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80. Beggar Siblings – The Other Two Girls

At Kasia’s words, Leo felt a sudden surge of frustration.

A woman begging a man she had just met to earn her money… She was sincerely pleading.

It was clear how she intended to earn that money.

‘What on earth should I do about this woman…’

It’s not that greed didn’t cross his mind. The beggar siblings scenario needed a lot of money.

There were issues of food, clothing, and shelter, but the cost of Lena’s education was urgent, and they desperately needed travel money to go to the Conrad Kingdom.

So, expressions of gratitude like thank you, I appreciate it, or whatever didn’t matter. He just had to show some positivity.

Then Kasia would bring in a lot of money and hand it over without any strings attached. She would happily sell her body and regularly bring back cash.

All Leo had to do was scoop up that cash soaked in tears easily…

Not to mention, he had the perfect accomplishment ready. It was as if he expected such a moment to arise, and he had the “Pimp Achievement” set aside.

But Leo shook his head and discarded the greed that filled his chest.

He couldn’t do that. No matter how desperate he was for money, he didn’t want to exploit Kasia, who had risked her life.

The Pimp Achievement? That kind of thing would never come into play.

Absolutely not.

Leo firmly refused Kasia’s request.

“No. It’s okay. You don’t need to bring me any money. I have no reason to take your money.”

“But… I really want to do something for you… all I know how to do is…”

Kasia glanced at Leo while hanging her head, her face blushing once more. She nervously clutched the bedspread.

“I’ll do anything. I really want to help you. I… I just—”

“Wait! Just a moment. Let me think.”

Leo quickly covered Kasia’s mouth.

He could tell what she was about to say without hearing it.

However, he didn’t want to hear that confession without having sorted out how to deal with Kasia.

In truth, he was still angry.

Recalling the moment his lovely younger sister presented him with a box full of gold coins, and remembering the profanities that tumbled from Lena’s sweet lips, his insides burned with rage.

However…

Leo was dithering, unable to reach a conclusion, but luckily, something came to mind that would make for an excuse.

[ Quest: Kasia’s Life – Please free Kasia from her shackles. ]

There was something that indicated his future course of action.

He couldn’t tell at all what to do, but nonetheless, this game had given him a quest.

To help her.

For the first time, a clear direction had been presented in this game where almost no information was given.

‘Right. Let’s follow the quest.’

Leo postponed his emotional conclusion regarding Kasia. With a lighter heart, he pondered for a moment and said,

“So… could you make some shoes for us?”

As Leo pointed to the mismatched shoes that he and Lena wore, Kasia stared at them blankly and asked,

“…Shoes?”

“Yes, it’s a shoe shop, isn’t it? It seems like there’s nothing that fits me or Lena… could you make just a couple of pairs? We need extra shoes because we’re going to travel soon.”

He remembered what Oberg had said in the previous beggar siblings scenario.

– “That kid who used to wander around with dumb fish eyes is actually normal these days. He’s been buying leather little by little to try making shoes. Ain’t that good? You can’t live your whole life like that.”

How he managed to compose himself was unclear, but it was certain that Kasia had started making shoes after being pushed away from him.

So Leo suggested the job she had chosen for herself.

He wasn’t quite sure what asking for her freedom exactly meant, but at least living by making shoes was better than living her life as a prostitute.

Yet Kasia hesitated and couldn’t answer quickly.

She had pretended she would do anything, but when it came to making shoes, she didn’t want to.

She knew the process… but she didn’t want to do what ‘father’ did.

She had sold her body to buy medicine for her sick father. She had chosen the only path possible at that time to try to save him.

And she had done her best, but it had been a futile effort.

In the end, her father abandoned her and committed suicide. He left as if he didn’t care how she lived.

Irresponsible and weak father.

She couldn’t forgive him.

Kasia cautiously looked up, preparing to ask Leo, “Could I buy some shoes instead?”

But then,

“Yes. I’ll make them for you.”

The moment their eyes met, her prepared response vanished without a trace. Instead, she spat out the opposite.

Her resentment toward her father and her self-loathing for becoming a prostitute shrank insignificantly in front of this man.

“Thank you.”

With just that one word from him, all her hesitation vanished. For this man, she could do anything. Anything.

Only thoughts like, ‘How do I make shoes? With leather and cloth…’ remained in her mind.

Kasia suddenly became busy, examining tools and rummaging through what materials were left.

Things that had been neglected for over ten years gradually emerged from the dust, remnants of her deceased father’s touch left everywhere.

Sighing with relief, Leo got up from his seat, feeling as though he had made a proper decision as he watched Kasia fuss with her ‘last’ tools.

“Lena, I’m stepping out for a bit. Wait for me in the room.”

“I want to watch you make shoes…”

“…Okay. But you must not go outside the shop under any circumstances. Got it? And if anyone else comes, you must hide in the room?”

“Okay!”

Normally, he would have said, “No. Stay in the room.”

Lena’s appearance was dangerous.

He had also warned her not to talk to Kasia before.

It was risky to grow close to her.

But…

– Take care of Lena.

It would be better for her to look at various things instead of being cooped up in a room. Kasia wasn’t that risky anymore.

As long as she stayed in the shop, it should be fine. Who would come down this remote alley, anyway?

Leo asked Kasia to keep Lena out of sight and stepped outside. He went to the clothing shop, changed his clothes, and brought some to his sister before using {Tracking Skill}.

As he stepped back outside, Lena was cautiously chatting with Kasia.

Having had no friends, Lena was excited to have her first conversation with someone other than her brother.

*

The wide training ground was filled with thunderous shouts.

“Thank you for your hard work!”

“Yeah, you too.”

Katrina wiped the sweat pouring from her chin and threw a challenge.

