Chapter 296
Chapter 296
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 296
Chapter Title: Regained Composure
-----------------------------------------------------------------
We were almost at the infirmary now.
Dame Isabelle stopped abruptly and asked me a question.
She asked if I was afraid of her.
To that, I answered with what I truly felt.
"But I know you're a good person at heart. The moment I understood your intentions, I wasn't scared anymore."
At first, I couldn't comprehend Dame Isabelle's cold, coercive demeanor.
But as our conversation continued and I grasped her true meaning, I was no longer afraid of her.
And…
‘So this is her real personality.’
I now clearly realized that the cold way she treated me was not her true self.
The woman speaking to me now was using honorifics, and her attitude was exceedingly cautious.
It once again struck me that her attempts to pressure me were purely for the sake of a warning.
Rather than judging her by her past actions and words, I now understood the hidden meaning behind them. I had no reason to fear her now.
‘She’s such a kind and upright person.’
“……”
As she stared at me in silence, I offered a gentler smile.
I could see she was feeling awkward about my words.
She had become even more cautious in her dealings with me than before, and I felt it was up to me to ease the tension in our relationship now.
“From now on, I won't show you any more disappointing behavior. I don't wish to make you angry either, Dame Isabelle.”
“I was not… angry.”
“You looked very angry when you were warning me.”
“That was because I deemed it necessary to change my attitude. I told you before, I was acting that way for the purpose of a warning…”
She hesitated in her response, and I nodded.
“Even if it’s for a warning… I’d rather not see you angry, Dame Isabelle.”
Ahem, hem.
She coughed awkwardly and avoided my gaze, and a genuine laugh escaped my lips.
‘This woman…’
Seeing her accept my words so readily despite her embarrassment, I thought she might be even more gentle than I had imagined.
As she had said, the apparent age difference between us wasn't significant. Instead, it was her various positions that made me feel she was difficult to approach.
‘Her lofty reputation as a Golden Knight, her unapproachable status as the second daughter of a marquis family…’
When I thought about it, she was actually treating me quite well right now.
Suddenly, I felt the need to get to know her better.
Although we had just had an intense conversation, we hadn't really talked in a meaningful way.
“Dame Isabelle, is there anything else you wish of me?”
“Something I wish?”
“Yes. Regarding my attitude, or actions I should refrain from. If I know in advance, I think I can prevent myself from doing such things.”
As I spoke calmly and met her eyes, Dame Isabelle looked at me as if surprised.
“I have no major demands of you. My purpose is to guard you—a simple, yet most important objective. So, if I had to name one thing, it would be your safety. I would appreciate it if you would refrain from any actions that could strain your body or lead to injury, no matter how trivial.”
“That means… you want me to value my body.”
As she replied, I truly felt that Dame Isabelle was a knight.
—A knight.
Her firm values regarding the one she was sworn to protect were evident in her voice.
I now had a better understanding of why she had shown such a cold side to me earlier.
‘That means my actions today…’
They were enough to make her angry.
“Yes. As a Golden Knight who protects the imperial family, I have never seen any of them attempt to harm themselves. That is because they all hold themselves in high regard. The reason I was unnecessarily cold earlier… was largely because your actions today were utterly incomprehensible to me.”
“I understand completely. I will be more mindful of my actions.”
“If you do so, my heart will be a little more at ease.”
Seeing her give a faint smile, as if pleased with my answer, a small laugh escaped me as well.
‘It’s such a simple thing.’
Not pushing myself, being told not to get hurt—it was all so obvious.
And yet, something so simple could have become this big.
Big enough to have almost caused a major rift between her and me.
***
*Clack.*
As the infirmary door opened, the people inside immediately turned their gazes toward it.
“…Welcome back, you two.”
Adelia spoke first, her voice cautious. Closing the door behind her, Isabelle gave a slight nod.
“Yes.”
Her face was devoid of emotion, her voice perfectly calm. Adelia looked from her to Cheon-seong, who stood beside her, with a worried expression.
“I’m back.”
Cheon-seong simply spoke in a composed tone.
As if nothing had happened.
*Thud. Thud.*
As the two of them returned to their original spots, the gazes of Leonhardt and Karite were drawn to them like magnets.
*Gulp.*
“…”
Leonhardt, having witnessed Isabelle's coldness before she left the infirmary, watched her with extra caution.
Despite this, Isabelle's expression was serene.
As if things had been resolved well.
*Rustle.*
As Cheon-seong sat down on his bed, Isabelle spoke quietly.
“Well then. I will be waiting not far from the infirmary, so I hope you will rest comfortably.”
“Yes. Thank you, Dame Isabelle.”
“Not at all.”
With that brief exchange, Isabelle took her leave, and the door closed once more.
