161. Beggar Siblings – Exit and Entry
“...That’s unfortunate.”
Leo, having roughly grasped the situation, began to speak. Now, I understand why I couldn’t fetch the water.
It seems I had t this woman in the morning. Judging by the romantic emotions, it looks like I had confessed to her.
However, Leo still held back his words.
He realized that this encounter with the woman was a significant {event}, but he didn’t know what it was for. In this damn ga, events weren’t always good. Honestly, most were bad.
Still, Leo acted as if he was disappointed, displaying the sadness of a man who had failed in his confession. Given his past filled with painful mories, this expression wasn’t difficult for him.
He sighed lightly through his nose.
He slightly lowered his head and moved his eyes diagonally, as if in conflict, wondering if there was truly no hope.
When he licked his lips as if trying to say sothing, Jenia spoke.
“Let’s et often, Leo. We’ve only just introduced ourselves, haven’t we?”
Her tone was a bit disappointed. Sensing this, Leo quickly reversed the mood.
“Thank you. So, how often shall we et, Miss Jenia?”
Whether it was a good event or a bad one, it shouldn’t be avoided. At the very least, he needed to understand what it was about.
The most terrible event, the one where his childhood friend beca a follower of Barbatos, still haunted him in his dreams, but it left many rewards and information. Without that event, Prince Eric de Yeriel, who served Oriax, would still feel like an unreachable figure.
Now, he seed a bit more manageable. Knowing the power of the Apostles and their nurous constraints helped.
Jenia’s eyes widened. Her lips twitched, and she burst into laughter, showing her white neck.
“Did you call ‘Miss Jenia’? Haha, I didn’t expect that coback, Leo. Just call Jenia like before. I was being a bit an... Hehe...”
Aha...
Leo began to get a sense of it. This woman, for so reason, liked him to be assertive.
However,
‘Can I trust her?’
This was the only thought Leo had while talking to Jenia. He was observing the woman in front of him.
When Jenia said, “Then, as promised, will you take care of my brother? You can visit as you like. I’ll always be here,” Leo’s suspicion peaked.
He didn’t mind being called paranoid. No matter how friendly she seed, she was a stranger.
‘If it were Cassia, maybe, but I can’t entrust my sibling to soone I just t.’
Despite the friendly conversation, Leo ca to a negative conclusion. His heart raced, but trust was another matter.
However, since he didn’t know where Cassia was, Leo expressed his thanks. Until he found Cassia, getting help for a day or two would be fine.
“Then what about you, brother? Are you going ho alone? No, I want to go too. Don’t leave ,” Lena whined.
Leo firmly drew a line, “You can’t! You need to thank her.”
- Knock, knock.
Ober appeared. Though the show wasn’t over yet, judging by his sleepy appearance, he had co to us right after waking up.
[ Achievent: First eting with the Family Boss - Thugs slightly trust your words. ]
“There you are. Sorry about earlier. I thought you were so beggars who had heard my na. But Jenia, what’s your relationship with them? Are they relatives?”
“Um~ No.”
Jenia replied a bit shyly in the now cramped room with the plump Ober in it.
“They are my secret lovers.”
*
“This guy sure knows how to use his looks.”
Descending the stairs, Ober patted Leo’s shoulder.
“Seducing the most beautiful woman in the Orange Theater. I thought Jenia wasn’t interested in n, but now I see she had high standards! Hahaha. Many friends will be crying when they find out.”
“Where is Cassia?”
Leo cut to the chase. Following behind, Ober looked a bit surprised and asked back.
“You know Cassia?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“...She helped a long ti ago.”
“Really? Well, Cassia is kind... Wait, but how did you know to ask ? Did you know I knew Cassia?”
“...”
After a long pause, Leo answered ambiguously but firmly, “Yes.”
Ober didn’t press further.
“Good. I was thinking of going to Cassia anyway. Here, take this first.”
Ober pulled out a bundle of keys from his pocket. He opened a storage room on the first floor of the theater and handed over various daily necessities.
There were blankets, pillows, dishes, hangers, towels, and even a few pieces of sponge.
In fact, Minseo was quite surprised to see sponges in this world.
Sponges are the skeletal remains of sea sponge animals. These plant-like animals grow attached to the seabed, and when cut and dried in the sun, they leave behind a soft, elastic skeleton with many pores.
This is the sponge we know. Minseo, who thought sponges were a modern invention, was surprised to find them here.
Used in ancient Ro, sponges were very useful. Their absorbent nature made them ideal for dical and bathing purposes.
Leo had also used sponges before. He used them to clean blood in the military camp and during his stay at the Tatian and Gaidan Marquessates.
For cleanup purposes.
Sponges were like toilet paper for nobles. They needed to be rinsed and reused, but since they wouldn’t do it themselves, it didn’t matter.
Why are they giving this here?
Leo assud it was for showering or washing dishes, and he was correct.
However, there was another reason why sponges were commonly used here, even though they were unfamiliar among commoners.
Sponges were also used for contraception.
After moving the household items Lena would use to Jenia’s room, Leo and Ober left the theater.
As they walked and chatted for a while, they arrived at a bustling flea market.
