Part 3: Living Normally (3)

The next morning.

Though not as bustling as the previous night, the tavern was already lively, with more than half the tables filled.

Some customers had returned after visiting yesterday, while others had come upon hearing rumors about the raven.

Thanks to this, Carl and Lyra were all smiles from the early morning.

“Both of you, don’t worry about the tavern today. Just go out and enjoy yourselves.”

As soon as breakfast ended, Carl gave Aiden and Lucy a playful push on their backs.

“Won’t it be busy again today?”

“It’s fine. I’ve called for reinforcements.”

“Reinforcements? Who?”

“Someone you know.”

Carl gave Lucy a meaningful look. Lucy blinked in realization and nodded.

“Don’t let them cause too much trouble, okay?”

“Even if they do, I’ll clean up the mess. Don’t worry about it.”

“Then… we’ll be back by evening?”

“Take your time.”

With that, Lucy and Aiden left the tavern.

Their first stop was, naturally, the alleyway beside the tavern.

“Cheese~”

Lucy called out affectionately for Cheese, the golden tabby cat. But no matter how desperately she called, Cheese didn’t appear.

This was a first, and it left her bewildered.

“Strange. This never happens.”

“Isn’t this actually more natural?”

“Don’t jinx it! I might get upset, you know?”

Even after waiting for a long while, Cheese didn’t respond.

With no time to linger, Lucy poured some milk into a dish and left the alleyway.

“This way.”

“Eek!”

Lucy gasped in surprise.

Distracted by her worries over Cheese, she had been walking with her head down when a carriage came barreling toward her.

If Aiden hadn’t grabbed her arm and pulled her aside, a major accident could have occurred.

“Watch where you’re going! What were you thinking, stepping onto a road meant for carriages?!”

The coachman’s angry yell echoed from the passing carriage.

“Sorry, my mind was elsewhere.”

“Because of the cat?”

“Yeah. I can’t stop thinking about it. You probably don’t get why I care so much about Cheese, do you?”

Aiden didn’t reply, only nodded in acknowledgment.

“Have you ever cared deeply about something? Whether it’s a person, an animal, or even an object?”

“No. Never.”

“Not even music boxes? Don’t you like those?”

“I collect them, but I wouldn’t be hung up if I lost one.”

“What about family?”

“My parents both passed away when I was young.”

“Oh… Well, what’s this? You’re actually answering my questions today?”

Lucy widened her eyes in surprise.

This reaction was completely different from yesterday. A proper question and an answer—she hadn’t realized how much she’d take such a simple exchange for granted.

Still, through this brief conversation, she learned something new: Aiden’s parents had passed away early in his life.

Though it was just speculation, she suspected this had a significant impact on his personality.

Love, after all, had to be experienced to be understood.

You receive love, so you can give it.

You give love, so you can receive it.

Love was a cycle of mutual exchange. If even one part of that cycle broke, love couldn’t continue.

“Come to think of it, you’ve taken off your scarf today.”

Lucy shifted the topic, pointing to Aiden’s scarf.

Just yesterday, he had wrapped it so high that it covered his nose. But today, it sat neatly around his neck.

“Not covering my face anymore.”

“What brought about the change?”

“I’m trying to live… normally.”

“Not sure what you mean, but good for you. Honestly, I’ve seen people cover their faces because they’re insecure about their looks, but never someone as handsome as you hiding theirs.”

The effect of lowering his scarf was immediate.

Everyone who passed by glanced at Aiden—without exception.

Age and gender didn’t matter; every gaze landed on him.

‘This is definitely uncomfortable.’

Aiden muttered inwardly.

He had always aimed to live unnoticed. But now, that life was crumbling. Everywhere he went, he attracted attention.

Still, he would have to get used to it.

Aiden was no longer an assassin. Being noticed wouldn’t endanger his life anymore.

“I suddenly want an apple. Let’s grab some.”

“Whatever you want.”

Lucy led the way to a nearby fruit stand.

“Ma’am, two apples, please.”

“Good choice. Winter apples are the sweetest! But… oh my, the gentleman next to you…”

The shopkeeper’s eyes widened as she noticed Aiden.

“Don’t worry. He’s not a noble.”

“Oh, is that so? But he looks so refined! Hohoho!”

The shopkeeper giggled behind her hand and handed over two apples without hesitation.

“No need to pay. Just take them.”

“What? You’re giving them to us for free?”

“Of course! Just seeing him brightened my morning. Come back often! I’ll throw in more freebies!”

“But we really should—”

“If I’m offering, just take them!”

The shopkeeper’s insistence left them no choice but to accept the apples and leave the stall.

“I don’t understand,” Aiden said, biting into his apple.

It was crisp, sweet, and refreshing—high-quality fruit. He had assumed it would be lower-grade since it was free, but he was wrong.

“Why would she give such good apples away for free?”

“The reason’s obvious. It’s because you’re handsome.”

“And what does being handsome have to do with free apples?”

“Tsk, tsk. Have you been wearing a mask your whole life?”

Lucy chuckled softly before continuing, “When you’re good-looking, life is just easier.”

*  *  *

“When you’re good-looking, life is easier.”

Aiden learned this truth firsthand.

At every place they visited—the restaurant, the lake, the library—Aiden received endless attention and kindness.

At the restaurant, they were served dishes they hadn’t even ordered.

Street painters begged to use Aiden as their model.

One noblewoman even approached boldly, asking to court him.

Meanwhile, Lucy suffered the indignity of being mistaken for a maid.

