SIWALL Ch 51

The three of them moved inside the exhibition hall. Even in that brief moment of walking inside and sitting down at a table, Arzen checked several times to make sure Elliot wasn’t actually hurt, while Elliot yelled, “I am really, truly, totally fine, Your Grace!” as if frustrated, and Loran watched them with a meaningful gaze.

Inside the hall was a luxurious table set up so that people could take a break from viewing art and enjoy a tea time. Since it was a salon operated for nobles, its splendor and extravagance were beyond words.

Ignoring Arzen’s mother-bird-like gaze, Elliot sat down at the white table adorned with gold and jewels.

I wouldn’t even know if a piece of this went missing….

As Elliot was having such a thought, Arzen followed his line of sight and asked.

“Do you like this table?”

“Pardon? No, not really.”

“I’ll have the same one put in your room.”

“Huh? Suddenly? Why, why?”

“…Just felt like it. Why, what.”

“No, I mean… yes, I’ll gratefully accept it if you give it to me, but you really don’t have to.”

Elliot broke out in a cold sweat and waved his hands. Arzen, who had brought it up without much thought, also looked slightly flustered by the question of “why.” Crossing his arms like a stubborn child, he nailed it down once more: “I’ll buy it for you within this week.”

“You two are making fools of yourselves.”

Loran said with a smile.

“Whether you buy a table or a chair has nothing to do with me. Anyway, Elliot, why did you follow us?”

Loran tapped his chin with his index finger.

“Did you follow us because you don’t trust someone, perhaps?”

Loran’s eyes as he asked that question were shining like a wildcat. Elliot trembled and shook his head.

“Not at all. I think that someone is truly dependable. Should I call him the number one most trustworthy person in this world?”

“Hmm, that someone will be grateful. Then why on earth did you follow us?”

“….”

Elliot was left speechless. Actually, there was only one reason he followed them: in case Arzen and Loran ended up together like in the original work. However, there was no way he could say such a reason in front of them. Rolling his eyes, Elliot found a suitable excuse.

“Because I wanted to see you, Mr. Loran!”

“Pardon?”

“What?”

Loran was strictly a fragment of a god, and practically the idol of the Lantar Empire. He judged that an excuse of this magnitude would pass normally. However, unexpectedly, Loran wore a strange expression, and Arzen made a face consumed by shock and betrayal.

“Is this a love triangle….”

Loran muttered so that no one could hear. But hearing something spoken softly right in front of you was the harder thing to do.

Elliot was about to ask what that meant, when Arzen uncrossed his arms from the side and glared at Elliot. An intangible gaze pricked Elliot sharply.

“Why would you want to see Loran Pedet? Is it because you’re a fanboy?”

“…Yes, exactly. And to explain now that you mention it, a fanboy means a passionate follower~”

When Elliot answered, Loran nodded as if he finally understood.

“Ah, that shoe sole.”

“Please… forget about that, Mr. Loran.”

Elliot requested with a faint smile. But this time, Arzen chimed in as well.

“I think of it every time I look at my shoes, too. Elliot Brown, the fanboy who would even lick the shoe soles of Loran Pedet.”

Why on earth did I bring up that shoe sole talk back then and trap myself in this disaster?

It was when Elliot was crying tears of regret inwardly.

“It looks like Elliot is embarrassed, so should we stop here and move somewhere else? Since Elliot is a commoner, I think he’d like it if we took him to places nobles frequent.”

“Good idea. Understood.”

With that, Arzen raised his middle finger toward Loran.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Loran asked. Arzen answered with a somewhat proud look.

“An expression Elliot Brown taught me. It means ‘understood.'”

“I see. Understood.”

Saying that, Loran raised his middle finger toward Arzen.

This is driving me crazy….

Watching the two of them, Elliot smiled gently. With a smiling face, he flipped the middle finger at each of the two men, wrapping up the conversation.

“Now that you both understand, shall we head out?”

∞ ∞ ∞

Arzen and Loran first chose a clothing store frequently visited by nobles.

“Oh my goodness. Welcome, Your Grace Teron, the Light of Lantar, and Mr. Pedet, the god’s most cherished fragment. For the two of you to visit La Grache together, we must designate today as an anniversary.”

