Look at them.

Elody glanced at the two. Well, Brienne and Marie were about the same age. They don't have a lover and they seemed to spend a lot of time around one another.

“Oh, look over there. Madam!” Marie's words turned Elody's eyes.

“That's pretty fancy.”

“Yeah! Wow!”

There was a huge parade of merchants in front of them. It seemed that a big event was going to be held in the square. The merchants, however, didn’t seem too happy. There were a few merchants from far off who seemed disappointed with how small the market was. The outfits they were wearing were very colorful and unique. The patterns embroidered in clothes were all new and fresh.

“They are the merchants of Rondia, right? I heard they sell the goods in the whole continent. I guess they've reached our territory,” Brienne said. “They must have stopped by on their way to the capital,” Brienne continued.

“Yes, I guess so! I heard that the perfumed oil they have is so famous. Oops!” Marie said.

Her words hardened Brienne's expression for a moment. Marie became disconcerted, biting her lips.

There was a subtle yet tense atmosphere around them.

Well. . .

Elody roughly remembered what happened from the novel. There was an episode where the heroine used the wrong perfume. It was the perfumed oil from a famous group of merchants from the eastern continent. It was a rare perfumed oil, used for the purpose of seducing the other sex. Of course, those merchants sold all kinds of oils. It was just the heroine used the perfumed oil in the novel.

Are they the merchants?

The male lead, Caville, saved the female lead from a difficult situation because of the scent that paralyzed the senses. And there was a scene where their lips bump into each other while hiding together in a narrow place. In short, the first kiss scene. lody looked at Caville, who held her hand tightly.

This little one kissed. . .

“What's wrong, wife?”

Elody shook her head at Caville's peaceful question. Meanwhile, Brienne and Marie were blushing with little coughs.Then, some brilliant ideas flashed through Elody's mind. Why don’t I study the perfumed oil? The perfumed oil cost a lot of money. Elody could also study the perfumed oil since she was studying magic drugs. I'd better buy one as a sample.

“Marie, are you going to buy that perfumed oil?”

“Oh, my. . .that’s the kind of thing for you! That kind of perfumed oil isn’t for children.”

You're the one who brought it up. . .

“. . .I mean, I want one, too,” Elodie said.

“Huh? Madam?”

“Yeah, I'm going to study the perfumed oil. It’s making money. Maybe I’ll get the general oil.”

Marie blinked in embarrassment at Elody's specific words. How does she know the perfumed oil when I didn't even tell her about it, Marie thought. Another maid must have secretly told her. It must have been Emily, she always enjoyed her mischievous jokes. Marie couldn’t believe Emily would say such things to a young lady like Elody. Marie coughed and ran away saying that she would be back.

“Hmm. . .” Brienne coughed and fiddled his red face.

Why are you guys so shy when you're not in a relationship yet……? It was almost embarrassing to watch. Elody clicked her tongue and held Caville's hand tightly. There were far more shoppers in the market than expected.

“There's quite a lot of people, Sir Vedos. Please take care of Caville.”

“Yes, Madam.”

Then, suddenly, a lot of people started to come from the front. Apparently a trader who sold unusual goods cheaply appeared from the back of the market.

“Oh, wait!”

Elody lost Caville's hand in the huge crowd. She couldn’t find Caville among the tall adults. A crowd of people passed by, and Elody was pushed back for a long time. Elody looked around for Caville after all the people passed. But Caville was not there.

“Sir Vedos, where is Caville?!

Brienne looked ahead blankly. Their faces drastically darkened. Elody called out Caville's name in a trembling voice.

“Caville!”

Before that, her legs moved first. Elody first checked the nearby alley. Fortunately, she was able to find Caville quickly. Only then did her heart feel stable. Before that it had been pounding with nerves.

Then what are those?

Next to Caville, there were two boys who didn’t look much older than Caville, however, they were indeed taller than him. It seemed like they were surrounding him, and. . .

“Hey, you've been adopted by a rich trader's family, haven't you?” One of the boys said.

“His clothes look good. Let's just take them away!” Said the other.

It was a bad situation as Elody expected. What the. . .Elody quickly approached them.

“Hey!” She said.

“. . .What?” One of the boys called.

“Wife. . .” Caville was shedding big drops of tears. He looked very frightened with his confused eyes.

He must've been confused since It was the first time Elody had lost Caville's hand in such a crowded place. As Elody stretched out her arm, Cavill ran and hugged.

“……What? Wife? You’re telling me you’re married? To a seven, no, eight-year-old kid?” One of the boys said.

