After spending another hour with this stupid girl.
After spending all my money on her whims.
Celestine finally stopped.
In front of a fortune teller's stall.
The man sitting there looked goofy as hell. His face was wrinkled beyond recognition. Like the ass of a decayed corpse that had been left in the sun for too long.
Celestine looked at him with sparkling eyes. "You can tell my future, right?"
He just nodded. Slow. Mysterious. Probably rehearsed a thousand times.
Celestine turned to me. "Wanna give it a try?"
"Don't tell me you actually believe in this corpse-looking man."
I gestured at him. "He's just another scammer."
"But we can still try, right? There's no harm!"
"There are many harms."
I held up one finger. "First, we don't have any money left."
Second finger. "And second, what if he says I'll die within a month?"
I shook my head. "I would never believe it, but still. It would haunt me."
She thought for a second.
Or at least, she acted like she was thinking.
Then she pulled out her single gold coin. The one she had been clutching this entire time. Her last treasure.
And placed it directly in the old man's hand.
"Tell my future, sir! Pretty please!"
My jaw dropped. I looked around.
People were staring at us. At me specifically.
And I realized why.
I was standing there holding bags. Multiple bags. Filled with various items. Clothes. Her accessories. A few desserts she wanted to bring home.
It looked exactly like I was her boyfriend. Carrying her shopping while she played around.
These people were mocking me with their eyes.
TSK.
I stepped closer. Ready to curse the old man and drag Celestine away.
But then he moved.
He threw some weird stones onto the cloth in front of him.
CLATTER.
They scattered in a random pattern.
He started analyzing them. Studying their positions with intense focus. As if they were some magical artifacts containing the secrets of the universe.
I remembered pissing on stones that looked exactly like those just a few minutes ago.
Then he looked up. First at me. Then at Celestine.
"Your future is very bright, my child."
Her face glowed with joy. "Tell me, sir! What did you see? I can't wait!"
"I can see your future..." He raised his hands dramatically.
"Living like a princess. Treated like a princess. Every moment filled with happy memories."
He paused.
"And this man..." He pointed directly at me.
"Is the reason for it all."
My eye twitched.
"Your boyfriend will truly make you happy."
Celestine's face turned bright red.
"W-What?! You mean... Goonman would be my... groom?"
That was it.
That was enough for me to snap.
I grabbed the old man's collar.
YANK.
Pulled him up from his sitting position.
Raised him higher. And higher. Until his legs were dangling an inch above the ground.
He was trembling. Eyes wide with terror.
"Motherfucker." My voice was ice.
"She's already a princess. And don't you dare mess up her already messed up brain even more."
I released him.
THUD.
He fell to the ground. Hard.
"Owww!" He was crying in pain. Rubbing his ass where he had landed.
I snatched the gold coin from where it had fallen.
"At least you should have come up with new ideas to scam people."
Celestine was looking at me with a deadly glare.
"Why are you always so violent?!"
I grabbed her hand. Started pulling her away from the stall.
"Listen. Your sister was right, okay?"
She tried to resist but I kept walking.
"Don't trust anyone blindly in this stupid world. Not all of them are kind like me."
She was still angry at my actions. I could feel it in how stiffly she walked beside me.
But I knew exactly how to fix that.
I pointed at a nearby shop.
"Wanna eat popsicle?"
Her eyes instantly glowed up.
All anger forgotten.
"Yes! Yes!"
"Wait here. I'll go fetch it."
I walked to the shop. Paid with the last of her coin. Kept the change for myself. Fair compensation for my suffering.
The popsicle was a weird ball-shaped thing on a stick.
I handed it to her.
We sat on a nearby bench while she ate it like a kid. Licking and biting with complete abandon. Getting it all over her face.
And that's when I realized what I had said earlier.
Her sister.
"Hey, Celestine."
"Mmm?" She looked at me. Popsicle still in her mouth.
"What's up with your sister?"
She tilted her head.
"I mean, you called her 'sis.' But she was calling you 'Lady Celestine.'"
I raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me it's racism."
Her mood shifted instantly.
While her face was still ruined with popsicle residue, her expression turned sad. Distant.
"Thalia is my big sis." She looked down at the ground.
"She calls me that because... father forces her to."
"Why?"
"She was the daughter of my late uncle. Who died by the hands of the Elf Kingdom."
I frowned. "Why would they do that? Revenge?"
She shook her head slowly.
"Uncle fell in love with their princess. And married her."
She sighed. "But due to the rivalry between both our kingdoms, they weren't accepted in either one. They were even threatened with death."
She took a small bite of her popsicle.
"So they left. Abandoned all their status. Started a new life somewhere far away."
Her voice became quieter. "But that new life wasn't long. The Elf King was furious. When he finally found them..."
She paused.
"He killed uncle. And took Thalia's mother back with him."
I stayed silent.
"At that time, Thalia had just been born. The villagers in that area raised her for a while."
She looked up at the sky. "That's when my father found out. About the murder of his own brother. He took Thalia in."
Her eyes became pained.
"But not with what she deserved. He treated her with harshness. Harshness that she never deserved."
I could feel the weight in her words. The guilt she carried for something that wasn't her fault.
Then her expression faded. She noticed the last portion of popsicle remaining.
CHOMP.
She bit it off. Swallowed it whole.
As if eating away her sadness.
"Lady Celestine! Here!" A voice called out.
I looked toward the source.
Thalia. The same elf girl from before. Running toward us with a large bag in her hands.
She stopped before us. Slightly out of breath.
"It has two hundred coins."
Celestine stood up. Took the bag from her.
Then turned and handed it directly to me. "Here, Goonman. For your services."
JINGLE.
The weight of it was satisfying.
Thalia spoke up.
"It's time we get back, Lady Celestine. I told Her Highness about the situation. She was too worried about you."
Celestine pouted.
"It's a shame. I wasn't able to explore properly." She crossed her arms.
"Looks like I'll have to sneak away tomorrow too."
Seeing that defiance, Thalia immediately grabbed her by the waist. Started pushing her away.
"We're leaving. Now."
But Celestine turned her head back.
"Goonman! Are you free tomorrow?"
"Nope." I waved dismissively.
"I have a fight with some aliens tomorrow."
She made a sad face. "All the best then."
And then the distance between us grew.
She was pushed further and further away by Thalia.
Until she was gone.
I looked down at the bag in my hands.
JINGLE. JINGLE.
Bounced it a few times. Listened to the beautiful sound of coins dancing inside.
Two hundred gold pieces.
I was thinking about where to put this wealth to use. What upgrades I could buy. What items I could acquire from that Apotheion shop.
But then I realized something.
It was late.
Very late.
Mother would be mad at me.
And I didn't know what allegations she would throw at me this time. What accusations. What punishments.
It would be better to go home before things got worse.