episode_0075

When Betzdo playfully killed all the villagers in Sepia’s village.

The reason Sepia didn’t die by Betzdo’s hand was simply because she was lucky.

‘No, you can’t call that lucky.’

For a young child to witness all the villagers brutally murdered and violated with her own two eyes can never be called lucky.

After Sepia was adopted into the Marquis Revyden family.

She must have investigated Betzdo, who killed her villagers, but she likely found nothing.

All Sepia knew was Betzdo’s face.

She didn’t know that Betzdo was a necromancer, nor did she know where he was.

All Sepia could do now was to grow stronger for revenge.

…………

Sepia didn’t take her eyes off the happy family until they disappeared from her sight.

Only after they had vanished from sight did Sepia open her mouth.

………Let’s go.

After that, as Sepia walked, she would occasionally stop and wistfully watch happy families or villagers chatting with bright smiles.

I don’t know exactly what kind of village Sepia used to live in, but perhaps its atmosphere was similar to this one.

Sepia’s eyes, as she looked at the villagers, were filled with longing and sorrow.

The longing to see her villagers.

But the sorrow of not being able to see them.

Quite some time had passed since we arrived in the village, but we hadn’t done anything yet.

………Sorry.

Sepia apologized, as if she thought she was preventing us from completing the mission.

“It’s fine. We have plenty of time anyway.”

It was Baron Ashro who was in a hurry, not me.

But I couldn’t tell Sepia that.

“Still, sorry. I’ll do it properly from now on.”

Sepia said that and walked forward, but every time she heard the villagers’ laughter, her head involuntarily twitched back towards them.

Watching Sepia, I…

“Ouch!”

I cried out an awkward scream, clutching my left leg, and sat down.

“Hogu?”

When I screamed, Sepia turned around and looked at me.

“Ms. Sepia, I think I sprained my leg. How about we rest for a bit before we leave?”

My voice and tone sounded awkward even to myself.

“It’s obviously an act! What are you doing! Stop fooling around and get up.”

Honestly, I knew my act would be obvious.

My acting is terrible unless it’s during a fight.

But even if I’m bad at acting, I’m confident in my brazenness.

I plopped down on my back in the middle of the road.

“Oh dear! It hurts so much I can’t move a single step! I think if someone just rests with me for a bit before we leave, I’ll be fine…”

Sepia stared at me with an incredulous look, as if she was beyond just flustered and now completely dumbfounded.

As I lay in the middle of the road without moving, the villagers also began to stare this way.

“Alright! We can just rest for a bit and then go!”

Perhaps embarrassed by me, Sepia shouted with a flushed face.

.

.

.

Sepia and I sat down in a suitable spot where the villagers were visible.

“What exactly are we even doing…….”

Sepia grumbled, but this allowed her to comfortably observe the villagers.

“Alright, alright, save the complaints for later. For now, let’s just relax and eat some delicious food.”

I said that, and then pulled out a lot of easy-to-eat food from my subspace.

“But the others must be searching, shouldn’t we be searching too?”

Sepia seemed bothered by us resting while the others were working hard.

“Hmm. Then let’s do this.”

As soon as I finished speaking, words appeared in the air.

[Anyone who knows anything about Phantom Thief Cardinal, please come here! It’s alright even if Phantom Thief Cardinal himself comes!]

“How about it? Perfect, right?”

“Is it okay to search so conspicuously?”

“It’s not like our search for Phantom Thief Cardinal is a secret, so it shouldn’t matter.”

And I continued pulling out the food.

“How much is even in that subspace of yours?”

Sepia said, watching my subspace from which food continuously appeared.

“Just enough that I wouldn’t starve to death even if I were stranded on an island.”

“That’s not what people usually call ‘just enough’.”

Usually, subspace artifacts have a limit to what can be put inside.

However, I had never seen the limit of my subspace yet.

“That’s not what’s important right now. Try this.”

I picked up a sandwich and placed it in Sepia’s hand.

“I’ll eat it myself. And thanks.”

Sepia brought the sandwich I offered to her mouth and took a small bite.

…….!!

“How is it? Delicious, right?”

It’s not just magic tools or elixirs that are enhanced by subspace.

Even ordinary tools, and even food, are enhanced.

Unlike other games, eating food doesn’t increase stats, but the taste is definitely upgraded.

