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Chapter 05
“Don’t thank me. I don’t know whether that thing is real or fake either.”
“……”
“It’s true it never appeared in the papers, but it still could have been genuine. If that’s the case, then you missed out on a good opportunity because of me.”
“There’s no way what the author had was authentic.”
“How do you know that?”
At my question, the man parted his lips as if pondering how to answer. After some time passed, instead of replying, he adjusted his mask and started walking away. He looked hurried, as though something were chasing him.
He disappeared quickly with his long strides, but since he stood a head taller than most people, his path was easy to follow. Wait—at least answer before you go!
“Hey! Excuse me!”
I followed after him, waving both arms to make sure he noticed me.
Could he even sense me? He just kept getting farther away, never once stopping. When he vanished into the crowd, I started hopping in place, trying to spot him.
The fox mask, the fox mask!
Muttering his features to myself, I darted my eyes around. Then, in the rapidly shifting view, his face suddenly appeared right in front of me.
“Ah—th-that scared me!”
I was so startled I forgot to breathe in and out properly. The man tilted his head indifferently, as if asking why I’d be shocked by something so minor.
“Why are you following me?”
I let out a slow breath before answering.
“…Because I want to hear your answer.”
“My answer?”
He tilted his head, clearly puzzled.
“Oh. That answer.”
As if he’d caught on, he nodded. Watching the mask sway slightly, an oddly misplaced curiosity popped into my head.
“Why are you wearing a fox mask?”
“……”
“If it’s hard to talk about, you don’t have to.”
I even helped him, you know… I pouted as I trailed off. I may not have been much help since he already knew it was a forgery, but still—help is help.
The man remained perfectly still, as if a heavy stone had been placed on his lips. I stared at his mouth for a moment, then slid my gaze away with a hint of disappointment.
“Fine. I’m not that terribly curious anyway—”
“I wanted to try it.”
A tiny voice, like morning dew, seeped into the air.
“Ahem.” He adjusted his mask and averted his gaze. Maybe it was the lantern light—or maybe I was imagining things—but I didn’t care. Seeing his ears turn red, I couldn’t help but smile.
“How did you end up in Sent? Your hometown? Traveling?”
Before I knew it, I was strolling through the night market with the man. To be precise, I was trailing after him because I was curious about the face hidden beneath that fox mask.
I was curious about him. About the handsome face he might be hiding—but even more than that, about who he was.
Why was I so curious about this man? Curious enough to start questioning myself.
Following a stranger out of sheer curiosity? It was a bold thing I never would have done in my normal life.
People sometimes do daring and risky things they wouldn’t usually do when they’re in an unfamiliar place, meeting people who don’t know them. Today was that day for me—a day when I knew it was dangerous but acted on impulse without thinking of the consequences.
“Hey!”
I kept chasing after him, unfazed by his indifferent attitude.
“For a mercenary, you don’t talk very roughly, do you?”
“……”
“I heard mercenaries swear every other word. Is that just a stereotype?”
He stopped walking and cast an awkward glance over his shabby attire. He parted his lips as if about to say something, then pulled his gaze away from me.
Scratching my head in the ensuing silence, I keenly felt the importance of communication.
What if he isn’t a mercenary? Having learned social skills from books, my confidence started to wane. When I drooped my head gloomily, he clasped his hands behind his back and spoke while walking ahead.
“I came to Sent with my employer, and I’m visiting the night market during my break.”
“……”
“Does that answer your question?”
For some reason, his voice alone rang clear in the noisy marketplace. Was it possible to feel this moved by a single reply? I couldn’t hide the smile slowly spreading across my face.
“Yes, that’s more than enough.”
To keep up with him, I lifted my skirt to my shins and quickened my pace. The lace at the hem brushed against my legs, tickling them as I moved.
“Let’s go together…!”
When he stopped and turned his head, the fox mask swayed as if it might slip off his shoulder.
I want to see his face. As I traced the sharp line of his features, I was shoved by the oncoming crowd and stumbled.
“Ah…!”
Once, twice—I bumped shoulders with passersby and was pushed farther away from him.
“Ah—ah!”
Our eyes met in that moment. I reached out, asking for help, but he just stood there with his hands behind his back, tilting his head blankly. What do you expect me to do?—that was the look on his face.
Usually, unless someone truly disliked you, they’d help in situations like this, wouldn’t they? I withdrew my hand awkwardly and let out a hollow laugh.
As the crowd passed, I stood there staring at him blankly, only to collide shoulders with a boy running from the opposite direction.
Had I overdone it without considering my stamina? My legs gave out, and I lost my balance.
“Ugh…!”
Just as I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the pain, a firm arm wrapped around my waist.
“Are you all right?”
It was the man in the fox mask.