Madame Celine, the owner of the clothing store La Grache and the top designer in the Lantar Empire, cheerfully welcomed them. Unlike the flashy, sparkling clothes hanging in the shop, she was wearing a very simple, achromatic dress. Dark circles hung long under her eyes, and her hair was a bit disheveled.

‘She must be really busy….’

She had probably been making clothes, only to rush out in a hodgepodge and grumble inwardly upon hearing that VIPs had arrived. Elliot, of all people, could understand her a hundred times over.

There’s no difference between this world and that world.

“Oh? Who is the handsome young man in the back? His face is so intellectual! I like him. Is he a new friend of yours? Even though he’s wearing a single-layered shirt, his face is glowing!”

Madame Celine pulled a tape measure from her dress pocket and approached Elliot. A full will and enjoyment could be seen in her eyes. It seemed she had become happy after discovering a new customer.

“That’s right. Elliot is our friend. I’m thinking of having about five or six clothes made for him. Please make sure they suit him well, Madame Celine.”

Loran spoke first. Then Arzen struck the floor once with his cane and corrected Loran’s words.

“No. I will buy them. Put ten suits on my tab.”

“Uhm… I have clothes. I have plenty of shirts like this, and three pairs of pants….”

Elliot raised his hand timidly and resisted. However, those words only provoked Madame Celine, who was already sensitive.

“P-Pants, three pairs…? This is an emergency. Mr. Elliot, hurry up and spread your arms. I need to take your measurements.”

She waved the hand holding the tape measure as if it were a truly major crisis. Elliot had no choice but to bite the bullet, spread both arms, and let her measure the lengths of various parts of his body just like that.

After that, Arzen and Loran went around with Elliot to another clothing shop, a jewelry store, a perfume shop, a restaurant, a cafe, a magic potion shop, and more on Pentus Street.

In the end, Elliot was completely exhausted, panting as he was dragged along by them. Arzen and Loran’s stamina was monstrous. Despite shopping that much, they didn’t look tired at all, and were discussing where they should be taken next.

“How about taking him to a candy shop? Elliot seems like he’d like sweets.”

“His teeth will rot, so no.”

Are they my parents?

With a bitter expression, Elliot gulped down the stamina-recovery strawberry-flavored magic potion Arzen had just bought him. Soon, like magic—though it actually was magic—his body felt fine.

“Then how about a bookstore? It’ll also help when writing letters.”

“Good idea.”

He had planted a tailer because he hoped the two wouldn’t end up like in the original work, but seeing the two of them acting almost like best friends—albeit in a slightly different direction from the original—was nothing short of conflicted.

Elliot looked down dubiously at the Darlin jewelry brooch hanging loosely on his chest. He accepted it because things like this became property, but life was more precious than money, and he wondered what he should do about this.

“Well then, to the biggest bookstore in Pentus—”

“By the way, Loran Pedet, what was the reason you specifically brought up letters as an example?”

“Pardon?”

…I’m screwed.

Elliot’s jaw dropped straight down. While he was stammering behind the two of them, Loran said calmly.

“We exchange a lot of letters these days, you know. So letters were just the first thing that came to mind, what else.”

“…Is that so?”

“Besides, what else does Elliot Brown have to write besides letters? He doesn’t even write novels anymore.”

“I see.”

Arzen nodded. Fortunately, he didn’t press any further.

Elliot, who was about to interrupt their conversation, let out a sigh of relief. His heart was fluttering with anxiety, but he deliberately conjured up a cheerful smile and wedged himself between the two men.

“Let’s go to the bookstore, the bookstore! I want to go to the bookstore!”

Elliot started leading the two of them and walking in a random direction.

Just then, far off in the distance, Luor came running at high speed with his black hair fluttering. Up until now, he had been following far behind them like an escort, but it looked like something had happened.

“Your Grace! I have something to report.”

With that, Luor whispered something into Arzen’s ear. There was no change in expression on Arzen’s face as he listened quietly.

“You two will have to go to the bookstore by yourselves. An urgent matter has come up, so I’ll be leaving first.”

At the same time, he instructed Elliot.

“Use my name and buy every single book you want.”

“…Yes, thank you.”

Hearing Elliot’s greeting, Arzen gave Loran an arrogant, casual nod of his eyes and turned around to leave with Luor.

“That obnoxious jerk….”

Loran muttered curses at Arzen from beside him. Elliot nodded slowly, empathizing deeply in his heart.