"Was I being too much earlier?"
Marilyn sat on a black bench at the edge of the fountain in Ramna's town square. She leaned back against the bench, then tilted her head up, staring at the clear sky decorated with scattered white clouds.
She was wearing a light brown coat, paired with a black vest, white shirt, black leather shoes, and a dark blue fedora.
Marilyn sat with her hands clasped, fingers interlaced on top of her thighs. Her mind was filled with worry about Caius, the one she had thrown out from the second floor earlier that morning. She hadn't had the chance to apologize, not even to check if he was okay. Embarrassment made her rush out of the house right after putting on her work clothes.
"Aaaa! I'm such an idiot! I shouldn't have thrown Caius out of the damn window!" Quickly, Marilyn lifted both hands and covered her face, then bent down until her forehead almost touched her knees.
She stayed like that for several minutes. People passing by stared at her with confused and curious looks. They whispered to each other, wondering what this young woman was actually doing.
Not long after, a little blond-haired, blue-eyed boy walked up to Marilyn. In his hands, he carried two ice creams—one still untouched, the other already half-eaten.
The boy looked at Marilyn with a clueless, innocent face. Without hesitation, he sat down to her left, still licking his ice cream.
"Sis, what's wrong with you?" he asked in the most innocent, naive voice.
That simple question made Marilyn sit up straight right away. She smiled softly, trying to hide her feelings.
"I'm fine, really. Ahaha," she answered with a small laugh.
But the boy kept staring at her. He tilted his head slightly, then straightened it again while continuing to enjoy his ice cream.
"You're lying," he said.
"Eh?" Marilyn was startled. Her eyes widened, staring at the boy in confusion and disbelief.
How could a little kid know she was lying? She had tried so hard to hide her feelings—when in truth, she wasn't fine at all.
"I-I'm not lying. Why would I lie? Ahaha..." Marilyn forced a smile, awkwardly, at the boy.
But the boy shook his head slowly. "You're lying again. Why do you lie? Mama says lying is really bad... Even about feelings, you should never lie. Because it can hurt yourself and the person you lie to."
Marilyn's smile instantly fell apart. Those words—a meaningful piece of advice from the mouth of such an innocent little boy—hit her heart harder than she could've ever imagined.
"That's true... I should be more honest with my feelings. And apologize to Brother Caius. I'm sure... he won't be mad," she thought, trying to convince herself after hearing the boy's words.
Though a bit of hesitation still lingered in her heart, Marilyn solidified her resolve. Quickly, she slapped both of her cheeks hard.
Slap! Slap!
"Alright! I'm going to see Brother Caius!" she shouted with full spirit.
The sound of her slap was so loud it startled the boy and several people passing through the square. All eyes instantly turned to Marilyn, who was now standing with a wide smile and reddened cheeks.
"S-sis, what's wrong with you?" the boy asked, still shocked like the others.
Marilyn replied with a wide smile, though her face was now as red as a boiled crab. She stood tall, then looked at the boy still sitting on the bench.
"It's nothing! Thanks for helping me out. Next time we meet, I'll buy you ice cream!"
"O-oh... thank you, Sis," the boy answered with a small nod, still not fully understanding what just happened.
He watched Marilyn run off energetically, one hand holding her fedora so it wouldn't fly away in the wind. The boy had actually thought about giving one of his ice creams to Marilyn, but he gave up on the idea after seeing she had already disappeared in the distance.
In the end, he just sat quietly and continued enjoying both of his ice creams while waiting for his mother—wherever she was.
Marilyn ran as fast as she could, cutting through the crowd on Block A—the closest route to the square and the only main road leading to Caius's workplace: the dark red circus tent.
People she bumped into turned to her with annoyed looks. Some even cursed when Marilyn accidentally brushed or crashed into them, but she kept running without looking back.
"HEY! DON'T RUN AROUND LIKE A CRAZY WOMAN, YOU ASSHOLE!"
"THIS IS A PUBLIC ROAD, DUMBASS!"
"STUPID WOMAN!"
Those shouts didn't shake Marilyn's spirit. She only let out a small laugh and ran even faster, one hand still gripping her fedora tightly so it wouldn't fly away.
As soon as she spotted a narrow alley ahead, Marilyn leapt into it. Skillfully, she sprang from wall to wall until she reached the rooftop.
Once she was up there, she quickly walked toward the edge. From there, the circus tent where Caius worked was already clearly visible. But her steps stopped when she heard panicked shouts from the main road.
"EVERYONE MOVE! THERE'S AN ECHOFIENDS HERE!"
"Huh!?" Marilyn instinctively turned back. Her eyes caught two senior coworkers—their faces tense, their steps rushed, running toward the entrance of the main market not far from the circus tent.
But that wasn't what shocked her—the real question was, how could an Echofiends show up at the worst possible time like this?
"Damn it... Why now!?"
With a heavy heart, Marilyn grit her teeth. She leapt down to the street, landing firmly. Her body shot forward, following the direction of the crowd, while her right hand pulled out a Wheellock pistol from the holster at her waist.
"I'll finish this quickly... and I'll still can meet Caius!"