Let’s Block the Ruined Route in Advance

“So stupid.” 

A man lay in the corner of a narrow alley, out of the light of the night market. Lucian and Felix looked down at the man nonchalantly.

 “Sure. He doesn’t look like a trained man, so why was he following Eileen?” 

The man’s movements were slow and his grasp of the situation was sluggish, and until they turned and punched him in the back of the head, knocking him out, he probably didn’t know exactly what had happened to him.

 

They had been nervous, fearing that he might be connected to the greenhouse attack, but the tension quickly dissipated when they saw how defenseless he was. Lucian’s eyes narrowed as he searched the man’s arms, trying to determine his identity.

 “Do you have a crush on Eileen?” 

Felix’s hand stiffened at the words. They pulled their hands out of the man’s pockets and stared at his face. He looked no older than forty.

 

Lucian gritted his teeth.

 “Do you want to die?” 

Felix nodded.

 “Another kind of scum.” 

Their faces hardened with anger, the two men thought hard about what to do with the man. The consensus was to lock him up in an outhouse of the villa and interrogate him.

 “It’s not too late to deal with him after we’ve established his guilt.” 

Lucian sighed nervously and grabbed the man by the neck and lifted him up. There were too many flaws in the man to just get rid of him.

 “This is what happens when Eileen goes to the market.” 

As he held the man in a tight chokehold, Felix remembered Eileen’s teaching.

 

“The world is not a playground. It has its own life, its own world, and you have to have at least some respect for it, even if you don’t like it.”

 

“But what if the other person is a total scumbag? You know, the kind of person who can’t act like a human being, like the Count of Forss…”

 

“Stop! Stop! You don’t need to respect such scum! You need a minimum of respect, but that doesn’t mean you have to be nice to someone who does you harm.”

 

Felix was still small. It was a memory from years ago. He shook his head contemptuously as he finished the memory, then approached the bound man.

 “You look like a bastard even without shadowing Eileen.” 

The gentle Eileen would be shocked if they harmed him without knowing the full story.

 “Then we don’t have to go all the way to the cabin.” “What?” 

Felix snatched the man out of Lucian’s hand and threw him to the ground.

 “Let’s find out here, without Eileen knowing. See if this is the kind of crap she can’t handle. Let’s clean up and go inside.” 

Lucian chuckled at the bluntness of his words.

 “You and I are so good at that.” 

Felix shrugged and reached for the man’s hand as if he were about to use magic. Lucian rolled up his sleeves as well.

 “Ah! my head. What the hell?” “Ah. You’re awake.” 

The man finally woke up, realized he was tied up, and began to struggle in panic. Felix cast a simple soundproofing spell to prevent any sound from escaping, and Lucian stood in front of him as he crawled across the floor.

 “Ugh…” 

The horrified man shuddered and slowly looked up at the owner of the shoe. Lucian stared down at him with dark, sunken eyes into a remote alleyway, the only light coming from the moon.

 

The man’s body was pulsing wildly.

 “Lo-Lord Lucian, it’s me, it’s me, I don’t know if you remember me, but I’m James Dombeltas, second in command of the Dombeltas!” “Dombeltas?” 

One of Lucian’s eyebrows lifted. Dombeltas were mid-level leaders with ties to Gaudium.

 “Yes, yes, that’s right!” “If you really are Dombeltas then why did you target Eileen? You better get your answer straight if you don’t want the whole Dombeltas clan to lose their jobs.” 

The man’s face went blank. The moonlight was obscured by clouds, but the shadowy glow of Lucian’s eyes gave him the illusion of illuminating his surroundings.

 “It’s…” 

Swallowing hard, the man’s mouth slowly opened.

  

***

  “It’s more nonsense than I thought.” “That’s a good thing.” 

The man, James Dombeltas, had been following Eileen because he wanted to speak directly to the

“Fairy of Gaudium”

in hopes of securing a contract.

 

It was no secret that Eileen held the keys to the botanical garden business, but it was only through the Duke of Gaudium that she could be contracted or negotiated with.

 

The Duke was concerned that she was

still a minor and hadn’t earned her title, so he didn’t want any tricksters or flatterers taking advantage of her.

