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161. Beggar Siblings – Exits and Entrances

“…What a pity.”

Leo, having roughly grasped the situation, spoke up. Now I understood why I couldn’t fetch water.

I must have met this woman in the morning. Based on her demeanor, it appeared I had made a sort of confession.

But Leo still held his tongue.

He realized that this meeting with the woman was quite an important {event}, yet he had no idea what it was for. In this damn game, events were not always a good thing. Honestly, most of them weren’t.

Nonetheless, Leo put on a dejected expression, one typical of a man who had just failed a confession. Bearing the weight of painful memories, he found it easy to wear such a face.

He let out a faint sigh through his nose.

Lowering his head slightly, he turned his eyes aside, as if contemplating whether there was truly no hope left.

Just then, Ksenia spoke up, noticing his hesitance.

“Well, we meet often, don’t we, Leo? After all, we’ve only just introduced ourselves!”

But her tone was tinged with a hint of disappointment. Sensing that, Leo abruptly shifted the mood.

“Thank you. So, how often shall we meet, Miss Ksenia?”

No matter whether it was a good or bad event, there was no avoiding it. At the very least, he needed to know what it was about.

The most dreadful event. The scenario where he had become an Apostle of Barbatos, involving his childhood friend, was a haunting memory that he feared might reappear in dreams, yet it had left him with plenty of rewards and information. If he hadn’t gone through that event, he would still view Prince Eric de Yeriel, who served Oriax, as an untouchable being.

Now, though, things felt a bit more manageable. He understood the power that these Apostles held and the numerous constraints binding them.

Ksenia’s eyes widened in surprise. Her lips twisted and curled into a laugh, revealing a bright smile.

“You called me ‘Miss Ksenia’? Haha, I didn’t expect that from you, Leo. Just call me Ksenia like before. I was just being a bit petty… heh… sneaking in some attitude.”

Ah…

Leo began to catch on. For reasons unknown, this woman seemed to enjoy it when he took a strong stance.

However,

‘Can I trust her?’

That was the only thought running through Leo’s mind as he observed the woman in front of him.

When Ksenia said, “Then I’ll take care of your younger sister as promised. Feel free to come visit me anytime. I’ll always be here,” Leo’s suspicions reached their peak.

It was alright to be suspicious. No matter how friendly she acted, she was still a stranger.

‘I might trust Kasia, but leaving my sister with a complete stranger is out of the question.’

Despite chatting amicably, Leo arrived at a negative conclusion. His heart raced, but trust and anxiety were separate matters.

Yet, since he had no clue where Kasia was, Leo agreed to her help, believing it could work for a day or two until he found Kasia.

“Then what about your brother? Are you going home alone? No way, I want to go too! Don’t leave me behind!”

Lena whined. Leo firmly put his foot down, stating, “Then you can’t come! You need to say thank you first!”

– Knock knock.

Oberg appeared. Though it wasn’t yet time for the play to end, it seemed he had just woken up and came looking for us, still sporting some sleep in his eyes.

[ Achievement: First Meeting with the Family Boss – The Thugs have a weak trust in you. ]

“There you are. Sorry about earlier. I thought the beggars had heard my name from somewhere. But Ksenia, what’s your relation to these guys? Are they relatives?”

“Um~ Not really.”

As the plump Oberg entered, Ksenia replied somewhat shyly in the cramped room.

“They’re my hidden lovers.”

*

“This friend here seems to be worth something.”

As they descended the stairs, Oberg patted Leo’s shoulder.

“Scoring our Orange Theater’s finest beauty, huh? I figured Ksenia wouldn’t be interested in guys, but turns out she had high standards! Hahaha. A lot of friends will cry and fuss when they find out about this.”

“Where’s Kasia?”

Cutting straight to the point, Leo threw out the question. Oberg, following closely behind, seemed taken aback and asked back.

“You know Kasia?”

“Yeah.”

“How do you know her?”

“…I helped her out once in the past.”

“Is that so? Well, Kasia is a kind person… Wait, how did you know to ask me that? Did you know I knew Kasia?”

“…”

After a moment’s pause, Leo responded, “That’s right.”

His vague but firm answer stopped Oberg from probing further.

“That’s good. I was planning to go see Kasia anyway. First, take this.”

Oberg pulled a bundle of keys from his pocket. After unlocking a storage room on the first floor of the theater, he handed out various supplies.

There were blankets, pillows, dishes, hangers, towels, and among those, a few pieces of sponge.

In fact, Minseo was quite surprised to see a sponge after arriving in this world.

Sponges are a general term for animals living in the sea. These plant-like creatures grow attached to the ocean floor, and when cut and dried in the sun, they leave behind a soft, elastic skeletal structure full of tiny holes.

This is what we know as a sponge. Minseo was startled to discover that this modern marvel, resembling the character “SpongeBob,” existed here as well.

This item, used even in ancient Rome, was incredibly useful. Its ability to absorb moisture made it ideal for medical and bathing purposes.

Leo had experience with sponges too. He had used one to clean blood in a battlefield barrack and had employed them while staying with Tatian and the House of Marquis Gaidan.

For cleaning purposes.

Sponges were akin to tissues for the nobles. They had to be rinsed and reused, but, well, it didn’t matter since they wouldn’t be the ones rinsing them.

Why was he giving this here?

Leo assumed it was likely for showering or washing dishes, and that assumption proved correct.

However, there was another reason why sponges were so commonly used among commoners here that made them a bit exotic.

Sponges were also used for contraception.