For Aiden, all of this felt strange and awkward. He had never been treated this way before.

His targets had always either feared or hated him.

His colleagues had been indifferent at best.

Aiden had always stood outside the world’s boundaries.

The world paid no attention to him, and he gave none to it.

But now, by simply revealing his face, the world was pulling him toward its center.

Surprisingly…

It didn’t feel all that bad.

It was the feeling of being acknowledged as a person.

And it gave him the courage to consider that it might be okay to show his true self.

In a normal world, hiding wasn’t a virtue.

“The world really is peaceful,” Aiden murmured, looking up at the clear blue sky.

“Only realizing that now?”

“Yeah. Now I know.”

Before joining the Thieves Guild, he had been a vagrant, fighting a war every day just to survive.

After joining the Thieves Guild, he endured hellish training.

As an assassin, he had waded through blood and corpses.

But life after retirement was entirely different.

The phrase “easygoing” fit perfectly.

He didn’t need to chase anyone…

Nor did he have anyone chasing him.

“I’ve been curious for a while, Aiden. You’re not just an ordinary traveler, are you? Tell me about your life.”

“Later.”

Aiden postponed his answer.

He couldn’t tell Lucy what he had told Carl.

The two had lived entirely different lives.

Lucy wouldn’t be able to handle the truth.

“Do you think we could become friends?”

“What are you talking about out of the blue?”

“I mean it, literally.”

At that moment, Aiden recalled his master’s second directive:

[Make 10 friends.]

“Now that’s a hurtful question. I already considered you my friend.”

“Why is that? We haven’t known each other that long.”

“Well, we’re the same age, we’re comfortable around each other, and that’s enough for me.”

“Is making friends really that simple? Carl said that a friend is someone you can entrust your back to.”

“My dad’s an ex-mercenary; of course, he’d say that. But friendship doesn’t have to be defined in such grand terms, does it?”

Lucy shrugged.

“Still, why’d you bring up friendship all of a sudden?”

“Because ordinary people should have friends.”

Through his conversation with Carl, Aiden had finally realized…

What his master truly wanted for him was to become… normal.

Revealing his real name and face.
Making friends.
Experiencing different professions.

All of the directives ultimately pointed toward achieving “normalcy.”

“Aiden.”

Lucy spoke again.

“Sure, you’re ridiculously handsome, and your personality’s a bit eccentric. But that doesn’t make you exceptionally special. Thinking of yourself as special is a kind of sickness, you know?”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“Pfft. You can be unexpectedly agreeable sometimes. When you have time, think about it—what friends mean to you. It might make it easier for you to make some.”

“Isn’t what they think of me more important than what I think?”

“I doubt it.”

With Lucy’s smile, the conversation ended.

A moment later, Aiden noticed Lucy’s head turning to the left. She was looking at a stray cat.

Lucy was still concerned about Cheese.

*  *  *

Carl’s Tavern.

Carl was gazing out the window at the dusky horizon.

In his mind, he pictured Aiden.

Last night.

Aiden’s confession that he had been an assassin was shocking.

Yet it didn’t make Carl feel repelled or afraid of him.

If anything, Carl felt pity for Aiden.

How many hardships must he have endured?

How suffocating must it have been to live a life where he had to erase his face and name?

And how long did it take for him to get used to that life?

But Aiden was retired now.

Carl believed Aiden could fully adapt to ordinary life as long as they were together.

Jingle!

The sound of the doorbell snapped Carl out of his thoughts.

Two guards clad in armor stepped into the tavern. Carl straightened his back.

“Welcome.”

“Two beers, please.”

The guards sat at the bar table and placed silver coins on it.

Carl pocketed the silver, poured the beer, and handed the mugs to them. He felt nervous for no reason, even though he had committed no crime.

It was the first time the guards had visited the tavern.

“This is the place, right? The one that mysterious raven visited?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Don’t see it around today.”

“Who knows? It could show up again at any time. Were you out on patrol?”

“Something troublesome came up, actually. You’ve heard of Jack, haven’t you?”

One of the guards grimaced as he asked.

Of course, Carl knew about Jack.

Not personally, but Jack was the one causing an uproar across the region these days.

Jack was a deranged serial killer.

“Did he cause more trouble?”

“Don’t even ask. That lunatic committed murder in broad daylight.”

“And it wasn’t just any murder. He gutted someone and laid out their organs for all to see. I almost died trying not to throw up.”

One guard spoke while the other nodded in agreement.

They both shook their heads and gulped down their beers.

“He must be elusive if he hasn’t been caught yet.”

“He’s no ordinary person. Seems like he’s a master of disguise too.”

“Rumor has it that he’s also wreaked havoc in the neighboring Portam territory. They call him the Grim Reaper, and he wields a massive scythe. They say he’s also a necromancer.”

“Necromancer?”

Carl’s voice rose with his question.

Necromancers were rare, powerful, and utterly sinister.

Each one of them was akin to a natural disaster. They wielded overwhelming power in exchange for their corruption.

“Our territory’s forces might not be enough to handle Jack.”

“Then what will you do?”

“The lord is planning to formally request assistance from the Mithra Order. In the meantime, take care of yourself. Oh, and keep this conversation to yourself.”

“Of course. You don’t need to worry about that.”

Carl offered the guards two more beers on the house.

He listened patiently to their complaints.

After the guards left, Carl thought of Aiden again.

Could Aiden possibly defeat Jack?

The thought made Carl chuckle.

Jack was a necromancer with the infamous title of “Grim Reaper.”

Even Aiden would be outmatched.
 

To be continued

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