 “If you’re here for the hot springs, you should enjoy them, not break the rules and follow us around like this. I hope the eldest son of the head of Dombeltas is a little smarter.” 

When Lucian realized the nature of the unpleasant pursuit, he reprimanded him with the authority of a petty duke.

 

He warned him that if it happened again, or if any Dombeltas official so much as flinched while they were enjoying their trip, they would no longer be allowed to trade with Gaudium.

 “Yes, I will never, ever bother you, and I will leave quietly!” 

James fled in a huff, leaving one of his shoes untied. It was a sour ending.

 

Felix smiled with pride at the cleanup,

 “At least we did what Eileen told me.” “What did Eileen tell you to do?” “Sort the trash.” 

Regular trash and recycling to be burned. Felix felt like he’d been practicing. Lucian watched him for a moment with an unreadable expression, then stretched.

 “Let’s go back.” 

The night market was still open.

  

***

  “You have very good taste, young lady! There are only four left.” “Really?” 

Eileen fumbled with her string bracelet, a mix of black, green, and silver, and pulled out the sigil she had placed.

 

The earth energy that had been searching for Lucian, Felix, and the mystery man returned to her side and dissipated.

 

Eileen smiled with satisfaction. No one was hurt.

 

A gentle resolution, at least.

 

It was no secret to Eileen that she was being followed. 

 

After the greenhouse incident, she’d learned the importanc

e of exploring her surroundings, and under Orgen’s tutelage, she’d developed her peripheral vision.

 

She knew through Star that it wasn’t dangerous when she saw he wasn’t paying attention.

 

Star was asleep under the hood of Eileen’s fur cloak. His fur stood up and he didn’t growl, so she knew there was no malice in the foolish pursuit.

 

But she didn’t stop Felix and Lucian from leaving.

 

‘This may be a bit much, but it’s a final check.’

 

As she bought the string, Eileen remembered the green-haired man from the original movie.

 

“He killed her. He killed her at the end!” He screamed in agony, his eyes bulging.

 

Lucian and Felix were not who they were in the original, their terrible and devastating future gone, the various tragedies that would have resulted from their corrupt hands already a thing of the past.

 

Still, Eileen needed one last reassurance before sending them off to the Academy.

 

‘That they don’t take others lightly, even when I’m not around to see it.’

 

It might seem a bit arrogant, but Eileen had seen their pain and misdeeds dozens, perhaps hundreds of times in the future. 

 

When the mighty had gone astray. She couldn’t help but watch, even if she didn’t want to, how many would be caught in the storm, how many misfortunes would be born.

 

So this was the final confirmation.

 

‘I will not worry about them anymore.’

 

It was the right answer.

 “Eileen. Do you like that bracelet?” “I thought it would be nice for Lucian and Felix to have one each before they go to the Academy. Cordelia, four for you and me!” 

The string bracelets, a tangle of colorful threads, formed into a single knot. Eileen hoped desperately that their futures would stretch straight ahead, supporting each other instead of tangling.

 “Eileen!” “Lucian, Felix!” 

Lucian and Felix emerged from the crowd. They were holding paper bags of sweet looking bread.

 “Eat it while it’s still warm. Famous in the trade!” 

She took the bread and immediately felt a warmth emanating from the sweet smelling bread. It was the kind of warmth that warms the soul to the core.

 “Thank you.” 

As she bit into the warm bread, Eileen felt tears well up in her eyes.

 “…Eileen, were you hungry?” “Something to drink. Would you like me to get you something to drink?” 

Panicked, Felix was ready to run out the door to find a street vendor selling drinks. Eileen grabbed his sleeve and shook her head.

 “It’s too good. It’s delicious.” “We should hire that vendor as our pastry chef.” “You’re exaggerating again.” 

The four returned to the well. Surrounding the fountain in the center were small and large braziers, with small picnic chairs nearby.

 

They sat around the braziers and shared bread. Each wore a string bracelet around one wrist.

 “I’m very happy.” “Travel is good.” 

The bread in their hands was sweet, and the heat from the braziers melted their flesh from the cold. Eileen looked up at the moon, the orange embers dancing softly.

 

It had been a very happy trip.

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