I Don’t Trust My Twin Sister

I rolled my eyes, looked at his body again, and then raised my head. The height difference was so severe that we couldn’t adjust our vision just by moving our eyes.

 

“What about physical training?”

 

“I don’t have enough time to focus on my studies, so I tend to stay here every day.”

 

Lie, was that person’s body that muscular? Knights who lived their whole lives with swords were not like that, and Benson was not like that either. Is it even a muscle-building potion? When I looked at him with suspicious eyes, he waved his hand.

 

“I’m a little tall, right?”

 

“…Just the height?”

 

He laughed awkwardly. His face was ordinary, but his body was well above average, almost grotesque. I have never seen or heard of a person like this… As I continued to look at him in amazement, a knight came up to him, bent down, and quietly whispered in his ear.

 

“Miss, aren’t you lying?”

 

“Why do you think that is?”

 

“You can tell when you look at him, does he look like someone who has put effort into his studies? He looks like he could hit an angry bear with his bare hands. I can’t be trusted.”

 

Normally, I would have told him not to judge people based on their appearance, but this time I couldn’t refute it. Rather, I wanted to add. I was looking at Dermin curiously, wondering if that person was a bear, and something suddenly occurred to me, so I opened my mouth.

 

“I’m not familiar with the way you read the name Ankiel Dermin. What country are you from?”

 

“Ah! It’s a small country that’s eight kingdoms west of here.”

 

Didn’t having to pass through eight kingdoms just mean you’re on the other side of the empire? Huh? Wait a minute…

 

“Are you… by any chance, from Turkal?”

 

“How did you know?”

 

“No wonder…”

 

At my words, the knights each nodded while muttering, “Ah, I see?” I also understood if he was from Turkal.

 

“Since I have no compatriots in the empire, everyone seems to be unfamiliar with me.”

 

An uncertain voice came to my ears. It’s definitely worth it. Turkal was a fairly famous area, but it was not a place that imperial people were familiar with. To be precise, it was so small that it could hardly be called a country. The members were ethnic minorities and the territory was small. The reason they were recognized as a country was because of their military power. The western mountain ranges are dotted with mountainous highlands, and aside from the fact that the place is rough and the climate fluctuates, many strange creatures lived there. The bodies of not only common monsters but also powerful monsters like wyverns were rolling around. The western mountain range where monsters lived, so-called True Potassium, where even wyverns, one of the most vicious and dangerous creatures, could not protect their lives, was truly a lawless area. The bandits, of which there is always one group in every country, were not there. obviously. Other countries conducted large-scale investigations and discovered that a significant amount of ore veins were buried in True Potassium, but they could not even touch it because it was too dangerous. Even if it took time, the monster could eventually be defeated by using various methods. By setting fire to a mountain range, cutting down trees, or mobilizing an army, you can pioneer to a certain extent even if it takes time. In fact, there are records of countries in the western kingdom uniting to attempt such an attempt. But it didn’t proceed. There was one reason. This is because there is a huge cavity deep underground where the true potassium mineral vein may lie. An underground cavity untouched by people. Many people claimed that it was a simple cave, but what was written in ancient documents was different. It was written that the dragon that settled in Trucalum about 300 years ago was sleeping. The veins were concentrated near the cavity. As a result, I couldn’t leave in a hurry. About dragons, numerous myths and ancient documents speak of their power. After that, a country was established in a place where no one had ever visited, and that place was Trukal. Their enormous size, strong body, and incredible physical ability made it difficult to believe they were humans, allowing them to farm, pick fruit, and build houses on land where humans were inevitably treated as weak. There were also people who did not believe. However, it is said that when some of them came out to interact, they could not keep their mouths shut when they saw those huge people. I also sympathized. I heard that their physical abilities and combat power are so overwhelming that they can single-handedly take down a hundred men… but I didn’t think that’s an exaggeration.

 

“I… It’s a bit like that if you look at me too intently…”

 

It didn’t suit him at all to scratch his head and smile shyly.

 

“…Is your personality like that?”

 

“Huh? What’s my personality…”

 

“I was originally asking if you were speaking slurred and without confidence.”

 

I knew it was rude, but I still wanted to ask. A deep curiosity about people you meet for the first time. When I slightly tilted my upper body, Dermin was startled and straightened his back. uh? I just heard a strange noise coming from the chair, and when I looked down, Dermin sighed and grabbed the back of his chair.

 

“It broke again. You made the backrest even though you knew it would break every time… haha.”

 

You know it will break every time? It’s creepy. As amazing as it was, Dermin, who put his back to the ground after his fierce battle and sat down comfortably, carefully opened his mouth.

 

“I’m not the timid type, but when I came here, especially the women, they were very scared of me… so I had no choice but to be cautious.”

 

I didn’t think it’s just women who are scared, but I think anyone would be scared…

 

“Is that so?”

 

“Yes. So it’s amazing that I can talk to you like this. Aren’t you scared of me?

 

When asked with shining eyes, I debated whether to be honest or lie, but chose to lie. I was the one who regrets it, but there’s no need to disappoint me.

