episode_0017

Of course, it wasn’t like I didn’t resist at all.

[Miss, I didn’t receive any notice. You’re saying I can’t go?]

[You can just enter as a special talent, right?]

[…Is that even possible for me? Isn’t the competition ratio like 100,000 to one?]

[Do it.]

Sigh…

What choice did I have?

Sitting in the rattling capital-bound carriage, I lost myself in thought for a long while.

Special talent.

It wasn’t like I hadn’t considered it.

But this “special talent” category was open even to non-nobles, making the competition brutally fierce.

Of course, I was confident in my skills. But to be among the top three out of hundreds of thousands?

“…Wouldn’t it be easy?”

As I flexed my fingers, a surge of overconfidence hit me.

It might sound arrogant, but after raising Firunea, a prodigy, and struggling relentlessly, I was confident I could take down an average knight without even using magic.

And if magic was allowed?

Wouldn’t I be able to twist the wrists of mere exam candidates with ease?

Of course, the written exam was another hurdle, and I knew the world was full of extraordinary people, but…

—Thud!

“Huh?”

Lost in thought, the carriage suddenly jerked to a stop.

Wondering what was going on, I opened the window to see the coachman bowing apologetically.

“M-My apologies! The carriages ahead stopped suddenly…”

“It’s fine. Something must have happened.”

“I’ll go check right away!”

Thanks to the young lady’s financial “treatment,” the coachman, now far more disciplined, hurried toward the front of the line where the carriages had halted—

—only to return with a bewildered expression.

“There’s… a little girl standing there?”

“…?”

What kind of nonsense was this?

I stepped out of the carriage and walked forward—only to find it was exactly as described.

A small girl with black hair stood boldly in the middle of the road.

The coachman of the lead carriage, looking utterly exasperated, shouted at her.

“Hey, kid! You got a death wish? What’s the idea of cutting in like this?!”

“Sorry.”

“Then get out of the way already!”

Crack! The coachman lashed his whip through the air irritably.

The sharp sound was enough to send most people scrambling, but the girl didn’t even flinch and simply stated her piece.

“I have a request.”

“…What?”

“Give me a ride.”

“???”

The coachman stared at her in disbelief before spitting to the side.

“The hell? What are you even saying? Move already! If our young master is late for the entrance exam, you think you’ll take responsibility?”

“I’m also taking the entrance exam. I’ll pay.”

At that, the coachman tensed slightly and scanned the girl.

Shabby black clothes, a scrawny frame, bare feet, a rusted sword.

Once he’d taken it all in, he bristled and raised his whip again.

“You crazy bitch… You brought this on yourself!”

“…!”

Crack!

Before anyone could stop him, the whip struck the girl.

She rolled sideways several times, and after a brief moment of shock, the coachman urged the horses forward again.

“…Tch. Should’ve moved faster!”

“Oh-ho.”

I couldn’t help but be mildly impressed—not by the coachman’s humanity, but by the girl’s beast-like reflexes.

She hadn’t just dispersed the whip’s impact—she’d moved with it.

In other words, she hadn’t been hit.

The dramatic tumble was just the recoil from her evasive maneuver.

Sure enough, the girl staggered to her feet and stood in the road again.

“H-Huh? This brat definitely just—”

“Give me a ride.”

“Are you out of your mind?!”

Unidentified, blocking the road—

And something about her was unsettling.

Eyes devoid of focus, a face utterly devoid of expression.

She was like a monster using human language.

A hitchhiker no sane person would ever pick up.

The girl endured whips, clubs, even horses being driven at her, getting flung off the road dozens of times.

Yet no matter how many times she was refused, she stubbornly returned to the road.

And then—it was our carriage’s turn.

She made the same request.

“Give me a ride.”

“What should we do?”

At the coachman’s question, I nodded.

“There’s space. Tell her to get in.”

“Tell her to—Wait, where’d she go?”

The coachman lost sight of her. Even my eyes barely caught her bizarre, insect-like movement as she climbed onto the back of the carriage.

“Thanks.”

“…You could’ve just snuck on without asking.”

“That’s a crime. You shouldn’t do that.”

“…”

“You shouldn’t do that.”

Her black eyes stared straight at me as she answered.

She definitely wasn’t all there.

Up close, her strangeness was even more pronounced. Unkempt hair that looked unwashed for days, wounds covering her body, and a face that showed no awareness of her own state.

She pulled something from her pocket and held it out.

“What’s this?”

“Money.”

“…”

Three mud-stained copper coins—not even enough to buy candy.

Not that I’d picked her up for the money, but—I was curious.

What was she? Some kind of outcast from a feral group?

Lacking both common sense and knowledge, yet her physical abilities rivaled those of knights.

Naturally, the question slipped out.

“Keep the money. What’s your name?”

“Arin.”

“…What?”

“That’s my name.”

A chill ran down my spine.

“W-Wait, what? Say that again. Arin?”

“Yeah. Arin. That’s my name.”

Of course, it was a name I’d never heard before.

In this world.

I wasn’t entirely sure, but its pronunciation and structure were too distinct from this world’s naming conventions—almost as if…

—It was a name from Earth.

Gritting my teeth, I grabbed Arin’s shoulders tightly.

“Are you—Korean?! No, are you from Earth?”

“…? I don’t know what that is.”

“Don’t lie! I’m also—!”

“I’ve never heard of it.”

“T-Then who named you? Your parents?”

“I don’t have any.”

“They’re dead?”

“Never had any. I named myself.”

“…Where’d you get the inspiration?”

“Don’t know. Just did.”

“…”

“That hurts.”

Guess it was too much to hope for.

I lowered my head and released her shoulders.

“…I must’ve mistaken you for someone else. Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

And that was that.

