Side Story 3
Jonas was about to say that Arsen didn’t like sweets.
But the action Arsen took immediately after was utterly shocking.
“Brother doesn’t like sweets—uh?”
Arsen interrupted Jonas and crunch, bit into the fruit.
Jonas’ jaw dropped.
Is my brother really crazy? Or is he dying from some disease?
Jonas rubbed his eyes again.
He rubbed them so hard it stung, but it didn’t change the fact that Arsen ate it.
He didn’t even spit it out—he swallowed it whole.
Then he casually said,
“Delicious.”
“Right? Hehe.”
Ibelina smiled shyly.
Arsen smirked, a small smile curling at the corners of his mouth.
Jonas rubbed his eyes again.
He had no idea how many times today he had rubbed them, but he couldn’t believe the situation without doing so.
Jonas stared at Arsen intently.
Sensing the gaze, Arsen turned to look at Jonas.
Then, with his eyes, he silently warned: Say something useless, and you’ll regret it.
In the end, Jonas didn’t say a word.
Whenever Ibelina’s gaze fell even slightly on him, Arsen would buy anything she wanted.
Even if Ibelina said it was fine, he wouldn’t be persuaded.
Of course, all the money came from Jonas.
Luckily, Jonas had brought plenty, otherwise, claiming they had money would have been a lie.
“T-That’s really enough now.”
“……Alright.”
Ibelina’s hands were full of delicious things.
Since it was hard to eat while walking, they took a seat by a fountain.
Jonas looked at Ibelina and asked,
“Is it good?”
“Yes! You try some too, brother.”
Ibelina suddenly offered a meat skewer she was holding.
Jonas didn’t hesitate and took a big bite.
The problem was that half of the skewer disappeared instantly.
“Mmm, it’s delicious.”
“Yes…….”
Ibelina stared at the skewer with a forlorn expression.
Jonas chuckled and said,
“If it’s not enough, I’ll buy more.”
“No, it’s okay! There’s plenty of other things!”
Ibelina quickly finished the skewer and pulled out a soft, large piece of bread.
Taking a big bite felt like chewing on a fluffy cloud.
“Where do you live?”
“Ah, um, I-I… over there.”
Ibelina roughly pointed in some direction.
Coincidentally, it was the area where the lowest-class citizens lived.
Jonas and Arsen had not a single doubt.
Her clothes were far from those of a noble lady.
Her robe was worn, and her inner clothes weren’t made of fine material either.
“……Who do you live with?”
Arsen, who had been silent, asked suddenly.
Ibelina widened her eyes and muttered in response.
“U-Um, well…….”
When she couldn’t answer easily, Arsen furrowed his brows slightly and said,
“Could it be that you live alone?”
Ibelina didn’t answer, just rolled her eyes.
Jonas and Arsen were convinced she lived alone.
She looked troubled.
By some accident, she had ended up lying.
She hesitated to tell the truth, and it led to this mess.
Still, since they were only going to see her today, she rationalized silently that it was fine.
Even if her conscience pricked her, there was nothing she could do.
Seeing Ibelina’s discomfort, Arsen said,
“I won’t ask any more, so don’t worry.”
“Yes……”
Ibelina replied in a small voice and continued eating her bread.
Her cheeks were so puffed up that she looked like a little squirrel storing acorns.
She had intended to eat everything they bought, but she was now too full to continue.
Feeling a bit sympathetic, Jonas spoke.
“Why aren’t you eating more?”
“I’m too full……”
“Then take the rest and eat it later.”
“Thank you.”
Ibelina bowed her head in gratitude.
Jonas took a pocket watch from his coat and checked the time.
“There’s still some time before dawn. Let’s explore a bit more. It would be a shame to leave now.”
“That sounds good.”
Jonas and Arsen both looked at Ibelina.
She blinked a few times and then nodded enthusiastically.
Arsen got up and held out his hand to Ibelina.
Since it was the second time they held hands, she could take it more easily.
Jonas immediately grabbed her other hand.
When Arsen glanced at Jonas, he saw him smile faintly and shrug.
“Just in case he drops your hand. It’s a precaution.”
Ibelina looked back and forth between Jonas and Arsen.
