20. My article (2)

The market was busier than expected.

Street vendors selling simple food and merchants bargaining with customers with various fruits lined up.

The cacophony created by many people at once was blowing vitality and vitality throughout the market.

It was a completely different place from my room, which was dark and quiet every day.

For me, who was more comfortable being alone with no one around, this place didn’t suit me very well.

Looking at such a market, old things started to come to mind.

I started to quietly step into the market, wanting to revisit the past.

Upon entering the market, it seemed that the scenery of this place overlapped with the scenery of the past in my memory.

“It’s the first time I’ve come to a place like this since I went to the market with Siabelle and Shion.”

I spoke to my attendant who was quietly following me.

Because he listens quietly and thinks of me no matter what I say.

My attendant had become the only one who could talk comfortably like this before I knew it.

“With Siabelle-nim and Shion-nim?”

“Yeah, that was when I was still close with my family before I locked myself in my room.”

“…I see.”

It’s been several years, but the relationship between me, my sister, and my younger brother was unenviable.

Siabelle unnie, who took care of my little sister responsibly from a young age, and my cute little brother Xion, who followed me more than anyone else.

Now, each and every conversation with Siabelle unnie is burdensome.

Unlike the warm days of the old days, my relationship with Xion ended up on a cold ice sheet.

At least back then, I could say that we were close friends.

“At that time, Shion was a cute younger brother who followed me better than his older sister…”

Why is it so twisted now?

I knew the reason well.

“Everybody started to mess up when I sneaked into the room.”

She believes in herself and has a strong sense of responsibility. Sheabel Cia Nella stood out more than anyone else with her sword.

Zion Cianella, who was intelligent and possessed divine power unlike the Cianella family, showed outstanding aptitude as a priest.

Among them, I became the talk of the town because I was unable to properly bloom any flowers or sprouts.

Unlike my older sister, she is a poor b*tch who can’t properly wield a sword even though she carries on the name of Cianella.

Shion Cianella is said to be so proficient in divine magic despite Cianella’s name, but what can her older sister, Shion, do?

The words that were being spread out were the sharpest weapon for me, and the guilt I should have for the proud Cianella family more than anything else.

For someone like me to be a member of the Cianella family.

When I couldn’t even bear the weight of my name anymore and couldn’t breathe, I just wanted to breathe comfortably and hid in my room.

I thought I didn’t have to hear my name going up and down outside the room as long as it was inside the room.

Because I thought it would be okay to forget about the exhausting days and breathe in peace.

But even my room wasn’t completely safe.

When I locked myself in my room, the servant I trusted as my only window to the outside.

Now that I realized that even that, I was putting my gossip in my mouth as if it were fun.

The betrayal of the person I thought was on my side became the most painful dagger and tormented me.

I no longer want to trust people.

“Forgetting that the longer you stay in your room alone like that, the harder it is to get out of it.”

My room, which I entered to live and breathe for a while, has become my world.

People outside can no longer be trusted.

Am I disappointed with myself?

Siabelle and Shion, who comforted me until the end, became a cold relationship in which they no longer said a word to me.

Sorry. I had nothing to say.

But now I don’t know what to do.

From noble mtl dot com

My will to live has been shattered.

All I usually do is lie in bed and eat something sweet to relieve chronic stress.

As I went on, I became more and more lethargic, and my appearance became more and more unattractive.

“In the middle of being ruined like that, you appeared.”

When I fell into the swamp of lethargy to the bottom of my chin, an exclusive servant named Lay appeared.

When I said his name, I wanted to see him a little, very little, and I turned around and looked back at him.

He was staring at me with his usual emotionless expression.

Then I saw that the corner of his mouth went up a little, but slowly.

“I’m glad you showed up before it was too late.”

That look was so funny that I laughed at him too.

“Yes, but wouldn’t it have been better if it came a little earlier?”

He evoked the dark atmosphere with a small smile.

Yeah, you didn’t come all the way here to tell a dark story like this.

I recalled the reason why I brought Ray to this place.

I matched her steps with Ray and slowly started looking around the market.

“Is there anything you’d like to eat?”

“Ummm…if you want something to eat.”

I looked at a street vendor selling skewers from far away.

Once upon a time, Siabelle’s sister bought me skewers like that.

The memory of holding Zion’s hand and sharing a meal came to mind.

“I want to try those skewers. I’ll give you my money so buy yours too.”

“Okay.”

I handed him the wallet.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“There is plenty of time, so don’t rush.”

He returned shortly after, one of his skewers in each hand.

He thrust the side of what appeared to be a bit more meat at me.

“Eat it. It’s delicious to eat while it’s warm.”

“Thank you.”

“I just want to thank you for taking care of me.”

Received the skewer from him and took a big bite.

Unlike the food I ate while riding in the wagon, the rich, juicy meat spread throughout my mouth and it was delicious.

Why is meat so delicious no matter how much you eat it?

When I came to my senses, I only had a wooden skewer in my hand.

Ray was staring at me like that.

“Oh, that.”

Nobles shouldn’t be foolish like this… !

I was embarrassed for no reason and my words got twisted.

Thanks to that, her face seemed to heat up.

I can’t be ashamed of that… I managed to hold onto my face somehow…….

“What, what are you staring at so closely…!”

Okay, this one must have been a bit natural… ?

“It’s nothing. If you want another one, just let me know. I’ll get one soon.”

“…Don’t just accept my heart.”

I sighed and started to tour the market again.

… There are still things I want to say. Because I want to say it in a quiet place other than the market–

First of all, the first thing to do is to finish touring the market.

As I was walking around the market quietly, I saw a street vendor with small but cute accessories lined up.

Once upon a time, Shion bought me a small hairpin from a street vendor like that and gave it to me as a gift.

Once again, the memories of the past gradually surfaced.

After recalling the memories for a while, Ray approached me for some reason.

“It’s presumptuous, but I bought it because I thought you wanted it. Please stay still for a moment.”

“…Uh, huh?”

He pushed the ends of my bangs to the side and stabbed them with small hairpins to secure them.

Eight.

I was disgusted that he was trying to embarrass me with a nonchalant expression, so I pinched his arm.

Only then did Ray walk away from me with a slight frown on his face.

“…It hurts. Please let go.”

“Hey, from next time, show off and come closer.”

“I’ll be careful.”

I finally let go of the hand that was pinching him and grabbed him by the wrist and led him.

When I said I would protect you, Ray followed me as if I had no strength to protect you.

“Aren’t you moving away from the market side?”

Only then did I feel Ray’s resistance little by little.

I was worried about coming to the market without Sir Dioria, to the point of following me even wearing leather armor.

It must be difficult to go to a place where there are no people.

He displayed a lot of worries over the previous days when he had bravely defeated the goblins.

It’s strange today.

“Didn’t I ask what else to say? It’s not something to talk about in a noisy market, so I’d like to talk in a quiet place.”

“…I understand.”

That’s how I walked away from the market and arrived at a place that didn’t feel very crowded.

Suffice it to say…… ?

I took a few deep breaths.

“Whoa…”

Because I haven’t properly thanked him yet.

I wanted to express myself properly this time.

Thank you for giving me faith when everything was fading away.

Thank you for giving me new hope after I had given up on everything.

Thank you for taking care of things that you don’t have to bother doing for me.

“Ray-“

The moment I was about to clear my mind and open my mouth.

Serung.

“…Ray?”

Having forged a colder and sharper atmosphere than usual, he aimed his sword.