Beggar Siblings - Play
“I’m sorry. Did you wait long?”
On a clear weekend, Soyi hurried down the stairs, her orange hair swaying.
Leo, who had been waiting at the front door of the family mansion, shook his head.
“Not at all. I just got down here myself. Shall we go?”
He had decided to keep his promise to Soyi.
He had thought to cancel their date, using his sister's illness as an excuse, but Lena's condition had improved significantly, and Soyi had seen Lena rustling around the kitchen the day before yesterday.
He could have made up an excuse, but he had dressed neatly.
Soyi smiled brightly.
Her smile, with her hair down and rouge on her lips, was radiant, but there was a hint of sadness somewhere in it.
The two of them hailed a carriage and headed for the Arillai Theater in the east of Orville.
“It was my dream to be in a play. Ever since I went to the theater with my parents when I was little.”
Soyi said in the carriage.
“I pestered my parents so much about becoming a wonderful actress that my father finally took me to a theater company.”
Leo listened to her quietly. He usually let her words go in one ear and out the other, but not today.
“I was so happy to join the company. But guess what? All they gave me were insignificant roles. Like the fifth maid with no lines… I even wished they would give me the role of an old lady washing clothes by the river and gossiping about the heroine.”
“That must have been tough.”
Soyi was silent for a moment, as if surprised by his response. Then she made a face that was both a smile and a tear.
“No, not at all. I gave up right away. They didn't even teach me how to act, they just gave me roles that anyone could play… At the time, I foolishly blamed my parents. I wished I had been born prettier. I thought it would have given me more opportunities.”
“That's hard to believe. You're so beautiful… That theater company must have been blind.”
“Thank you for the compliment, even if it's empty flattery.”
She winked playfully and continued.
“Looking back, that wasn't the problem. It wasn't my effort or passion either. I just gradually lost interest in acting itself. I just wanted a good role to fall into my lap.”
“...”
“I don't know why I was like that back then... It's okay now. It was a good experience, and I'm happy to be here as a patron enjoying the play. Ah! Here we are.”
The carriage stopped in front of the theater.
Leo quickly got off and offered Soyi his hand. She gladly accepted his escort and got out of the carriage. The two of them entered the theater and took their seats.
The play was neither good nor bad.
As it was a theater for commoners, the props used in the play were all crude, and the actors' occasional mistakes were noticeable.
However, some of the lead actors’ performances were excellent.
The actor who played the role of 'Toddler Akiunen,' the first king of mankind who founded the Akaia Kingdom, played his role well. He was dignified and his voice was righteous.
The direction of the Demon King, who appeared as his opponent, was also surprisingly outstanding.
Using countless flags to transition between scenes, and having actors sitting among the audience suddenly stand up and sing in chorus to emphasize the overwhelming power of the Demon King, sent shivers down one’s spine.
Soyi, startled, instinctively grabbed Leo's hand beside her.
According to the pamphlet she had received from the boy promoting the play in front of the theater, it was all based on historical facts.
It was a legend that Toddler Akiunen, a great king and the first Swordmaster, defeated the other races and destroyed evil for the sake of mankind.
Of course, the Bellita Kingdom, which inherited the legitimacy of the Akaia Empire, accepted this as history, not legend.
Leo enjoyed the play more than he had expected.
But there was one actor who caught his eye. No, it was someone who played a role that was hard to even call an actor.
The actor, whose gender was indistinguishable, was either playing the Demon King's minion or something else, wearing a shabby black baby carrier (there was no other way to describe it) and waving his arms and legs with all his might.
Leo's heart pounded strangely. He couldn't take his eyes off the actor.
When he, or she, crouched down and pretended to hide from Toddler Akiunen, he was nervous, and when he ran out at the Demon King's command, he was worried that he might trip over his own feet because of the baby carrier.
Was it because his acting was so sincere? This feeling was like…
“Wow! Look at that! Up there!”
At that moment, Soyi pointed to the ceiling.
Above the stage, a white sun (undoubtedly a quilt stuffed with cotton) was slowly descending from the ceiling.
The advent of the Lord.
If there had been anyone who had studied theology here, they would surely have objected to this scene.
The Holy Cross Church claimed that Toddler Akiunen had nothing to do with the Lord.
It was strange.
Toddler Akiunen was a hero admired by all, so it would not have been bad to claim that his glory came from God.
Leo, who knew nothing about theology and was not interested in the sun made of cotton, searched for the actor who had caught his eye.
But the minion was gone, along with the advent of the Lord. Only the Demon King remained alive and surrendered, and Toddler Akiunen thrust his shining sword (it was an ordinary sword, but there was a flag with a shining sword painted on the background) into his chest.
And with that, the curtain fell.
“That was so much fun! Ah, 'Laysia' was so beautiful when she appeared.”
The two of them walked out without taking a carriage.
Soyi, excited, chattered about the play for a while, then gradually calmed down. Thud, thud, Leo and Soyi's steps were out of sync.
“Aren't you hungry? There's a restaurant nearby…”
“No, I'm fine.”
Soyi smiled sadly.
