Renovation (2)
Early morning.
The servant, who rose at dawn, stifled a yawn as he crossed the inner courtyard of the castle. He was on his way to tend to the horses in the stable for the knight he served. With the return of the Young Count and his knights, who had left Ertinez Castle for relief efforts, the once quiet stables were now bustling with life.
"Why are there mules in the castle stables?"
Muttering to himself, he picked up a basket and a brush and headed toward the water's edge. As he walked at a leisurely pace, other early-rising servants passed by, holding dishes and utensils that needed cleaning. It was an ordinary, everyday scene. However, the rumours he overheard were anything but ordinary.
"Is it true? Did the second young master really…?"
"I'm telling you, I saw it with my own eyes yesterday! He was completely smitten. You should've seen him at the banquet hall."
The second young master of the House of Ertinez, known as the "Troublemaker," Leonardo. The servant had already heard the news: the notorious drunkard of El Dante, who had disappeared and was presumed missing, had finally returned.
"Yesterday, the whole castle was in an uproar, wasn't it?"
When news of the Troublemaker's return spread, the servant had dashed to a spot overlooking the inner courtyard to sneak a glance. He was stunned to see that the once lazy noble, who had avoided swordsmanship, now carried himself with a vigor and dignity much like the knight he served.
They say a man becomes one only after facing life's harsh trials, and it seemed that the young master had endured quite a few during his month away. Perhaps it wasn't merely hardship he'd encountered… After all, one tends to take care of oneself if there's someone special to impress.
"I heard the Lord opposes it?"
"They say he sent him off to the remote Lilium Fortress."
"Interesting."
In the midst of an otherwise dull daily routine, this bit of intrigue was impossible to ignore. The servant's ears perked up as he listened to the gossip. The other servants kept whispering.
"There's even a bet going on about how long he'll last there. If he came expecting anything grand just because he's a noble, he'll be exhausted and give up in no time."
"Sigh. Honestly, I'd rather believe the rumour that he's reformed. If he does bump into that travelling companion again, I'd even make up nice things to tell him. They say he acts like a different person around them, after all. And who knows—if he really sticks with them, it might even work out well for all of us."
"Is that so…"
It had been just a day since the Troublemaker's return, but the servant had already heard plenty about it. Rumours spread faster within the castle than in the marketplace, especially among the lower-ranking servants, where word travelled like wildfire.
Of course, as with any rumour, the stories were varied. Some claimed the Troublemaker had been utterly smitten with a commoner and had gone so far as to drag them to El Dante after recklessly burning their means of livelihood. Another rumour suggested that an unsuspecting commoner had followed him, enchanted by his noble appearance and heritage, without realizing he was clinging to a rotten lifeline. Finally, there was talk that the Troublemaker had met his true match, prompting him to temper his behaviour and return to the castle in genuine repentance.
The servant didn't put much stock in any of these stories. Anyone who'd ever seen the Troublemaker sprawled out from dawn, drinking his way through casks of liquor, would have a hard time believing any of it. Whether inside the castle or outside, he'd been known to collapse in a heap, indistinguishable from a waterlogged rag. Could someone like that change so easily?
Scoffing, the servant filled a bucket of water and headed back to the stables. There, he saw a tall, handsome man, relaxed as he petted a donkey. Sensing the servant's presence, the man turned around, a foxlike smile spreading across his face.
"Good day, isn't it?"
"Y-Yes, indeed…"
Looking closer, the servant realized that this was the same man who'd been by the Troublemaker's side when he'd sneaked a glance at his return yesterday. Realizing that this man was the rumoured 'companion,' the servant sighed inwardly.
'So much for that betting pool—it'll collapse before it even started!'
It seemed the commoner companion had already seen through the Troublemaker's true colours and was planning to leave. A small child peeked out from behind the man's leg, giving a shy greeting. Was this the child he'd brought along?
'If he's even brought a child, he really might be leaving.'
While he wasn't usually interested in rumours, seeing it with his own eyes made the servant itch to gossip. As he stalled, pretending to busy himself, the man and the child squatted by the mule, chatting in low voices.
"We're going out just the two of us…?"
"Yep. Leo's not allowed to leave the castle for a while, so we'll bring him some treats he likes on our way back."
'Oh… maybe not?'
They didn't seem like people preparing to leave for good. It seemed the bet wouldn't come to an abrupt end after all, the servant thought. Whether that was fortunate or unfortunate, he couldn't say at this point.
'Interesting!'
