She bit into the sandwich. At that moment, the door of the casino opened, and in came a young man. Being right next to the door, the girl stared sideways at him, but then their gaze met as he was passing by. She grew wide-eyed in surprise as a pair of mysterious and beautiful golden eyes entered her vision, with the youngster mirroring her reaction as well.
"You are…"
The young man closed his mouth and tried to go past her, but the girl reflexively rose from her spot and grabbed hold of his sleeve.
"…What's the matter?"
At the young man's question, the girl let go of his sleeves.
"Hnn? N-no. No. Nothing. It's nothing!"
The girl was surprised herself and laughed awkwardly; she had moved involuntarily. She examined the young man in detail as she pulled her hands back. He was a youth in his twenties with golden blond hair and golden eyes, with a small scar underneath his right eye. He wore the uniform of a Holy Knight, which was deep navy blue in color over a white basewhite base. On top of it, he wore a breastplate, leather gloves, and shoes. It was the simple attire of an apprentice Holy Knight.
'…A Holy Knight?!'
The girl retreated slightly, wary of the youngster. Noticing her apprehension, he tilted his head and smiled lightly.
"Did I do something wrong?"
She showed an expression of blatant disgust at his question.
"…It's nothing, just that you irk me."
"…That's too much when we just met a few moments ago." The young man smiled awkwardly, rubbing his face and tilting his head. "Do I make you feel uncomfortable?"
"…No, it's your job I don't like."
"You mean the occupation of a Holy Knight?"
"Mhm."
"…You're too honest. You'd get in big trouble if another Holy Knight or priest heard you."
"Still, I don't like what I don't like."
"Is that so? Well…"
As he attempted to walk past her, the girl grabbed the hem of his clothes, causing the young man to sigh in an annoyed way.
"What, again?"
Ellin tilted her head with a curious expression.
"What's a Holy Knight doing in a casino? A naive person like you will only end up getting thrashed and kicked out or wrung dry of everything and then kicked out."
"The reason I am here is to gamble, of course, and what does it matter how I end up?"
"Mm, that's true."
Seemingly agreeing with his words, the girl let go of his clothes. However, as the young man tried to go his way again, he was urged by a strange feeling to look back; the girl had been about to grab his clothes again, but upon meeting his gaze, she hastily turned away and feigned indifference.
"Now what?"
"Mm? I didn't do anything, though?"
Hearing such a blatant lie, Tom couldn't help but wear a tired expression.
"Why! What's with that look? It's like it's saying 'How bothersome!' to me!"
"Yes, I am indeed bothered."
The girl cried out painfully in response.
"You're too direct!"
"I could say the same about you, can't I?"
"But have we met somewhere, by the way?"
The young man shook his head, ignoring the fact that she'd ignored his remark.
"Apologies, but it is my first time meeting you, I believe?"
"Really?"
The girl tilted her head again, her eyes scanning him from top to bottom, taking in every little detail.
"…You truly are a human I'm seeing for the first time."
Ignoring Tom's blank stare, Ellin continued questioning him.
"What's your name?"
The young man scratched his cheek in a troubled manner. He was obviously bummed out by the conversation after stepping foot in the casino.
"Why must I tell you my name…? Before that, who are you to pry?"
"My name?"
'No, I am asking who you are to be so nosy, not your name…!'
But before he could voice his thoughts, the girl opened her mouth first.
"Well, a self-introduction should be simple enough. My name's Ellin."
The youngster became tongue-tied, and his eyes shook as he looked straight at the girl.
"Done, yes? Now, your name is…?"
He replied with his gaze still fixed on her.
"… T…"
"T?"
"…Tom. I'm Tom."
***
The Doppelganger Ellin, the lowest ranking of the twelve apostles of the Demon Kingdom ruled by the Demon Lord. Sitting in the corner of the gambling house, she pouted her cheeks in discontent, staring at the apprentice Holy Knight Tom as he scurried away.
'What's with him?! Acting like he's heading for the hills? Am I that annoying? Or… could it be?'
She stood up to look into a mirror that was nearby. She tilted her head after checking out her attire and the shape of her hair.
'…I look fine! Could it be that he noticed I'm a demi-human, even though he's just an apprentice?'
Demi-humans referred to a different race of humanoids. They were also considered 'demons', as generally referred to by the humans.
Even as Ellin held suspicions in her mind, she mused why she had called out to him.
'What did I do that for? Why did I talk to a human?'
She felt curious despite being puzzled.
'…Maybe because he resembles that human?'
The human male with mysterious eyes she saw in the past. The apprentice Holy Knight had eyes similar to his.
'Mmm… no. The human from back then was cooler!'
Ellin recalled those memories from long ago, of a cozy house within a small, peaceful forest. She remembered a little, cute girl with silver hair and a monk who gave off a warm impression. She had spent over a year together with them. They were humans, but to Ellin, they were her guardians, a family who let her remain in this world, and benefactors who saved her life.
She closed her eyes, focusing her ears, and the events in the good old days flashed past her mind as the noisy casino grew quiet.
The small silver-haired girl, Ellie, embracing her.
The golden-eyed monk giving his best to build a small house.
She reminisced those precious times in her mindscape, in the meadows where warm sunlight shone, and the refreshing wind blew.
But those happy moments disappeared in but an instant.
"What nonsense is that?!"
"Brother Thoma!"
The monk cried out, almost screaming, while Ellin was on the verge of tears, same as the other children that had been there. The Holy Knights had beaten the monk to the ground and dragged him and Ellie away with them.
'Those cursed holy knights had dared to take away my family!!'
That was what happened 30 years ago. She had investigated the knights in the form of a human in order to find out more regarding the past. To be exact, she followed up through the priests who had survived after what happened long ago in the Holy Kingdom's capital, Lania.
"I don't know much about matters back then. Only, around then the Holy Palace was noisy for a brief time with the festival and what not taking place. It was during then that children who owed tax and donations were arrested, along with Monk Thoma. I must say, I did have a certain degree of acquaintance with him. A delightful person he was, but apparently, there was some sort of misunderstanding. And yes, I did submit a petition for him, yet… I was mistaken for a heretic and interrogated instead. As time passed, I heard Monk Thoma was released, and on that night, the 'Demon of Lania' invaded the capital. On that occasion, I was dragged off by the Demon of Lania and was questioned, but he let me go. The surprising thing is that he completely cured my body that was broken by the torturing I had received from the Court of Heresy! How could he have emanated such holy power…? Perhaps, he is a being that is the exact opposite of demons, unlike the rumors suggest. Yeah, just like an angel or a God…! Ah, apologies, the excitement got to me. About Monk Thoma, huh? Mmm… It's already been dozens of years. His heart and body were broken, so it is most likely he is no longer…"
This was hard-obtained information. According to what she heard, the children from back then had joined the Hero's Allied Forces to become shields, and all died. Furthermore, the monk was released but did not live for long due to his body and mind already being ruined. Seeing as how 30 years had already ticked by, this meant he too had died.
Ellin had been wrought with guilt during her investigation, wondering if it was her fault that they were taken away, wondering if they were caught for secretly hiding a demon and thus dragged off to be punished.
"Are the two… both dead?"
'Because of me?'
Ellin gave an answer to her question in her heart while recalling the little girl, the monk, and their happy time together. She then buried her face in her knees, overwhelmed by grief.
"Ooooh-!"
And right then, with piercing shouts, the casino suddenly grew noisy.
— Ω —