“Leo. Thank you for today. I had a wonderful time thanks to you.”
“Me too. I never thought the play would be so much fun.”
There was an awkward silence for a moment. The two of them just kept walking. Then, as they entered a narrow alley, Leo and Soyi, who had been walking side by side, came close to each other.
Leo thought it was getting even more awkward, but Soyi seemed to think differently, as she looked up at him and said,
“You know, actually… I knew you weren't interested in me.”
“...”
“And I haven't had a chance to congratulate you yet. Congratulations. I heard from Lena yesterday. You're being adopted into the Marquis' family?”
Since it wasn't a question that required an answer, Leo nodded silently in affirmation.
The reason he came to see the play today was to end their relationship.
Leo knew that Soyi liked him. However, he was not interested in her at all, and he was not in a position to be, so he had always found her annoying.
Being liked by someone was usually a happy thing, but sometimes it was also a nuisance.
That was why Leo had kept his distance from her, and as he had done with the rest of his family, he had not told Soyi that he was leaving for the Marquis' family. He had just planned to leave without a word when the time came.
But the way Ober and Lena had said goodbye to their family had moved him.
They had expressed their regret sincerely, and had shown their true feelings and thanked them.
It had been a truly heartwarming farewell.
So Leo had thought that even if it was awkward, he should give Soyi time to sort out her feelings. So that her unrequited love wouldn't end without a word.
Soyi and Leo walked for a long time.
They walked back the way they had come in the carriage, making small talk.
“I guess I'll have to call you Leo Tatian from now on.”
“Please, just call me Leo.”
“Oh, come on~ If I did that, I'd get beaten with a rod, wouldn't I? Noble lords are…”
Soyi seemed to have already made up her mind. She smiled gently and made a playful joke about the nobles, and Leo pretended to be a noble who was insulted and angered.
Soyi chuckled.
Leo also smiled back at her.
By the time they reached the family mansion, there was nothing left between them but the promise to “visit the flower shop sometime.”
* * *
A few days later, Leo visited the Marquis' mansion. It was the first time in a while that he would be meeting other nobles.
The Marquis must have introduced him to all the nobles he knew, as he hadn't called for the siblings last week. It was fortunate, in a way, since Lena had fallen ill around that time.
But today was the day he was to meet other nobles, and although Lena had recovered, Leo hadn't brought her along.
He didn't want to make his sister, who had just recovered from a bad cold, wear a dress that revealed her shoulders and chest.
He was gradually becoming Leo, little by little.
Leaving his sister, who insisted she was fine, in bed, Leo headed for the Marquis' mansion much earlier than the appointed time.
He thought it would be better to let the Marquis know that Lena couldn't come.
‘That way, the Marquis can make up an excuse to the other nobles.’
Otherwise, it might give the impression that his son was being disobedient ‘again’. That was something that might hurt the Marquis' pride, so he had to make amends beforehand.
Leo stood familiarly at the front door, and the butler came out.
“W-Welcome.”
“Um? Is something wrong?”
The butler was acting strangely. Outwardly, there was nothing particularly different, but he greeted Leo from the ‘middle’ of the front steps, unlike usual.
“No. You've arrived much earlier than the appointed time… But where is the young lady?”
“Lena is unwell, so I came alone today. I wanted to let the Marquis know in advance.”
“…I see. Please come in.”
Leo tilted his head in wonder.
‘Is this something to be so flustered about?’
He had never seen the butler so flustered in the months he had known him.
Although there was nothing different, the butler, who had always acted like a machine, showed a different movement than usual.
As Leo was about to step inside, puzzled, he made eye contact with the female knight standing at the mansion's front gate.
It was the same knight who had locked the carriage door and interfered when Leo had tried to assassinate Torton Tatian.
She, named Irene, had always avoided Leo, but now she was glaring at him with an anger that was evident even from a distance.
Something was wrong.
The moment he saw Irene's glaring eyes, Leo waved his hand and spoke to the butler who was trying to guide him inside.
“Never mind. I came too early, so please just tell the Marquis that my sister won't be able to make it. I'll be back on time.”
Making an excuse, he turned around hurriedly before the butler could say anything.
This is ominous.
‘Why is she staring at me like that? And the butler is acting strange too…’
Leo decided to get out of there for now.
Since the carriage he had arrived in was already gone, Leo hastened his steps to catch another one. But someone called out to him from behind.
“Leo. Where are you going?”
He turned around to see Baron Gustave Peter, whom he had met with Lena before.
He was getting out of his carriage, which had just arrived. Leo had initially thought of him as a frugal nobleman, and his carriage seemed to resemble its owner, being simple and unadorned. The four horses pulling the carriage were all black.
It seemed Baron Peter had also come to see the Marquis on business.
Wary of the butler standing at the front door and Irene, who had approached the iron gate and was glaring at him, Leo spoke.
“Ah, Count, it's been a while, but I apologize. I have an urgent matter to attend to right now… I'll be on my way then.”
He gave a perfunctory bow and turned around.
Then,
“Your Highness. Are you running away again?”
Leo’s heart sank.