Chapter 135 Interlude – The Disappointing Pretty Boy
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Serve your lord well.”
That was what our fathers told us on the day we left our homes behind. And so the three of us—Rilina, Nanari, and Luruna—were sent off to the lord’s service.
The truth was, we hadn’t been chosen for our talents or out of any great honor. It was because of our families’ trades, because sending us was a way to protect household interests, because we were the convenient sacrifices. If the man we served turned out to be some sweating, piggish brute who treated us like things, we had sworn we would run at the first chance.
But the lord was not what we expected. He was slim, black-haired, with a faint mole under his left eye. Not a pig, but a handsome man—elegant even. So we stayed. Against all odds, we’re still here, still working.
And truth be told, life here in Keldan’s Old Government Hall isn’t so bad. Not for us, not for People of Birene. It’s comfortable in its way, because we are not alone. We have each other, our own, a whole little community inside these walls.
Ninim, once a low-ranking bureaucrat directly under the Emperor of Yugan, only to be “promoted” out here because the wrong people disliked her.
Rilina, daughter of the family that ran Keldan’s black-market trade.
Nanari, daughter of the very leader who used to represent and organize the Birene people in Keldan.
Luruna, whose family runs the slaughterhouses.
Sasami, sent here as a servant simply because her family was too large to feed.
Cocoa, who couldn’t even secure a spot in the orphanage.
Six of us in all. Six girls from the same people, living side by side. Unless you’ve been on the receiving end of scorn, you couldn’t understand how much comfort it brings to see familiar faces, to know you’re not alone.
Of course, not everyone is easy to get along with.
”Hmph! Another colorless mouse added to the lot!”
That was what Yoluminette said the moment she laid eyes on us. A blonde knight, features just a little too perfect, sneer too sharp. A demoted knight, yet she looked down on us as though she were a queen. Unforgivable!
Fortunately, the lord himself intervened. “From this moment on, Yoluminette, you are my subordinate. Like it or not, you will work with the others. That is my first command as lord.”
Yoluminette made a face like she’d bitten into something vile, but she obeyed. For that, the lord seemed impressive. Noble. The kind of man you could respect.
And then, in the next breath—
”Ehh? N-no, Ms. Yoluminette, wait, it’s not like that! I only said it because, um, I had to as lord, you know? Please don’t be mad, okay? Tell you what, I’ll take you to that new restaurant—the one run by the Elandric merchant guild, the fast-food place everyone’s talking about! Lunch on me! So, please? Don’t be angry?”
He pleaded. He flailed.
That was our lord—Ayumu.
He said, “No, no! It’s not discrimination against the People of Birene, I swear! It’s just, well, Yoluminette is a knight, and you’re servants, so… it’s not about race, really! I swear it!” His eyes darted everywhere, voice trembling like a cornered rabbit.
And that was only one example. Another time, he tripped his own handmade security device—a ball-shaped wire trap—and had to beg us for help to untangle himself. Another, he locked himself inside his private chambers, and when he couldn’t find the key to get out, he beat at the door with tears in his voice, crying, “Help me! Heeelp meee!” Only for us to find, once we freed him, that the key had been in his own pocket all along.
Handsome, yes. But hopeless. Truly, the lord was a disappointing pretty boy.
[Well, what can you do? We, the clever and capable People of Birene, will just have to support our hopelessly pretty lord. Hmph!]
And so, wearing smug little smiles of self-satisfaction, they carried on helping their lord Ayumu, day after day.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply