I Thought Your Friend's Sibling Wasn't a Girl? - Chapter 50

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 50
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Aiden was truly an extraordinary person. It was only now that Olivia felt she was seeing his real talent.
The ability to work students to death? Exceptional swordplay?
Those weren’t his true abilities at all.
In Olivia’s assessment, his real talent was—
“Ha, this fellow here knows a thing or two! That’s right. When you spend years as a mercenary, you start missing things like this, don’t you?”
“I thought he was just a pretty-faced punk, but this one’s quite the gem!”
“Ah, come now. I’m absolutely sick of compliments like that. Good looks are a curse in themselves.”
“Ha ha ha! Look at this guy. Let’s drink, let’s drink. I said I’m sorry!”
It was unmistakably insane charisma.
Just an hour ago, these men had been on the verge of tearing into each other—grabbing collars, throwing fists—yet now they were toasting together like brothers, their laughter warm and intimate.
And Aiden’s charm had played no small part in that transformation.
“Ha ha! Just joking, of course. We’re just travelers passing through on our way. You gentlemen—are you with the Security Force?”
“The Security Force?”
“No? Well, judging by your bearing, the way you move… anyone would take you for the top powers in this town.”
“Ha ha ha! This one’s something else. Is that flattery, or is that flattery?”
“Flattery? Then you’re saying you’re not? I’m being sincere!”
Had Aiden always been like this?
She paused to consider, but the answer came back as a firm no.
It couldn’t have been otherwise. The Aiden in her memories was nothing like this.
His circle of relationships had been painfully narrow, and the only people he’d genuinely opened his heart to within that small circle were Olivia’s family.
They were practically his sole network.
“People? Why would I need to go out of my way to meet them?”
“Aiden. You’re going to end up old and lonely without any friends at this rate.”
“What do you mean I don’t have friends? I have friends.”
“Who?”
“Cesare, and our little Olivia.”
Cesare and Olivia were Aiden’s friends. In other words, Aiden had no friends besides those two.
And it wasn’t just friends he lacked—he barely had acquaintances either.
Noble peers, tired of Aiden’s sharp tongue, would flee at the mere sight of him. Watching him now, such a thing seemed impossible to imagine.
“Brother, if you drink on an empty stomach like that, they say you’ll meet your maker early.”
“Ha, look at this fellow. What man of principle would complain about not having an appetizer? Tsk tsk.”
“Yes, yes, I prefer to live a long life, so I’ll pass on being principled, if you don’t mind.”
It was only then that Olivia truly understood: three years had been a considerable, substantial stretch of time—for both her and Aiden.
Just as Olivia, once merely a noble lady, had become a knight, Aiden had learned how to walk among people.
Whether that action sprang from his heart or not, at least now he looked like someone who knew how to hide his thorns.
Tap. The sensation of a boot brushing against hers snapped Olivia from her reverie.
Those blue eyes turned toward her, the raucous laughter of the mercenaries around them—reality came back into sharp focus.
Which meant she had just been lost in thought, losing her concentration during an active operation.
‘Get your head in the game.’
Otherwise, Aiden would seize the moment like a vulture, spouting something like, “I think I’m winning the wager. Should we call off the engagement?” or other nonsense.
Olivia had no intention of allowing that.
The years she’d spent waiting for Aiden alone—how many of them had there been? She would never abandon this so easily. She would never have started in the first place if she could.
Olivia had to be the one to win this wager.
She leaned forward with fierce determination toward the table. The old chair creaked beneath her.
Good. I lost focus for a moment, but from here on out—
“Say, is that refined-looking fellow sitting next to you a colleague too?”
“Refined-looking? Ah, you mean that one? I suppose so.”
“He looks pretty fragile though. Tell me, does he have any strength when the night gets rough?”
From here on, I—
“…Excuse me?”
“You’re touchy, aren’t you? That refined manner is something else entirely. Ha ha ha! Come to think of it, he’s not even a real man, is he?”
Why did a crisis always appear the moment she resolved to do better?
