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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Erica
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***
The day after their safe return to the mansion from seeing *It's Okay to Be a Monster*.
While going about his usual schedule, Lucius received news that struck him like a bolt from the blue.
“The young lady went out early this morning.”
“Why? She said nothing to me.”
“According to Brandon, who began posing as a maid upon returning to the mansion yesterday, the young lady suggested they go buy a gift for you in secret, Your Grace. It's her way of thanking you for the opera, which she enjoyed immensely.”
“In secret?”
“Yes. Which means you didn't hear a word I just said, Your Grace.”
To think she'd toddle off to repay him for such a trivial thing.
Wasn't she just like a squirrel offering an acorn as big as its own body?
Lucius feigned indifference as he flipped through his documents. But despite himself, the corners of his mouth twitched.
As an excellent aide-de-camp, Olivia did not miss the sight.
“Did Brandon go with her?”
“Yes.”
“Anyone else?”
“Ash is standing by outside the young lady's room. He's been tasked with telling anyone who asks that she's resting inside.”
Olivia tried her best to maintain a stiff, professional tone.
“She apparently requested help only from Ash and Brandon to keep her outing a complete secret from you.”
“...”
“And I judged Brandon to be sufficient, so I didn't assign any other surveillance. If you're concerned, I can dispatch an escort now.”
“No, that's not necessary. It seems that fellow Brandon has truly decided to stick by her side and keep an eye on her.”
“That roach-like tenacity of my husband's is what made me fall in love and decide to marry him.”
“Olivia.”
“Yes, sir. Olivia Munez, aide-de-camp to the Duke, reporting for duty.”
After uttering words that could be taken as either insult or compliment, Olivia's mind snapped back to the present.
She was no longer Olivia, a wife and mother, but Olivia Munez, the capable aide-de-camp of the ducal house.
***
“Young lady. I know it's not my place to say this, but...”
Brandon, disguised as a ducal maid named Hanna, whispered politely as if he were a real servant.
“Are you sure this is the right way?”
After alighting from the carriage, Lumina and Brandon stopped at a clothing store to purchase black cloaks.
With Brandon's money.
Then, using the cloaks to roughly conceal their appearances, they walked for some time.
They soon left the bustling main streets behind and were now cutting through a quiet alley.
“Hanna, is anyone following us?”
“No, I don't think so.”
The moment she heard Hanna—no, Brandon's—reply, Lumina's tone shifted.
“Mister, this is the right way. But more importantly, do you have to keep that face?”
Knowing that beneath that exterior was a grown man made it a bit awkward to talk to him.
“I'd rather you change into something closer to your usual self. You don't have to look exactly the same, but at least match the gender and age range.”
“There's no one watching us for now, but one of the Captain's eyes might spot us by chance. That would make for an awkward explanation.”
“That's your problem. You figure it out.”
“...”
“Besides, the place we're heading to is too rough for two young girls to be wandering around. You know that better than anyone, don't you?”
“...So you want me to look big and brawny?”
He'd already followed her this far at her request; there was no reason not to grant another.
In an instant, Brandon transformed into a large, wild-looking man.
“Wait.”
Lumina stood before him, a worried expression on her face.
She undid a button that looked ready to pop from the sudden change in his physique and peeked inside.
Although Brandon had been posing as the maid Hanna, he had worn practical attire instead of a skirt for their secret outing.
That was a saving grace.
“Your clothes... Aren't they going to rip?”
“Should I shrink down a bit?”
*Nod.*
Like someone who'd seen something she shouldn't have, Lumina quickly fastened his cloak for him.
Brandon's ability changed his body, but it didn't have the convenient feature of changing his clothes along with it.
“How are you feeling?”
“The attacks usually come on suddenly in the evening, so I can manage for now.”
“But wouldn't it be easier if you just changed back to your real face?”
“Little miss. At what age do Legions usually awaken their powers?”
“Before the age of five.”
“Correct. I awakened at a young age, just like any other Legion. As a result, I can't remember my own face.”
