Chapter 10: A New Acquaintance and Internal Conflicts (2)
"What a lucky girl! With such luck, it's easier and safer to run away from home than to arrange an 'accident' for 'beloved relatives,'" I thought.
Of course, I didn't rush to share my thoughts and, in general, preferred to listen more than talk. I told her about the battle with the monster, the sight of which the troupe leader had denied her, shared a few funny incidents that happened on the way and during missions. Naturally, I left out unnecessary (bloody) details and unsightly (dirty) facts.
The other inhabitants of the carriage weren't eager to interfere in our conversation, engrossed in their own activities. Only Hunter, a silver-haired man with a neat beard, approached to greet me and once again thanked me for saving his "foolish granddaughter." He promised to do everything in his power if I ever needed assistance. His genuine gratitude (and I felt that the old man was sincere, or he was truly an excellent actor) made me feel somewhat awkward.
As the carriage slowed down for the midday break, I lazily flipped through manga pages, taking a break from meditation and not planning to be distracted until lunch. However, my hopes were shattered by the appearance of the noisy Kei Li.
"Who are you, and what have you done with the real Kurome?!" he exclaimed accusatively. Raising my eyes, I saw our troublemaker pointing a finger at me with the demeanor of an angry investigator.
How I would sometimes like to squeeze my fingers on the throat of this clown in a friendly way!
"Don't look at me like you don't understand anything, spy! I've been told you were seen sharing your treats with some blonde girl! The real Kurome-chi would never do such a thing! She promised to chop off the hand of anyone who dared to touch her sweets!"
"Don't yell," I said, irritated, squinting at him. "I promised to chop off the hand of anyone who'd touch my treats without permission. And remind me, why did I say that?"
Kei scratched his head, pretending to think, and after a couple of seconds, he suggested with a mischievous grin, "Because you're mean and greedy?"
"No, because seven years ago, a little thief started snatching things," I flicked my lips, looking down condescendingly at the "exposer."
"Hey-hey! It didn't say on there that they were yours!"
My hand pulled a bag of cookies out of my bag and showed the embroidered inscription on the side: "Kurome's Sweets."
"Now the audacious thief can't wriggle out of it with excuses. As a loyal subject of the Empire, in full accordance with the law, I will cut off his thieving paw," my hand caressed the hilt of my sword, and a very friendly smile appeared on my face.
"Tsk-tsk, I recognize the real Kurome, mean and greedy. I thought we were friends! And you're still ready to draw your blade on your faithful comrade for a couple of cookies," Kei said dejectedly and headed for the exit with a wounded look.
However, after taking just three steps, he abruptly spun on one foot and, as if nothing had happened, with a wide grin, asked:
"By the way! Who was that girl sitting with you? Is she cute? Will you introduce me?" He asked his final question while dodging a kick from the redhead.
"She's my new, um, friend," I said after a short pause. "Yes, she's cute. No, I won't introduce you."
Calling Eris my friend would be an overstatement. I generally believed that I had only one true friend left—Natal. However, I felt a certain fondness for Eris, and it was pleasant to talk to her. I didn't know why, but things seemed warmer when she was around. Perhaps it was my subconscious at work. She somehow reminded me of my long-deceased comrade. I had always treated Remus, a clumsy green-eyed blonde, with sympathy and a considerable amount of protectiveness, even blaming myself somewhat for her death.
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"But why?! You can't be so stingy! Hey, Akira-chi, stop fighting! I'm just curious to know who this new friend is that greedy Kurome is sharing sweets with."
“A girl is not a bag of sweets, you can't write 'Kurome's Property' on her. And if someone starts rolling his balls up to her under the pretext that "nothing is written on it," I'm afraid this someone may lose them," I said with a bit of irritation. “And Akira won't forgive me for that.
"Why does Akira need balls?" curiously piped up Babe. "I can carve them out of wood."
Laughter filled the carriage. Only Babe, who didn't understand anything, and Akira, who blushed with anger and embarrassment, didn't join in.
"I hate you all!" the redhead exclaimed, hiding her flushed face in her hands.
Natal, after laughing, leaned in towards the healthy guy.
"Funny," he said with a faint smile when he heard what the joke was about.
"Jealousy?" chuckled the brunette, and then, with an amused shake of his head, added, "Oh my, little Kurome has revealed a surprising side of herself." Kei burst into unpleasant laughter. "It turns out you're quite the prankster! I had no idea."
"Do you have a problem with that?" I shot a cold glare at the increasingly irritating comedian.
"Me?! When did I say anything like that?" the brunette protested, throwing up his hands in mock outrage. "Tender girlish friendship is beautiful! Have you two... already...?" He grinned suggestively and waggled his eyebrows.
"Someday I'm going to kill you," I sighed, an exhausted tone in my voice. "I'm not asking for the details of what's going on between you and Akira, am I? So you don't get involved in other people's relationships."