“You’d better fix what I pointed out by tomorrow, or you’ll get another beating.”

“Ah, no way, Senior. How can I fix that by tomorrow?”

“That’s your problem.”

She left behind the flustered newcomer named Deros and exited the training ground. The last newcomer she was assigned was rather demanding.

Cowardly and lacking daring.

“Ugh— I didn’t join the knights to babysit the newbies…”

After finishing her work, Katrina grumbled softly as she changed her clothes.

However, there was a flaw in her complaint.

Katrina had only taught Deros a little; she had spent most of her time on her own training.

But she felt even that time was a waste.

As a knight of the Second Knight Order of the Belita Kingdom, Katrina had her own aspirations when she joined.

She had wanted to join the First Knight Order and learn swordsmanship from Count Hermann Forte, the Swordmaster. She was completely absorbed in swordsmanship, eager to witness the pinnacle of it and to try to emulate it.

That was why she joined the knights.

However, she was assigned to the Second Knight Order, and learning from the Swordmaster became a distant dream.

Count Hermann Forte, the commander of the First Knight Order, wouldn’t teach swordsmanship to even the members of the Second Knight Order. That would be excessively rude behavior, disregarding the Second Knight Commander.

“Tch… What can I do? And honestly, what’s so special about learning from a Swordmaster? It’s all the same anyway…”

Following the adage that untasted meat is charred meat, Katrina let go of her lingering thoughts.

If she trained hard, she’d surely break through one day. She was still young.

Though she had hit a massive wall and had made no progress in her swordsmanship for some time, she was okay with it.

She had been born into a poor peasant family and had become a royal knight. She was the one who went from wielding a stick to realizing swordsmanship. This was her path. ─ casting aside self-doubt, Katrina encouraged herself.

Let’s work harder.

As she left the fort where the Second Knight Order was stationed, which was built south of the royal castle, she headed toward the market.

Since Ellen, who had trouble walking, couldn’t do the shopping, it was her task. Besides, she enjoyed buying various things.

However, just as she was nearing the market, Katrina noticed someone following her.

If it had been a petty stalker, she would have thought about showing them some harshness while reaching for her sword… but that was an overreaction.

The one following her was a young man on the cusp of shedding his youthful appearance. And a very handsome one at that.

No way such a good-looking guy could be a stalker. He stood out too much and followed her too openly.

Katrina turned around and said,

“Who are you to follow me? Do you want to die… or do you want a beating?”

[ Achievement: The Man Katrina Protects with Her Life – Gained great favor from Katrina. ]

For some reason, she found that little young man quite likable. Correcting her previous threat of death, Katrina scanned him from head to toe.

‘Wow, look at how good-looking he is. He’s skinny, but at this level, he’ll probably have girls crying over him later.’

Today was definitely a treat for her eyes.

“Excuse me… you’re a knight, right? I’m sorry, but could you take a look at my swordsmanship just once?”

What audacity! A cheeky little brat.

She had heard that sometimes there were such people. Those who repeatedly failed the entrance examination but thought there was nothing wrong with their swordsmanship and came to seek out knights.

“Uh, no way. I’m busy. The entrance exam just ended a while ago. If you still have regrets, go take the royal knight exam. It hasn’t started yet, right? And if you keep chasing after knights like this, you won’t have any excuses when you get beat up. I’ll let you off this time, but don’t do this again.”

She intended to explain as kindly as possible to the young man she somehow found appealing before she went on her way.

But then, she heard the sound of a sword being drawn behind her.

‘Ah~ I really can’t let him go.’

Was it because he was good-looking?

She softened a bit and decided to go easy on him… but today was going to be his last day.

Determined to give him a good thrashing, Katrina swung her sword at him with the scabbard.

– Thunk!

However, the swinging scabbard was easily blocked.

“Whoa? You can block it?”

With the intention of showing him a bitter lesson, Katrina drew her sword, and the young man who had followed her also readied his sword.

It was Leo.

‘So it’s true that the level of affection varies from person to person. Although the same high affection exists, this woman…’

It had become clear that Kasia was a unique person.

Who in the world would treat someone they met for the first time like they would give away all their organs?

Katrina’s current reaction seemed normal.

“Let’s see if you can block this as well!”

Katrina’s sword swung horizontally with great force.

Leo stood his ground to block but… it felt flimsy. Her sword lacked any real strength.

Katrina employed a deceptive style of swordsmanship filled with tricks.

She distracted Leo’s gaze with her sword, twisting her hips to deliver a kick.

At first, she merely intended to knock him down with sheer force, but she softened unexpectedly. She didn’t want to be too cruel to this young man who oddly appealed to her.

So she used her feet just to give him a bit of a scare, not enough to injure him… but his subsequent reaction astonished her.

The young man dodged the kick as if it were expected. In the same motion, his sword rotated with a graceful turn and came up.

A splendid move.

“You little brat! Not bad, huh?”

She instantly redirected the sword, which had been awkwardly positioned for a strike, turning its tip downwards and striking upwards.

Just from that, one could tell he had a high level of understanding of swordsmanship, but executing such a maneuver in actual combat required a refined grip; this guy had certainly handled a sword extensively.

‘This young man is impressive! Much better than Deros!’ ─ she thought as she blocked the upward strike with her sword.

– Clash!

And just as a brief power struggle ensued… huh?

The young man was overwhelmed.

‘Is this a trick?’

Those who frequently employed tricks were usually suspicious. She, being cautious, lightly tripped him.

Being pushed back, the young man attempted to avoid falling by leaping into a backflip, but even that failed, and he fell flat on his back.

“What the hell is this?”

Katrina asked in disbelief.

“Hey! Are you kidding me? What the heck are you doing?”

As Leo landed on his back, his face flushed red.