“...”
“This ability only lets me copy faces I've seen, but the very concept of an 'original face' doesn't exist for me. I don't have a real face.”
She flinched.
Realizing the problem, Lumina looked up at Brandon.
“But can't you just stop using your ability?”
“That's the problem. I can't. So I change my face and then just maintain it.”
In other words, Brandon had been constantly using his ability ever since he awakened as a Legion, to the point where the very idea of an original face had ceased to exist for him.
“I suppose it's because I'm a Legion with a peculiar ability, just like you, little miss.”
To not know your own face. To live your entire life borrowing the faces of others.
Lumina could well imagine what an unsettling life that must be, and her concern must have shown in her eyes.
Brandon, ever the adult, reassured the young girl.
They walked on for some time.
At last, Lumina came to a halt.
“This is it.”
“I had a feeling, but I can't believe we're actually here.”
They had arrived in the slums.
Feeling the wary gazes of countless unseen eyes upon her, Lumina walked forward with confidence.
“Well, I've followed you all the way here on your word alone...”
It seemed Brandon had resigned himself to the fact that he was simply playing along with Lumina's little adventure.
“Alright. Let's just focus on getting home in one piece.”
Ignoring Brandon and his laughably modest goal, Lumina moved about as if she owned the place.
Her steps led her to a group of children around her own age.
“Hey, everyone! Do you know where Erica's house is?”
“Erica?”
“You mean the apothecary's daughter?”
“Oh. Her?”
The children eyed Lumina, whose face was hidden by her black hood, and whispered amongst themselves.
They couldn't see her face properly under the hood, but her build and voice told them she was one of them—a child of their age.
A kid like her, here in the slums? And with someone who looked like a bodyguard, no less.
Their suspicion deepened.
“I'm a friend of Erica's. I only heard she lives somewhere around here. Oh, I'll give you this if you tell me! It's delicious.”
The children exchanged glances.
Then one of them tried to snatch the candy from her palm.
But Lumina, anticipating this, quickly pulled her hand back. The children's expressions instantly soured.
“I'll give it to you if you tell me where Erica's house is. If you don't know, just say so. I can always ask someone else.”
Lumina said, her tone casual and unconcerned.
One of the children who had tried to snatch the candy spoke up reluctantly.
“It's over there. That house.”
He pointed to a shack that looked as if it might collapse at any moment.
When Lumina held out the candy, they snatched it as if expecting her to pull it back again, then quickly divided it amongst themselves.
Lumina headed in the direction the child had pointed.
“What about them?”
Brandon whispered.
The children, having shared the candy, were now trailing them like a pack of jackals, wondering if they could get anything else out of her.
“Just ignore them.”
Perhaps thanks to the imposing figure of Brandon, the children didn't dare to act overtly hostile toward Lumina.
The same was true for the slum's adults, who watched them from a distance.
As long as they did nothing suspicious, it was unlikely anyone would make the first move.
For now, their gazes were a mixture of wariness and curiosity, wondering what the newcomers were up to.
*For now, finding Erica is the priority.*
Erica.
She was a powerless Legion born in the slums, living in hiding under her mother's protection.
Fortunately, Erica's mother doted on her, so she seemed to have grown up without any major issues, at least for a while.
*Until around this time, that is.*
Erica had learned herbology from her mother and showed a real talent for it, a fact her mother was well aware of.
Thanks to this, they managed to get by on the money Erica's mother earned from her street stall.
They sometimes skipped meals, but to live in a place like this without having to beg was a testament to their resourcefulness.
If the mother and daughter had simply continued on like that, Lumina would never have known of Erica's existence.
*The problem was that someone else had exploited that talent for their own nefarious purposes. For a very, very long time.*
A tragic genius.
That was the title given to the Erica of her past life.
Hadn't the so-called Doctor who'd cursed Brandon with black magic and poisoned him called her a genius?
It takes a genius to fight a genius.
Lumina firmly believed that Erica could be the solution to this problem.
