The retainers of the Leonhart family were all exceptionally skilled. Gardeners, chefs, butlers, maids. Each one was filled with extraordinary individuals. Among them, the most exceptionally skilled were undoubtedly the Leonhart family’s guards. The Leonhart family, renowned as a knightly house since the time of the First Emperor. Naturally, the guards of the Leonhart mansion were selected from a detachment of the knight order, serving as both excellent sentinels and full-fledged knights. And now, Noir was secretly slipping out of the mansion, evading the very guards. She already knew the guards’ patrol routes and shift changes. The maids, too, would likely be bustling with preparations for lunch at this hour. Based on the data stored in her mind, Noir calculated a route to escape the mansion. She immediately dashed along that path. At times, she vaulted over windows; at others, she sprinted across rooftops or concealed herself within thickets. Though her actions bore no resemblance to those of a noble, it was a trial she could readily endure for the sake of the novels awaiting her at the bookstore. “Hmph!”
It wasn’t that the Leonhart family explicitly forbade Noir from going out. On the contrary, if Noir were to express her desire to go out to Lucius, he would grant her permission without hesitation. However, she would never be allowed to roam outside ‘alone.’ Lucius, who had always doted on his granddaughter, had only grown more fiercely protective since the death of his son. He would undoubtedly never permit an outing without an escort. And for Noir, that was an utterly unacceptable prospect. Noir, who regarded her passion for recreational novels as a kind of shameful secret, absolutely did not want anyone to see her purchasing them. “Hah… Hah… I made it out.”
Finally, after navigating the complex route, Noir emerged from the grand mansion and scaled its wall. Even after doing it countless times, it remained an arduous task she could never quite get used to. She suspected she would never grow accustomed to it.
****
“O-only this many…?”
“Yes, we’re in a tough spot too. To just quit without a word, it’s a complete lack of business ethics, isn’t it?”
Noir, who had gone to great lengths, even disguising herself, to slip out of the mansion, visited the bookstore with a beaming smile. Her novel purchase list, meticulously compiled overnight. Over twenty book titles were inscribed upon it. Yet, in the end, only three novels found their way into Noir’s hands. What’s more, they were the books with the absolute lowest priority. “Wait a minute! You don’t have ‘The Madwoman Joins the Troupe’ or ‘I Became the Blessed Sorcerer of the Academy’?!
Abandonment. Noir was well aware that such a term existed in the world of novels. But even when she heard it, she had dismissed it as ‘not my problem,’ treating it as someone else’s affair. Noir hadn’t known. That in the novel industry, such abandonment was an exceedingly common occurrence. Or that this cruel and disgusting act could befall the very novels she enjoyed at any moment…!
“Those authors quit quite a while ago too, dear.”
“Ah…”
‘This is a dream.’
‘Yes, it must be a dream.’
‘A terrible nightmare, like flying through the sky only to plummet to the ground.’
‘Soon, I’ll open my eyes to see the familiar ceiling of my room,’
‘And then I’ll prepare to go out once more.’
‘I’ll restart this perfect day.’
‘Because this miserable reality is nothing more than a nightmare…’
However, contrary to Noir’s fervent wish, she did not awaken from a deep sleep. All she could do was curse the authors who had abandoned her. That was all Noir was capable of.
****
The wandering period: a time of aimless meandering, unable to set a clear direction or goal. Such periods arrive not only for humans but also for animals like dogs and cats. And it is mentioned that Noir, the titular heroine of Destiny, also experienced such a wandering period. [‘Having lost her father, Noir questions the nobility and enters a brief wandering period.’]
While no specific details are given, players speculated that, considering Noir’s past, it must have been a time filled with regret and devastation. However, the reality was quite different. Indeed, Noir had endured an unfortunate childhood, receiving an education that bordered on abuse from her father. It was also true that after her father’s death, she felt a profound aversion and suspicion towards the very concept of nobility. Yet, in the Noir currently experiencing her wandering period, the image players had conjured was nowhere to be seen. While there might have been a sense of desolation stemming from the shock of her anticipated novels being massively abandoned, it was questionable whether this could truly be called ‘devastation.’
