Chapter 08

Tanto flinched.

Even though Leo was only ten years old, the ominous aura that spread whenever the boy was displeased was every bit as intimidating as Hedius’s.

Tanto sometimes found Leo frightening at times like this.

And if, by any chance, Leo had had a sword with him in the forest, he probably could have easily subdued the black leopard, or any other beast for that matter.

“Come on… The Guild Leader only did all that for your sake, Leo. You’re just a little kid who doesn’t know anything.”

Tanto tried to reason with the child.

But Leo glared at him and muttered,

“You’re the one who doesn’t know anything, Tanto.”

His tone sounded almost as though he were scolding Tanto.

“Hey, wh-what did you say?”

“You just happened to drop your sword into the swamp…. So if Angel hadn’t been there today, that black leopard would have eaten me. But…”

A moment later, the image of Ibi tightly embracing him flashed through Leo’s mind.

‘How could I forget? She was the first person who ever threw herself into danger for me….’

“Angel suddenly appeared and hugged me tightly, and her embrace was so warm. It felt like she was telling me not to die. So I decided to believe that Angel came from another world to save me.”

“…Ha. Even so. I understand how you feel, but… Hey, are you crying?”

At some point, tears had begun to well up in Leo’s eyes.

Tanto scratched his head awkwardly, unsure what to do upon seeing the boy cry for the first time.

“But what if Lord Hedius had been there instead of Angel?”

Would he have looked at me like that and hugged me tightly?

“……”

Tanto couldn’t say anything and fell silent.

Leo somehow felt as though he already knew the answer without having to hear it.

Until now, he had trusted and relied on Hedius like a father.

But Hedius had never once reached out his hand to him.

Of course, Leo knew that Hedius wasn’t deliberately keeping his distance only from him.

Even so, Leo had always felt hurt by it.

Looking at Leo’s dejected expression, Tanto finally spoke.

“Of course the Guild Leader would have saved you! He probably wouldn’t have thrown himself at the beast like that woman did, though…. Unless he cut the thing in half with his sword or shot it with an arrow.”

‘Tanto is right.’

Hedius definitely would have saved him.

He would have ruthlessly dealt with the wild beast charging toward him.

And that would probably have been all.

Hedius sometimes kept an almost excessively cold distance from him.

Just a little while ago, he had done the same thing.

When Hedius had called him over, instead of asking whether he was hurt or telling him that he was worried, he had simply said,

“If you wish to repent for your mistake, then stay confined to your quarters.”

Tanto, as well as everyone else in the thieves’ guild, seemed unable to understand why Hedius drew such a strict line with Leo alone.

But Leo was only a ten-year-old child who needed someone’s attention.

For a child like him, the warmth he had received from Ibi felt even more precious and overwhelming.

Leo fidgeted with his fingers before finally opening his mouth.

“Tanto, actually…”

“Hmm?”

Leo looked as though he was about to say something, but in the end, he closed his mouth and forced a smile.

‘I want to tell him that the back of my neck keeps stinging and that I think I’m injured. But after causing such a commotion today, if I also tell him that I got hurt, Tanto and all the other thieves will think I’m pathetic. It’s better not to say anything.’

His pride mattered more to him than the pain.

Leo avoided Tanto’s puzzled gaze and walked away.

Several days later, the firmly locked bedroom door suddenly swung open.

“Tan!”

I had been munching on some bread and immediately turned my head when I heard him.

After eating and resting well for the past few days, my skin had become as smooth and glossy as a peeled egg.

“The Guild Leader has given permission for you to come out now. Just don’t go too far. You have to stay quietly within the village, understood?”

“Yep.”

I smiled brightly, hopped off the bed with the bread still in my mouth, and dashed outside.

“Angel!”

Tanto’s startled voice echoed behind me.

He apparently hadn’t expected me to rush out so quickly.

But I paid no attention to him.

I ran as hard as I could, letting the wind rush against my entire body, and a radiant smile spread across my face.

