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“You did it faster than I thought, huh?”
“Who am I? I’m the great and perfect magic tower owner.”
“It would be cool if you kept your mouth shut.”
Puting the bracelet on my left hand, Schumann shrugged his shoulders as he grinned.
“Am I cool? I know it. Isn’t this oppa kind of cool?”
Phew, I can’t communicate with him.
‘I don’t know that his personality would still be the same.’
Schumann was a character who lived up to his flair. He liked to dress up more than anyone else, and he was a person with very high self-esteem who always thought he was the best.
I thanked the gorgeous Schumann today as well.
“Thanks.”
When I handed the entire pocket that made my waist heavy to Schumann, he blinked in surprise.
“What’s so heavy?”
“I put in the price of barrier stones and defense stones that I asked for earlier.”
It was Schumann who helped me in an emergency when Dillian got Runaway and May was not there.
“But how do I use this?”
When I asked, waving the bracelet, Schumann grabbed my wrist and pointed to the bracelet.
“Do you see the big jewel in the middle? Press it down there.”
When I brought my thumb as he told me, a soft light flashed.
“Now it’s completely yours. Since fingerprint recognition is over, no one else can use it except you.”
“You really are a real genius among geniuses.”
I didn’t expect to see a fingerprint recognition system here. With pure admiration, Schumann placed his hand on my head.
“Thanks for the compliment.”
He seemed indifferent, but his stroking hand was infinitely soft.
When I was contemplating whether to shake off this hand or not, there was someone who removed it first.
“Hey, if you’re done, just go away.”
May growled wildly.
“Where are you doing such a scheme? Do you want me to break your fingers?”
“How can you say something like that to your brother?”
“Brother, huh? Get out of here! Today, Ria and I decided to spend the day together!”
Schumann slammed May on the head to see if May had reached the limit of her patience.
“Grow up. Please grow.”
“Who do you think you are!”
May didn’t lose and put her fist in Schumann’s stomach.
‘It will be difficult to live like real siblings like them.’
I hugged Nathan and spread the distance, ignoring the sound of hitting from behind.
If I stayed with the stupid brother and sister, I thought I would become a fool too.
***
“Phew, that jerk. Look at him, following us all the way.”
“Don’t fight while eating.”
“Yeah, be quiet when you eat… Yum yum.”
“Nathan, you too, speak after you finish eating.”
I left Nathan, who was frantically inhaling cotton candy and then I waved at Schumann, who was walking around.
“Schumann! Come quickly and eat! You said you haven’t eaten!”
When I called out to him loudly, Schumann approached with his characteristic sullen smile.
“As expected, Ria is the only one who takes care of this oppa.”
I shoved a potato into Schumann’s nonsense mouth.
“Eup!”
“Schumann. I’m going to try all the street food today. But if you’re interfering with that? I will kick you in the ass.”
How long have I waited for this day
At the threatening warning, Schumann quietly shut his mouth and chewed the potato.
I asked May, who took a bite of the sugar-sprinkled potato.
“May. How’s the magic tower thing going?”
“Well. The family and expulsion registers from the tower were restored again, but…. I don’t like it.”
“Why? Isn’t that a good thing?”
“He told me to go back to work at the tower. It’s annoying. Everyday research, research. I’m sick of it. I liked it when I lived quietly with you.”
May looked at Schumann with fearful eyes, saying it was all Schumann’s fault.
“It’s better than being chased for the rest of your life.”
Schumann shrugged. Even if he looked like that, Schumann cared for his sister.
‘When I saw him come to Wilhelm and look after his sister who had been kicked out, it told everything.’
To be honest, even though they were a family without a drop of blood, the two were the only ones to have each other as family.
‘They just deny that fact.’
May, who said she disliked it but knew Schumann’s heart better than anyone, grumbled and stuck to my side.
“Ria. Should I get a job at Sinaize Duchy?”
“Are you going to come and fight with sir Dillian?”
Alas. My eyes were dizzy when I thought that she was going to bump into Ludo as well as Dillian.
‘What if she blows up the mansion like she blows up my house?’
I turned her around to the other side, saying that May was dreaming in vain.
“May, since you’re back, let’s work hard and aim for the position of magic tower owner. I’m sure you can do it.”
“Hmm, hmm. Really? Well then, I’ll give it a try.”
I heard a peek and a laugh next to me.
Schumann covered his mouth and groaned.
“It’s brave of you, plotting a rebellion in front of the magic tower owner.”
“Ria, I have a good idea. If we get rid of that guy now, we don’t have to go for the hard road, I will immediately be the magic tower owner.”
Then Schumann twisted the corners of his mouth. You? And the look of contempt was unheard of.
