The Hero is Standing in My Way - Chapter 8

After Killian’s attack, Siegfried seemed to focus only on recovering his body.

I haven’t met him for nearly two weeks, thanks to him (Killian).

By the way, I don’t know when the hell will Killian be arrested.

Because of my escort, I had to give up sneaking out every night.

In such a secluded rural estate, the only thing that made me enjoy was playing card games with the bar owner’s wife, or playing a drink bet.

I can’t even appreciate Siegfried’s beauty, and I spent free time at home.

Meanwhile, the time of the summer festival held every year in Elifritz came.

Prior to this, the maids started dancing while working.

“Wow, it‘s the festival!”

“It’s festival!”

“Oh, young lady!”

The maids who were chatting while cleaning in the hallway were frightened as they shouted the word festival (when they saw me).

I didn’t really think about rebuking for negligence.

“I, I’m working hard!”

“Me too! The window is sparkly clean!“

The maids looked up at me with doglike eyes asking for praise.

I stroked their hair one by one and laughed.

“Well done. Are you going to hang out with me tonight?”

“Yes. I already prepared a dress for you, Lady, that ‘looks like a commoner no matter what’.”

“As expected of our maids. Today, I’m buying.”

“Kyaah! We’d love it, Young Lady!”

The maids raised their thumbs.

While I was flirting for a long time, Miliard, who had just returned from outside, climbed the stairs.

“Whew, I don’t want you to hang out with lowly people.“

Miliard was the youngest of us siblings, and is the same age as Siegfried.

“You came early? Looking at your expression, you lost it all again, right?”

I looked at him and clacked my tongue. Miliard had a hobby of gambling.

“Today‘s defeat is for tomorrow’s victory… .”

“Do it right. You’re reaching out to Abbysion?”

“Please be patient with that.”

“Then forget what I said to the maids in the house.”

“Okay, I’ll keep it a secret. And lend me some money.”

“No, I don‘t have money for that.”

I looked at him coldly. He needs to know what is appropriate. Anyway.

“Festival?”

Did you catch me today? The family members of the mansion gathered in the hallway one by one. This time Siegfried and Abbysion appeared.

“Yes, Your Highness the Prince. Elifritz holds a festival every year before catching Seiren. It means to save energy by eating and drinking.“

Abbysion explained with a smile, his pink eyes bent.

In addition, citizens of this place eat, play and drink; we’re also the ones who catch Seiran.

“Right. I have heard of it.“

Siegfried raised his head. His gaze turned to the village outside the market which was far from the mansion.

“Would you like to go with me?”

Siegfried seemed oddly interesting as a guy. So I approached him and suggested.

Siegfried, whom I saw after nearly two weeks, looked pretty good as if he finally got out of his body.

The arms exposed through his half-rolled sleeves were also clean. It seemed that all the poison was removed.

“No. I hate being in a noisy place.“

However, the answer which he returned to me was rejection.

Well, of course, I knew that. It was hard to imagine buying and eating at a shrine with that blunt face.

“Then, we’ll come back together. Does Abbysion… ?”

“I have a lot of work behind which has been waiting for me.”

The two handsome men who are competing for two tops with their peerless beauty inside this mansion both gave me negative answers, and the maids’ faces became visibly gloomy.

This can’t do, really.

“I’ll ask other handsome guys.”

“Ariel, you must’ve forgotten that you’re the Count’s Young Lady.”

Milliard shook his head and nagged.

How is it then? It’s this kind of rural love anyway. I laughed happily.

“You’ve lost all your money and talk a lot.”

“Ah really!”

Milliard stomped his feet and left. It was clear he noticed that Abbysion’s eyes had narrowed.

“Do something. Young kids have already fallen for that.”

I put my hands on my back after saying that. Abbysion sighed.

“I need to reduce the money that goes into Miliard. Ariel, don’t forget to take your escort.”

“What? I hate it.”

If you bring uniformed knights to a place filled with those crowds, who the hell will come to you? Even if I dressed as a chicken, I think everyone will know who I am.

“Take it even if you don’t like it. Killian hasn’t been caught yet.”

Even Siegfried said that, I couldn’t be more stubborn.

I dropped my shoulders.

“I really don’t need that kind of thing. Honestly, Your Highness the Prince knew. When we first met, I saved Your Highness the Prince.”

“I need it (that time). And.”

Siegfried hesitantly opened and closed his mouth.

What do you want to say?

I looked at him with a curious face. Then he also looked at me quietly.

