"Well, that's something you can tell at a glance..."
The people around the man spoke up in his defense. Saying things like how could anyone not know just by looking, what would a child know, one should show compassion during the festive season. It was all nonsense.
I snorted and focused solely on holding onto the child.
Whether the child realized he would truly be handed over to the guard, he glared at me with teary eyes. Then he raised his voice as if making sure everyone heard.
"My neck hurts! It's painful!"
The child cried out frailly while gripping my wrist. Contrary to his weak cry, the grip on my wrist was quite strong.
A sharp pain stung my wrist. Startled by the sudden pain, my grip loosened.
The child didn't miss that instant and turned his body as if to quickly slip away.
"I'll be going then... Argh!"
The child tripped over someone's foot and fell flat forward. Someone grabbed the back of the fallen child's neck.
"Show compassion because it's a festival? What kind of nonsense is that?"
Muttering in complaint, the man looked around at the bystanders who had been adding their two cents and spoke cynically.
"If you want to show benevolence, do so in your own matters. Don't get absorbed in other people's business and forgive them on your own accord. You stay still, brat. Learning such wicked tricks at such a young age."
The one holding the back of the child's neck and flicking his forehead was Xenon. Surprised by the unexpected appearance, I stood there frozen when Palides pushed through the crowd and appeared.
"Here, this is the culpr... Huh? Captain's servant?"
A guard appeared behind Palides.
"Excuse me, who's the pickpocket?"
The guard who received the child from Xenon looked back at Palides. At the request to spare a moment for a simple situation report, Palides was unavoidably dragged along.
The people who had gathered as if there was a spectacle lost interest and turned away.
Those who had been criticizing me also whispered among themselves, then hurriedly turned around, cowed by Xenon's glare. Xenon clicked his tongue watching them, then looked at me.
"I thought you were resting. Why did you come out?"
"Just because. What about you? How did you get involved? How did you know I was here?"
"I followed Nesi and saw you. The surrounding spectators explained the situation before I even had to ask."
Only then did I notice Nesi, disguised as a dog, wagging his tail at me.
I gave Nesi a faint smile and nodded calmly.
"Guess you were on your way after finishing some business."
"Yes. But are you alright?"
"Yes, I got my pocket back."
"That's not what I meant."
Wondering what he was talking about, I looked at Xenon, then remembered something I'd forgotten and quickly raised my arm.
Checking my wrist that had stung earlier, I saw a wound between my bracelet. Blood beads were welling up over the thin scratch mark.
Seeing how thoroughly the skin was scratched, it didn't seem like the work of a novice.
"It's fine. Doesn't seem like there was poison."
Not that I expected a pickpocket to go around with poison on their nails anyway.
As I muttered calmly, Xenon reacted with alarm and approached.
"Are you injured? That little kid did this?"
"...Wasn't that what you were asking about?"
"If I knew you were hurt, I wouldn't have let him go so easily. He would've been dragged to the guard station only to be released soon anyway."
"What if I didn't let him go?"
Besides handing him over to the guard, what else could I have done to that child?
Xenon seemed to think the same, frowning and falling silent. Yet his gaze remained fixed on my wrist.
His reaction seemed excessive for such a minor injury, so I quietly pulled down my sleeve.
With my recovery ability, this wound would disappear in half a day.
"You go back in."
"What about you, Lady Anneli?"
"I'll..."
I started to say I'd look around more, then hesitated. There was nothing worth doing.
I could watch the circus I hadn't finished seeing, but no more interest arose. The crowd and noise I hadn't even noticed before now seemed to grate on my nerves.
Having chosen uninhabited paths for travel, this bustling atmosphere felt strange. My developed five senses probably made me more sensitive too.
As I stood there awkwardly, Xenon glanced around. Then he made a suggestion in a light tone.
"If you don't have anything particular to do, would you like to get some fresh air with me? I happened to receive a recommendation for a quiet spot."
I hesitated briefly, then slowly nodded.
Since I had nothing else to do.
* * *
Following Xenon's lead, we arrived at a wetland on the outskirts of the city.
Lush aquatic plants created quite a picturesque scene, and Palides, seeing the water, seemed to want to go boating again, looking around busily.
"Most events take place at the central square, so other areas became relatively empty," Xenon explained.
As Xenon said, the wetland was empty. Of course, empty didn't mean quiet.
Flocks of birds were chattering everywhere in the wetland. Xenon called out to me as I watched some ducks bobbing among the scattered aquatic plants.
