“Good grief...” she lamented. “If you’re truly this blind, I’m not sure there’s any hope for you.”
“Shut your trap!” Mina’s former owner howled. “From the moment you butted in, you’ve done nothing but spew nonsense!”
“‘Nonsense’? That girl was in the top strength class of our company’s menial labor slaves. You should know—you asked for the best we had. We gave her to you for next to nothing, as a kindness to a company executive, yet you still couldn’t treat her properly.” The old woman tutted in disgust, then turned her sharp eyes toward Mina. “And you. I thought I’d watch quietly, but what are you doing, hesitating over these third-rate nobodies? Is that dagger just for show?”
“I-It’s not!” Mina protested. “It’s very important! Lady Lynneburg let me have it for, um...self-protection!”
“Then use it. These men aren’t employees of the Galen Company—not anymore. They’re a couple of backstreet ruffians. It’s in society’s and their own best interests for you to put them in their place.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am!” With an emphatic nod, Mina thrust her assailants’ weapons back. She readjusted her stance and once again leveled her dagger at them.
The men braced themselves, their own weapons at the ready. Several moments passed—then Mina returned her blade to its sheath.
“Wh-What? Giving up already?” one of the men jeered.
The other clicked his tongue. “Just trying to frighten us, were you?”
“H-Huh?” Mina scratched her cheek, her voice betraying a lack of confidence. “No, um... I’m pretty sure I got you...”
Just as the men exchanged quiet grunts of confusion, the rest of their clothes fell apart in tatters, leaving them utterly naked on the street.
“Gaaah!”
“Y-You brat! H-How dare you!”
“I... I’m so— Mff!”
Mina’s umpteenth apology was cut short when a wrinkled hand covered her mouth from behind. “Will you spend your whole life bowing and scraping before others?” the old woman asked. “Is that how you intend to protect your brother?”
“Mm-mff!” The girl shook her head.
“Then never bow your head to such riffraff again. I couldn’t stand how you just stood there and took their insults. Go on—give them a piece of your mind!”
Mina nodded, and the old woman gave her an encouraging nudge forward. But as the girl reached the cowering men, she turned around, uncertainty on her face.
Intuiting what Mina was about to say, the old woman began massaging her temples. “Don’t tell me you don’t know a single word of insult. At a certain point, being too good-natured just makes you naive. Try saying, ‘And don’t you ever show your faces around here again!’”
“O-Okay.” Mina nodded again, then returned her attention to the men. “A-And, um, don’t you ever show your faces around here again! Please!”
“Y-You’ll regret this, brat!” the men yelled in unison, hands covering their important bits as they fled. It wasn’t long before only the twins and the old woman remained.
“Granny Eija,” said Rigel, who’d watched the encounter mostly in calm silence. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for us.”
“What’s this, all of a sudden?” the old woman asked.
“It’s because of you that my sister and I managed to survive this long. For that reason, I wanted to thank you before we left the city.”
Rigel bowed deeply, causing the old woman to scoff. “I haven’t done anything deserving of a thank-you, boy—unless you count doing my job for the company. Hate me if you want, but your gratitude just makes my skin crawl.”
“From the moment we arrived at the Galen Company, you were looking out for us. I know you recommended me for the position of educated slave, since I was still young, and prepared an environment where I could devote myself to study. You even made sure my sister never went hungry, despite her eating far more than most.”
Mina blinked, then looked up at the old woman. “Huh? She did?”
“Mm-hmm.”
The old woman made a sour expression, then heaved a heavy sigh. “And here I was, wondering what you’d come back here for. Look, boy—don’t get the wrong idea. I wasn’t giving either of you special treatment. You were savvy investments, that’s all. What might’ve seemed like kindness to you was just me having a better eye for value than the rest of our company’s sorry lot.”
“Even so—when I was sick, you fought to the bitter end to keep me from being moved to the quarantine annex. I remember lying there, unable to move, as you begged at Galen’s feet, asking him to pay for the expensive medicine I needed.”
The old woman frowned and clucked. “How do you remember a little thing like that? You were practically at death’s door.”
Rigel smiled.
“What?” the old woman asked. “Don’t tell me I’m your only reason for coming here.”
“You are. I just wanted to thank you.”
She sighed. “What fool gets mixed up with ruffians over something as inconsequential as that? Well, if you’re satisfied, get out of here. I’ve certainly got no business with you.”
“Yes, we should be going. Thank you again—and goodbye.”
The twins had barely made it a few steps toward their wagon when the old woman spoke again, in a quieter voice this time. “Wait. Rigel. One last word of advice.”
With a sincere smile, the boy turned fully to face the old woman, ready for whatever she had to say.
“Don’t ever come back, you hear me? Not to a place like this. Venture out into the world. As long as you stick together, you’ll do just fine for yourselves.”
“I’ll remember that. Please stay healthy and happy, Granny Eija.”
“Pah. If you’ve got time to worry about others, devote it to your future instead.”
Rigel grinned, bowed politely, and then turned to his sister. “Okay, Mina—let’s go.”
“Yeah! Thanks, granny!”
The old woman watched the twins depart, hand in hand. As soon as they were out of sight, she went back inside to her receptionist’s desk, where she rested her chin on her hand and breathed a quiet sigh.
“Good grief... I must be going senile. After all my years in the industry, I’d be a laughingstock if people found out I’d come to care for the very goods I’m meant to be selling.”
Despite her words, the old woman’s frown softened slightly.
“Either way, thanks to that monster of a man, this city’s headed for a drastic change,” she murmured. “Now that the brats who were keeping me busy are gone, maybe it’s about time I wash my hands of this blackhearted business and find work elsewhere.”
The old woman opened one of her desk drawers and retrieved her favorite tobacco pipe. She lit it and took a slow drag, gazing at the blue sky through the window as smoke lazily drifted upward. If the trading house hadn’t been a shell of its former self, someone might have been around to see the traces of a smile dancing on her lips.