It was a district where foreigners resided the most, and foreign languages were heard here and there, giving the impression of being in another country.
It was a busy and bustling place to call “relaxing.”
Ariella knew this, but the reason she expressed it that way was because she really did find solace here.
A place where no one paid attention to her, and no one cared about the Bedford attached to her name. This place, where countless foreigners gathered and formed their own community, was much more comfortable for Ariella than the luxurious and beautiful Mayfair Street.
She couldn’t come often due to her busy schedule, but whenever she felt distressed and found it difficult to breathe, she would come here alone.
However, this was the first time she had brought someone with her. Not even Lizzy, whom she once cherished so much, or Sir Adam, who protected her, had ever accompanied her this far.
Feeling as if she had shown him her bare face, Ariella glanced at Nobert’s face.
Nobert was currently wearing a wide-brimmed hat. It was one they had carefully chosen for each other from a stall earlier, and thanks to Ariella’s unique sense, it was ridiculously shaped and dark in color.
Ariella, however, was under the illusion that she had chosen a pretty good item.
She watched him carefully, wondering if he was uncomfortable in such a place, but she couldn’t find any signs of displeasure on his face.
Rather, Nobert pointed to one place with great curiosity and said, “They’re doing something interesting over there.”
Where he pointed, a man was placing three cups on the street and moving them wildly from side to side.
And in front of him, several people were squatting down, their eyes fixed on the moving cups.
“It’s a shell game. I guess you’ve never seen it before.”
“Yes. It’s my first time seeing it in person. May I watch for a moment?”
“Of course. Let’s go up front and watch.”
As expected, His Highness the Grand Duke must have never seen something like this before. Ariella smiled, thinking that he looked cute as he widened his eyes and marveled.
In fact, he had been busy hunting monsters as a member of the subjugation squad since he was young, so he knew little about this kind of culture, but this was information she couldn’t know.
“Pick, pick! Which cup will the ball end up under?”
The shell game operator clapped loudly as if to encourage the audience, and then mixed the cups wildly with skillful hand movements.
Normally, a noble would click their tongue and pass by, calling it a vulgar gamble, but the Princess of Bedford and the Lord of the Grand Duchy of Nobert stood still, watching the cups move with great interest.
“Alright, pick one!”
Their eyes darted back and forth, then stopped at one place.
And Ariella and Nobert whispered at the same time.
“It’s the right one.”
“It’s on the right.”
Their eyes met. The two men and women exchanged glances that said, “You’re pretty good.”
“The answer is… the right one! Congratulations!”
“Wow! They really give you double your money…! Thank you!”
A large man was excited and took the money.
“To give double the money for such an easy problem. Is that some kind of charity?”
“No, rather than that… it’s probably a shill. That big man.”
“A shill?”
“Yes. It’s an underhanded tactic to find someone to deceive.”
As she whispered in his ear, Nobert nodded, still amazed.
Just then, a woman who had fallen for the shill’s act bet a considerable amount of money with an excited face. Judging by her unique attire, she seemed to be a foreigner who had not been in Bingham for long.
The shell game operator mixed the cups quickly again. And soon, Nobert’s eyes narrowed as he sensed something strange.
“That’s…”
“Yes, it’s a scam. When someone who’s been caught by the shill bets money, they secretly hide the ball in their hand like that.”
The balls used by shell game operators are generally made of soft material, making them easy to crumple and hide in the palm of the hand. After removing the ball like that, they would secretly put the ball into another cup when the victim chose a cup.
Ariella had heard this information while living in the orphanage, but even if she knew it, it was difficult to confirm it with her own eyes. This was because the shell game operator’s hand movements were incredibly fast.
But to notice it right away. As expected of a great knight, his dynamic visual acuity was amazing.
‘What they say about him being good at anything physical must be true.’
Ariella picked up a few pebbles rolling on the ground, admiring him anew. Nobert was puzzled by her sudden action, and she gave him a playful smile.
I’m better at using my body than you think. Unable to understand the whispering content, Nobert only raised his eyebrows.
“Especially for the lady, we’ll reveal one cup. Ta-da, as you can see, there was no ball in the middle. Now, it’s a one-in-two chance for this person! Pick one!”
“Then… the left one!”
As the woman’s innocent voice rang out, the shell game operator smiled as if he had been waiting for it.
And the moment he confidently reached for the right cup.
Thwack!
Before his hand could even touch the cup, or rather, just before he could put the secretly hidden ball into the right cup, a pebble flew in from somewhere and hit the cup squarely.
Clang. With a clear sound, the cup fell backward, revealing its empty interior.
The flustered shell game operator raised his head and stared at the culprit who threw the pebble, Ariella.
“Oh my, I’m sorry. I was practicing juggling, and it just bounced that far.”
Ariella covered her mouth as if she were embarrassed, wearing the light and pretty hat that Nobert had chosen for her.
“What…!”
“Kyaa! She got it right! Give me the money!”
The shell game operator was about to utter profanity at Ariella, but it was drowned out by the woman’s cheers. The shell game operator, realizing the situation, distorted his face.
Since there was no ball in the right cup, the answer had become the left one. In fact, there was no ball in the left cup either, but revealing that would be admitting that it was a scam.
While the shell game operator was grinding his teeth, unable to do anything, the shill, who had been watching the situation, approached Ariella with a menacing face. He seemed to have prepared his large physique for times like these.
“Indeed, so this is what it’s like.”
But today, there was someone on this side who was just as formidable.
“Among the monsters of the Kanji Mountains, there are individuals who use shills like that. Judging by what they’re doing, it doesn’t seem much different…”
Nobert took a step in front of Ariella. His expression was relaxed as he chuckled as if he found it ridiculous, but the look in his eyes towards the large man was so fierce that one would gulp.
“Will the result be the same, where they don’t know their place and act recklessly, and eventually die by my hand?”
As he spoke in a low voice, the men, realizing that the atmosphere was unusual, flinched and stepped back.
They then noticed that the clothes Ariella and Nobert were wearing were quite luxurious, and that Nobert had a long sword hanging from his waist.
They hadn’t recognized these things at first glance because of the ridiculous hat Nobert was wearing.
A noble and a bodyguard. The con artists, mistaking them for that, scattered in a panic, abandoning even the cups and money. As people who survived on the streets, they were quick to sense danger for survival.
“Thank you! I almost lost all my money without even knowing it was a scam. Here, take all the money except for mine!”
The woman who had almost been swindled out of her money thanked Ariella repeatedly and handed her a pouch full of money. Ariella didn’t bother to refuse.
“Nobert, thanks to you, we made a killing. So I’ll treat you to something delicious today.”
As she winked at him, Nobert looked down at her with a dazed expression and suddenly burst out laughing.
“Haha! Yes, I look forward to it.”
Oh dear, did I not manage my image too much? Ariella bit her lip for a moment. Looking back, it seemed like she had shown him a lot of strange sides of herself today.