“Ugh…”
Noir trudged down the alleyway, her expression on the verge of tears. She had scoured every bookstore in Phreas, but nowhere could she find the novels she sought. Despite her desperate attempts to deny reality, the mere three books clutched in her hand cruelly affirmed the truth of her current plight. Up to this point, the flow of events followed the original story. Afterward, the despondent Noir, still wandering aimlessly through the alley, would stumble upon a small, dilapidated used bookstore, one not even marked on any map. Unconsciously drawn to the secondhand shop, Noir pushed open the door, and the scent of aged books welcomed her. From its title to its cover, the book was unrefined, unlike the recreational novels Noir typically enjoyed, and a layer of dust had settled upon it. Yet, feeling utterly bereft over her abandoned recreational novels, Noir found herself drawn to its simple charm and picked up a book. [The Duty of a Noble]
A concise title. Pondering the very essence of nobility, Noir saw the title, immediately opened the book, and began to read its contents. [‘Nobles exist to protect the weak.’]
[‘To protect the weak without seeking recompense, and to always live nobly. That is what it means to be a noble.’]
The book was an ordinary novel. Its author and exact publication year were unknown. Just like its title suggested, the novel was simple and unadorned, devoid of sensational plot developments. [‘A noble is not a solitary, haughty figure. A noble is a seeker who harnesses the strength of others to forge a better path.’]
The protagonist made many mistakes and possessed no exceptional talents. A depiction far removed from the ‘perfection’ her father had relentlessly demanded of Noir. Yet, the protagonist’s journey—overcoming trials alongside her companions and growing into the head of a family and a knight—stirred Noir’s very soul. Her father had insisted she become a noble worthy of the name, but had never actually taught her what ‘nobility’ truly meant. This book, however, revealed to Noir what a noble truly was, and what the mindset of a noble entailed. Thus, Noir concluded her wandering period, which felt both brief and prolonged, and embarked on a journey to become the noble she herself desired, not the one her father had envisioned. And this was the original story’s intended progression of events. However, somewhere along the line, events had twisted, and Noir found herself surrounded by burly thugs before she could even discover the used bookstore. “Twelve years old, silver hair. A noble face, but dressed in commoner’s clothes… Boss, I think this is the one.”
“Hmm… Are you sure this kid is the right one? They don’t look all that strong.”
Thanks to the efforts of the Leonhart family, Phreas was renowned for its superior public safety compared to other cities. Yet, even in a city with excellent security, scum was bound to emerge. Moreover, with the massive influx of outsiders due to the Golden Age, there were inevitably more scoundrels lurking in the back alleys than usual. And the thugs currently surrounding Noir were also part of this influx of external riff-raff. “Ugh, fine. The description matches, so it must be them. Let’s take them.”
“Wait a minute! What is the meaning of this…!”
They had been hired by a merchant who, just the day before, had been robbed of his goods by an assailant near a shop in this very alley. His demand was singular. To search all of Phreas, if necessary, to apprehend a ’12-year-old noble girl with silver hair, dressed in commoner’s clothes.’ And Noir, disguised to conceal her identity, was indeed wearing a white wig and commoner’s attire. “Wait, let go of me…!”
Noir was no ordinary child. Having mastered swordsmanship and magic as a noble, Noir, despite being only twelve, was perfectly capable of subduing several adults. However, the thugs hired by the merchant were also far from ordinary. Noir attempted to resist, cloaking her body in mana, but they, too, imbued their bodies with mana as they seized her wrists. No matter how capable Noir was, she was still just a twelve-year-old girl. While she might have prevailed in a fight using swordsmanship or magic, she could not overcome mana-wielding adults with pure physical strength. Furthermore, having snuck out, she naturally had no sword, and the magic Noir wielded was fire. In such a dilapidated alleyway, Noir’s magic was not refined enough to subdue them without causing collateral damage. “Wait, someone. Someone, please help me!”
Noir, left with no other choice, cried out for help to those nearby, but in a Phreas bustling with the Golden Age, no one paid any mind to such a back alley. It was truly a desperate situation. If a truly perilous moment arose, she could, if forced, escape with magic, so it wasn’t a matter of life or death, but the danger remained undeniable. ‘Should I just close my eyes and burn them?’
‘But what if other things catch fire?’
‘If someone else gets hurt because of me…!’
Noir quietly closed her eyes and made a decision. ‘For now, I’ll follow their words.’
‘I don’t know where they’ll drag me.’
‘But in the process, they might lead me to a secluded place, or a weakness might appear.’
‘Then, I can use magic to…’
However, contrary to Noir’s resolution, she was not dragged away by their hands. “Are you alright?”
It happened in an instant. A pure white-haired girl entered the alley and, in a flash, subdued more than five men. The girl’s movements seemed noble, like white petals dancing on the wind. Noir’s eyes couldn’t follow her movements, yet she could tell that the girl’s actions were incredibly beautiful and graceful.
****
‘Hate the sin, but not the sinner.’
‘A truly ancient adage.’
