Chapter 19
Even in the illusion, Charmant couldn’t help but feel frustrated.
No wonder, every time she cleaned, coins of all kinds—gold, silver, bronze—kept popping out from everywhere.
She’d cleaned thoroughly, and yet, just this morning, a bronze coin had fallen from her underwear while she was getting dressed. It had made her sigh.
She thought maybe she was just forgetful, but it seemed this had been a habitual thing.
“One gold, one gold, always short one gold… hmm, let’s see—”
Pepe sang a cheerful tune while sounding troubled.
Wearing a lace-covered dress, Pepe suddenly flopped to the floor and stuck her hand under a drawer.
“Here! Got them all! Ugh, that was tough.”
Covered in dust from not sweeping the floor properly, Pepe wiped her forehead and shook out her dress.
It was the first time Charmant saw her body’s owner doing business—and she couldn’t understand it.
How could someone run a shop like that and still stay afloat?
The money paid by the middle-aged woman earlier, and by other customers too, wasn’t small, but just handing over 50 gold like that? No matter how she looked at it, it was a loss.
Despite her concerns, the Pepe in the illusion noisily counted the 50 gold coins into her pouch with a jingle.
“Alright, 50 gold. I said it, okay? You can’t take it back now.”
“I won’t. Do whatever you want with it—sell it or toss it.”
The man who snatched the pouch walked out without looking back.
“Don’t forget what you said, kid!”
Pepe grabbed the door frame and shouted after the man disappearing into the alley.
Once he was gone, Pepe let out a deep sigh, returned inside, crossed her arms, rested her chin on one arm, and tapped her cheek with an index finger.
“Hmm. This is a problem.”
Then, all of a sudden, she lifted her head sharply.
Charmant was startled and stepped back.
‘Did… our eyes meet?’
Pepe was definitely looking right at her.
The corners of Pepe’s mouth curled into a smirk, and her eyes twinkled mischievously.
“Nothing comes for free, huh?”
Charmant nearly lost her balance and fell backward.
Without realizing, she muttered, “Ah, crap…”
The illusion vanished, and all that remained was the image of a frightened child.
‘What was that?’
Did she just try to talk to me?
The Pepe in the illusion had definitely spoken directly to her.
Did she know the future? Or had someone shown her this illusion on purpose?
It was confusing to the point where no explanation made sense.
“Nothing comes for free, huh…?”
That bright, clear voice still seemed to echo in her ears.
‘Who even is that woman?’
“What’s wrong?”
Only when the child asked did Charmant snap out of it.
“…Ah.”
“It’s really mine. My mom gave it to me.”
Charmant looked down at the pocket watch in her hand.
“You’re right, it is. But…”
“Nothing comes for free,” the voice repeated in her mind.
Yeah, she said a price must be paid.
“I can’t just give it back. Your brother already took the money.”
“Wh-what? How much? I can pay. Just give me a little time…”
Charmant slowly looked the child over, from head to toe.
Maybe it was because she’d seen the unfamiliar home earlier—or maybe she was just now noticing.
The boy had a thin body that looked like he hadn’t eaten properly in a while, and his clothes and face were covered in grime.
With that body, he wouldn’t be able to find a job. He’d probably resort to begging—or stealing.
And if his brother really had run away that day, then the child would be left alone.
Charmant had been there herself.
And more than anything, what struck her was that she’d already dealt with a kid just like this one.
“How annoying. I could’ve gotten away with it.”
“Got a loud mouth for a petty thief.”
“You’re the ones who got robbed. Especially that black sword—it looked expensive. Tsk, what a waste.”
“Lock him up. As soon as we’re back, hand him over to the guards.”
“W-wait! I’m sorry!”
It had happened during an outside training mission.
A little brat had sneaked into the military barracks while Charmant’s subordinates were training and stole some items, only to get caught.
And not only that, the bold thief had dared to go into Charmant’s tent and steal her spare dagger.
They’d had to light up torches at night to search for him—it had been a big deal.
That thief had turned out to be the third of her three disciples: Radi Pigertha.
He’d had shaggy, curly brown hair like wool and bright green eyes.
Even after being caught, he didn’t shrink back at all—he was so bold it was hilarious.
Normally, she should’ve killed him on the spot or handed him to the guards.
But Charmant had instead picked him up and started training him.
He had potential. That was the only reason.
Radi, who looked like a child made of nothing but bones, had only been two years younger than her at the time.
Had she known he was nearly an adult, she might not have taken him in.
But she hadn’t been wrong about his talent.
His precision and agility were so good that within a year, his sword was too fast to see.
Even though he couldn’t use magic at all, that hadn’t held him back.
Because Radi had a light build, unlike Felix Crasson who used heavy greatswords, she gave him twin short swords.
It was like giving him wings.
There was even talk that another monster might be born to succeed Charmant.
After that, Radi, who was fully grown, followed her around like a well-trained big dog, which was honestly a bit much.
Especially when both he and the massive Felix followed her at the same time—she always drew attention.
Watching this child now made her think of Radi Pigertha.
Especially with those same green eyes.
“Hope he’s doing okay.”
Were the three of them still doing well?
Even if Charmant took just one day off, things always exploded the next day.
All three of them were giants, and all three were chaos.
Charmant shook her head.
“It was fifty gold.”
She lowered her voice.
The child repeated, “Fifty… gold?” and looked stunned.
“Are you crazy? Don’t lie!”
“…”
Charmant didn’t correct him—just looked down in silence.
“Did my brother really take fifty gold?”
“Yes.”
The child was speechless again.
He rolled his eyes as if calculating something, then drooped his head.
“F-fifty gold… There’s just no way…”
“Exactly. You can’t pay it back.”
She hoped he’d give up on his own.
“B-but I’ll definitely repay you. A few years—no, just five years! I’ll be an adult then. So please, just give me some time. I swear I’ll repay it all.”
Wasn’t adulthood at 19 in Ellium? Then this kid must be about 14.
Older than she thought.
Still, he met Charmant’s eyes with a determined gleam.
His small body was still trembling, but he was pouring all his desperation into a promise.
What to do…
Charmant furrowed her brows.
Do I really have to stick to the rules?
All she needed to do was stop the war.
Once she’d settled her karmic debts and recovered her body, she’d disappear without harming this place.
So why were all these headaches piling up?
But I can’t just ignore it either…
She’d thought she only needed to quietly guard the shop.
Even someone as principled as Charmant couldn’t help but be weak toward the vulnerable.
She let out a deep sigh without realizing it.
The child flinched again.
“I-I really mean it. I’ll repay it for sure. I’ll come back for it once I’ve saved enough, so please don’t sell it. You have lots of other things. Please. I’ll do anything.”
Because without it, Mom wouldn’t come back.
The boy couldn’t move his trembling legs and finally fell to his knees.
With teary eyes, he begged.
Just as Charmant looked away, unable to bear it…
The boy’s stomach growled loudly.
His face turned bright red.
Charmant let out a small laugh.
Good thing she’d saved the food Alonso brought this morning.
“Hey, kid.”
“…Yeah?”
“Let’s eat first.”
“Eat…?”
“You like sweet potatoes?”
“S-sweet what?”
“If you eat well, I’ll think about your offer.”
With a snap of her fingers, Charmant stood up.
The boy, not understanding what she meant, wore a puzzled expression but hurried to follow behind her.
