAAAGH!”

The thug screamed loudly while clutching his wrist and rolling across the ground.

The other gangsters and Ain both turned toward the owner of the white hand.

“Just try leaving me behind. I’ll sue you for breaking the contract.”

Serenia threatened Ain while he stared at her blankly.

The gangsters finally realized what had happened and rushed toward her with furious expressions.

Serenia lightly redirected the hand of the first man who charged at her, grabbed his arm, spun once, and slammed him onto the ground.

Then she accurately kicked the ankle of another thug charging mindlessly like a wild boar, causing him to lose balance, before shoving his large body into another thug rushing from the opposite side.

What Serenia inherited from her father was not only sharp instincts.

After that, she smoothly defeated several more grown men as though flowing water—

But numbers were overwhelming.

A hand suddenly reached from behind and violently grabbed her hair.

Serenia reacted too late to avoid it.

Because of that, the light brown wavy wig she wore as a disguise came off completely.

The long black hair hidden underneath poured down like a waterfall.

The Gallute Family members instantly froze.

“Uh… that…”

“No way?”

“No, I think that’s really her?”

For three whole days and nights, they had searched everywhere without even seeing a trace of her.

And now she suddenly appeared right in front of them.

The gangsters could not immediately process the situation.

And during that brief moment of confusion—

Ain moved.

“Young Lady. Hold on tightly.”

“What…?”

Before she could even finish asking, her body suddenly lifted into the air.

Ain had picked her up in both arms.

“Hik!”

Serenia let out a short scream, but instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.

At the same time, Ain dashed forward like an arrow.

“H-Hey?!”

“C-Catch them!!”