Chapter 24
She could see the back of the robbers far away. It seemed like there were at least six of them. They ran through the capital passers-by threateningly.
She had to catch up. Biting her lips, Leasis moved hurriedly towards them.
Something passed in front of her while she was running. Her red eyes got a little bigger. A man wearing a black cloak was chasing them at a tremendous speed.
Leasis was faster than most men when it came to running speed. Nevertheless, he seemed to be more than twice as fast as her.
The man, who had already overtaken the robbers, turned away. He stretched his fists and legs at the panicked robbers.
Wham!
“Ahhh!”
“S-spare me!”
“Please!”
The robbers fell one by one with a tremendous sound. The man was even kind enough to take care of Setchen, who had fainted in the middle of the fight.
The robbers lost their fighting spirit and ran the other way. It was in the direction of Leasis.
“Run away!”
“This way!”
Surprised, she stopped running and looked around. There was nothing that could be used as a weapon. Most of the passers-by around her had only miscellaneous objects such as bags and wallets.
What to do?
She bit her lips as the robbers got closer. Blood starting to flow out of her torn lips.
Surprisingly, at that moment, Hizen’s low voice came to her mind.
[Think of your whole body as a weapon.]
“Yes… the Count-nim is right. If you don’t have a sword, you can fight with your body.”
Leasis smiled coolly. She took a few steps forward when she saw the two men running. Then, she turned her body half-way and kicked one of them in the chest.
Thump! He bumped into the wall with a harsh sound.
“Ahhh!”
Leasis did not stop. She clenched her teeth and struck the other man’s neck with her elbow.
Wham!
“Ahhhhhh!”
Even though it was her first time fighting with her bare hands, she looked like a professional fighter. In the continuous blows, the men screamed loudly enough to make the city ring.
Her red eyes were tainted with a mysterious glow. She felt a black aura spreading around her body.
“Give up now.”
When she smiled, the robbers who were trying to escape hardened. She approached them threateningly, bending her neck from side to side.
At that time, a robber lying on the floor rushed toward Leasis’ back. There was a small dagger in his hand. Passersby shouted to run away. The moment she tried to avoid it in a hurry, something passed before her eyes.
Whack!
A small wooden stick hit the stomach of the robber who was rushing toward her. He grabbed his stomach and fell down.
Surprised, Leasis turned her head. The man in the black cloak who had thrown the stick was shaking his hand lightly.
Leasis opened her eyes wide. A bandage was visible on his slightly exposed arm.
*
Setchen and Grien headed to the hospital. The man and Leasis, who had knocked out all the robbers, were questioned by the Capital Defense Knights.
They headed to the building of the Capital Defense Division located outside of the capital. The white building was very old and shabby. Leasis looked at the webs and fungi on the ceiling and clicked her tongue. It reminded her of the old Commander’s office. With just one glance, she could see that it was in a filthy state and had never been touched by anyone.
The knight who made them sit on the old sofa scratched his thick brown hair. His name was Karr. He was the ace of the Capital Defense Division. He was in his mid to late 30s, his eyes were rough, and his cheeks were covered by a dark beard.
Karr was frantically busy investigating the robbery that had stirred up the capital. It had been a long time since he forgot the taste of the soup his wife used to make him. He was very grateful that the criminals who made him suffer so much were finally caught.
After a quick investigation, he handed two glasses of juice to his benefactors sitting on the sofa. It was unexpected kindness.
“So, you two caught the robbers?”
“Yes.”
“Whoa. Thank you. They really gave me a hard time.”
“The knights are working hard.”
Unlike Leasis, who spoke brightly, the man in the black cloak remained silent all the time. His appearance was suspicious.
The knight in charge of the case said while lying on the sofa.
“Hyung-ssi.[1] Why don’t you take off that cape first?”
“…”
Was he ignoring him? Karr squinted his eyes. He took a cigarette out, twisted it and said calmly.
“Will you both take out your identification cards?”
“Yes.”
Leasis took a small wooden plaque out of her arms. But the man in the black cloak did nothing.
“Hey, M. Cape. You didn’t hear me? You need to get your identification card out, too.”
“…”
“Huh. Did you lose it? Or maybe there’s a reason you can’t take it out.”
Look at this. Is it a game? There was a strong suspicious smell. Karr smirked at the constant silence.
He turned off his cigarette in the ashtray on the table. His dark brown eyes shone ominously.
“If it doesn’t make sense, we’ll have to do something else.”
“Hey…”
Leasis raised her hand. She spoke in a clear voice to Karr.
“I’ll take responsibility for his identity.”
“What are you saying, Miss?”
“He’s a regular at our store. And… this person cannot talk.”
“Hmm… I see.”
Kar fiddled with his chubby chin and examined the black cloak. The case was already closed. The robbers had already been caught, and they had even made a confession. There was no need to question the benefactor who could not speak. He relaxed his eyes.
“Okay. You two can go back now.”
“Oh, wait a minute.”
“Hmm? Do you have anything more to say?”
Leasis smiled brightly and pointed at the ceiling with her hand. Spiders as big as a child’s palm were hanging disgustingly from there.
“May I take the time to clean up next time?”
* * *
She was so nosy. To lie for someone she did not know, to offer to clean up. She was always a strange woman.