“Aren't they just playing house?” Said the other.

The two children, who were of similar height to Elody, chuckled. What's wrong with these boys?

“Did you guys hit my boy?” Elody asked calmly.

“No, we didn't hit him. What are you?”

The boy with freckles on his face asked. Elody replied nonchalantly.

“What are you guys? How do you know our Caville?”

“We were in the same orphanage as him. What's wrong?”

“An orphanage?” Elodie asked.

“Yes, we ran away from the orphanage, proudly! We were sick of the director. Anyhow, he used to beat up Caville everyday.”

“Others got adopted to rich families while we became pickpockets.”

“Hey! I told you not to tell anyone I am a pickpocket!”

“Wha?! What?!” Caville yelled.

Perhaps the word pickpocket made him angry, the two boys began to stare at each other.

Elody sighed. “Caville, are you okay? Were you scared?” Caville hugged Elody's waist and grabbed her dress.

“Look at that coward, are you hiding in the skirt width of his wife?”

“If he's more surprised, he'll have to pee.”

“Hey!! Shut up, you guys,” Elody said. Nobody gets to scare Caville.

The two boys seemed a little surprised by Elody's determined swearing. But for a moment, the boys bit their lips, their pride damaged.

“What! Hey! You little girl!”

A freckled boy raised his hand threateningly as if to scare Elody. But she wasn't scared.

Rather, Elody grabbed the boy's hair and pulled it backwards. “Don't you dare raise your hand towards me.”

“Agh! Let go of me!”

Instead, Elody strengthened her grip.

“Ahh! Hey, do something about her!” The boy yelled.

The child standing next to him looked at the situation in embarrassment and belatedly jumped at Elody. But Brienne, who appeared just in time, lightly blocked the child.

“Madam, are you all right? But now. . .what are you doing?”

Elody put down the child's hair. The two boys were clearly discouraged when they saw the imposing figure of Brienne.The boys' eyes turned to the sword case on Brienne's waist. Elody shook off the remaining hair on her palm. “I'm fine. I think Caville's more surprised than me,” she said.

“Who are these boys?”

“The children that Caville used to know at the orphanage.”

“Damn. Let’s get out of here!” the boys said.

The children grumbled and ran away, frightened by Brienne. Elody clicked her tongue regretfully. I should have scolded them a little bit more.

“Huh? What's that?” Brienne said.

The freckled child dropped something while running away. Brienne brought it to Elody.

“Hmm. It's an old brooch?” Elody guessed.

“Really?”

“It looks like an artifact too, seeing the jewels glow.”

Elody looked at the brooch Brienne had handed over. It was her first time seeing an artifact. Artifact meant a relic with ancient magic. Of course, there were some artifacts recently created by magicians.

It was a great luxury that only the great nobility could have. In a word, an artifact was a disposable magic tool that contained certain magic. Of course, the older it was, the more valuable it was. It was safe to say that there were few artifacts with real ancient magic.

“Caville, are you okay? Raise your head.”

At the friendly question, Caville calmed down and looked up at Elody. The moment he lost hold of Elody's hand, Caville felt that he went black. The whole world beneath his feet turned black and fell in completely. It was terrible and scary. Caville was afraid that he'd never see Elody again.

She said she would be with me forever. . .I’m sure she said that. Caville hugged Elody's waist harder.

A friendly voice called him baby, and he felt her warm touch. She looked at him as if he were the most precious person in the world. He was afraid of losing everything. Caville had never imagined that he could be so separated from Elody, but he realized at that moment how important she was.

Everything turned invisible.

It was dark around him, and he felt like he was going to fall off the cliff if he took one step. He felt the two boys around him. Caville could not hear a word of what the two boys were saying. All he could think about was Elody. You left me. She left me because I cry and bother her every day, he thought.

But Elody reappeared and reached out to Caville. Still the anxiety that started to lift once continued to haunt Caville. This one might abandon me. When he thought about it, he felt more hopeless than before.

No, no, no, no.

Caville's eyes deepened a little.

You can't be abandoned. . .

He was afraid. The adults in the orphanage always said so.

You've been abandoned for a good reason. Useless things!

Get off, you worm. Dirty, cursed, and annoying bastards.

This was what he always heard under the beating.

Elody said the adults were nothing, but there were still sharp words remaining in Caville's heart.

Sharp blades, which had been hiding their existence, reappeared and began to scratch his heart.

You'll be abandoned.

Because you deserve it. That's what you're supposed to be.

The voices of adults rang vividly in Caville's ears.