episode_0005

Laurent, armed with a recommendation letter from his father’s friend and legendary musketeer, Mr. Drébon, set out from the southern town of Bastogne in Elance to the capital city of Paris to enlist in the musketeer corps.

“Is this really the capital city of Elance, Paris?”

After passing through the gates and having his belongings checked, Laurent made his way through the capital streets to find the musketeer headquarters.

Unlike Bastogne, the narrow alleys were bustling with people, and four-story buildings, a rare sight in Bastogne, were plentiful.

As a country nobleman from Elance, Laurent found himself constantly bumping into passersby as he wandered around like a lost soul.

Each time he bumped into someone, he would apologize, but the Parisians, known for their cold demeanor, would just glare at him without a word of forgiveness and continue on their way.

“These people have no manners at all…”

Laurent continued to rub his left shoulder, which had been bumped into multiple times, as he made his way towards the musketeer headquarters.

Thud!

“Ouch! I’m sorry…”

Lost in the sights of Paris once again, Laurent bumped into another pedestrian and instinctively bowed his head in apology.

But then, he felt a sudden emptiness in his pocket, as if something had been taken.

“Huh… a pickpocket?”

Surprised, Laurent frantically checked his pocket to see what was missing.

His coin purse and the musket pistol his father had given him were still there, untouched.

“Wait… what?!”

Opening his coat, Laurent checked the recommendation letter Mr. Drébon had written for him.

“It’s… gone!”

Shocked, Laurent shouted out loud.

His outburst caught the attention of passersby, who glanced at him before continuing on their way.

Turning around, Laurent spotted the pickpocket casually making his way through the crowd, the stolen recommendation letter in hand.

“Have you ever seen such audacity! Stop right there!”

If the pickpocket wanted to steal something, he could have taken the coin purse, but why steal something as important as the recommendation letter from Mr. Drébon, the reason Laurent had traveled to Paris by horse for weeks?

“Stop! Stop!!”

Pushing through the crowd, Laurent chased after the pickpocket.

Realizing he was being pursued, the pickpocket quickened his pace.

“Is that… him?!”

Regardless of bumping into people, Laurent continued to chase after the pickpocket.

Thud!

“Oof!”

Lost in his pursuit, Laurent collided with a drunkard drinking outside a tavern.

Unfazed, Laurent tried to keep running, but the drunkard grabbed him by the collar.

“Sorry, I’m in a hurry… I’m chasing someone!”

Bowing repeatedly to the drunkard holding him back, Laurent apologized.

Turning around, he saw the pickpocket mocking him with a smirk, sticking out his tongue.

Angered, Laurent tried to chase after him, but the drunkard, for some reason, was not letting go despite Laurent’s continued apologies.

“Do you think apologizing will solve everything? What about the beer spilled on my shirt and my drink? How will you compensate for that?”

Seeing the beer stains on the man’s shirt, Laurent realized he was being asked for money.

Normally, he would challenge such insolence to a duel to show everyone an example, but in this urgent situation, he decided to settle it with money.

“I’m sorry. Here… will this do?”

Laurent took out two silver coins worth 10 blanques each from his pocket and handed them to the drunkard.

“20 blanques? Do you think this shirt is only worth 20 blanques?”

Laurent felt incredulous at the drunkard’s words.

With 20 blanques, he could easily buy a shirt of similar quality back in his hometown of Bastogne.

“Isn’t the outfit you’re wearing enough for someone like you, a drunkard? Don’t force it.”

With that, the drunkard grabbed Laurent’s collar and shook him forcefully.

Laurent grabbed the hat that was about to fall off and glared at the drunkard.

“Aramis, calm down.”

A beautiful woman next to them was trying to calm down the drunkard.

“No, it seems like a little noble boy from the countryside. Since you’re here in Paris, let me teach you how to behave in the city.”

The drunkard growled as he grabbed Laurent’s collar, but Laurent’s eyes were fixed on the woman who was sarcastically reprimanding the drunkard.

With her shining platinum hair and blue eyes like the lake he used to play in back home, Laurent was momentarily captivated.

