‘Why?’
‘Why did they refuse me?’
Natalia stood there, stunned.
She had clearly stated she was an Apprentice Nun, a respectable and upright identity.
Her behavior was polite, and her reason for joining was practically flawless.
So why had they rejected her?
In reality, her reason wasn’t as flawless as she thought; it was only Natalia herself who felt there was no problem with it.
From the perspective of Liyakade and her companions, a girl they had never met before suddenly appeared, claiming she wanted to “gain experience” and therefore wanted to join them.
No matter how one looked at it, it was extremely suspicious.
Even if she was a Sister of the Church, so what?
A respectable identity didn’t guarantee pure intentions.
The entire encounter made Liyakade and the others suspicious, making their refusal perfectly reasonable.
“I… I am a Sister of the Church! I don’t have any ulterior motives. I just want to gain experience for myself. Besides, I can even serve as your free guard. Won’t you please reconsider?”
Natalia couldn’t help but take a half-step forward.
Placing a hand over her heart, she explained and tried to persuade them with an anxious and surprised expression.
“Hmm…”
Field sized up the young nun, who looked to be only 15 or 16 years old, and asked a questioning note, “You look so young. What could your level possibly be? If you aren’t at least Level 30, then don’t even bother. Any guard below Level 30 is just a burden to us. We have no need for that kind of protection.”
Setting aside the elites from the Royal Magic Academy, in other places, a youth of this age who reached Level 20 would already be considered a prodigy among their peers.
Field didn’t believe the nun before her could be above Level 30.
She wanted to make the girl give up.
“My level is very high!”
Natalia took another half-step forward, her eyes bright.
Since Liyakade and the others hadn’t turned and walked away immediately, she felt there was still a chance to turn things around.
“I am currently Level 35. This should meet your requirements, right? Please, you must let me join you!”
“What? It’s… it’s actually that high?”
“Alice, you…”
Before Field could even voice her own doubt, Alice let out a cry of amazement.
After all, reaching Level 35 at such a young age meant she was nearly the same level as Alice herself.
Such a person would be considered quite talented even back at the Academy, which was why Alice was so surprised.
To be honest, Field was also a bit surprised when she heard it.
Although it was still quite a bit lower than herself and Liyakade, her own talent was top-tier within the Kingdom, and Liyakade possessed a Demon Bloodline.
Naturally, they weren’t people an ordinary person could be compared to, so a little surprise was normal.
However, as the party doing the rejecting, how could she show even a hint of surprise?
As the Third Princess, Field had seen many grand scenes, and since she was wearing a mask, no ripple of emotion could be seen on her face.
As for Liyakade, she had lived two lives.
Before transmigrating, she had been a worker in modern society, so her mindset was naturally more stable.
Furthermore, her concept of levels wasn’t that clear-cut yet.
Since the girl wasn’t higher than her, she couldn’t be that strong.
Thus, Liyakade appeared entirely indifferent.
Consequently, after Natalia announced her level, Alice was the only one who couldn’t help but marvel.
Field even found herself wanting to criticize Alice’s reaction.
Seeing Alice’s surprised expression, Natalia became even more spirited.
She clearly felt her level had moved the three people before her.
“See? Among these guards, my level is already quite high. And I’m free! Is there any reason not to let me join?”
“Hey, you’re being way too suspicious.”
At this moment, Liyakade, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke up.
She tucked a long strand of her silver hair behind her ear and glanced at Natalia casually, speaking with a calm face.
“Who would volunteer to be a guard for three strangers? It would be one thing if you were after our money and wanted to make some profit, but you are actively offering to be a personal guard for free. That’s extremely suspicious. If you were a man, I’d suspect you were after something you shouldn’t be looking at.”
“You… you…”
Liyakade’s rapid-fire questioning made Natalia instantly realize the loophole in her words.
Liyakade was right; their carriage and clothing were so luxurious that they were clearly nobles of high status and wealth.
It wasn’t impossible for someone to want to make a profit by offering to be their guard, but the fact that she didn’t even want money was indeed too strange.
“Then… will you give me some Gold Coins?”
“…Are you out of your mind? Who would hire a weirdo like you as a guard?”
Liyakade felt speechless.
Even if they had money, they wouldn’t hire a guard, let alone someone like Natalia, who clearly had an ulterior motive.
“Me? Out of my mind? A weirdo!?”
Natalia pointed at herself in disbelief.
“Yes, I’m talking about you,” Liyakade replied with a nod, her tone certain.
“Who are you calling weird! Someone with silver hair and red eyes like you is rare in the entire Kingdom. You’re the one who’s weirder!”
After being verbally attacked by Liyakade, Natalia seemed to break down a bit.
Her voice grew louder as she pointed at Liyakade’s face and shouted.
The commotion clearly drew the attention of others in the caravan, including Vidar, who had previously glimpsed Liyakade’s peerless beauty.
Vidar watched the confrontation between Liyakade’s group and Natalia from a short distance away.
Because there was some distance between them, and combined with Field’s disguise and his own prior assumptions, Vidar naturally assumed that the masked Field was the noble who was “playing” with Liyakade.
Looking at Alice beside them, Vidar couldn’t help but think to himself, ‘These high-ranking nobles really play differently, bringing two along at once.’
Vidar could faintly hear Natalia’s words from where he was.
What Natalia said was true; a girl with silver hair and red eyes like Liyakade was extremely rare in the Kingdom.
She was truly a rare treasure, so it was no wonder she had been claimed by a noble.
After glancing at them, Vidar moved closer toward the campfire.
Although he had already developed some wicked thoughts about replacing the young noble Field, now was not the time.
It was better to observe them while they were arguing with someone else and find the right opportunity later to use his family’s strange plants to…
Turning back to Liyakade’s side, Natalia had not stopped her interrogation.
“And you, wearing that mask in the middle of summer. You’re so afraid of people seeing who you are!”
“Hmm?”
The moment the words left Natalia’s mouth, she suddenly felt a crushing pressure emanating from the masked person in front of her.
Listening to Natalia’s offensive words, Field allowed her aura and Magic Power to press down toward her.
“Yes, I am hiding my identity. By the time I take off this mask, it will be too late for you to regret the things you just said.”