Chapter 115 : Chapter 115
Chapter 115: Taking Off the Mask (2)
“Thanks.”
Of course, it was a nice thing to hear, but it wasn't actually the answer I was looking for right now.
That I am beautiful is, as always, a self-evident fact, and what I wanted to know now was if it was really different from that ‘always’.
So, I turned my body again, and this time, I stared intently at Nero.
“……!?”
At that, Nero flinched and shrank back.
“Uh, uh uh, um… uwaah…”
She fidgeted, not knowing what to do, and eventually turned her head sharply, avoiding my gaze.
But that was just a reaction due to her innate personality, unable to bear being stared at by others.
Not because she was particularly infatuated or anything after seeing my face.
Well, actually, that could be a possibility.
After all, I am a peerless beauty whom no one could disagree with.
However, at the very least, I could confidently say it wasn't a ‘charmed’ reaction.
The very fact that she could look away from me like that was proof that she wasn't charmed.
If she had been in a ‘charmed’ state, she would have continued to stare at me right now, regardless of her shy personality.
“Wh-wh-wh, why are you doing that…”
In other words, it meant that the trait of 「The Beauty that Topples a Kingdom."」 was actually being suppressed.
And yet, my Charisma stat was displayed as 30, just as it was when I had completely taken off the mask.
This meant that while the Charisma stat bonus effect was being maintained, only the indiscriminate 「Charm」 that was cast regardless of my will was not being activated.
“──Ha. Haha.”
After confirming this, a laugh escaped me inadvertently.
Wearing the mask all this time, honestly, wasn't by choice.
It would be a lie to say it wasn't uncomfortable.
After all, wearing something on your face can't really be comfortable, can it?
But now that I finally didn't need to wear the mask… how should I put it, the sense of liberation was much greater than I had thought.
“Thank you, Ms. Nero.”
Therefore, I expressed my sincere gratitude to Nero.
“You truly are a genius. There is no one else in this world who could create such an item.”
“Ah…”
At that, Nero, who became even shyer than when I had just stared at her, looked for a place to rest her gaze, and then, unable to hold it in, she smiled.
“Heh, hehe…”
She then tried to cover her face by pulling her hair down, but it was not enough to hide her excited expression, as her laughter kept leaking out.
“I-I’ve, n-never, heard such a compliment before….”
“You'll be hearing it often from now on.”
Not empty words, but for real.
Now that she had signed a contract with the Ria Merchant Company a while ago, it was a given that Nero's name would spread far and wide.
Before long, the entire continent would be praising Nero's name.
As a genius of the century.
“You’d better get used to it soon, you know?”
And of course, we, as the first regular customers who first discovered this genius of the century, would naturally reap the benefits.
“N-nowadays, I feel like I'm dreaming…”
Nero began to stammer in a voice mixed with shyness and joy.
“Until just a while ago, I was in a position where I was worrying about how to pay this month's rent… Th-then one day, all of you came to me…”
“I'm glad to hear you say that. I was planning on investing more, as a matter of fact.”
“……Ye, yes?”
Towards Nero, who tilted her head, not yet fully accepting my words, I gave a wide smile and said.
“Don't you think it's about time you moved out of a warehouse like this and into a more proper place?”
“M-move…?”
“From now on, you can leave the sales of the products to the Ria Merchant Company, and Ms. Nero can get a separate workshop where you can focus more on creation.”
I confidently said that we would provide all the necessary funds for that.
“This time, I’m thinking of investing about, 100,000 gold.”
“……What?”
For a moment, Nero's face froze.
Not that she stiffened, but as if she had really broken down.
“J-j-just now, h-how, how much did you say…”
“100,000 gold.”
Nero, who had frozen on the spot, eventually collapsed right where she stood.
As if she had fainted.
“…?!”
Surprised, I rushed over to her, but fortunately(?), she hadn't actually passed out.
“M-my, legs, gave out……”
Because with a trembling hand, she was pinching her own cheek, mustering what little strength she had left.
***
It was a short while after leaving Nero's shop.
“I've thought of something I want to do.”
Suddenly, Rine brought this up.
“Oh, really? What is it?”
At the very welcome news, I stopped in my tracks and asked as I turned around, and Rine answered, lightly pulling the hand she was holding.
“I would like to receive the proof you promised.”
“The proof, from last time?”
Rine nodded silently.
She had asked for something to replace the 「Slave Brand」 after it was removed… proof that we were still connected.
“Do you have anything in mind?”
Rine, who had been contemplating with her gaze lowered for a moment, looked up at me again and said.
“Something that I can always carry with me, would be good.”
“Hmm… then perhaps an accessory?”
At my muttering, Rine gave a small nod.
If it’s an artifact that can be used as an accessory, if I ask Nero for another one, it might be finished before we go to Krom.
So, wondering if I should go back to the atelier, I looked back the way I came, and Rine gently pulled my hand again, with a similar force to when she used to pull on my sleeve.
“I would like to have it today.”
It seemed she had read my thoughts.