Arin sat upright in the seat and began meditating, while I scratched my head vigorously.

What was I even expecting?

Guess I hadn’t fully let go of my lingering hopes.

Upon arriving in the capital, I had the coachman unload the luggage at the inn I’d reserved in advance.

Arin bowed her head slightly in thanks and made to leave.

“Thanks for the ride. I’ll go now.”

“…”

I watched with a wry expression as Arin walked down the street.

“Ugh, there’s even beggars in the capital?”

“Is she an escaped slave?”

“Should we call the guards…?”

People around whispered at the sight of her feral appearance.

Not my problem. Well, not entirely—

But that damn name stuck with me. I couldn’t shake the unease from prying earlier.

With no other choice, I called out to Arin, who was walking away while scratching her head.

“Hey.”

“…?”

“Come with me for a sec.”

“Okay.”

I dragged Arin back to the inn and shoved her into the bathroom.

About to leave, I hesitated and asked through the door just in case.

“You know how to wash yourself, right?”

“Yeah. But there’s no mud here.”

“You—Wait.”

That was a close call. Good thing I asked.

I pulled her back out and gave her a step-by-step tutorial.

“Wet your body and hair with water, then scrub your head with this, lather this up, rinse it off. Step out here. For your face, apply the potion in this shell, and this is a towel. After washing—”

“Why do I have to do this?”

“Aren’t you here for the exam? They won’t even let you in looking like that.”

“Got it.”

Once her doubts were cleared, Arin immediately started bathing.

For a full thirty minutes.

The water sounds stopped, and a slightly fresher-looking Arin emerged.

Peeking into the bathroom, I found a scene so horrifying it looked less like a human had bathed and more like 300-year-old seabed debris had been scrubbed clean.

…Leaving the cleanup for later, I led Arin—now wrapped in a towel, dripping water, and staring blankly at me—back to the room.

Naturally gathering magic in my hand—

—Swish! Arin bolted from the room on all fours.

My eyebrow twitched as I called after her.

“What are you doing?”

“Mages are dangerous.”

“I’m not dangerous. Get back here. You’re just gonna stay wet like that?”

“…”

What kind of beast was this? She had zero socialization.

After some hesitation, she crept back in. I gently dried her hair and dressed her in an old set of the young lady’s casual clothes.

“Hmm…”

Studying Arin’s face as she stood still, I felt the butler spirit within me stir.

This girl.

There was potential here.

“Hold still for a second.”

“Okay.”

Since childhood, I’d been solely responsible for the young lady’s hair and makeup.

Originally, a professional maid handled it, but one day, Firunea suddenly insisted that no one but me could touch her hair.

Naturally, my styling skills were top-tier.

—Snip, snip…

Like sculpting a statue, I trimmed, applied, and styled.

For a full hour.

Arin didn’t react at all, standing so still I almost thought she’d stopped breathing.

“There. Done.”

I spun the chair around to show her the finished look in the mirror.

Given it was my work, the result was flawless.

The grimy wolf-girl who’d looked like she’d been rolling in the wild for three months had transformed into a stunning beauty that would make anyone turn their head.

Arin stared at the mirror and muttered something odd.

“Strange. I look like a person now.”

“…Obviously? You are a person.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. You’re a person.”

Was this some kind of chuunibyou phase?

Arin touched her face blankly before bowing her head slightly.

“Thanks.”

“WHEREEEEEEEEEE DID SHEEEEEEEEE GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO?!”

“Big sis…”

Leah’s face flushed red as she tugged at Almeria’s armor.

“E-Everyone’s watching… Stop it.”

“N-No, Leah! We can’t let this slide! The p-protagonist is gone!”

A crowd had already gathered on the capital’s streets.

“…Paltis? What’s going on?”

“She’s been running around looking for someone…”

“Has anyone seen a girl like this?! Small, kinda feral-looking?!”

“N-No, ma’am!”

Almeria, eyes bloodshot, accosted passersby frantically.

Leah watched and realized this outburst was different from her sister’s usual episodes.

‘…Protagonist?’

Of course, she couldn’t understand, but she’d heard that word for a long time.

Almost since she’d first learned to speak.

Whenever Almeria whispered secrets to her, those words were always there.

If we don’t raise the protagonist, we’ll all die.

The protagonist is the hero, not us.

I’ve been saving all these potions to give to the protagonist little by little.

And in recent weeks, the frequency had only increased.

I’ll finally get to meet them soon…

Everything’s ready…

And today, she’d dragged Leah out to throw this very tantrum.

“…”

It was unmistakably madness.

But Leah, having consumed countless potions over the years, knew this madness wasn’t ordinary.

If Almeria was this frantic—something must have gone very wrong.

Swallowing her embarrassment, Leah approached Almeria.

“Big sis, I’ll help, so calm down. You’ll scare everyone off.”

“R-Right… Sorry. I got too excited.”

As Almeria took deep breaths to steady herself, Leah pressed for details.

“So, this protagonist… What do they look like?”

“Like a wild wolf.”

“?”

“How am I supposed to describe it? You’ll know when you see them. Just a feral beast with no socialization.”

“Then… shouldn’t we ask the guards?”

“Don’t worry. They’ve got manners drilled into them, weirdly enough. They wouldn’t get arrested.”

“You’re sure they’re out here somewhere?”

“Yeah… Probably. But they should’ve shown up by now…”

“Got it. I’ll check the other side of the street.”

“Leah…! You’re the best!”

Leah sidestepped Almeria’s hug and added one last question.

“What do we do when we find them?”

“They’ll follow if I tell them to. Let’s meet at the fountain.”

“O-Okay. Any precautions?”

“Precautions…”

After a moment’s thought, Almeria answered.

“Never, ever tell them they’re normal. No matter what.”