Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Pouring Water into the Pit (4)
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Warm affection impossible to hide shone in the gaze directed at Melina. The kind of look Abel hadn't received in years.
"......"
For some reason, a sharp pang twisted in one side of his chest.
I deliberately averted my eyes from Melina. Alessia, who had been bending over to check on Melina's complexion, straightened up.
"Thank you, Young Master. We've caused you trouble. My daughter has been rude."
"Well."
I shrugged.
"I just felt sorry for her."
Alessia's eyebrows twitched slightly at the unexpected response.
"But why is the Young Master at Magna Morten...?"
"Is it a place I shouldn't go?"
"That's not it. But the Young Master has never once been to Magna Morten before..."
Suspicion flickered in Alessia's eyes. I simply smiled at her.
"You could have sent servants."
Seeming to read something in my smile, Alessia changed the subject.
"I'm sorry for making you come all the way here yourself."
"Ah, I came because I have something to receive."
"Receive what?"
I lifted one foot. I showed Alessia the shoe with a vivid yellow stain.
"This is Melina's handiwork."
"What? Melina did that?"
"Yeah. She wanted to have a headbutting contest with the tombstone, so I stopped her, but she insisted on giving me this gift."
Alessia's entire body trembled.
Even though I was just stating facts, Abel's low voice made it sound like a threat.
"Y-Young Master..."
Alessia prostrated herself flat on the floor.
"I'm sorry, Young Master! Please forgive her!"
She pleaded desperately.
"She's still just a child. She had no intention of offending you!"
"Still a child, yet chugging alcohol from midday?"
"That's..."
"I need to be compensated for my shoes."
Despair crept into Alessia's eyes.
I could read it perfectly. And of course, I didn't think she had the means to pay.
The shoes I was wearing now were custom-made from the hide of a calf raised only in the warm south, tanned at the capital's top leather shop, and stitched by hand stitch by stitch.
Even if she sold this forge, could she afford them? Probably not.
"Y-Young Master."
Alessia spoke with difficulty.
"I'm sorry, but I haven't been able to work lately. I haven't received any commissions for months..."
"If you can't, make it possible."
"......"
Alessia bowed her head deeply at the cold dismissal.
"I'll give you three days."
I looked down indifferently at the crown of her head.
To pull Alessia out of her pit of despair, simply tossing her a rope wouldn't suffice. She didn't have the strength to grab it now.
Instead, I decided to flood the pit with water.
"...Pardon?"
Alessia lifted her face. Her expression was blank, as if she hadn't understood a word I'd said.
"One gauntlet will do."
"......"
"I'll take that as payment for the shoes."
If the water rose to her nose, she'd have no choice but to swim for her life.
With that, I turned away without lingering.
"Y-Young Master!"
Just as I took a step, Alessia's urgent cry rang out. Glancing back, I saw her standing there with a bewildered face.
"Was that... really what you meant? What you just said?"
"Yeah."
"B-But."
Alessia looked at my yellow-stained shoe. She knew full well how absurd this deal was.
"How could one gauntlet possibly cover the cost of those shoes?"
"That's why you need to make one worthy of it."
I added in a meaningful tone, gazing at her.
"Approach the crafting with the mindset of protecting your daughter."
"......"
"Who knows? Maybe a legendary gauntlet will be born."
The tight three-day deadline and the pressure of not knowing what Abel might do would awaken Alessia's hidden talent.
When she made gauntlets for the protagonist Cain, her mind had been filled with the desire to 'protect' her husband's grave. That single-mindedness had awakened her talent, 'Guardian's Hand.'
'This time, the thing to protect is a bit different, but the effect should be even better.'
I flashed Alessia a bright smile.
"Do you understand?"
"......"
Of course, to her, it wouldn't look bright at all—just terrifying.
In any case, I was thoroughly satisfied with this situation, where I could give Alessia a chance while saddling her with debt.
Now that the bait was cast, all I had to do was wait.
❖ ❖ ❖
Surprisingly, the bite came quickly. And from an unexpected source.
"Y-Young Master."
I visited Magna Morten again the next day. I hadn't been able to fully inspect the interior yesterday because of Melina.
A small, timid voice came from behind, and I slowly turned around, already guessing who it was.
"H-Hello."
Melina stood there, hands politely clasped together. Her slender shoulders were rigid with tension and fear.
"Ah."
I crooked the corner of my mouth upward.
"The drunkard from yesterday."
Melina's face flushed bright red. Seeing it, my smile deepened.
"Drinking again today? Your face is red."
"N-No!"
