My Lucky Encounter From The Game Turned Into Reality - M.L.E Chapter 54: Leveling Up Again (Part1)

Catherine Becky, an exceedingly ordinary woman who could be seen anywhere.

She had a somewhat gloomy expression even though she had shed her girlish innocence, and her habit of wearing long sleeves even in the scorching heat might be considered characteristic. However, even if you happened to pass her on the street, she was the kind of person who would be forgotten after taking just ten steps.

“Catherine, where is your father?”

“My father is at the bank for the moment…”

“Catherine?”

“Please speak up.”

“Hey, shouldn’t you at least look at the person when you talk? Haven’t you fixed that habit yet?”

“…”

“Never mind. Just pass on the message when your father comes. The merchant’s gathering has been moved to 7 PM tonight, so don’t be late.”

“Okay.”

“I heard you went to the Royal Academy, but I wonder why your personality is like that…”

Fortunately, Catherine’s parents ran a grocery store, so her circumstances weren’t too bad. However, due to her lack of social skills, she had not yet been able to break free from her parents’ protection, even though she had reached an age where she should have been independent. As a result, her reputation in the neighborhood was not very good.

Unless they were very close, people didn’t bother to inquire about the life she had lived or why she had such a personality.

“Hey, Catherine! Catherine!”

That day, too, Catherine was spending her days accumulating bad reviews as if accumulating mileage. Her parents had temporarily left their store, and she was reluctantly manning the cash register at the grocery store when the owner of the hat shop next door rushed in with a look as if he had seen a ghost.

It was a slightly different situation from her usual routine, spending similar days, day after day. Perhaps that’s why she found herself unintentionally staring intently at the hat shop owner, who spoke bitterly every time he saw her.

She averted her gaze, but strangely, she didn’t feel too bad.

She found the expression of someone scared of a person they disliked somewhat amusing.

“What’s going on?”

“O-Outside! That person is outside!”

“What?”

“They said that person is outside!?”

Should I go check it out?

Catherine didn’t understand his words.

But…

“Catherine! C-Catherine!”

Somehow, her father, who had gone to the bank, rushed in with the same appearance as the hat shop owner, looking for her.

“What’s going on?”

“He-He’s outside! That person! You, you!”

By now, Catherine couldn’t help but feel anxious. She was already small in stature, and the actions of these two men were enough to frighten her.

Who could be looking for her?

As her shoulders hunched in fear, her already petite frame seemed even smaller.

“A nobleman!”

And when the word ‘noble’ escaped her father’s lips, Catherine felt a twinge of pain hidden beneath the long sleeves.

‘I-I need to run away.’

That was the only thought running through her mind.

But even that was short-lived.

“Catherine Becky?”

As a young nobleman entered with a group of knights, she missed her chance to escape.

“I’ve done something wrong!”

She wasn’t sure what she had done wrong, but reflexively, she knelt down and begged with her hands folded.

She couldn’t possibly look at a nobleman when she couldn’t even see the faces of acquaintances. She assumed there would be no good intentions behind this visit, no matter who the person was.

“I’m truly sorry.”

The apology, which she thought she would never hear from a nobleman, echoed through the grocery store, and her stiffened head gradually lifted.

“Oh…”

And the moment she saw the person’s face, a mixture of emotions flooded Catherine’s expression.

Surprise, admiration, joy, regret, and even resentment.

Catherine swallowed dry saliva and called out the person’s name.

“Adrian?”

The moment she uttered his name, memories she had tried so hard to bury came rushing back.

Adrian, who always wore bandages during his academy days, was bullied and harassed by some nasty “friends”.

Adrian, with his unwavering determination even in the face of violence and bullying, always sticks to his own path.

But the more resolute Adrian acted, the worse the harassment became, and the bandages turned into casts, marked with bruises.

Yet, Adrian’s behavior remained unchanged.

He never bowed to the villains, always keeping his head held high.

To Catherine, who was in the same class as Adrian at the academy, he seemed incredibly cool.

Even though he was always covered in wounds, he looked more like a nobleman than any nobleman.

So, despite knowing that she should stay away, she couldn’t help but let her true feelings slip.

*** ***

“Are you okay?’

Catherine’s one question to Adrian.

With that one phrase, her life changed.

That one question led to Catherine being brutally beaten in front of him simply because she had inquired about his state.

She was a severe and relentless beating, and the scars from that time were so deep that they couldn’t be completely erased even with potions.

In order to survive, she had fled the academy, hiding her scars beneath long sleeves and becoming someone who constantly watched the reactions of those around her.

*** ***

“Catherine!”

Catherine, lost in her memories of the past, snapped back to reality at her father’s shout.

“How dare you mock His Excellency!”

This was an act that should not be done considering her social status. Commoners should never casually call the name of a powerful figure within the country.

Catherine’s father was startled and scolded her loudly.

Her father’s voice was so loud that it made her jump.

“That’s enough. Friends can call each other by name, can’t they?”

“Friends?”

“Friends? You, the insolent Catherine…”

“What did you just say?”

“Oops!”

“What’s wrong, Catherine?”

“Uh! I’m sorry! Your Excellency!”

-Thunk!

“I’ve committed an unforgivable sin! Your Excellency!”

In the brief moment when she couldn’t regain her composure, something incredible happened.

The hat shop owner was talking carelessly as usual, which infuriated Adrian, and the loyal knight of the Marquis Lawrence drew their sword.

The hat shop owner begged for forgiveness in the most pitiful manner.

“Shut your mouth.”

“Heek!”

Adrian cast a cold gaze at him and then turned to Catherine, extending his hand.

“Parden me.”

“Huh? What? Uh, yes…”

“You can speak informally.”

“How can I do that?”

She instinctively grabbed his hand, but soon she looked around, worried about the consequences.

However, no one seemed to object to her actions.

“Have you heard the news?”

“What news are you talking about?”

“The Territory War.”

“Oh…”

Catherine had seen an article saying that when Adrian became a marquis, he applied for a Territory War to four families with whom he had a bad relationship.

Otaku_Senpai

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