Chapter 45

Chapter 45

“I wanted to see Hawk and Ray spar, too…”

“I’m sure there’ll be another opportunity later.”

“When we’re this busy?”

There was still a mountain of paperwork piled on her desk.

Would she even be able to have dinner in the dining room tonight?

A sigh escaped Irenea’s lips before she could stop it.

“And it’s not just me. Ray is just as busy. He must need two bodies just to keep up with his duties as a count.”

“If that’s what you’re worried about, I don’t think you need to be. I heard that the young lady in the annex has always handled the count’s affairs herself.”

“Really? Ah, now that you mention it…”

After all, Jenis was the rightful owner of the count’s title.

Besides, Leonard had been away from the estate for so long, working as a mercenary to earn money to repay his debts, that she must have taken care of all the count’s duties herself.

“Edward also spends about half his day helping the young lady in the annex.”

“Oh my? Have you become close enough to call him by his first name?”

At Irenea’s question, Daymond wore an expression brimming with satisfaction.

“He’s been the most rewarding young man I’ve ever had the pleasure of hosting.”

“Well, he was rather adorable, wasn’t he?”

The way he’d come all the way to the Marchioness’s estate on his own, trembling as he asked whether their Count was there… He’d looked so much like a puppy drenched in the rain.

She’d given him a room and told him to rest until Leonard returned, but he’d spent only the first day worrying about imposing on them.

He slept well, ate well, and even enjoyed his walks. It was quite…

‘Just like a puppy raised in a loving home.’

Of course, that wasn’t something one should say about a perfectly grown young man.

“Goodness. Marchioness, you’re getting married in just a week! How can you say such things about another man?”

“Hm? No, I didn’t mean adorable in that way…”

Before Irenea could wave her hands in protest, Kiri spoke in a dramatic voice, like an actress performing on stage.

“You’ve been so busy these past few days that you barely get to see the future Marquis consort except at dinner. And if he finds out that, on top of all that, you’ve been praising another man as adorable!”

Clutching her chest as though her heart ached on his behalf, Kiri turned her gaze toward Daymond.

Understanding her intentions perfectly, Daymond put on an equally sorrowful expression.

“The future Marquis consort would be terribly heartbroken. Especially after he personally inspected the sculpted candles, fountain decorations, and chandeliers that arrived this morning.”

And hadn’t he even stopped by the greenhouse to pick flowers for the Marchioness’s office?

Daymond launched into a lengthy speech about what the Marchioness had been doing while her future husband was putting so much effort into everything.

“Surely, Marchioness, you’re not the sort of person who stops feeding a fish once you’ve caught it?”

“Of course not! What kind of question is that?”

“If that’s not the case, then why don’t you go and see him right now, since we’re talking about it?”

“Right now?”

“Yes. He’s probably training with the knights at the training grounds. You could take him some refreshments.”

Daymond chimed in, agreeing that Kiri’s suggestion was an excellent idea.

“I’ll immediately inform the kitchen to prepare refreshments for the knights as well.”

Before Irenea could even stop him with a quick “Wait!”, Daymond had already left the office.

As soon as he was gone, Kiri stood up and swiftly gathered the papers on Irenea’s desk.

“Then I’ll go fetch Lady Emily. Since you’re going to see the future Marquis consort, you should make sure you’re properly dressed, shouldn’t you?”

“No…”

Once again, Irenea didn’t get the chance to stop her.

Watching the two of them act as though they’d made up their minds to send her straight to Leonard, Irenea finally realized what was going on.

They were trying to force her to take a break because she wasn’t giving herself any rest, using her busy schedule as an excuse.

“Have I really been burying myself in work that much?”

It didn’t seem all that different from usual.

But now that she thought about it, things were quite different. She was a bride-to-be with barely a week left until her wedding, after all.

“Well, now that you mention it, I suppose I’m not quite as excited as I should be…”

Since things had come to this, perhaps she should try to rediscover that lost sense of anticipation.

***

-Whistle!

A sharp whistle rang out across the training grounds, which were thick with dust.

“Thirty-minute break!”

At the voice that followed, the knights, who had barely been standing on their trembling legs, collapsed to the ground one after another.

They hadn’t simply sat down. They had literally collapsed.

With not even enough strength left to sit upright, they panted and gasped for breath, not even caring that dust was getting into their mouths.

“Haaah… I’m dying…”

“How did someone even worse than the vice-captain end up here…?”

“Watch your mouth, you brat. Shouldn’t the commander be better than the vice-captain?”

The one chuckling with laughter was the vice-captain himself.

Hawk had given up his position as acting commander and joined the training not as an instructor, but as one of the participants.

Still, as the vice-captain, he at least had the privilege of sitting on the ground, unlike the other knights.

