Forgotten Juliet

The carriage driver, filled with excitement, began telling stories about him.

“People don’t know it well, but the hometown of the Red King is none other than this village of Lobell.”

Lionel Lebatan.

The man, commonly known as the Red King, was the most famous figure from the eastern region.

People may not know the name of the Emperor, but they would have known the name of the Red King.

About 50 years ago, uncontrollable rogues flocked to the eastern region. No one knew why they migrated.

However, those who settled in the east first formed guilds and accommodated the rogues who migrated to the east. Their influence grew to the point where they became a thorn in the Empire’s side.

“Well, at that time, the east was nothing short of a haven for criminals.”

Due to the influx of troublemakers pretending to be adventurers, conflicts were never-ending in the east.

Lionel Lebatan was the one who organized the situation.

He received the affection and respect of the people more than any other authority figure in the east. A mere mercenary had become the ruler who controlled one-fourth of the continent.

Then, as Lionel Lebatan’s power grew excessively, the royal family began to despise him. In the end, the royal family prosecuted him for treason.

“I know. It was a mock trial.”

Lionel Lebatan himself didn’t attend; it was a trial conducted with an empty chair.

According to the verdict, Lionel would be sentenced to death as soon as he set foot outside the east and entered the Empire.

The trial was more like a show of wounded pride by the royal family.

Practically, it was an ultimatum from the royal family, who had no way of capturing him, the de facto ruler of the east.

And as if it were a lie, right after that, Lionel Lebatan quietly disappeared.

One of her friends, whom she met through the Duke, was also from the east, a mercenary, and naturally held great respect for a person named Lionel Lebatan.

Opinions on his whereabouts after that were varied.

Some said he was captured and killed by the royal family, while others claimed he sailed on a ship laden with treasures and disappeared to a distant sea.

“And it is said that no one has known his whereabouts until now, but in fact, anyone from the east knows the truth.”

Juliet perked up her ears at the meaningful words of the carriage driver.

“What is the truth?”

“In reality, the Red King… is neither dead nor gone. He is living under a different name in his hometown of Carcassonne.”

“Huh!”

The final laughter did not belong to the carriage driver or Juliet.

The two of them raised their heads in the direction of the noise. It was the red-haired man who had been closing his eyes as if he were sleeping.

As if he had been pretending to sleep and had heard everything, the red-haired man openly sneered.

‘… Was he sneering?’

The man smirked, ignoring the carriage driver and scanning Juliet, who was sitting across from him, up and down. It was an incredibly disdainful expression.

‘What?’

Juliet pondered if there was something wrong with the conversation just now. But it was an unremarkable conversation about an old story that could not have elicited such a hostile reaction from anyone.

After thinking it over, she couldn’t find anything she had done wrong. So Juliet simply stared back at him with the same intensity.

As if she were the most insolent person in the world.

‘Sassy scoundrel….’

Although she didn’t say it out loud, her expression conveyed it perfectly.

“Tsk.”

The red-haired man flinched for a moment, then lightly stuck out his tongue, turned his head, and closed his eyes.

Although the carriage driver’s story was interrupted, the rest of the journey was relatively peaceful.

The carriage arrived at its destination about an hour after leaving the Roadel Station.

“We have arrived. It’s Lobell.”

The red-haired man, who had made a bad first impression, didn’t seem to get off first.

Juliet handed a tip to the carriage driver, thanked him, and then stepped outside, slowly surveying her surroundings.

She didn’t have high expectations since it was just a passing village, but the first impression of Lobell was completely unexpected.

‘It’s exquisite…’

Juliet admired silently.

In the northern and capital regions, buildings made of white limestone were considered top-notch, with clean and sophisticated designs dominating the area.

On the other hand, the buildings in front of her were made of red bricks, each one colorful and vibrant.

Surrounded by a shopping district with tall buildings and a central clock tower, the square spread out in a circular shape, like a village from a fairy tale.

‘As expected. I made the right decision coming here…’

As Juliet leisurely looked around the scenery, her mood improved.

She finally felt the realization of being in a different place, away from the familiar surroundings.

Although it was unfamiliar, a pleasant excitement began to flutter in her heart. She had traveled to various places in the North, but back then, she was always accompanied by surveillance and escorts.

Lost in various thoughts, Juliet was slowly walking along the square. That’s when it happened.

Swoosh.

A person wearing a tightly pressed hat brushed past Juliet.

‘What?’

Juliet immediately felt a sense of unease and stopped in her tracks.

The man who brushed past her casually continued on his way. Juliet, who had been standing still for a moment, soon witnessed an interesting scene.

The man nonchalantly approached a shopping district crowded with shops where the upper-class goods were piled up.

Swoosh!

This time, unfortunately, he collided forcefully with a passerby who happened to be turning at the same time.

“Oh!”

And Juliet’s eyebrows twitched.

Just before the man collided with the passerby, she saw him quickly pickpocketing a wallet from the person’s pocket.

“He’s a thief!”

It hadn’t even been three seconds since she thought it was a good town.

“What? A thief?”

“Get him!”

Fortunately, Juliet wasn’t the only witness.

Just as people were streaming out of the shops, they heard the commotion and raised their heads.

“Tsk!”

The pickpocket hurriedly pushed through the pedestrians and fled into an alley.

The upper-class people quickly chased after him. But the pickpocket seemed quite resourceful and unlikely to be caught.

As a precaution, Juliet discreetly sent a butterfly flying in the direction where the pickpocket disappeared. Then she turned her steps toward the fallen old man.

If Juliet had genres in her life, she thought it would definitely not be a healing story.

‘Right. Even in a peaceful town, there can be pickpockets.’

After all, Lobell was a city right next to the metropolis of Carcassonne. It might not be as crowded as Carcassonne, but this was the birthplace of the legendary giant of the East, wasn’t it?

Juliet struggled to understand that and approached the fallen man.

“Are you okay?”

The old man lying on the ground had a pleasant and gentle appearance.

He glanced at Juliet and their hands alternately before reaching out to grab her hand and stood up.

“Oh, I’m indebted to you. Thank you, young lady.”

“Not at all.”

While smiling and responding, Juliet glanced sideways towards the alley where the pickpocket had escaped.

Ahhhh!

Almost simultaneously, a pitiful scream could be heard coming from the alley.

Hearing the murmurs of people, Juliet could tell without even looking what had happened.

Her butterfly had clearly filled its abdomen diligently.

Juliet casually shook off any concern as if it had nothing to do with her and quickly turned her gaze back to the old man.

When he was lying on the ground, she hadn’t noticed, but he was quite an impressive-looking old man.

There were traces of time on his face, but even in Juliet’s eyes, who were familiar with knights, his body seemed well-trained to the point of admiration. At the very least, he wasn’t an ordinary old man. In his younger days, he must have been famous and formidable.

‘At least he doesn’t seem like someone who would fall victim to such a clumsy pickpocket…’

For a moment, Juliet wondered about the reason but soon found out.

The old man, supported by Juliet, regained his balance and stood up, but his expression immediately turned troubled.

“Sorry, young lady, could you pick up that thing for me?”

Ah.

Without thinking, Juliet turned her head and noticed something black on the ground behind her.

‘…A cane?’

As per the old man’s request, Juliet picked up the cane and handed it to him.

The plain black cane felt heavier than expected. Juliet was briefly surprised by its weight but concealed her expression.

“Thank you.”

Thump.

The old man immediately gripped the cane.

It was difficult to notice at a glance, but the old man was subtly dragging his left leg on the ground.

Feeling uneasy for some reason, Juliet lowered her gaze slightly.