Chapter 77: Drunk Old Man

Amidst the crowd, the patrolling guards' presence is visible, but they wear pained expressions, reluctant to intervene. In other words, this old man is likely a noble or something. Gina looks quite furious, and Eilia wears an uncomfortable expression. I hope they don't do anything foolish, but the situation might escalate with magic in the town. Comba is talking to Gina persistently, but it seems to have no effect.

I casually step in between them, adopting a relaxed tone.

"Oops, sorry, sorry. I intended to come back sooner, but the conversation with His Majesty took longer than expected. What's the commotion here?"

The women slightly ease their expressions. The old man looks suspicious at the mention of His Majesty. Tiana jumps at me.

"What do you think this idiot said?"

"What the ... do you know me?"

The slurred voice of the old man interrupts. Oh no, dealing with a drunkard like him is not pleasant.

"He asked us, 'How much?'"

I glance at the night sky in response to Gina's soft voice. Stars twinkle in the crisp winter air. This is bad. It's understandable why Gina is so angry. Asking the price in public from a respectable woman is a severe insult. The nature of the price doesn't need to be stated. Even if he's a noble, this is unacceptable.

A man with a reddened face, accompanied by a clever-looking one, tries to persuade. The word "high-ranking priest of the church" catches my ear. It seems they know about Eilia.

"Mumbling nonsense. Tonight, I'm with those four women..."

Huh? Four? I hadn't noticed the presence of another person shadowed by Comba until now.

The woman looks directly at me. Despite the deep hood, her facial features are distinguishable. She seems to be in her twenties, with refined features, making Tiana appear more mature and lively. She smiles at me and approaches, whispering a voice only I can hear.

"So, you're Harris. Hoo."

Tiana raises her eyebrows in confusion.

"What? Who are you? Playing with my women here. Teach him a lesson!"

The old man shouts, and everyone but the clever-looking man moves. Six men spread out, surrounding us. The woman smiles.

"I'd like to chat, but we need to deal with him first."

She addresses the old man.

"Hey. Am I also included in the 'How much?' from earlier?"

"Of course. You're a good one. I'll treat you well. Three gold coins, how about that?"

"Oh, dear. Do you understand what that means? What it would entail?"

The woman stares at the clever-looking man. His originally pale face turns as white as wax.

"You all, don't come any closer."

The surrounded men exchange glances. However, thinking about their master's orders, they take a step closer to us.

"If you come any closer, I'll cut you down."

A murderous intent emanates from the clever-looking man. Instinctively, my hand reaches for my waist.

What's going on? Why this sudden change in attitude? Despite trying to appease the situation before, the attitude is clearly different now. Just then, a well-known voice resounds.

"What's all this commotion? I'll conduct an inquiry according to the protocol. Make way."

Several knights, wearing matching saucers with golden lion embroidery, step in.

"This is bad."

A small voice is heard beside me. The clever-looking man, seeing the knights entering through the crowd, becomes flustered.

"My lord seems quite unwell due to intoxication. We'll take our leave."

"Wait. Sir Ortega."

Addressed, he scolds the other men, and they quickly lift the heavily drunken man and rush away.

"Wait a moment."

Without even looking back at Gina's voice, the knights turn towards us.

"What's the meaning of causing a disturbance? Come to the station for questioning."

"We are the victims here. With such an attitude without listening to our side, it doesn't seem fitting for the proud Golden Lion Knights who uphold justice."

"This ... was it Eilia-sama? My apologies. I noticed late because your attire was different than usual."

The attitude of the knight order softens. I see. There might be someone among them who received some unwanted advances from Eilia.

"The man who got thoroughly drunk earlier threw some unspeakable words at us."0

"Lord Septate said something disrespectful?"

"Yes, something very disrespectful."

Eilia, maintaining an attitude of not wanting to explain further, caused the knights to abandon their inquiry.

"Well, since the other party is gone, that's fine. Shall we escort you to the temple?"

"No, it's fine. We're going to have a meal with friends."

The knights nod to Eilia and start dispersing the curious onlookers.

It's only then that I notice the absence of the woman who seemed to distress a man named Ortega.

"The woman who was with you earlier, where is she?"

"Oh, Elle? Huh? She was here until a while ago."

"She seems to have disappeared before the knights arrived. Any idea?"

"Master. We met at a shop, and we got excited about this cloak being cute."

Tiana lifts her arm a bit to show. While most of it was a plain fabric, the collar and sleeves were dyed in red. Dyeing the entire fabric in this color would require a considerable amount of money. Such a beautiful red dye is quite expensive. However, women seem to easily bond with each other shortly after meeting. As a man, I don't quite understand.

"It looks really good on you."

I say to Tiana, who continues to pose with her arm extended. She shows a smile that is a far cry from the fear she had just moments ago.

"Thanks to you for buying such a cute outfit for me."

"If it means I don't have to see you shivering in the cold, it's worth it."

"Hey, can we get back to the topic?"

"Oh, sorry."

"We happened to have the same outfit in stock, so we all bought the same one. Then we got even more excited, decided to have a meal together, and here we are."

"She's a little imprudent, did she? Disappearing when the knights show up. Did you do something wrong and didn't want to be seen?"

"I didn't see her as that kind of person, though."

"It didn't seem that way to me either."

I thought that Eilia, the embodiment of agreeableness, lacked credibility, but recalling the attitude towards the knights earlier, I wisely kept my mouth shut.


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