When
Both
They were clearing rubble.
Because they had work armor, they could move fast, but even so, the whole Republic was far short of hands.
Where the debris had been cleared, Marie was serving food with
A line of Republic citizens was forming.
«Stand in line properly!» she shouted, ladle in hand, apron on, hair tied back in a ponytail.
People were crowding in, not making any line at all—some even tried to snatch the pot or steal food.
«Shut up! Hand it over already!»
So— ‘Huh? What’s that?’ Leon’s armor rolled up close, slamming the tool for the armor onto the ground.
The vibration silenced everyone, and Leon continued.
‘If you behave, you can eat. Simple, right? Anyone with a complaint step forward. Anyone who stole—I'll crush you with this.’ «—Uh, no…»
‘Line up quickly!’ The residents who’d been causing a ruckus bowed their heads and fell silent in front of the armor.
At first Leon thought it was overkill, but some people actually pull out weapons.
He couldn’t afford to keep a sweet face.
Watching this while working,
«Glad it didn’t get messy,» he muttered.
‘Yeah, that’s true. But seriously, isn’t Bartfort being way too careful?’ To the other members, Leon seemed overly cautious about the reconstruction work.
In fact, they thought the food distribution was unnecessary since they were already helping.
«I feel the same. We’re in armor, but Marie and the others are out there in flesh. We don’t want them doing anything dangerous.»
Just as they were about to resume work,
‘All right, break time. The armor will be refueled, so get off and eat. Bartfort, what about you?’ Leon glared at the residents.
‘I’ll take my break after you guys.’ He didn’t get off, maybe thinking it’d be unsafe without someone watching.
Shrugging his shoulders, Brad said, «Then I’ll go ahead and rest.»
◇ Five people were eating after getting off their armor—plus the six from Elik’s group.
All six looked exhausted.
After finishing their meals and resting, Brad spotted some kids.
Kids with nowhere to go, faces dark and downcast.
Elik looked at them sadly.
«—Orphans who lost their parents.»
«I see. Then—»
«Your Highness, we can’t—»
«
Julius started to say something, but Jilk cut him off.
«This is a Republic problem. We don’t have the power to help.»
They couldn’t possibly rescue every orphan in the whole Republic.
When everyone lowered their heads, Brad stood up.
«Then at least we should make them smile, even if just for now.»
«Smile? You think you can make those kids laugh?»
«Make them laugh? No. When I was earning money, I performed magic. I’m still a popular magician.»
Everyone gave him a skeptical look, and Brad’s face flushed with anger.
«You don’t trust me! Fine, just watch.»
He pulled a prop from his bag and stepped in front of the kids.
«I’m the genius magician Brad. I’ll show you a special trick. The price? Your smiles.»
The kids stared up at him, confused.
He fished something out of his pocket—something that should’ve been hidden, but was out in the open.
«Look, no gimmick, no trick. Here we go—ah, wait? No fire. Did it break?»
He tried to conjure fire from nothing and failed.
Stashing the tool back into his rear pocket, he decided to use magic to create flame.
«How’s that?»
The kids clapped, maybe because magic was rare, but it hardly looked like a proper magic trick.
Their puzzled faces were obvious.
Greg rolled his eyes.
«Genius now? He’s made decent money, huh?»
Chris was equally baffled.
«Looks like third‑rate at best.»
Everyone was confused—he kept bragging about being a genius while failing at every trick.
Then a chubby man in a tattered suit shuffled over and hugged Brad.
«Brad‑kyun!»
Everyone gasped, «Brad ‘kyun’!?» The man clearly knew him.
«Manager!»
«I finally found you, Brad‑kyun. And to think you’d pull a gag here—you're a born comedian. Let’s work together again. With you we could take over the world! Because you’re a genius!»
What the heck was he talking about?
Seeing Brad’s pathetic magic, everyone wondered where the manager saw any talent.
«—No way. I have to go back to the country.»
«No! Brad‑kyun, let’s master the comedian’s path together!»
The persistent manager was addressed by Julius.
«Excuse me, may I have a word?»
The manager nodded, and Brad resumed his clumsy trick in front of the kids.
He still showed no sign of talent.
He was so awkward that when he pulled out a deck of cards, he dropped the «seed» during the shuffle.
Watching this, someone asked, «Does he even have magician talent? Did he ever actually earn a living as a magician?»
Another replied, «Someone might not know, but do you see any talent in Brad‑kyun’s tricks?»
«—Then why push him onto the comedy track?»
No one could understand why they’d force a talent‑less guy into entertainment.
The manager stared at Brad.
«Just watch. It’s about time. Something’s about to happen.»
«What?»
Julius kept watching as Brad, still confident, performed a botched trick that sent smoke out of his backside.
It was the same fire from the failed prop earlier.
«Heat! Ahhh, my butt’s on fire!»
Brad flailed, smacking his rear to put out the flames, and a clean, cartoonish butt appeared.
He kept grinning, still confident.
«Maybe a slip‑up, but it’s fine. A genius magician never panics. Now, for the next trick—»
When he turned around, his bare butt was right in front of the kids.
The children giggled.
Julius sensed something.
The manager gazed at Brad, eyes sparkling.
«Did you see the kids’ smiles? He’s a natural—comedian. He could usher in a new era.»
Julius nodded.
«So that’s it.»
He’d called him a comedian, not a magician. Brad never doubted his own genius—that was the point.
And so, with more botched tricks and failures, Brad kept the kids smiling.