Beggar Siblings - Swabria
In the bustling marketplace, filled with the shouts of merchants urging customers to take a look, the murmur of passing pedestrians, children running around noisily, and a complex blend of scents, two young people locked eyes and froze.
Katrina was the first to break the awkward silence.
“Do you know me?”
She had noticed the man, who resembled “that soldier,” react as if he knew her, so she questioned him sharply. Caught off guard, she couldn't manage a gentle approach and instead, true to her nature, confronted him with a challenge.
“...No.”
“Then why are you acting like you do?”
“I wasn’t.”
His voice was different from the soldier's too.
“Don't lie. You were surprised to see me just now. Oh my god. You even have a tattoo on your neck. Are you a thug? Do you want to die?”
“No. Please spare me.”
His submissive attitude calmed Katrina down.
She pointed a finger at the ground and said,
“You stay right here. You move an inch and you're dead.”
While Katrina turned to collect the meat from the butcher shop, Leo, utterly bewildered, shook his head.
He was sure he had been on his way back with flowers for Lena. What was going on?
‘Why is she here? She should be on the battlefield… Ah!’
He had met Katrina in the previous Betrothal Route scenario.
Leo Dexter had fought her tooth and nail, and they had negotiated a truce when it seemed they would both die.
That was this year, just a few months ago, considering the timing.
‘Each scenario is running concurrently!’
Finally, a long-held question was answered.
There were multiple Lenas and Leos moving simultaneously on this continent. Otherwise, Katrina's appearance and confrontation with him wouldn't make sense.
Just then, Katrina beckoned him with a crooked finger.
“Hey. Come here.”
“W-Why?”
“You want to die?”
As she growled with a fierce glare, Leo flinched involuntarily.
“...I’ll follow.”
Minseo, in Leo’s body, found Katrina a bit frightening. He still vividly remembered her blazing eyes from their previous encounter during their sword fight. Although not entirely terrified, he couldn't help but shrink back a little in her presence.
Even if they fought now, he wouldn't stand a chance against her.
Although he possessed {Swordsmanship.2v}, Katrina's skills clearly surpassed those of an ordinary knight, and more importantly, there was a vast difference in their physical abilities. He couldn't be fooled by her slender physique.
Furthermore, officially, he was still nothing more than a common thug, while she was a knight of the kingdom. Even if he drew his sword and attacked her right now, Katrina wouldn't face any repercussions.
However, just as intrigued by the situation as she was, Leo suppressed his slight fear and followed Katrina.
Katrina led him to a small restaurant. She showed something to the owner and casually took a seat.
“What are you waiting for? Sit down.”
“...Yes.”
As he sat down, she studied him with an almost rude intensity. Her eyes held a mixture of astonishment, intense curiosity, and a hint of wariness.
“You look so much like him… What’s your name?”
“...It’s Leo.”
Katrina's eyes widened.
“Your name is Leo too?”
“Yes?”
She was so startled that she didn't even realize she had risen from her seat.
That soldier’s name was definitely Leo. She had heard the soldier next to him shout it when she had slashed his chest.
However, it was only when Katrina looked into the unfamiliar golden eyes of the boyish young man that she came to her senses and sat back down.
They were definitely different people. But then why did he…?
“Do you really not recognize me?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Then why did you look so surprised when you saw me?”
“...You seemed to know me, so I unconsciously… It’s common courtesy, isn’t it?”
Leo played dumb. It would only complicate things if he admitted to knowing her. He wouldn't even know where to begin explaining.
“Hmm… Is that so?”
She couldn't shake off the strange feeling she got from this thug.
[ Achievement: Sparing Katrina - Katrina remembers your mercy. ]
‘He looks similar, but they’re definitely different people…?’
That soldier had been tall and well-built. He wasn’t this handsome, and his eyes were ordinary. But this thug kept reminding her of that soldier.
Katrina was a knight of the Second Order in the Bellita Kingdom.
For some reason, Count Hermann Forte had delayed the deployment of the Knights, so they arrived on the battlefield at the beginning of summer, even though the war had broken out in early spring.
However, she had to return before she could even make a proper contribution on the battlefield.
All because she had encountered absurd soldiers. She had ambushed a seemingly ordinary squad, but among them were two soldiers, a man and a woman, wielding swords in both hands.
Those two had killed her junior, Demos. And so, Katrina, forced to face two squads alone, had fought them in a desperate struggle. In the end, she had even accepted death.
If the fight had continued, she might have killed the female soldier, but she would have been killed by the other soldier's counterattack.