After moving the daily necessities for Lena into Ksenia’s room, Leo and Oberg left the theater.

Walking while making small talk, they arrived at a bustling marketplace.

Since this was an area managed by the Rauno Family, Leo knew exactly where he was.

It was a neighborhood cheaper than the market that served as a starting point for the Beggar Siblings scenario since it was close to the slums where beggars lived.

Just then, Leo’s steps halted. He spotted a woman haggling with customers in front of a distant shop. With silky straight hair, that frail woman was clad in a work leather apron.

Kasia. No, is that really Kasia?

She looked nothing like the Kasia he knew; the Kasia he remembered never smiled like that. She wouldn’t… speak like that.

“Aww! If I can’t keep my earnings, what’s the point? Miss, don’t be like that. Can’t you see this is already marked down? It won’t fall apart! If anything goes wrong, I’ll fix it for you, so don’t worry—go ahead and take it. Okay?”

Her sparkling eyes radiated cheer, and the woman in her mid-twenties casually interacted with a disgruntled customer.

“Kasia! I’m here!”

“Ah! Uncle Oberg, long time no see! Just a moment, please. Miss, shall I show you something else? There might be something a little cheaper!”

Leo stared in bewilderment at her tenacity. When Kasia, having sold two pairs of shoes, turned around with her arms crossed at her waist, he felt breathless.

Was she capable of taking such a stance? Did she know how to lift her head high?

What came next was even more surprising.

“Who’s this?”

[ Achievement: The Man Kasia Dedicated Her Life to Protect – Gained significant favor with Kasia. ]

Gone were the days when the shy Kasia twisted and turned in bewilderment. She faced Leo with a prideful stance in her life.

“I just met him today, but he’s Ksenia’s boyfriend.”

“What? Ksenia has a boyfriend? Wow, that’s interesting! How did you manage to charm a guy who only knows about plays? He’s handsome, though. What’s going on?”

Oberg began to explain the situation. However, Leo couldn’t hear him.

Oberg rummaged through shoes to select a pair for Lena. Leo, still gazing blankly at Kasia, eventually snapped out of his daze.

“Don’t you need shoes too? If you’re going to choose, do it quickly.”

Only when Kasia pointed at his worn-out mismatched shoes did Leo regain his senses.

Eventually, a clean pair of canvas shoes was slipped on. They weren’t as pretty as the shoes Kasia had gifted him long ago, but they fit Leo perfectly.

Kasia extended her hand.

“You need to pay, though. Let’s see… One gold coin.”

“…Excuse me? A gold coin?”

“I meant a silver coin. Haha! Uncle Oberg is taking care of your sister’s, right? What? An advance? Don’t talk nonsense and hand it over already.”

Kasia snatched the silver coin from Leo’s hand. A strange déjà vu washed over him.

“Then I’ll be going. Wishing you good business! How about grabbing a drink later?”

“No. I’m busy. I need to restock what sold today.”

“Tch. Alright. Just take it easy. You’re so thin…”

“I’ll handle it myself, you know? You should lose some weight too. Just building muscles won’t do. You’re getting old… Aaaah! What are you doing?!”

Oberg flicked some shoe polish onto Kasia’s cheek with his finger. Kasia yelled, “Get lost! You nuisance!” and kicked Oberg in the butt.

I wanted to share some words of happiness. Yet, unable to bring myself to say anything, Leo mumbled quietly and turned away.

It seemed that nothing was required of Kasia in terms of gratitude or farewells. The best thing I could do was to remove myself from her life.

Feeling the comfortable fit of the shoes wrapping around my feet as I looked back, I saw Kasia humming while tidying the display stands.

– “I will serve you. I will be happy. More than anyone else in this world.”

In the bustling market square, it almost felt like she was whispering directly into Leo’s ear, bright in her violet apron.

*

Upon returning to the theater, Leo could neither tell if he was happy nor sad.

His heart felt hollow, as if a hole had been blown in it. Simultaneously, some emotion soared and constantly shook that empty space.

He was happy, but it didn’t feel right.

He was sad, yet not overtly so.

“Ugh.”

He had forgotten to breathe. He was unsure what expression he had been wearing until now, but Oberg, walking beside him, remained silent.

The theater was quiet.

It seemed a good while had passed since the play ended; no audience was in sight, just a few actors and the former whores lingering about on the top tier of the theater.

And on the stage, there was Lena. Under the still-lit lights, she was alongside Ksenia.

“When you meet a king, you greet like this. Can you try it?”

“Like this?”

“Yes. But there’s no need to bend too low. Just enough to show respect without being servile. Good.”

Positioned prominently on the wide stage, the two women brightened by blond and black hair were strikingly different. However, perhaps due to both wearing white dresses, they also appeared somewhat sisterly.

After briefly displaying an elegant posture, Lena stood upright.

“But will I ever meet a king?”

“It’s a common occurrence in plays. That’s why I love theater. You can be anything and dream anything. What do you want to be?”

Lena wore a pensive look, tilting her head adorably, but no answer came forth.

Ksenia smiled gently. Lowering her head to match Lena’s eye-level, she gazed directly into Lena’s eyes and said,

“It’s alright. This just means there’s a world of possibilities ahead. You can become anything. Except a noble, of course.”

Ksenia straightened up, took a deep breath, and began to sing.

“King! Please make this person noble!” The song started with Lena right after Bahnun’s recommendation scene.

Engaging in whispered conversations before suddenly launching into a play was something Chaehwa would have done.

Leo couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. As Kasia exited, it was painful to see Ksenia about to step in to fill the void inside him.