But he was breathing just as heavily as they were. After taking a water bottle from one of the squires waiting nearby and downing it in one go, he eventually gave in and sprawled out on the training ground like the others.

“Good grief. I thought being a mercenary wouldn’t make him all that different, but…”

He was different. If anything, he was even worse than someone from the back alleys.

At this point, Hawk was beginning to wonder whether that man was even human.

Lying on the ground, he stared with a horrified expression at Leonard, who was still standing on his own two feet.

‘At least there’s no doubt he’s stronger than the other mercenaries…’

In truth, the Blair Knights weren’t exactly one of the most prestigious orders among aspiring knights.

That didn’t mean they accepted just anyone who applied, though. They still put candidates through tests and recruited only those whose abilities had been proven.

And yet, even after sparring with every single one of them, Leonard didn’t look particularly tired.

When Hawk had first arrived here, he’d gone through all sorts of hardships to hold on to his position as vice-captain.

Stung by Leonard’s utterly unruffled demeanor, he’d challenged him again and again, but had never managed to win even once.

He’d even resorted to underhanded tactics as a last resort, only to be subdued in an instant, as though Leonard were perfectly accustomed to dealing with such tricks.

To be defeated so utterly…

If that man didn’t already have someone he served, Hawk would have called him Brother and followed him.

‘What kind of stamina does this bastard have…’

Taking another sip of water, Hawk looked Leonard up and down with an expression of disbelief.

His body, honed through years of training, had a solid center of gravity and was perfectly balanced.

Perhaps that was why, no matter where or how Hawk tried to strike, he couldn’t imagine bringing him down.

Against someone with such a sturdy physique, the only option was to keep fighting until his stamina ran out and his body’s balance began to falter.

But Leonard’s stamina surpassed even Hawk’s.

What was most infuriating of all was that, despite having a body so perfectly suited to defense, Leonard’s swordsmanship was incredibly sharp and aggressive.

Well, with a body like that, anyone would be tempted to use it as armor and charge straight at their opponent.

At this point, the only tactics left to try against that man were to make him lower his guard or catch him off balance…

‘Forget it. Just forget it.’

It was difficult enough to make someone like him lower his guard.

The only trick Hawk, who had grown up in the back alleys, could think of was taking a hostage.

“Is this for me? Thank you.”

Leonard bent down on one knee in front of Charlotte, who came trotting over and held out a bottle of water.

His gaze was remarkably gentle as he looked at the child. They must have grown quite close after spending just a few days together.

If the person he had to kill for his master were standing before him, he might have taken the defenseless, grinning child hostage.

But…

No, even then, he didn’t think he could win.

‘Maybe if I took one of his arms.’

But even that wouldn’t be enough to bring a man like him down.

After running through every possible scenario in his head and finally concluding that there was no way to win, Hawk was simply relieved that the man was someone he would have to serve alongside his master.

‘At best, we’d take each other down.’

If he wasn’t careful, he might risk his life only to lose it outright.

And in a particularly gruesome way, too.

‘What the hell is with that bloodlust…?’

He’d never felt a chill run down his spine like that in his entire life.

Just what kind of life had that man lived?

“No. A real sword is dangerous.”

Leonard swiftly scooped Charlotte up as she reached out and casually touched the sword at his waist.

Supporting the little girl beneath her bottom with one arm, he lifted her with ease and kept her at a distance so she wouldn’t touch his body, which was filthy with sweat and dust.

That consideration became pointless when Charlotte promptly wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Do you want to learn how to use a sword?”

Nod, nod!

“You said you’re eight years old this year, Charlotte. That’s certainly old enough to start learning swordsmanship.”

…Excuse me? Wouldn’t most people tell her it was dangerous and try to stop her?

“But learning swordsmanship can leave calluses on your hands and scars on your body. Those could become blemishes when you make your debut in high society.”

Shake, shake.

“You don’t intend to make your debut in high society?”

Shake, shake.

Charlotte reached toward Leonard’s hand.

Puzzled, Leonard held it out, and Charlotte gently stroked it as though telling him how pretty it was.

Leonard quickly understood what she meant.

“You don’t think those are flaws?”

A bright smile!

“I see… That’s right.”

Leonard wore a strange expression. His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, he managed only an awkward smile.

As if he wasn’t sure whether it was all right to let himself make such an expression.

“Even so, learning swordsmanship is more dangerous than you might think. It would be best to get your guardian’s permission first.”

Tilt?

“I mean Rin… Irenea. Your older sister.”

Charlotte tilted her head once more, then raised her index finger and pointed at Leonard, poking toward him.

Unlike before, Leonard couldn’t understand what she meant.

But Hawk, who had caught on, called out from a little distance away in an amused voice.

“You mean the commander is her guardian, too?”