Sepia didn’t give a particular answer to my question about whether it was delicious, and instead picked up another sandwich.

…………….

“Emily, make sure you’re back before it gets too late!”

“Dad, I’m not a child anymore! I’ll take care of myself!”

“How dare you, to your father—Gah!”

“Heh heh, ignore your father and just play around for a bit before coming home.”

Sepia looked at the happy family, laughing and chatting joyfully, as she ate her sandwich.

I looked at Sepia, who was watching them.

“Hogu, you know I wasn’t born into the Marquis family, but was adopted, right?”

Sepia, who was eating her sandwich while looking at the happily laughing villagers, suddenly asked me.

“Yes, I know.”

There was probably no one who didn’t know Sepia was adopted.

“Then, do you know anything about the parents who gave birth to me, not my current parents?”

I silently shook my head.

“Haha. Right? It would be stranger if you, who’ve never even seen them, knew about my parents, who were just ordinary villagers.”

There was no strength in Sepia’s laugh.

“It’s only natural that you wouldn’t know,” Sepia said.

“……..Lately, I can’t quite recall the faces of the parents who gave birth to me. But I remember all the villagers’ faces.”

Sepia murmured in a weak voice.

“What should I do?”

Was it because her emotions welled up after seeing the happy family? Or was it because emotions that had already welled up were now spilling over upon seeing the happy family?

It was a weak sentiment that the usual Sepia wouldn’t have uttered.

But precisely because of that, it felt genuine.

“Sorry. I suddenly said something strange—”

“Ms. Sepia, do you remember conversations you had with your parents, or games you played together?”

Sepia was surprised for a moment, perhaps because she didn’t expect me to speak, but she nodded.

“Then it doesn’t matter.”

“But!”

“What’s important isn’t forgetting their face, but not forgetting the memories you shared with them.”

“Memories……….”

“So, it’s alright if you recall their faces slowly, later.”

“What if, what if I never recall them for my entire life?”

Sepia looked at me with anxious eyes and asked in an uncertain voice.

“In that case, I’ll help you remember.”

Because Sepia spoke with an anxious voice.

I said with a voice full of conviction.

“How?”

“That, of course, is a secret. But don’t worry. There’s nothing I can’t do.”

“Ahaha, what’s that? Seriously…….”

After that, Sepia and I continued eating sandwiches while exchanging trivial conversations.

When almost all the sandwiches I’d pulled out were gone.

Someone approached us.

The people who approached us were three men whose appearance and clothing clearly screamed, ‘I’m a thug.’

“You’re looking for Phantom Thief Cardinal? If you play with us, we’ll tell you what we’ve seen.”

They ignored me and spoke to Sepia. They couldn’t take their eyes off Sepia’s face.

I had changed my appearance with an illusion to be less noticeable, but all I had changed was the mask I was wearing to a slightly more ordinary one, and Sepia’s pink hair to ordinary brown.

Even without her iconic pink hair, Sepia was still beautiful.

Beautiful enough to attract pests.

When I was about to create a quick illusion to drive them away, finding it bothersome.

“Aaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!”

The thugs suddenly screamed and disappeared from my sight.

As I was wondering what was happening.

“What did you do?!”

The thugs’ voices came from below.

I bent down to check below, and there were the three thugs, their entire bodies embedded in the ground, with only their faces sticking out.

It seemed Sepia had dealt with them using spirits.

“Shall we start moving and searching ourselves now?”

Sepia said, holding the remaining sandwich in her hand.

“What should we do about those people?”

I said, looking at the men whose heads were still sticking out of the ground.

“Hmm. Well, someone will probably find them later and pull them out. Let’s not worry about it and go.”

“That’s a good idea. Let’s go!”

I said that and started walking towards where there seemed to be a lot of people.

“By the way, Hogu, didn’t you say you sprained your leg?”

“Oh, right. I did.”

I clutched my right leg.

“Ouch.”

Sepia burst into laughter watching me awkwardly cry out.

“Ahahahahaha! You idiot, it’s the opposite leg from before!”

Hearing that, I hastily clutched my left leg.

Sepia laughed for a long time, then walked forward.

After walking a few steps past me, Sepia turned around and looked at me.

“Loki, thank you.”

Until a moment ago, sorrow and longing had been in Sepia’s eyes, but now a beautiful smile rested on her lips.