“You can’t get over this brother.”
“Hah, you’ll see.”
Spark, there was a flame flying over my head.
“Nathan, shall we go eat skewers next?”
“That would be great.”
How long has it been since we left the two fighting and moved?
“You stay away.”
“You get away from me.”
They stopped fighting and followed me, but they were still arguing.
I carried the noisy brother and sister behind my back and continued exploring the restaurant.
***
But why did this happen?
I put off the hood behind and looked around.
“I don’t think it’s the market road I was on….”
No matter how you look at it, it was an unfamiliar building.
Why did I come out when people poured out?
I took a deep breath as I remembered the people running towards me like a herd of cattle.
‘Even if they were noisy, it’s better to stick with them.’
The fight was tiring, so I ignored it and went there, and was swept away by the crowd at an absurd timing.
I was already here when I came to my senses.
In other words, I am currently a lost child.
I sat down on a nearby bench and grabbed my head.
“Nathan, do you feel the same way?”
“Yeah.”
“We must have lost our way.”
“I need to eat another piece of cotton candy.”
A brief silence passed between us.
Nathan’s big eyes widened and his mouth twitched.
“We.… Lost…?”
“U-huh. But in this situation, do you want to eat cotton candy?”
“I am lost…!”
“Phew.”
I sighed and rubbed my forehead.
These are, Dumb and Dumber, Pat and Mat*.
*Pat & Mat are the main characters of a Czechoslovak slapstick stop-motion animated series who are inventive, but extremely clumsy.
“… Let’s ask the guard over there.”
I put my hood back on and pointed to the knights chatting in the corner.
“What about May?”
“It will be a relief to meet her in the middle, but if we do not, we should go on our own.”
Isn’t it funny to broadcast a lost person at this age?
I shrugged and asked Nathan, who was sitting on the bench, moving its elongated beak.
“… Are you going to eat that and stay here? I’ll go and call you right away.”
“Ugh, no. Let’s go together. Just one more bite and let’s go.”
Having said that, Nathan increased the speed of eating the corn.
It’ll be fine for a while, right? As I sighed and leaned back on the bench, a shadow fell in front of us.
Three pairs of round eyes stared at us.
Not exactly me, but Nathan.
“Wow, it’s an owl! So cute!”
“It’s chubby!”
Surrounded by children in an instant, Nathan blinked.
“Wha, what!”
“Whoa! The owl speaks!”
“Amazing!”
The children who saw the talking owl for the first time raised their hands with twinkling eyes.
“Owl, eat this too.”
“This is delicious too!”
Nathan’s eyes twinkled at the cotton candy that was suddenly held out in front of it. In addition, its taste buds were already focused on the food.
“Just wait here while playing with the kids. That would be better.”
“Hm, is that so? Should I be eating? N, no. Should I look after the kids?”
“Yeah, guys. Play with this owl until I come. Got it?”
“Yes!”
“Go ahead!”
Seeing the twinkling eyes with the same face as children, laughter flowed out.
‘Because I don’t know which one the kid is.’
I left them behind and walked towards the guards.
It was a time when I was barely moving forward through the complicated crowd.
“Do you need help?”
An unfamiliar voice caught my ankle.
Turning around, a man in a black hood pointed to the guards.
“It won’t be any use going to the guards. They never move in place.”
I kept my mouth shut at the stranger’s appearance.
But he continued to speak on his own, regardless of my trembling reaction.
“Which way are you going? clock tower? Park? Or the lake?”
“… Clock tower.”
Since I couldn’t contact May, I was thinking of going back to the place where I first met her.
“Come here. I’ll show you the way.”
“Do I have to go there?”
“I’m not trying to harm you, the map is over there.”
As the man moved his gaze to the place he was pointing, I saw a large information board.
“Right?”
“Yeah. It really is.”
Scratching my cheek in embarrassment, we moved forward in front of the sign, and he pointed to our current location.
“The road to the clock tower is simple, so it will be easy to find.”
As he said, the road was not difficult. Thanks to the easy-to-understand explanations, it even stuck in my ears.
After the explanation, the man asked.
“What’s your name?”
“Aren’t you supposed to introduce yourself first when you ask for my name?”
As I, still unable to erase my vigilance, avoided answering, the lips exposed under the robe drew an arc.
“What do you think it is? Guess it.”
Guess suddenly? What nonsense.
“How do I know that?”
“I know you though. Then you should know me too.”
What a crazy thing. Even with help, the reluctance did not go away.
“Let me guess first. Next time you have to guess.”
The bright purple eyes glistened in the sunlight. That time when the red lips slowly opened.
I felt a stinging energy behind my back.
Goosebumps welled up on the back of my neck.