 

“Well, I don’t know? It was a bit like that, but it’s okay now”, is that right? That guy is really great! You are a brave girl!”

 

“…thank you.”

 

“Ah! Now that I think about it, since we didn’t share the same name, I guess you knew me and came to visit me… Who are you?”

 

I was so surprised by the demonstration that I didn’t even know that Lemin had skipped the basic greeting. He held her position and lightly nodded her head.

 

“My name is Lawrence Ajstain, the eldest daughter of Viscount Aztine and her heir.”

 

“Ah, Ajstain…”

 

Dermin seemed visibly embarrassed and looked around. Why are you like that? He bent down and quietly whispered to me.

 

“…Have you ever been followed or followed by strange people?”

 

“I don’t know if he was followed, but people didn’t chase him.”

 

“…Then I’m glad.” asked Dermin, tilting his head.

 

“Why are you doing that? Oh, you couldn’t believe it… the matter with the Akpensia family that Count Nemir told me about…? While speaking with speculation, Dermin sighed and nodded. He suddenly looked tired and sat down at the table. I put my elbows on the floor and put my head on my palms. You just tilted the table, right? Wasn’t this a table fixed to the floor?

 

“Actually, I knew that the Aztain family would come. Count Nemir said he would report this matter to the Ajstain family, so I thought he would come sooner or later.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

Dermin regained his appetite and continued.

 

“First of all, I cannot help you with any business related to the Aztain family, Count Nemir. The development of medicine is something I am very interested in, and I think it would be good if the results could save the lives of many children and people. I did.”

 

But apart from that, my life is also precious, so I could not deny the obvious fact, so I listened quietly. Dermin looked around and sighed.

 

“Just two days ago, private soldiers from the Alpensia family came in and ransacked the workshop. They broke and destroyed the bottle of vinegar that we had purchased for research purposes, and in the process, it broke and the smell was terrible. It got a little better with ventilation, but…”

 

I smiled awkwardly, remembering Yuli who couldn’t come into the building because the smell was so bad.

 

“I am a stranger in this country. Like the Marquis of Alpensia, I do not have the strength to rebel against the great nobles, nor do I have a strong sense of justice. I am also scared.”

 

The private soldiers of the Akpensia family were afraid of dealing with him and carefully guessed that he might have broken the vinegar bottle while searching the workshop. Maybe this is the answer. He was even the man who told Count Nemir about our family. If Beralt had a list of targets to attack, this man would be high on the list. Considering everything was fine, perhaps the attack was meaningless.

 

“In that sense, I would like you to leave for today. I know it’s rude, but… I don’t want to risk my life. It’s an ordinary request, but you might mistake it for an order.”

 

I was so intimidated that I flinched and tried to get up from my seat, but then quickly put my hips back together.

 

“First of all… I won’t take too long, so please give me a moment.”

 

“It’s not possible.”

 

“It’ll be soon.”

 

He looked at me intently. I’m scared… I suddenly miss Ian.

 

“Several alchemists who were researching with me in this area died because of the word ‘quickly’ or ‘quickly’. “Some people died while protesting against ridiculous conditions, and others were interrogated for talking to Count Nemir. I might be one of them, so how can I find the time to do so?”

 

…I bit my lip. I felt like I should say something, but no words came to mind. It’s okay. I will support you… Many words lingered and then disappeared. In the face of life, these words are all useless. I sighed.

 

“All right.”

 

When he got up from his seat, he bowed down with an apologetic look on his face. Is it a purse strings that make it look like it’s taller than me even when I bend down? He was startled by the upper body coming over and took a step back.

 

“…sorry. I’d like to help, but I can’t help it. As for me, I said, No. I think I was irresponsible.”

 

He smiled weakly, shook his hand, and then offered to shake her hand.

 

“Next time things get better, please help me, okay?”

 

He looked at me blankly. Don’t like shaking hands? Even though it’s scary, I’m forcing it… He glanced down at my hand, thought for a moment, then stretched out his hand and shuffled it. My hand just disappeared, right? When I laughed out loud, I thought he might be thinking for a moment, but then he said.

 

“…If you have any questions, you can tell me and leave. Even if I can’t give you an answer right away, I will write to you.”

 

While I was greeting him with a smiling face, my eyes widened at the words I heard. Is this really okay? When I looked at him with a look in his eyes asking if he was okay, he sighed.

 

“You can’t do this… You really impressed me, so I should help you…”

 

If I ask you what impresses you, will you get angry? But since I didn’t have time, I skipped over the small details and got straight to the point.

 

“First of all, thank you for changing my mind.”

 

Dermin nodded his head and continued his speech.

 

“Is the reason why alchemists have disappeared recently because of the Essence of Fire that Piero’s top is secretly producing?”

 

Dermin’s expression seemed to harden, but then he frowned. I took a step back because I was scared of the grimly wrinkled face. Was he angry? I estimated the distance to the knights. Could he come rescue me? The knights got up from their seats and took a waiting stance as if they were going to protect me immediately if something happened. I swallowed my saliva and looked at Dermin again. He lifted his head from glaring at the ground… It was a scary face.

 

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