🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 50
“Commander!”
Riena, feeling like she wanted to tear her hair out over how something like this could happen again, looked around in alarm.
“Wh-what! Who is it?”
“You were at it again! I went all the way to the capital to work, and this is what I get!”
Rion stomped his feet as he approached, and Riena let out a sigh of relief.
Phew, thank goodness. Just as well that chatterbox showed up—maybe he can break this awkward atmosphere somehow.
“Thanks so much for going to the capital instead of me! I should have gone myself as the commander!”
For the first time, Riena felt a deep sense of gratitude toward Rion, and she grabbed his hands warmly.
“Wh-what is this? This bizarre and scary reaction from the commander?”
Rion hesitated, clearly flustered by Riena’s unusually cheerful behavior.
“Why… why me?”
Riena laughed brightly, as if nothing was wrong. Seeing this, Rion quickly pulled his hands back and took a step back.
“I don’t want to die! I’m a hardworking knight dreaming of being a rich loafer, not someone wishing to commit suicide!”
He shouted desperately, running through his mind all the possible ways he might have offended the commander enough to risk his life.
Did she find out that when she was a maid, I accidentally told the young master and miss? No, that wouldn’t be life-threatening…
At that moment, a voice came to rescue him.
“Rion, long time no see!”
It was Eloise, her face showing awkwardness despite an exaggeratedly cheerful greeting. It was clear she was trying to defuse the situation, and Rion’s eyes lit up.
“Miss, I’ve missed you so much too!”
Following Eloise, Rion greeted her theatrically and subtly nodded toward the back of the training grounds building. Eloise caught his gaze and nodded discreetly.
“How long has it been…? Ah, right! I’m so curious what took you to the capital.”
“I was wondering if your health has improved, Miss. Shall we catch up on all we’ve missed?”
“Sure, let’s go!”
Rion and Eloise walked forward as if on cue, speaking in exaggerated, performative tones. But the knights blocked their path, preventing them from moving further.
“Vice-Commander, long time no see!”
“Yes, it’s been a while! You can’t just leave like that!”
“There’s nothing good about seeing your faces after so long—move aside!”
Rion tried to flee from the commander, who had found a new way to torment him, and shouted.
“Miss, you’ve been watching the training grounds for days. Isn’t this supposed to be a chance for reconciliation?”
“Y-yeah, that’s right. I wanted to reconcile too, but…”
“The longer you wait, the harder it will get.”
The knights saw this as the perfect moment—both the young master and miss were in the same place, both wanting to reconcile. Their eyes shone with resolve.
“I…”
Eloise hesitated to speak.
“……”
“……”
Kylean and Rian fixed their eyes on Eloise like nails had been driven into them. The knights, circling the two and eavesdropping on the conversation, raised their voices in encouragement.
“Young master, now’s the time!”
“Now is the time to apologize, young master! And you too, Rian!”
“Don’t worry, both of you! Just do as you’ve decided.”
The knights’ voices shook the training grounds. Watching this quietly, Riena shook her head. The awkward situation had been eased by the knights’ intervention, which was good—but looking at how things were going, she muttered to herself:
“If it’s this loud, it’ll just backfire.”
Hearing Riena’s faint voice, Kylean flinched.
“Shut up…! I can handle this myself!”
Raising his voice, Kylean swallowed hard and approached Eloise.
“Eloise… I, um…”
His heart pounded violently as he faced Eloise after avoiding her for several days. Words wouldn’t come easily, and just then, he heard her voice.
“I’m sorry. I’ve been acting foolishly, just avoiding you…”
“…What? Why are you apologizing?”
“I didn’t explain properly and… I was just worried about you.”
Eloise had thought of Kylean whenever she played with Brizney and her friends. Her pride had made her ignore it and act distant.
If I had explained things like the Grand Duke respected my thoughts, he would have respected Kylean’s too.
Eloise felt foolish for how she’d behaved.
By constantly avoiding him, I only upset Kylean. It was my fault from the start…
Tears welled in her eyes.
“Eloise…”
Kylean stared blankly at her. She didn’t need to apologize—he was the one at fault. He had acted selfishly without considering her thoughts. Yet she had reached out first.
It’s my fault, and I didn’t even apologize properly… what an idiot I am.
Clenching his fists in frustration, Kylean spoke.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t respect your feelings and acted on my own.”
Tears filled his eyes too, mirroring Eloise’s.
“I-I’m sorry too!”
Rian, who had been frozen and unable to speak, lowered his head.
“I’m… very sorry.”
Rian hesitated, then spoke again. This apology felt different from the one before, his gaze like an old, unsent letter finally delivered.
“Damn it… why am I crying? I’m not even the type to cry…”
He hurriedly wiped his tears with his sleeve. The knights patted him roughly, cheering.
“Of course you would! Even if you try to act mature, you’re still someone who needs protection!”
“Someone who needs protection…”
Repeating the knights’ words, Rian’s lips trembled violently. His calm, mask-like face had crumbled, and he collapsed, sobbing as if spewing out all his bottled-up feelings. Eloise and Kylean, who had barely held back, also burst into tears.
“W-what’s happening all of a sudden?”
Brizney, not understanding, patted Eloise on the back.
“Are you okay, Eloise? If you want to cry, it’s fine… but not too much, or your head will hurt. Okay?”
She glanced at the others.
“Hey, big brother and coalhead! Don’t cry too much, or your head will hurt.”
Brizney, giving the best comfort she could, gently stroked Eloise’s back. Watching the children, Riena, who had been relaxed seeing this heartwarming scene, nudged Rion’s side.
“Hey, Rion…”
Isn’t this a beautiful scene…? Riena didn’t finish her thought—Rion’s scream pierced the air.
“Ahh! You crazy people! I asked you to let me escape! But I ended up caught by monsters!”
Riena, who had been feeling warm toward the children’s scene, sharpened her gaze.
“What? You crazy bastard! I was trying to treat you nicely… monsters? Come here!”
Rion covered his mouth.
“You’re finally back! Please stay as the usual monster, not the terrifying commander!”
Rion, overwhelmed with emotion, hugged Riena.
“…What’s wrong with him? He’s completely lost it!”
Riena, stunned by this unexpected reaction, shouted and pushed Rion away.
“Eloise, stop crying for a moment and listen to me! Adults cry too, even knights!”
Brizney, patting her friend’s back, tried to calm her.
It was a rare day where the sounds of children’s sobbing, rather than the rough voices of knights, filled the air. The sun, which rarely lingered to warm such moments, slowly began to set, concluding the day.