However, the soldier named Leo had made an offer that Katrina, as a knight, could never have uttered.
It was a shameful negotiation, but it had allowed her to return alive.
The wound on her shoulder, where that bastard had stabbed her, had developed complications.
It was partly due to forcing her injured arm, but also because she hadn't received "proper" treatment on the battlefield, where priests were scarce.
The deeply embedded blade had torn through her muscles and tendons, and in the end, she had received orders to return to the capital.
She had stopped by a church on her way back and received treatment, but her arm wasn't the same as before.
Would she be able to continue as a knight…?
She was depressed, but Katrina quickly brightened up. It wasn’t like she had become completely crippled, and she had Ellen.
Katrina asked again,
“Are you from the Astin Kingdom?”
“No.”
She began bombarding Leo with questions, trying to make sense of this bizarre situation.
“Are you two just people with the same name? But Leo isn’t a common name… Where are you from?”
“...I’m from the Conrad Kingdom.”
“Hmm, then do you have any siblings?”
Leo’s mind raced.
He quickly fabricated a lie.
“Yes. I had a brother who was two years older than me, but we got separated when we were young. There was a famine in my village, and my family was scattered…”
In truth, this Leo was a year older than Leo Dexter, but he looked much younger due to his small stature and handsome features.
On the other hand, Leo Dexter's large build made him appear older than his actual age.
Upon hearing Leo’s lie, Katrina clapped her hands with an “Aha! I knew it!” expression, but then raised her eyebrows and asked,
“Aha! So you’re brothers! Wait, but why do you have the same name?”
“I needed an alias when I started working as a thug…”
“I see. That makes sense.”
Katrina nodded.
Of course. They couldn’t possibly look so similar if they weren't brothers. The younger brother got all the looks, while the older one got the physique.
As expected, God was fair.
With her questions answered and the situation making sense in her mind, Katrina became quite friendly. So, this young thug was the lost younger brother of “that soldier.”
She patted Leo’s arm in a chummy way and said,
“Actually, I… Oh right, this is fate. How about we eat something and talk? It’s on me.”
Leo let out a sigh of relief as Katrina went to order food. When she returned after ordering, her demeanor had become much more relaxed.
Perhaps satisfied with his lie, Katrina began recounting her encounter with Leo's “brother,” and Leo spent a long time chatting with her over their meal.
“Ah! So he was a knight after all. I had a feeling...”
"...Are you just playing thug? Huh? Your brother, you know..."
"So what? What happened then..."
He acted as if he were hearing the story for the first time, though he already knew everything, and struggled to maintain his act of having a brother.
Katrina had a hearty personality, but she was also nosy and prone to lecturing.
She went on and on about how he shouldn't live his life like this, how his brother was big and skilled with a sword, and how he had a pretty girlfriend, and they were both fighting in the war…
It seemed like an odd thing to tell someone she had just met, but she seemed to have taken a liking to Leo.
She paid for their expensive meal and, as they left the restaurant, seemed reluctant to part ways, even giving him directions to her place.
“Hey, if you ever need anything, come to the second alleyway on Roselin Boulevard, near the west gate. My roof is blue, so it’s easy to find. I’ll help you with anything I can.”
“Thank you, Katrina… uh…”
“Just call me Noona. And quit being a thug, alright? You’ll die young if you keep living like that.”
“Yes, Noona.”
“Good. Then… Oh! The meat’s going to spoil. I better go.”
“Take care.”
“Yeah, see you around.”
Katrina hurried away with the meat.
She was excited to tell Ellen all about this strange encounter.
Leo stood there blankly for a moment before starting to walk again.
His mind was a mess.
‘Because Katrina survived in the Betrothal Route scenario, I ended up meeting her here.’
The question that had been on his mind since he first saw the Prince of the Astin Kingdom in Orville was finally answered.
The three scenarios were unfolding simultaneously on this continent, and actions taken in past scenarios could affect other scenarios!
This was incredibly important information. Leo was so excited that he almost missed the restaurant owner calling after him, saying he had left his flowers behind.
As he resumed walking, he recalled some potentially useful information.
‘If only I could prevent the war in the Beggar Siblings scenario…’
The Engagement Route scenario had repeatedly failed due to the {War} event.
War was a difficult event to avoid and incredibly harsh, leading to tragic endings for both Leo Dexter and Lena Einar time and time again.
Well, they had seen good endings in other scenarios…
Anyway, if he could prevent the war from happening in the first place, the difficulty of the Betrothal Route scenario would drop significantly.
