WHPR 11

Chapter : 11

She twisted her face in discomfort and covered her wound.

The man stepped closer and reached out toward Jenaida.

Jenaida avoided his touch and reflexively grabbed the scabbard at her waist.

But she didn’t draw her sword. He hadn’t shown any sign of hostility.

Instead, she assumed a guarded stance and asked,

“Why did you come looking for me?”

Raised by the Pope, once an imperial knight, and now a grand duchess—
from the spirit mages’ perspective, she was no different from a traitor.

Regardless of whatever reasons lay beneath the surface.

Yet there was no hatred, no murderous intent in this man’s eyes.

At Jenaida’s question, he replied as if it were obvious.

“Of course I came looking for you.”

He lifted one corner of his lips.

“You’re a spirit mage just like me.”

In this empire, there was no one who didn’t know her origins—
no matter how deaf one might be to rumors.

Is he mocking me?

Unable to understand his response, Jenaida was about to scoff when a loud noise made her snap her head around.

Bang!

A heavy impact came from the closed door. It seemed the earlier commotion had drawn people over.

Jenaida reflexively checked the latch. It was a safety measure in case of emergencies. The door hadn’t opened yet, but it looked as though it might give way at any moment.

If it opens, this will be bad.

More dangerous than the disturbance itself was the fact that she had been in contact with a spirit mage.

With rumors already spreading about spirit mages running rampant, this would hand the central nobles a perfect target.

As if he had read her thoughts, the man murmured with a faint smile,

“Worried the door might open?”

Jenaida glared at him without answering. This whole mess was his fault.

Reminding herself not to provoke him, she swallowed the words she wanted to say.

Meanwhile, he spoke down to someone as if giving an order.

“Hey, block that.”

A grumbling voice answered, and a woman with long, pointed ears appeared.

A spirit.

Frowning, the spirit complained,

“How about treating me half as well as you treated her? You’re contracted with me, not her.”

“Why would I?”

At his mocking reply, the spirit muttered, “Crazy bastard,” and stretched her arm toward the entrance where others could enter. The unstable shaking of the door and windows gradually subsided.

Satisfied, the man turned his gaze back to Jenaida. With a broad smile, he extended his hand toward her—
much like when Kaiden had once escorted her.

“Come with me, Jenaida.”

“……”

“Don’t bother being kind to people who look down on you.”

It was a dangerously sweet whisper.

Though she was an imperial knight, Jenaida had endured endless criticism simply because she was also a spirit mage. Before her regression and now, people rejected and cursed what they didn’t understand.

But she couldn’t leave.

There were still many events ahead if she was to save Kaiden from his destined death.

She had to protect him from them.

To devote her whole self to guarding him, and after seeing him smile happily, then I—

“You really do say whatever you want.”

Before she could finish the thought in her mind, someone stepped in front of her.

Deep crimson hair, humanlike ears, and armor—
they reminded her of a very specific person.

She stared at him blankly and murmured,

“Sir Lancelot?”

Seeing her stunned expression, the red-haired man turned his head and smiled faintly.

“It’s been a long time, Jena.”

Lancelot.

A spirit who had stayed by Jenaida’s side for so long that she couldn’t even remember when their contract had been formed.

After her regression, he hadn’t appeared no matter how many times she called him, and she had worried she might never be able to use spirit powers again.

She almost vented all the resentment she’d built up—but stopped herself. This wasn’t the time for petty complaints.

Lancelot shifted his gaze from her and glared at the man. Unlike the kindness he showed Jenaida, his face held no trace of a smile.

In an irritated voice, Lancelot asked,

“What’s your name?”

Instead of answering, the man merely glanced at Jenaida. Lancelot muttered darkly and repeated,

“I asked for your name.”

“Why should I tell you?”

At his sharp reply, Lancelot let out a short laugh and strode forward, grabbing him by the collar.

“Kids these days have no manners.”

Seeing this, the spirit who had been following the man panicked and shouted,

“Hey! Take your hands off him!”

When his spirit became agitated, the man raised a hand to stop her.

“Quiet, Elia.”

“I show concern and you complain?”

“Jenaida.”

Hearing her name, Jenaida—who had been observing from behind—turned her gaze toward him.