‘But if a person commits the sin, how can one not hate the person?’
“Thank you so very much.”
Hair as white as my own. Her eyes, gazing clearly at me, were beautiful, as if they held the very sea within them. From her delicately arranged features alone, I knew this child would undoubtedly grow into an astonishing beauty in the future. ‘Noir von Leonhart, the popular character from Destiny.’
‘Although her hair color wasn’t the black I remembered, this girl was certainly a young Noir.’
‘Is her hair color a wig?’
‘Why is she in such an alleyway?’
‘From the moment I arrived in Phreas, I had already steeled myself for the possibility of such a situation.’
‘But just because I was prepared didn’t mean the situation actually had to happen.’
‘I merely helped a girl while walking down the street, and it turns out to be Noir?’
‘To think such a coincidence would occur!’
-Grind…
‘Why now…!’
‘Endure it.’
‘I must endure it.’
‘If I express my emotions here and now, it will become irreversible.’
“Um… Your expression isn’t good. Are you feeling unwell?”
‘Ah, no.’
‘My emotions are out of control…!’
[“Ugh… Ugh, I understand. For the sake of being a noble’s exemplary figure, I’ll… I’ll do my best…”]
[SSR Diligent White-Haired Maid, Noir von Leonhart]
The girl’s face before me, and Noir’s face as I’d seen it in the game, overlapped. ‘Yes.’
‘In times like these, I should count maids.’
‘One maid…’
‘Two maids…’
‘Three maids…’
‘Ah, it’s no use…!’
‘I’m so utterly captivated, I feel like I’m losing my mind!’
“I’d like to offer you some form of reward, if possible…”
‘Calm down.’
‘Surely, I’ve had experience forgiving those who committed grave errors.’
‘I must think.’
‘Of that cafe in Hongdae, where those harlots defiled the name of ‘maid’.’
‘And my magnanimity, which forgave them and transformed them into true maids…!’
Hoo… hoo…
‘Yes, calm down.’
‘According to the story, Noir was clearly forced, rather than willing, to wear that maid outfit—which was, in essence, a harlot’s dress.’
‘In a way, she was also a victim.’
‘She would never have intended to insult maids….’
[“This is the mindset of a maid…!”]
‘Ah, it’s no use.’
‘I can’t calm down at all.’
‘I simply cannot quell the Maid Soul within me…!’
“No reward is necessary…”
‘That Noir was the Noir from the main story’s timeline.’
‘To demand retribution from the current Noir for the sins of that time would be absurd.’
Therefore, with truly miraculous patience, I managed to retain a modicum of sanity. “Then, I shall take my leave…”
“Huh? W-wait a moment!”
‘First, I need to get out of here.’
‘I need to get somewhere Noir can’t see me.’
Having made up my mind, I hurriedly left the alley, not once looking back. Noir’s voice, attempting to detain me, reached my ears, but it only reminded me of the game’s Noir, reciting those dreadful lines.
****
Noir watched the departing girl in a daze. ‘Who in the world was that person?’
‘Why did she refuse even a reward?’
Her fearless confidence, even when facing adults. The elegance emanating from her every movement. The nobility inherent in her appearance. And her kindness, helping someone in distress even while declining recompense. Noir didn’t know who the departing girl was. But the girl’s image lingered in Noir’s mind. Noir thought. ‘I still don’t know what a truly noble noble is.’
‘But regardless of nobility, I want to become a beautiful person like her.’
Noir gazed in the direction the girl had left and quickened her pace. ‘In this vast meadow, a lost horse still doesn’t know where to go.’
‘But gazing at the beautiful white horse ahead in the distance, the lost horse began to move, one step at a time.’
‘A noble.’
‘I still don’t know what that truly means, but for now, I’ll strive to become a beautiful person like that girl.’
This was the very first step Noir chose for herself, not for her father. And Noir, having emerged from the alley, did not stumble upon the used bookstore.
****
“Are you ready?”
“Of course, Seven.”
The final day of the Golden Age. It was the day of the operation. Aside from the accidental encounter with Noir yesterday, everything had proceeded smoothly thus far. “Where are B and V?”
“They’ve already moved to the operation zone. We just need to go.”
“Understood.”
This mission was, without a doubt, the most difficult I had ever received. Naturally, B and V had requested my cooperation, and it would have been awkward to refuse, so I ultimately accepted. I had, in any case, intended to merely feign participation and then fail, but B and V seemed delighted when I accepted their request. “Then, let us depart as well.”
Taking out the mask I had concealed in my pocket, I, too, made my way towards the operation zone.