He wondered if someone could be this beautiful.

As soon as he saw her face, Laurent felt his heart flutter in a way he had never experienced before.

He thought to himself that maybe this feeling was what Drabang always talked about as ‘love’.

“Um… uh…”

“What are you looking at?”

“Ahem!”

As Laurent stared at her face, their eyes met, causing him to blush and turn his head away before stealing glances at her.

The young man turned his head away with a fake cough.

“What? Do you have time to stare at women? What are you going to do with my clothes, huh!”

The drunkard, now angry, shouted at Laurent, who also shouted back at him.

“If you can’t be satisfied even after receiving 20 Blancs, it’s no different from being a bandit!”

“What bandit?”

Laurent pushed away the drunkard’s hand grabbing his collar.

“If you can’t be satisfied even after receiving 20 Blancs, we’ll settle it with a duel later.”

Laurent took off his left glove and accurately threw it at the drunkard’s chest.

“A duel? Fine. Let’s meet at the fountain near this tavern at noon.”

The drunkard chuckled as he picked up Laurent’s glove.

“Hey, Aramis.”

“Stay quiet, Mari. This is a duel between men.”

“Aramis, I may not know your intentions, but dueling is against the law…”

As the woman tried to stop the duel between Laurent and the drunkard, the drunkard covered her mouth with his hand.

“12 o’clock, at the fountain. Be there.”

Laurent nodded and then ran off towards a pickpocket who was fleeing in the distance.

As he got closer to the pickpocket, the pickpocket tripped over some debris, hindering Laurent’s pursuit.

Dodging obstacles and chasing after the pickpocket in a frenzy, Laurent accidentally bumped into a man trying on clothes in a shop.

“Ouch!”

“Be careful! How foolish can you be to bump into me like this! If you’re going to bump into me in such a wide space, how foolish can you be!”

The man, whom even Laurent, a country boy, thought was dressed in a fashion that his uncle wouldn’t approve of, glared at Laurent while supporting the woman next to him.

“Sorry… I’m sorry… I was just… in a hurry…”

Despite Laurent’s attempts to push the man’s hand off his collar, he remained stubborn.

“Judging by your accent, you must be a country bumpkin from the south. Is it your first time in the city and you’re all excited?”

“What?”

“Seeing tall buildings for the first time and feeling like a wild horse wanting to run free?”

He started asking rude questions, taking advantage of Laurent’s country background.

“Do country folks not have any shame, frolicking in the lake with nobles and commoners alike?”

He couldn’t forgive him for insulting his father’s estate, Bastogne.

“Look here! Even if Parisians are uncivilized, is it proper to insult someone else’s estate like that?”

“Hehehe, it’s true that this is the best way to deal with country bumpkins, isn’t it?”

“Ohoho.”

Even the woman next to him started laughing, causing Laurent’s face to turn red.

“Cancel that right now!”

“What if I don’t?”

As he shrugged his shoulders mockingly, Laurent’s anger surged to the tip of his head.

“I’m busy right now, I can’t afford to waste my time with you.”

Laurent took off the glove on his right hand and threw it at his chest.

This time, perhaps due to the overflowing emotions, the glove hit his face instead of his chest.

“Ouch… Are you challenging me to a duel?”

“Oh my…”

The man chuckled as he waved the glove in front of Laurent.

“Yes. If you have any complaints, let’s settle it then.”

Laurent looked at him with determined eyes.

“Fine. Meet me at the fountain near the tavern at 1 PM.”

“The fountain near the tavern?”

“Yes, come there.”

“Understood. Make sure to keep your promise.”

“Alright. Let’s fight like men!”

The man let go of Laurent’s back that he was holding onto.

Laurent tried to chase after the pickpocket, but the pickpocket had long disappeared from his sight.

“Ugh… I really have no luck…”

Laurent washed his face and headed towards where he had tied his horse.

The problem was whether he could enlist in the cavalry without the recommendation letter that Drabang had given him.

“Drabang clearly promised me…”

Laurent suppressed the urge to cry and walked sadly through the streets of Paris.

When he arrived at where he had tied his horse, he found a note lying on his saddle.

