*???*
[Earlier]
"I'll be heading home in a day or two," I said as I held a large mobile phone against my ear. I found myself walking through the streets of Kaguya City amid a downpour with a bag of croissants I'd just gotten from a local bakery. I planned on eating them with some hot chocolate as soon as I returned to the inn I was staying at. Hopefully, they wouldn't get too wet.
"Did ya attend the after party, Big Bro?" Alli asked.
I sighed. "You know I don't like parties."
"Ya so boring, Saf! Ya could've met a noble lady or a princess!" She giggled. "Imagine that, a fancy wedding with birds and flowers!"
I snickered slightly. "This isn't some fairy tale, silly. Plus, I've already met plenty of noble ladies. They aren't exactly people I'd like to meet again, much less marry."
Alli hummed. "Really?"
"Yes, really."
"Not even one?" my little sister asked.
I tried to think. There was one girl who wasn't like the other nobles. But perhaps, that's because she wasn't treated like one. Although, she wasn't meant for a peasant-born guy like me. If I even got close to her, guards would probably rush over and push me away. Or maybe not. She was allowed to walk without a personal detail.
My eyes widened as I saw an orange-haired young lady in a pink dress fall into the river with a smile on her face. That girl...
I dropped my bread, umbrella, and blocky cellphone and rushed forward.
"Brother? Brother?" my sister yelled. "Saf, what's going on?"
"I'll call ya later, Alli!" I yelled, my accent slipping out.
I spread out my violet angelic wings and dove into the frigid river. It was hard to see the girl amongst the rushing waters and heavy rain. But she had to be nearby.
If she wanted to die, she would be going in the direction of the current, so I allowed the current to carry me.
"Sis? Sis, where are you?" a voice called out from the now distant bridge. It must've belonged to the crown prince. He must've been looking for his foolish sister.
A slender pale hand suddenly surfaced above the water.
I flew out of the water and swooped over to grab the hand. I lifted its owner out of the waters and into my arms.
The pale-skinned girl coughed out water as she looked at me with those innocent, heartbroken purple eyes of hers before passing out.
I gasped and landed at the bank of the river. Leaning my ear toward her nose, I picked up on some weak breathing. I pressed both hands against her chest to get the water out like my pa taught me during one of several swimming lessons.
This was takin' too long! She wasn't gonna make it. Her pulse was growin' weaker by the moment. I pressed my mouth against hers, giving her two breaths before returning to compressions. After thirty more, I gave her another two rounds of breaths until her breathin' regained some of its strength.
I raised my head as the rain stopped. My brow furrowed. Why did she want to kill herself? Regardless, I had to get her back to the palace. Her brother was worried sick.
Lifting her off the ground once more, I returned to the skies, this time in search of her brother. Luckily, for me, he wasn't too far from where I had stopped to get the water out of her lungs. In fact, he was running toward us.
"Rose!" Prince Orlin said as I descended in front of him.
"Here, take her," I said, handing the girl over to him. "Make sure you look after her. Get her some psychological help while you're at it."
He gulped. "So Sis did try to end her life. Mia said she would join us, but neither of us saw her, I began to worry. More so after Father said he saw her and to not worry about her. If not for Matsuko telling me she ran off crying, and the wide open castle door, I would've suspected she just chickened out."
I stopped. Why had her own father acted so nonchalant? Were the rumors of their strained relationship true?
"Say, do you have any idea why she might've tried taking her own life?" I asked, crossing my arms.
He looked away, a mix of anger, pain, and shame etched on his face. "Yeah, but I rather not say."
I sighed. "I understand, it's none of my business anyways."
"Hey, who are you?" he asked as I started walking away.
I waved. "Just a passerby, don't worry about learning my name."
"Wait, since you saved her life, I'll give you a reward."
I scoffed as I kept waving. "Don't need one. I am not in the business of saving people to get something in return."
"Thanks!" Orlin shouted. He smiled at me.
I slid my hands into the pockets of my black pants. "Don't mention it." Saving that girl's life was reward enough. I closed my eyes and saw her smiling face as she chatted with children. Was that smile fake? Or was her time with those kids one of the few times she experienced joy?
I shook my head. It was her life. Only she knew why she did what she did.
Yet, it still bothered me. The life the princess had mustn't have been easy, despite her position. Or perhaps, it was her status which put a heavy burden on her shoulders. That girl didn't weigh much. And her skin was paler than the last time I saw her.
Did she not eat well? Or was her health not good? Even when I saw her interact with the kids at the orphanage, she would sometimes go and cough where they wouldn't hear nor see. Just what did she hide behind that smile?
Sighin', I continued on my way until I returned to the bridge. My phone and bag of croissants were all that remained where I'd dropped them. The wind must've carried off the umbrella at some point. Sadly, the bread had gotten too damp and my phone had to have been wrecked by the rain. It wasn't cheap either. I had to get a loan to help pay for it.
"So much for a nice afternoon snack," I said, picking up the soggy bread and phone off the ground. But it was worth the sacrifice. "Now, to find a payphone so that Alli, Ma, and Sil can get some peace of mind."
I held both my dead phone and soggy bread in my left arm and looked to see if I had any coins on me. My eyes narrowed as I pulled out a card instead. It had the phone number of the king's secretary. I'd been promised a reward for stopping an attack against the royal family's interests.
Despite my refusal, the secretary still gave me this should I ever change my mind. He said it would be dumb to refuse. According to the guy, I could pick between becoming a duke, getting a fortune, lands, cars, or even women. With the latter even extending to possible engagement to a noblewoman. But I wasn't interested in most of them. While I could have used the money, I feared if I became instantly rich, it would cause more harm than good. Although...
I smirked as I put the card away and took out two bronze coins. It appeared I had two phone calls to make.