53 – Nameless Extra (2)
After meeting Yuna, I developed a strange habit. Now, no matter where I go, I automatically notice places where there are few people or where people don’t pay attention. Should we say that it is the crystallization of the darkness that formed on the shelves of decadence? The footsteps of corruption end up finding a remote incubation center of shadow even in this field of youth.
“Whoa…”
Hidden behind the long curtain, hiding behind the red curtain, I let go of the wicked skin that had covered my entire body for a moment. Acting like I wasn’t myself took more stamina than I thought. No matter how much I acted, it was a bit difficult to pretend to steal someone else’s lover.
However, it could not be denied that it had its own fun. Although I didn’t have a desire for fame, it was quite pleasant to become a celebrity overnight, and it was also fun to see Elyse and the Crown Prince embarrassed. Watching Guero follow my words without making a sound was another little bit of fun.
And the most interesting thing of all was the fact that this play was not over yet.
I leaned my back against the wall and waited for Yuna to come. For me, waiting has always been boring, but this time it was a different kind of excitement.
“…!”
When the sound of my heart pounding against my chest rang in my ears, someone’s appearance appeared beyond the curtain. They said it was someone, but now it was easy to tell who that person was just by looking at their footsteps. I very slightly opened the curtain and peeked my head out.
And then, I found Yuna exhaling softly, like a rabbit on her snowy field.
“Ha…Ha…”
I was mesmerized by Yuna’s appearance for a brief moment amidst the gentle sound of her breathing. Even though it wasn’t the first time she saw him, he eventually stole her heart and Yama’s beauty was a wonder of the world. To be honest, I was so jealous of the fact that other men were seeing Yuna like this that I felt like covering their eyes.
“Haa…Ugh…”
However, in contrast to his noble appearance, his behavior was no different from his usual Yuna. Of course, she herself tried to somehow maintain her dignity as a noblewoman, but her legs that kept sticking out in contrast to her barely held hands and her eyes that wavered back and forth in her beautiful eyes were what made her stand out. It proved that this was the Yuna I knew. Yuna’s flustered movements with the appearance of a beautiful noble daughter. The gap was unbearably cute.
“…Phew.”
“…!”
In the end, I couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing, and Yuna, who was pricking up her ears like a rabbit, heard the sound and came straight towards me. I waited for her to come towards her curtains and without warning, I snatched her arm. And, he gave a low greeting through the red-stained curtains.
“Hello. I’m Yuna.”
“Ellen…!”
As soon as Yuna saw me, she called my name in a flushed voice. Obviously, there were a lot of things she wanted to ask, but Yuna carefully looked around her before doing so. She then grabbed my collar tightly and said,
“You…What are you doing…!”
“What are you doing? You’re helping.”
“Help! Is this helping you now?”
“You look really pretty today, Yuna.”
“Ugh…”
When I gave her a sincere compliment in the midst of her urgency, Yuna pursed her lips and glared at me. As she looked at her cute, puckered lips with her bright red lipstick on, she felt something spinning in her head. But Yuna was shaking her feet in front of me and pouting her lips.
“…Anyway. Answer me quickly. What are you doing now?”
“Uh…Don’t do that for now. It’s so cute now?”
“Stop talking nonsense! There’s no time. I saw earlier that His Royal Highness seemed to be following me. I tried to avoid it as much as I could, but I might get caught soon. So hurry!”
“Hmm…”
When Yuna said that, I kept my mouth shut and paid attention to my hearing. Soon, the sound of footsteps coming towards us could clearly be heard among the small noises of the ballroom. In some ways, it was pretty close, but I answered with a shrug.
“Well, it’s okay. I’m planning on getting caught anyway.”
“Are you planning on getting caught? Are you out of your mind?”
“Yes. I’m sane. That way I can become an even worse person.”
“So. Why on earth do you have to play the villain? Why are you provoking the crown prince like this?”
“Well, you can’t play the villain anymore, right?”
“You…!”
Trug. Trudging. Trudging.
At that moment, clear footsteps were heard from the side. Although it was a little far away, it was definitely a sound coming from around here. Yuna turned her gaze in that direction, then she hurriedly looked at me and said.
“Why on earth did you come up with such a dangerous plan and never tell me anything?”
“Because you don’t have to act, you just have to do what you normally do.”
“What do I usually do?”
“Yes.”
“What is that…?”
Trug. Trudging. Trudging.
The sound of footsteps became louder.
“A pure noble lady who was accidentally captured by a low-quality commoner.”
