Raising the Princess to Overcome Death Chapter 80

80. Beggar Siblings – Two Other Women

Cassia's words made something surge up within Leo.

A woman pleading to earn money for a man she just met... she was genuinely desperate.

It was obvious how she intended to earn the money.

"What should I do with this woman..."

It wasn't that he wasn't tempted. The beggar sibling scenario required a lot of money.

There were the basic needs of food, shelter, and clothing, but also Lena's education costs and the urgent travel expenses to the Conrad Kingdom.

So, whether he said thank you, accepted her offer, or expressed his gratitude, it didn't matter. He just needed to agree.

Then Cassia would earn a lot of money and give it all to him without any expectation of repayment. She would happily sell her body and faithfully bring the money.

There was even an appropriate achievement. As if anticipating this moment, he had the "Pimp Achievement."

But Leo shook his head, dismissing the greed that had risen to his chest.

He couldn't do that. No matter how desperately he needed money, he didn't want to exploit Cassia, who had once sacrificed her life for him, in such a manner.

He vowed never to use the "Pimp Achievement."

Never.

Leo firmly refused Cassia's offer.

"No, it's okay. There's no need for you to earn money for me. I have no reason to take it."

"But... I want to do something for you... All I know how to do is..."

Cassia glanced at Leo, blushing again and nervously clutching the bedspread.

"I'll do anything. I really want to help you. I... you..."

"Wait! Just hold on a moment. Let me think."

Leo quickly stopped Cassia from continuing.

He didn't want to hear her confession when he still didn't know how to deal with her.

In truth, he was still angry.

When he recalled the moment his beautiful sister handed over a box full of gold coins, and the harsh words that came out of Lena's sweet mouth, it enraged him.

However...

Leo was wavering, unable to reach a conclusion, but fortunately, something came to mind as an excuse.

[Quest: Cassia's Life - Help Cassia escape her confines.]

There was a guide for his course of action.

He didn't know exactly what to do, but the game had given him a quest.

To help her.

It was the first clear direction provided in this game, which usually gave almost no information.

"Alright. I'll follow the quest."

Leo postponed his emotional conclusion about Cassia. Feeling more at ease, he thought for a moment and then spoke.

"Then... could you make us some shoes?"

Cassia looked at the mismatched shoes on his and Lena's feet and asked again.

"...Shoes?"

"Yes, this is a shoe store, after all. It doesn't look like you have anything that fits us. Could you make us a couple of pairs? We need some extra shoes for our journey."

He remembered what Ober had said in the last beggar sibling scenario.

- "That kid who used to carry dead fish eyes around is normal these days. She buys a little leather now and then, as if trying to make shoes. Well, it's good. She can't live like that forever..."

Somehow, she must have started making shoes after being pushed away.

So Leo suggested the work she had chosen for herself.

He didn't know exactly what "freeing her from her confines" meant. But it was certainly better than living as a prostitute.

But Cassia hesitated, not answering quickly.

Though she acted like she would do anything, she didn't want to make shoes.

She knew how to do it, but she didn't want to continue her "father's" work.

She had sold her body to buy medicine for her sick father, choosing the only path she could think of to save him.

She did her best, but it was a futile effort.

In the end, her father abandoned her by committing suicide. He left as if he didn't care how she lived.

She couldn't forgive her irresponsible and weak father.

Cassia glanced at Leo, intending to ask if she could buy shoes for him instead.

But,

"Yes. I'll make them."

As soon as their eyes met, her prepared answer vanished, and she said the opposite.

All her resentment towards her father and self-reproach for becoming a prostitute seemed insignificant before this man.

"Thank you."

His simple thank you made all her hesitation disappear. She felt she could do anything for this man. Anything.

All she could think about now was how to make the shoes, the leather, and the fabric.

Cassia suddenly became busy, checking her tools and looking through the remaining materials.

One by one, items that had been left unused for over ten years were dusted off and brought out. They were things her late father's touch lingered on.

Relieved, Leo watched Cassia's odd gaze as she handled the last before getting up.

He felt he had made the right decision.

"Lena, I'm going out for a bit. Wait in the room."

"I want to watch the shoes being made..."

"...Alright. But you mustn't leave the shop. Understand? And if anyone else comes, you must hide in the room."

"Okay!"

Normally, he would have said, "No, stay in the room."

Lena's appearance was dangerous.

Previously, he had even told her not to talk to Cassia.

It was dangerous to get close to her.

However...

- Please take good care of Lena.

It would be better for Lena to explore and look around rather than being cooped up in the room. Cassia wasn't as dangerous now.

As long as she stayed inside the shop, it should be fine. Who would come to such a secluded alley anyway?

Leo asked Cassia to make sure his sister wouldn't be seen by others and stepped outside. He went to a clothing store, changed his clothes, brought some clothes for Lena, and then used {Tracking}.

As he headed back outside, Lena carefully started a conversation with Cassia.

Having no friends, Lena enjoyed talking to someone other than her brother for the first time.

In a wide training ground where loud shouts never ceased.

"Good job today!"

"Yeah, good job."

Katrina wiped the sweat dripping from her chin and warned the new recruit.

"If you don't fix what I pointed out today by tomorrow, you'll get hit again."

