Ch. 126
“Wow! So all the uncles are going together?”
“Should we?”
“That’s a good idea. I’m free today too.”
‘I don’t want to go. Better keep quiet so they don’t see what a pain I am.’
“I saw yesterday that there’s a play in the square commemorating Lady Crowell. Shall we go there? It seems suitable for children to watch—”
“No!”
‘That’s the thing I just saw!’
The nightmare I had briefly forgotten suddenly resurfaced. Lox’s tastes were really something else.
“I don’t want to either. A circus is more fun.”
Thankfully, Chad agreed with me.
“……You all just don’t get it! Comparing a circus to Lady Crowell’s play? That’s sacred!”
“There he goes again. Try understanding him. Lox is a huge fan of Crowell. He always wants to go watch that thing. I’m sick of it.”
Unlike Lox, who seemed thoughtful and sensitive, Chad had a more cheerful and straightforward side, fitting for a swordsman.
It made sense that the two often had opposing opinions.
“Now that I think about it, Ash wasn’t any better either. When rumors about Geenie Crowell first spread, he suddenly got choked up and his eyes welled up. I thought someone close to him had died.”
“Chad, that’s not something to talk about……”
“You cried out of emotion?”
“I told you, that’s not it.”
‘Ah, it had seemed odd that Ash didn’t recognize me at all, but now I get it.’
‘He thinks I’m dead. He believed the rumors.’
‘So even if he remembers my face, when he sees me now, he’ll just think I look similar.’
It was an ironic situation.
I couldn’t reveal myself as Geenie Crowell, and Ash had to hide his identity too.
For some reason, we had run into each other at the exact time when we both had to remain hidden.
I was the only one who could even consider telling the truth, but even then, Ash wouldn’t be able to reveal himself.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve saved two royals now. First a prince, now an emperor.’
‘I should be considered a national hero. That much I’ll admit.’
“Huh? Now that I think about it, Miss Geenie, you have the same name… and you’re from the same hometown, Dmitri, as her? Blonde… blue eyes… ‘Geenie’ is a common name among commoners but not so much among nobles. Judging by how you act, you must be a noble… Could it be…?”
‘Oh no, did he already figure it out?’
Lox’s eyes sparkled sharply.
“Are you perhaps related?”
“No.”
‘Actually, I am her.’
“Then what an incredible coincidence! You look so much like her!”
His expression screamed that he absolutely refused to believe I could be ‘that’ symbol of sacrifice, the saint of this era.
A wave of relief washed over me. No matter what others suspected, Lox would never doubt me.
As long as his fantasy remained intact.
Even if I introduced myself as Geenie Crowell, he’d probably take it as a joke.
Worse, he might even get offended, accusing me of impersonating her.
‘Should I be thankful?’
[Um… excuse me? Master?]
While the three men were happily discussing where to go sightseeing, I stood a step back from them, blankly spaced out like someone with nothing to do with them.
‘I want to crawl into bed and moan from stress, but instead, I’m being dragged off to tour the village.’
[Master!]
[What now.]
[What about the sword? The one you said you’d give to the king or whoever! You carried it out of the lair!]
‘It should be on my ba… wait, it’s not there!’
The item, too valuable to leave in the room, which I’d taken care to carry out, was nowhere to be found.
I clearly remembered walking out the door with it strapped to my back that morning, but I still looked down at Rai with growing unease.
‘Please let my memory be wrong.’
[It—it’s not in the room, is it?]
[No! I didn’t see it when I left!]
“Huh? What the…?”
I did a panicked dance like someone who just lost their wallet, but obviously, that huge thing wasn’t going to fit in any pocket.
Magi had given me so much, but the infinite pouch was confiscated by Adelaide during a search, so I never got it. Rai could absorb things, sure, but he couldn’t spit them back out as a shiny, sharp sword, so I had no choice but to carry it around for a month.
Anyone who hasn’t lugged that thing through a dense forest has no idea how inconvenient it is.
A curse nearly made it out of my throat. But I had treated it like a sacred bribe—
And now it was gone!
“My sword!”
“Whoa!”
Ash and the others turned around, startled by my scream.
“What’s wrong?”
“My sword is gone!”
“You mean the one wrapped in that cloth?”
“Where was the last place you saw it?”
I racked my brain. I definitely had it when we left the magic tower.
I could still clearly remember how the strap had been bothering my shoulder, the long object clanking behind me.
I had it while buying skewers at the square, while eating stir-fried octopus and bread, even while sipping that cup of pea soup and arguing with the fruit vendor to sell me just one bunch of grapes. I also had it when I bought a lollipop.
‘Ugh, all I can remember is eating.’
And then while watching the performance… Rai came…
[Rai, when you found me at the square, did I have the sword with me?]
[Nope. Definitely not.]
‘Oh wow. Hohoho. Now that I think about it, my coin pouch is gone too? That had like 30 gold in it. And the compass from Rubao was in there too.’
