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Chapter 11
‘What the hell is going on?’
The situation of walking side by side with the man I came to investigate, Lyxion, felt increasingly absurd.
I averted my gaze in between steps and stole glances at Lyxion’s handsome profile. I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking for the life of me.
I shook my head slightly, having been caught staring at him, and fixed my gaze back to the front.
‘The atmosphere isn’t bad right now, so should I pretend to be crazy and ask him what he’s doing here? Or how he happened to overhear my conversation with Guild Master so conveniently? And I wonder where he saw me before. Would he tell me if I asked?’
I had come to realize that he was a surprisingly reasonable person, so I considered taking advantage of that a little, but then I stopped myself.
‘No, I shouldn’t talk to this person anymore.’
I thought maybe he had something more to say since he insisted on walking me to my carriage, but on the way there, Lyxion literally just walked me to where my carriage was.
He greeted me briefly after escorting me all the way without saying a word.
“I would have preferred to take you in my carriage, but that would only make you uncomfortable, so it’s probably best to part ways here.”
Unlike how he was in the original story, he spoke to me in a gentlemanly manner and took a step back. He seemed to be considerate of the fact that I might be uncomfortable.
That insignificant action made me feel a little guilty when I thought about how I had coldly told him that I didn’t want to be involved with him at all.
If Lyxion really had no ulterior motives and simply wanted to be friends with me…
I thought about how much it would hurt to hear something like that from someone you wanted to be close to, so I belatedly felt a little remorseful.
Of course, it might be a bit of a stretch to put Lyxion on the same level as me, but I felt bad from my own perspective.
“I’m… I’m really sorry.”
I looked at his hand, which he had extended to help me into the carriage, and impulsively opened my mouth.
“A wonderful woman will appear before you soon. She’ll be a hundred times prettier than me, more affectionate, and so charming that just looking at her will make you happy.”
I didn’t think it was likely, but I couldn’t help but wonder if he had been hurt by me in any way.
So, without thinking, I let slip a hint about the existence of the heroine of the novel, Eunha.
It might sound strange to Lyxion, but I honestly just wanted to ease my guilt a little, even if it was just a little.
He gave me a puzzled look at my words and then let out a short laugh.
“A woman like that… I don’t think such a person exists.”
“No, trust me. Really, in just a few days… no, really, such a wonderful woman will appear before the Duke! When she does, be sure to hold onto her tight!”
Yes, Eunha and you are truly meant to be together in my opinion. Please be happy together, just like in the original story. Please.
Lyxion quietly watched me as I clasped both hands together and exclaimed passionately, and then he spoke softly.
“You’re so certain about it, it’s almost as if you can see the future.”
I flinched.
My expression hardened for a moment when he said that, as if he hadn’t meant anything by it.
“Ahhh!”
Suddenly, a long, earsplitting scream rang out, and the surroundings gradually grew chaotic.
Lyxion and I looked in the direction of the scream almost simultaneously.
There, a noblewoman who seemed to have just left the restaurant and her husband were pointing somewhere with faces as pale as a ghost.
The other people around them were doing the same. As if by agreement, they were all looking at the same place with expressions as if they had seen a ghost.
I shifted my gaze to where the terrified people’s gazes and gestures were directed.
At the end of my gaze, there were two small children.
The first thing I saw was their small, thin, and weak backs.
The two children huddled together, bodies trembling violently as they desperately clung to each other for support.
One was a boy, the other a girl. The boy, despite his own small and frail stature, held the slightly smaller girl protectively in his arms, his anxious gaze darting around their surroundings.
His eyes held a desperate plea, as if begging anyone to come to their aid. Visible through the tattered remnants of their clothes, which were on the verge of falling apart, were the children’s emaciated bodies and thin arms covered in red blotches.
It was only then that I realized why people were staring at the helpless children as if they were monsters. These children were from the slums, the only area in the capital’s twelve districts known as the ‘exclusion zone.’
And recently, an epidemic known as ‘Red Plague’ had begun to spread through the slums.
People screamed and scattered, some shouting for the capital’s guards, others pointing accusing fingers at the children as if they were abominations.
Staring at the spectacle filled with nothing but disgust and contempt, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
‘Why, why now… Why did they have to appear before me?’
It was impossible.
After all, this… was a chapter that was supposed to happen after the saintess descended upon this land.
* * *
Amidst the chaos, Lyxion remained calm and collected.
Without a hint of agitation, he observed the people caught in the frenzy, the terrified children among them, and Elizabeth Kristenner, who had froze beside him.
Her face was etched with shock. Her wide eyes were filled with fear, and her expression screamed that she wanted nothing more than to turn and run.
He supposed it was only natural. Despite her uniqueness, which he had noticed even before, she was still, at the end of the day, a noble lady raised in the lap of luxury.
Surrounded by only the finest things in life, how could she have ever encountered a slum child, especially one afflicted with a deadly plague, treated worse than a sewer rat?
Lyxion found her reaction understandable and felt no disappointment towards her.
No matter how extraordinary she may have seemed compared to other noble daughters he had known, this was an overwhelming situation for anyone. Even seasoned knights would struggle to suppress their fear in the face of a plague that had claimed countless lives.
The children would have to wait. His first priority was to escort the distressed lady beside him to the safety of their carriage.
Having swiftly determined his course of action, Lyxion’s cool gaze flickered briefly before settling back on the scene before him.
“Get lost, you bugs!”
Someone barked at the children, and as if on cue, others joined in the chorus.
“How dare you filthy rats crawl out into the sunlight!”
“Go back to your sewers where you belong!”
The spectacle grew increasingly ugly. Accusations and insults were hurled at the small children from all sides.
Overwhelmed by the torrent of abuse, the children clung to each other, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Some even resorted to throwing rotten fruit at the children. Fortunately, most of the protesters missed their intended targets and landed harmlessly on the ground, but the mere act of throwing them was hurtful enough.
If there was a devil, he thought, it must wear a face like theirs.
In the eyes of those who spewed venom at these helpless children, they didn’t seem to register as fellow human beings. They were treated like nothing more than disease-ridden sewer rats.
Lyxion frowned silently as he attempted to escort Elizabeth to the carriage. After helping her inside, he turned to address the situation, but just as he was about to move, something caught his eye.
Swish!
He froze, his gaze fixed on Elizabeth, who had raised her right hand and was violently tearing at the left sleeve of her dress, all the way up to her shoulder. When her bare hands failed to rip the fabric, she resorted to biting it off.
“What are you…”
For a moment, he couldn’t comprehend what was happening.
Before the flustered man could utter a word, Elizabeth covered her nose and mouth with the torn part of her dress and tied it behind her head, before abruptly extending her hand toward him.
“Your coat! Lend me your coat!”
“…Yes?”
“Oh, hurry! I’ll buy you a more expensive one later!”
At her slightly irritated urging, Lyxion handed her his coat with a bewildered expression. And then.
“Lady Kristenner!”
She immediately tore her dress, took his coat, and ran toward the children who had caused the commotion, without giving him a chance to stop her.
Lyxion, even more flustered than before, reflexively reached out his arm, but she was a little faster.
Lyxion’s eyes froze as if in shock as he watched her run off without hesitation.
Confusion flickered in his blue eyes as unfamiliar emotions surged into him like waves.
