Volume 1 Chapter 8 The Last Night
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
In this country, the Kingdom of Crotopone, family ties are very important.
They have a custom where how you dress in mourning clothes, and how long you wear them, changes depending on how close you were to the person who died.
When I saw her earlier — Deena, dressed all in black — I thought she was a widow who lost her husband. So I spoke to her.
”My father passed away recently. It was a ship accident…”
I was totally wrong.
If I had thought for a moment, I’d know close family isn’t just husband and wife. What a stupid mistake.
And on top of that…
”Geez, sis, you only talk about us! Sorry, Mr. John, Ms. Adelina.”
”No, no… It’s a very interesting story…”
I tried to go after a woman who lived alone, but it turned out she lived with her sister.
One surprise after another. I sighed.
Damn it, how did things get like this?
I looked toward the busy woman moving behind the wall.
Her name was Deena. She was twenty-one years old.
The pretty woman in mourning clothes I thought was a widow. But she wasn’t married.
Then I looked across — the space between — at the woman sitting opposite.
Her name was Elide. She was nineteen.
Deena’s younger sister, with a cute face that still looked childlike.
She was already engaged.
Her fiancé was on a long fishing trip far out at sea. While waiting for him to come back, she lived here with her family.
He was expected back in about three months.
I really screwed up.
If I tried anything with either of them, I’d probably be kicked out.
If things got worse, the guards might be called.
Maybe it would have been better to stay in that old, broken house.
I couldn’t even make a move on Adelina now.
Of course, things might not turn out that way.
But since it might, I dared not try.
I could already see myself arrested for something else.
And about the slave girl…
”How old is your little sister, Ms. Adelina?”
”Oh… she’s fifteen.”
”Well, she’s young. That means she might be married off soon, right?”
For now, the slave girl was said to be my sister.
I just made up her age on the spot.
The reason she was my sister was because, when I first approached Deena, I pretended we were “a traveling brother and sister who had their money stolen.”
We had been attacked by bandits and barely escaped with our lives. We begged to stay for even one night.
They looked at us very suspiciously.
I expected that.
So I changed the story a little. I said, “Even just my sister is fine.”
It was a simple plan: show the thin Adelina, get sympathy, appeal to motherly feelings, and get permission to stay.
In the end, both of us were allowed in and had a place to sleep for the night.
But even though I came to Deena with other plans, I was disappointed.
Because of the situation, I couldn’t try anything.
And since I pretended Adelina was my sister, I couldn’t even have her serve as a slave.
In short, I only had myself to blame.
”No, I don’t have anyone like that. Aren’t you, Ms. Deena, thinking about getting married?”
”I already… missed my chance…”
Deena said with a sad laugh.
In this country, it’s normal to marry between 15 and 20 years old.
Many women who don’t marry by 20 give up.
Deena’s story was a classic example: she lost her mother early, had to care for her sick father, and then time passed.
She missed her chance.
At least her sister, Elide, got engaged at 16.
Her fiancé is still out on the Beast Continent.
”And what about you, John? Are you married?”
”Ah, I was engaged long ago, but it was broken off. I haven’t married since.”
”Oh… I’m sorry.”
”No, it couldn’t be helped. There was trouble at home.”
My past engagement was true.
I never even saw my fiancé’s face.
But the families had a problem, and the engagement ended.
That was long ago, before I turned to thieving.
So it didn’t matter now.
”Still, even one day with a man’s help is a real relief!”
His sister Elide suddenly changed the subject.
”Ah, can I help with something?”
”Yes, um… could you help heat the bath in the back?”
”Of course.”
I quietly clenched my fist inside.
I was happy the house had a bath because I loved baths.
The house itself was pretty nice for a common family.
If I had no worries, I would want to stay here forever.
”Well then… sister. I’ll take care of dinner, so please tell Mr. John.”
”Huh? …Okay, I got it.”
…Huh?
I felt something strange from that short talk.
”Mr. John, this way please.”
”…Understood.”
Was she really asking her sister who was busy to do this?
Was that just now… her passing the job to her sister?
Was it because she was engaged that she stayed away from other men, or maybe…?
I followed her lead.
Since it was called “the back,” I thought we would go outside to the garden.
But it was a bath inside the house.
I thought the house looked fine from outside, but the bathroom made it clear this was a rich home.
Maybe her late father was a merchant or something.
Character Notes:
• Deena – A 21-year-old unmarried woman. Her appearance is that of a beautiful woman wearing black mourning attire. She is grieving the recent loss of her father in a maritime accident. Deena is the older sister of Elide and is initially mistaken by Klock for a widow.
• Adelina – The slave girl.
• John – A pseudonym used by Klock.
• Elide – A 19-year-old woman, Deena’s younger sister. Her appearance is described as cute with a youthful, innocent face. She is engaged to a man who is currently away on a long-term fishing expedition and is expected to return in three months.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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