Chapter 119 Postscript Of August
"Ugh."
"⋯⋯."
"Uuugh."
"⋯⋯."
"Uuuugh."
It was a sunny day, perfect for a nap, but the sleepy lion (July) and the just-awoken maiden (August) were not in sync. Hiiro raised an eyebrow at the unhealthy groans.
"Chill out, Quollio. What's got your whinin' about?
"Oh, nothing. Just thinking how weird it is to see you in a flower shop."
"Think you're startin' somethin', fool?"
"The combo of you and a flower shop is what's really weird."
"Why I gotta hear dis nonsense just 'cuz I'm browsin'?"
Hiiro barked back, feeling offended. But Quollio had a point. Hiiro's tough guy look surrounded by flowers was honestly a bit much. He wasn't even hungry anymore, which was saying something. Quollio was the one who wanted to complain.
"It can't be helped. You really don't fit in here."
"I ain't here by choice, got dragged in 'cause Sara needed somethin'."
"If you add in the whole brother complex, your rival might as well be the universe."
"Don't blow it up, keep it real – it's not that deep."
Hiiro knew he didn't belong there. If it weren't for his sister's request, he wouldn't be in a flower shop at all.
It's not a place a guy goes alone. That's why he dragged Quollio along, even ignoring the comments about inviting a guy.
"All wrapped up, sir."
"Ah, thanks."
The store clerk's voice cut through their banter.
Hiiro took the bouquet wrapped in thin paper with a sigh of relief.
Finally, he felt a bit lighter. Just as he was about to relax, he tilted his head at a single rose handed to him separately.
"What'cha got goin' on with this rose?"
"It's a gift for first-time customers. It suits you."
"Haha, Hiiro with a rose... haha!"
"Shut up, you jerk!"
The kind gesture from the bespectacled female clerk felt like a jab to Hiiro. His friends were definitely going to tease him about this. The look on his face while staring at the rose was quite sour.
"Are you going to crush the thorns?"
"Nah, forget crushin', them thorns make the rose what it is, ya feel me?"
"Unfortunately, I'm the one who got crushed."
"?"
"No, don't worry about it."
Hiiro tilted his head, confused by the strange words. But then Quollio whispered, "Why not just give it to Shura?" and it quickly slipped from his mind.
"What's the point of givin' somethin' to dat chick? She ain't got no feel-good vibe 'bout flowers."
"True, she's not that type, but it still has meaning. In fact, it has only meaning."
"...I don't follow the logic."
Hiiro must have been holding in a lot of frustration. He realized Quollio was teasing him and finally gave up.
But that choice wouldn't save him from his tough situation.
"Whateva', here goes nothin'. Here."
"...Oh, for me? How bold."
"Nah, ain't about me! It's a comeback, a real one!"
"Come on, you don't have to be shy about it."
Is this part of the service? The clerk smiled happily. Her half-up, deep blue hair made the roses look even brighter.
"Ain't nobody gotta get involved, just drop that cash already!"
"Okay!"
When did it become so unbearable? If this is how it is with a stranger, the future looks bleak. Hiiro thought about growing a beard while feeling sad inside, and he and Quollio left the store.
Summer was already halfway through. The sky, which hadn't rained for a while, was completely clear with no clouds.
"Thank you, please come again."
With those polite words behind them, the two knights started walking.
The sudden breeze carried a scent that reminded them of a valley from long ago.
* * *
The woman shaded her eyes from the strong sunlight.
She wanted to blink as little as possible to watch the retreating figure.
"It's not easy to just say, 'That's fine.' He really is a terrible man."
He didn't seem like the type to understand the words hidden in flowers. So he probably didn't get the meaning of giving roses.
"He's not exactly evil, but that kind of thing is just bad quality."
He didn't understand, didn't know, and didn't notice.
But it touched her heart properly. She could only call him a terrible man.
"...It smells nice."
Narrowing her eyes at the scent, she took off her glasses with her slender fingers.
She takes off the hairpin and touch the neatly trimmed dark blue hair at the back. There's only one red flower. But the shine of the smile she wears is as enchanting as a witch's.
"The foolish witch's revenge ended up being just a silly play."
The woman thinks back to a month ago.
That plan was mostly stopped, and even though the crime was uncovered, she couldn't take anything with her own hands.
"But, at that time, the 'darkness' that whispered to me was surely real. It was deep and filled with terrible malice."
Looking at the result, it wasn't even worth calling it a revenge play.
But the darkness lurking behind the scenes was something unimaginably terrifying, she thinks.
Because after being saved by Hiiro and leaving her hometown, hiding in Asgardam for a month, she learned a shocking truth.
"...That darkness is surely still lurking close to you all."
This is about the sad news of the theater troupe director.
He was found dead in a room at an inn in this town.
The cause of death was poisoning. He drank a poison mixed in a different kind of alcohol, not wine, and died. A letter was found next to his body, and the knight order announced it as a suicide.
But.
The date he was found was 'the day before' that revenge play happened. This means that by the time the Wagner Troupe visited Joosa, Drodo was already dead. That's impossible.
So, who was that Director Drodo in Joosa? Was the Director Drodo who gave the God's Poison and the magic bell really him?
Thinking back, the 'props' he prepared were not something an ordinary theater troupe leader could have. They were magic items so extraordinary that even someone not familiar with magic could tell.
Why did this mysterious person, who had such things, impersonate Drodo?
What was the reason for using Roze to create such a tragedy?
Maybe, his target was never her or Joosa from the start──.
"From now on, many hardships will await you on your path."
Hiiro Merifar is a stormy man.
He never knows where he might make an enemy. He could get caught up in some crazy plot.
If so, the path ahead is probably full of thorns.
"Because of your harassment, my life was saved. But I'm not the type to just sit back and pray for your safety. After all... I'm a 'bad woman,' right?"
She's the one who got tossed around in that storm. But she doesn't plan to just get blown away and end it there.
Even if the filming is over, that's just the story of Roze Stalacua's stage. From Hiiro Merifar's stage, it's still just a passing point.
So now, it's her turn to step onto his stage.
"You messed up my stage. You have to take responsibility for that."
Here is the rewritten sentence with "I" changed to "she":
She's decided to face a new stage. No matter how long it takes, this time she'll jump into that strange stage and dance her heart out.
"The witch is dead. Because of you. But I'm still alive. Because of you. Living and thinking about now. Thanks to your harassment."
The red fire that killed the witch (Roze). The bad man who confused the actress (Rose). Even if she can't call herself either anymore, she won't let the scarlet fire in her heart go out.
That's the new revenge the bad woman has chosen.
"So now it's my turn. I'll become someone worthy of you, and I'll definitely come to see you again. That's my way of harassing you."
The nameless bad woman whispers as if making a vow. She gently picks a crimson rose and nibbles on its petals like a kiss.
"To be thought of so much by the woman you hated so much. It feels really good──doesn't it, you 3-line guy?"
The city winds don't carry the August postscript.
The sound becomes just a monologue, swallowed by the blue sky.
The woman looks up, as if to send someone off.
Did she think of the face of her hated enemy?
Her cheeks, smiling seductively like a pr**titute, flushed red like a girl.
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