Chapter 26: The protagonist and the trick.

“C-Carlotta!?”

I shouted louder than I meant to—half out of shock, half because the world just felt too damn absurd in that moment.

She wasn’t supposed to be here. She was supposed to be at the back of the store, in the fitting rooms. We ran all the way from there—so how the hell did we bump into her like this?

“Lady Wiebke, my apologies. We weren’t watching where we were going.”

Maxine was the first to stand. She brushed the dust off her dress, straightened herself with that calm, regal composure of hers, and offered a hand to the noblewoman to help her up.

“Don’t worry, Lady Ryu,” Carlotta replied politely, lifting her chin as she tucked a few golden strands behind her forehead. “It was also my fault for not paying attention to my surroundings.”

For some reason, Maxi gave me a wink, like saying, “You’re welcome for saving your ass.”

I had no idea why.

Like… huh? What about me? Wasn’t she gonna offer me her hand too? Just like she did for that blonde psycho? I grumbled silently.

Okay, fine. I’ll admit it. I got a tiny bit jealous that my friend helped her up instead of me.

Traitor.

I clearly told her we had to keep our distance from—wait… hold up.

... Did I ever actually explain why we had to stay away from them?

…Crap. I think I forgot that part.

“…Nen, are you seriously planning to just stay on the floor? Get up! You’re making everyone uncomfortable!”
“Everyone? What everyone—” I started to argue, but then voices began to rise around us.

“What’s going on?”

“Is that a Nen? Is she causing trouble?”

A wave of faces and chatter surrounded me out of nowhere.

Holy sh*t! When did all these people show up!? The place was empty like, two seconds ago! The logic of this world was straight-up mocking me.

“Ryn, you should get up,” Maxi whispered, trying to stay composed.

“...Give me your hand.”

“Huh?”

“You heard me. Give me your hand. I, uh, have this weird condition where I can’t stand up unless someone helps me.”

Maxi’s face twisted into genuine confusion. Yeah, I know—it wasn’t my best lie.

But come on, I just wanted her to help me up in that graceful, princessy way only she could pull off.

“Ah. Lady Ryu, you really should choose your company more carefully. A wild cat like this one only brings trouble, as you can clearly see. That said—fine. If you just want a hand to satisfy your little whim, here it is.”

Carlotta extended her hand. Her pale palm hovered right in front of my face, and the light filtering through the skylight hit her hair, making it shimmer.

The glow highlighted every perfect feature—soft, pale lips that somehow felt haunting, like they were enchanted to draw your eyes in.
And that round, slightly childish nose… it was such a strange contrast with her mature aura.

God, she’s glowing.

It was like a star had descended to earth. Hypnotic—that’s the only word for it.

Before I knew it, I was already taking her hand.

“No! Let me go!”

I snapped out of it instantly and tried to yank free.

Seriously, beautiful women are dangerous.

But I couldn’t pull away. Her grip tightened; her flawless smile stayed in place, a perfect contrast to the shadow flickering in her eyes. Then, with a move straight out of a theater play, she pulled me toward her—wrapping her arm around my waist, her touch sliding slowly from my back down to my hip, a bit lower.

I’ll admit it—it sent a jolt through every inch of my skin.

Not that it meant anything weird, okay?

That’s just… a normal physiological reaction when someone touches you that intimately.

“I’m going to make your life a living hell, filthy cat,” she whispered in my ear—so soft, so sweet, that her venomous words almost sounded like poetry.

Then she let me go, as if I were some discarded toy, and rejoined the crowd that now surrounded her. Maxi caught me just in time to keep me from falling again.

A chill ran down my spine. I didn’t fully get what she meant by “make your life a living hell,” but it reeked of a real threat.

“Are you okay?” Maxi asked, worry flickering in her eyes.

“Yeah… let’s just get outta here. Now that everyone’s staring, this is way too embarrassing,” I said, trying to sound firm—but my voice trembled.

“All right,” she agreed softly. “But you will explain what’s going on later.”

We started moving toward the exit, tension coiling through every muscle. Just as we were about to step outside, a blaring alarm shattered the air.

“YOU TWO—THE HUMAN AND THE NEN! STOP RIGHT THERE!”

“What?”

Two guards appeared by the door, shouting at us. Their faces were stone-serious, hands raised in that all-too-familiar “authority stance.”

“What the hell is going on?” I muttered, stunned.

A blaring alarm, two furious guards—yeah, there was only one logical explanation: theft.

But then… why were they coming for us?

I turned my head, scanning the area for the actual culprits—but there was no one.

Wait… did he just say “Nen and human”?

Were they… accusing us?

“W-we didn’t steal anything!” I wanted to say, patting down my red coat to prove it. But then my fingers brushed against something hard.

“What the—?”

I reached into my right pocket and pulled out… a choker. An elegant one, with a gleaming medallion. Impossible. I never picked something like this while shopping for Maxi’s outfits.

I’m not a thief. I’m not.

My mind spun at a thousand miles per hour. How did this thing end up in my pocket? Did I grab it by mistake? Was someone framing me?

The crowd whispered, the guards advanced—and Carlotta, with that cold, radiant smile still painted on her lips, watched like someone admiring an insect caught in a web.

My chest tightened. Shame, fear, and a burning white anger surged up my throat. Maxi squeezed my hand discreetly; her eyes weren’t accusing—they were searching.

Deep down, I knew this was just the beginning.

Someone would have to explain how that choker ended up in my pocket.

And this mall—the whole damn place—felt less like a store now… and more like a ticking cage.