The Beast That Licks Me - Chapter 2.15

“I don’t want to blame you. Thanks to you, I learned that people who steal have their own circumstances for doing so.”

Levit earned money by bringing breakfast on the ship and running errands for guests, but his brother took all that money. Not that his brother spent it all; the brother paid it upward to someone higher. In return, they were allowed to work and were protected, but to Rosette, it seemed like exploitation.

“I’m not saying I won’t take it. Give it to me later. When you earn money after learning to read and write from me, then.”

Rosette tightly gripped her thin, worn wallet. Although her wallet had become lighter, her heart had too. She might regret this moment later when she needed those 4 silver, but not now.

“It’s getting late. Let’s go back now.”

“W-wait a moment. I can’t accept this money… Oof!”

Levit, who had been arguing to return the money to Rosette, bumped into someone and fell backward hard.

“Levit!”

Rosette called out to Levit in surprise. He seemed to have fallen quite hard, moaning in pain.

“What’s your problem?”

“The kid bumped into me and fell.”

The person who collided with Levit was a large, stocky man. He was about a head taller than Rosette. A thin man standing beside him snickered while looking at Levit, who had fallen.

“Don’t get in the way. Move.”

The man raised his foot like he was going to kick Levit. Terrified, Levit rolled to the side.

“When you bump into someone, you should apologize. What are you doing?”

Rosette asked loudly, bewildered. The men looked down at her with disbelief.

“Is this tiny woman telling me to apologize?”

“Seems so.”

“Hey. Who are you to tell me to apologize or not?”

It was scarier than expected to have a large man glaring and yelling at her. She tried to appear composed, but her legs trembled. Levit staggered to his feet and stood between Rosette and the man.

“I’m sorry. I’ll apologize on her behalf.”

Rosette looked at Levit in disbelief and asked.

“You bumped into this mister and fell, so why are you apologizing?”

“Mister, she called me mister! Hahaha!”

Though it wasn’t particularly funny, the thin man beside him held his stomach and laughed.

“Shut up, Donovan. Before I put my fist in your mouth.”

At the man’s words, the one called Donovan immediately closed his mouth. Though they stood side by side, they didn’t seem to be equals.

“Hey, what about me looks like a ‘mister’ to you?”

Levit gently pushed Rosette to the side and said.

“I apologize. This person was raised in privilege and doesn’t know much about the world. She made a mistake because she didn’t know better.”

Levit emphasized the part about being raised in privilege. Rosette was bewildered by Levit’s attitude. Even though he was still grimacing in pain, he was apologizing.

“What’s with you, kid? Get out of the way.”

The man frowned and approached right up to Levit’s face, waving his hand. His attitude suggested he didn’t care if Levit got hit. As the man approached, his strong body odor became noticeable. A mixture of stale sweat, alcohol, and bitter medicine made Rosette nauseous. He seemed to be picking a fight while drunk. Finding the man disgusting but worried Levit might get hurt, Rosette pulled the child back.

“Miss. I’m asking you. What about me looks like a ‘mister’?”

“I misspoke. The word ‘mister’ is too good for someone who doesn’t even ask if a child is okay after bumping into them and causing injury.”

Rosette shot back with a pointed remark.

“No, don’t change the subject. What made you think of me as a ‘mister’?”

Asking again, the man seemed more sensitive about being called “mister” than expected. Rosette stared at him. His chin had patchy stubble, and his head was half bald. His nose tip and cheekbones were flushed red from heavy drinking. No matter how she looked at him, he was definitely a “mister.”

“I thought you were a mister because you have a lot of beard but little hair. If I’m wrong, I apologize. I’ll apologize, so you should also apologize to the child… Aaah!”

Before Rosette could finish speaking, the man grabbed her neck and pushed her against the wall. Her feet lifted off the ground, and she felt suffocated.

“Where do you see me being bald?!”

The man shouted in a furious voice. Rosette felt somewhat wronged. Wait, I said you had little hair, not that you were bald! However, she couldn’t voice her defense due to being choked.

“Stop it!”

Levit panicked and clung to the arm of the man who was gripping Rosette’s neck. Dangling from the arm, Levit swung back and forth in the air.

“Stop being annoying and get lost!”

The man shook his arm to drop Levit and then kicked him in the stomach. The kick was so strong that Levit couldn’t even scream as he rolled backward.

“…vit!”

Even while being choked, Rosette called out to Levit in a hoarse voice. People gathered due to the commotion, but no one seemed willing to intervene. Rosette wished Evan were there. She deeply regretted having earnestly asked him not to come near in case someone recognized them when they were together. Rosette struggled and kicked the man in the shin.

“Ow! You wench!”

The man released his grip on Rosette and clutched his shin. Losing her balance, Rosette staggered and fell to her knees. The man, holding his shin, lost his temper and charged at Rosette. Rosette squeezed her eyes shut and thought of Evan.

Evan.

“Such vulgar speech. No manners at all.”

Despite having her eyes closed for a while, there was no pain. Instead, an unfamiliar voice was heard nearby. Rosette opened her eyes slightly and looked ahead. A man with black hair was twisting the wrist of the man who had tried to hit her.

“You bastard, let go…!”

“Haha, ‘you bastard,’ he says.”

“V-Vito. Come to your senses. He’s nobility.”

At Donovan’s words, Vito frowned and narrowed his eyes to look at the man holding his wrist. Vito’s eyes blinked twice widely, then quickly changed to those of a terrified person.

“Uh, uhh…”

“Seems you’re finally coming to your senses.”

When the man released his hand, Vito suddenly knelt down.

“I-I’m sorry.”

“What do you have to be sorry to me for? Oh, is it because you called me a bastard?”

“N-no. Sorry, I’m sorry. It was a mistake.”

“What you did to me was a mistake, but what you did to that young lady was wrong. Do I need to tell you who to apologize to?”

Vito blankly listened to the man’s words, blinking his eyes. Donovan poked Vito in the side and whispered in his ear. Only then did Vito apologize to Rosette.

“Sorry, I’m sorry, miss. I made a mistake because I drank too much.”

However, Rosette, the recipient of the apology, was already furious.

“Is saying sorry enough? Levit was kicked by you!”

“Customer, I’m fine.”

Levit, who had somehow approached Rosette’s side, whispered. Though he was smiling, cold sweat beaded on his temples. Rosette could see he was deliberately enduring the pain.

“Really, I’m fine. So please, let’s just stop here.”

“But…”

Rosette, who had intended to get an apology and medical expenses, stopped speaking at Levit’s desperate expression. She had tried to help him receive an apology, but it only resulted in Levit getting more hurt. That fact made Rosette hesitate.

In Rosette’s common sense, the current situation was absurd. If you bump into someone, you should apologize. Under no circumstances should women and children be hit. Protect the weak and stand up to the strong. That was chivalry and the common sense of the world Rosette had lived in.

Rosette finally realized she had come to a place where no one would protect her. Until now, Evan had always been by her side, so she hadn’t felt the danger. How safe the glass greenhouse she had been confined to all her life had been. She felt like she had been dropped naked into a barren wasteland.