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7. Beggar Siblings – Appearance

The face of my younger sister, freshly washed, turned towards Leo.

Lena was pretty.

No, she was beautiful.

Her neatly shaped eyebrows framed her round forehead, and between her raspberry-like lips, a row of even teeth peeked out, shining white.

Leo’s well-cleaned cheeks, though dry, maintained their elegance, and her charmingly small ears marked the beginning of a fine jawline that balanced beautifully with her graceful nose.

And those eyes! In those well-defined lashes, her well-like eyes sparkled as if filled with gold coins, illuminating Lena’s entire expression with a golden glow.

This Lena surely bore a resemblance to the previous two Lenas at a glance. However, in terms of looks alone, the Lena from the village of Demos was simply a pretty girl from a small town, while Lena Ainar from Abrival Castle was just a beautiful female warrior at best.

But this Lena, though still very young and quite thin, showcased a beauty that would make the phrase “a beauty to rival the nation” feel insufficient. With a bit more flesh, some makeup, and a few more years, even the heroes from mythology would seem to lose their convictions before her.

Only then did he understand why Leo had left the filth clinging to his sister’s face. It was deliberately left there.

He also realized why they hadn’t built a house in a place like this and joined the group of beggars. They were hiding Lena.

It explained why Lena did not know where to find water.

She probably fetched water with a small cup placed outside and brought it all the way back…

As Leo stared blankly at Lena, a question fluttered in her sparkling eyes.

“Brother, why are you like this?”

“…It’s nothing. Let’s sleep now.”

“Okay.”

The narrow floor was covered with small rags.

He laid his sister against the wall and himself laid down as if to guard the outside, using his arm as a pillow. Lena, feeling tired, quickly fell asleep in her brother’s embrace.

Leo could not sleep.

Seeing Lena’s face filled him with worry.

‘I thought it would be enough to just avoid being a beggar…’

This scenario, while starting under somewhat harsh conditions, wasn’t riddled with the tight contradictions that plagued the previous ones, and seemed to possess many advantages.

First of all, they were siblings.

Their relationship did not affect Lena’s marriage, and rather, it was a situation where he could actively assist her.

And Lena was young. She seemed one or two years younger than the others, which was a significant advantage. It meant they were given time to prepare for something.

But Lena looked like this.

This excessive beauty brought about serious problems.

It would be convenient later when she became a princess, but right now, they couldn’t do anything. She had to hide for fear of being discovered by someone.

At this age, she was still a girl on the brink of becoming a middle school student, and though her presence might slip by unnoticed, once she grew a bit older, she’d reach an age when men’s gazes would certainly fall upon her, making it insufficient to simply cover her face.

And then there was that necklace with a white seal. Having played enough games, he could tell it was something deeply related to bloodlines. Although he wasn’t fully aware yet, such items always brought disaster.

‘This scenario is completely leaning towards the later stages.’

Such scenarios are incredibly tough at the start.

A secret of birth and exquisite beauty. It was a situation where it was challenging to grow in power without drawing attention, but it also meant that there was a powerful enemy somewhere plotting to strike openly.

On the other hand, if they could endure the hardships somehow, it was also a scenario that could yield maximum results.

The siblings, born into noble status but pushed out into the streets, Leo found it easy to anticipate the end of this scenario.

Only…

‘If I were a bit stronger.’

A very wicked thought slipped through his mind in a moment. Perhaps it was something that lingered as a result of repeatedly going through scenarios and because it had not been long since he became Leo.

Admittedly, it was a twisted idea, but if he practiced swordsmanship a bit more and started ‘next’ time, wouldn’t he be able to handle it easily? A completely flawed thought.

A thought that dared to disregard the current Lena.

From the younger Lena, who was peacefully sleeping in his arms, he felt a deep familial bond. An adorable sister whom he needed to protect.

The silly reason he could repeat scenarios didn’t diminish her worth in the slightest.

As Leo felt his sister’s little breaths tickling his neck and conscience, he gradually fell asleep, filled with self-recrimination.

At least it was a warm summer; that was a stroke of luck for them.

*

The next day, Lena woke up early. Fearing some ominous premonition, she hastily lifted her head to find her brother, and thankfully, he was still sleeping beside her.

