CH 29

However, his reaction was shaky.

“Minuelle.”

“Huh, Ramande?”

“Why are you laughing insidiously again?”

“Hey! What’s so insidious about this pretty face? Rub your eyes and look.”

She swept her fluttering hair to one side and blinked with a smile.

Then, what was Ramande’s reaction?

Isn’t the sound of pain coming out through the dry hands?

“Flendena, why did you give me this ordeal….”

“Hey, Ramande Flendena!”

Ramande seldom raises his face, despite her loud voice.

The tip of the ear, which turned a little red between the blue hair like the night sky, looked particularly cheeky today.

“Oh, you said all of Flendena’s children are pretty!”

“Yes, that’s true, but….”

“Well, that’s right.”

Finally, Ramand, who revealed his face, cleared his throat and turned his eyes out of the window and said. in a tone that suddenly became very calm

“Being pretty is being pretty. What’s insidious is insidious.”

No, you don’t even know what I was thinking! You’re the insidious one!

It was a growl again. I was told from outside that I had arrived at the orphanage.

As the carriage entered the narrow garden, the children were hanging from the window one by one, wondering if they were curious. Those children would have gathered together every evening to make bracelets.

‘You can’t buy colored thread from a place like this, so you must have gotten it from the dressing room.’

But looking closely, the children’s eyes were filled with not only curiosity but also fear.

“It was like advertising that I’m a noble by this shiny carriage, indeed.”

“What?”

“No, I thought it would be better to pay the bill quickly and leave.”

“That’s true.”

As expected, Ramande quickly understood what I was saying and called the child who was waiting next to the coachman and asked.

“Can you tell me where the director’s office is?”

“It’s a room just to the right of the entrance.”

“Thank you. May Flendena’s protection be with you.”

Ramande’s smile made the child’s cheeks blush.  Perhaps the coachman handed over candy, but it was cute to see one side of his cheek sticking out, making him laugh automatically.

“Thank you for your guidance. I hope you stay healthy in the future.”

After she stroked the boy’s head once, she entered with Ramande. It was not a very large and old building, but there were no spider webs and it looked like it had been carefully managed.

“Just to the right of the entrance….. It’s easy to find.”

It was a position where I could run quickly and take care of the children no matter what happened outside or upstairs.

Even if I didn’t bother to ask the boy,  I would have known the location as soon as I came in. It was because I could see it right away, but it was because of the sound of the tightly closed director’s room door shouting loudly.

“Mister! What do you mean by that!”

“I’m so sorry, Palos. I’ve looked around, but I can’t be flexible…. “

“You promised! You said you could do anything if you passed the test!”

“I thought so, too, but….. I’m sorry. That’s all I can say.”

“I don’t need it all. I will never believe what the director says!”

Bang!

The door of the director’s office opened violently. Then a boy ran out like a bullet and ran over there without turning his eyes to us.

The old door squeaked and shook without closing again.

‘It’s not okay…..’

While staring at the boy’s disappearance for a while with regret at the familiar appearance, I was led into the director’s office by Ramande.

“Who are you?”

The director, who was sitting down as if he had lost his energy, jumped up from his seat.

He was a man whose cheeks were so slim that I wondered if he hadn’t eaten because he was taking care of the children, but the eyes that I could see over the glasses were quite clear.

“I’m here to pay for the bracelet I bought.”

The knight held out two silver coins after receiving my wink. The director took it dearly.

“Thank you very much. You took it to this place because you were worried about my child.”

“Because I didn’t have any plans anyway. But….”

My eyes, which were looking inside, were crumpled and touched the paper that fell on the floor. Ramand,e who managed to notice it, picked it up and handed it over.

“Magic school registration application? Did the child pass the entrance exam earlier?”

“Yeah. I thought I could get sponsorship if I just stick to it…. “

The boy’s name was Palos.

He went out to the market with the director helping him, and he was spotted by a magician who happened to pass by, and he was told that he had talent.

“I managed to get all the money I had and I barely made it through the exam.”

In fact, Palos stuck together, but the director said he could not make a sponsor.

“Because I’m not very talkative. I’m sorry for Palos.”

“I see.”

I looked down at the crumpled application. I spoke impulsively when I saw the round droplet mark at the end of the name that I pressed down and wrote “Palos.”

“This is probably what Flendena means too. I will take this application.”

“Yes?”

“It means I’m going to be listed as a sponsor.”

I smiled at the director, who couldn’t find anything to say, and turned around.

“Please tell me your name.”

“That’s enough. Tell Palos not to worry about anything else, but to learn and practice as much as you want. I refuse to see you fail.”

I thought as I walked out of the orphanage.