“Illegal parking of horse and carriage: Fine 25 Blancs”

It seemed like he was about to burst into tears when he thought about coming up to Paris and being mugged, losing the recommendation letter Drabang had given him, having two duel appointments, and now being fined 25 Blancs.

Laurent wrote a fine note on another carriage and approached the official who was in charge.

“Excuse me! What do you mean by a fine of 25 Blancs?!”

As Laurent grabbed the official’s shoulder and shouted, the official furrowed his brow.

“Wasn’t it clearly written on the note? It said illegal parking of horse and carriage, didn’t it?”

“Is it reasonable to charge me 25 Blancs just because I tied my horse for a moment?!”

The official smirked at Laurent’s words.

“That’s why country bumpkins…”

“What?!”

Laurent muttered quietly and shouted at the official who was mocking his background and territory.

“Oh my! Please stop shouting. Even if you don’t know where you came from, in a bustling city like Paris, if you shout like this, you’ll take up that much space, won’t you?”

“…”

“So only authorized horses and carriages can be parked in designated areas. You’ve only been in Paris for a short time, so how dare you shout recklessly on the streets?”

“Sigh…”

Laurent scratched his head nervously and let out a sigh.

#

The next day, at noon, we left the tavern where we had been gambling and headed towards the fountain.

“So you’ve agreed to duel at the fountain at 1 o’clock?”

“Yes, I was buying this outfit yesterday when a cheeky brat bumped into me. I wanted to give him a little lesson, but he said he was in a hurry, so I suggested we duel here at 1 o’clock today.”

In response to Aramis’s question, Rotus nodded.

“We’re in the same boat. I was drinking outside the tavern when a young man bumped into me.”

“And then?”

“So I demanded the cost of my clothes and beer, but he only handed me 20 Blancs.”

“Isn’t 20 Blancs enough?”

“Do you think the outfit I’m wearing is worth only 20 Blancs?”

“Hmm… It looks like 15 Blangs should be enough…”

Rotus pondered Aramis’s words, rubbing his chin.

“It seems like it’s about time for you to go. Where did you see this as a 15 Blang outfit! This outfit must be worth 30 Blangs!”

“Oh… 30 Blangs?”

“Yes, it’s 30 Blangs.”

Suddenly, Rotus shrugged and put on a green vest over a blue coat.

“Speaking of clothes… What do you think of my outfit?”

“You’ve been talking about clothes five times since this morning. Why are you so obsessed with it?”

“Why are you all so critical when I just asked for an evaluation of my fashion sense?”

“Well, who on earth dressed you like that?”

I sighed and scanned Rotus’s outfit up and down.

“Why do you keep asking about this outfit from morning till now? Even the shopkeeper praised it as an excellent choice.”

“Of course, the shopkeeper would praise the clothes they sell. Would they insult them instead?”

“Is that so?”

“Are you still stuck in your ways after living half your life?”

I rubbed my forehead and shook my head.

“No… Fernang… No, Mari! Listen. Is this outfit really that tacky?”

“It’s not just about being tacky. The vest doesn’t fit your body shape, so it’s about to burst.”

“Is that so? I think it looks wild and good.”

Rotus flexed his arms, showing off his muscles.

“Ugh…”

I sat at the fountain and started eating black bread.

“The duel hasn’t even started yet, and you’re already eating?”

“Isn’t it lunchtime now? I’m just hungry, so let me eat in peace.”

“Well, it might end up being boring, so just eat now.”

“Oh, that arrogant guy is coming over there.”

While Aramis and I were talking, Rotus pointed his finger at a young man approaching us.

“He’s here?”

“Both of them are here. 12 o’clock, 1 o’clock.”

For some reason, the young man had dark circles under his eyes.

“Hmm… Are you okay to duel in that condition?”

“Of course, come at me.”

The young man drew his rapier and aimed it at Rotus and Aramis.

“Duel!!!”

A bystander who had been watching us shouted to alert everyone.

“Ahh!”

“Quick, get out of the way!”

Not knowing what was about to happen, the citizens started fleeing in all directions.