“What?”
Yuna once again expressed her doubts. But there was no more time. Before I knew it, the sound of approaching footsteps was coming from next to my ear. I looked at Yuna one last time and clasped her hands together.
“Yuna.”
“Huh?”
Trug. Trudging. Trudging. Trudging.
Yuna also looked at me with anxious eyes, as if she had heard her footsteps. As expected, she felt guilty about stealing someone else’s lover, no matter how much it was an act.
But originally, I didn’t feel that guilty about pretending to steal my lover.
In the midst of this delightful paradox, I said a word of reassurance to Yuna, with a smile on her face.
“Are you saying you want to quit now?”
…
“What…?”
Yuna looked at me endlessly with shining eyes at my strange words. But I continued to pour out lies before a questionable question came out of her mouth.
“It’s almost done. Did you see Elise’s eyes? It’s the final step.”
“What is that…”
“Are you saying you felt guilty? Really. That’s such a big deal.”
“Ellen…?”
“Well, it doesn’t matter if you want to quit. But you know, Yuna.”
I paused for a moment and glanced to the side. The crown prince was already close enough. It was clear that he had probably heard all the stories that had just been poured out.
“…”
It seemed like the sound of his growing suspicion could be heard up to here. Suspicion continued from the entrance to the ballroom. Everything that happened during that time. Now all I had to do was add some seasoning to it. I said the last word to his imagination, which is still growing.
“No matter what, I have to give you the money I agreed to give you, right?”
“L…”
Yuna’s last breath came out. But I quickly kissed her lips before they fully opened. Even though I was only away for a short while, I felt a sense of longing for that soft touch, as if I was nostalgic. Yuna must have felt the same way, so for a moment she relaxed and left her body to me.
And, it was at that time that the crown prince finally approached and grabbed the curtain.
“…!!!”
When someone’s presence suddenly approached, Yuna was startled and tried to shake off my hand. But I grabbed her hair a little roughly and held her other hand tightly. Immediately afterwards, a familiar voice rang in her head.
[Mission accomplished.]
[Just hold hands (more than 5 seconds) – 5 shillings (can be repeated)]
The performance is still solid.
From Noble mtl dot com
While I was laughing, coins were flowing into my pocket. I quickly grabbed the coins with my hands, then intentionally loosened my fist and let them fall to the floor. Soon, the curtain was pulled back with a jingling sound.
“…!”
In an instant, the red shade faded and the dazzling light of the ballroom lights spread. The coins that fell just in time scattered on the floor along with the shattering rays of light. I slowly opened one eye, feeling that the whole scene had come together. And then, we made eye contact with Claes, who was looking at us with his eyes wide open.
“Miss Yuna…”
For a brief moment, Claes’ eyes looked at me and Yuna. And the coins flowing from my hand passed by one after another. I let him fully appreciate this scene of injustice and then, belatedly, lifted his head in surprise.
“Claes…!”
To be honest, I was so engrossed in the kiss without realizing it that my acting tone came out awkwardly. But that didn’t seem to matter to Claes right now. He studied this scene again with his eyes and slowly opened his mouth.
“…Ellen.”
A more serious voice than ever came out. Yuna looked a little scared, but I calmly lifted her chin. And, with all his might, he played a commoner who seduced an innocent villainess.
“You saw it?”
“What are you doing now?”
He spoke without a word, interrupting every word. It was as if he was trying to forcefully scare the other person. I looked at him and answered shamelessly.
“What? There’s no law against kissing someone else’s partner. Is this wrong?”
“…That’s true, but I’m asking something else. What is that now?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Don’t act like a fool, Ellen. That’s the money you took from Miss Yuna. What is that?”
I took the money. It wasn’t intentional, but it wasn’t a bad misunderstanding. He frowned and continued his vain reasoning.
“Somehow. I thought it was strange that tips were given by check in a common democracy. Now it explains.”
“I just got what I was owed, Claes.”
“What do you mean by the money you will receive?”
“I mean it literally. It’s the money Yuna originally agreed to give me. You don’t need to know anything more than that…”
“Is this the money you agreed to give me in exchange for taking Elise away from me?”
Claes asked sharply, and I silenced him for a moment to allow his imagination to gain confidence. And he answered slowly.
“Well, is that so?”
“This bastard…”
There was anger in his voice. But that anger was never directed towards Yuna. The previous conversations must have sparked another imagination. Claes turned his head away from me and this time looked at Yuna.
“Is that so, Miss Yuna?”
