IMLM 02

Chapter : 02

Before a complete stranger of a child suddenly grabbed my wrist, I was standing in a corner of the ballroom, going over the information I’d heard from Gilbert.

The person who had sent out the party invitations was Diana Hentison, the second child of Baron Hentison, the owner of this estate.

The Hentison family’s territory, where the party was being held, wasn’t very far from the Amelio estate.

That was how an invitation from Diana Hentison—someone I’d never even met—had managed to reach the House of Amelio.

At this distance, inviting her to tea wouldn’t be a bad idea.

I should casually bring it up later. Just as I was racking my brain over how to get closer to Diana—

“Waaah!”

A loud cheer suddenly erupted from the front. When I turned my head, I saw people clustered together, their faces lit up as if they were watching some rare spectacle.

Through the crowd, I spotted a young lady with brown hair tied high, energetically mixing cocktails.

I’d never seen her before, but I recognized her at once. She was Diana Hentison, the star of this party.

I’d heard she liked active things, unlike most noble ladies—and it seemed that was true.

And I guess it’s true that she’s good at making cocktails, too.

Glancing around, I took a small sip of a pretty blue non-alcoholic cocktail sitting on a table. Even someone like me, who knew nothing about cocktails, could tell it tasted good.

It was a shame Loreina wasn’t of age yet and couldn’t drink anything with alcohol.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one thinking that, because more and more people gradually gathered around Diana.

At this rate, I won’t even get a chance to say a word before the party ends.

I’d made up my mind to come here—I couldn’t let the opportunity slip away so pointlessly.

I’ll at least introduce myself before the crowd gets any bigger.

With that thought, I started moving. There were a lot of people, but it was still manageable.

Right up until someone suddenly pulled my right arm.

Huh?

The pull wasn’t very strong, but I’d been standing in an awkward position, and it was enough to make me drop my cocktail glass.

Crash.

The glass shattered loudly, and the cocktail splashed in all directions.

“What was that?”

“What happened?”

At the loud noise, people began murmuring. I even heard a few complaints from those who’d gotten splashed.

I could see Diana—my original reason for coming here—looking this way.

It was the moment I’d wanted so badly, but I couldn’t smile and tell her it was fine.

Not because of the mess—but because Diana’s face had gone deathly pale, as if she’d seen something terrible.

And because of the young boy who was gripping my arm and staring straight at me amid all the noise.

“…Who are you?”

The boy asked in a trembling voice. To be honest, I wasn’t feeling great.

Being grabbed out of nowhere was bad enough, but now I was drawing this much attention.

I already had plenty to be cautious about—this was a mess. There was a reason I’d been keeping to the corner of the ballroom.

Still, I couldn’t exactly get angry at a child who barely reached my chest.

It was probably his first time at an event like this, and he’d been nervous and made a mistake. Instead of scolding him, I decided to remove myself from the situation as quickly as possible.

Either way, I’d succeeded in catching Diana’s attention, so it wasn’t entirely bad.

The problem was that the boy wouldn’t let go of my arm.

“Hey, kid? I’m in a bit of a hurry—could you let go of my arm?”

“……”

“If you really need to hold on to me, should we go over there together?”

“……”

“…Are you planning to stay silent like this?”

Despite my repeated questions, the boy said nothing.

He almost looked angry, to the point that anyone might think I was the one at fault.

In the end, I gave up on getting an apology and bent down slightly. A pair of much prettier red eyes than I’d expected came into view.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

At that, the boy—who had been frowning deeply as if displeased—quietly sighed and finally spoke.

“…Zen.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

His voice was so small that I leaned closer as I asked again. Startled, he hurriedly leaned back.

“I said Zen. I already told you—why are you asking again?”

Look at his tone. Anyone could see I was much older than him.

…Just endure it.

I calmly soothed myself, recalling all the unreasonable customers I’d dealt with during part-time jobs in my previous life.

If Diana hadn’t been watching from afar, I might’ve flicked his forehead already…

Wait—what about Diana?

Just in case, I turned my head to look at her again. Her face was even paler than before.

She must have been quite shocked by what just happened. I gave her a small wave to signal that I was okay.

Right. I hadn’t even had a chance to get friendly with her—this was a good opportunity to at least look kind. Who knew? Maybe, like in a cliché novel, she’d approach me first, saying she’d never seen such a nice lady before.

“Zen, huh? That’s a pretty name.”

I kept a smile on my face and spoke as gently as I could.

At the time, I didn’t know that pretending to be nice only works when the other person plays along.

“I’ve never seen that expression before. It’s interesting.”

“……”

“Your mouth twitches like that. Oh—and your cheeks turn bright red too? Mine don’t.”

…He is teasing me, right? My face heated up in embarrassment.

Those words alone were unexpected—but something else was even more unsettling.

Why is he looking at me like that?

His gaze was like someone seeing something utterly unfamiliar for the first time. It reminded me of the moment I’d first opened my eyes in this world.

He stared so intently it felt like my face might bore a hole. When even my eyelids were being scrutinized, I finally gave up.

Yeah. Who am I to pretend to be nice anyway?

I wasn’t someone who had to force herself to please others just to survive anymore, like in my previous life. There was no reason to keep this up.

Maybe I was just too startled earlier. I feel kind of sick.

Whether from nerves or something else, I pressed a hand to my churning chest and gently removed the small hand gripping my arm.

At that very moment, Zen—who’d been leisurely studying my face—changed expression and spoke urgently.

“W-what’s your name?”

A faintly trembling voice. Shaking red eyes. I stared at him for a moment before answering.

I could have ignored him, but his expression was far too desperate for a child—or so it seemed.