Olivia wanted to look at the world beautifully and love all people. This was genuine.
‘But the world won’t let me be…’
The moment she decided to build a happy life with her betrothed, he fled. The moment she vowed to adapt well to the Knight Academy, she faced ostracism. And then—the moment she resolved to complete her graduation practical, a Magical Beast appeared that was supposed to have gone extinct long ago, didn’t it?
Now, as she resolved to complete this final assignment, here was this petty harassment.
Olivia’s hand twitched toward the Defensor at her hip. It would be for the peace of the world, to eliminate scum who indulged in base mockery.
But before Olivia could draw her blade, someone else moved first.
“What exactly are you trying to say right now?”
“…What?”
It was Aiden.
That jolted her back to focus. The mercenaries, who had been sniggering a moment before, stiffened at Aiden’s words, their expressions turning grave.
The operation would fall apart if things went further. The instant she grasped this, Olivia moved like lightning and brought her heel down hard on Aiden’s foot.
“You dare speak to me like—ow!”
“What’s wrong? What is it?”
Right. The world was full of crude, vile people, that was the way of things. There was no point getting angry about it now.
When this operation was over, she’d have every last one of them bound and sent to face justice. That thought soothed the rage that had been building.
Olivia straightened and lifted her mouth into a neat smile, speaking calmly.
“You certainly are interested in other people’s private matters.”
“Well, isn’t that what makes it fun? If you don’t want to talk about it, just drink more!”
Evening had fallen. A time when people gathered and the air grew heavy.
It was the perfect hour for rumors to spread and sink downward.
New faces had entered the small inn where they’d been alone with the three mercenaries. Likely all of them were sellswords.
Perfect timing to leak information. Light flickered across Olivia’s face.
“Fun, you say? I happen to have heard some rather interesting news.”
“Interesting news?”
“Would you care to hear it?”
All eyes turned toward her. A sharp sensation ran from her toes to the crown of her head.
* * *
While Olivia and Aiden were deep in conversation with the mercenaries,
elsewhere, two new recruits were huddled together, muttering anxiously.
“Look, there’s a really important problem. How exactly do you conduct a Reconnaissance Investigation?”
“Hmm. That is a pretty important problem.”
They should have asked for more details when the team was divided up. But they’d panicked and fled in case Aiden caught them.
So now they were, just a little, very a little, at a loss.
Still, there was one thing they could rely on.
Panya’s fingers brushed gently against the Magical Tool hidden inside his collar.
‘Since it was given by none other than that “Aiden”…’
Though the person who’d given it had somewhat questionable manners, knowing that what the tool contained was concern made Panya’s own resolve all the firmer.
We can do this. Determination settled across Panya’s face.
“Hmm… how is Olivia doing? Do you think she’s all right?”
“She’s doing fine. Quit worrying about nothing.”
Bennett should have been worrying about them instead of Olivia, but he didn’t seem to realize that.
“But the senior said that in investigations like this, it’s important not to stand out. And those two are far too conspicuous.”
“That’s true enough.”
Especially in a small community like this village, strangers from out of town were bound to catch people’s attention.
“Well, that’s why the senior went along, right?”
“That’s the problem!”
Bennett clapped his hands together softly in exasperation.
“The senior can never resist trying to get at Olivia. If people who are already too conspicuous start stirring up a commotion like that, things could go really badly!”
“My goodness, Bennett. Is that all you see?”
“There’s more! And also—”
“Also what?”
“The senior is a bit violent!”
An undeniable fact. But did such things matter? Panya mused blankly.
Olivia? She’d handle things just fine on her own.
The violent senior? In a situation alone with Olivia, he probably wouldn’t be particularly violent at all.
Panya replied flatly.
“Don’t worry. She’ll do well.”
True, Olivia had gone along with Aiden, the person everyone else avoided.
It was also undeniable that Aiden’s temperament was somewhat violent.
But that wasn’t all there was to it. Panya’s eyes held the sky, where the sun had begun its slow descent toward evening.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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