Inhale!

The fragrant scent of grass.

The warm sunlight.

And freedom!

I was enjoying it to the fullest when a familiar voice came from behind me.

“Angel!”

It was Leo, smiling brightly.

He naturally took my hand and led the way, saying that he would show me around the village.

“What are those little things over there? They look funny.”

“They’re pigs and chickens! Since Angel came from another world, I guess it makes sense that you might be seeing them for the first time.”

“W-Well, right? Then what’s that?”

“Ah, that’s…”

We spent quite some time chatting back and forth and enjoying the scenery of this world, so different from the future I knew.

Then—

Tsk, tsk!

The sound of someone clicking their tongue came from behind us.

“What do you mean ‘Angel’? She looks like nothing more than a filthy beggar. No matter how pitiful she is, why would you take in a crazy woman?”

At the old-looking man’s words, Leo’s expression immediately darkened.

Before we knew it, everyone’s attention had turned toward us.

The man was glaring at me with obvious displeasure, while the other villagers looked at me with wary eyes.

Their gazes were filled with both curiosity and hostility toward the unfamiliar outsider.

‘As expected. This is a place where people live together, too, so I suppose it’s natural that they’d treat a stranger like this at first.’

If I wanted to stay here with Leo, I first needed to lower the villagers’ guard around me.

But how could I become closer to these people?

While I was pondering that question, Leo, who had been fuming for quite some time, spoke carefully.

“I’ll apologize on Angel’s behalf. Everyone isn’t acting like this because they hate you, Angel.”

‘Hmm? He’s apologizing on my behalf even though he didn’t do anything wrong.’

Apparently, Leo was worried that I might leave and go somewhere else.

I felt sorry for him and found his concern rather heartbreaking.

So instead, I smiled brightly.

“Of course. It’s only natural that people can’t be friendly toward someone they’ve never seen before, right? And I really like this place.”

I wasn’t merely saying that to reassure him.

As I had looked around the village, watching all the busy and lively people going about their daily lives, I had somehow felt my own will to live begin to surge again.

In the world I originally lived in, I couldn’t feel that kind of vitality anywhere.

Everyone believed that the world would eventually be destroyed.

It was a terrible and abnormal world where people didn’t even mourn the deaths of others, nor did they dream about tomorrow.

But the expressions on the faces of the people here were filled with hope for the future.

I liked that.

It was almost as though their energy was giving me strength, too.

“Angel really likes it here?”

Leo asked with a surprised expression.

I shrugged.

“Of course~! Everyone here seems to shine like stars. I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

The wildflowers, trees, and wind were certainly beautiful.

But the sight of people living with such vitality was something I could never have experienced in my original world.

‘I like living here, and I have a personal fondness for these people, too. I definitely need to become close to them.’

Just as I made that decision to myself—

“…That’s a relief.”

Leo murmured to himself and smiled faintly.

His cheeks had turned pink, apparently because my words had made him quite happy.

It was adorable.

“Then I’ll show you my secret place, Angel. It’s over there!”

Suddenly, Leo grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the village.

As I was being dragged along, my gaze naturally fell on the back of Leo’s round head.

‘Huh…’

There was a wound on the back of Leo’s neck.

It looked like he had been scratched by something sharp, and it seemed rather painful.

I frowned.

Judging from the fact that it was still oozing, it seemed to be an injury he had received when he was chased by the black leopard a few days ago.

‘If he leaves it like that, it could get infected.’

Since I was at it, why not use this opportunity to test my ability?

‘Heal.’

Without letting Leo notice, I gently placed my hand against his small neck and activated the healing skill.

Fwoosh—

For a brief moment, droplets glowing with a faint blue light gathered in the palm of my hand.

The droplets seeped into the wound on the back of Leo’s neck and disappeared.

Perhaps he sensed something strange.

Leo turned his head toward me, so I quickly hid my hand behind my back.

