Book 1 Chapter 604

About half a day had passed since they started sightseeing.

"Oppa Leo."

"What?"

"I respect Kal for the first time today."

Chelsea's words made Leo burst into laughter.

"No, seriously, how can he get things or book accommodations without any money?"

In their first year, they were in the same class.

And in their second year, although their dorms were different, they were in the same department.

Chelsea and Kal had teamed up many times to complete quests or conquer the Hero's World together.

Kal's abilities were particularly useful when conquering the Hero's World.

The Hero's World presented various situations.

Those from prestigious families or noble households experienced the hardships of not having money, which they usually didn't have to worry about, during these times.

Having Kal in the party made things easier.

With his easygoing nature and sociability, Kal quickly befriended people and easily obtained what he wanted in exchange for doing simple chores.

Most students who were in the same group as Kal simply thought, "That's convenient."

Few were impressed by Kal's negotiation skills.

This was the same for Chelsea, who was Kal's close friend.

But now.

Chelsea was realizing anew how amazing Kal's abilities were.

"Everything looks easy when you see it up close."

"Oof."

Chelsea's expression faltered.

Leo said to Chelsea, who looked flustered,

"Well, your birth is different from the start."

Chelsea, who was the direct descendant of a heroic family, having been pampered without lacking anything since childhood, couldn't easily replicate what Kal, from a commoner alchemist family accustomed to running a shop, could do.

'In Kal's case, it's not just familiarity; he seems born to be specialized in that area.'

Even Leo, who had done all sorts of jobs as a mercenary in his past life, was impressed by Kal's resourcefulness, which said a lot.

'I underestimated him too easily.'

Being unable to reveal his identity or use magic was a bigger penalty than he had imagined.

Furthermore, before they split up.

Leo confiscated all accessories that could be valuable.

He also made them change into ordinary clothes that could be easily found anywhere.

Of course, it wasn't that no one offered help.

But they all had ulterior motives.

Chelsea dealt with all those who approached her with lecherous gazes.

*Rumble-rumble-*

Her stomach growled.

It was long past time to eat.

Hearing the sound, Leo glanced at Chelsea, whose face turned slightly red.

'What should I do?'

First, what Chelsea wanted to secure was accommodation.

But it didn't work out.

Retin was a tourist city, so accommodation was generally expensive everywhere.

She tried asking for lodging in exchange for doing chores like Kal, but no one accepted.

'Labor alone isn't enough. What would Kal have done?'

Chelsea recalled what Kal had done.

'How did he get food from the shop without any money?'

'He pretended to be pitiful.'

'Pretended to be pitiful?'

'Yes. He said his younger sister hadn't eaten for days because he had no money.'

'He's lying so smoothly without even batting an eyelid.'

'It's true that we weren't eating.'

She remembered a conversation she had with Kal in the Hero's World.

'I'm not good at telling such lies.'

If it were for pranks, maybe.

But she lacked confidence in acting pitiful.

This kind of thing required atmosphere, and it was difficult for Chelsea to create the same atmosphere as Kal.

As Chelsea was struggling,

"We have to go this way! This way!"

"Don't be ridiculous! We have to go that way!"

Familiar voices were heard in the middle of the street.

*Murmur-murmur-*

The sudden commotion attracted a crowd of people.

As Leo and Chelsea approached, Niel and Matchel were arguing again.

"Oh dear, again."

Chelsea covered her face.

Seeing the two bickering over a trivial matter again, Chelsea glanced at Leo.

She had clearly told them that Leo wouldn't tolerate them fighting.

"That's just a difference of opinion."

At those words, Chelsea felt slightly relieved.

Matchel had looked after Abad and Chelsea since they were young.

Therefore, Chelsea didn't feel good about Matchel suffering any misfortune.

After watching the two bicker loudly for a moment, Chelsea let out a small sigh.

"Sigh, seeing them like this, I feel bad because it seems to be because of us."

"Why? They're from vassal families of Zerdinger and Rewalin, so it's natural for them to have a bad relationship."

"Yes, that's true. But… I think Matchel's first love was Niel-senpai?"

"What?"

Leo looked bewildered, unable to comprehend her unexpected statement.

"They actually dated before entering Lumern."

At her words, Leo looked at Niel and Matchel with a look of disbelief.

"Those two were lovers?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"Before entering Lumern, Matchel attended the Royal Academy of Rodren."

Although Lumern was the best academy, there were several other prestigious academies in human society besides Lumern.

Notably, there were the Knight Academy Ikot, the Magic Academy Emerald, and the Summoning Academy Skaun, collectively known as the three major prestigious academies.

Students who were expelled from Lumern usually transferred to these academies, or they were places for new students preparing to transfer to Lumern.

Princess Shasha of the Rodren Empire, for instance, attended Skaun before transferring to Lumern.

And the Royal Academy of Rodren, which nurtured the empire's top talents, was a top-tier academy, even if not as renowned as Ikot, Emerald, and Skaun.

While the three major prestigious academies specialized in their respective classes, the Royal Academy of Rodren, like Lumern, had students from all classes interacting.

Crucially, it had the advantage of allowing students to commute.

"Matchel passed the entrance exam for Emerald, but he went to the Royal Academy in the capital to assist me and my brother. He was the top student in magic there."

Recalling that time, Chelsea shook her head.

"Back then, being from a vassal family of Rewalin, he would have received special treatment, so Matchel hid his identity."

