Chapter 10
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The Male and Female Leads Broke Up - Episode 10
Unlike the blunt and cold demeanor I displayed toward the men, my voice softened the moment I faced the Young Boy.
As I extended my hand to him, the Young Boy stared at it intently.
"Come with me."
"...."
Yet the Young Boy remained silent and motionless.
"Hey, you brat! Get up—!"
Despite my warning not to touch the Young Boy, the Short Man continued hurling curses, so I fixed him with a glacial stare, and he immediately fell silent.
"Let's go."
To dissolve the Young Boy's wariness, I offered a gentle smile.
And it worked—finally, the Young Boy extended his small, delicate hand and grasped mine.
"Thank you."
I thanked the Young Boy for taking my hand, then lifted him to his feet with a firm grip.
Up close, the Young Boy appeared to be barely twelve years old.
As I led him away slowly, I glanced back to find the two men still standing there, watching us.
"Aren't you leaving?"
"Pardon? Ah, yes. Right away!"
The men quickly departed.
Once they vanished from sight, I finally examined the Young Boy more thoroughly.
Though he seemed to bathe regularly—his body bore no foul odor—the clothes he wore were tattered and worn.
And it was evident he had been kicked by those men and rolled across the ground.
Now that I thought about it, I had never heard the Young Boy's voice.
'Could he be unable to speak?'
It was possible, so I met his eyes and carefully enunciated, opening my lips wide.
"Are you hungry?"
I even mimicked the motion of eating with my hand as I asked.
"...."
But again, the Young Boy offered no response.
"Is it possible that... you can't speak?"
I asked in a gentle voice and with a cautious expression.
"...No."
Then, at last, words emerged from the Young Boy's lips.
It was the voice of a boy whose voice had not yet changed.
"Your voice is lovely—why weren't you answering me?"
"...."
The Young Boy clamped his mouth shut again.
'This is exhausting.'
Understanding why the Young Boy was acting this way, I resolved to be more patient with him and gently tugged his hand forward.
Then I stepped ahead and began walking.
Fortunately, the Young Boy followed me without protest.
I changed course from the path to the Inn and redirected us toward the bustling Festival streets.
It seemed I would need to buy the Young Boy clothes to wear and food to fill his belly.
As I walked slowly, I suddenly felt resistance in my hand.
Turning back, I saw the Young Boy had stopped in his tracks.
"What's wrong?"
"Where... are we going?"
So he was only now curious about that.
But his expression as he asked was deeply troubled.
"It's Festival time right now. Let's go fill your belly with delicious food and buy you some new clothes to wear."
"...."
The Young Boy was unusually taciturn for his age.
Of course, not all children are chatty.
Still, I had grown somewhat more at ease, and my words had begun to flow more naturally.
"Don't you want to go?"
"Why...."
"Hmm?"
"Why... did you buy me?"
"That's...."
In truth, if he asked why, I had no proper answer to give.
It had been a terribly impulsive decision on my part, so I couldn't produce any reasonable justification.
"You sent me a signal asking me to save you."
So I simply answered while half-insisting on it.
"...What?"
"Wasn't it? It was. You definitely signaled me with your eyes to save you."
I watched the Young Boy's expression shift instantly to bewilderment and confusion.
He looked at me with an unconvinced face, but I simply smiled and breezed past the question.
"What's your name?"
And I immediately changed the subject by asking the Young Boy his name.
"...I don't have a name."
But what came from the Young Boy's mouth was quite shocking.
No name? How could a person not have a name?
I tilted my head in confusion and asked again.
"You don't have a name?"
"No... I don't have a name, but I have a number."
"A number?"
"Yes, at the Circus Troupe we're called by numbers. I was... number 5."
"Number 5... I see. How old are you?"
"I'm not sure..."
With each question met by uncertainty, something felt distinctly off.
"How long have you been with the Circus Troupe?"
Somehow the conversation had taken on the tone of an interrogation, but I needed certain information to transfer the Young Boy to an orphanage.
So I asked my questions carefully, taking care not to make him uncomfortable.
"About a month... I think."
"A month?"
So they had a child who'd only been there a month performing tightrope walking?
It was truly a vile place.
"Then where were you before that? An orphanage? How did you end up joining the Circus Troupe?"
"...Actually, I don't remember very well."
"You don't remember?"
"Yes, ever since my memories began, I've always been at the Circus Troupe. I have no memories from before that..."
Listening to the Young Boy's words, I could only conclude that he must have lost his memory, wandered about, and then been captured by the Circus Troupe.
"I see. Are you hungry? Let's get something to eat. Is there anything you like?"
"I'm not sure..."
"Then, do you like skewers? Would you like to eat some skewers?"
At his uncertain response, I suddenly recalled the sausage I'd eaten earlier.
It wasn't just because it was free—it had truly been delicious, and I wanted to share that taste with the Young Boy.
When the Young Boy gave a slight nod, we headed together toward the Skewer Shop with its large cauldron.
"Welcome! Oh, you're back again?"
The proprietor with the pleasant demeanor remembered my face.
Countless people must have come and gone from this place, yet he had such an impressive memory.
"It's good to see you again. The sausage I had earlier was so delicious that I wanted to let this child taste it too."
"Our shop's sausage is truly exceptional, isn't it? Let me see now."
The proprietor looked around the large brazier, then picked out a sausage identical to the one I'd eaten earlier and offered it to us.
"Here it is. Here you are."
But there were two sausages, not one—he gave one to the Young Boy and held out the other to me.
"I'm fine, thank you. I've already eaten, so that's enough for me."
I politely declined.
It was already embarrassing that I'd come back knowing it was free, and I couldn't accept another one.
"Then would you like to try something other than sausage?"
"No, really!"
Despite my refusal, the proprietor this time held out a skewer with a thick chunk of meat pierced through it.
"Come now, don't be shy. Please try it. I find the greatest happiness in watching my customers enjoy their food."
As if that truly was his only happiness, the proprietor's mouth curved upward in a genuine smile.
It seemed further refusal would be impolite, so I accepted the skewer from his hands.
"Thank you. I'll enjoy it. Porta Devia."
This time, I took the initiative and offered him the phrase he had taught me, allowing a slight smile to grace my lips.
"Porta Devia. Enjoy your meal as well."
"Thank you... very much."
The Young Boy nodded in gratitude, and the proprietor, maintaining his courteous smile, departed once more to attend to the other patrons.
"Let us take our leave as well."
"But...."
"Hmm?"
"What does 'Porta Devia' mean?"
"'Porta Devia' is a traditional phrase passed down in this Village, and it means that today is the happiest day of one's entire life."
Feeling rather pleased with myself, I recalled what the proprietor had told me and explained it to the Young Boy.
"The happiest day of one's entire life...."
"A beautiful phrase, is it not?"
"...Yes. Porta Devia."
The Young Boy's eyes seemed to shimmer brilliantly for a moment as he murmured the words in a soft, barely audible voice.
Finding the Young Boy's expression quite endearing, I gently stroked his hair.
Startled by this unexpected gesture, the Young Boy gazed up at me with wide, round eyes.
"Ah, forgive me. Did it displease you that I touched you without asking?"
"No, no... because I'm dirty...."
"You think I'm dirty?"
"No! I, I'm the one who's dirty...."
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