In truth, such things didn't matter much to people like him anyway.
***
It really felt like people were glancing over. Not just an illusion—there were actual looks thrown his way.
Well, can't deny that from a distance, we probably make an entertaining sight. Just the kind of thing people love to gossip about.
'I only meant to take the mule to pick up a few things from the town below.'
It was just a quick trip for errands, but I wonder if it'll spark wild assumptions. Like a rumour that the Troublemaker, who ran off and returned with a commoner, got abandoned within a day. But for this exploration around El Dante, it has to be just me and Vittorio. With the Count's direct orders grounding Leonardo, he at least has to pretend to follow them. Besides, too many people in El Dante's alleys would recognize his face. And according to the new scenario notes, he had something to do within the castle.
Left alone, Leonardo looked particularly forlorn. The drawbridge by the lake marked the furthest he was allowed to go, so he'd come to see them off as far as he could.
"We'll be back soon."
They even had a communication ability, so it wasn't like they'd be completely cut off. This was a good chance to test how far it would work, too. He had tried it with Vittorio that morning, but only
'I'll be back.'
He whispered lightly through their connection, and Leonardo's sullen expression finally softened a bit.
「Come back safely.」
And so, Vittorio and I set off on our little outing. It was technically a reconnaissance mission in the guise of a shopping trip, but Vittorio seemed genuinely delighted.
"It's my first time in a different city."
"How does it compare to Sinistra?"
"The smell of the sea isn't here…"
We strolled along the bustling main street, picking up items here and there, until we turned into a narrow alleyway. The close walls and confined space created a different atmosphere from the open market—a sense of being shut off from the rest of the city. Dried herbs, small animal pelts, and rough-hewn wooden trinkets lay on makeshift stalls, giving the place an earthy, rustic feel.
Just then—
A slender boy, turning the corner from the opposite direction, almost brushed past us.
"….."
If Vittorio hadn't suddenly grabbed the boy's wrist, he might have vanished as quickly as he'd appeared.
"H-Hey, what's the deal?"
"….."
"What are you doing!"
The slight boy tried to shake off Vittorio, who was about a head shorter than him, but couldn't easily break free. Vittorio didn't say a word, simply looking up at the boy with an intent gaze. His silence alone made his intent unmistakable. It wasn't hard to understand the situation, so I simply held out my hand.
"…Hmph."
"That's right."
Perhaps realizing he wouldn't be able to talk his way out of this, the pickpocket obediently returned the purse. Only then did Vittorio let go of his sleeve.
"Wait a moment."
[Accessing information for the specified entity.][Viewing information.]
Rank – Extra (Scenario weight 4.00%)
Role – Pickpocket #1
Script – [A street urchin from the alleys of El Dante. He supports his siblings through pickpocketing to make a living.]
[Often loiters near gambling dens but is always chased away, not a gambler himself.]
Dialogue – None
"Would you like to chat for a moment, if it's alright?"
As the boy attempted to quickly brush off and escape, I casually loosened the strings of my pouch. Inside, instead of silver coins, there was a handful of dried fruits—items I had just bought at the market.
I had anticipated something like this would happen once we entered the secluded alley. I took one piece and offered it to Vittorio, who munched on the sweet, white-flecked flesh with delight. Then I grabbed the pickpocket's hand and placed a handful of the dried fruits on top. The boy looked up at me in disbelief, and I smiled back at him.
"It's nothing serious, really. I just arrived in this city not long ago, so I have a lot of questions. Since our paths crossed, how about you guide me around? As payment, I'll give you this bag of dried fruit as an advance. What do you say?"
"Just dried fruit?"
"Well, it seems just about right for this place, isn't it?"
The sun was high in the sky. In a typical marketplace, vendors would be bustling about with their stalls, actively engaging with customers. But this street felt eerily quiet, as if it were a deserted battlefield. There was no clamour, only a lonely atmosphere lingering in the air. Occasionally, I noticed people huddled on the ground, curled up in empty-handed despair.
They were wrapped in thin cloth, casting glances at the pouch only to lose interest once they saw it was fruit rather than money. A sign swayed in the wind up ahead, and buildings lined the street, their windows boarded up as if they would only light up at night—pawn shops and taverns.
The pickpocket snatched the pouch and asked, "What are you curious about?"
"The gambling den."
In the sunlight, the street was filled with those who sat huddled like defeated soldiers. They believed that probability and luck awaited them, daring to take a chance, yet they had utterly failed, waiting like zombies for the next game to begin.