‘Wow, I was kind of cool just now.’

However, as soon as I got on the wagon, Ramande’s nagging, who had been silently watching until then, poured out.

“It’s like buying a whole basket of bracelets. I understand that it’s dangerous to take you there. But why are you bringing the magic school application?”

“It’s a shame. If you passed the entrance exam, you must have a talent….. I think Palos really wanted it too.”

Above all, it reminded me of my past life. Although I got accepted to a university in Seoul, I didn’t get a scholarship. I couldn’t even afford to live alone.

My director apologized to me so much.

However, Ramande, who does not know my past, pointed his finger at the forehead.

“Minuelle, you…. Is it your hobby to help people in need? I told you not to do such a favor to anyone, didn’t I?”

“Hey, it’s not just anyone….”

Is that right?

“Anyone who doesn’t know is fine. It’s the same when we first met. What if I’d hurt you?”

“No, are you still doing that with those old days?”

Ramande was worse off than Palos. He was from the back street of Sumander.

It is a case where he failed to pickpocket, and when he was brought to the temple, it was determined that he had divine power, so he was forced to stay in the temple as it is.

“That’s why it went well. You’ve been my best friend, Ramande. Happy ending, don’t you think?”

“It can’t always be a happy ending, Minuelle.”

Such a worry man.

I pat Ramande on the shoulder with a solemn expression on his face to reassure him.

“I know, but I don’t do this every day. Sometimes you have the money to do this kind of whim, right? Let’s say you sponsored it instead of not shopping at the jewelry store earlier.”

No country can help everyone. Even the country can’t save poverty.

I just remembered my old self for a moment, a moment, and I was fickle.

“When I’m depressed, I spend money…. No, they said spending money was helpful. Huh? Yes?”

Smile!

Relaxing all the muscles on my face, I smiled brightly at the maximum output I could produce.

My face is shining! This is about 450 lumens!

“Minuelle, you….”

“Huh?”

Is it not enough? Then I’ll go for 1,000 lumens!

He’s smiling.

“……”

Ramande smiled all the time, even with the calyx, and then, with a big sigh, he relaxed his hardened face.

“Ugh. How can I beat you?”

Goal achieved. I leaned on the cushion in a loose manner and grumbled badly.

“Phew. You’re going to do that, but you’re nagging for no reason.”

“Minuelle Karinen, you’re so!”

“Oops, that’s the wrong word!”

It was when I finally got off in front of the magic school to appease Ramande.

‘What?’

An undecorated wagon was passing slowly from the other side.

It was just a simple carriage driven by common people.

‘…..Lafesch?’

I could see Lafesch frowning slightly because of the sunlight.

Soon after, a man’s hand stretched out from across from her.

‘….!’

Just before the curtains were drawn, the man and my eyes met.

It was a brief moment, a little over a second, but obviously.

‘Esadien.’

He crumpled his brows when he saw Ramande and me. It was a short distance away, but the figure was clearly stuck in my eyes.

It seemed to me that I stumbled for a moment without realizing it. Ramande held me tight and asked.

“Minuelle, are you okay? What’s the matter?”

“Oh, no. The sunlight reflected on the window of the carriage that passed earlier… Yeah. That’s why. I must have tripped for a moment.”

“What about your ankle? It’s not hurt?”

Ramande was ready to ask me to stick my ankle out right away.

“No, it’s okay! Let’s go!”

As I took the lead in entering the school, the scene earlier was slowly repeated in my head.

‘Two of us. Riding a carriage without a sentence.’

I felt strange again.

At the bottom of my heart, I feel like something is sinking like a ball of lead into a cold place.

A feeling that can never be described as pleasant.

***

To make matters worse. It’s bad luck, so even if you fall backwards, your nose will be broken. It wasn’t the only thing that offended me.

“No way.”

“What?”

“You can’t. You have to come in person.”

The receptionist at the Magic School was much tighter than expected.

I looked around, but there was no way to check if it was right because there was no one else who accepted it except for us.

“And what is this? What the hell do you think our magic school is?”

He flicked his finger at the crumpled application and pushed it all the way toward us.

“Anyway, it doesn’t work, so bring yourself back.”

“I have a question. Do nobles come and register themselves? I don’t think so. Palos is a commoner, but I, the patron, is a noble.”

“Then please fill out the sponsorship form.”

His attitude was confident, so he wanted to receive the documents for now. At the same time, his cheeky mouth continued to flutter.

“You know that pretending to be a noble is a felony, right?”

It was ridiculous, so I laughed out loud.

“I should have worn a priest’s uniform.”

Ramande whispered to me with a very displeased face. I shook my head slightly to mean I was fine and moved to a table away from the window.