WLWES 10

After listening to Rio’s story, Gideon said, “Ah, that is…” but stopped abruptly and averted his gaze from Rio.

That was suspicious… Very suspicious. Rio leaned closer and looked into Gideon’s eyes.

“Hey,” Rio said demandingly.

“Yes?”

“You know something, don’t you?”

“I don’t.”

“No, you definitely know something! Why were people looking for someone like me?”

Gideon pursed his lips and stared at Rio. He let out a sigh and began to speak quietly.

“I was… looking for you.”

“Huh?”

“I told people what you looked like and sent them to search for you.”

“Wait, hold on! You are the reason I had to sneak around all this time?”

“I don’t get it, but why did you run away? You didn’t do anything wrong, so it would’ve just been easier if you had come forward.”

Rio pursed his lips and glared at Gideon.

I don’t know why I was wanted, so of course, I wouldn’t have just turned myself in. Besides, I am not a regular commoner since my family and I can use magic. I was scared someone would find out if I got caught.

Gideon tilted his head slightly, curious, and turned his pretty purple eyes toward Rio. For a moment, Rio was captivated by those eyes, but he quickly returned to answering Gideon’s question.

“Commoners are often arrested on false charges,” Rio said with a sigh.

“But I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“If I had known it were you who were looking for me, maybe I would have considered coming forward. But I didn’t understand what was happening at all, so of course I naturally ran.”

“I see… I’m sorry for scaring you.”

Gideon bowed slightly toward Rio.

Surprised, Rio stared at Gideon’s shiny black hair with wide eyes. Although they’d only met and talked a few times, Rio was starting to get a sense of Gideon’s character. He looks scary, but he seems to have a kind and honest personality. Even though he’s a knight, he bows his head to him, a commoner.

Rio let out a small sigh and laughed.

“Heh… it’s fine. I didn’t like sneaking around, but I made it to the state I wanted to go to. And besides, you saved me when things got dangerous, Gideon. Thank you, really.”

“Mhm. Well, I’m glad I made it in time. You need to be more careful, Rio. It’s a miracle you’ve made it this far unharmed.”

“This time, I was drugged so that it couldn’t be helped. But I’ve always been able to protect myself.”

“… I’m actually really worried about you.”

“I’ll be fine, seriously.”

Gideon, who had been watching Rio with a troubled expression and folded arms, suddenly noticed something and looked up.

“What’s that?” Gideon asked

“What do you mean?”

“That collar… Did someone give it to you?”

“Oh… this?”

Gideon’s voice deepened slightly. Rio didn’t notice the shift and responded innocently, touching the collar around his own neck.

“Isn’t it nice? I bought it myself. Look, it matches with An.”

“An? Are you talking about that dog?”

Gideon looked over at An and narrowed his eyes slightly when he saw the purple collar.

“Hmm… That’s a good color, and with the color of her fur, too.. is that your preference or something^[1]?”

“Eh?… Well, I guess so… No, it was just by chance! It just caught my eye…”

“I see.”

Gideon’s expression was the same as always, cold and unreadable. But to Rio, he looked really pleased for some reason. However, he couldn’t figure out where Gideon’s happy expression came from.

As Rio fiddled with his collar, he glanced up at Gideon. When Gideon saw Rio’s expression, as if he was about to ask something, Gideon tilted his head slightly with a questioning “Hm?”

“You know… This is my first time buying something like this, but… did you know gold is really expensive?”

“Yeah. Depending on the concentration of gold, it can be worth more than gemstones. The deeper the color, the higher the price. The red and purple collars that you have bought are both really pretty, but the color is not that vivid. If the color were stronger… hmm, then it’d probably cost around ten gold coins.”

“Whaaat?! That much!?”

“Yeah. The bracelet I’m wearing cost around that.”

“Ugh… Rich bastard…”

Rio bit his lip. At that moment, his left cheek felt a sharp pain. “Ouch,” Rio said in shock. He put his hand up to hold his cheek, and Gideon placed his hand on top of Rio’s.

“I gave you some first aid. Does it really still hurt?”

“Oh, really? Thank you. It only hurt for a little bit. I’m fine, really.”

“I only treated the injuries I could easily see. Do you feel any pain anywhere else?”

“…No, I’m fine.”

“Come on, be honest.”

“Uuhh… I also got punched in the stomach… but it’s not a big deal.”

“Let me take a look.”

“Ehh no, I’m fine….e”

“Seriously, let me see.”

Gideon’s unrelenting pestering made Rio reluctantly roll up his shirt. When he saw his own stomach, he couldn’t help but gasp.

“Wow, what a sick color.”

“You idiot. Is this really the time to be saying that?”

“Why are you calling me an idiot… Woahh.”