*Click.*
“Han Cheon-seong, are you okay?”
As if waiting for the right moment, Karite approached him. Cheon-seong met her with nothing more than a faint smile.
“I’m fine. Dame Isabelle didn’t scold me too harshly.”
“For someone who wasn’t scolded, she looked awfully cold…”
“We talked it out. Dame Isabelle is a much better person than you might think, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
A natural conversation.
Listening to the tone of his voice, Adelia let out a faint sigh of relief, while Leonhardt, who had been merely watching, also seemed to relax, his expression softening slightly.
“That’s a real relief. Still, I’m honestly a little scared of Dame Isabelle… If someone of such high rank were guarding me, I don’t think I’d feel very comfortable.”
At her words, Cheon-seong looked at Karite for a moment before letting out a soft chuckle.
…It was an oddly peculiar smile.
“I suppose you could feel that way.”
“Yeah. Han Cheon-seong, did I say something weird? Why are you… smiling like that?”
“No, it’s nothing significant. It’s just that, to me, you’re not exactly a person of low standing either, Karite.”
“That’s because… I’m a student, same as you.”
Her reply was perfectly logical, yet to Cheon-seong, it felt strangely detached from reality.
—The House of Count Esildereun.
Karite, too, was the eldest daughter of a noble family, a countess. He was well aware that her title was by no means a low one.
‘When you think about it, Karite is the strange one.’
And his thoughts naturally drifted in that direction.
It had been nearly four months since he had entered the academy.
Within the class, there was a stark difference in atmosphere between the nobles and commoners. Even among the nobility, the groups they associated with, like factions, differed according to their titles.
It meant that factions were a natural occurrence even among the nobles.
It was like oil and water; they might seem to be able to mix, but they would naturally separate.
—People of their own standing.
Even as students, they themselves felt the difference, knowing what kind of people they should associate with.
“Still, Karite, thank you for treating me so casually.”
“Oh, don’t mention it. You suddenly thanking me… makes me feel even more awkward.”
As their small talk continued, Adelia, who had been watching them quietly, tapped her finger on the table.
*Tap. Tap…*
Tapping lightly on the table, she fell into another worry.
Though the immediate crisis seemed to have been averted without major incident, she appeared to have something else on her mind…
***
The time spent resting, though seemingly slow and monotonous, passed rather quickly.
As if time itself were striding forward, day and night continued to cycle.
And so, it was now Saturday, nearing the end of the academy's tenth week.
“Hoo…”
I wanted to stretch my stiff body and yawn.
My body was almost fully recovered. I felt it wouldn't be long before I could leave the infirmary.
In my line of sight, I could see Leonhardt, still lost in meditation.
He was sitting in a formal posture with his eyes closed, looking as if he were cultivating some profound art.
‘Does that really help?’
Honestly, I was skeptical just watching him. The clue to recovering the energy of the Sword of the Azure Sky. I had come to fully understand Leonhardt's training method during my time in the infirmary.
He prioritized mental training over physical.
…He seemed clearly focused on that, and it was actually effective.
In our last spar, he had brilliantly awakened and grasped that very clue.
*Rustle.*
Then, he suddenly opened his eyes, and our gazes happened to meet. I gave an awkward smile.
“Leonhardt, you’re still meditating?”
“That’s right.”
“Is it really that helpful?”
I asked without hesitation.
I felt almost no guilt looking at him anymore. Now that he had found clear hope and was living brightly, it would be ridiculous for me to offer him a pitying gaze.
“Uhm…”
But contrary to my expectation of a confident “yes,” he smiled as if troubled.
“Isn’t it helpful?”
“You could say it’s helpful, in a way. But this is something that applies to me… so it’s difficult to say for sure how it would be for others.”
“…Ah, I see. So that’s how it is.”
A short laugh escaped me. But I also understood what he meant.
‘Right.’
In the story, Leonhardt is portrayed as a genius no one can match.
Innate talent. The superiority of his given trait.
And when combined with his uniquely good-natured personality that never allows for arrogance, he achieves an unbelievable rate of growth, one miracle after another.
“But Han Cheon-seong, for you, meditation could definitely be helpful.”
Then he spoke brightly, and I just shook my head.
“I don’t know about that…”
His hopeful gaze felt burdensome.
Over the past few days of conversation, I had keenly felt that this guy was looking at me as an even greater genius than himself.
This guy.
He was thinking way too highly of me.
“Would you like me to briefly tell you about the meditation I do? It might be helpful for you, too. If you’re interested, I can teach you properly.”
At his suggestion, I was hesitant… but I nodded anyway.
“Alright. Go ahead and teach me.”
A genius was offering to teach me his training method for free. There was no reason to refuse.