"Bu-but, senior, how can I fix it by tomorrow?"

"That's your problem."

Leaving the flustered recruit, Deros, behind, Katrina left the training ground. The new recruit assigned to her this time was quite the handful.

He was timid and lacked decisiveness.

"Sigh... I didn't join the knight order to babysit new recruits..."

Katrina grumbled quietly as she changed out of her training clothes.

However, her complaint wasn't entirely accurate.

Katrina had spent most of her time training herself, only teaching Deros a little.

She just regretted the time spent.

As a knight of the 2nd Knight Order of the Bellita Kingdom, Katrina had her own aspirations when she joined.

She wanted to join the 1st Knight Order and learn swordsmanship from Count Herman Forte, the sword master. She was deeply passionate about swordsmanship and wanted to see and emulate the highest level.

That's why she joined the knight order.

But she was assigned to the 2nd Knight Order, and learning swordsmanship from the sword master became a distant dream.

Count Herman Forte, the leader of the 1st Knight Order, never taught swordsmanship to the members of the 2nd Knight Order. Doing so would be extremely disrespectful to the 2nd Knight Order's leader.

"Damn it... There's nothing I can do. And honestly, would learning from a sword master make that much of a difference? It's all the same anyway..."

Katrina let go of her regrets, following the saying, "The meat you can't eat is the burnt meat."

If she kept training hard, she'd break through eventually. She was still young.

Even though she had been stuck with no progress in her swordsmanship for a long time, it was fine.

After all, she was someone who had been born into a poor farming family and became a royal knight. She was someone who had swung a wooden stick and realized swordsmanship. This is it. ─ Katrina encouraged herself.

Just train harder.

Leaving the secondary castle, where the 2nd Knight Order resided, built like an extension to the southern part of the royal castle, she headed to the market.

It was her job to do the shopping for Ellen, who had trouble walking. Plus, she liked buying various things.

However, nearing the market, Katrina noticed someone was following her.

She reached for her sword, ready to show any insignificant spy a tough time... but it was an overreaction.

The one following her was a young man who seemed barely out of boyhood. And he was very handsome.

No spy would look like that. He stood out too much to be a spy and was following her too obviously.

Turning around, Katrina spoke.

"Who are you, and why are you following me? Do you want to die... I mean, do you want to get scolded?"

[Achievement: The Man Katrina Sacrificed Her Life to Protect - Katrina has great affection for you.]

For some reason, she liked this small young man. Correcting her threat, Katrina looked him up and down.

‘Wow, look at this guy. Even though he's skinny, with looks like this, he'll break many hearts in the future.’

Today, her eyes were blessed.

"Excuse me... You're a knight, right? Could you please watch my swordsmanship just once?"

What a cheeky kid.

She had heard of such people before. Those who repeatedly failed the entrance exams but believed their swordsmanship was perfect and sought out knights.

"No, I can't. I'm busy. The entrance exams ended recently. If you're still hung up on it, try the royal guard exams. They haven't started yet. And following a knight like this can get you killed. I'll watch you this time, but don't do this again."

She explained as kindly as she could to the young man she somewhat liked and tried to go her way.

But then she heard the sound of a sword being drawn behind her.

‘Sigh~ I knew I shouldn't have.’

Was it because he was handsome?

She had let it slide because she somewhat liked him... and now he'd pay for it.

Planning to teach him a lesson, Katrina swung her scabbard around.

- Thunk!

But her scabbard was lightly blocked.

"Wow, blocking it?"

Determined to show him a harsh lesson, Katrina drew her sword, and the young man who had followed her also readied his sword.

It was Leo.

‘It’s true that affection works differently for different people. Despite the same great affection, this woman...’

It confirmed that Cassia was unique.

Who in the world would offer everything to a stranger at first sight?

Katrina's reaction was normal.

"Try blocking this too!"

Katrina swung her sword horizontally, powerfully.

Leo raised his sword to block... but it was a feint. Her swing had no strength behind it.

Katrina used a deceptive, short-term combat style of swordsmanship.

She distracted Leo's attention with her sword, then twisted her hips to deliver a kick.

Initially, she intended to break him with a strong attack, but her heart softened. She didn't want to be too harsh on the young man she strangely liked.

So she only planned to give him a light lesson without hurting him, but his response was surprising.

The young man dodged her kick as if he expected it. At the same time, his sword spun in reverse, striking upwards.

A perfect move.

"You little! You're pretty good!"

He lowered his blade from an awkward position used for defense to strike upwards from below.

That alone showed he had a high understanding of swordsmanship, but it was hard to believe anyone could use such a move effectively in real combat without being adept at reversing grips. This kid had definitely handled a sword countless times.

‘This young man is impressive! Much better than Deros?’ ─ Katrina thought as she blocked the upward strike.

- Clang!

And then a brief struggle of strength followed... or so she thought.

The young man was effortlessly pushed back.

‘A trick?’

People who used many tricks were naturally suspicious. She cautiously tripped him just in case.

The young man, who was losing in strength, tried to avoid falling by attempting a backflip but failed, landing on his back with a thud.

"What is this?"

Katrina asked, bewildered.

"Hey. Are you messing with me? What are you doing?"

Leo, who had fallen backward, blushed.