What the knight said was unreasonable, but he still asked for my cooperation. “My master’s personality is a little eccentric. If you really don’t know who that child is , then hand them over. I will not go after you. Since you caught the child from running away, I’ll give you a reward when I return.”
“…”
The child lifted their trembling hand and tightly gripped on my cloak. They both seem to think that I would sell the child out. With a troubled look I addressed the knight. “I don’t need any money. I’m not interested in material things…”
“Then the child … “
“I prefer not to…”
“This is will be difficult. Then, I would have to forcibly take the child away.”
Our conversation kept going around in circles until the Baron lost his patience and came closer to us. The nobleman, who looked about 30 years-old, quickly said with a voice full of authority,
“What are you doing standing around here for?! Quickly bring my slave back to me!”
“A slave? What is this? Since when?”
“Since now!”
“If you mean now, are you referring to the carriage accident?”
“Yes! It recklessly blocked the path of my carriage and thanks to that my wagon was destroyed. I can not let it get away.”
“That’s… I’m sorry for that.”
I apologized offhandedly but I still kept the child behind my back. The Baron’s face was strangely distorted.
“Nevertheless, why should this child be punished? As far as I’m concerned, this child was hurt more than your carriage was damaged, can’t you just let go of the matter please?”
“It doesn’t matter what the reason is, if you can’t pay for the damages then you’re my slave!”
“By the way, you’re speaking really casually to me. Do you even know who I am?”
“Of course, you’re someone beneath me!”
Perhaps he concluded that I, who was walking on the streets in a cloak and no attendants, was another commoner.
I said in a surprised tone, “Really? Is it normal for low-ranked nobles to speak to those lower than them without any courtesy? Including me?”
“Of course!”
“Well I had no clue. Oops.”
I didn’t leave my home for long and I had to deal with something disgusting. As a result of their ignorance, you get people like the Baron. I sincerely apologize for the nobility’s sorry state.
Immediately after that the Baron started to look at me with a funny expression. It seems that he finally started to grasp onto something.
“Well what?”
“Are you saying you aren’t a commoner?
Why is he going on about it now? I told him I didn’t know.
I was acting with discourtesy until now and I corrected it…
I ignored the Baron, who stood there stupidly, and instead turned to his knight. “Then please charge the repairs to my family. Oh, my name is…”
“What are you doing? Are you trying to insult me now?”
“What?” I was going to give what the Baron wanted, why was he looking like he was going to explode?
“You are speaking to my knight instead of answering me, that means you’re insulting my dignity!”
“I don’t understand what the problem is. Are you mad that I’m going to pay you, or are you mad that I’m talking to your knight?”
Why was he so obsessed with his dignity in the first place? I ignored the Baron again and went on to finish my conversation with the knight. “Anyway, please send an invoice for repairs to the Pirineus household. My name is Celebi de Pirineus so if you put it under my name, the Duke will take care of it… probably.”
As soon as the Duke’s name was called out, the Baron looked disturbed but I remained stoic.
Celebi de Pirineus is a name known far and wide in the Empire; however, my personality, accent and behavior was different from the rumors. The face was the same, but it was difficult to think I was the same person if there was a hood covering my face. Not to mention, it was impossible to consider the infamous Lady Celebi to go out of her way in order to save a commoner child without anything in return.
As if he thought the same thing, the Baron confidently spoke, “Now I know that is a lie, do you know the sin of impersona-”
I ignored the Baron again and without a word took off my hood to expose my face. The Baron’s face immediately stiffened as if he saw a ghost. He must be surprised that I actually have a higher rank than him. I must have forgotten, but Celebi was a woman who was evil enough to kill a man.
I didn’t know that having the title of the most evil person in the Empire would help save a person.
How ironic.
I turned away from the Baron to look at the knight and asked him to confirm my identity, “Is this enough proof?”
“…” The Baron’s knight was mesmerized by my appearance and only nodded in astonishment.
“Then the repair costs…”
“The repairs! You don’t need to bother with that. Ha, haha.”
“…”
“As a noble I don’t mind it at all!” He hastily added.
“…” I continued to blankly look at him.
He was trying to make himself look as good as possible. Wasn’t his behavior changing too fast? It was like he was a completely different person.
“We- well may I excuse myself?”
“Please.”
As soon as he got my permission, the Baron, who was terrified at this point, left me and the child without looking back. The Baron’s knight chased after him while repeatedly glancing back. He must have known me from somewhere and was wondering if it was right to leave. To him I might be in the wrong here because it seemed like I was harassing another noble.
“…”
So now I was left with this kid who was looking at me with glowing eyes.
Meanwhile, Prince Raven Sequoia Seirakian had a rare outing today. It was because he set some time from his busy schedule to check up on his people. Originally, the Emperor was supposed to send someone else, but then the Emperor was incompetent himself and the nobles underneath him would never do it.
Since childhood, Raven had took it upon himself to be in charge of various aspects in managing the Empire on behalf of his incompetent father. He started to grin, knowing that when he would be crowned as the Emperor in the future, he would abolish all the noble faction in the kingdom.
Ever since Raven was a child, he wanted his first action as the Emperor was to get rid of the aristocratic system. For the Prince, the image of nobles being disgusting, cunning, lazy and incompetent was imprinted on him. To him that will always be a fact. However, the real reason Raven wanted to abolish the system was that his mother was a victim of the Empire’s insidious court.
Back to the present situation, Raven had also disguised himself and hid his striking blonde hair with a hooded cloak. He was anonymous to his people.
Something suddenly caught his eye as he was walking.
“This damn commoner child!”
He glanced over and saw a nobleman trampling on a commoner child. Raven immediately recognized the man’s identity as a Baron who he encountered several times in the Imperial Palace. The Prince, who was sick of his flattery, frowned as he walked passed the noble. That man didn’t leave a good impression for him at that time.
Raven sighed and started to approach the pair, but the child abruptly got away from the nobleman and ran away.
“…!”
Surprised, Raven started running after the child, because he knew the punishment for running away from a noble was heavier than staying behind. It wouldn’t be enough if the Baron would just cut the child’s limbs.
Raven would be the only one capable of saving the child at this point, but the child chose someone else as their hope of salvation instead of him.
“…?”
He stopped running after the child and slowly observed the woman the child were clinging on to. The person was covering their face with a hood, but she seemed to be a noble as well judging by the quality of her clothes. He started freaking out in his head.
“Why is it an aristocrat? Now you have two enemies.”
The child had made the wrong choice. Raven predicted the noblewoman would have a fit for having that child touch her as if they were dirty. Furthermore, the child will be considered guilty for touching the body of a noble. The pattern was all too familiar.
“…?”
But she didn’t push the child away. Instead, she pushed the child behind her back as the Baron’s knight approached them. She seemed reluctant to do it, but… She protected the child.
“…”
Raven was greatly confused.
What Nonsense.
Or maybe… She was holding onto the child because she knew the other noble is of a higher rank. If a nobleman of higher rank wants the child, the noblewoman will have to give them up without hesitation. Raven concluded.
After all, it doesn’t matter what happens to a child of common birth to a nobleman.
Raven decided to observe the situation for a while.
It was unusual for him to watch without intervening immediately, but he was hesitant to act because he was curious on how the noblewoman would decide the child’s fate.
However, Raven still didn’t notice the woman’s abnormal behavior.