Chapter – 45
A brief silence fell.
Five seconds of hesitation, unable to figure out how to respond.
A bright voice that had never faltered in the face of teasing or humiliation stopped for five whole seconds.
Though short, the pause was heavy. It wasn’t the kind of silence that came from a “How dare a mere slave—” type of atmosphere.
It was only the second day since encountering them, yet a bead of sweat ran down Shafran’s nape.
When the five seconds of silence ended, the three of them shouted at once as if they had agreed beforehand.
“Hoho, you’ve already fallen for my charm! But I still have a fiancé. I cannot do anything improper before breaking it off.”
“W-wow… Mr. Medlidge would never approve! Though it’s tempting to ruin my life, haha!”
“You already have feelings strong enough to propose? Love really is a fearsome thing. And may I ask, is this a rhetorical question—do we fight duels over it? Haha.”
The three of them spoke all at once, and nothing came through clearly.
This exaggerated reaction was frightening in its own way. Shafran slowly rose, his gaze darkening.
“…Tsk. Mocking me, are you? Interesting. I didn’t think you were dull enough to take my words seriously.”
Shafran, who had casually suggested marrying a mere slave to ruin a family, now tried to calm the situation with his characteristic gloom.
Who knew that an offhand remark about marriage could cause such a stir?
For someone like Viretta, marrying a slave would be the ultimate insult—but she didn’t show a hint of it, which was both surprising and slightly uncomfortable.
Why the silence had fallen in the first place remained a mystery.
As Shafran was cornered by the puzzle, Iola drew her sword and began sharpening it on a whetstone.
“One must not ignore true feelings simply because of social status.”
The scraping sound gnawed at Shafran’s nerves.
“Tsk, tsk… stop joking. Surely a noble student like you must understand my true intent…”
“Don’t worry. Your true feelings have been conveyed.”
“Could it be that noble conversation itself is different? It feels like we’re not communicating at all. Hoo… I feel so depressed I could die.”
Both sides wore smiles, but one side was infinitely darker.
Shafran, scattering his shadowed smile, leaned against the carriage like a dying man.
Words could not reach, and he had no confidence in winning this moment.
Viretta, carefully choosing her words, approached the depressed Shafran. With her typically clear face, she gently placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke the worst kind of words.
“That’s not true, Shafran. You still have a chance.”
“Really? With Iola-san sharpening her sword behind me… Heh, planning to kill me before we even face the dragon, are you?”
“Really now, Iola wouldn’t attack you for that reason. She and I are walking our own paths. We are here to slay the dragon.”
At the mention of the dragon, Iola’s eyes, momentarily calmed, rekindled.
Yes. A dragon. Their reason for being here. The fleeting hesitation cleared their minds.
He had come all this way to study dragons.
His passion and determination still burned.
“That’s right. We promised to see this through to the end.”
Iola sheathed her sword, stopping the ominous scraping sound.
Recalling their goal, he regained composure in a fraction of a moment.
“Then, after slaying the dragon and ending our engagements, you’ll also have a chance to challenge me.”
“Huh?”
The calm reasoning made Viretta’s strange phrasing stand out.
“Ah, why is that?”
“After our engagements end, I will be free of a fiancé. Shafran, now a free man after paying his due, will also have a chance to propose.”
“But, Viretta-san…”
Iola tilted her head in confusion. Until now, both Viretta and Lanken had not understood what she meant.
“Wasn’t your goal to slay the dragon to marry the one you love?”
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
“Ah? What do you mean?”
The biggest problem with habitual boasting is that once you let your guard down, it becomes difficult to manage.
At that moment, Viretta’s plan began to collapse.
And at just that moment, the carriage entered the village.
“Hey, stop spouting nonsense and book a room. You can’t sleep on the street again.”
“Yes, sir! Absolutely! We’ll go immediately!”
Thanks to Moslin’s orders, Viretta and Lanken fled before they could be caught.
“Huff… huff… haah…”
“Huff… haah… phew…”
“W-we survived, Lanken.”
“Yes… survived… no, wait! Running made things more complicated!”
Viretta and Lanken, having escaped out of sight of the carriage, panted heavily.
Lanken clutched his head in frustration, realizing they had run away instead of explaining themselves.
They should have said something, but seeing no way to manage it, they fled.
“You ran too.”
“How was I supposed to handle someone you couldn’t? It’s your boasting, so you deal with it.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I only speak honest words.”
“Then spit a little when you talk! Where is this love you speak of anyway?”
“My loved one… is everywhere, though not in a tangible form.”
People would usually call that “nothing.”
“Even you, who have known me so long, couldn’t understand. Iola-san likely can’t either, so I took a strategic retreat.”
In other words, “We ran because we couldn’t manage it.”
“You ran?!”
“Just a temporary retreat. Thinking I might disappoint Iola-san hurts my ribs.”
There’s a better way to say “hurts the chest.” How would a woman express “hurts the ribs” instead of “heartache”?
Lanken admired Viretta for choosing such an unattractive phrase.
He admired it even more when Viretta clutched her ribs and groaned.
But admiration ended there. The more pressing issue was how to manage Viretta’s collapse of boasting.
For now, it was a relief that Iola wasn’t chasing them. Lanken took a deep breath and glared at Viretta.
“You got us into this mess with your silly words.”
“Don’t call my proposal silly!”
“Was it even sincere? Why respond seriously to someone you just met and a fake marriage story?”
“Life is unpredictable. After we slay the dragon, Shafran will also have his due and be free.”
This was the first time he heard about splitting rewards, but it didn’t matter.
Lanken glared at Viretta fiercely.
“Does he even deserve a chance?”
“Why not?”
“Why not?! If some strange man becomes your husband, I’ll be in trouble!”
Even someone perfect like Iola is out hunting dragons. What would happen if someone less capable came along?
“Why?”
“…”
Thinking of the trouble Viretta might cause, seeing her like someone weak, and imagining himself caught up in it made his stomach ache.
But.
“…Really…”
“…Really…”
That someone worse than him could take Viretta Medlidge’s husband slot was as uncomfortable as walking barefoot on gravel.
He would continue to serve as Viretta’s mercenary. The thought of allowing an inferior man to take her hand was intolerable.
Was it jealousy, pride, or something else—
“Nooo! Absolutely not!”
Lanken smashed his head against the nearest wall.
“NOOO! That’s impossible!”
The passionate headbutting continued relentlessly, shocking Viretta.
Comparing himself to Shafran and thinking, “If he can marry her… then I?” Five seconds of silence, and he even considered, “Then maybe I—” Unacceptable.
“Absolutely not! NOOO!”
Like being psychologically manipulated by the kidnapper, he couldn’t bear the thought of entangling further with Viretta.
All his long-held common sense rose up and slapped Lanken.
Seeing Lanken pound his head and deny himself, Viretta hesitated.
“Be careful, you’ll hurt your head.”
“Nooo!”
“Is it really so unbearable that I marry a strange man? I didn’t realize you cared so much for me.”
“I hate even thinking that I care for you!”
Seeing he might keep headbutting until he passed out, Viretta grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him.
She inspected Lanken’s forehead, which had turned red from the repeated blows, scraped and slightly grazed from the hard wall.
With tears welling in her eyes, she gently caressed Lanken’s forehead.
“I didn’t know you cared for me so much. Don’t worry. Your husband will be someone you won’t need to worry about.”
Her touch was excessively gentle.
“Nooo!”
Lanken slammed his head against the wall again.
