CWMBR 59

Chapter 59

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She suddenly popped out of nowhere, babbled some strange nonsense, and left, which was a bit memorable. Ain just casually tried to figure out what kind of kid she was. She was obviously from Elber, and since Elber was a tiny town, most kids there knew each other.

When Ain asked if there were children in this village, the maid looked slightly puzzled but answered readily. There weren't many children, and especially, there was only one girl around Ain’s age. The maid stammered through the few details she knew. That the girl was quite pretty for the daughter of ordinary peasants, or roughly this age.

The maid seemed to understand that Ain had asked the question out of boredom, having been confined to his bedroom all day.

"Oh?"

The girl repeated the question with surprise, looking somewhat puzzled. But she soon nodded nonchalantly, accepting Ain's words.

"Okay, then I'll call you brother. But why can't I go into your house?"

"Because it's dangerous."

"But I'm not a bad person..."

The girl muttered, sounding disappointed, but Ain pretended not to hear her.

He was someone who would stay here only briefly before leaving. What good would come to the girl if she got tangled up with him? Especially since Ain had recently been kidnapped. Even though his parents said they caught the culprit, he couldn't let his guard down yet. There were far too many people with bad intentions nearby who would approach the girl just because she'd briefly associated with him. That girl was far too naive; if such people approached her, she would undoubtedly be deceived with her bright innocence.

"Just read the book."

"Hmph."

The girl pouted. Just as she lowered her head to pick up the book, she suddenly looked up again at Ain.

"So, where does it hurt, brother?"

It seemed the girl preferred conversation over reading after all. Truthfully, to Ain, listening to fairy tales being read aloud or having a conversation were equally bothersome. Therefore, instead of insisting she read the book, he simply replied to her question.

"My body."

"Why does it hurt?"

"Just... everything."

"Why does it hurt just like that?"

The drugs the kidnappers fed him were cheap junk traded secretly in back alleys. Low-grade stuff, so focused on its purpose that it didn't give a damn about side effects on the user. The kidnappers fed Ain large quantities of it. Knowing his stubborn nature, they likely intended to subdue him more thoroughly. They didn't consider how much strain those drugs would put on Ain.

The result was exactly this state. His legs were completely devoid of strength, leaving him unable to take a single step without someone's help. It was fortunate that only his lower body was paralyzed; if he couldn't use his hands too, he would have stubbornly insisted on being locked away forever in some remote mountain valley.

The only silver lining was that it was presumed to be a temporary symptom, not permanent damage.

"Someone’s tormenting you?"

"Yeah."

"Should I go scold them for you?"

The girl asked with a surprisingly fierce glare. She probably meant it seriously, but those green eyes were still so innocent they didn't inspire any confidence. Ain didn't hide his scoff as he retorted.

"How could you?"

"Um... I read a lot of books. I've seen a lot of plays too."

"So?"

"There are lots of ways to punish bad people in them."

How could she be so absurdly ignorant? Ain now found the girl somewhat intriguing. What on earth was in her head that she could only pick out such nonsense to say? He even began to doubt whether she was truly human like him. He didn't believe in fantasy novels, but if someone claimed this girl was actually some kind of fairy who knew nothing of the real world, he might just believe it. There was no other way she could spout such unrealistic nonsense.

"Fairy tales are just fairy tales."

At Ain’s words, the girl narrowed her eyes and focused her gaze.

"My dad said that even a single ordinary line of dialogue in a play could change someone's life."

Her voice carried absolute trust in her listener.

"That's why you can learn how to punish bad people from fairy tales."

Ain narrowed his eyes and tilted his head slightly.

"I don't think that's what it means."

"It’s right."

"Are you stupid?"

"Brother."

The girl widened her eyes and looked serious.

"You're the first person to call me stupid. Apologize."

"Why should I?"

"Because I'm not stupid! A stupid person couldn't read a book!"

Had he ever had such a stupid conversation in his life?

Ain, who had been pouting, finally bowed his head deeply and covered his mouth. It was so absurd and ridiculous that the more they talked, the more he felt like he was turning into a fool himself. Yet, despite that, this moment felt more interesting than any ordinary day. There was no need to strain his brain guessing her intentions or carefully choosing every word, no need to calculate even a single glance.

Ain realized this time felt quite comfortable. So comfortable, in fact, that a meaningless laugh escaped him.

"You really are an idiot."

"What did you say?"

In the end, they didn't even finish reading the fairy tale book the girl brought that day.

But it didn't matter. The girl had promised to come the next day and read it to him. She kept her promise.

The strange encounter between the girl and Ain continued like that. Even without being asked, the girl appeared at similar times each day, so she didn't draw the attention of the servants. Throughout the girl's visits, the sky over Elber was clear and the sunlight warm.

The air flowing in through the open window was still muggy. But Ain no longer felt the need to close that window. He didn't want to draw the curtains either.

For beneath the cloudless, clear sky, the sparkling scenery complemented the girl quite well. The pale-pigmented crown of her head, suddenly rising beneath the square window, shone brilliantly golden whenever it caught the sunlight, a sight quite pleasing to the eye. 

In contrast, her face, shaded from the sunlight, revealed clear green eyes that stood out vividly. Just looking at her brought such peace to his heart that he wanted to capture that very scene on canvas and hang it in his bedroom. Of course, even a painting couldn't capture the girl's cheerful voice.

"What's your name?"

It seemed to be around the time he had listened to several more fairy tales beyond The Snow Queen.

Ain suddenly wondered what the girl's name was. He could easily find out all her details through the maid, but he wanted to hear it directly from her. Besides, there was no need to let the maid know he was curious about someone's background.

At Ain's question, the girl's voice reading the storybook abruptly stopped. Then, a moment later, her head popped up from below the window.

"When you ask someone their name, you should tell them yours first, brother."

"You never miss a chance to say something, do you?"

Revealing his identity just to learn that girl's name would be foolish. Ain reached that conclusion instantly. But his mouth was already moving.

"I'm Ain Wise."

Ain answered without thinking, then bit his lip in regret. No matter how friendly the girl seemed, revealing his identity so casually was a rash decision.

Whether she knew Ain was regretting it inside or not, the girl rolled his name around in her mouth, savoring it several times. Then, she opened her mouth with a bright smile.

"So you're brother Ain!"

There was no hint of anything unusual in that response. So Ain was flustered.

"................Is that all?"

The Wise family was a famous clan whose name appeared in the newspapers constantly. This wasn't a situation where such a bright, cheerful reaction should come back.

Ain stared at the girl in a daze. Noticing his reaction, the girl exclaimed cheerfully in an even higher-pitched voice.

"Wow, what a cool name!"

"………………That's it?"

"Wow, it's like a protagonist's name!"

"Don't you know the Wise family?"

The girl, who had been beaming, quietly rolled her eyes and looked away.

"Uh... sorry."

Ain let out a hollow laugh at the awkward apology. He felt strangely ridiculous about how resolutely he'd acted earlier, refusing to reveal his identity to the girl. Maybe the moment she turned away, the girl would erase the very name "Wise family" from her mind. She'd probably just remember him as "brother Ain."

There were all sorts of ways to make someone feel ridiculous, weren’t there? What kind of kid was this?

"You really are an idiot."

Ain's muttered words, almost like a soliloquy, were met with the girl's sharp retort.

"The Wise family isn't in fairy tales, you know?"

"Then is your name in fairy tales?"

"………………Of course not."