‘Why did I wake up so early?’

Her brother always woke up before her and fetched her a glass of water from somewhere, calling her awake. But for some reason, he was still asleep today.

‘Is he really that tired?’

Lena felt a wave of guilt wash over her. She didn’t feel like she was contributing much. Most of their food was found by her brother, and she merely trailed behind, taking whatever he offered her.

I am a burden.

Lingering too long might wake her brother, so Lena carefully crawled outside.

The cup outside was filled with water. Thinking back, it must have rained yesterday and collected some in the cup. Her brother probably didn’t bother fetching water since there was already some.

Finally, she had something she could do. Lena took a small sip and left most of it untouched.

That water was for her brother.

To wait for her brother, Lena sat on the ground for a moment, basking in the morning sunlight. The bright sunlight brought back memories of a wonderful dream she had the night before.

+ + +

A wide room shimmering in all colors.

I was playing hide and seek. The room was so spacious that hiding spots were everywhere. After much deliberation, I hid behind a scarlet curtain and peeked out to steal glances as my brother wandered around, asking where I had gone.

I tried my hardest not to giggle. However, the more I tried to suppress my laughter, the more fun it became, and eventually, I couldn’t hold it back any longer, and my brother found me.

“There you are! Our princess!”

He half-lifted me into his arms and spun me around. As the room spun, my brother’s face was clearly visible…

Then, I heard someone’s voice.

+ + +

“You woke up early.”

“Yep! I woke up first today.”

Leo crawled out cautiously, trying not to crumble the house.

Lena, sitting against the wall and basking in the sunlight, was so pretty it made him sad.

“Did you drink water?”

“Yeah! I drank it all. That’s for you.”

She had only taken a few sips, leaving more than half in the cup. Leo offered her the water that was only half-drunk though she insisted it was all for him, but he pressed it into her hands anyway.

Leo stretched out his short, thin limbs, loosening his body. Overnight, the moisture from the ground had drenched him, leaving him tired, but hunger soon returned unabated.

Early in the morning, there should be plenty to eat near the market. They must have tossed away leftover food supplies while cleaning up the stores yesterday, so they needed to gather some before they cleared out the trash.

He hurriedly painted Lena’s face black and hurried off toward the market.

The market was bustling with merchants transporting goods.

The siblings rummaged through the trash bins. They found a decent amount of vegetables like lettuce that don’t keep well, discarding the dirty ones and handing the clean ones to Lena in order.

Her crunching happily without any complaints was endearing.

Then Lena spotted some potatoes.

“Can I eat this?”

It was sprouting.

Before Lena could get to it, Leo snatched the sprouted potato away and told her not to eat it.

As they searched for food, Leo noticed a group approaching from a distance. They looked scruffy, beggars rifling through the trash bins.

“Lena, let’s go.”

It wouldn’t do them any good to run into those people, so Leo quickly slipped away with whatever they had. A few of them glanced at the two but did not chase after them.

With some vegetables to eat, they satiated themselves a little without feeling thirsty.

Taking advantage of that small reprieve, Leo familiarized himself with his surroundings. He chatted idly with Lena while wandering about.

His sister loved talking about building houses, so she pointed out a few sunny spots saying, “We could build a house here next time, this place seems nice too.”

Just imagining it brought him joy.

Someday, he wanted to live with his brother in a splendid, warm house for the rest of their lives!

As they wandered around for a while, Lena began to feel off.

‘Huh…? Why does my head hurt?’

Strangely enough, her head ached more than her legs, and she felt colder instead of warmer despite having walked for so long.

Her body trembled and stiffened to the point walking became difficult. Her brother, busy surveying the surroundings ahead, was unaware.

‘I can’t worry him for no reason. But my stomach seems to hurt too… Am I hungry? No, I ate a little while ago?’

Cold sweat trickled down her head, but Lena held on tight and silently followed her brother.

She tried to take deep breaths to calm herself, but it was futile.

The dizziness kept intensifying.

The world began to spin slowly.

*

“Lena?”

While Leo was lost in thought, trying to navigate the paths, he suddenly felt the presence vanish from behind him.

Turning around, he saw Lena collapsed just a few steps back.