Certainly, if I commissioned it from Nero, it would take time.
No matter how fast, it would be absolutely impossible to get it today.
“Really?”
Well, there was the method of buying a normal item and enchanting it, so there was no reason I couldn't grant Rine's request.
Therefore, I took Rine and headed to the market.
There was a street there lined with stalls selling various accessories.
“Pick whatever you like.”
So I planned to walk around that street with Rine and let her choose something she liked, but.
“Anything that Lord Yubin chooses for me is fine.”
Unlike when we first went to pick out clothes, this time, Rine's will was rather firm.
“Still…”
“…If you do not choose it for me, then I do not want it.”
To the point where she even expressed her wishes clearly by saying she didn't want it, and shook her head as if throwing a tantrum.
Of course, her expression looked as blank as always, but in fact, this was the face she made when she had no intention of backing down.
“Hmm…”
Well, maybe I should be satisfied with the fact that she asked for what she wanted on her own this time.
In any case, this too is a process of Rine finding what she truly wants, taking one step forward at a time.
“Okay, I understand.”
If so, then my job this time would be to do my best to think about what item would suit Rine the most.
I stroked my chin and looked over Rine's attire.
She was already wearing a necklace we had bought in Stout.
An item that's easy to carry… then a ring, perhaps?
Come to think of it, I still hadn't gotten her a proper ring.
After all, the two ring artifacts I obtained in Stout and Daian were both on my hands.
Just then, Rine, who was staring intently at me as I was lost in thought, seemed to have thought of something else, and this time, she lightly shook the hand she was holding.
“It would be good if it is easily visible.”
“Easily visible?”
“I would like it to be an item that… other people can also recognize right away.”
An item that can be recognized right away… then something other than a ring might be better?
A bracelet?
…No, would that be covered by her sleeve?
I gently picked up Rine's sleeve to get a rough estimate.
“Hmm…”
Perhaps because comfort was the standard when she chose them, the sleeves were long and wide.
Unless she deliberately rolled them up, a bracelet wouldn't be very visible.
“Hmm… ah, then how about earrings? You could wear them all the time.”
Rine nodded without long consideration.
It seemed to be a choice she liked.
“Is it okay for a moment?”
I then asked for permission, and this time, I gently touched the side of Rine's hair.
Rine's hairstyle was a short bob with a slight wave, giving it some volume.
Thanks to her elven pointed ears, they were half-exposed, but if they had been human ears, they would probably be completely covered.
So, for it to be noticeable, it would be better if the ornament was a bit long and hung down.
Therefore, I carefully looked around the stalls based on that criterion, and.
“How about this?”
After over two hours of deliberation, I found a pair of earrings with ornaments in a color that would best suit Rine's tone.
Seeing them, there was still no change in Rine's expression, but instead, she immediately nodded.
“Here, you go.”
After paying, I immediately placed the pair of earrings on Rine's palm.
Rine's earlobes were already pierced, so there was no need to get them pierced again.
It was probably a trace of an identification tag she had to wear when she was first captured by the slave traders.
That thought brought a slightly… bitter feeling, but Rine immediately put on one of the earrings, as if to paint over that image that had flashed through my mind.
“How is it?”
A smile naturally formed on my lips, which had been unconsciously twisted.
My eyes were not wrong.
It was a sight worth the long deliberation.
“It suits you really well.”
“…Thank you.”
At my answer, Rine calmly expressed her gratitude and looked down at the remaining earring on her palm.
Then, instead of putting it on her other ear, she took my hand just as I had done a moment ago, and gently placed it on my palm.
“…Huh?”
She didn't say anything, but somehow, I immediately understood her intention.
“Could it be, you want me to wear this?”
Sure enough, Rine immediately nodded.
“I want to have, proof that you and I are connected.”
Is that not allowed?
Rine asked this, and began to look up at me with a stoic gaze.
At that, I let out a short laugh and followed Rine's way.
Instead of answering, I immediately showed her by putting it on my own ear.
Rine wore it on her right ear, so I should wear this on my left ear.
“How is it?”
Then, when I asked just as Rine had, Rine gave back the same answer.
“It suits you well.”
And so, we were once again connected, not by something like a contract, but by a promise── as its proof.
Even without a thread of magic, and even without holding each other's hands.
***
“We're back.”
Rine and I returned to our lodgings around dinner time.
“Ah, you're here!”
It seemed the other companions had all returned already.
“What, did you guys make it yourselves or something?”
Unlike the other companions, Ibi grumbled in her usual Ibi-speak instead of a normal greeting.
“You said you just had to pick it up, so what took so long?”
Considering I planned to enchant the earrings I bought today later, she might not be entirely wrong.
“Or what, couldn't you hold it in and got tangled up with some weirdo again──”
But when she turned her head.
“──Huh?”
Ibi, too, had the same reaction as the other companions next to her.
That is, she flinched and froze.
Of course, the reason they were all surprised was probably just one thing.
“Ah, yeah. I took it off.”
Because they had seen my face, with the mask off.