It felt like they had become a happy little family.
Family… how wonderful it would be if this person were really my brother.
Then she realized that they were acting this way because she hadn’t looked into their eyes.
If she saw their ominous red eyes, their attitude would instantly flip.
Just today… I have to be careful just today.
Ibelina resolved not to remove her robe until they parted ways.
Ibelina looked around.
There were stalls selling food, games, and other amusements.
Her eyes sparkled with a new excitement.
Arsen glanced down at her and said,
“If there’s something you want to do, tell me.”
“Ah… yes!”
Everything seemed fun to Ibelina.
Then she spotted a small rabbit plushie, small enough to fit in her arms.
Seeing her gaze linger on it, Arsen spoke.
“Do you want that doll?”
“Eh? Ah, well……”
Ibelina hesitated, then carefully nodded.
Her attic had no toys, so she was very bored.
Even secretly reading books from the library had its limits.
So she really wanted that rabbit plush.
Arsen studied the stall where the doll was displayed.
“Guess which cup holds the marble! You have five chances—guess correctly three times, and you win this cute rabbit doll. Guess all five correctly, and you’ll get the doll and puppet show tickets for everyone!”
It seemed the merchant would hide a marble under one of the cups and shuffle them, and the player had to guess which cup held the marble.
“Simple enough.”
Arsen muttered and stepped forward.
Ibelina’s eyes widened.
The merchant’s shuffling was too fast to follow with the eye.
She regretted speaking up, thinking she might waste money.
Jonas seemed to understand her worry and whispered with a chuckle,
“Don’t worry. My brother can see even very fast movements clearly.”
“B-But……”
Ibelina pouted.
Arsen’s expression was unreadable, making it impossible to know what he was thinking.
He plopped down in front of the merchant.
The merchant quickly inspected his clothes.
He’s hiding it with a robe, but it looks expensive. A naïve young master, no doubt.
The merchant grinned.
If things went well, he could earn more than usual by tempting the young master’s competitive spirit.
He was confident.
No one could match his shuffling speed.
Today’s earnings will be generous.
But that thought changed completely within a few minutes.
“Then let’s begin.”
The merchant, wearing a confident smile, placed a marble under a cup and shuffled them.
There were three cups in total, and the marble was under the middle one.
Arsen’s gaze fixed on the middle cup.
The merchant started slow, then gradually sped up.
Normally, people would be flustered, but Arsen’s expression didn’t change.
The merchant, slightly taken aback, increased the speed further.
It was dizzying just to watch.
Finally, the merchant stopped.
With a triumphant smile, he asked,
“So, which cup holds the marble?”
Voices shouted left, right, or middle from the crowd.
In truth, even the merchant didn’t know the marble’s location.
But he was sure Arsen would give the wrong answer.
After a few seconds of silence, Arsen spoke.
“Left.”
“Ah, you chose left. I’ll give you one chance to change your answer.”
Arsen shook his head firmly.
Ibelina swallowed and stared at the merchant’s hands.
The merchant slowly lifted the left cup.
Surprisingly, the marble was there.
When Arsen guessed correctly, the crowd cheered.
The merchant looked at Arsen, stunned, but quickly dismissed it as luck.
Yet Arsen guessed correctly again and again.
The crowd kept cheering and whistling.
Only two more correct guesses were needed for the puppet show tickets.
The merchant swallowed hard.
Giving away both the doll and tickets would be a painful loss.
“Then we’ll start again.”
The merchant’s expression was grave.
The confident, relaxed air from before had long disappeared.
Watching this, Jonas asked Ibelina,
“Do you like puppet shows?”
“Eh? Ah, yes, I do.”
She had never seen one, but she knew what it was.
Jonas shouted loudly,
“Brother! Ibelina likes puppet shows too!”
Arsen paused.
Initially, he only intended to win the rabbit doll and planned to get the next two wrong on purpose.
But now that Ibelina liked puppet shows too, Arsen immediately changed his mind.
And smoothly, he managed to secure the puppet show tickets as well.
The merchant, hands trembling, handed over the doll and tickets.
Arsen approached Ibelina with both in hand.
She clasped her hands and stared at him with her mouth wide open.