Hizen left the building thinking sarcastically. Her kindness to everyone was not very pleasant.
Of course, Leasis did not know how he was feeling. She smiled brightly and bowed her head.
“Thank you! I owe you.”
As expected, it seemed that his identity was not discovered. Otherwise, she would not have had to make up a lie that he could not talk. She had no reason to help.
He was done with his business. Hizen, who glanced down at her, turned around. He did not want to get involved with her outside of the Imperial Palace.
But then, Leasis grabbed him by the arm. Her grip was stronger than he thought, so his blue eyes grew a little.
“You should take some macarons.”
“I don’t need…”
“Come on, come here.”
What. Hizen frowned while being dragged by her. She spoke in a higher voice than usual, happy to have caught the criminals.
“Our macarons are very popular. Originally, they were only popular among women, but these days, men and women of all ages like them.”
She had a lot of useless words for strangers. Hizen sighed and followed suit. He unconsciously brushed off the area her arm had touched.
Nevertheless, she did not lose her smile. She was constantly moving her lips with new things to say. Her wide open lips looked strangely heart-shaped. Hizen thought that even her lips were strange. Nevertheless, he could not take his eyes off her.
“Especially, the most popular one is the black-tan macaron. Using black tan as an ingredient, it is moderately sweet, and it’s good for your body.”
Black-tan was Hizen’s favorite macaron. As expected, the public had the same taste. After inwardly affirming it, she asked abruptly.
“You like it the most, don’t you?”
Hizen nodded slowly because she was right. She nodded with a significant smile.
“You certainly like black-tan macarons the most. Is there any taste you don’t like?”
Was she doing a market research? Right. He could help her because he owe her a favor for the other day. It was annoying but not bad. It was good for him if the taste of macarons developed.
Hizen obediently responded to her questions without even realizing it. His second favorite taste of macarons, his favorite drink, or dish.
She looked excited even though he gave only short answers. Hizen muttered to himself several times ‘as expected, a strange woman’.
“What’s your favorite color?”
‘Why are you even asking this? No, I didn’t even show you my identification card earlier, but you don’t suspect me? Why did you lie for me?’
No matter how naive Leasis was, she was not someone who would hide criminals. Hizen’s suspicions grew.
At that moment, her feet stopped. She sighed at the green sign of Liduré.
“Hah… it’s already here.”
Her voice was filled with regret. That raised Hizen’s suspicion. He thought that this woman seemed to have a strong professional mind wherever she went. If she had been born as a cow, she would have enjoyed her life endlessly.
Hizen was worried, but she came out of the store with macarons.
But it was weird. The macarons were in a large wooden box, not a green bag with the Liduré emblem on it. It was a common design that could be seen everywhere.
Holding the wooden box, she sighed. Her face was full of worries.
What else was bothering her? Then he wanted to decline it any more. Hizen, guessing there were more troubles, took a step back.
Leasis took two steps towards him.
“What should I do? The prepared bags in the store ran out…”
“…It’s all right.”
Rather, it was a good situation for Hizen. No one in the Imperial Palace would notice his tastes with such a wooden box. He made a faint smile without realizing it.
At that time, she squeezed her red hair with both hands. In the wind, Hizen took two steps back. Leasis took three more steps to him.
“What should I do? Grien and most of the employees went to the hospital and there is no one to take care of the store.”
What was he supposed to do? Hizen was embarrassed and she covered her face with both hands.
Was she crying? She seemed to have a strong attachment to the store… A mournful voice rang in his embarrassed ears.
“The Count-nim told me to rest until this afternoon… but it will be difficult to come back today…”
With the current situation, it would indeed be hard to come back. Hizen understood easily, as a regular of Liduré. Meanwhile, her shoulders drooped.
“Huh… If I only go back tomorrow morning, then the Count-nim will be angry… Then I’ll be fired, right?”
You would not be fired like that. What are you thinking? Hizen frowned and she asked.
“Is is right?”
“…”
“I guess so, huh?”
“If you tell the circumstances… I think… they’ll understand.”
Leasis breathed a sigh of relief at his words. She nodded, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes.
“You’re right. Our handsome and kind Count Dratius-nim is not such a mean man. Never! Really!”
It made him feel worse to hear her deny it like that. Hizen straightened slightly, and she bent down.
“Then get home safe. I think I’ll have to clean up the store.”
If she was not there, it would be easier to handle the wooden box. Hizen turned around without any doubt.
“Goodbye!”
Leasis greeted widely, waving both hands. He quickly disappeared.
Leasis went back into Liduré. The store was full of employees.
“Huh? Where is the customer that was with you? We could have at least greeted him before he left.”
“Hehe. He doesn’t like to make a fuss…”
The store had all the other employees except Grien. Grien had said that she and her employees were enough to look at the store.
Leasis stretched out and arranged the macarons on the shelves. Her eyes were a little red.
“Oh, Leasis, did you cry?”
“No, I got something in my eye.”
“You look tired. Go back to the Imperial Palace now.”
“It’s all right.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve been duly authorized today.”
She hummed and smiled.
TL notes
[1] Hyung means ‘older brother’ and is used by a boy/man to call an older boy/man, not necessarily from the same family.