Even while being grabbed by the collar, he didn’t lose his smile as he asked,

“You’ll come with me, right?”

Lancelot was about to speak, but Jenaida cut in first.

“I have no intention of going with you.”

At her firm refusal, the smile vanished from his face for a brief moment. Soon, however, he forced a grin and asked,

“Why?”

“Why should I tell you?”

Being dismissed in the same way he had treated Lancelot, the man let out a hollow laugh and clicked his tongue.

He called out to the spirit named Elia.

“Hey, stop it.”

“You were fine when you were grabbed by the collar—now that you’re rejected, your pride’s hurt?”

“Enough. Let go.”

At his calm voice, Elia stopped mocking and withdrew her power. The golden light filling the area slowly faded.

Then the heavy sounds and vibrations that had been suppressed began again.

Bang.

Still looking incredulous, he called her name.

“Jenaida.”

Bang.

“I’ll come back again. Don’t worry. Oh—and.”

Dragging out his words, he stepped closer to her.

Crash!

“My name is Ellen.”

After giving his name, Ellen threw himself into the air just as the door shattered. Smiling faintly, he muttered words no one could hear.

“You’ll take my hand eventually.”

Kaiden arrived late and alternated his gaze between the wrecked interior, Lancelot, and Jenaida. He then issued an order to those who had followed him.

“Do not come in unless I call for you.”

The servants all bowed deeply and quickly disappeared. Once everyone was gone, Kaiden stepped inside.

“Please explain what happened, Jenaida.”

Jenaida spoke before Lancelot could.

“It was an accident that occurred while summoning a spirit.”

“You’re saying all this damage was caused by a spirit?”

“Yes. I was inexperienced in handling the power and made a mistake. I apologize if I startled everyone at such a late hour.”

It was a lie—but she couldn’t bring herself to tell the truth. She couldn’t predict how Kaiden would react if he learned of Ellen’s existence.

If he still loved me—

Then…

Ellen would definitely try to kill him if he comes back.

She didn’t want to put Kaiden in danger unnecessarily. This was a matter between spirit mages.

As the silence stretched on, Lancelot—who had been quietly observing—spoke up.

“You don’t believe her? You should. It’ll only be troublesome for you if the imperial troops get involved.”

Cornered, Kaiden didn’t reply and instead called for the servants.

“Come in and clean this up.”

At his command, people entered in perfect order and began restoring the room.

Having passed the crisis, Jenaida let out a quiet sigh of relief. At that moment, a familiar face appeared beside her.

“Are you all right, my lady?”

It was her maid.

Jenaida nodded, then worried about the maid instead.

“I’m fine. What about you? You must’ve been frightened.”

“I’m just relieved that you’re safe. I’ll escort you to your room.”

Jenaida followed her without protest. As she left the room, her eyes met Kaiden’s—
he stood alone in the darkness.

They looked at each other with expressionless faces, then quickly looked away.

Back in her room, she locked the door and called out to Lancelot.

“Sir Lancelot.”

Like smoke, Lancelot materialized before her.

“Why don’t you try getting some sleep?”

He appeared so quickly that it made all her earlier forced attempts feel meaningless. Swallowing a bitter laugh, she asked,

“Why did you only appear now?”

There was a hint of resentment in her voice.

If he had appeared when she witnessed the imperial knight’s death, they could have quickly identified the culprit.

As if he sensed her thoughts, Lancelot asked back,

“Why? Curious?”

“Yes. I am.”

Then Dalton wouldn’t have needed to be dragged into this.

Faced with her insistent gaze, Lancelot remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

“Even when you called me, I couldn’t go.”

“What?”

“I don’t know the exact reason myself.”

At his answer, Jenaida looked at him with hollow eyes.

Is this a side effect of regression?

Nothing was known about regression. Even she didn’t know how she had reversed time.

She forced down the anger rising to her throat. This wasn’t Lancelot’s fault.

As she struggled to calm herself, Lancelot suddenly said,

“What, do you resent me?”

Caught off guard, Jenaida didn’t answer and bit her lower lip. Seeing this, Lancelot continued,

“If you’re going to be angry, be angry at me. What kind of parent can’t even take a little irritation from their child?”