When I failed to regain my balance and fell into his arms, he tightened the arm around my waist. The arm encircling me felt blazing hot, like a lump of fire.
I slowly lifted my gaze to meet his. The moment I looked into his eyes—bluer than blue, cold like the open sea—thump, a loud noise slammed into my back. It felt as if someone had struck my heart with a hammer.
“I-I’m fine—”
Rip.
As I tried to pull away from his embrace, I stepped on something.
Lowering my gaze, I saw a fan that had been trampled underfoot due to its owner’s carelessness. Staring at it blankly, I let out a dazed remark.
“That’s a relief.”
“What is?”
“That I could grab onto someone. I thought you might be cold-hearted.”
He blinked slowly, processing my words. After a moment, he shook his head with a deflating laugh. The fox mask bobbed with the motion.
I watched him absentmindedly, but then he stopped laughing as if a string had been cut.
Still holding my waist with one arm, he brushed his jawline thoughtfully with his other hand.
“Are you not afraid of me?”
He certainly was intimidating. That was separate from being dazzled by his looks. Even I—who’d spent most of my time confined to a manor—could tell he wasn’t an ordinary man.
His superior physique, overbearing manner of speech, and piercing gaze—none of it was familiar to me.
And yet, strangely enough, I’d never felt afraid of him. Maybe it was because of the fox mask he wore. If I’d been scared, I wouldn’t have followed him like this out of curiosity.
In a way, I even felt sorry for him. His tone suggested he was well aware of how others perceived him. I deliberately shrugged and replied playfully.
“What, are you a monster?”
“Do I look like one?”
“If you want, I can pretend to be scared.”
“You never let a word go, do you.”
“Should I be afraid of you? Are people afraid of you?”
Perhaps the question caught him off guard. His eyes widened, and he seemed at a loss for words.
His blue eyes rippled like waves. I half-worried they might overflow and spill like water.
Slowly, as if approaching a wary beast, I reached out my hand. The thick breaths between us were so close I couldn’t tell which were his and which were mine. His gaze fixed on my lips as they hesitated and parted.
“I have a question.”
“You certainly ask a lot of questions.”
“May I ask your name?”
He turned his face slightly, as if to make it easier for me to remove the mask, and stared somewhere beyond the alley. After tracing the wall with his gaze, he lowered his eyes and trailed off.
“…Ro.”
“Pardon?”
“Ero.”
A hint of mischief curved his crooked lips.
“That’s a lie.”
“How could it be?”
He straightened his expression and insisted on his innocence with earnest eyes. His name is really Ero?
“Ero.”
When I repeated the name as if testing its truth, he nodded lightly.
Author, that’s too much. Even if he’s just a supporting character, naming him Ero is cruel. Frowning, I felt him slowly rub the space between my brows with his thumb.
When I removed the fox mask from his face, his hair fell diagonally like rays of sunlight.
“Wow…”
I had to steady myself against the dizziness brought on by his sculpted, flawless features. His eyes resembled the blue sea—just moments ago like a night sea, now like the midday ocean facing the sun.
“He’s really beautiful.”
What kind of man looks this pretty? I’d arrogantly thought I’d be the most beautiful in this world, but I guess I was wrong. And to think a man this handsome is named Ero. Is the author insane?
It seemed I wasn’t the only one thinking that. More and more people began casting lecherous glances as they passed by, eyeing the two of us stuck together in the middle of the night market.
“Yoo-hoo!”
One middle-aged man even cheered as he passed, only to be smacked on the back by his wife. It was the sort of reaction you’d have upon seeing a young couple who’d locked eyes at a festival.
Oh right—I’m still in this man’s arms. Realizing the situation, my face heated up.
“Um, could you let go for a moment—”
“No.”
When I twisted my waist to escape his grip, he pulled me back forcefully. Caught off guard, I dropped the mask I was holding and grabbed onto his solid arm instead.
“You still haven’t told me your name.”
“I’m Ba—”
I swallowed the name that almost slipped out. He was an unidentified mercenary. Judging by his single name, he was clearly a commoner. If I revealed that I was a noble, would he run away—or welcome it?
What should I do? As I bit my lip in thought, a familiar word flickered through my mind.
“Ba—Basil.”
“I see. Your name is Basil.”
“……”
“Basil.”
He nodded, repeating the name. Basil—even I found it absurd, but he seemed to accept it easily. Well, the name of the new servant who joined recently was Milk, after all.
While my thoughts wandered off in useless directions, he examined my face. Curling his lips playfully, he whispered,
“Basil.”
His eyes were still fixed on my lips. Suddenly, I realized the answer to the question I’d been asking myself earlier—why I was so curious about this man.
There was only one answer.
“Ero.”
Because I had fallen for him at first sight.
