Chapter 82

Today (to be precise, yesterday) the comic update is out.

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"It's bad. They got away."

As soon as Cecilia got out of the carriage, Ein bowed his head and said this. Zweig, standing next to him, panted heavily and spoke to Cecilia.

"We almost caught up, but everyone was dressed similarly, so they blended into the crowd and we lost them..."

"Plus, they had their hoods up, so we couldn't even confirm their faces."

"...Yeah."

Both of them had chased after the culprits with all their might, and sweat was beading on their foreheads. Cecilia turned to them with an apologetic look.

"It's okay. More importantly, thank you both."

"Well, when you encounter a situation like that, you can't just let them go, right?"

"But, we did let them get away, though."

"Don't say that, Zweig."

"But it's the truth."

Zweig smiled wryly, his eyebrows forming a gentle curve. After glancing at him, Ein turned back to Cecilia and wiped the egg white from her cheek with his finger.

"Well, we're in this together. But, getting hit with a raw egg is pretty bad. ...Are you okay?"

"Ah, yeah. I'm fine! I'm not hurt."

Her wig and clothes were in a state that needed immediate attention, but her body was fine. Interrupting their conversation, Lean spoke up.

"But, what will we do? As it is, you can't get back in the carriage, can you, Miss Cecilia? After something like this, should we cancel the event for today?"

Her eyes briefly turned to the soldiers behind her. There were four soldiers in total who had been protecting them. All four had chased after the culprits immediately after Cecilia was hit with the egg, but they had been delayed by the crowd and ultimately let them get away. Lean's gaze was slightly cold, perhaps worried about entrusting the future to them.

"If we cancel, I can ask everyone to understand...?"

"In that case, I'll take your place and participate."

It was Ein who slapped his chest and said this.

"Eh?"

"I'm glad I wore this outfit today."

He lifted the gray coat he was wearing. Inside, there was a military uniform similar to Cecilia's. While the knight's uniforms had slight design differences, the basic style was the same.

"I didn't have to wear it today, but I didn't have any other black clothes."

"That's convenient."

Under Zweig's coat, a military uniform was also visible, almost identical to Ein's. Zweig pushed Cecilia's back.

"Leave this to Ein. Why don't you go back to the dorm and change? I'll take you there."

"Eh? No, that's fine! I know the way, and I don't want to take up your time, Zweig!"

As Cecilia shook her head, a sharp voice came from Ein, who was about to get into the carriage.

"Are you an idiot? That guy might still be around, so just let Zweig take care of you!"

"That's right. Miss Cecilia, please let him take you. You shouldn't be alone right now!"

In a catty tone, Lean also chimed in. Finally, Zweig smiled and said, "Why not?" with a grin. Cecilia smiled wryly, as if conceding.

"Then, ...I'll ask you. Thank you all."

When she thanked them, the three of them exchanged glances and smiled, as if to say, "What can we do?"

Then Cecilia walked through the city with Zweig.

It was the first day of the festival, and despite the name 'Week of Ashes,' the area was bustling with activity. The clothes people wore were mostly gray or black, but their faces were full of smiles.

"By the way, I haven't thanked you yet, Cecilia."

In a side street off the main thoroughfare, Zweig spoke to Cecilia.

"Thanked me?"

"Yeah. You found this brooch for me, right?"

When Cecilia tilted her head, Zweig pointed to the green brooch on his chest. The emerald-green brooch was the one they had searched for with Ein on the day Zweig had collapsed.

"I heard from Ein. You found it for me. It's really important to me, so I'm really grateful."

"Oh. But, that was with Ein..."

"Thank you, Cecilia!"

Zweig thanked her, overlapping her words. Feeling that it would be odd to correct him, Cecilia nodded once.

(Didn't Ein share his memories...?)

Cecilia, who had assumed they shared memories, tilted her head. But after a moment's thought, she accepted it as "Well, that can happen."

Zweig looked into the distance and continued.

"Cecilia, you seem like a hero."

"Eh?"

"You're strong, kind, funny, and a bit strange."

"...Strange?"

"In a good way! In a good way!"

Although he tried to clarify, "In a good way, strange" still sounded odd. Was it something to be happy about? Ein had said something similar before, so perhaps there were few people like her in their hometown.

"That's why Ein gets along with you, I guess."

"…Huh?"

"Ein. He may seem like he doesn't, but he's actually very shy. In fact, he's even shyer than I am."

Surprised by this unexpected fact, Cecilia's eyes widened. Zweig continued, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"He wasn't like that when he was little. I think it changed after he was betrayed... by someone."

"Betrayed?"

"Yeah. ...At our house, there was a long-serving stablehand. We called him 'Uncle Kadi'... "

"---Ah!"

At that moment, a conversation with Ein came back to Cecilia's mind. According to Ein, the person who killed their mother was 'Kadi Mirand,' a stablehand at the Makias household. Reacting to this, Zweig's eyes widened as he turned to her.

"Did you hear this from Ein?"

"Ah, um..."

"...Cecilia, you can't lie."

He smiled sadly and turned his gaze forward.

"It's fine. It's a well-known story in our hometown. It wasn't a secret just between us."

"Sorry about that?"

"Why are you apologizing, Cecilia?"

Zweig laughed, looking troubled. Then, with his eyebrows forming a gentle curve, he looked down.

"Anyway, Uncle Kadi and Ein were very close. He taught Ein how to ride horses and how to brush them. ...But then, Uncle Kadi attacked my mother—"

The rest of the story was clear. Kadi had broken into the room, attacked Zweig, and killed their mother, who had tried to protect him.

"Ein didn't get along well with Father. Well, Ein was the heir, and Father had high expectations, so he was strict. ...So, Uncle Kadi was like a second father to Ein."

Zweig bit his lower lip.

"After that, Ein stopped trusting people. At heart, though—"

Zweig fell silent.

Cecilia continued, as if to fill the silence.

"At heart, he loves people, doesn't he?"

He looked surprised at her words, then raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"You know that, too?"

"Sort of."

"...I see."

It was hard to tell what emotion was behind Zweig's expression after he said this. Sadness, regret, or surprise. It was hard to tell, but for a moment, he looked pained before quickly returning to his usual gentle self.

"We're here."

"Eh?"

Looking up, she saw the front of the academy. She had been so engrossed in the conversation that she hadn't noticed they had arrived. Zweig stopped and extended his hand as if asking for a handshake.

"From now on, please take care of Ein and me, Cecilia."

"Ah, yeah."

When she shook his hand, he smiled wistfully and turned away, saying, "See you."

Next time, it's the Oss Cecilia episode.

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