Even if I look at him with such intense eyes, he can’t tell me at all?

I tilted my head.

“And what?”

“… No. It’s nothing.”

“You must have a habit when you open your mouth. ‘No. It’s nothing’.”

I copied Siegfried’s expressionless face.

The maids at the sidelines laughed. Then Siegfried’s ears reddened. He frowned his eyes.

“Don‘t copy me.”

“Down’t copwy mwe.”

“I don’t talk like that.”

I deliberately stretched the words when I talked, but his reaction wasn’t cool.

I have to stop talking. I shrugged and went back among the maids.

“I’m going to lose anyway, so I’ll be back. It would be great to go now.”

“Go carefully.”

Abbysion said. I frowned, saying not to worry, and then went back to my room

*****

There were many shops with small tents in every alley.

The maids screamed and walked around holding a beautiful piece of food to eat.

However, I couldn’t really enjoy the festival properly because I was caught between the two escorts.

I’ve been dressed up like a commoner at best, but two bear-like figures beside me were struggling with the rice cakes. That’s why everyone just looked at me but I had to stay calm.

Wasn’t the thrill of the festival being swept away by crowds and wandering around?

However, when I approached the neighborhood, people split into two as if I had made an appointment with them.

After several attempts, I sat on a bench far away, holding a sweet cookie in my arms.

Even so, I gave pocket money to the maids in the sense of having fun even if it’s only them.

“Young Lady, are you bored?”

“Can you tell?”

I grumbled at the escort knight. The only place to resent was these guys.

I pretended to give cookies to the knights, and then tell a joke over and over again.

I was getting tired of this as I laughed lightly against their gloomy faces.

Is there any way to get rid of these escort knights somehow? It’s been a while since I’ve been out and I want to have fun too.

After thinking for a while, I finally thought of a good way.

“I’ll go to the bathroom.”

“We will go together.”

“It‘s a toilet, you’re going to follow me? I’m only going to the toilet behind that tree… .”

“Please, please come back.”

I thought it would come out like that. I just came up with this simple method.

“You‘re watching well.”

I’m hiding behind a tree. I planned to disappear into the crowd without letting the knights know.

If the knights say something when they go back, the young lady might be a little late because she’s doing something big. They should really tell them this.

To avoid the eyes of the knights, I crouched down in the bush, ate snacks, and laughed by myself.

Waiting for a while, the knights started talking to each other.

In that gap, I leaned through the bushes, bowing my back.

It seems that the reason for the bathroom was very appropriate.

Even if the knights heard the rustling sound, they dare not even turn their heads in this direction.

After getting out of the bush, it wasn’t difficult to blend in naturally among the crowds.

I looked around with my heels, wondering how far the maids had gone.

It was then.

Two men in black clothes passed by me, carrying large sacks.

They bumped my shoulder and dropped the cookie I was holding onto the floor. Of course, my gaze turned to the men.

There was still half of it (cookie) left… .

Is it because of the feeling that the number of people who hit me on the shoulder has increased these days?

When I was with Siegfried, I didn’t know how to rebuke him. But I couldn’t take it anymore.

“Hey, you… .. Wait, can you hear me?”

I stopped and shouted at the men.

I’m far from the knights, so even if I made a commotion here they won’t hear.

However, my voice was buried in the loud noise and couldn’t reach the men.

I hurriedly followed the guys. At least, I wanted to get an apology.

Unlike me, who was pushed out of the way by people, the men managed to get out of the way.

It seemed that people were getting out of the way while carrying luggage.

Uh. It’s not about raising drugs, really.

I wanted to hold onto the guys even more. It was when I managed to get behind them a little apart.

Suddenly, I thought that the clothes the men were wearing were very different.

Looking at it, everyone at the festival was wearing colorful clothes, but only the men were dressed in pitch black.

As if I’m going out to ask anyone to notice something that looks suspicious.

… But why can’t no one notice? Is it only me who thinks that it’s weird?

I looked around, but no one seemed to be suspicious of the men.

During the festival, large bags of potato or flour are often carried.

Therefore, it did not create a sense of incongruity for the men to carry a large burden.

Just their clothes. That black outfit that seemed to advertise ’I’m a bad guy’ kept bothering me.

They made me fall, so they’re already bad enough for me.

The place they headed out of the festival street was a forest full of warehouses.

I opened my lips wide, wanting to say something to them. Then he stopped and muttered a little.

“No, but there was… … ?”

It was dark as the sun went down, but the dark hair sticking out of the bag was clearly visible.