He spread his cloak on a reasonably flat spot and sat down, pulling something from his bag.
"Would you like some?"
What he offered was a translucent bottle. Yellow liquid sloshed inside.
"They say it's a specialty liquor only sold during the festival. It's not strong. Supposedly mild enough for children to drink. They kept emphasizing how delicious it was, so I bought a few bottles. Good timing. Ah, sit here."
When I opened the cap, a sweet smell wafted out. If I hadn't been told it was alcohol, I would have thought it was fruit juice.
Though I accepted it, I just held it without drinking, so Xenon opened his own bottle and drank first as if to demonstrate. Watching him, I inadvertently asked.
"Planning to push me in if you get drunk?"
"Cough, hack! That joke isn't funny!"
Xenon coughed violently mid-drink and protested with an aggrieved expression.
Well, Palides came along too, so a surprise attack would be impossible. Besides, Nesi the righteous wolf was watching with sharp blue eyes from beside us.
Noticing that I was assessing the surroundings, resentment tinged Xenon's voice.
"It's not like we've only traveled together for a day or two. Do you really distrust me that much?"
"It was a joke."
"I know it was completely serious."
His perception is strangely sharp at times like this.
Giving up on making excuses, I drank the alcohol instead. It was my first time drinking straight from a bottle, so it felt a bit awkward, but the mouth was smooth enough that it wasn't uncomfortable.
As I took a sip, apple fragrance spread through my mouth. I could barely taste the alcohol.
It was also slightly cold, which was perfect. Perhaps because the alcohol was tastier than expected, my mood improved.
"Like just juice, right? You won't even get drunk at this level."
Xenon grumbled as he saw my relaxed expression and sipped his drink again. I sat at the edge of the cloak he had spread and replied calmly.
"I've experienced it a few times."
"Pardon?"
"There's an artificial pond in the imperial palace."
A very splendid and beautiful pond. It was built to commemorate the current Emperor's coronation.
A fountain was installed in the center, and unexpectedly deep enough that they kept koi.
"It's beautiful, so many visit during banquets."
It's also a place lovers secretly visit. Lilia and Maxel were no exception. Lilia especially loved feeding the koi.
Not long after Lilia appeared, when my influence was still considerable.
Some young ladies who followed me tried to push Lilia into the pond and failed.
Those who cherished Lilia were outraged, claiming I had orchestrated it.
They seemed to want revenge on me. They plotted to throw my accessories into the pond and push me in when I lingered near it.
Fortunately, their schemes were so obvious and transparent I couldn't miss them. I counted my accessories as thrown into the pond.
They didn't give up easily. Next, they apparently hoped I would trip while drunk. What they didn't know was that my alcohol tolerance was quite high.
After two failures, I thought this matter had fizzled out. Until...
Well, I suppose I was fated to fall into that pond eventually.
"It's a pond with very cold water."
It was the day I learned Maxel had given Lilia jewelry belonging to the Empress.
I was angry and tried to take the jewelry, and we struggled in front of the pond. I remember Lilia's beautifully styled hair coming completely undone.
It was Maxel who separated me from Lilia. In the process, I was roughly shoved and fell into the pond still holding the jewelry.
Servants rescued me immediately, and aside from being thoroughly soaked, I had no significant injuries. A flustered Maxel took off his coat and draped it over me.
「I didn't intend this.」
What was absurd was the joy I felt in that instant.
Knowing he worried about and cared for me made all the humiliation seem to vanish momentarily.
「I didn't know you valued that jewelry so highly, Lady.」
If Lilia hadn't pointed at the jewelry in my hand and spoken frailly.
「I'm sorry. If you had explained to me, I would have given it to you, but you just got angry so suddenly. I'm truly sorry.」
Even while crying, Lilia spoke clearly and loudly. Only then did Maxel see the jewelry in my hand. His face, filled with worry and apology, stiffened.
「You were tormenting her over something like this?」
It wasn't because of the jewelry.
「To do what lowly women would do...」
It was because of Maxel's feelings contained in that jewelry.
"Lady Anneli."
"Yes."
Watching the wetland, my mind was becoming unnecessarily sentimental. Finding that troublesome, I frowned and turned my attention to the alcohol bottle.
I was tilting the bottle to drink it all at once when Xenon rummaged through his bag and handed me another packet.
"No matter how weak the alcohol is, drinking on an empty stomach is dangerous."
"You said I wouldn't even get drunk from this."
"Still."