Matchel attended school under the identity of a noble from a rural area.

And he rose to the top student of his grade solely through his own efforts.

"Then one day, he came home and said he lost a duel to the top student of the knight course in the same grade."

Matchel was a traditional mage.

In a one-on-one duel, he was naturally at a disadvantage against a knight.

However, even so, both Abad and Chelsea were surprised when they heard that Matchel had lost to someone his age.

"But he didn't look displeased; rather, he looked happy."

'Young lady, young master. She is also from a noble family in the countryside and rose to the top of the knight course through her own efforts. She is a very excellent, noble, and determined woman. It is only natural that I lost. Of course, I won't lose next time.'

"Could it be that the top student of the knight course was Niel-senpai?"

"Yes."

Niel had also entered the Royal Academy of Rodren for the same reason.

"They must have gotten along well."

They were both looked down upon as country bumpkins from provincial noble families.

As a result, they naturally had many opportunities to interact and quickly grew close.

Moreover, they had many commonalities when they talked.

"They said they had important families they served, so they could talk about it. He talked about Niel-senpai almost every day."

'Young master! Young lady! She, you see!'

'I really want to introduce her to you both!'

'Young master! Young lady! I'm dating her!'

Niel and Matchel, who were just beginning to notice the opposite sex, quickly developed a romantic relationship.

"I remember him saying they were seriously thinking about their future. He said it was hard to find someone one gets along with so well."

"Well, they fought like crazy, but their actions are the same."

Leo clicked his tongue.

"Then, when they took the Lumern entrance exam, they learned each other's identities for the first time."

"So? What happened?"

Seeing Leo ask with an excited expression, Chelsea let out a small sigh.

"What do you mean, what happened? Of course, it was a huge mess."

Both passed the entrance exam.

But the moment they learned each other's identities, they were shocked.

"In the end, they had a big fight, saying they didn't want to be in the same grade, and Niel-senpai gave up his admission. He apparently had no intention of attending Lumern. However, the Zerdinger family persuaded him for a year, and he ended up enrolling a year below Matchel."

Neither Niel nor Matchel ever treated each other lightly.

However, both were responsible and had deep affection for the Zerdinger and Rewalin families, which led them to separate.

"You've always been like this! Really!"

"That's what I should be saying!"

As the two began to bring up old stories, the onlookers started to murmur.

"Is it a marital dispute?"

"It seems like it."

"They look like newlyweds. It's the good times."

Since the young man and woman were arguing in the street over a difference of opinion, it looked like a marital dispute.

As the onlookers watched the two with a warm feeling.

"If you had been honest from the start, we wouldn't have gotten involved!"

"Hmph! Well, we broke up in the end!"

The warm atmosphere disappeared in an instant.

Seeing their emotions escalate, Leo said,

"I don't think we can leave them alone any longer."

"Ah! I have a great idea!"

"What?"

Leo looked at Chelsea with a puzzled expression.

***

"And so… our family trip was ruined because of me."

Chelsea's shoulders drooped.

"I'm sorry, Oppa, Unnie. For ruining our family trip."

"Oh dear… how pitiful."

The innkeeper looked sympathetic as she watched Chelsea put on a pitiful expression.

The scenario Chelsea acted out was simple.

A younger sister who came on a trip to reconcile her older brother and sister-in-law, who were on the verge of a big fight and breakup, but lost all her travel expenses.

Thanks to Matchel and Niel's big fight in the street, the surrounding innkeepers had witnessed the scene.

Because of that, this scenario sounded very plausible, and the innkeeper was completely fooled.

As for Leo, he played the role of Niel's younger brother.

"You two. Please forgive your sister, who is apologizing like this."

At those words, Matchel, whose face had been stiff, said as if he couldn't stand it any longer.

"I will tell the truth. I…"

Matchel, about to say they weren't married, suddenly made eye contact with Chelsea, who glared at him.

"You too, Sis. Cheer up."

Niel also tried to tell the truth but stopped when he heard Leo's words.

"Madam. Your brother-in-law is right. Cheer up! The bond of marriage is special! It should not be easily broken! Don't worry. Stay at our inn today. We happen to have two rooms vacant."

As the innkeeper said this reassuringly, Chelsea said,

"R-really? Can you do that?"

Seeing Chelsea's sparkling eyes, the innkeeper smiled heartily.

"Of course! This kind young lady's heart for her brother has touched this old man!"

"Wow! Instead, I'll do my best to help with the inn's work!"

"Haha! If such a pretty young lady helps, business will boom!"

"This brother here is an amazing cook!"

Chelsea pointed at Leo and said.

"We were short-handed, so this is great!"

Chelsea, having successfully secured a room at the inn, smiled triumphantly as she received the room key.

"Thanks to Matchel and Niel-senpai, I got a great place to stay!"

"But the scenario was quite dramatic, wasn't it?"

A couple on the verge of breaking up.

The scenario was quite unconventional.

"What? Dramatic? Eiran-unnie reads a lot of books like that, so I tried writing one."

At Chelsea's words, Leo narrowed his eyes.

'Should I give Eiran a warning too?'

Thinking so, Leo glanced back.

Seeing the two with clearly disgusted expressions, he said,

"I'll let you fight here."

"We're not fighting."

"Yes! We're not fighting."

To their replies, Leo looked at Chelsea.

"Do you think they won't fight?"

"They will."

If there was anything they had no trust in, it was Niel and Matchel regarding this matter.