Leo recognized the area as one managed by the Rauno family, as it was close to the beggar’s district and cheaper than the market that served as the starting point for the Beggar Siblings scenario.
At that mont, Leo’s steps halted. He saw a woman negotiating with a custor in front of a shop from afar. She had smooth, straight hair and a slim figure, wearing a leather apron.
Cassia. Or is it really her?
She was not at all like the Cassia he knew. The Cassia Leo knew never smiled like that, never spoke in that way.
“Ah! If that’s the case, I’ll have nothing left. Ma’am, look at this. See how well-finished it is? It won’t tear at all. If it does break, I’ll fix it for you, so don’t worry and take it, okay?”
Her eyes shone brightly with cheer. The mid-twenties Cassia was dealing comfortably with a very dissatisfied-looking middle-aged woman.
“Cassia! I’m here.”
“Oh! Uncle Ober, long ti no see. Wait a mont. Ma’am, would you like to see sothing else? There is a slightly cheaper option.”
Leo looked at her industrious deanor with bewildernt. When Cassia finally managed to sell two pairs of shoes and turned around with both hands on her waist, he was breathless.
Was she always a woman who could strike such a pose? Did she know how to tilt her head like that?
The next mont surprised him even more.
“Who’s this?”
[ Achievent: The Man Cassia Risked Her Life to Protect - Cassia has great affection for you. ]
There was no sign of the Cassia who had been overwheld by great affection, twisting and turning awkwardly. She faced Leo with a proud attitude toward her life.
“I just t him today. He says he’s Jenia’s boyfriend.”
“What? Jenia has a boyfriend? Wow, that’s amazing. How did he win over a girl who only knows theater? He is handso. Anyway, what brings you here?”
Ober explained the situation. However, it didn’t reach Leo’s ears.
While Ober chose shoes for Lena, Leo stood staring blankly at Cassia.
“Don’t you need shoes too? If you’re going to choose, do it quickly.”
Leo ca to his senses when Cassia pointed at his worn-out mismatched shoes.
Finally, a clean pair of canvas shoes was put on. They weren’t as nice as the ones Cassia had given him in the past, but they fit Leo’s feet perfectly.
Cassia extended her hand.
“You need to pay. I’ll give you a discount... one gold coin.”
“...What? Gold coin?”
“Just kidding, it’s one silver coin. Haha. Uncle Ober, are you paying for the sister’s shoes? What? Advance paynt? Don’t joke around. Hand it over now.”
Cassia took the silver coin from Leo’s hand. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over him.
“Well, I’ll be going now. Good luck with your business. How about a drink later?”
“No. I’m busy. I need to restock the sold inventory.”
“Tut. Alright. But take it easy. You’re too skinny...”
“I’ll manage. You should lose so weight yourself. Stop building muscle. You’re getting old... Ah! What are you doing!”
Ober sared shoe polish on Cassia’s cheek with his finger. Cassia kicked Ober’s butt, shouting, “Get lost, you fool!”
Leo wanted to say, “Be happy,” but he couldn’t find the words. He mumbled and turned away quietly.
Cassia didn’t need any gratitude or farewell. The best reward he could give her was to leave her life.
Feeling the snug fit of the new shoes, Leo glanced back to see Cassia already humming and organizing her display.
- “I will obey. I will be happy. Happier than anyone in this world.”
In the bustling market, the woman in the purple apron seed to whisper in Leo’s ear.
*
Returning to the theater, Leo couldn’t tell if he was happy or sad.
It felt like a hole had been punched in his chest, creating a void. At the sa ti, an emotion surged, constantly shaking the empty space.
He was happy but not joyful.
Sad but not sorrowful.
“Huh.”
He realized he had forgotten to breathe. He didn’t know what expression he had been wearing, but Ober, who had walked beside him, said nothing.
The theater was quiet.
The audience had already left, and only a few actors and forr prostitutes living in the theater road around aimlessly.
On the stage, Leo saw Lena. Under the still-lit lights, she was with Jenia.
“When eting the king, you bow like this. Try it.”
“Like this?”
“Yes. You don’t need to bow too deeply. Just enough to show respect without being servile. Good.”
Standing alone on the wide stage, their blond and black hair shining, the two won looked very different. But since they were both wearing white dresses, they also seed like sisters.
After showing a graceful posture, Lena straightened up.
“But will I ever et a king?”
“In plays, it happens all the ti. That’s why I love theater. You can be anything and dream of anything. What do you want to beco?”
Lena appeared to be in deep thought. She tilted her head cutely but didn’t answer.
Jenia smiled, lowering her head to et Lena’s eye level, and spoke while looking straight into her eyes.
“It’s alright. It ans you have many possibilities. You can be anything. Ah, except a noble.”
Jenia straightened up, took a deep breath, and began to sing.
“O king! Make this person noble!” The song, starting with that line, depicted the scene where Leisia recomnded Banun.
Casually transitioning from a conversation to acting was sothing Chaeha would have done.
Leo chuckled sadly. As Cassia exited his life, Jenia seed to knock on the door of his empty heart, trying to enter.
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