TOPWL 221

“Where is the square?”

As soon as Bagon asked after entering the city gate, the guard gave a puzzled look.

“Shouldn’t you be going straight to the noble’s house? Why the square?”

“Oh, Sir Knight. If you go in looking like that, you’ll be thrown out before you even reach the back gate, let alone meet anyone.”

At Bagon’s words, the guard looked Yudit up and down, his face wrinkling at the sight of him.

“You can pay for a bath, at least.”

“That’s not enough. With laundry and dressing expenses included, we’ll need that half gold coin from earlier. I was planning to make it work with that one coin, but…”

Your superior swallowed it whole.

The guard understood the hidden meaning in Bagon’s words and sighed.

“So, how do you plan to get the money?”

“We’ll perform and earn it gradually. It’s fine. We’re a fairly skilled troupe.”

The guard looked annoyed, but he still led them to the square. Despite the ongoing war outside, the square was bustling with life. People moved between grand buildings, and the streets overflowed with food stalls. The smell of frying oil and sweet candy filled the air, luring people to open their purses. Yudit felt something was wrong as he watched.

The square belonged to everyone. That was true even in the empire. Both beggar boys and old nobles could walk freely through it. But here, most people wore fine, clean clothes. They couldn’t all be nobles. Yudit saw a girl buy a skewer and hand over a piece of paper instead of coins. People with bright, mask-like smiles greeted one another and then parted. He looked around again. Masks, masks, masks, and then one real face. Yudit studied that person carefully. Their attire and bearing were different from the rest. He smiled in satisfaction.

In truth, there was no noble named Benjamin. Yudit had used a common noble name from the Jaklit Kingdom because using one from Gotha might have given them away. To avoid suspicion, they rode a ruined arriage and bought two of the scruffiest horses they could find. They looked like travelers who hadn’t bathed or changed clothes after being attacked by bandits. Bagon, who had once worked as a spy, played a big part in helping them act naturally.

They had prepared other options too, but the deputy commander of the knights was greedy, so they passed through easily. The Calmor territory they entered was full of deception. Someone high-ranking there had devised a plan to make the place seem safe and lively, to keep nobles from Jaklit and other countries staying inside Calmor.

They strictly limited passage to block rumors from spreading, allowed only merchants who paid extra to trade, and made ignorant foreign nobles spend freely, all to gather war funds.

At first glance it seemed clever, but it was short-sighted. Yudit remembered what he had seen entering the territory: people in the forest scraping the insides of trees with sickles. Their clothes were worn but not ragged enough to call them beggars. Ordinary citizens were so hungry they were eating roots and bark. Since the merchants who paid extra wouldn’t sell cheaply, it made sense.

To keep the square from looking empty when people had no money, the ruler must have given coupons to a few neat-looking commoners, told them to buy things, and ordered them to act cheerful. He had wondered why they used paper instead of money, but it was clear now. If they gave money, people might spend it elsewhere. That showed there was no trust between the ruler and the commoners.

The foundation of any territory was the commoners, who made up the majority. They grew the wheat nobles ate and wove the clothes nobles wore. Nobles could only live as nobles because commoners worked beneath them, providing food, clothing, and labor. If their hands and feet were cut off, resentment would grow. Yudit felt relaxed when he thought that this land would collapse on its own without him having to do much. Now he could shake it apart without hesitation.

Music began to play. It came from Edmond’s old violin they had managed to find. An accordion and flute joined in. The tune was rough but lively. Yudit and Carmen pulled up their hoods and stepped outside. People turned toward the sudden appearance of a wandering troupe, their faces full of curiosity. Bagon clapped his hands and shouted,

“Now, now! This isn’t something you get to see every day. A rare chance to admire beauties who grew up pampered in a noble’s greenhouse!”

The provocative words drew a crowd. Bagon, encouraged, spoke even louder. He pointed at Yudit and Carmen, who stood in robes, and said,

“These two were born to a noble house that fell into ruin, and they were sold in the market to pay their family’s debts. They were so beautiful from childhood that there was demand everywhere, but they ended up bought by a rich, greedy count and grew up in his greenhouse. And here’s the amazing part,,they’re still virgins! Was the count a good man? No! He was a greedy old fool who took them under the pretense of patronage, but his wife’s jealousy stopped him from touching them. If only the wife died, if only the wife died, he waited, and in the end he died first!”

The people burst into laughter at the greedy noble’s fate. More gathered around Bagon’s nibble tongue. He had said he would make up a story to sell, and he really did. Yudit thought that if he retired one day, he could probably write books and make a living.

“So the wife, once she gained full control, sold off these two pretty good-for-nothings. After ten years, when they stood back on the market stage, I, Bagon, invested my entire fortune to bring them here. Why, you ask? Because I believed these two were worth ten times my money. Teaching them song and dance to reach this point, ah, it was truly exhausting. There’s been enough talking. Let’s begin the show!”

When Bagon finished, Shane hit the drum with a deep thump-thump-thump to mark the start. Edmond and Garen, dressed in ridiculous outfits and painted faces, began to play. Edmond’s violin was cheap, but his skill was better than expected, good enough to hold the crowd’s attention. When Garen’s accordion joined in, the sound grew more lively. Yudit thought bringing them along had been the right choice.

Yudit and Carmen began to move to the rhythm, swaying gently. They still wore their robes. Carmen had taught Yudit how to apply makeup and dress, while Yudit had taught Carmen how to dance. It was a dance taught long ago by the women who had liked Yudit back in the backstreets.

It had been a crude, vulgar dance meant to seduce men, one he thought he’d never have to use in his life, but he had learned it to make them happy. Now he understood that no learning was ever useless.

It had been a long time since he learned it, so it needed some practice, but thanks to the steady practice he’d done after meeting Khalid, his body soon remembered the steps. Carmen, who had once been forced to learn the women’s steps and was good with his body, also picked it up quickly.

Because the music had a wistful tone, their dance was soft and slow. There was little stimulation, and boredom began to appear on people’s faces one by one.

“It’s not much, huh.”

“Is it ending like this? How dull.”

“Why don’t they take something off? They’re wrapped up like it’s worth gold.”

“Maybe they’re cold. It’s winter.”

People threw out comments of disappointment. Then the drumbeats grew louder. The melody that had sounded like it might break apart now gained clear form. The sudden rise in sound made people look around in confusion. When the music reached its peak, Bagon set off a firework so loud it echoed across the entire square. It was daytime, so it didn’t show clearly, but it was enough to draw every eye. At that exact moment, Yudit and Carmen threw off their robes.

“Waaah!”

Everyone turned toward the sound and gasped at the sight of the two in their dazzling attire. Reversals always stirred excitement. The crowd went wild at the sight of the two beautiful figures that had been hidden under the robes. The once slow song now became livelier and fast. As they danced to the song and hit tambourines in rhythm, their movements were beautiful and sensual. That was how a new legend of Calmor began.