“Damn it, I must’ve been pickpocketed.”
“Pickpocketed?”
“Tsk tsk, it did stand out. You don’t look like a swordsman, yet you carried that thing around.”
‘What do you want me to do? It’s too long to wear at the waist!’
“When something’s wrapped up that tightly, of course it’s going to spark curiosity.”
‘I wrapped it up to prevent theft, and it still got stolen! What do you want from me!’
“You… you…!”
“Was it valuable? Is everything else okay?”
Aside from Ash, everyone was venting their anger.
I was so furious I couldn’t even speak. I’d been completely robbed while distracted by a play.
It was just as humiliating as being called a saint.
“Are you stupid? You carry something on your back in a town with poor security? Of course it’ll get stolen.”
“Chad! That’s a bit harsh.”
“You should’ve been more alert. If you get robbed, it’s your own fault—ow.”
“Do people carry swords on their heads now?!”
I kicked Chad’s shin hard to shut him up, but it felt like my own foot took more damage.
“You’d better remember that. I’ll make you regret saying that!”
“Huh?”
“First, I’m going to get my sword back!”
“How are you gonna find it after it’s already stolen—hey!”
“Miss Geenie!”
The longer I waited, the less chance I had of getting it back.
There was no time to waste.
I bolted out of the inn toward the square, summoning my spirits as I ran.
“Undine, Undaine, Ador!”
Rai ran alongside me, and of the three summoned, only Undine soared into the sky on her own, understanding what to do.
‘Atta girl, you really get me!’
“Find my sword. The thief couldn’t have gone far.”
Undaine nodded and flew off in the opposite direction from Undine.
Only Ador sparkled lazily as he followed me.
‘Ugh, this burn!’
[Do what exactly?]
“Idiot! Go find my sword!”
[How?]
“Fly up high!”
[Aha!]
After launching the last one—who had the worst grasp of things—I kept running, only for Rai to tug on my sleeve.
‘What is it! I’m in a rush!’
[Master! The square is the other way!]
“Oh.”
I had too much momentum, so I took a few more steps before turning around.
It had been years since I’d run at full speed like this.
‘You thieves, just wait till I catch you!’
‘How dare you lay hands on my things. You’ll pay for this.’
—
At midday, a cheer rang out in a secluded alley.
Two men, hidden in the shadow of buildings, kept recounting the gold in their hands, unable to believe it was real.
The pouch was full of nothing but gold coins.
“Can you believe this? We’re rich now!”
“And not just that! Look at the jewels on this sword. The sparkle… it’s incredible.”
“I told you, that chick reeked of money!”
They were barely able to contain their excitement.
Even stealing that heavy pouch alone would’ve made their day, but the item they’d taken along with it—a cloth-wrapped object—turned out to be the most amazing thing they’d ever stolen in 30 years of pickpocketing.
When they unwrapped the cloth, the brilliant sword underneath left them speechless.
“Look at this. I once sold a bracelet with a tiny gem and got 3 gold for it. But this scabbard? It’s practically encrusted with jewels.”
The stones stuck all over it were clearly extraordinary. Even peeling off just a few of them would be worth the weight of that heavy gold pouch.
“Finally, we’re getting out of this life.”
“I still can’t believe it. Who walks around with such treasure and no guards?”
“See? I told you we had to take the sword too. I ‘knew’ it was no ordinary item.”
After years of experience, they’d developed a sixth sense for which pockets would be most rewarding.
And today, while scanning the plaza for a target, their eyes had landed on a lightning bolt of a woman—an exquisite beauty with dazzling golden hair.
She stood out because of her rare looks, and her carefree manner, wandering alone without a care, made the two thieves drool.
Her shimmering hair, likely well-maintained, screamed wealth. Her radiant skin and pristine hands showed she knew no hardship—obviously a noble.
And noble pockets? Always worth checking.
“I really nailed that pick!”
“Hey now, without my skills, you’d never have gotten the sword. You’d have only nabbed the pouch.”
“She totally spaced out, too! So into the play, she didn’t even notice.”
“Ha! Nobles are the easiest to rob.”
“Yup. As long as you don’t get caught and executed.”
The pickpockets laughed loudly, elated that their risky gamble had paid off.
With great risk came great reward—if stealing could even be called a ‘reward.’
“Carrying that much gold is basically charity, don’t you think?”
“Exactly. Nobles live well even without it. They should think of it as doing a good deed!”
“Puhaha! Not likely.”
“Eh, who cares? Even nobles need to do a little charity once in a while! It’s all our tax money anyway! Not that I’ve paid taxes in decades.”
Just as the two chuckling thieves reveled in their windfall, a sudden droplet fell on their heads.
‘Plip.’
It was enough to drench the back of their necks, and they instinctively looked up.
But the narrow sliver of sky between the buildings was a bright, cloudless blue.