“Loreina. Loreina Amelio.”

“Loreina…”

Zen rolled my name around in his mouth as if it were a piece of sweet candy.

It reminded me faintly of myself long ago, memorizing English words, and I let out a small laugh.

It wasn’t even such a great name. I was just an extra who wasn’t mentioned in the original story at all.

…Still, he looks too young to be wandering around alone.

At most, Zen looked about ten years old.

Should I at least find his guardian before leaving?

In case he was lost, I didn’t feel right just walking away. I turned my head to look around.

Just then, I spotted someone running toward us from afar, clearly focused on this direction. It seemed he was the boy’s guardian.

Good thing he showed up quickly.

I smiled and greeted the man as he approached—unaware of how I’d soon feel standing there.

“Good day. I am Gerald of the Hentison barony.”

It was a flawless, polite greeting—but I couldn’t say a word in response. My heart dropped with a heavy thud.

Gerald Hentison. The man who, barring any twists, would become the next Baron Hentison.

…And the one who would later help Leonard start a rebellion and enter the imperial palace.

In the original story, the Hentison family had trained relentlessly for rebellion from the day Leonard reached adulthood.

The head of the family, and even the heir, were no exceptions. Anyone capable of fighting took part.

Dragons reach adulthood at a hundred years. Three hundred years have passed—so Leonard must already be an adult. That means they should be training right now.

Yet here Gerald was, leisurely attending his sister’s party.

That meant there was only one answer.

This isn’t the Hentison family from the original story.

It felt as though someone were squeezing my throat—I couldn’t breathe.

I’d known, of course, that meeting the male lead in such a vast empire wouldn’t be easy.

The idea that the male lead would be hiding in such a nearby territory—it was an absurd coincidence.

He should’ve been secretly training, avoiding the emperor’s eyes. Expecting to find him had been foolish from the start.

…They said Hentison was a common surname. Looks like it really is.

If this place couldn’t save me, there was no reason to stay.

I steadied my oddly ragged breathing and organized my thoughts.

How long do I have left before I die?

One year? Two? I thought hard, but there was no way to suddenly remember something I’d never known.

The novel hadn’t been kind enough to detail the death of a mere extra.

It only mentioned that other races had disappeared before the story began—without specifying when.

All we knew was that it had been a long time since they vanished.

The reason was simple: that setting existed solely to highlight the male lead as the last surviving otherworldly being.

Which means I could die at any moment.

I finally regretted leaving the count’s estate without proper preparation.

If I’d thought it through—even just asked Gilbert to look into it—I would’ve quickly learned this wasn’t that Hentison family.

The thought of being murdered made it hard to breathe.

“Are you all right? You look unwell.”

Gerald asked, concern evident on his face.

I seized the perfect opportunity to leave.

“…I suddenly don’t feel well. Could you please call my maid who’s outside?”

“If you’re unwell, perhaps you should rest in the lounge—”

“No. I think I need to go home.”

At that, Gerald stopped pressing the matter—perhaps my pale face convinced him.

“I see. Then I’ll have your maid summoned.”

“Thank you.”

Soon, Gerald stopped a passing servant and instructed them to bring Mary. I stood quietly beside him, waiting.

I could feel Zen’s gaze on me—so intense I noticed it without even looking. I tried to ignore it.

Or rather, I meant to.

“Are you scared?”

Zen asked. I turned toward him and let out a small sigh.

Ignoring a child was harder than I’d thought.

“No. I’m just not feeling well. If I rest a bit—”

“Liar.”

The interruption came before I could finish. His certainty left me speechless.

“You’re scared. I can tell. I don’t know about other things, but I know that look.”

“……”

“…It’s the only expression I used to see every day.”

Had it shown on my face? Zen stepped a little closer. I was honestly overwhelmed.

What did he know to say something like that?

“If you need help, I can help you.”

He spoke confidently—so much so that I might’ve taken his hand if I didn’t know better.

…But I do know.

There was nothing this child could do for me.

“I don’t need it.”

I whispered, then hurried toward Mary, who had just entered the ballroom.

I saw Zen’s hand lift as if to stop me, then fall—but I didn’t turn back.

“Miss!”

Startled by my pace, Mary rushed over. Seeing her worried face eased my chest a little.

“Are you very unwell? Oh my—look at you, you’re breaking out in a cold sweat.”

“…Yeah. I’m sick, Mary.”

I was so anxious it felt like my heart might burst.

A rumor crossed my mind—something someone once said: that other races hadn’t just disappeared, but had been abducted and used as test subjects.

It was just a rumor, but many coveted divine blessings. It wouldn’t be strange if it were true.

If that was really the case…

That could happen to me too.

Since no one knew Leonard was alive, people would think I was the last remaining one.

A crowded party like this was the perfect place for an abduction.

Dying like that wouldn’t be strange at all. I’d always been unlucky enough for sudden possession to feel normal.

But this life is different.

There were people around me. I didn’t have to worry about my next meal. I didn’t want to lose this chance so meaninglessly—never.

Leaning on Mary, I headed for the exit.

Once home, I’d stay inside the territory as much as possible, just like I had for the past two years.

I should ask Gilbert if we can hire more knights, too.

With that thought, I took another step.

Just one more step, and I’d be out.

“Why won’t you say anything?”

“……”

“I’m asking what you were doing after the glass broke!”

A sudden shout made me turn around.

A blonde young lady was scolding Zen. From the looks of it, her necklace had gone missing during the party.

“Why can’t you answer?”

Even as her voice rose, Zen said nothing. He didn’t look around for help either.

He just stood there.

But to me, it felt like he was saying something.

Help me.

Zen was screaming that.

Without a doubt.