Leo rubbed the back of his neck and tilted his head.

“Huh? Why is it cold here?”

“Maybe snow fell from the sky.”

I smiled innocently.

Leo looked up at the sky.

“…Snow?”

Of course not.

It was late spring beneath a perfectly clear blue sky.

Still, Leo’s adorable expression as he tilted his head and stared up at the sky made me giggle.

“Ibi, the Guild Leader wants to see you. Please come with me.”

Without any suspicion, she followed Tanto toward Hedius’s office.

Tanto found Ibi, who was always smiling brightly like a flower, both fascinating and somehow pitiful.

From what he had observed over the past few days, Ibi was nothing more than the kind of energetic young lady you could find in any place—someone who ate well, slept well, and played happily wherever she went.

She did seem a little foolish, considering she had said she wanted to marry the very man who had held a sword to her neck.

‘Well, if I had to decide whether she’s a madwoman or an angel, her innocent nature makes her seem more like an angel.’

Lost in thought as he followed Ibi’s fluttering pink hair, Tanto soon arrived in front of the office.

“Guild Leader, I’ve brought Ibi.”

“Come in.”

Tanto opened the door to Hedius’s office and gestured for Ibi to enter first.

Ibi cautiously poked her head inside and looked around the office.

Then she entered without hesitation.

But—

“…Ugh, it’s so bright.”

She immediately frowned.

The reason was Hedius’s dangerously handsome appearance, which seemed to be radiating light from early in the morning.

The man himself, however, seemed completely unaware of it.

Hedius immediately reacted to Ibi’s words.

He personally reached out and drew the curtains over the window that was flooding the room with sunlight.

The room instantly became darker.

“This should make it easier to talk.”

The problem had merely been the blinding beauty of the man himself, but seeing him personally close the curtains for her, Ibi couldn’t help but nod.

After that, Hedius continued treating Ibi with an attitude completely different from before, even asking whether she would like some tea.

Perhaps finding his sudden politeness suspicious, Ibi swallowed nervously.

Without taking his eyes off her, Hedius gave an order.

“Tanto, you may leave now.”

“Ah, yes. Understood.”

Tanto hesitated for a moment before immediately leaving the room.

The moment only the two of them remained in the office, Ibi gauged the situation.

Then, pretending as though nothing was wrong, she spun around and approached Hedius.

“Why did you call me, Hess? Don’t tell me you missed me?”

Hedius frowned, apparently displeased by her cheerful greeting and affectionate nickname.

“You’re not a member of the thieves’ guild, so I suppose it doesn’t matter what you choose to call me.”

Hedius muttered quietly to himself before looking directly at her.

“You said your name was Ibi?”

“Oh my! You already learned my name? Were you that curious about me?”

Ibi’s large eyes sparkled with anticipation.

But Hedius merely let out a small sigh and ignored her.

“Contrary to my concerns, I hear you have adapted to the village better than expected. It seems you’ve also become closer to Leo than before.”

“Yep! I really like this village. And Leo is sooo cute, too! Thank you, Hess, for bringing me here.”

For a moment, it seemed as though the atmosphere between them had become warm and friendly.

Then—

“You seem to be mistaken about something. I have no intention of allowing you to stay here. Nor have I ever given you permission to do so.”

Hedius immediately cut her off in a cold, cynical tone.

The atmosphere froze in an instant.

But even after hearing his words, Ibi simply smiled brightly with an innocent expression and asked,

“Then what should I do from now on, Hess?”

Hedius stared at her for a moment before answering.

“There is nothing you can do here. You aren’t even worth—”

“……”

Unable to bring himself to tell her directly that she wasn’t even worth anything while looking into that innocent face, Hedius swallowed the rest of his words.

Instead, he continued.

“Anyway, it’s difficult to explain, but this isn’t a place suited to you. So I’ll give you one final opportunity to leave.”

His words sounded polite.

But his tone was unmistakably coercive.