Chapter 3

I can see strange things that represent other people’s emotions and near futures. They appear as variously colored lines above people’s heads.

(…I sure am seeing a lot of injury colors today…)

Among the people passing in front of my shop, about one in ten has a red injury prediction line. Injury colors represent events, and their length shows how likely something is to happen.

Seeing that many people with fairly long injury lines above their heads means, in other words… a big accident will happen in a few hours, or perhaps, some kind of attack.

Something is going to happen that will injure many people. Whatever it is, it’s definitely not good. I wanted to warn every single person who looked like they might get hurt, but as I stood in front of my shop thinking what to do, someone spoke to me from the side.

「Hey, Cyril. How’s the fortune-telling business?」

「Please ask about the pharmacy business, Jan, sir…」

I turned toward the familiar voice while answering, and then froze at the color above his familiar face.

His sturdy body was tanned from the sun, and despite his age, he still looked spirited and youthful. A town leader, a carpenter, and someone who had been close friends with my father. That was this man, Jan Dobak.

With a cheerful grin fit more for a mischievous child than a grown man, he stood there, and above his head was a very clear red line.

「Master, don’t just run off like that! Ah, good afternoon, Miss Cyril.」

「…Good afternoon.」

The apprentice who came running up behind Jan also had the same thing above his head. That meant somewhere in their plans today was an action likely to cause injury.

Today, most people, including them, would be heading to the harbor for the monthly grand market. Something might happen there.

「…What’s wrong? Does your stomach hurt?」

「No, nothing hurts. …More importantly, may I ask you something?」

Apparently, without realizing it, I had started frowning, because Jan leaned down to peer worriedly into my face. I shook my head, beckoned slightly, and had him lower his head so I could whisper. He’s tall, so I have to do this if I want to speak quietly.

「Where are you going now, and what are you planning to do? You might get hurt. …Today, there are a lot of people who look like they’ll be injured.」

「…I see. So the harbor is dangerous today. Alright, I’ll be careful.」

「Please do.」

Jan’s apprentice, who hadn’t heard what we were whispering about, looked puzzled and said things like, 「Was that fortune-telling!? Then please do me next!」 I ignored him.

Jan had known my parents since before I could remember. He knows about what I can see. …He is one of the very few people who understands me.

「The knights are on standby today, too. Don’t look so worried.」

「Hey, stop that!」

His huge, rough hand suddenly messed up my snow-white hair. I’m eighteen already, can he please stop treating me like a child?

While fixing my disheveled hair, I glanced up at his face. His eyes were warm, the way a parent looks at their child. It made me look away. Ever since I lost my parents, he and his family have supported me so much. He always worries about me, to me, he really is like a second parent.

「Well then, I’m off. Do your best with the shop.」

「Yes. And you do your best with work, Jan.」

Seeing the injury lines above the two of them shorten a little, I felt relieved. The longer those lines stretch, the higher the probability; the shorter they get, the safer it becomes. As a town leader, Jan could help guide people. Something would definitely happen, that much was clear, but all I could do now was pray everyone would stay as safe as possible.

(Maybe I should restock the injury medicine shelves, just in case.)

―――――

That day, there was a huge market at the harbor. The grand monthly fair where anyone could easily set up shop. It was even said that the prince of this country had secretly come to observe it.

「Hey, what’s with that ship? No one said anything about a ship that big coming.」

Many vessels were already moored in the harbor, most of them merchant ships that had obtained prior permission to dock for the market. But the massive ship approaching from the sea was big enough to carry dozens of men, and it had no emblem showing ownership. No one had heard anything about a ship like that arriving. Those who noticed it cocked their heads in suspicion.

A large, unregistered, suspicious ship approaching a harbor crowded with people. When one of the town leaders received the report, his face went pale, and he immediately began evacuating citizens.

「A pirate ship is coming! Everyone, get inside the town immediately!!」

Because he was a trusted man, people believed him and fled the harbor.

Why did he immediately assume pirates? When a knight disguised among the townspeople asked him, he said someone had warned him of danger in advance, and since the ship looked suspicious, he decided to evacuate everyone.

「They say today the harbor is dangerous. If nothing happens, we can just say it was a misunderstanding. If something DOES happen, that’s when it matters. So I’m getting everyone out of here.」

Who could predict sudden pirates like that? the knight thought. From what he could tell, the man didn’t seem to have reliable information, yet he firmly believed danger was coming and continued evacuation without hesitation.

「…They say the knights are nearby today anyway, so if something does happen, you’ll handle it. And with things like this, the prince will have to leave, right?」

Judging from how the man looked straight at him as he said that, he had likely realized the person he was talking to wasn’t just a normal townsperson. Leaving those words behind, the town leader went back to leading the evacuation.

Since royalty was present, the knights couldn’t just ignore a citizen’s warning. Once the story was reported, the prince decided to cancel his covert visit. Only knights remained at the harbor so they could confirm who owned the ship and deal with it if necessary.

The atmosphere was thick with disbelief. And then, from the ship that docked before them, a man shouted loudly,

「We’re pirates! Hand over your valuables!!」

「Everyone there was trained knights disguised as townsfolk. The pirates were captured instantly. Every last citizen escaped unharmed. The end. A nice, clean happy ending.」

Not a single citizen was injured. At worst, a few children scraped knees while fleeing. Since the knights didn’t have to protect civilians while fighting, they easily subdued the pirates, a first in our town’s history.

Of course I was curious about what happened at the harbor. Curious, but definitely not to the point that I wanted to hear it from the man sitting right in front of me.

Jan would have happily told me later anyway. And if not, town rumors alone would have been enough.

「And after that, everyone started fussing about who predicted the pirates’ arrival.」

Sparkling golden hair. Honey-colored eyes. A soft voice sweet enough to melt into your ears. A beautiful face like a flower smiling right at me.

What I couldn’t comprehend at all was why the Flower Knight, Hector Alderde, was inside my shop, smiling at me as he told this story.

「Hey, it was you, right? The one who made that prediction. …How did you know?」

If it were any of the girls who adore him and flock to fortune-telling because of him, they’d be ecstatic right now. Even a normal girl with no romantic interest in him would probably squeal a little.

His face is so perfect it almost feels dangerous. Standing in front of him, the best I could do was keep my expression blank.

It’s not that I hate beautiful faces. But the expression on his beautiful face and the emotions I see above his head are completely different, and that makes him unbearably difficult to deal with. …People whose expressions and emotions don’t match are liars. Of course I’m wary.

(Why… how did it end up like this…)