“I…”
“…”
At that moment, I gently pulled Yuna’s collar without Claes seeing. It was an unspoken sign not to answer hastily.
“Did Miss Yuna ask you to take Elise away from me? Did you make such a contract?”
“…”
“So, didn’t I warn you back then? If you keep going like that, a day will come when you won’t be able to stop even if you want to. Isn’t that exactly the situation now? You’ll regret it later, and even if you try to turn back everything, you won’t be able to stop. Isn’t that true?”
“Claes.”
I interrupted his words and then hugged Yuna’s waist. Then, the smile on her lips softened a little and she said,
“Don’t say any more nonsense. Yuna won’t listen anyway.”
“Miss Yuna…”
Claes faintly called her name as if she were the protagonist of a tragedy. I gently let Yuna lean on my shoulder. Then he gritted his teeth and approached me, saying:
“…I will no longer let you have your way, Ellen. It may have felt like your world until now, but I will remind you that those presumptuous thoughts will not go any further.”
“Is that really a presumptuous idea, Claes?”
“This son of a b*tch really…!”
When I provoked him for the last time, he couldn’t resist and tried to touch me. To be honest, I regretted that moment a little. Don’t say the last word. It looks like I got hit for no reason.
“Claes-kun!”
Just as my heightened emotions were about to explode, a girl’s voice pierced the air. When I turned my head, I saw Elise with a very embarrassed expression and Ilya sneaking up behind her, looking at us. Elise looked at us in turns and barely managed to say a word.
“No…Ellen. It’s time to dance…You have to go up on stage with your partner. So I think you should come quickly.”
“Oh, I see.”
At that moment, I felt truly grateful to Elise. No, maybe Illya brought me here at the right time? It seemed like he was subtly raising his thumb behind her. I gently stroked the cheek that barely got hit and opened my mouth calmly.
“It was nice talking to you, Claes. Yuna. So shall we go now?”
“Uh…Yeah. Okay then.”
“…I will do that.”
When Yuna answered urgently, Claes also nodded his head as if there was nothing he could do. He was still glaring at me as if he was going to kill me, and walked straight in front of Yuna without even caring about her. I followed him carefully.
“Whoa…”
A secretly exhaled sigh fell low on the floor. It was fun, but playing a villain didn’t suit my temperament. It didn’t seem like something I would do twice.
And above all, attracting other people’s attention was something that did not suit me. I thought that once this incident was over, I would somehow have to go back to being a nameless commoner again.
“…Oh, it’s Eren-kun!”
“…?”
But as if to break my will, someone loudly called my name. When I turned my head to the sound of a familiar voice, two unexpected people came into view.
“Ellen Goun! Nice to meet you…”
“Eren. I didn’t know you would come to the ball.”
“Uh…Why are the professor and the librarian here…?”
I made eye contact with them with a puzzled expression. It wasn’t because it was strange that a professor would participate in the students’ prom, but because the combination of the lively magic professor and the gloomy librarian was unexpected. And more than anything, I was very embarrassed that the professor of magic, who was usually nice, got drunk and behaved like an asshole.
“Ah! You’re a professor… You can just call me sister here…”
“Yes, sister. But why are you so drunk?”
“You said you were sad about not having a partner and drank a lot. And I won’t let you if you call me sister, Eren.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“You…”
While the librarian was getting irritated with me, the professor looked around me with very relaxed eyes. Then he spoke in a slightly tearful voice.
“Aha…But Ellen has a lot of girlfriends…I’m jealous…I wish I had a boyfriend too…”
“hahahaha…”
“…Professor. Maintain your dignity. Even if you are a ballroom leader, don’t you have the title of professor?”
While I was scratching my chin in embarrassment, Claes came up to me and scolded the professor. But she lifted her glass and pushed it toward him as if that didn’t matter.
“Oh, don’t be like that. Claes-kun, enjoy it too…Don’t be hard…”
“Really…”
“…!”
Claes shook his head as if he was fed up. But in the meantime, Ilya flashed her eyes and gestured eagerly toward the other side. I seized the moment and quickly got between them.
“It’s not bad. The professor recommends it, so one drink would be fine.”
“…”
Claes did not answer. Instead, he only glared at my eyes. In the tense atmosphere, Yuna and Elise also looked at us as if they were anxious. Thanks to this, no one could catch Illya’s strange behavior.
Soon, Illya, who had finished everything, signaled to me that she was ready. I nodded slightly and then asked in a cheerful voice.
“Professor. Could you please give us a drink too?”