He also knew why the war was happening. It was because Princess Chloe de Tartalia had humiliated the Prince of the Astin Kingdom. So, to prevent the war…
Leo’s excitement fizzled out.
There was no way to stop it.
‘The Prince arrives just two months into the scenario, how can I possibly stop the Princess? I was only able to become the Marquis’ adopted son because of her previous antics…’
At least in his current state, it was hopeless. Perhaps if he became stronger through scenario rewards and became a Royal Knight, he might stand a chance, but even after more than a year since the start of this scenario, Leo had never even set foot inside the Royal Palace.
‘Then, could I help the Childhood Friends scenario? What could I do? Ah! If I could stop Gilbert Forte from going to the Cathedral… No, that’s impossible. He’s the son of the Swordmaster.’
Leo ran through various ideas, but ultimately clicked his tongue in frustration.
They were all out of his reach, and he was still too insignificant.
And anyway, he couldn’t do anything for the other Lenas and Leos who were currently elsewhere.
Lena and Leo from the Betrothal Route would soon meet the Swordmaster and die, and even if he started the next Betrothal Route scenario, the war would still break out.
It was the same for the Childhood Friends route. Gilbert Forte had already left for the Cathedral, so…
Lost in thought, he didn't even notice that a few buds from the ‘Swabria’ flowers he was holding had fallen to the ground.
Just then,
“Leo! Leo!”
Someone called out to him from behind.
It was Ober.
“I called you so many times, why didn’t you answer?”
“Ah, sorry. I was lost in thought. What’s up?”
Leo, who had been mentally retracing the other two scenarios in chronological order, realized he had arrived at the leather district.
“Come here for a sec.”
Ober seemed to have something to say and led him to their hideout. Leo wanted to get back to Lena quickly, but he followed him for now.
Ober brought out some snacks and drinks, sat him down, and began to speak.
“I heard from Lena earlier…”
Leo cut him off abruptly.
“How is Lena? Is she feeling better?”
“She seemed fine? Anyway, I went to visit her because I heard she was sick, and I heard… You’re going to the Marquis’ estate, right?”
Lena must have said goodbye to Ober.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Why did you keep it a secret? That’s great news! I knew you were a special kid from the moment I saw you.”
No, he told them to go back to their mother’s milk.
But Leo didn’t bother correcting him. Ober had been the kindest to Lena and him all this time.
He continued excitedly, as if genuinely happy for them.
“A noble family! Look at you two, coming so far from those raggedy beginnings… Cassia sure knows how to judge people.”
Unlike the boss, Ober didn’t change his attitude even after hearing that Leo was going to a Marquis’ estate. He was a man of courage, to put it nicely, or a thug through and through, to put it bluntly.
Thugs were used to breaking the law, so they tended to disregard common social norms.
Embarrassed by Ober’s constant praise, Leo changed the subject to something he thought Ober would like.
“How’s Cassia doing?”
“Ah! I was just telling Lena about that. Cassia seems to have come to her senses and is finally trying to make a living.”
He beamed, as if this was even better news than Leo becoming a noble.
“That girl, who used to walk around with dead fish eyes all the time, is finally normal. I heard she’s been buying small amounts of leather, trying to make shoes or something. It’s good that she’s doing something. She can’t live off handouts forever…”
Ober’s chatter continued. He was clearly sad to see them go.
The fact that he was saying things he normally wouldn’t spoke volumes about how much this farewell meant to him.
Despite his rough words, there was a deep affection in them, warming Leo’s heart.
‘He’s a typical thug after all…’
Thugs were cold-blooded enough to slit someone’s throat for money, but that didn’t mean their hearts turned to stone. They poured their souls into their families.
Leo stayed for a while, grateful for Ober’s sentiment.
However, when Ober brought out the alcohol, ready to throw a proper farewell party, Leo excused himself after a few drinks, using his sick sister as an excuse.
“Lena, how are you feeling? Are you alright?”
“You’re back, Oppa?”
Leo returned to the family’s hideout and went to his sister’s room.
Lena seemed much better. She greeted him brightly and told him that she had said her goodbyes to their family today.
She seemed relieved to have had that closure with them, even sitting up in bed now. It was as if the impending separation had been the cause of her illness.
While Lena spoke in a bittersweet tone, saying things like, “Tian was crying so much, it was kind of funny,” Leo placed the Swabria flowers he had brought in a vase.
As expected, the flowers looked beautiful in his sister's room, but they soon wilted due to the delay.
The wilted flowers had lost their ‘color.’