"I have nothing to be ashamed of!" the guy proudly puffed out his chest. "I...," but before he could finish, his speech was cut short by the "thirst for blood" that had finally overflowed from Akira's still-clamped hand over her face.
"I'll kill you," a quiet voice filled with a desire to inflict pain and death sounded.
"I meant to say that there was nothing!" the brunette hastily stammered, taking a couple of cautious steps towards the exit.
“Akira, hold him! I'll turn this fool into the most silent and executive member of the group. He will be obedient and almost as alive.”
"Oh my, those are some unhealthy inclinations! You should try to be kinder, my friend! Life becomes too scary and sad if you're always gloomy and serious. Look at the world with a smile, Kurome-chi! Take a lesson from the magnificent me!" Kei responded, trying to sound more serious.
"Ha-ha, aren't you afraid of losing your 'unique and unparalleled' status?" Natal teased.
"I'm not afraid!" Kei declared with a grandiose pose. "Perhaps you and Kurome-chi occupy the top positions in the Ranking, but you can never compare to the Master of Jokes! I am the Mightiest Comedian in the Squad!"
"You're the biggest idiot in the Squad," Akira muttered, sizing up her partner, as if preparing to give him a good smack.
“Ugh, that’s enough,” Natal smiled, suppressing a laugh. “Someone is coming towards us, I hear footsteps.
I also heard approaching—and familiar—light footsteps. Looking out the window, a few seconds later I saw the figure of Eris appear in the field of view, carrying in her hand something wrapped in a white rag. On her belt hung a black and silver sheath with a cubit-long dagger. Apparently, my words reached the girl’s mind, and she did not “forget” her weapon today. Soon we heard a soft knock.
“Hi beauty! Are you coming to us?” Kay opened the door and asked joyfully. I couldn't see his face, but I bet it almost cracked under the pressure of his wide smile.
“Hello,” came the response, not too confidently. “Could you call Kurome?”
Without saying anything, Kay jumped off the step and began to walk in circles around the embarrassed and a little frightened girl by such behavior. When I, having risen from my seat, slowly walked to the exit, the brunette, having carefully examined and almost sniffed the blonde who did not know where to go, with the air of a picky critic, pronounced a verdict:
“I approve!”
“He would also put a stamp: “Checked and approved. Kay Lee, I thought sarcastically. “The main thing is not to blurt it out loud, otherwise this pepper that doesn’t see the shores would begin to perceive the words as a guide to action.”
“Hello, Eris. Don’t pay attention to that idiot,” I told the nervous girl. “This is Kay Lee, our squad jester. Sometimes you want to quietly kill him, but on the whole he is harmless and funny at times.”
“Not a jester, but the soul of the team, with his sparkling humor preventing this gloomy gathering from finally sinking into the darkness of despondency!” Continuing to show off a full set of teeth, the brunette introduced himself. “And you, then, are the mysterious girl who was able to melt the black heart of our little Kurome?”
“Not true! Kurome is very kind! She is a real heroine and saved me from the villains! Like so…” embarrassed by her vehemence, the girl lowered her eyes. Her hands began to fiddle with the package, from which the smell of baking was wafting.
"Of course, she's kind-hearted! And those who doubt her mercy will drown in their own blood," chuckled the brunette. The girl didn't take the guy's words too seriously; she even nervously smiled at his joke.
"Kei Lee, stop embarrassing Kurome's guest," Natal interjected before I could respond. Meanwhile, behind the girl, I threatened the jester by running my finger across my throat.
"Exactly, enough with the antics and acting like a fool! You're disgracing us," Akira said, casting a hostile glance at the guy.
"This fiery-haired lady is called Akira," I began introducing Eris to our team. "This is Natal," I pointed at the friendly smiling blonde, "our leader and my best friend. The healthy guy over there is Babe. Don't be fooled by his grumpy appearance; he actually loves children and is very kind. And our guest, as you've already heard, is Eris. We met her last night."
"Pleasure to meet you," she said politely.
After a while, when Akira and Kei had satisfied their curiosity, extracting every detail of our encounter from the girl, we invited her to join us for lunch (although the redhead didn't insist, occasional flashes of jealousy in her eyes were hard to miss). Finally, I asked the blonde what had brought her here.
"Well," she showed me a bundle, "I came to thank you for the morning treat and to treat you in return. When we passed by the village, I asked Robbie to buy something for tea. He brought back fruit-filled pastries. Delicious."
I looked forlornly first at the bundle with the advertised pastries and then at the other teammates, who were giving it interested glances, and sadly realized that I wouldn't get much. Despite feeling slightly unwell after yesterday's experiment, my appetite showed no signs of disappearing or diminishing, and my stomach was hinting that it was time to fill it with something tasty, preferably in large quantities.