As Rio was about to complain in annoyance, Gideon pushed him back onto the bed, causing him to fall backward. He couldn’t get up since he was being held down by the shoulder.

“What are you doing?”

“Woof!”^[2]

“I’m gonna treat you, so stay quiet. You too, An.”

An crawled under the bed and barked at Gideon’s feet. Rio was happy about An’s reaction and wondered if she was worried about him.

“An, I’m okay, so please stay quiet. Let’s eat some food together after this.”

Instead, An started to whimper. Hearing An’s worried voice, Rio resisted the urge to get up and pick her up.

Gideon pulled a small glass container from a leather bag he found on a nearby shelf. He removed the lid and scooped up some of the thick liquid with his fingers.

“What’s that?” Rio asked curiously.

“It’s an ointment that works well on bruises and internal bleeding. How does it feel? Does it hurt?”

“It hurts a little… maybe.”

“Hmm.”

Gideon applied the medicine to Rio’s lean stomach, pressing it gently. Rio’s face contorted slightly with worry, but he let out a sigh of relief when he realized it didn’t hurt as much as he had expected.

However, magic could have healed the injury faster than the ointment. The problem was that Rio couldn’t use magic in front of Gideon. Still, as he watched Gideon applying the medicine with a serious expression, he thought it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to have someone take care of him after all.

“You have gotten so skinny. Have you been eating properly?”

Rio was lost in thought when he suddenly realized he had been asked a question. Caught off guard, he didn’t have time to come up with a response before a strange-sounding “huh” slipped out of his mouth.

When he looked up at Gideon, he was surprised to see him suddenly burst out laughing. Rio froze in place.

Gideon was laughing! It’s the first time I’ve seen him laugh properly like that…

Still chuckling, Gideon said, “What was up with that goofy-sounding voice?”

Rio couldn’t help but stare at him. As he observed Gideon laughing, the usual sharpness in his features softened. The man, who always wore a scary expression, appeared almost childlike when he smiled. Rio felt a bit moved, realizing how much someone’s demeanor could change with just a smile.

But the moment didn’t last. As soon as Gideon noticed Rio staring, his face immediately snapped back to its usual stern expression.

“Ahh…”

“What?”

“Oh.. I just wanted to see you smile even more.”

“As a knight, I should never laugh carelessly like this.”

“Hmmm, if something fun happens, you should laugh, right? Smiling will cheer you up.”

“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Rio slipped his shirt back on and stood up. He scooped up An, who had been curled up at his feet, and sat back down, putting her on his lap. As he spoke, his hand moved gently through her fur.

“My mother used to say that when I laugh, it doesn’t just cheer me up, but also those around me. That’s why I always try to smile, regardless of what happens to me.”

“You do not have to force yourself to smile, you know.”

“Since I am traveling alone, I have to rely on those around me. They are only willing to help me because I seem friendly, which is why I make an effort to stay cheerful and keep smiling. After all, that’s what has helped me so far.”

“I understand”. With that, Gideon fell silent.

Rio was also quiet as he stroked An’s head, but suddenly looked up in realization.

“Oh, that’s right. Why were you looking for me, Gideon?”

“Ahh, right.”

Gideon met Rio’s gaze, and for a moment, it felt as though Rio was being drawn into the depths of his purple eyes, thinking they were so strikingly beautiful.

Gideon picked up Rio’s hair with his fingers and brought it closer to his face. Then he slowly sniffed it and muttered, “It stinks.”

“Huh?”

“You smell like cigarettes, alcohol, and grilled meat. You should take a bath first, come follow me.”

“What are you even talking about?”

“Come to the inn I’m staying at.”

“No, I won’t go. I can’t leave An behind.”

“It’s okay. An can come, the inn allows animals. They even have good food. If you come with me, I’ll give you the money I forgot to give you the other day.”

“..I’ll go.”

“Okay. Then pack your bags.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re leaving this place. You can’t work at the restaurant anymore, right?”

“…”

That’s right…. Even though the knights were in the wrong, I caused a fight with a customer. The manager is really kind, so he would probably forgive me, but I really do not want to go back to that restaurant again.

Rio nodded, “Okay,” and quickly started to put his belongings into his bag. Once Rio finished, Gideon naturally picked up his bag.

“I’ll carry it,” Rio said once he saw Gideon picking his bag up.

“It’s okay. I’ll carry it.”

The way it came across felt a bit cold, even though Rio knew Gideon was only carrying it because of his injury. Still, he couldn’t help but feel happy as it was a thoughtful gesture, and it showed Gideon cared in his own way. Smiling to himself, Rio placed An into the bag slung over his shoulder, just like always, and followed Gideon out of the hut.