Melina yelped loudly, then clapped a hand over her mouth with an "Oh no." She glanced around hurriedly before looking back at me, her face still tomato-red.
Now she finally resembled the Melina I knew from the original story.
'I want to tease her more.'
The mischievous thought crossed my mind, but I held back for now.
"What is it?"
I was curious why Melina was seeking me out. No way the gauntlet was done already.
"Could you spare a moment? I have something to say."
I glanced around once.
Well, I'd seen pretty much everything anyway. Yesterday and today, this kid kept interrupting me.
"What?"
"It's about yesterday."
Melina's voice shrank as she spoke.
"I'm truly sorry. I was rude to you, Young Master."
"Do you remember?"
"...No."
Her voice grew even smaller.
"Mother told me. And, um..."
Melina fumbled something out from her bosom.
"I wanted to return this."
It was the handkerchief I'd given her yesterday.
Unlike yesterday, when it had been crumpled and soaked, it was now clean and restored to its original color.
"Thank you so much, Young Master."
Melina held out the trembling handkerchief with shaking hands. I chuckled softly, then quickly schooled my expression.
"Sure."
I hadn't planned on taking it back. But since she'd washed it so carefully and returned it, there was no need to refuse the gesture.
As I tucked the handkerchief into my bosom, a faint scent brushed my nose—the fragrance that had always lingered around Melina.
"......"
My lips twitched briefly, then I lowered the hand that had gone into my bosom.
"That it? Go on now."
I still had unfinished business. I needed to inspect every section of Magna Morten and infer where Requiem might appear.
I turned back to the area I'd been examining. But then I felt a squirrel-like presence trailing behind me.
"...Why are you following me?"
I only turned my head. Melina, who had been dithering behind me, flinched.
"Um, well."
"More to say?"
"Y-Yes. I mean."
I saw her clutching the hem of her skirt tightly. Finally, she mustered her courage and squeezed out her words.
"I have a question."
"What?"
I had a guess what it might be, but I gave her the chance to speak anyway.
"I heard that yesterday, I dirtied your shoe."
As expected, Melina's words fell right within my predictions.
"And that Mother agreed to pay for it."
"So?"
"Please withdraw that order."
The wrinkles in Melina's skirt deepened. Her voice grew clearer.
"Ordering a gauntlet worthy of your shoe... doesn't that ultimately mean using jewels?"
Not really?
But I didn't show it and gestured for her to continue, curious what this gutsy kid would say next.
"Our family isn't in a position to do that. We can't pay for your shoes that way."
A sigh heavy with resignation escaped Melina's lips. She swallowed hard and continued.
"I committed the sin against you. So..."
Her face flushed with shame. A resolute determination spread across her features, as if she'd made a grave decision.
"I'll pay the penalty."
"......"
"I'll do anything."
I looked at Melina's face with a blank expression.
"Anything?"
Melina's eyes wavered. She was imagining all sorts of things I might demand.
Among them was surely the option of surrendering her bodily freedom, enduring daily humiliation as she submitted to me.
'Can you really do anything?'
You, who wept by your late father's tombstone while emptying bottles.
Just as I was about to scoff,
"Yes."
All conflict vanished from Melina's eyes. In that moment, they blazed like firewood in a hearth.
"......"
I felt slightly caught off guard. Soon, a wry smile slipped through my teeth.
'As expected, like mother, like daughter.'
Her eyes, cleared of gloomy clouds, were like a winter sky—endlessly cold and barren, yet resiliently enduring. A frosty gaze.
I let out a soft chuckle.
"What would I do with taking you in?"
"Pardon?"
"You seem to think you have tremendous value, but who knows."
I waved my hand dismissively, bored.
"For starters, I hate drunks. And your face isn't my type."
Objectively, Melina was a quite pretty girl. Her delicate features would shine even more once grown.
Even so, I poured out harsh judgment.
"Above all..."
I narrowed my eyes and scanned her up and down.
"I don't have a hobby of touching kids."
"...!"
Melina's face burst into flames. She wrapped her arms around herself and stepped back from me.
'What’s with that reaction?'
I hadn't done anything, yet I felt treated like a pervert. But if I didn't say this, she'd attempt something foolish, so nipping it in the bud was best.
"Anyway,"
I shrugged.
"I get your firm resolve, but I don't need it."
"But my mother—"
"Seems Alessia misunderstood me. My demand is simple."
I raised one finger.
"One pair of gauntlets. Leather material would be good. No need for anything expensive. Light but sturdy, with good durability."
I approached Melina and pulled her hand toward me.
"Eek!"
Melina stumbled forward,
"Size like this."
And I placed my hand against her palm, spreading it wide.